😲🐐😆😄😂😓😤🙈🙉😱😵😬🙊😖😯😔😶😉😨😰😀😲🐐😆🙈🙉😱😵😬🙊😖😯😔😶
Love y'all! 💙💚💛💜
Elder Harper 🐐
Monday, July 18, 2016
Monday, July 11, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 11
Hey y'all!
Last week, HOT! We were blessed to be on bikes too, with a lot of door knocking time. We got a nice tan, and the Lord led us to some really nice people.
One highlight, we were just about to get on our bikes and leave the area but we decided to talk to one last person, and there was a lady in the parking lot. We asked if we could give her a card and started to try having a conversation with her. She said she was going through a hard time and tried to leave, but we asked if we could just share a scripture with her. We shared Ether 12:6 and testified that Christ would help her and that he loves her. Then she started to cry and we are going back this week. The Spirit is amazing!!!
I have always loved a quote in “Preach My Gospel” it says, "This message of the Restoration is either true or it is not. We can know that it is true by the Holy Ghost..." In my mind I add, "if we are willing to act." That's really it. That is the magic formula. Just be willing to do what Heavenly Father wants you to do and have the faith that he will prepare a way.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Last week, HOT! We were blessed to be on bikes too, with a lot of door knocking time. We got a nice tan, and the Lord led us to some really nice people.
One highlight, we were just about to get on our bikes and leave the area but we decided to talk to one last person, and there was a lady in the parking lot. We asked if we could give her a card and started to try having a conversation with her. She said she was going through a hard time and tried to leave, but we asked if we could just share a scripture with her. We shared Ether 12:6 and testified that Christ would help her and that he loves her. Then she started to cry and we are going back this week. The Spirit is amazing!!!
I have always loved a quote in “Preach My Gospel” it says, "This message of the Restoration is either true or it is not. We can know that it is true by the Holy Ghost..." In my mind I add, "if we are willing to act." That's really it. That is the magic formula. Just be willing to do what Heavenly Father wants you to do and have the faith that he will prepare a way.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, July 4, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 10
Hey y'all!
Last Monday we went to the beach as a district and played some Kan-Jam. It's probably one of my favorite games now.
So highlights from last week....
#1 We got a call last Monday from a Less Active man. He we in the hospital with his 1 month old baby that is really sick. We got to go and give the baby a blessing and talk with them about eternal families. The spirit was there in high voltage!!!
#2 I got to baptize this guy. He is the Sister missionaries investigator, and the spirit again was awesome!
#3 From today, our ward beat the other ward in a softball game! It was 3-7 in the bottom of the inning and we were losing. We were up to bat and we came back and won it. It was great!
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Last Monday we went to the beach as a district and played some Kan-Jam. It's probably one of my favorite games now.
So highlights from last week....
#1 We got a call last Monday from a Less Active man. He we in the hospital with his 1 month old baby that is really sick. We got to go and give the baby a blessing and talk with them about eternal families. The spirit was there in high voltage!!!
#2 I got to baptize this guy. He is the Sister missionaries investigator, and the spirit again was awesome!
#3 From today, our ward beat the other ward in a softball game! It was 3-7 in the bottom of the inning and we were losing. We were up to bat and we came back and won it. It was great!
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, June 27, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 9
Hey y'all?
How was your week? Please tell me! This last week was awesome! Steven and Will got baptized which was pretty awesome to be a part of. It has been really fun to see how they have changed through their teaching process. They have both had very different experiences, but you can see the light growing in them both. They are becoming happier and more joyful about life.
How was your week? Please tell me! This last week was awesome! Steven and Will got baptized which was pretty awesome to be a part of. It has been really fun to see how they have changed through their teaching process. They have both had very different experiences, but you can see the light growing in them both. They are becoming happier and more joyful about life.
People
kinda just liked talking to us last week. It was really nice. It seemed
everywhere we went, we found people that wanted to listen. We must be
following the Spirit or something! My favorite one was Carlos. He came
hard out of the gate, bringing up all kinds of points, antagonistic points,
and we had scriptures come to our minds like crazy to back up everything we were teaching him. He wants to meet
with us tomorrow. That was pretty fun!
Well I gotta get going, love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, June 20, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 8
Hey y'all!
This email will be kinda short, sorry, but last week was pretty simple. We knocked on doors. It was great! We had a lot of people make fun of us and one guy very seriously threatened to shoot us (most people just kinda throw out that threat but this guy seemed pretty legit). It didn't really even phase us though, we're use to it.
These scriptures basically sum up what I learned from last week:
James 1:2-4
"My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing."
1 Chr 29:17
"I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things"
Ether 12:6
"for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith"
2 Timothy 2:3
"Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ"
1 Cor 9:24-27
"Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway"
Ether 12:27
"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them"
Matthew 16:25-26
"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"
1 Peter 1:7
"That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ"
Trials are to teach us. They rarely feel good, but that is what we signed up for, to receive a better reward.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
This email will be kinda short, sorry, but last week was pretty simple. We knocked on doors. It was great! We had a lot of people make fun of us and one guy very seriously threatened to shoot us (most people just kinda throw out that threat but this guy seemed pretty legit). It didn't really even phase us though, we're use to it.
These scriptures basically sum up what I learned from last week:
James 1:2-4
"My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing."
1 Chr 29:17
"I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things"
Ether 12:6
"for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith"
2 Timothy 2:3
"Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ"
1 Cor 9:24-27
"Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway"
Ether 12:27
"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them"
Matthew 16:25-26
"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"
1 Peter 1:7
"That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ"
Trials are to teach us. They rarely feel good, but that is what we signed up for, to receive a better reward.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, June 13, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 7
Hey y'all!
Elder Barlow got transferred and I am with Elder Mcneil now. He is a super good missionary. He has been out 5 months. He is from Highland, Utah and he played soccer at Lone Peak High School.
This quote pretty much sums up our week, "I have had missionaries report, “President, we put in the contacting hours. We didn’t get the contacts from tracting, but they came to us from completely unexpected sources. It’s almost as though they fell out of the trees or the sky.” Surely they came from the Lord. Look to the Lord for your blessings. He alone is the giver of every good and perfect gift (see James 1:17)."
We knocked on doors for 2 days straight, we got in some doors but no one seemed to want to act on the message or even learn more. Sunday at the Juncker's dinner there was an RM there, Cameron. He told us one of his friends is just finishing up a training course in California and his friend had started taking the lessons there and wanted to be baptized. He is getting moved here to Camp Lejune and he wants Cameron to baptize him. So we put in the work and the Lord blessed us in completely unexpected ways.
That's mostly it for last week. We knocked on doors that pretty much sums it up. Haha, it was great. We're getting a good tan!
Love y'all,
Elder Harper
Elder Barlow got transferred and I am with Elder Mcneil now. He is a super good missionary. He has been out 5 months. He is from Highland, Utah and he played soccer at Lone Peak High School.
This quote pretty much sums up our week, "I have had missionaries report, “President, we put in the contacting hours. We didn’t get the contacts from tracting, but they came to us from completely unexpected sources. It’s almost as though they fell out of the trees or the sky.” Surely they came from the Lord. Look to the Lord for your blessings. He alone is the giver of every good and perfect gift (see James 1:17)."
We knocked on doors for 2 days straight, we got in some doors but no one seemed to want to act on the message or even learn more. Sunday at the Juncker's dinner there was an RM there, Cameron. He told us one of his friends is just finishing up a training course in California and his friend had started taking the lessons there and wanted to be baptized. He is getting moved here to Camp Lejune and he wants Cameron to baptize him. So we put in the work and the Lord blessed us in completely unexpected ways.
That's mostly it for last week. We knocked on doors that pretty much sums it up. Haha, it was great. We're getting a good tan!
Love y'all,
Elder Harper
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| Saying Good-Bye to Elder Barlow! |
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| Elder Harper and Elder McNeil |
Monday, June 6, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 6
Hey y'all!
So I'll just start with last Monday. Well really last Sunday. We tracted into this guy who challenged us to a game of Kan Jam. It is kinda like horse shoe. There are two can looking things, it is two on two, one person from each team stands by each can, each can is 50 feet apart, and each team has a frisbee, The object of the game is to get the frisbee in the can. So, we went back on Monday and played him and his wife. Right before we started he said, "let's put a little bet on this, if y'all win we'll come to church." Of course we won after that, but they didn't end up coming to church..... but now we are teaching a couple of their friends and they actually seemed legitimately interested.
Then on Wednesday or maybe it was Thursday. We found a dead squirrel so we put it on the hood of our car and drove it to the other Elder's apartment, and left it on their doorstep. They got freaked out. It was pretty great!
The biggest highlight of the week, was Saturday night. I taught two brothers Christian and Andrew and they got baptized on Saturday! It was way fun to see everyone from Wake Forest again. It was awesome to see how some of the other people I taught have progressed.
Have a great week!
Love y'all,
Elder Harper
So I'll just start with last Monday. Well really last Sunday. We tracted into this guy who challenged us to a game of Kan Jam. It is kinda like horse shoe. There are two can looking things, it is two on two, one person from each team stands by each can, each can is 50 feet apart, and each team has a frisbee, The object of the game is to get the frisbee in the can. So, we went back on Monday and played him and his wife. Right before we started he said, "let's put a little bet on this, if y'all win we'll come to church." Of course we won after that, but they didn't end up coming to church..... but now we are teaching a couple of their friends and they actually seemed legitimately interested.
Then on Wednesday or maybe it was Thursday. We found a dead squirrel so we put it on the hood of our car and drove it to the other Elder's apartment, and left it on their doorstep. They got freaked out. It was pretty great!
The biggest highlight of the week, was Saturday night. I taught two brothers Christian and Andrew and they got baptized on Saturday! It was way fun to see everyone from Wake Forest again. It was awesome to see how some of the other people I taught have progressed.
Have a great week!
Love y'all,
Elder Harper
Monday, May 30, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 5
Hey everyone!
Elder Barlow and I had a great experience yesterday. Sunday morning we had a meeting at 10 am, so we looked outside and it was all nice and sunny and we didn't have the car but that was okay, because it was a beautiful morning. We jumped on our bikes and started riding. It was only like a seven and a half minute ride. Two minutes into our ride it started to sprinkle. We looked at each other in panic and we started to pedal as fast as we could but it didn't do much good because it started POURING. It has been a long time either of us had laughed that hard. Pretty quick we were soaked and there was just nothing we could do, so we kept going. A quarter mile from the church it completely stopped raining and it was back to sunshine for the rest of the day!
Then Sunday night was a party! There is a Senior couple in our ward named the Junckers. They are the best! Every Sunday they have a bunch of single marines over for dinner and we go and share a message and hopefully give them a chance to feel the Spirit. Usually there is like 10 - 15 people there, but last night there were 22 people there. Lots of new faces and a few guys brought some friends, so we had a good amount of non-members there. I don't really know how it started, but the gospel was brought up, and s lesson was started, and it was just crazy. There was one point where I was at one table with Elder Juncker teaching a lesson, and Elder Barlow was sitting at another table with an RM Marine and another member named Brooke, teaching a different lesson. To top the night off, one of the non-member friends taught us about the forgiveness of Christ and told us basically his entire life story. It was a pretty great night.
Then on Wednesday we were out knocking doors and we felt impressed to go to this one very specific area, so we went. The second door we knocked on we started talking to this lady and she was super nice, but not really interested. We invited her to church she was all like "you would have to talk to my husband about that, he is a professional MMA fighter." I don't know if she was trying to scare us or what, but we were super pumped to talk to him, so she went inside and he came out and we got to talking. He was super nice. He is a Christian fighter and gets a lot of crap for it when he goes to fights. Then after a little while a lady showed up and she was SUPER interested in getting her life straightened out. We told her that is exactly why we were there. The next day she met us at the church with the Junckers and we taught her about the addiction recovery class that the Junckers teach every week and about the gospel. She was crying and feeling the Spirit and it was just great!
Hope y'all have a blessed week!
Elder Harper
Elder Barlow and I had a great experience yesterday. Sunday morning we had a meeting at 10 am, so we looked outside and it was all nice and sunny and we didn't have the car but that was okay, because it was a beautiful morning. We jumped on our bikes and started riding. It was only like a seven and a half minute ride. Two minutes into our ride it started to sprinkle. We looked at each other in panic and we started to pedal as fast as we could but it didn't do much good because it started POURING. It has been a long time either of us had laughed that hard. Pretty quick we were soaked and there was just nothing we could do, so we kept going. A quarter mile from the church it completely stopped raining and it was back to sunshine for the rest of the day!
Then Sunday night was a party! There is a Senior couple in our ward named the Junckers. They are the best! Every Sunday they have a bunch of single marines over for dinner and we go and share a message and hopefully give them a chance to feel the Spirit. Usually there is like 10 - 15 people there, but last night there were 22 people there. Lots of new faces and a few guys brought some friends, so we had a good amount of non-members there. I don't really know how it started, but the gospel was brought up, and s lesson was started, and it was just crazy. There was one point where I was at one table with Elder Juncker teaching a lesson, and Elder Barlow was sitting at another table with an RM Marine and another member named Brooke, teaching a different lesson. To top the night off, one of the non-member friends taught us about the forgiveness of Christ and told us basically his entire life story. It was a pretty great night.
Then on Wednesday we were out knocking doors and we felt impressed to go to this one very specific area, so we went. The second door we knocked on we started talking to this lady and she was super nice, but not really interested. We invited her to church she was all like "you would have to talk to my husband about that, he is a professional MMA fighter." I don't know if she was trying to scare us or what, but we were super pumped to talk to him, so she went inside and he came out and we got to talking. He was super nice. He is a Christian fighter and gets a lot of crap for it when he goes to fights. Then after a little while a lady showed up and she was SUPER interested in getting her life straightened out. We told her that is exactly why we were there. The next day she met us at the church with the Junckers and we taught her about the addiction recovery class that the Junckers teach every week and about the gospel. She was crying and feeling the Spirit and it was just great!
Hope y'all have a blessed week!
Elder Harper
Monday, May 23, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 4
Hey y'all!
This last week was great! It ended with me getting sick though, so I am only 70% mentally here right now. Sorry if this sounds a little scattered.
Last Thursday we had a tri-zone conference with Elder Zwick of the Seventy. He is awesome! One line he used, I really liked, "Never limit yourself by what you consider to be your capacity." I thought that was just awesome, because we always do. We see and think what we can do and we leave it at that. The Lord has much bigger plans for us.
Wednesday we went to see our investigator, Steven. We have been teaching him for a couple weeks and he has been going through a really hard time lately. He is also dating a member. Wednesday we were planning on inviting him to be baptized. At the beginning of the lessons his girlfriend, Sister Leary, started talking about how much of a change she has seen in him and how people at work have been noticing a difference in him. Basically he wants to get baptized next month!
Monday we went to the beach with our district. It wasfun! I learned how to do a backflip. That was pretty exciting.
This letter probably isn’t super exciting.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
This last week was great! It ended with me getting sick though, so I am only 70% mentally here right now. Sorry if this sounds a little scattered.
Last Thursday we had a tri-zone conference with Elder Zwick of the Seventy. He is awesome! One line he used, I really liked, "Never limit yourself by what you consider to be your capacity." I thought that was just awesome, because we always do. We see and think what we can do and we leave it at that. The Lord has much bigger plans for us.
Wednesday we went to see our investigator, Steven. We have been teaching him for a couple weeks and he has been going through a really hard time lately. He is also dating a member. Wednesday we were planning on inviting him to be baptized. At the beginning of the lessons his girlfriend, Sister Leary, started talking about how much of a change she has seen in him and how people at work have been noticing a difference in him. Basically he wants to get baptized next month!
Monday we went to the beach with our district. It wasfun! I learned how to do a backflip. That was pretty exciting.
This letter probably isn’t super exciting.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
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| Mom requested a missionary badge picture! She thinks this one is Awesome!!! |
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| Elder Harper's first visit to the Atlantic Ocean! |
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| Elder Harper's New Companion??? |
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| The Elder's of Jacksonville, NC |
Monday, May 16, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 3
Hey y'all,
This last week we worked, and worked, and worked some more!
Last week was bike week and it was hot, and humid, and it rained, just like any good bike week.
Elder Barlow and I met a ton of awesome people. One that we are super excited about is Michael. He is a 15 year old that loves basketball and wants to get baptized!
This last week we worked, and worked, and worked some more!
Last week was bike week and it was hot, and humid, and it rained, just like any good bike week.
Elder Barlow and I met a ton of awesome people. One that we are super excited about is Michael. He is a 15 year old that loves basketball and wants to get baptized!
We met some local rappers that really like the BoM!!!
We helped a man catch his dogs, then while he was taking them inside they almost pulled his pants off!
A lady in our ward made us some homemade bread, so we are living the good life.
I
broke our friends foot playing basketball on Saturday. Not really, she
jumped up and landed on my foot and she only sprained her ankle.
Sorry this is soo short.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, May 9, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 2
First off Happy Mother's Day y'all!
Last week was a lot of fun. Elder Barlow is one of my favorite companions I have had, so we are having a great time. No crazy huge moths or any ridiculous foods. We just got to go out and work and it felt great!
Last week was a lot of fun. Elder Barlow is one of my favorite companions I have had, so we are having a great time. No crazy huge moths or any ridiculous foods. We just got to go out and work and it felt great!
Miracle- Just a
cool miracle, a little background first. I was really bummed to leave
Garner especially after only being there for 1 transfer. So I was really
trying to figure out why I'm here. Then yesterday I was talking to my
family and they mentioned that my cousin was here and hadn't been to
church in awhile so I got his contact info and we are going to meet up
with him tonight. Pray that it goes well!
Sorry this is so short, but y'all have a great week!
Love,
Elder Harper
Monday, May 2, 2016
Jacksonville - Week 1
Hey y'all!
I got a whole lot to say about last week.
Tuesday was a blast! I got transferred last week. It was a two and a half hour drive to my new area in Jacksonville. My new companions name is Elder Barlow.
Here is a little about Elder Barlow.
He has been out for 3 months
I am his second companion
He is from Queen Creek, Arizona
He did 1 semester of college at U of A
He played football at U of A
He is awesome
Wednesday we had district meeting. it was all about faith and expecting miracles and becoming the best person and missionary you can. Here is a bomb talk if you want to check it out...
https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1979/04/following-christ-to-victory?lang=eng
Later on Wednesday, we went to visit a recent convert. Bro Proulx, he is missing both his legs and has lots of health problems. When he was younger, his dad made all these little wooden tinker toy mind game things. One of them was called the "idiot stick." Elder Barlow had a rough time with that one. :) Then later that day we ate dinner then we were out working. We stopped by this Hispanic woman named Aida. She was just eating dinner and offered us some pig ears! I ate them but that was one of two times, in my life, I have legitimately gagged from eating something nasty.
Thursday was a pretty normal day. We had dinner with a member and her non-member boyfriend. He has lots of questions so we are starting to teach him. Oh, and they gave us a ride to her house and on the way his tire blew! Elder Barlow thought it was a gun shot and I thought the car was gonna explode, but we just drove the half mile to the house and we were all fine.
Then after dinner, we went with the Bishop to teach a Philippino woman who wanted to drop us, but we talked her into having us over again. She fed us dinner too.... Apparently it is their custom to feed people when they come over.... SO MUCH FOOD. Then we had a lesson and she started to cry and said she was going through a hard time. She also said she would read the Book of Mormon. It's awesome how the Spirit works!
On Saturday we found this Beast Moth. That was just a fun moment.
Then we got a call from Elder Junker saying he needed assistance with one of the Sister's investigators, Morris. He was having troubles with his pacemaker. The Spirit was so powerful, and in the blessing it said that everything would turn out alright, and it did! But we sat in the ER for like 5 hours.
Well I think I got everything.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, April 25, 2016
Garner - Week 7
Hey y'all!
We had a great week! They are white washing our area meaning, Elder Brown and I are both getting transferred. They want our area to be a Spanish area to help develop a Spanish branch in the Raleigh South Stake. And of course this last week was our best week in the area. We found a couple of people that want to get baptized and now we are leaving. It's only natural, right? Haha, but they have some great people to work with so that will be good. I will be going to Jacksonville which is right near a Marine Base, so that will be exciting.
First highlight: We met a woman named Daisju, she is 24 and has 3 kids. I couldn't seem to find my words the whole lesson, but at the end she broke into tears and it was all the Spirit. I know it was nothing we did. It is amazing what the Spirit can do. D&C 35:13 "Wherefore, I call upon the weak things of the world, those who are unlearned and despised, to thresh the nations by the power of my Spirit."(ME) My favorite quote from her in the lesson was, "I feel like this weight has been lifted off my shoulders."
Second highlight: Saturday night a little after 8 o'clock Elder Brown and I got the inkling to knock on some doors, so we went to an apartment complex and got to work. As we started, we prayed one of the most sincere prayers I have ever heard when going tracting, and like all sincere prayers it was answered. On our 9th door we met Louis. He is really struggling with his faith in God and the purpose of his life. We explained some things to him and told him that he needed to be at church the next morning... and HE CAME! Elder Brown and I were shocked! We called him just before it started and asked if he was coming and he said "I'm here." We looked around and we told him we didn't see him. Turns out he was at the Baptist church across the street, Haha, but we got him to the right place.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
We had a great week! They are white washing our area meaning, Elder Brown and I are both getting transferred. They want our area to be a Spanish area to help develop a Spanish branch in the Raleigh South Stake. And of course this last week was our best week in the area. We found a couple of people that want to get baptized and now we are leaving. It's only natural, right? Haha, but they have some great people to work with so that will be good. I will be going to Jacksonville which is right near a Marine Base, so that will be exciting.
First highlight: We met a woman named Daisju, she is 24 and has 3 kids. I couldn't seem to find my words the whole lesson, but at the end she broke into tears and it was all the Spirit. I know it was nothing we did. It is amazing what the Spirit can do. D&C 35:13 "Wherefore, I call upon the weak things of the world, those who are unlearned and despised, to thresh the nations by the power of my Spirit."(ME) My favorite quote from her in the lesson was, "I feel like this weight has been lifted off my shoulders."
Second highlight: Saturday night a little after 8 o'clock Elder Brown and I got the inkling to knock on some doors, so we went to an apartment complex and got to work. As we started, we prayed one of the most sincere prayers I have ever heard when going tracting, and like all sincere prayers it was answered. On our 9th door we met Louis. He is really struggling with his faith in God and the purpose of his life. We explained some things to him and told him that he needed to be at church the next morning... and HE CAME! Elder Brown and I were shocked! We called him just before it started and asked if he was coming and he said "I'm here." We looked around and we told him we didn't see him. Turns out he was at the Baptist church across the street, Haha, but we got him to the right place.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, April 18, 2016
Garner - Week 6
Hey y'all! I think I'm pickin' up a bit of an accent.... I was listening to myself talk and it didn't sound like it's supposed to.
Anyway, last week was nuts. We did two exchanges and we had a Zone Conference. I got to go with Elder Lindley and Elder Strong the next day. With Elder Strong we found this great family and the mom said we could come back on Friday. We exchanged back, and when Elder Strong and Elder Bleckner went back on Friday, the dad was outside waiting for them and yelled at them and told them to never come back.... so that was pretty sa,d but we all laughed about it. In the end all we can do is keep going and enduring and keep trying.
A quote that I have enjoyed lately is "The foundation of your happiness depends on how you make sense of the world." Because it is true! When bad things happen and we decide that means we have to be sad or stay where that put us, then we will be sad or we will be unhappy with where we are. So we need to choose to be happy and choose to love those around us and choose to change our lives and those around us for the better.
Then Thursday we got to go to Duke Gardens with a ton of missionaries. It was pretty fun to look at flowers and stuff. I made friends with a caterpillar. Just thought I would share.
Love y'all! Have a great week!
Elder Harper
Anyway, last week was nuts. We did two exchanges and we had a Zone Conference. I got to go with Elder Lindley and Elder Strong the next day. With Elder Strong we found this great family and the mom said we could come back on Friday. We exchanged back, and when Elder Strong and Elder Bleckner went back on Friday, the dad was outside waiting for them and yelled at them and told them to never come back.... so that was pretty sa,d but we all laughed about it. In the end all we can do is keep going and enduring and keep trying.
A quote that I have enjoyed lately is "The foundation of your happiness depends on how you make sense of the world." Because it is true! When bad things happen and we decide that means we have to be sad or stay where that put us, then we will be sad or we will be unhappy with where we are. So we need to choose to be happy and choose to love those around us and choose to change our lives and those around us for the better.
Then Thursday we got to go to Duke Gardens with a ton of missionaries. It was pretty fun to look at flowers and stuff. I made friends with a caterpillar. Just thought I would share.
Love y'all! Have a great week!
Elder Harper
Monday, April 11, 2016
Garner - Week 5
Hey Y'all!
Last week was pretty long... the last couple weeks have been really long just because there has been so much going on. Last week we had a zone training meeting. It was all based on poems that related to different topics. My favorite was "The Touch of the Master's hand."
’Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer
Thought it scarcely worth his while
To waste much time on the old violin,
But held it up with a smile:
“What am I bidden, good folks,” he cried,
“Who’ll start the bidding for me?”
“A dollar, a dollar”; then, “Two!” “Only two?
Two dollars, and who’ll make it three?
Three dollars, once; three dollars, twice;
Going for three—” But no,
From the room, far back, a gray-haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow;
Then, wiping the dust from the old violin,
And tightening the loose strings,
He played a melody pure and sweet
As a caroling angel sings.
The music ceased, and the auctioneer,
With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said, “What am I bid for the old violin?”
And he held it up with the bow.
“A thousand dollars, and who’ll make it two?
Two thousand! And who’ll make it three?
Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice,
And going, and gone!” said he.
The people cheered, but some of them cried,
“We do not quite understand
What changed its worth.” Swift came the reply:
“The touch of a master’s hand.”
And many a man with life out of tune,
And battered and scarred with sin,
Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd,
Much like the old violin.
A “mess of pottage,” a glass of wine,
A game—and he travels on.
He’s “going” once, and “going” twice,
He’s “going” and almost “gone.”
But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd
Never can quite understand
The worth of a soul and the change that’s wrought
By the touch of the Master’s hand.
Then on Thursday we had the Director of Proselyting from the Church's Missionary Department come to visit and instruct us, which meant a 7 hour meeting, but it was awesome! I wish he would have come like a year ago, but it was great none the less. He basically taught us how to be really, really good missionaries.
Over the last couple days we have had powerful experiences applying what he taught us. So tying back into the poem, even I, who have been a missionary for... awhile, I can still change and grow and become better and so can everyone we meet on the street, at their door, in a restaurant, etc. Everyone is a child of God and can experience the Atonement in their lives if we are willing to share it with them.
Another Talk that seriously impacted Elder Brown and I this past week, "Following Christ to Victory" by Hartman Recktor Jr. He gives 5 steps to seeing miracles in your life. In the talk he relates it to missionary work but it can be applied in a lot of ways.
1) believe in yourself
2) look to the lord for your blessing
3) make the sacrifice
4) expect a miracle
5) receive the miracle with great humility.
This led us to an awesome experience on Tuesday. This was my favorite part of the week fo' sho'. Like a month ago we met a lady named Gennia. We set a return appointment but it never worked out, so we stopped by last week to see her and she said we could come back on Tuesday night. We took Brother Daughenbaugh with us, who is our ward mission leader and a convert of about 4 years. Gennia has a special needs son Ethan and another son Gavin, 8 (He loves to play basketball and loves that Elder Brown and I can dunk on his hoop (it is only like 7 and a half feet)). We shared the Restoration with Gennia and her boys and her friend Ches. The Spirit was great and at the end Gennia said, "We have to get going but we really want to continue this conversation." So we are going back tonight. Then after we finished we helped move her couches out so she could get new ones. While we were waiting for the guys to load the couches into the truck Gavin wanted to play basket ball. And while we were playing basketball Ches was talking to brother Daughenbaugh about how good she felt while we were teaching and he explained that it was the Spirit telling her what we said is true. It was a great tender mercy / miracle.
Love y'all!
Last week was pretty long... the last couple weeks have been really long just because there has been so much going on. Last week we had a zone training meeting. It was all based on poems that related to different topics. My favorite was "The Touch of the Master's hand."
’Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer
Thought it scarcely worth his while
To waste much time on the old violin,
But held it up with a smile:
“What am I bidden, good folks,” he cried,
“Who’ll start the bidding for me?”
“A dollar, a dollar”; then, “Two!” “Only two?
Two dollars, and who’ll make it three?
Three dollars, once; three dollars, twice;
Going for three—” But no,
From the room, far back, a gray-haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow;
Then, wiping the dust from the old violin,
And tightening the loose strings,
He played a melody pure and sweet
As a caroling angel sings.
The music ceased, and the auctioneer,
With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said, “What am I bid for the old violin?”
And he held it up with the bow.
“A thousand dollars, and who’ll make it two?
Two thousand! And who’ll make it three?
Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice,
And going, and gone!” said he.
The people cheered, but some of them cried,
“We do not quite understand
What changed its worth.” Swift came the reply:
“The touch of a master’s hand.”
And many a man with life out of tune,
And battered and scarred with sin,
Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd,
Much like the old violin.
A “mess of pottage,” a glass of wine,
A game—and he travels on.
He’s “going” once, and “going” twice,
He’s “going” and almost “gone.”
But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd
Never can quite understand
The worth of a soul and the change that’s wrought
By the touch of the Master’s hand.
Then on Thursday we had the Director of Proselyting from the Church's Missionary Department come to visit and instruct us, which meant a 7 hour meeting, but it was awesome! I wish he would have come like a year ago, but it was great none the less. He basically taught us how to be really, really good missionaries.
Over the last couple days we have had powerful experiences applying what he taught us. So tying back into the poem, even I, who have been a missionary for... awhile, I can still change and grow and become better and so can everyone we meet on the street, at their door, in a restaurant, etc. Everyone is a child of God and can experience the Atonement in their lives if we are willing to share it with them.
Another Talk that seriously impacted Elder Brown and I this past week, "Following Christ to Victory" by Hartman Recktor Jr. He gives 5 steps to seeing miracles in your life. In the talk he relates it to missionary work but it can be applied in a lot of ways.
1) believe in yourself
2) look to the lord for your blessing
3) make the sacrifice
4) expect a miracle
5) receive the miracle with great humility.
This led us to an awesome experience on Tuesday. This was my favorite part of the week fo' sho'. Like a month ago we met a lady named Gennia. We set a return appointment but it never worked out, so we stopped by last week to see her and she said we could come back on Tuesday night. We took Brother Daughenbaugh with us, who is our ward mission leader and a convert of about 4 years. Gennia has a special needs son Ethan and another son Gavin, 8 (He loves to play basketball and loves that Elder Brown and I can dunk on his hoop (it is only like 7 and a half feet)). We shared the Restoration with Gennia and her boys and her friend Ches. The Spirit was great and at the end Gennia said, "We have to get going but we really want to continue this conversation." So we are going back tonight. Then after we finished we helped move her couches out so she could get new ones. While we were waiting for the guys to load the couches into the truck Gavin wanted to play basket ball. And while we were playing basketball Ches was talking to brother Daughenbaugh about how good she felt while we were teaching and he explained that it was the Spirit telling her what we said is true. It was a great tender mercy / miracle.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, April 4, 2016
Garner - Week 4
Hey y'all!
Hope y'all had a wonderful conference weekend and found answers to your questions.
This last week was very long actually. We were able to go to the temple this last Wednesday and I LOVED it! I miss not being able to go to the temple all the time. Temples are such a blessing and bring so much peace.
I have had one scripture keep coming to mind Gal. 6:9 "... let us not be weary in well doing..." This last week is summed up in that simple phrase. We should never get tired of doing good. No one likes to be miserable or alone and especially unloved, not even Satan, but he can't have a fullness of joy so he seeks to take away everyone's happiness.
Last week we did a lot of knocking and it was awesome to see the joy and the peace that the Book of Mormon brought to people. When we started talking to people they would say, "Sorry guys I'm really not interested." and we would respond with our testimonies of the joy and peace that the Book of Mormon can bring and suddenly they had a desire to learn more.
The power of the Spirit is amazing. He will testify of truth. He will carry us through our sorrows. He will unfold the joys and beauties of the gospel before us according to our desires to have them. So be happy and share that joy with others that have either lost it, are losing it, or haven't had a chance to discover it.
I love you all.
Elder Harper
Hope y'all had a wonderful conference weekend and found answers to your questions.
This last week was very long actually. We were able to go to the temple this last Wednesday and I LOVED it! I miss not being able to go to the temple all the time. Temples are such a blessing and bring so much peace.
I have had one scripture keep coming to mind Gal. 6:9 "... let us not be weary in well doing..." This last week is summed up in that simple phrase. We should never get tired of doing good. No one likes to be miserable or alone and especially unloved, not even Satan, but he can't have a fullness of joy so he seeks to take away everyone's happiness.
Last week we did a lot of knocking and it was awesome to see the joy and the peace that the Book of Mormon brought to people. When we started talking to people they would say, "Sorry guys I'm really not interested." and we would respond with our testimonies of the joy and peace that the Book of Mormon can bring and suddenly they had a desire to learn more.
The power of the Spirit is amazing. He will testify of truth. He will carry us through our sorrows. He will unfold the joys and beauties of the gospel before us according to our desires to have them. So be happy and share that joy with others that have either lost it, are losing it, or haven't had a chance to discover it.
I love you all.
Elder Harper
Monday, March 28, 2016
Garner - Week 3
Hey y'all!
Last week was a blast! I got to go on an exchange with a baby missionary, Elder McNeil. We laughed about everything the whole time and some times for no reason at all. One comical moment: We were driving and approaching a stop light that was red. There was also a chair in the middle of the lane. So being the good-hearted missionaries we are, we stopped and picked it up. Then the joke of the exchange became, "why is there a chair in our backseat!?" or some variation on that. Hopefully that mental image brings you some joy.
I got this last week and I thought I would share it:
Invictus
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
William Ernest Henley
Super good poem. I applied it to this life and having unconquerable faith.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Last week was a blast! I got to go on an exchange with a baby missionary, Elder McNeil. We laughed about everything the whole time and some times for no reason at all. One comical moment: We were driving and approaching a stop light that was red. There was also a chair in the middle of the lane. So being the good-hearted missionaries we are, we stopped and picked it up. Then the joke of the exchange became, "why is there a chair in our backseat!?" or some variation on that. Hopefully that mental image brings you some joy.
I got this last week and I thought I would share it:
Invictus
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
William Ernest Henley
Super good poem. I applied it to this life and having unconquerable faith.
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, March 21, 2016
Garner - Week 2
Hey y'all!
Miracle story: Friday night we felt we had the faith to find a family of 3, so we prayed to be guided to them. Saturday we found them! Viera (Mom), Deshawn (15), and Aries (12). We primarily taught the boys but Viera came in at the end. They are awesome! We weren't able to get them to church this week but hopefully next week!
Awesome story: Last Sunday we taught a man named Donald. We had a great restoration lesson with him and he invited us back the following Sunday (yesterday) and he was going to invite his lady friend. Yesterday we went back and taught them both and we (the Spirit) KILLED IT! We taught a very spirit guided lesson from 3 Nephi 11 which gave us a very firm foundation to teach the lady friend the restoration and give Donald a refresh.
Somethin learned: I went on exchange with an Elder that is like a two year old. He is twenty and functions completely normal but he is truly like a child. Very genuine, kind, and humble.
"For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father." (Mosiah 3:19)
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Miracle story: Friday night we felt we had the faith to find a family of 3, so we prayed to be guided to them. Saturday we found them! Viera (Mom), Deshawn (15), and Aries (12). We primarily taught the boys but Viera came in at the end. They are awesome! We weren't able to get them to church this week but hopefully next week!
Awesome story: Last Sunday we taught a man named Donald. We had a great restoration lesson with him and he invited us back the following Sunday (yesterday) and he was going to invite his lady friend. Yesterday we went back and taught them both and we (the Spirit) KILLED IT! We taught a very spirit guided lesson from 3 Nephi 11 which gave us a very firm foundation to teach the lady friend the restoration and give Donald a refresh.
Somethin learned: I went on exchange with an Elder that is like a two year old. He is twenty and functions completely normal but he is truly like a child. Very genuine, kind, and humble.
"For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father." (Mosiah 3:19)
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, March 14, 2016
Garner - Week 1
Hey y'all!
So this last week was a little crazy. I got transferred to Garner, which is just outside Raleigh. I am now with Elder Brown, he is a good ol' farm boy from Idaho. So far we have been lovin' life. We have been out the same amount of time so we like to think we have a little experience under our belts, but when it really comes down to it we just wing it and the Spirit carries us to where we need to be.
On Wednesday I was on exchange with my Boy, Elder Bleckner. It was a ton of fun to be together again. I wasn't in my area or with my companion for my first day herem so that was a little weird.
Then Thursday, Elder Brown and I found a man named Donald. We knocked on his door and he told us to come back on Sunday.
Friday night one of Elder Brown's converts from the beginning of his mission went to the temple to take out his own endowment. We were able to go to that. I miss being able to go to the temple all the time.
Sunday, back to Donald. He had met with missionaries a couple years ago. He remembered the book of Mormon but had never read any of it. We showed up, he let us in and we taught him the restoration. At the end of the lesson he said something like, "I can't believe you got me readin’ and prayin’ about this book." Haha!!! We are going to see him next Sunday and he is going to bring his lady friend who wants to be more than a friend. He is super awesome and we are excited to go back to see him.
That was our week in a nutshell. Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
So this last week was a little crazy. I got transferred to Garner, which is just outside Raleigh. I am now with Elder Brown, he is a good ol' farm boy from Idaho. So far we have been lovin' life. We have been out the same amount of time so we like to think we have a little experience under our belts, but when it really comes down to it we just wing it and the Spirit carries us to where we need to be.
On Wednesday I was on exchange with my Boy, Elder Bleckner. It was a ton of fun to be together again. I wasn't in my area or with my companion for my first day herem so that was a little weird.
Then Thursday, Elder Brown and I found a man named Donald. We knocked on his door and he told us to come back on Sunday.
Friday night one of Elder Brown's converts from the beginning of his mission went to the temple to take out his own endowment. We were able to go to that. I miss being able to go to the temple all the time.
Sunday, back to Donald. He had met with missionaries a couple years ago. He remembered the book of Mormon but had never read any of it. We showed up, he let us in and we taught him the restoration. At the end of the lesson he said something like, "I can't believe you got me readin’ and prayin’ about this book." Haha!!! We are going to see him next Sunday and he is going to bring his lady friend who wants to be more than a friend. He is super awesome and we are excited to go back to see him.
That was our week in a nutshell. Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
Monday, March 7, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 18
Hey Y'all,
So, Miracle story, Spiritual experience, and lots of pictures for today!
Miracle Story- Elder Wion and I were out knocking on doors when we had a prompting to go to some apartments on the opposite side of town. Needless to say we followed it. The second door we knocked on, a HUGE black man answered. As soon as he opened his mouth it was clear he was just a big ol' teddy bear. He let us in after some persuasion. We sat down and shared a beautiful restoration lesson with him. Elder Wion went for the baptismal invite and he accepted! He didn't come to church but we set an appointment for tomorrow.
Spiritual Experience- On Tuesday I went on exchange with Elder Rose. It was a great exchange mostly because Elder Rose is just an amazing person, but also because I got to do a baptismal interview with Dougie. The Spirit was awesome. He was so ready. It was just a huge tender mercy. At the end of the interview I got to pray for him and that was my favorite part. The spirit just flooded the room and testified of what he was doing was right and that the gospel is completely true.
See Pictures Below-
Have a great week!
Love y'all,
Elder Harper
So, Miracle story, Spiritual experience, and lots of pictures for today!
Miracle Story- Elder Wion and I were out knocking on doors when we had a prompting to go to some apartments on the opposite side of town. Needless to say we followed it. The second door we knocked on, a HUGE black man answered. As soon as he opened his mouth it was clear he was just a big ol' teddy bear. He let us in after some persuasion. We sat down and shared a beautiful restoration lesson with him. Elder Wion went for the baptismal invite and he accepted! He didn't come to church but we set an appointment for tomorrow.
Spiritual Experience- On Tuesday I went on exchange with Elder Rose. It was a great exchange mostly because Elder Rose is just an amazing person, but also because I got to do a baptismal interview with Dougie. The Spirit was awesome. He was so ready. It was just a huge tender mercy. At the end of the interview I got to pray for him and that was my favorite part. The spirit just flooded the room and testified of what he was doing was right and that the gospel is completely true.
See Pictures Below-
Have a great week!
Love y'all,
Elder Harper
 |
| Elder Wion hard at work! |
 |
| Elder Rose and Elder Harper |
 |
| Elder Harper in his Lava Lava with the Volavolas |
Monday, February 29, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 17
Hey y'all!
So we had everything from tornado warnings to super big hail this week.
Wednesday I was on exchange with Elder Conteh down in Pembroke. Right around dinner time we got an emergency warning text about tornadoes. They live in a trailer (not exactly the safest place to be). We were talking, then all this noise started happening that sounded like someone was trying to break the trailer apart. Turns out it is some large sized hail. Then we got a call telling us that we were supposed to stay in doors until further notice.
The next morning he wanted to go see a less active part member (not technically married but they have lived together for 7 years). His name is Joe and he was the member and her name is Wanda. Elder Conteh said they had tried to teach her in the past and the Sisters have tried but she hasn't been interested. While we were there she was running around trying to clean and make everything look nice, and keep her son under control. After 15 or so minutes the son was playing in the back room and she was sweeping so we "asked" for the broom. I swept while Elder Conteh taught her. When I finished, I sat down to help teach. She shared with us how she had lost a baby boy about 2 years ago. We testified of eternal families and taught her the steps she needs to take to receive those blessings. She was crying, I was tearing up a little bit, Elder Conteh is British so he was probably fine.
That is really the big highlight of last week. All the craziness was primarily on the exchange. I got pictures though!
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
So we had everything from tornado warnings to super big hail this week.
Wednesday I was on exchange with Elder Conteh down in Pembroke. Right around dinner time we got an emergency warning text about tornadoes. They live in a trailer (not exactly the safest place to be). We were talking, then all this noise started happening that sounded like someone was trying to break the trailer apart. Turns out it is some large sized hail. Then we got a call telling us that we were supposed to stay in doors until further notice.
The next morning he wanted to go see a less active part member (not technically married but they have lived together for 7 years). His name is Joe and he was the member and her name is Wanda. Elder Conteh said they had tried to teach her in the past and the Sisters have tried but she hasn't been interested. While we were there she was running around trying to clean and make everything look nice, and keep her son under control. After 15 or so minutes the son was playing in the back room and she was sweeping so we "asked" for the broom. I swept while Elder Conteh taught her. When I finished, I sat down to help teach. She shared with us how she had lost a baby boy about 2 years ago. We testified of eternal families and taught her the steps she needs to take to receive those blessings. She was crying, I was tearing up a little bit, Elder Conteh is British so he was probably fine.
That is really the big highlight of last week. All the craziness was primarily on the exchange. I got pictures though!
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, February 22, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 16
Hey ya’all,
This last week was pretty crazy. We had Elder Rose and Elder Hancock living with us for most of the week because Elder Rose had to get a root canal and several other things done. On Tuesday I was with Elder Yeats and Elder Teeples in Sanford. They are a Spanish area so I was mostly lost. They had a member come out with us named Bob Stone. He gives all the missionaries a nickname and I got "wolf."
Then on Thursday Elder Wion and I went out in the morning and found a new investigator. Then we started an exchange with the Assistants and I was with Elder Garn. Then Elder Rose had an appointment and he was on exchange with Elder Nadauld. It ended up being most effective for Elder Nadauld and I to go out and get stuff done.
After exchanges, we went out to dinner with the Blood's. We went to a Japanese place, it is one of those places where they cook your food in front of you on the grill table. Then after dinner Elder Garn and I taught Mark a lesson. Later that evening we had to go on base, but Elder Garn forgot his ID, so I went with Elder Rose to teach a lesson on base. After that we all met back up and Elder Garn got a call from President and he had to do some things that night, so we were all at the church till 10:40 eating taco bell trying to get all that figured out.
It was mostly a whole lot of getting switched around. All in all it was a pretty good week.
Love ya’all,
Elder Harper
This last week was pretty crazy. We had Elder Rose and Elder Hancock living with us for most of the week because Elder Rose had to get a root canal and several other things done. On Tuesday I was with Elder Yeats and Elder Teeples in Sanford. They are a Spanish area so I was mostly lost. They had a member come out with us named Bob Stone. He gives all the missionaries a nickname and I got "wolf."
Then on Thursday Elder Wion and I went out in the morning and found a new investigator. Then we started an exchange with the Assistants and I was with Elder Garn. Then Elder Rose had an appointment and he was on exchange with Elder Nadauld. It ended up being most effective for Elder Nadauld and I to go out and get stuff done.
After exchanges, we went out to dinner with the Blood's. We went to a Japanese place, it is one of those places where they cook your food in front of you on the grill table. Then after dinner Elder Garn and I taught Mark a lesson. Later that evening we had to go on base, but Elder Garn forgot his ID, so I went with Elder Rose to teach a lesson on base. After that we all met back up and Elder Garn got a call from President and he had to do some things that night, so we were all at the church till 10:40 eating taco bell trying to get all that figured out.
It was mostly a whole lot of getting switched around. All in all it was a pretty good week.
Love ya’all,
Elder Harper
Monday, February 15, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 15
Hey y'all!
Last week was a lot of fun. Spent a good amount of time in the cold, knocking on doors, which was a lot of fun. We used the fact that it was freezing outside to get in a couple doors, which got us a couple new investigators.
Last night was really great. We got done with our coordination meeting with our ward mission leader around 8:15 and we had a feeling to go to an apartment complex. So we went and got started about 8:30. Elder Wion walked straight to a hallway and I followed him. We knocked on around 8ish doors, and then we knocked on a young couple's door. We told them who we were and that it was really cold and asked if we could come in to witness to them about our Savior Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon. They let us in and we had a super spiritual restoration lesson with them, and they wanted us to come back on Tuesday. Those experiences are the best.
In my studies this week I learned a lot about hope. I found out I totally misunderstood it. Hope stems from us seeing God's promises/will fulfilled in our lives. I am trying to understand that better.
Y'all look for God's hands in your lives this week and PLEASE email me about it. Sound good?
Love y'all!
LoVe,
ElDeR HaRpEr
P.S. Happy Valentines Day!
Last week was a lot of fun. Spent a good amount of time in the cold, knocking on doors, which was a lot of fun. We used the fact that it was freezing outside to get in a couple doors, which got us a couple new investigators.
Last night was really great. We got done with our coordination meeting with our ward mission leader around 8:15 and we had a feeling to go to an apartment complex. So we went and got started about 8:30. Elder Wion walked straight to a hallway and I followed him. We knocked on around 8ish doors, and then we knocked on a young couple's door. We told them who we were and that it was really cold and asked if we could come in to witness to them about our Savior Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon. They let us in and we had a super spiritual restoration lesson with them, and they wanted us to come back on Tuesday. Those experiences are the best.
In my studies this week I learned a lot about hope. I found out I totally misunderstood it. Hope stems from us seeing God's promises/will fulfilled in our lives. I am trying to understand that better.
Y'all look for God's hands in your lives this week and PLEASE email me about it. Sound good?
Love y'all!
LoVe,
ElDeR HaRpEr
P.S. Happy Valentines Day!
Monday, February 8, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 14
Hey y'all!
This last week was awesome, pretty crazy but awesome!
We did two exchanges, one on Tuesday and one on Wednesday. I got to do a total of 6 hours of driving, just for commuting purposes. Car rides are a ton of fun when you are with someone who can hold a good conversation. Some of those hours were good, but more of them were pretty quiet.
On Tuesday I was with Elder Lindley he is from a little town just outside Logan, Utah. He is a lot of fun. Once he is comfortable enough to say something he doesn't stop! :) He LOVES Star Wars, and on his planner he has a Star Wars picture, with one side that was the dark side and one side that was light, with the question "which side will you choose?" and the scripture:
3 Nephi 13:24 - "No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon."
It was pretty funny, but also a very good spiritual question. It made me think a lot about Fear and Faith. We can't be fearful and expect the blessings of the faithful. You have to constantly and deliberately choose what side you want to be on, and if you don't choose you fall into the fear category because faith = action. Awesome principle learned from a Star Wars picture this last week.
On Wednesday I was with Elder Islas. He has been in the field a week and is totally a deer in the headlights, but at the same time wants so bad to do so good. It made me reflect a lot on the importance of patience in learning. Lots of lessons this last week.
Then Elder Wion and I found it! Ever since I got to this area at the beginning of November we have been trying to find a large gathering of YSA age non-members. Elder Wion came here from Fayetteville 4th ward which we still technically cover, but just for the YSA people. He knew where a college was across town, so we went there and it was a gold mine. We are pretty excited for that. The only problem is, it was mostly women that said we could come back, but on the other hand we told the Elders Quorum President about it, and he was all for it! He said they need more options in the branch!!! :)
Well hope y'all have a great week! Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
This last week was awesome, pretty crazy but awesome!
We did two exchanges, one on Tuesday and one on Wednesday. I got to do a total of 6 hours of driving, just for commuting purposes. Car rides are a ton of fun when you are with someone who can hold a good conversation. Some of those hours were good, but more of them were pretty quiet.
On Tuesday I was with Elder Lindley he is from a little town just outside Logan, Utah. He is a lot of fun. Once he is comfortable enough to say something he doesn't stop! :) He LOVES Star Wars, and on his planner he has a Star Wars picture, with one side that was the dark side and one side that was light, with the question "which side will you choose?" and the scripture:
3 Nephi 13:24 - "No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon."
It was pretty funny, but also a very good spiritual question. It made me think a lot about Fear and Faith. We can't be fearful and expect the blessings of the faithful. You have to constantly and deliberately choose what side you want to be on, and if you don't choose you fall into the fear category because faith = action. Awesome principle learned from a Star Wars picture this last week.
On Wednesday I was with Elder Islas. He has been in the field a week and is totally a deer in the headlights, but at the same time wants so bad to do so good. It made me reflect a lot on the importance of patience in learning. Lots of lessons this last week.
Then Elder Wion and I found it! Ever since I got to this area at the beginning of November we have been trying to find a large gathering of YSA age non-members. Elder Wion came here from Fayetteville 4th ward which we still technically cover, but just for the YSA people. He knew where a college was across town, so we went there and it was a gold mine. We are pretty excited for that. The only problem is, it was mostly women that said we could come back, but on the other hand we told the Elders Quorum President about it, and he was all for it! He said they need more options in the branch!!! :)
Well hope y'all have a great week! Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
Monday, February 1, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 13
Hey y'all!
We don't have a ton of time this week, but I got a new companion. His name is Elder Wion. He is originally from Liberia but his family is currently living in Las Vegas.
Have a great week! I will write more next week!
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
We don't have a ton of time this week, but I got a new companion. His name is Elder Wion. He is originally from Liberia but his family is currently living in Las Vegas.
Have a great week! I will write more next week!
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
 |
| Elder Wion - Elder Harper's New Companion |
Monday, January 25, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 12
Hey y'all!
Last week was nuts. I slept in my bed only 3 times, I think.
We did two exchanges, so I was in Pembroke Tuesday and then Cameron on Wednesday. On Tuesday I was with Elder Garrik, he has been out for 6 weeks and is a lot of fun. Their plan for that day was to bike all over the place, so I got to bike 17 miles in the bitter cold. I was bundled up, so I was just fine, but after a couple hours Elder Garrik was coughing a lot and said his chest was hurting, so at the next gas station we went in for a little while for him to warm up. After that he was doing a whole lot better, and the rest of the night was a lot of fun.
On Wednesday, there was a Worldwide Missionary Broadcast. The theme was "Teach Repentance and Baptize Converts." It was super good! I learned a lot about the importance of repentance and how through constant and consistent repentance, that is what will get us to our Father in Heaven again.
After the broadcast I was with Elder Hancock. He has also been out 6 weeks. We went tracting in the cold for a couple hours. I got the short end of the stick a lot this last week. :) It was awesome though, we found this man at 2050 named John. We taught him the Restoration in his driveway while he was out for a cigarette. He loved it and said the Elders could come back to teach him and his wife.
Friday night there was an ice storm that came through and knocked out our power and that day we got instructions not to drive, and be super cautious on the icy roads. We went over to a Part member familys house, Brian and Tristen (they are both 19, no kids). We taught them and had Mark over, he is another investigator. They bonded really well and then on Sunday we were at the Dagley's house with Mark, they were the ones who introduced us to Mark, and he said he wanted to get baptized after he quits smoking. We testified to him that if he read and prayed everyday he would be able to give up smoking.
Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
Last week was nuts. I slept in my bed only 3 times, I think.
We did two exchanges, so I was in Pembroke Tuesday and then Cameron on Wednesday. On Tuesday I was with Elder Garrik, he has been out for 6 weeks and is a lot of fun. Their plan for that day was to bike all over the place, so I got to bike 17 miles in the bitter cold. I was bundled up, so I was just fine, but after a couple hours Elder Garrik was coughing a lot and said his chest was hurting, so at the next gas station we went in for a little while for him to warm up. After that he was doing a whole lot better, and the rest of the night was a lot of fun.
On Wednesday, there was a Worldwide Missionary Broadcast. The theme was "Teach Repentance and Baptize Converts." It was super good! I learned a lot about the importance of repentance and how through constant and consistent repentance, that is what will get us to our Father in Heaven again.
After the broadcast I was with Elder Hancock. He has also been out 6 weeks. We went tracting in the cold for a couple hours. I got the short end of the stick a lot this last week. :) It was awesome though, we found this man at 2050 named John. We taught him the Restoration in his driveway while he was out for a cigarette. He loved it and said the Elders could come back to teach him and his wife.
Friday night there was an ice storm that came through and knocked out our power and that day we got instructions not to drive, and be super cautious on the icy roads. We went over to a Part member familys house, Brian and Tristen (they are both 19, no kids). We taught them and had Mark over, he is another investigator. They bonded really well and then on Sunday we were at the Dagley's house with Mark, they were the ones who introduced us to Mark, and he said he wanted to get baptized after he quits smoking. We testified to him that if he read and prayed everyday he would be able to give up smoking.
Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
Monday, January 18, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 11
Hey y'all!
Last week was a lot of fun! Two Sundays ago a man, just kind of walked into church and was curious, so we started teaching him. He broke up with us yesterday so that was sad, but other than that the week was pretty good.
Elder Hardy and I blitzed a couple areas this last week. (Blitz = My companion and I split up and one of us goes to another area with the companionship and the other missionary goes to another area with a different companionship). I was in Rockingham with Elder Jones and Elder Livingston. We had a lot of fun. It was awesome to see how much they cared about the people they taught. We went to see a lady that is super sick and could die any day, but she just keeps on going. I think she said she had died at one point, but she came back. She shares the gospel like crazy over Facebook. She said "I'm not where I want to be, but I thank God I'm not where I was." It was awesome to see that she smoked and struggled with a few other things but she looked at how she had improved, found joy in that, and was still focused on becoming better.
On Wednesday we had a Zone Training. The focus was on covenants and how as we more fully fulfill our covenants we are more able to be in tune with the Spirit.
Have a great week!
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Last week was a lot of fun! Two Sundays ago a man, just kind of walked into church and was curious, so we started teaching him. He broke up with us yesterday so that was sad, but other than that the week was pretty good.
Elder Hardy and I blitzed a couple areas this last week. (Blitz = My companion and I split up and one of us goes to another area with the companionship and the other missionary goes to another area with a different companionship). I was in Rockingham with Elder Jones and Elder Livingston. We had a lot of fun. It was awesome to see how much they cared about the people they taught. We went to see a lady that is super sick and could die any day, but she just keeps on going. I think she said she had died at one point, but she came back. She shares the gospel like crazy over Facebook. She said "I'm not where I want to be, but I thank God I'm not where I was." It was awesome to see that she smoked and struggled with a few other things but she looked at how she had improved, found joy in that, and was still focused on becoming better.
On Wednesday we had a Zone Training. The focus was on covenants and how as we more fully fulfill our covenants we are more able to be in tune with the Spirit.
Have a great week!
Love y'all!
Elder Harper
Monday, January 11, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 10
Hey y'all!
We had a lot happen last week. We had a zone conference on Tuesday. After that Elder Garn (one of the Assistants) came with Elder Hardy and I for the evening. We had a lot of stuff come up so we did a split with Brother Bambas. Brother Bambas and I went to teach a couple people while Elder Hardy and Elder Garn went to a stake meeting. I was happy to be out teaching.
At 2115 when we got back together, we got to drive down to Rockingham and then back up to Southern Pines. We got to Southern Pines around 0000. Fun part of this was on the way down we had two cars so I rode with Elder Garn in the truck and Elder Hardy drove solo. Then when we got to Rockingham we took their car so we all had our own car. I got to spend about an hour by myself. It was really weird. I didn't have anyone to talk to for the first time in almost 18 months. CRAZY ain't it!
Then Friday happened. Around 2030 Elder Hardy and I went to an apartment complex. We prayed and asked for the Lord's guidance to find one new investigator. We knocked on a door and we felt like we were at the wrong spot. So we ventured deeper into the complex. We felt like we were in the right place so we knocked 2 more doors and found a couple that was semi-interested so we will go back this week. Then it was 2045 and we were about a 15 min drive from home and we were about to leave. Elder Hardy said, just 1 more, so we tried 1 more. We met a very nice man. While we were talking my mind went completely blank to the point where I forgot everything I was saying so I ended the door approach and we started back to the car, we got about 50 feet away from the door and we saw two young looking brethren walking away from us. We promised to do all we could, so we started following them, as casually as possible of course. They turned around and we started talking to them and shared the Restoration with them. Turns out they are interns at this huge Baptist church called "Mana." They loved talking to us and wanted to learn more so we are going back this week.
And this last bit I felt like sharing. The Spirit has taught me a lot this week. I have felt directionless for awhile and the answer to my prayers finally came, postmarked and everything, it would be so much easier if it worked that way. The theme for the rest of my mission is "yellow lights and little victories." A long time ago I heard an analogy that compared receiving answers to prayers and guidance from the Holy Ghost to a stop light. Red means no. Green means yes. Yellow means use your best judgement or in other words God trusts you to make the right decision. For a long time I have struggled with having self confidence and trusting myself to make the right decision on my own. Getting opinions from others is always good but I am always hesitant to make a firm commitment to something. Little victories, every time I follow a prompting, resist temptation, or take a step toward overcoming my own weaknesses, that is a little victory and a lot of little victories will lead me to the big victories. There is a lot more that goes into it and it is only growing. For example, I learned that by getting so many yellow lights is a good thing, because it means that God has enough trust in me to let me make decisions, which in turn means that I am living worthy of that trust, which has been empowering and humbling at the same time. Over the last while one of my favorite scriptures has become Doctrine and Covenants 58:27-28 "Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward."
Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
We had a lot happen last week. We had a zone conference on Tuesday. After that Elder Garn (one of the Assistants) came with Elder Hardy and I for the evening. We had a lot of stuff come up so we did a split with Brother Bambas. Brother Bambas and I went to teach a couple people while Elder Hardy and Elder Garn went to a stake meeting. I was happy to be out teaching.
At 2115 when we got back together, we got to drive down to Rockingham and then back up to Southern Pines. We got to Southern Pines around 0000. Fun part of this was on the way down we had two cars so I rode with Elder Garn in the truck and Elder Hardy drove solo. Then when we got to Rockingham we took their car so we all had our own car. I got to spend about an hour by myself. It was really weird. I didn't have anyone to talk to for the first time in almost 18 months. CRAZY ain't it!
Then Friday happened. Around 2030 Elder Hardy and I went to an apartment complex. We prayed and asked for the Lord's guidance to find one new investigator. We knocked on a door and we felt like we were at the wrong spot. So we ventured deeper into the complex. We felt like we were in the right place so we knocked 2 more doors and found a couple that was semi-interested so we will go back this week. Then it was 2045 and we were about a 15 min drive from home and we were about to leave. Elder Hardy said, just 1 more, so we tried 1 more. We met a very nice man. While we were talking my mind went completely blank to the point where I forgot everything I was saying so I ended the door approach and we started back to the car, we got about 50 feet away from the door and we saw two young looking brethren walking away from us. We promised to do all we could, so we started following them, as casually as possible of course. They turned around and we started talking to them and shared the Restoration with them. Turns out they are interns at this huge Baptist church called "Mana." They loved talking to us and wanted to learn more so we are going back this week.
And this last bit I felt like sharing. The Spirit has taught me a lot this week. I have felt directionless for awhile and the answer to my prayers finally came, postmarked and everything, it would be so much easier if it worked that way. The theme for the rest of my mission is "yellow lights and little victories." A long time ago I heard an analogy that compared receiving answers to prayers and guidance from the Holy Ghost to a stop light. Red means no. Green means yes. Yellow means use your best judgement or in other words God trusts you to make the right decision. For a long time I have struggled with having self confidence and trusting myself to make the right decision on my own. Getting opinions from others is always good but I am always hesitant to make a firm commitment to something. Little victories, every time I follow a prompting, resist temptation, or take a step toward overcoming my own weaknesses, that is a little victory and a lot of little victories will lead me to the big victories. There is a lot more that goes into it and it is only growing. For example, I learned that by getting so many yellow lights is a good thing, because it means that God has enough trust in me to let me make decisions, which in turn means that I am living worthy of that trust, which has been empowering and humbling at the same time. Over the last while one of my favorite scriptures has become Doctrine and Covenants 58:27-28 "Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward."
Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
Monday, January 4, 2016
Fort Bragg/Fayetteville - Week 9
Hey Y'all!
Quick miracle story.
Quick miracle story.
While
I was with Elder Kiddle while we were tracting, we found a man named Calon. He was nice,
and we tried to set up return appointment but it didn't work out then. When Elder Hardy first got here we ran into him on base. I should have
taken that as a sign but I didn't. Then this last Saturday his name
came to mind so we went to see him. We knocked on his door and he
immediately let us in and we shared the Restoration with him and his
Girlfriend. At the end of the lesson we asked if he had any questions
and he said, "all I really have to say is thank you." It was a great
tender mercy for us. As we walked away the scripture that came to mind
was "they are kept from the truth only because they know not where to
find it." People are hungry for the truth but they don't know where the
buffet is and it is a great feeling when you can give them directions.
Love y'all!
Love,
Elder Harper
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