Week 5: Camdenton, MO

Elders Stevens, Call, Eliason and Brown

Elders Eliason and Brown

This week has been CRAZY!!  

We were eating tacos on Tuesday, this local place has a great deal and also the cook is a non-member in a part-member family.  While we are there we get a call from the same family we met on transfer day.  So my comp answers the phone while we are sitting around small-talking and eating tacos, and says, "yes, we will be there in about 10 minutes".  Mind you, we had just received our food, so I was quite interested to see what was of so great importance that it superseded tacos.  Apparently I needed to be humbled about my purpose as a missionary (again), because we went and talked to a 12 year old boy, about how he was important to us, and more importantly, to God.  He said he didn't want to hold anyone back, but we explained to him how his family loves him and he loves his family.  It was a powerful experience, and I know that the family is progressing and growing so much!!  The father even pulled out 2 Nephi 28:20, and told his son if he ever got mad or had bad feelings to read about that and pray.  The father was teaching out of the Book of Mormon!!  We are enjoying our job very much as missionaries, and it gives us a lot of satisfaction to help and serve others.  I was studying repentance in PMG, It defined repentance as "to change our thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors that are not in harmony with His will".  This helped me remember that repentance isn't JUST repentance, it's a way to correct our actions and bring us closer to Him.  I testify that as we repent, we are coming closer to our Heavenly Father, by denying all ungodliness in our lives, and we are also coming closer to Christ, because we are using His Atonement to enable us to repent.  I love my Savior, and I know He loves all of us individually.

I love and  hope to hear from all y'all!

Elder Eliason

St. Robert Zone Conference

Anonymous Surprise Texted Photo

We got a surprise text tonight from an anonymous sender (assuming someone in the Camdenton area). It was this photo! Love little surprises and the people who care enough to send them!

Week 4: First Transfer Camdenton, Missouri

Hey!

This week has been a blur!!

We started in the MTC, Sun-Tues went by extremely fast, Wednesday we left at 3:30 in the morning, got to NW Arkansas Regional airport approx. 3 PM, met Pres. Loveland.  We drove about 30 mins to the mission home, where we had baked potatoes (mission pres. is a potato farmer) and then had interviews with Pres. Loveland.  I was last, and was super apprehensive about who I would be paired with and where I would go, but the Lord knows me better than I know myself, and I was blessed with Elder Brown, who has 5 weeks left, and I am in Camdenton, MO, which is the northernmost area of the mission, in sort of a resort town. I love this area, it's covered with trees, and the lake stretches around and winds down old country backroads to nowhere, which I love.  My companion is amazing. Our area is big and with a lake, that means that the straight distance might be 5 miles, but it could take us 30 miles to go around.  I think we need a missionary boat.. ;)  

The first day I was in the area, we got to the apartment at around 4, and I was wiped.  It was about 4 hours of driving from the mission home, and I was eager to get settled.  However, Sis. Loveland promised that if we would go finding on transfer day, we would find someone, and we did!! Elder Brown and his companion were notified of a family in the area about a week and a half ago, but they didn't follow up on it. So when I got there, we had a strong feeling to go to their house.  We got there, and we came at exactly the right time.  This woman works 12 and 16 hour shifts, and then gets home to a disabled vet and 3 children and cooks and cleans.  This was her day off, and she was preparing a very nice meal for them.  Elder Brown played with the children, and I listened to the woman. Her family needed us there at that moment, and we were prompted to go there. I know that the Spirit guides us in our righteous endeavors, and that through the Gospel of Jesus Christ we can be strengthened to get through whatever trials we are facing.  Adhering to the gospel won't make our trials smaller, but we will be strengthened to deal with them. I've had lots of fun experiences with many nice southern people!

Anyways, I love y'all and I hope you all have a great week!

Elder Eliason

Week 3: Getting Ready to Leave the MTC and arriving in Arkansas.

Here at the MTC it's been quite a long week, we have had lots of new experiences with TRCs and we have also had lots of class time. 

This week I was able to host the new missionaries coming in, I hosted seven of them and it was really fun! 

Elder Wilde and I taught priesthood this Sunday on the creation, the fall, and moral agency. It went very well, we think that everyone was able to gain something from the lesson, including ourselves. 

Yesterday we had infield orientation which went from 8 AM to 5:30 PM, it was long but worth it. We learned about the doctrine of Christ, goals and planning, finding, and working with members, all relating to what I will be doing in the field!

I leave on July 19 at 3:30 in the morning, I have a flight at 7 in the morning and then at 1 in the afternoon with a layover in Atlanta Georgia. We then will arrive at Fayetteville Arkansas at around three or 4 PM. After that we will have around a 2 hour drive to Bentonville, Arkansas. The total travel time should be around seven hours, but with all of the layovers it will be a very long day. 

I love you and miss you, but I know that I am doingthe right thing right now. 

Love, Elder Eliason

July 19, 2017
We (immediate family) were able to speak with Michael briefly about 6:30am thanks to the kindness of a stranger (Rick Hammond) that, when thanked, said "It was absolutely my pleasure. I love traveling through Salt Lake and seeing the new missionaries heading out. I got the opportunity to visit with him for a few minutes this morning. I think they're all a little nervous for the unknown but excited as well. The short opportunity I had to chat with him I think he's going to make a fantastic missionary."

 Sister Loveland, Elder Eliason, President Loveland

 The group of missionaries that arrived in Arkansas from the MTC with Elder Eliason

 First dinner in the mission home.

 Nice photo of Elder Eliason

 This was a large group of missionaries

 Twenty Elders and six Sisters.

Week 1 and 2: The Missionary Training Center (MTC)

On June 28 at 6:15am Elder Eliason boarded Delta flight DL2943. And just like that he was off! Thanks to Uncle Lyle who met him at the airport and accompanied him to the MTC.

The MTC is so much fun, my branch, and zone are amazing, and my teachers are super cool! This week we started doing TRCs, which are like training investigators. They're challenging to teach, but I can already see how missionaries can care so much about anyone.

Sisters Banner, Terry, and Davis and Elders Lewis, Barnes, and Packer are going to the Oregon, Eugene mission. Sisters Sughroue, Erekson, and Larson are going to the Hamilton New Zealand 🇳🇿 mission. All of the rest of us are going to the Arkansas Bentonville mission.

Top level, left to right: Elders Drennen, Hutchins, ?, Nelson, Lewis, Tinney, Barnes, Baxter, ?, Packer, ?, Hoopes, Barber, Wilde, Morris, me, Dayley, Abercrombie, Mills, Dillon, Sisters Hess, Ferguson

Bottom level, left to right: Sisters Robbin, Hickenlooper, Banner, Sughroue, ?, Elders Call, Dansie, Sisters ?, Peacock, Davis, Terry, (girl from Smithfield UT), Erekson, Larson

Love, Elder Eliason