Pictures Sent from Ward Members

Each time I receive a surprise picture of my missionary from a caring ward member, my heart just sings with happiness.  Here are some from the last month or so:

30/104 #ldsconf

Oct 1, 2016

Heylo Eberyone!

This week was awesome! Whenever general conference rolls around, there's always an increase of the Spirit in my world, and, as a missionary, that means the work is AWESOME! (Not that it ever isn't, but great things can indeed get better!)

Remember the new investigators I talked about a couple weeks ago? Their names are Keri and Cordell Cody.  Last month, they just showed up at church, out of nowhere. They stayed for all three hours! When we introduced ourselves to them, they said that they were looking for a church, and they would love to have us over to teach them. We were blown away! We were able to visit with them once two weeks ago. We found out that Al, Keri's husband, is a less-active member of the church, and served a mission. Keri and Cordell, their eight-year-old son, have both not been baptized, and expressed a desire to become such. We were so excited! The next time we were over there, we taught them the Restoration, which they basically already understood. Cordell even said that he wants to eventually "give out the bread and the water"! We told them that we were here to guide them along their path to bring them closer to Christ, and testified to them that baptism would help them do that. They are excited to be baptized! We set October 29th to be their baptismal date, and they agreed to it, with some hesitation. They expressed the concern that they might not be able to meet with us as much as they would need to in order to be ready for that day. We promised them that if they would read from the Book of Mormon as individuals and as a family, they  would be prepared by that day. We also established a way to have lessons with them over video chat. When they found out that video chat was an option, they were visibly relieved. Technology is such a blessing!

General Conference was amazing! I was only able to watch the main four sessions, because we were helping a new investigator move furniture to her new apartment. She's awesome, and when I have time, I'll talk about her. Anywhays! Watching General Conference while on a mission is so fun! Not only was I learning for myself, which is already a spiritual experience in and of itself, I was privileged to learn for our investigators as well. So many things which were said this past weekend inspired thoughts such as, "Wow, that answers the question this person was asking us!" or, "This will help this person understand the doctrine of repentance so much more clearly." All the while, the messages are also lifting my soul, answering my own questions, and reminding me that God does in fact love each and every one of His children. The human family is so blessed to have a prophet of God on the earth today! He is a special witness of Jesus Christ, and through him, we can know of God's will for us. I add my witness to his that Jesus is the Christ, our only way to salvation. I promise that those who follow His commandments will have a fullness of joy in this life, and eternal exaltation with God in the life to come. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

ALL IS WELL IN ZION!

Love,

Elder Grover

1. A HUGE cockroach we caught in the church kitchen!

2. I spy a Portlandian!

29/104

Sept 26, 2016

Heylo Eberyone!

This area is very different from my last area. There are so many converts in our wards! Lots of the members in my last area were born in the church, but in this area, lots of people joined the church later in life. It's pretty cool!

Last Monday we got a call from one of our bishops asking if we could give an emergency blessing to a member of the ward who was taken to the Emergency Room earlier in the week. His kidneys were failing, and he was in a pretty rough condition. His parents, who live in New Mexico, called Bishop Smith and asked him and us to go over to the hospital to give him a blessing. It was such a cool experience! Elder Inchin and his last companion had been visiting with him for a while, and had helped him get back to coming to church, so his mom was really grateful to Elder Inchin for that. We blessed him that he would have a peaceful, painless passing, and that, if the Lord desired, he would be able to stay alive until his parents got there to see him one last time. The blessing was fulfilled, and he passed away the next day. The family was very grateful to us for the help the missionaries had provided for him over the past few months. before they left on Saturday, they took us out to lunch at Cracker Barrel. I felt kind of helpless in this situation; I wanted to provide some sort of comfort and consolation to the family, but I couldn't. It was kind of a weird experience. I could see, though, how this family's knowledge of the Atonement was comforting them in this time of need, and that gave me peace. 

We've been working a lot with the members in this area, especially the less active members. There are a lot of them here! Many of them are happy to have us over, and to visit with us, and others want nothing to do with us. We had an experience trying to contact a less active member with the last name of Love. We knocked on his door, and a disheveled, obviously irritated man answered the door. He stared me down, and after I greeted him, he stopped me, pointed to the NO SOLICITING sign on his front door, and said, "You see this? Next time, take the time to read it." Elder Inchin started to ask if he was the man we were looking for, and the man interrupted him, threatening to sic his dogs on us if we didn't get off his porch. We promptly wished him a good day, then left. I've had plenty of instances like that before, but for some reason, this one irritated me for a long time. I think it was because his interaction with us appeared so shortsighted and impatient that he didn't give us time to even find out if he was the guy we were looking for. If he wasn't, we wouldn't have bothered him again. But, because we don't know if he's Brother Love or not, missionaries are going to keep coming by. After that, we commented to each other that he didn't really live up to his name. :)

Even though this week had kind of a somber overtone to it, I still find comfort and joy in the work. The things we do as missionaries provide so much good for people, that there's no room for sadness to overwhelm me. Even when I was irritated by that interaction, I received peaceful confirmation that the effort I am putting in is not wasted. We stopped by the library on Friday night to see if we could use the internet there, but it was closed. As we were pulling out, however, a car that was parked in the driveway pulled over to us, and the driver asked if we were Mormon. We confirmed his query, and spent the next 30 minutes talking to him about the church. He's looking to have religion in his life again, and we directed him to the Mesa temple visitors' center. He was excited to go check it out, and also accepted an invitation to the Gladys Knight devotional. I know God is directing this work, and the servants who participate in it!

ALL IS WELL IN ZION!

Love,

Elder Grover

1. The last picture with San Tan, my old zone! :'(

2. Elder Inchin and I w/ Bishop Smith @ DQ

3. Baskin Robbins celebrates the Olympics, too! 

28/104

Sept. 19, 2016

Heylo Eberyone!

I got transferred! I spent the first six months of my mission in the same area, and now I'm in a new area. I'm in a town called Ahwatukee, which is in the Phoenix area. We're in the Lakewood and Foothills wards. I thought people were rich in my last area! There are houses here that make the big houses in my last area look like dollhouses! I've already begun to love this area. We've already gotten two new investigators, a handful of people who want to be baptized, and the members here are awesome! So many of them want to help us in the work, and we've already had a whole bunch of people come on splits with us. This is a fantastic area! For anyone who wants to send letters to my apartment, my new address is 4411 E Chandler Blvd. Apt. 1100 Phoenix, AZ 85048.

I've got a fantastic companion, to boot! His name is Elder Inchin. He's from Hawaii, but he was born in Chuuk, Micronesia. He's awesome! He's a convert of four years, and he loves the Gospel! I've never seen a missionary so invested in the relationships of those he serves. Everything we do is motivated by a desire to help and serve those we teach and serve. We're going to serve well together!

This week has been a bit weird, just because this is my first time in a new area since the beginning of my mission, and I've been having some worries and struggles that I thought were gone when I got used to the work in my first area: "How will I remember all these people's names?" "I don't feel like I'm being as helpful as I can be to my companion and to the wards in which I serve." "What's wrong with me?" I've come to realize that these are concerns that, while valid, aren't worth worrying about. I've found a lot of comfort in the scripture I chose to be on my missionary plaque:

Therefore, fear not, little flock; do good; let earth and hell combine against you, for if ye are built upon my rock, they cannot prevail. Behold, I do not condemn you; go your ways and sin no more; perform with soberness the work which I have commanded you. Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not. (D&C 6:34-36)

The Lord has called me to labor in this area. He is prepared to help me through it all, and if I rely on Him, We will prevail. The best part about it all, is that when I slip up, He will still help me. I have felt His hand lift me through so much here. I love my Savior!

And guess what?

ALL IS WELL IN ZION!

Love,

Elder Grover

P.S. Pictures later. They're on Elder Inchin's iPad.

27/104

Sept. 12, 2016

Heylo Eberyone!

I've hit six months! I can't believe it's already here. This Wednesday
will be transfers, and I will most likely be leaving the Lindsay 1st
and Grove 3rd wards. It's been so great to be here. If I could, I
would stay in this area for another three months. We'll see what the
Lord has in store for me.

We have a tradition as missionaries to burn an article of clothing
every six months: the first time, we burn a tie, the second time a
shirt, third time a pair of slacks, then (sometimes) a full suit. As
the 9th was my six-month mark. I got to burn a tie. We took some
videos, but didn't really get a good shot of the actual burning, so I
took a few screenshots of the process. Since it was polyester, it
kinda just dripped fire at first. Then we sprayed it with body spray.
That's when it lit up.

We have an awesome opportunity coming up for this area! Recently, the
Child family moved into our ward from the Memphis, Tennessee area. We
helped them move in about a month and a half ago. Recently, however,
they reached out to us. Bro. Child informed us that he and his family
have been inactive for about ten or so years,and they moved to this
area hoping to return to activity. They have three kids (18, 16, &
13), none of whom know the Gospel very well. They want us to teach
their whole family! And even better, their youngest has not been
baptized yet, and she wants to be! Here is yet another miracle family
that we have been praying for as a mission. They're excited to meet
with us, and we're excited to as well.

We also had the opportunity to go to a meeting in Tempe for all of the
new missionaries and their trainers this week. It was an awesome
learning experience. I have been so humbled by this experience, but
coming to this meeting and seeing that other missionaries, who have
far more experience than I do, are running to similar problems as me
is really comforting. The Lord has given me this opportunity to grow,
as well as to help Elder Pavlakos become a more effective missionary.
I feel that, only through the Lord's help, I have done so. It has not
come without challenges, but those challenges have helped us learn. I
am so grateful for the doctrine of repentance! Because of it, I am
able to continually strive to turn my will over to God, and let it
fall in line with His. Even though I am not perfect, He lets me
continue to ask for forgiveness, and gives it to me. I will continue
to improve, because I will continue to trust in God.


ALL IS WELL IN ZION!!
Elder Grover

Sent from my companion's iPad

26/104

Sept. 06, 2016

Hello Eberyone!

        Apologies for not writing last week; I'm still trying to figure out
getting a new iPad. For now, Elder Pavlakos is letting me use his.

        The Miller kids got baptized and confirmed! The baptism happened on
Friday, August 26th, and because our stake had stake conference the
following Sunday, they were confirmed yesterday in sacrament meeting.
They and their family are so happy! They had so many people from the
ward at the baptism to support them, including Brother Miller's
parents and brother. His parents were so thankful to us for helping
Matt and his family make a change for the better; they are members of
the Church, and have been praying for Matt and his brother to come
back to the church. Matt's brother even went back to Phoenix and found
the missionaries in his ward right after the baptism! The Spirit was
so powerful there. Now the next goal for the Millers is getting them
married, so Lauren can be baptized. That's where the problem lies,
though. We had a lesson with them shortly thereafter, and they had
presented the date of June 10, 2017! After we recovered from the
initial shock, we asked them if they had talked with the Lord about
it. They said they hadn't, and agreed that they should. We'll be
following up with them tomorrow. There's hope for them yet!

        We also had an orientation for an incredible opportunity that's
coming up! This last Friday, we gathered as a mission to here from two
people: Eric Johnson and Kenya Jackson, who are committee chair
members for a choir called the Saints Unified Voices. Some of you may
or may not recognize Kenya Jackson's name; and if you don't recognize
her name, you may recognize the name of her mother, and the director
of the choir itself - Gladys Knight. Yes, the frontman (or front
lady?) of Gladys Knight and the Pips is a member of the Church,
directs a Grammy award-winning gospel choir, and is coming to Tempe to
host a free event, which they aren't calling a concert, but a "bold
declaration of testimony through music", available to everyone who
lives in the area! I am so excited! If you know anyone in the Tempe
Arizona area, member of the Church or not, let them know about the
event. There's a picture that I'll send that shows the information
that they'll need.

       This Friday will be my six month mark! I have been a full-time
missionary away from home for six months, which means I am 25% done! I
don't really like that thought. I can't believe how fast this
wonderful time has gone by. I've become such a different person in
this time. I've learned to rely on the Book of Mormon as a testimonial
foundation for myself and for those I teach, I've become much more
disciplined in how I use my time, and, most importantly, I have
increased my trust in my Savior, Jesus Christ. If it's only been six
months, and I've still got 18 to go, I can't wait to see how I've
changed by the end!

All is well in Zion!

Love,
Elder Grover

24/104

Aug. 22, 2016

Heylo Eberyone!

Apologies for the lack of an email last week. I was shopping, and left my cart for a few minutes, and when I came back, my iPad was gone. As you may have guessed, that threw me for a loop for a few days. I still have no iPad, but we're working on getting a replacement. All is well in Zion!

The Millers are getting baptized this week! Brother and Sister Miller are still prayerfully deciding on a date to be married, and they're almost ready to set it in stone! They are, however, moving forward with getting Brynn and Hunter baptized this Friday. This will be the first convert baptism this ward has had since January! Everyone is so excited. As an expression of that excitement, the ward is helping the Millers to plan out a beautiful wedding for absolutely no cost! There's nothing like a ward that loves missionary work. I love it!

We also found out that Hien, our other investigator that is preparing to be baptized, lives outside of our proselyting area, which means we have to refer him to the missionaries that cover his address. His wifes parents live in one of our wards, which is how we came in contact with him; they referred him to us. We thought that he lives at least in our stake, but it turns out he does not; he lives right on the other side of the mission boundaries! Not only will we have to give him up to another set of missionaries, we have to give him to missionaries in the Gilbert mission. We're a bit worried about that, since he has told us that we are the only missionaries he has met, of which there have been many, that he trusts. We're going to see if we can contact the bishop in his home ward, so he can go with the missionaries to visit him. I'll keep you updated on that. 

I've been thinking and studying a lot about faith these past two weeks. I have learned so much about what faith truly is, and how our faith in Jesus Christ is truly manifest. In Hebrews chapter 11, Paul writes about many examples of faith, and how the people of the Old Testament exercised that faith. In every example, they didn't know how things were going to work out, or what blessings would come from it. But because they put their trust and faith in the Lord, they received blessings after they accomplished that which God asked them to accomplish. This is something I am working on in myself right now. There are a whole truck load of things with which I must trust my Heavenly Father; and even though I understand the concept - I had to put my faith in Him as I prepared for my mission, too - it's still very difficult. I try my best in everything I do, and that is where I find my comfort. Knowing the Lord only expects my honest effort, no matter how perfect or imperfect I am at doing His will, I know that He will bless me for trying. According to Moroni, I should "dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith." (Ether 12:6) It may not be easy, but I know that I have faith in Jesus Christ, for it is he who works the miracles that I have seen. 

Thank you all for your prayers and support! I can feel them every day.

ALL IS WELL IN ZION!

Love,

Elder Grover

22/104

August 8, 2016

Heylo Eberyone!

Here's an update on the family that we put on date for the end of this month:
Two weekends ago, the family texted us about a meeting they had with
the bishop. In our previous meeting with them, we found out that
they weren't married. When they met with the
bishop, he told them that they couldn't be baptized unless they got
married. Though this is true, the text they sent us showed signs of
them being overwhelmed with everything in their life. With the recent
move, difficulties finding a job, and many other things weighing on
their shoulders, things were worrying them. Then they went up to
Flagstaff for the whole weekend, to get school year shots for the
kids. (Side note: the school year for the public schools started on
the 25th of July! So early!) We tried texting them a couple times, but
we heard nothing from them. When they got back in town, we were able
to meet with them the next day. We decided to focus our lesson on The
Family: A Proclamation to the World. With the insight from that
document, and the combined testimonies of the two of us as well as the
member of the ward we brought with us, they were comforted by the
Spirit. They accepted a commitment to be married, and they are
currently praying to know what date to be married on. If that date
happens to be after the day we had set for their baptism, they want
their kids to be baptized on that date, regardless of whether or not
their mom will join them. Their faith never ceases to amaze me!

We had some crazy storms this week. We even got hit by a thunderstorm
so hard, we were stuck inside for three hours! After that storm, which
was on Tuesday, the parks and green areas were flooded. When I first
got to Arizona, I noticed a whole bunch of water runoff ramps and
areas, and I was really confused. Now I realize that Arizona and India
have at least one thing in common: they both have monsoon seasons.
There are still puddles and lakes scattered around the area. The
picture I have included is of me standing on a sidewalk which should
be completely over the water. The sidewalk was submerged about 2-3
feet under nothing but rain water. It was so cool! And Arizona has the
best thunderstorms, too!

Thank you all for your prayers and support! I can feel them every day.

Love,
Elder Grover

1. Pico Bread from the Hopi Native American tribe. Basically just corn
meal made as thin as possible, and colored a greenish-gray. Not the
tastiest thing in the world.
2. Us preparing to eat the bread.
3-4: Videos of us in the monsoon.
5: The aftermath of said monsoon.
6: A lizard got into the church building, and Elder Pavlakos caught it!

21/104 Transfer 3/17

August 1, 2016

Heylo Eberyone!

I can't say that the weather here is the most pleasant I've ever
experienced, but it's definitely some of the most unusual. This week,
it hit 115˚, then the next day, we were pelted with fog-like sand,
shortly followed by one of the most incredible thunderstorms I've ever
seen. It was insane! We're all safe and sound, and we had so much fun
watching it.

We had the new missionary meeting for Elder Pavlakos up in Tempe with
all the other new missionaries and trainers this week. It was good to
see the AP's and President & Sister Christensen again, and I feel that
both Elder Pavlakos and I learned a lot. I especially felt comforted
there, because I am the newest trainer in the mission, and a lot of
the more experienced trainers were having some of the same issues I
have. It was really nice to see that others were working through those
same issues, and we were all able to discuss with each other the
solutions to the problems we were facing. I have learned so much! I
hope I can continue to improve, and help Elder Pavlakos to improve as
well.

I'm glad I was able to get what I did out of that meeting, because the
whole time, in fact the whole day, I was fighting off stomach pains
and the urge to vomit. I had apparently gotten food poisoning either
the previous night or the morning of, because I couldn't keep anything
in my stomach! After the meeting, I was able to make it home fine and
get some rest, but before that time, I had thrown up five times. It
was really difficult feeling sick, and being completely incapable of
doing any of the work I knew needed to be dome. I definitely felt the
love though; a couple members came to check in on me, and one of them
is an ER physician, and was able to give me the treatment I needed. I
was able to get up and out of bed on time the next day, ready to work.
I know God's looking out for me!

Thank you all for your prayers and support! I can feel them every day.

Love,
Elder Grover

20/104

July 25, 2016

Heylo Eberyone!

        The mission continues to amaze me. There is no aspect of this work
that isn't miraculous. We had four of our investigators come to church
this week (more than we've ever had before), people who we tried to
contact forever finally came out of the woodwork, and at the end of
all these miracles, we were blessed with even more miracles!

        This past Tuesday, we were biking to the church to prepare for a
lesson we had later in the day, when I had a distinct impression to
ask Elder Pavlakos which way to go. After a little bit of thought, he
decided to go a direction we didn't usually go. I followed his
direction. Then, at another point on the route, I felt that we should
make yet another variation to the route we were expecting to go.
Unsure of why we felt we needed to go this way, we took this new
route, one we had rarely ever used. Not two minutes later, Elder
Pavlakos suddenly stops and begins to turn around.
        "What's wrong?" I asked.
        "We should go talk to that guy."
        "What guy?"
        Unbeknownst to me, we had just passed a man sitting by the sidewalk
next two his bike and two empty water bottles. We asked if he needed
some water. He gratefully accepted, and we began to talk. He told us
his name was Esteban, and he had just gotten a job at the nearby
Albertson's supermarket. We sat down next to him, and the three of us
were making conversation like we'd known each other forever. He told
us about his history, and the many struggles he's had, but how he was
able to keep God in his life, and how that's blessed him. We took the
opportunity to teach him about the nature of God as our Heavenly
Father, and he loved that concept. By the end, we were calling each
other brothers, and he asked if one of our churches was nearby. We
gave him an address and directions, as well as a start time. He told
us he would do his best to make it, and that he was eager to attend.
He then told us that he lived about 20 miles away, and he had to bike
home! We filled up his water from our packs, and he was off on his
way. He wasn't able to come to church this week, because he had to
work; he did, however, tell us that he still wants to come.

        This circumstance reminds me of a passage from the Doctrine and
Covenants. In section 61, the elders of the Church were riding along
the Missouri River, and Joseph Smith received revelation from God,
saying, "it is not needful for this whole company of mine elders to be
moving swiftly upon the waters, whilst the inhabitants on either side
are perishing in unbelief". While Esteban had faith in God and Jesus
Christ, because we had taken the time to follow the promptings of the
Spirit on which direction to go and when to stop, we were able to
minister to him both physically and spiritually. Esteban now knows
there is someone he can turn to in his hour of need. There is no work
greater than this, I am sure of it!

Thank you all for your prayers and support! I can feel them every day.

Love,
Elder Grover

1-3: Ping-Pong Fun!
4: A McLaren!