Unique Missionary Experiences

I haven't been losing weight mother... no need to worry... I definitely gained weight since the beginning of my mission. I gain weight every time I get to ride a bike, and I stay the same when I get to ride in a car. I'm pretty sure I came out around 120-130ish; now I'm 155ish.

I went to a branch yesterday in addition to our own sacrament meeting for complications for needing to do an interview for an investigator who all at once decided he needed to be baptized next week. Before Sacrament, Elder Douglas, the elder I was with, was asked to give a short talk about missionary work, and we were both asked to pass the sacrament. (Only the two of us passed to the 25ish members there.) After the intermediate hymn they announced the next speakers: the missionaries, which included me. So I had a grand total of zero seconds (plus how long it took to walk 20 feet away to the pulpit) to prepare a talk. I hadn't come up with anything yet when I reached the pulpit. Kind of interesting experience. Out of it all though, It was the most comfortable talk I've ever given. Usually my pulse skyrockets when I'm in a "struggly" situation or really nervous or put on the spot. I didn't feel any of that, and it went great for the time I had to prepare. I just gave a spiritual thought about missionary work, using 2 Nephi 32:2-4 and paraphrased the parable in the end of Luke ch 16 with insights on both. Fun stuff: be one of two to pass the sacrament, give a talk, and interview a candidate for membership in the church in a branch you don't belong to the first time you ever attend a branch in your entire life. Not very many people get to do that. 

Elder Lang is my new companion here in Evans, GA in the Martinez ward. He's from Utah. Out of the 10 missionaries that go to this meetinghouse church building of ours, I'm the only one not from Utah. 

Miracles are out there! This is the time to declare the gospel more than ever before, For behold, the time is Nigh at hand.

We get to drive to Macon once a month now. That's a 3 hour drive each way...  I'm going to enjoy the meetings. but probably not the drive. I've already made that trip once for transfers. Now I'm going to do it again for Missionary Leadership Council on a monthly basis. That's ok though, Now I get to listen to 6 hours worth of talks tomorrow =-)

Zone Leader and Investigator

I was assigned to be a Zone Leader as of tomorrow (transfers are on Tuesdays now). I'm staying in the Martinez ward and they are splitting the Zone. I must say, I went on exchanges with our Zone Leaders Friday/Saturday and I decided that I didn't want to be a zone leader on my mission because they have a lot of stuff they get to do that can get boring sometimes that I didn't want to deal with. Not ten minutes after our exchange ended President Cottle called and asked if I'd accept the assignment to be a Zone Leader.... I almost choked on "I accept"... right after I decided I didn't want to do it, the Lord sees fit that I need to grow in that area. That seems to happen in life a lot. (Ether 12:27)

We're going to have a Zone Leader and training companionship in our apartment this transfer. That will be fun. It's a 2.5 hour drive to Macon, GA where we will have our transfer meeting. That is a lot further than the 1-1.5 h to get to Columbia, SC.

One of the LA members (leaving out name on purpose) we've been talking to recently has a strong testimony, just some bad habits and doesn't come to church. His best friend he talks to all of the time about the church and the conversation always reaches some road block because his friend doesn't understand the answer that his is given. The LA member has talked him up to us about how hard headed he is and how he can't get through to him and that he wouldn't accept an invitation to hear from us probably. We stopped by to see this LA member and caught him and his friend John on the porch smoking one of their bad habits. We came up and started talking to them and I changed the conversation to be more of a gospel oriented conversation and the LA member said, "Here it goes!" It was so funny how the LA member was reacting about how we taught his friend the gospel. It was certainly divinely inspired both in planning to go see him and in our teaching John. John started with some walls with tea, coffee, and the law of tithing, and those were quickly resolved: "[LA member] it makes a lot more sense why you do that the way they explained it." We spiked interest in the Book of Mormon and the more we told him about it and the more it taught about some of those prominent truths he already knew the more excited he became to read the Book of Mormon. It was a fun night last night, we taught a couple lessons, even though we biked and got wet again. Would you like to swap weather for a couple of days? You'll probably get more rain than the whole year together you normally get in Modesto if you pick the right couple of days over here.

Love you all!

Good day to you

Elder Benjamin Ray Walker

Teaching

I heard there is a hear wave on the west of the states. Too bad. It's actually be a rather cooler summer than normal over here. However I literally get drenched due to scattered storms while the sun is shining on average once a day. Most of the time I hear the thunder it's not raining where I'm at. There has been scattered storms on a daily basis for the past two weeks.

I have a recommendation mother for teaching investigators: "The ideal situation is to have the member invite the investigator to be taught then be present for the teaching" ( ~somewhere in PMG) set up a family home evening with the missionaries. Or invite them over for dinner, with the missionaries for the lesson to be taught at "our" home. Talk to the missionaries before hand and ask them what they'd like you to share. My personal opinion is that commitments are best taken and kept when it comes from a friend (missionaries can be friends too, but missionaries come and go.)

Elder Swenson and I made a really good lesson plan to teach to active members of the church this morning. I'll be sure to share it with you when I get home. It's probably the best lesson plan I've made in months. It's pretty member-missionary motivational. Robert will be sure to look back on those experiences he's having with gratitude. Has Robert been in Oregon for a while now? How long is he going to stay there? I don't remember hearing about Robert staying with Grp & Grm Bean for an extended amount of time. Having nearly finished the Book of Mormon again, I continue to be amazed at how powerful it is. How can anyone genuinely read the Book of Mormon and not know that it is true? You can't. Anyone that says they've read the Book of Mormon and doesn't believe it is either lying or didn't genuinely read it (or as many prophets have said "or then you misunderstand them").

I love you all! Keep praying for opportunities to share the gospel, you can do multiple families at a time you know =-)

Alma 6:6

Elder Benjamin Ray Walker

Service

I wish every member had your zeal, mother. The work would move along so much faster (that's not a comment to say that you're doing enough, you're just getting started.  =-) With that comes more joy though and you get to be "pretty [more] psyched").

This week has been interesting. If I didn't say last week, I started a service project for an investigator and finished it this past week. Elder Swenson and I put together a $1000 Gazebo and it took many hours to accomplish. It took much longer that I anticipated and was a lot easier than I thought it'd be. Immediately after we finished that project (which took a whopping 6 hours to finish including a 30 min meal) we went over to give a Book of Mormon to potential investigators as they had previously requested one, and offered our service there, and she almost didn't believe that we were really offering to help, and we mowed and edged the large lawn. As a result she told us that she promises to read the Book of Mormon. (The Book of Mormon was for her husband, but she promised to read it too.) 

I was drenched a couple times this week. I literally could have jumped in a swimming pool yesterday and not have been more wet. Couple people told us we were crazy for being out in the stormy weather, then didn't want to hear our message.

I really thought that I had a lot to say in this email... I don't know why I'm coming up blank. A lot happened this past week.

I'm at a loss of words...

Love you all!

Elder Benjamin Ray Walker

Last time in the Columbina South Carolina Mission

I have my last missionary meeting with President Holm tomorrow. I'm sure we'll receive addresses, names, and all other kind of information then; they'll probably forward any other mail. I'll let you know next week.

Joshua, thank you for the notes your mission president gave you on the notes from Elder and Sister Cook; I really do appreciate those kind of things.

The broadcast was pretty awesome. I'm kind of excited to hear how they're going to implement the technology in the missions too. Remember during the early years of my mission I said I wouldn't be surprised if all of the missionaries were given iPads or something of the sort during Joshua's mission and perhaps towards the end of my own? Well, it's now been officially announced that it's happening. I was impressed by how many tools and how much technological preparation went into making that broadcast possible, there were so many short videos and video accompaniments to the music sang and the talks given. That's pretty awesome! What tools we don't use, we'll lose! The fireside was it's own general conference session, except it was the apostles speaking only, and it was in June rather than October or April. I thought it was pretty neat that Elder Anderson and Elder Packer spoke from not the Provo Training Center (that stuck out to me as odd too as they said it.)

We had some crazy lessons this past week. Several (at least 4) back to back over 3 or 4 days super anti-Mormon lessons. Fervent testimony was born, the spirit of contention was rejected and you know what results when that happens: CONFOUNDED! They were kind of fun lessons, I've come to know that I know our doctrine pretty well, (I also don't know it very well at the same time.) One of the Anti guys gave us an anti-Mormon literature packet and I read through it all and it's pretty dumb stuff. There are pretty easy answers for most of the questions. I answered every single one for myself, I have yet to not read anti-literature I'm given (probably not the best of ideas), and I'm yet to find an answer. Every Anti-literature document is taken out of context in one way or another. It really just comes down to knowing if the Book of Mormon is true or not, or if Joseph Smith was truly called to be a prophet or not. Once you receive an answer from the Holy Ghost which is near impossible to forget, then you know it's true, and when you hear or read something supposedly contradictory, you don't think "Oh no! now my entire testimony is at stake!" rather you think, "Oh, that's pretty interesting, if that's true, I wonder how that fits into the gospel Plan." 

Oh, before I forget, here's the scripture I'd like on my new plaque: D&C 42:61

The people here are pretty nice. It's a great couple of neighborhoods that we cover. Similar to where we live. The wealthiness per capita in this Columbia county is the highest in Georgia.

Love you all!

Elder Benjamin Ray Walker

Father's Day Weekend

About 3 weeks into my mission I changed my favorite scripture to: 2 Nephi 28:30. I can't even remember what the other one was, I think it had to do something of the effect of: "with God, all things are possible..." but I don't know the reference.

I was trying to think yesterday what my favorite scripture is. It might have changed again. but for now know that I changed my favorite scripture and if time runs out before I decide, it's 2 Nephi 28:30.

By the way, I did get to see the pictures that Joshua took. You already sent it to me with a different email.

The Aususta Zone Conference was really good a week and a half ago. It probably was the same one. It was an all day event.

Something for the future: sometime in the future look up an address on google maps. We were there the other day and our appointment fell through at this address and as I was leaving a message on the phone I believe the google maps car drove past us. I don't know how often they update the maps, but it probably will be updated within the next year in which you'll then see me at that address.

The sisters in the ward made bread for every 18+ brother in the ward. So I got a small loaf of poppy seed bread yesterday =-). Good ol' sisters.

I really like being asked to give talks or teach lessons. Many of the best studying sessions I've had on my mission have been when I'm preparing to teach about a particular topic to others. It's true, when you're in the service of your fellow beings, you're in the service of your God, and he blesses you profusely. 

I must soon depart from the library. Furthermore I end my sayings thus:

Sincerely,

Elder Benjamin Ray Walker

A Georgian Macon Missionary

So it looks like I'm going to be a Georgia Macon missionary as of July 1st. We had our transfer calls last Saturday night, the last one before the transfer and I'm staying here in Evans, GA. I am probably one of few that had a trainer that was part of that mission. That probably doesn't happen very often: Mission dissolves, dissolved missionary trains, trainee joins same mission re-opened two years later.

I have three investigators that I taught in Orangeburg get baptized since I've been here, and more are on the way, is what I've heard. That is wonderful! It lightens up my days.

My companion's b-day: Elder Swenson's 20th birthday was last Saturday. He enjoyed his birthday. We attended another child of record's baptism that day. 

Over the past couple days, be have been soaked through several times. [This would be the Tropical storm Abigail.] The good thing about rain here, is that it's warm rain. I prefer warm rain over freezing cold rain, and I'd rather looked soaked due to rain and sweat, than just sweat. So, overall, rain=good, except when it gets all your stuff wet, or when you feel bad going into people's houses soaked.

We had an awesome meeting last Tuesday. It was interviews meeting, then a Zone meeting, then a special meeting (due to this stake of missionaries leaving the mission), then a pre-mission fireside meeting, then a fireside. It was a day full of great stuff! I thoroughly enjoyed it. I could do that every week. The missionary that was sitting next to me commented to me after all the meetings that she was impressed of my attentiveness throughout the entire block of meetings. Looking back on it, I was pretty aware the entire time what was going on, I never zoned out. That is something that I could not have done at the beginning of my mission. I could probably sit through entire 10 hours of conference back to back and never miss a beat now. That's pretty amazing if you ask me.

Love you all,

Elder Benjamin Ray Walker