Pi Day

Pulled off the field,

Laid down to rest.

Work is honored,

Obedience is blessed.

This has been a very busy week, lots of ups and downs, but ultimately ending the week higher than when I started. We went on two exchanges this week, and we had an 8 hour zone conference (which, by the way, was phenomenal).

This past Friday, on my parents' 21 anniversary, I was caught sick! I say caught because Thursday night, I received a call from Sister Burt (she had known previously that I was sick), and she asked that I stay home to rest the following day. I'd never received such a call before, and I tried to play off the sickness with some humor, but Sister Burt saw right through it and wasn't going to let me off the hook. So Friday, I had to rest. That was a tough pill to swallow. 

I had to learn humility. As much as I wanted to fight it, to disobey, I had to humbly accept it. While stuck at home, I was determined to study, to learn, to minister to other missionaries, to work the area book, to clean the apartment, to write in the journal. I did not get very far into my to-do list before the Spirit told me that I just needed to sleep. The most productive thing that I could do was rest and obey my mission leaders. Not being able to work on Friday also showed to me how much I really wanted to work; I no longer worry about whether or not I have enough conviction. I just want to go out and get it done.

For the past 7 weeks, I've been riding around in a Chevy Silverado; this week, our Silverado was transferred to a small city named Vanderhoof. We now have a 2016 Nissan Rogue. Needless to say, President Burt has made very clear the time and attention we need to give to the new vehicle.

Until next week!

Elder Reynolds

The Spirit of Elijah

"I have to live with myself and so,

I want to be fit for myself to know

I want to be able as days go by

Always to look myself straight in the eye.

I don't want to stand with the setting sun,

And hate myself for the things I've done.

I don't want to keep on a closet shelf

A lot of secrets about myself,

And fool myself as I come and go

Into thinking that nobody else will know

The kind of person I really am.

I don't want to dress up myself in sham.

I want to go out with my head erect.

I want to deserve all men's respect.

But here in my struggle for fame and pelf,

I want to be able to like myself.

I don't want to look at myself and know

That I'm bluster and bluff and empty show.

I can never hide myself from me

I see what others may never see.

I know what others may never know

I never can fool myself, and so

Whatever happens I want to be

Self-respecting and conscious-free."

-Edgar A. Guest

Perhaps not an original poem this week, but it is one of Elder Whitley's favourites.

The Spirit of Elijah has seems to have descended in Prince George! Elder Whitley and I have felt that we should try to integrate family history more into our finding opportunities and in our teaching appointments with members, and we've been seeing a lot of success! Shortly after our shift in finding, we received a lesson in church about family history and how to search for records. Then Bishop announced that ward council this week will be focused on how to more effectively use the family history centre. Today, we just watched the new Easter video that the church will release next week, and the end of it has a bit of a family history shout-out.

Clearly, we need to keep the momentum going here.

This week, we have zone conference, as well as two exchanges with different companionships. I'm anticipating each of these events to be highly nature-changing. Don't be surprised if I have to change my name next week!

Do some family history this week! There's no reason not to! Familysearch.org. It's all free.

#Hallelujah

-Elder Reynolds

James 2:26

"The tumult and the shouting dies;

The captains and the kings depart.

Still stands thine ancient sacrifice,

An humble and a contrite heart.

Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,

Lest we forget, lest we forget."

-Rudyard Kipling

Transfers have come and gone! I will be staying up here in Nechako for another transfer, though Elder Driscoll is going down to Vancouver. I will be joined by Elder Whitley! This is surely going to be a transfer to remember! We have zone conference coming up the second week in March, and General Conference to close the transfer.

The Sister missionaries that I started my mission with have all gone home. It's a sobering thought, and is a reflection of the brief time which I've yet to spend in the Canada Vancouver mission.

Arold and Erica, who were baptized last week, are the children of Mark and Jackie, who were baptized just three months ago! They've been just a pleasure to work with; it's so much fun to be with them all, and Jackie is a great cook, so we get fed every lesson!

This week, I've thought a lot about James 2:26- "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." Faith is compared to a body, and works are compared to a spirit. The body, without being filled with a soul, is lifeless. But what of the reverse?

Our spirits came to earth so that we could learn and progress. God wants us to learn from this mortal experience. If we weren't given this opportunity, our progression would have reached an eventual end and would have been halted. A halt in progression is sometimes referred to as damnation in the scriptures.

Thus, as the spirit without the body is damned, so works without faith are damned also. That is to say, if we work without faith, our work will not progress, and only in progression comes true and abiding joy.

That's just the doctrine of Elder Reynolds though.

Happy Leap Day!

-Elder Reynolds

Arold and Erica‏

The Desert, part 7)

Then lo, how foreign a sound that engulfs the valley and rings in my ear,
'Tis the echo of rolling thunder; I can't help but shed a joyous tear.
But wait! That is not a tear that streams down my face;
The sky has let forth raindrops as welcome as heaven's embrace.

O, how joy fills the wilderness as we lift our voices in song!
Though once lost in a desert, we now happily usher our paradise along.
The oasis for which I desperately sought begins to appear
As the sand slides away and a garden springs up; has this always been here?

Perhaps, I then begin to wonder, we do not simply arrive at paradise;
It surrounds us while we lift our fellow's burdens, do service, and sometimes just be nice.
Confirming my thoughts, the heavenly voice speaks the moral unfurled:
"Your journey's not to reach an end; your journey is to change the world."
(The End)

Spider-Bear

(The Desert, part 6)

One of the strangers pulls out his pack and discovers bread for us four.
Thus we break bread, and just as we do, another cloud starts to soar.
Despite the empty wilderness, we keep meeting more and our party is starting to grow,
And so it was that for each new stranger we feed, a new cloud would suddenly show.
Soon the sky is filled with clouds foreboding and grey
But not one soul amidst the multitude can call it a sorrowful day,
For each new cloud brings comfort to echo the joy of a stranger's "Hosanna,"
Each act of rescue is witnessed from heaven, from whence comes the manna.
(Part 7, the conclusion, next week)


This week has been crazy! Exchanges, zone meeting, exchanges, regional broadcasts, and there was a recent baptism in the ward!


So, by the time I got to typing this up, I only had several minutes. To compensate for my short writing, here's a picture!


Throughout Prince George, there are statures of bears, and each one is painted in a Native-American style. This particular one is called "When the Spider Journeyed with the Spirit Bear," though I think it is better rendered as "Spider-Bear." Elder Driscoll is there for scale.

​

John 11:35‏

(The Desert, part 5)
I pull the man back on his feet and wipe the sweat off my brow
Then turn my gaze heavenward and ask "What do we do now?"
I'm answered by a call from a pair of strangers in the distance;
My companion and I work toward them with renewed persistence.
By and by, we reach them, an odd group, the four of us.
United in our loneliness in a situation treacherous.
(Part 6 next week)

The goal is to finish the story within the next 3 weeks. Stay tuned!

What a fantastic week it has been in the service of my God! Due to time constraints, I relate only the most important highlights.

This past Friday, Elder Driscoll and I were privileged to attend MLC (Mission Leadership Council), where we received training from President and Sister Burt regarding the work in our mission. It was a blessing to again see Elder Kelly and Elder Asi, but the highlight of the meeting was undoubtedly the Spirit that we felt confirm to us that the things we discussed were inspired. There's a lot of changes that are coming to the mission, and we feel the pressure to convey all of these things to the Prince George zone this upcoming Friday in zone meeting. The Spirit that we felt in MLC can be second only to the Spirit of the temple, and I am not ashamed to say that I wept often in that meeting.

Later, Elder Driscoll and I were sitting at the airport terminal waiting for our plane to arrive. I got up to get a snack from the vending machine and silently prayed for a chance to share the gospel. As I purchased my snack, I heard a man behind me say the word "genealogy." It turns out there were two men talking about family history, so I turned around and walked up to them and asked "Are you talking about genealogy?" One of the men said "Yes we are! What's your interest in genealogy?" I sat with them, and we had a very pleasant chat about family history and why it's important in our church. At the end of the conversation, I gave one of the men a mormon.org card with "familysearch.org" written on the back. It's amazing how prayers to share the gospel are answered!

The long nights of travel and strong Spirit of this weekend left our bodies pretty drained, but on Saturday we exchanged with the some other Elders. I've gained a stronger testimony of the importance of exchanges, because I could literally feel the Lord giving me the strength and energy to work enthusiastically and diligently on the exchange; I could feel that the Lord needed this to be a nature-changing exchange. We worked hard as we parked our car; we talked with everybody, jogged down the streets to catch our appointments, and kept without our comfort zone. Throughout the exchange, the Elder I was with expressed to me his desire to increase his optimism and develop more Christ-like humility. As we discussed more during our exchange review, he opened up more and said he just has a lot of questions about what his place is and developing more self-esteem. I could feel the Spirit guide my words as I invited us to kneel together and have him pray to know if he was a son of God. So we knelt, and his prayer was filled with sincerity, intent, and faith, and the room was filled with such a strong Spirit, that I could not help but shed a tear. He had a testimony that God was his Father, but I witnessed his first steps of his conversion in knowing his identity.


Happy Birthday to my old man, who celebrates his birthday on February 12th! One year older and wiser too. Well... maybe just one year older.


-Elder Reynolds

February Fluff

(The Desert, part 4)
Defiant, but fearing the consequence which rebellion would bring me soon,
I clutch my burden and push towards him, my feet dragging against the dry desert dunes.
O, so unfortunate the circumstance that has brought to me a humble companion,
Two men entrenched in sand, hopeless and alone in this wide, arid canyon.
Despite my stomach's incessant cry, I give to the man my meager food,
And though it is not much, the service seems to have lightened the mood.
The man points his feeble finger at the sky and mutters something aloud;
His speech is lowly and weak, but with concerted effort he says the word "cloud."
My eyes follow his point to find that which now shades us from the sun above,
A lonely cloud in sky protects us, I know it must be the sign of Somebody's love.
(Part 5 next week)


It has now been a fun-filled week in the land of the North. We've had a bit more snow in the past few days, so we begin the month of February with some powdery pavement and fluffy roads.


Elder Driscoll, my companion, has been on his mission for about 18 months now. He's from a small town (population 3000) in the northwest panhandle of Florida, and he's just about as Southern as they come. He is also a great example of somebody that can recognize and follow the subtle promptings of the Spirit, and I've been able to learn much from him in the short week or so that I've been here.


We are currently working with a wonderful and diverse family. The husband, Mark, is First Nations; his wife, Jackie, is from the Philippines. Mark and Jackie were baptized into the church on Christmas Eve 2015. Mark and Jackie have 4 children, and two of them are working toward baptism near the end of February. Their first language is Tagalog, so the teaching hasn't been easy. However, I now know the Gospel of Jesus Christ in Tagalog, so I suppose it is a learning experience for each of us.


The Nechako ward is filled with some great members, and I'm hoping to stay here for a bit of time. It's pretty small for a ward, and we don't have a ward mission leader, but the Bishop is working hard to make up for the callings that have yet to be filled. This Bishop is also a mortgage broker and a pig farmer. We pray for him often.


-Elder Reynolds