Week 42: Come, Ye Children of the Lord

This week was really good! We are working hard and we are seeing the Lord's hand in our area. I think it's interesting to see the different ways that the Lord opens the hearts of men to allow our message to take hold in their lives. One investigator family we tracted into about 3 months ago. They said that they were interested, but we were not able to get ahold of them for about 2 weeks, and so we put them on the back burner and eventually forgot about them. About a week ago the traveling teachers from the mission came, and we had a prompting to go and see them. We introduced ourselves, and they explained to us that over the course of the last three months their situation had drastically changed. They had both lost their jobs, and so now they are home all the time and they are really open to our message. God really does provide a way for His message to "sound in every ear."
I know that the tender mercies of the Lord are truly upon all of His children, and as we look for them and thank Him for them, we can receive more, according to our obedience.

Love, 

Elder Eliason

Leafy  Tree

 Mural

 Webber Falls Lock & Dam 

Week 41: Finding

The work in Poteau is going well! We are having lots of success finding people to teach, and I truly do love helping people grow closer to Christ. The message that I share has strengthened me so much as I have pushed the limits on my comfort and my teaching skills.

We are working closely with our Branch Mission leader to close the gap between members and missionaries, and a weekly missionary correlation meeting has helped us keep accountable to the branch as well as the Lord.  We are coming up with lots of ideas as a branch mission to implement, and we are hoping to get lots of investigators to an 8 year old baptism this weekend.

It was super rainy here this week!! There was a tornado warning, no tornados near us but some across the Oklahoma-Arkansas border.  

We did some service out at a member's farm, he had us put up some gates, and it was so satisfying!! We almost messed it up a couple of times, but it still works and looks good :)

One good talk that I would like to share is Elder Bednar's general conference address in April 2016, Always Retain a Remission of Your Sins. It talks about the Sacrament, and how it cleanses us.  It's really good!

I love y'all!!

Elder Eliason

 charcoal mask

 A coyote among a herd of cows

The district

 gospel cereal

   #highpriestsquad (for the end of suitcoat season, of course!!)

 A juniper bush in spring 🌳

 cool sunset

 riding in a tractor bucket

 a TASTE of the faith of the South :)

This is in the spillway for Wister Lake, a huge lake in our area.  The spillway is all shale, so it's torn out in places, and it looks really cool!

Week 40: The weekly📸📬

This week was wonderful! We had lots of rain, and it was gloomy for part of the week but now really sunny and warm and nice and green (and did I mention sunny?!)   outside. 

We have been trying to do a lot of service with our members, and share a message about creating a gospel sharing home. When we lead by example, others will follow. Even a simple picture of Christ or serving in the community will help others to know that we are disciples of Jesus Christ.

One cool spiritual thought I had for this week is this:

In a talk on Joseph Smith, Truman G Madsen intrigued me by saying that the answer to Joseph Smith's prayer is an answer to millions of prayers throughout the centuries. I have pondered on that, and I believe that it is true. We are told that sometimes the answers to our questions may not come in the time frame we expect, or in the way we are expecting. I have a firm conviction in my heart and in my mind that Joseph Smith is a prophet. We can all find greater peace, love, and direction in our lives as we look to the modern prophets for guidance and counsel. They really can be the answer to our questions, too!

I love y'all!

Keep lookin' good ;)

- Elder Eliason 

P.S. Pictures won't load so I will send them next week if they still won't load later today :'(

Week 39: 🎶Sweet Home Oklahoma🎶

Hey y'all!

This week was pretty short, as our last preparation day was on Wednesday. The biggest highlight was General Conference, which was great!

We are setting some more baptismal goals with people, so that people really know our purpose in being here on missions and coming to their homes. When people know our purpose, I feel like they are more likely to keep commitment and to progress in the gospel.

 

Addresses are so hard out here!! It is so annoying to try and find a house number on a street where there's hardly any mailboxes! We spent about 2 hours trying to find an address, in an old part of a small town. The street was sparse and did not have that many houses, but we started knocking on doors and we found that most of the people there are family. But none of them knew the house nor the person we were looking for! We didn't find the house, but we had some great experiences sharing our message and our testimony about the restoration and inviting people to come closer to Christ.  One thing that I've learned recently is that even if you don't end up doing what you set out to do, if you are listening to the Holy Spirit the Lord will guide you to where he needs you to be and where you can do what he wants you to do. 

What was your favorite talk from conference? Mine was Elder Bednar's on meekness, but they were all amazing! A scripture to go along with meekness is, Alma 13:27-28.

It's rainy here, hopefully it's nice where you are! Have a great week!

Love, 

Elder Eliason

I found the BEST rocking chair(and matching footstool😉)  to watch conference in :) 

Elder Swanson masterfully positions the ball into a very sticky spot

I thought my family would appreciate this sign, as it's coming into "that season" yet again! 

Week 38: 3rd transfer in Poteau!! 👌

Y'all!

Poteau didn't do so hot with this transfer call, they got stuck with BOTH Elder Swanson and I for another 6 weeks!! We are both excited to stay, I was expecting to leave, but what a sweet surprise!

The work is good here, the branch is growing, and it's spring! I couldn't ask for anything more. I'm living the dream!

I am SO excited for general conference this weekend, I used to be able to sleep through whole sessions with no problem, but now they captivate me! This one is going to be extra-special, because it's the first time that we will be able to sustain the new prophet, Russell M Nelson.

I invite all y'all to watch general conference with a purpose. Maybe that purpose is to see if the fruits of the prophet are good. Maybe it is to receive an answer to a question or a prayer. Whatever it is, coming with a purpose will make it so much greater of an experience :)

We also played a bit of a prank on our district, writing "just married <3" on the back of their cars!! They had fun trying to wash it off :)

Elder Eliason

There's not much more to add, but I will hunt for some things to add this week! I promise I'm not boring in person :)

Love, 

Elder Eliason 

 Our District - only one person is leaving this transfer!

A youth who was baptized this week!!

Washin' a dog!

Prankin'

Week 37: Sunny Spring, Happy Spring!

This week was fantastic! We had lots of sunny days and success! 

There was a baptism this week, a 12 year old girl who is being adopted into a member family. She took the initiative in asking us to teach her, and she is amazing!! She was baptized on Wednesday, and was able to enter the temple on Saturday. We were not able to be there, as the closest temple is 5 hours away, but she got up on Sunday and bore her testimony of the Spirit in the temple! She is showing the pamphlets to her friends, and they are interested in learning more! She is super sharp, and it's been great to work with her and other people. 

This week I was reading in Jacob 5, the story about the olive trees in the vineyard. Just as this girl was adopted into a physical family, as we all get onto and walk the covenant path, we are grafted into the House of Israel. How cool is that!

Missionary work really is the most important work we can do, and it is very achievable through the tender mercies of the Lord. I love all of you!

Happy spring!!!

Elder Eliason

Week 36: Popcorn is popping, and the Work is poppin' too!!

This week was amazing!!

We had tons of service, ranging from helping out at an animal rescue center to working on the farm. We were able to work and see the fruits from our labors, as well as the fruits of missionaries past.

Spring is in full force down here! The flowers are blooming, the birds are singing, and the grass is becoming ever so green. I think people are happier when the weather is nicer. It certainly seems that way down here. We have been received very well, and we are continuing to find lots of people to teach. We have seen many tender mercies of the Lord as we have tried to be diligent in serving our Lord.

We have had the opportunity this week to witness the baptisms of two children of a lady who was baptized last month. It was a very joyful experience. As with all baptisms, something went wrong! 

Earlier this year, their mother was baptized. The branch president told us to get there approximately 3 hours before the baptism, to make sure that the font would fill in time. We didn't believe him, so we only came around 2 hours early, and we had to haul water from one side of the building to the other in salad bowls to help it fill faster! This time, we thought we were going to be smarter! We got there 3 hours before and started filling the font. We checked it about an hour later, and the plug was broken and so it would not fill!!! It took a lot of ideas, but eventually we just figured that a small bowl would fit over it and get the job done. Everything worked out in the end, and the program went smoothly.

I have a firm conviction that Joseph Smith really did see God the Father and Jesus Christ in that sacred grove of trees as a 14 year old boy in 1820. Jesus Christ lives, and he has commanded us to do things, like be baptized, which are necessary for us to come back to Him. They help us to draw close unto our Father in Heaven, change our nature, and when performed by the proper authority bind us to Him forever. 

I hope y'all have a blessed week!

Love,

Elder Eliason

Pictures!!

 We helped a member out at his farm, and it was AWESOME!! We just exchanged the dirt from the tractor to us ;)

A flower, the daffodils are in full bloom here :)