May 16!

Greetings everybody! This Saturday, May 16th, is Elder Yue's birthday. If you get the chance, his email is ngo.yue@myldsmail.net. Give him a birthday greeting, if you get the chance!

In honor of his birthday, I must tell of his heroism this week. On Thursday night, we were driving down the street when we noticed a car parked in a field a few feet from the road. There was a lot of smoking rising from the engine, and there was a man inside frantically waving at us. I was driving our car, so Elder Yue jumped out, I swung the car around, and we helped him out and turned off the ignition. Several seconds later, there were several other people there to help us support and calm the disoriented man. We then called an ambulance, and a short while later the officials were on the scene. We like to think that we were able to be somebody's angels that day.

I am grateful for the opportunity I had to Skype my family on Mother's Day, despite the crazy weather and the lost connection on their end. Please keep safe!

Transfer calls have come and gone, and Elder Yue and I will both be staying in Salmon Arm for another 6 weeks.

I don't have as much time to write this week, as we have a lesson in several minutes. Sorry! I'll write you all much more next week!

-Elder Reynolds

The Fourth will be with you. Always.

Happy Star Wars Day, my fellow humans! Or, as some would say, "May the 4th be with you!"

Now, having lived near Las Vegas, Nashville, and Dallas-Fort Worth, I've always considered myself to be a city-slicker. However, this past week, we've stacked wood, clipped and burned trees, roasted hot dogs over a fire, raked gravel, mowed several yards, and helped repair a fence for a horse pen. Needless to say, I think I'm beginning to see the charm of small towns and rural labor.

Spring is a beautiful time of year on the Shuswap Lake. The sunsets are gorgeous, and the green plants and active wildlife can make Salmon Arm a very serene place to be at times.

I've recently decided to attempt to read the Book of Mormon in Spanish. It has proven to be quite an undertaking, but has been extremely rewarding. I cannot really speak the language, but I remember enough from Spanish class that I can read it fairly well. As I progress and practice, I've had to refer back to the English version less and less. It's an interesting experience though, because it really makes me focus on the wording and meaning of every sentence. This morning, I was reading 1 Nephi 10, and Lehi's prophecies of the Savior hit me in a way that they never had before, probably because I just skim through it in English normally. When you study the scriptures, you really have to focus on every word, and not simply peruse. 

Does anybody happen to know any good "Knock-Knock" jokes? I've been trying to explain them to Elder Yue, but I can't think of any good ones to use as examples.

Remember, we must always be armed with "the [lightsaber] of the Spirit"

Enjoy "Revenge of the Fifth" tomorrow, or Cinco de Mayo, depending on what you celebrate.

-Elder Reynolds

Pictures!

Having fun on P-Day

 

Elder Yue and Elder Reynolds

Fit as a Fiddle

Do you remember the last time you listened to a beautiful violin solo on the radio? Can you recall how the music moved you, how the melody tugged on your heart strings as the player's bow connected with the violin strings? And then, just before you lost control and burst forth into tears, you exclaimed "Wow, that must be a really shiny violin!" Do you remember that moment? Well, I don't.

Music is not credited to an instrument, a mallet cannot sculpt a statue, and a life-saving surgery does not put a scalpel in the newspaper. It is the composer, the craftsman, the doctor that produces such a work.In a similar fashion, we must remember that we are tools in the Master's hands, and we must be obedient to His will in order to accomplish His work, especially in missionary work. This is something that I finally began to understand this week.

Some of us are violins, some are cellos, and some are cumbersome french horns, but each of us has a part to play in the grand symphony of life, and we must do all that we can to be tuned properly. I do not believe there is such thing as a "Good Missionary." If we do all that we can to be humble, teachable, diligent, and we will become a "Tuned Missionary," and be able to play our part.We are called to be instruments. Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can be re-tuned if necessary. Jesus Christ is our player, our violinist, and we will one day be able to hear the music that our Father has composed for us."Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God." (Matthew 19:17).

Life in Salmon Arm is a blast! We've been able to enjoy some of the nature trails here. We've also been doing a lot of service for the community, and we've been finding a good amount of people to teach. I've also really been enjoying my calling as a District Leader. The Elders that I serve with are so talented and diverse. We have a Zone Meeting coming up this week, and we're all looking forward to that.
May each of you have a blessed week! Be sure to celebrate May Day!
They don't celebrate that in British Columbia, which I find is a tragedy.
-Elder Reynolds

8 months!

Greetings all!

Today, April 20, 2015, marks that I've been wearing this black nametag for 8 months now. That's one-third of the mission, already past. It boggles my mind how time works on the mission. The days can feel so long, but the weeks seem to just zoom by!

We've been having some fun here in Salmon Arm. Saturday night, the Assistants to President Burt stayed the night. No, we weren't in trouble. They were driving to Kamloops the next day and just needed a place to sleep. We were able to talk about the work and the Canada Vancouver Mission.

I just feel so pleased to have been sent here. In fact, today I went to the thrift store and bought some brand-new shoes and an English-Spanish dictionary for a grand total of 3 dollars. Just some of the perks of Salmon Arm!

It's starting to get really warm here, which is nice. I've had to start wearing the good-ol' short sleeve shirts.

Hope everybody has a great week!
-Elder Reynolds

Photos

One of the Nature Trails

Elder Tillman

Shuswap Lake at Night

El Brazo del Pez‏

Greetings! I think "el brazo del pez" roughly translates to "the arm of the fish," which is how I like to refer to Salmon Arm in Spanish. We have a Spanish investigator named Victor, so I'm trying to put my high school Spanish class to use.

It's been an amazing week! We saw some great things happen across the mission because of #RealBCMormons. We also had a surprise Zone Conference with Elder Brent H. Nielson of the Quorum of the Seventy, who recently spoke in General Conference. It's been a really inspiring week. It often feels that the days are long but the weeks zoom by. 

I lost my flash drive last week, but I bought a new one and have it loaded up with tons of great music from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir andwww.lds.org/youth/music.

This week, the mission has officially ended Sister Districts. Previously, the Canada Vancouver Mission was one of the few missions where Elders and Sisters had different Districts, but with the declining number of missionaries in the area, Elders and Sisters have joint Districts. Here in Salmon Arm, our district doesn't contain any Sisters, so we've had a very easy transition with the change!

Elder Yue is also a great missionary! We've been having a great time serving in Salmon Arm.

In my reading this week, I came across Helaman 13:25-26:
25 And now when ye talk, ye say: If our days had been in the days of our fathers of old, we would not have slain the prophets; we would not have stoned them, and cast them out.
 26 Behold ye are worse than they; for as the Lord liveth, if a prophet come among you and declareth unto you the word of the Lord, which testifieth of your sins and iniquities, ye are angry with him, and cast him out and seek all manner of ways to destroy him; yea, you will say that he is a false prophet, and that he is a sinner, and of the devil, because he testifieth that your deeds are evil.

I was reminded of Matthew 23:29-32:
29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
 30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.
 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.
 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.

Both Jesus Christ and Samuel the Lamanite state that if we are not willing to accept those whom the Lord sends in our day, we cannot claim that we would have accepted those whom He sent anciently. Just some food for thought!
Have a great week!

-Elder Reynolds