1/25/16

1-19-16

It was 18° is morning! It didn't warm up very much during the day either. We went ghetto stomping for a little while. I felt this prompting to turn down this one street. It wasn't even in the direction we were supposed to be heading. We came across this young lady sitting outside on her porch. We stopped to talk to her and she's really nice! She let us sit down and teach her. Her name is Tianna and she's awesome. I could tell she felt the Spirit while we were talking to her because she started tearing up. We set a date with her to be baptized! She seemed really excited to go through with it. I told her that we are going to have to come back and teach her a little more before she can. She said, "so when am I gonna see y'all again?"

We went over to Sis. Catoe's for dinner again. She signs up to feed us a lot because she likes having us over! She makes awesome food and I love seeing her funny dog "Chewie."

After dinner, we went to a member's house and shared a message with them. We invited them to hand out a BoM to a friend and then forgot to give one to handout! Haha so we will have to drop it by sometime.

 

1-20-16

We had a live worldwide broadcast for all the missionaries and it was awesome! The theme was, "Teach Repentance and Baptize Converts." Neil L. Anderson, David A. Bednar, L. Whitney Clayton, Dallin H. Oaks and a few other people spoke. Elder Oaks was so bold! He told us to be confident with extending our commitments.

After the broadcast, we got to go eat at a really good Chinese buffet! Then, we went on exchanges and I went to Cheraw. This time, I got to go with E. Webb. He is a really neat guy and I can relate to him a lot. He's from Oregon and played football a little in highschool. He knows I like the Oregon Ducks, so he gave me a Ducks sweatshirt! We stayed up late talking about all kinds of things. Haha which led to us being really tired, but that's okay! We taught a couple people including someone I met last time I was there. We got him to pray and he's going to read the BoM.

 

1-21-16

An 80 year old man (Bro. Moles) picked us up to end exchanges and on our way back, he got pulled over. He's pretty much deaf, so he kept asking the officer to repeat himself. He also, talks really loud in general and even louder when he's nervous. The officer said, "just because you can't hear me, you don't need to yell. I can hear just fine." Then tempers quickly escalated and the cop got mad, left the ticket and drove off. Haha I felt bad, but it was pretty funny. Bro. Moles pulled over into a gas station and really had to go to the bathroom so he went to tell the cop while he was writing the ticket up and the cop thought he was going to run away or something!

When we got back, we saw a friend of Frank's and he showed us a brand new pistol that he won in a raffle. It's a Smith & Wesson .380 compact pistol. It's such a nice gun and he wanted to sell it. He wants to sell it for really cheap too... I wish I could get it so bad! Haha

We visited a couple members and tracked for a bit. We met a couple and taught them!  Then, we went over to the Solomon's. Bro. Solomon was being hilarious. He always cracks me up!

 

1-22-16

Today was freezing! It was hailing and there was ice on the trees and roads. We went out for a bit after lunch, but then decided it wasn't safe because of the roads. SC drivers are crazy! And to them, a little bit of snow is a huge deal. All the schools and stores shut down. Everyone rushes into the grocery stores and stocks up on milk and eggs. Haha so we stopped by Bro. Haney's and helped him install a toilet instead! After he took us home, we made cookies and planned for tomorrow. It's supposed to snow tonight, so we will see if it actually does. It was really cold today because it rained and was also freezing rain.

 

1-23-16

It was so cold to be biking today! It snowed a little this morning. We knocked into a middle aged couple and they were really awesome! The husband was basically, teaching the lesson for us! It was pretty accurate, so the lesson went well. On our way back into town from where we were, we stopped at the church. Some members dropped off dinner for us! Then, we went by Sis. Catoe's and taught her son's girlfriend. We also, saw the Greenburg's (members) and talked to them about prayer. They gave us snacks to take home. All in all, it's been a pretty good day! We were able to set up a couple appointments for tomorrow. Now, I'm listening to Hank Smith speak while I'm trying to thaw out!

 

1-24-16

Church was really good today. A young guy spoke on having a Christ-centered home. He is a convert and joined just about 8 months before he served a mission! He talked about how we are all in orbit and need gravitational pull. The gravitational pull we need is towards the gospel. That's the strongest pull as well. We should also not let any other things pull us away from that. It was a really good talk, but I can't explain it as well!

After church, we went over to have lunch with some members. Then, we stopped by a less active couple. We got the husband to open up a little which was awesome because he wouldn't answer anything we asked him last time.

Towards the end of the night, we decided to stop by a former investigator. We ended up having an awesome lesson with him. We helped him learn how to recognize the Spirit. We shared Alma 32:28 and that seemed to help him. He told us that he felt something last time we met with him and felt it again tonight! He is really searching, so I hope he follows through with the commitments we left with him. We committed him to pray for an answer on baptism, Joseph Smith and the BoM. We also asked him to read from Enos!

 

I love you!

-Elder Mitchell

1/18/16 Pics

1/18/16

1-12-16
Today we had DDM and I was asked to give a training talk on
"Diligence." I related it to football of course! I enjoyed preparing
it and it turned out pretty good. After that, we went on exchanges
with the Cheraw Elders. I went to Cheraw with E. Griffin. We taught
some pretty interesting people. We went to go see a former
investigator of theirs, but she wasn't there. Her brother happened to
be there instead, so we taught him. We set a date for him to be
baptized! Then, we went and taught a less active lady named Sis.
Manning. I saw her a couple times before when I went to Cheraw so she
was happy to see me again. She got a really cute puppy named King, so
I had to hold it. Before we left, she made us take a case of Pepsi and
boxes of Little Debbie snacks. Then, we went to a part member family's
house and taught them. We set a date for the 12 year old daughter to
be baptized! We went to "Hwy 55" for dinner and had some burgers. We
decided to travel to the ghetto and teach a guy named Julie (Hoo-Lee).
A friend of his named "New York" sat in on the lesson as well.
Supposedly, Julie is the gang leader of the Bloods in Cheraw. It was
interesting... But he's a nice guy!

1-13-16
We did a lot of tracting today. We are really using faith as a power
to find some new investigators who have been prepared by Heavenly
Father to teach. We are in the midst of a trial, so that means
something good is going to happen soon! Other than that, we got to
teach a guy named Timmons with Bro. Haney. We taught a good lesson and
I really felt the spirit, but it's hard for people to change... He
texted us after and wants to stick with his church. A lady from the
ward dropped off gift cards to a restaurant/buffet called "Shoney's."
So we had some steaks! After dinner we went back to tracting until we
went over to see the Solomons. Sis. Solomon set up an appointment for
us to teach someone she knows next week! She's awesome.

1-14-16
The trial continues... It rained all day today. It was sprinkling,
then it would pour. We went up to see someone who lives in the ghetto.
His house was just wooden he inside. So it was basically, just the
skeleton of the house. We met in the first room and talked to a guy
about the Restoration. While we were teaching him, people came in and
he got up and went to the next room covered by a piece of plywood.
It's official, we were teaching a drug deal... Haha! His phone would
ring while we were teaching him and they were asking to come by and
pick some "stuff" up. It was pretty awkward! After that lesson, we
quickly left and tracked some other places. Sis. Catoe had us over for
dinner and she made huge hamburgers and fries. We shared a message
with her and her less active son. Her son's girlfriend was there too.
She seemed interested so we talked about the BoM and gave her one to
read!

1-15-16
It was an interesting day... We saw another drug deal happen in front
of us while we were tracting. The police need to just give us badges!
We taught a few lessons today including a guy that said that he
doesn't believe a God that is so loving would send people to a place
called "hell." This was perfect to lead into the Plan of Salvation!

1-16-16
We went to go teach a kid named Jewan. He's a big kid actually. Haha
he played on the Defensive Line for the highschool team. He's a senior
this year. We brought Daniel Thompson with us since he likes going out
teaching with us. We taught Jewan the Gospel of Jesus Christ and
invited him to church tomorrow! I hope he comes because it's going to
be a good session! There is a special broadcast for just the southeast
region tomorrow. I'm excited to see who is speaking! We also, went and
visited with Patti and Dave. It's their anniversary today! Dave always
cracks me up. We went over the Restoration with them and invited them
to pray about what we taught them.

1-17-16
Jewan came to church! I was really happy and he seemed to enjoy it.
-even though half the stuff the speakers in the broadcast said was way
over his head. Elder Ronald A. Rasband and Robert D. Hales spoke! It
was really good. Elder Rasband talked about temples and the importance
of going to them. Robert D. Hales is looking so old... He was in a
wheelchair and it looked like he had to get brain surgery. He had a
long cut across the top of his head. It was really sad to see how old
he has gotten. It's amazing that even how old they are, when he
testifies, you can still feel the spirit strongly. When he would tell
stories, he would stutter and sometimes slur his words, but when he
testified of the things he was talking about... His voice was very
clear and spiritual. We went over to see Bro. Thompson who's in the
bishopric after church. We shared a message with him and invited him
to do some missionary work with his friends!
For dinner, a family from the ward brought us fresh Wendy's. 😂 I
turned to E. Siebers and said; "I'm not even going to ask." Then, we
went to Sis. Thompson's (the Thompsons are divorced) and shared a
message with her and the kids! They're all so excited and willing to
do missionary work! She took a picture of us and all of her kids.
Tomorrow for P-day, Frank is going to take us shopping and then we are
going to play basketball at the church with some young men from the
ward! They don't have school because of MLK day. They take this
holiday pretty seriously out here! Haha

I love you!

-Elder Mitchell

1/12/16

1/12/16

1-4-16
For PDay, Frank took us to Florence to go hangout with the Zone
Leaders. He took us all out to eat at a nice Japanese restaurant. He
took us shopping for a little bit and I bought myself a new tie! After
that, Frank took us back to Hartsville so that we could meet up with
some members who took us out to eat as well. We also, got to go and
visit some members who have been having marital issues. We met with
the husband at his house and the went to his wife's mom's where she
was and spoke to her. We gave her a blessing because they're going
through a lot. They have three young kids and they're about to go
through a divorce.
1-5-16
It is starting to get cold now. It was also pretty slow today. We saw
a guy that was Southern Baptist and he very politely damned us to
hell. Haha! We asked to sit down and learn about some of his beliefs
while we share ours. He said he would, but doesn't have time today. I
told him that we would LOVE to sit down with him and talk about Jesus
Christ at anytime and that he knows where to find us!
We ate dinner at a member's home and the dad came out with us to an
appointment. It was a sweet old lady that we taught and it went well!
Hopefully she will follow through with the commitments we extended to
her.
 1-6-16
Bro. Solomon called us this morning to go with him to give a less
active member a blessing. We were there for an hour and a half... He
talked and talked and there wasn't anything we could do about it! I
think it's because he sometimes procrastinates having to get up and
walk. He's a solid 400lbs. He is such a nice guy though! He took us to
Subway and drove us to go see a couple potentials. He had a blast and
I think we made his day. He's one of my favorites!
For dinner, we went to the Bushman's. The husband is the highschool's
Spanish teacher. The wife is from Peru and she made some really good
chicken, rice and beans! They're a funny couple because he's buff and
she's so tiny and skinny.
After that we had ward coordination and then went to go see a member
who is in a nursing home. He is on dialysis right now... We met a
funny old lady who is starting to lose her mind a bit. Haha I shook
her hand and introduced myself. She wouldn't let go of my hand! She
claimed that E. Siebers was her nephew. Haha the nurses told us to get
away as fast as we can!
1-7-16
It wasn't very eventful today. We taught a couple people on their
doorsteps and went tracting most of the day. E. Siebers had to go to
the dentist who is a member. He's a cool guy. He said he won't charge
us if we need to get our teeth checked on!
For dinner, we went to a local BBQ Buffet with some members and it was
so good! They had some awesome fried gizzards so I was excited about
that. We got so full that we couldn't move, so luckily we had
scheduled a member to come out teaching with us so we didn't have to
ride our bikes anymore. We covered a lot of area today! I've probably
put so many miles on my bike already.
1-8-16
We had ZTM today and it was really good. President Turner was there
which was neat to see him. I got a package from the Felmlee's for New
Years with some candy and money!
After the meeting, we headed back to Hartsville and went ghetto
stomping for a bit. We met a lady named Felicia (of course). Haha we
also stopped by to watch Frank play tennis for a little while. We went
back to tracting and met some really neat people! We set up some
return appointments as well.
To end the night, we went over to the Barefoot's (an old couple in the
ward). The wife named Yvanne is such a funny lady. Her voice sounds
just like the lady from The movie Open Season with the pet wiener dog.
Haha she always gives us a plate of cookies, Dr. Pepper and money when
we go over there. I am exhausted. That's somethings going to have to
get used to, is always being tired.
1-9-15
While we were tracting this morning, we stopped by a lady who has met
wi missionaries before. She told us to come back after lunch. So when
we went there again, she asked if we could help her with a couple
things... First, she has a door to the garage that had a broken lock,
so we took the hinges off. I ran my shoulder into it because it still
wouldn't come off and it popped off! She had been struggling with that
door for over a month because the door wouldn't unlock. The whole
inside of the knob was busted so we replaced it with another she had.
The second thing was that her daughter locked her keys in her trunk.
While I was working on the door, E. Siebers was working on that. He
couldn't get it, so I got a wire hanger and a screwdriver. We had to
reach the lever that pops the trunk because her automatic door locks
didn't work... I said a quick prayer and got the trunk open in no
time! They were so happy. Then, we got to teach them a lesson and it
went really well! She was offended by the previous missionaries
because I guess they tore down her beliefs. We made sure that, that's
not what we do and they shouldn't have. We seemed to have rebuilt her
trust in missionaries again. Haha
While we were biking away, a short little guy stopped us and told us
we were going to hell. Second person this week! Haha he told us that
we don't believe in Christ. I think it's funny when people tell us
what we believe in like they know more than us about it. He also
chastised us for not believing in the trinity. Haha he said we are
going around teaching blasphemy.  He called us Pharisees and that if
we continue what we are doing, then we will be drug down to hell. He
said that he cares and just wants to see us in heaven. We just simply
said that it isn't anyone's place to judge except the Lord's, so we
will see him in heaven! -then biked off. People are fun. It is really
hard not to go off on some people like that. I just have to remember
that I'm the representative of Jesus Christ set apart to be an
example.
1-10-16
Church was really awesome today! The focus was on the Plan of
Salvation and eternal families. We got an investigator to come to
church as well.
After church, we got a couple member present lessons. One was with a
kid that has been coming to church quite a bit now. It went well!
Towards the end of the night, we stopped by Sis. Catoe's and shared a
spiritual message. She was watching football, so she just muted it for
me and said that we can't force her to turn it off. I was completely
okay with that. Haha she has a dog that is so cute. He's brown and
short with long brown hair. His name is Chewie like Chewbacca! He
LOVES me for some reason and climbs up in my lap and lays on his back
the whole time I'm over there.
1-11-16
For PDay today, we went to the Darlington Raceway with the zone
leaders and walked through the museum. We got to go out on the track
with a guy that works there and he drove his car on the track. We got
up to 120mph... It was awesome! Then we took our picture at the
victory lane. We have been so busy so that's why my email is later. We
are waiting to go out to eat with a member at a Mexican restaurant.

I love you!
-Elder Mitchell

1/4/16

12-26-15
Today was very non eventful.. We went to go see an inactive member
(Sis. Mason) and we did a lot of service for her. We found a cool guy
named Brian and taught him about the Restoration. There was also a
lady that was hardcore hitting on us trying to get us inside. I was
pretty uncomfortable. We just decided to leave. Haha
Our dinner plans were cancelled, so I cooked some hamburgers. To end
the day, we went to an inactive member's named Donnie. He doesn't know
much about the gospel and I question if he even has a testimony. I
feel bad because previous missionaries seemed to rush him through
everything so that could he could just be a number. So we have a lot
of work to do with him still. Howard can't come to church because he's
sick. It was a rough day. I gave E. Siebers a blessing because we are
going through a trial. But after every trial, there's great things to
come!

12-31-15
I have unfortunately, missed a lot of days being able to write in my
journal. I have been so busy! We moved into a new apartment and it's
so much nicer. We cleaned a ton when we got here. We also went to
Cheraw the other day because E. Siebers had to do an interview for a
baptism. We stayed the night and then went to our district meeting in
the morning with them. After that, we went on exchanges with the zone
leaders. I stayed in Hartsville with Elder Arnoldsen. He's the senior
companion district leader. He also an awesome guy! I was able to learn
a lot from him and he said he learned from me. He told me that I'm
already a "4th Missionary." Don't ask why, but we decided to drink raw
eggs since neither one of us have before. Haha but never again! After
an awesome dinner (BBQ Ribs), we went to go see Michael Langdon. He
has been praying to decided is he should go back to the LDS church.
Here's the crazy part; he had a dream of his dad (who was a member)
telling him that he needs to go back to the LDS church! It was really
neat to hear. We taught him a really good lesson with him and then
committed him to come to church this Sunday! He will if he does t have
to work!
It rained on and off all day today. It was still a good day! Some
drunk black guy we approached today was a trip! He kept saying; "Gimme
a hug man!" Haha
Clemson played in the Orange Bowl against OU today and beat them! I
wore my new Clemson tie to support them. (Probably why they won
because the Lord was on their side). Haha but we have been locked in
since 6pm because of New Year's Eve. The apartment is spotless now and
we are all unpacked.

1-1-16
This morning, we got to do some service for a nonmember guy named
Pete. His wife is the Relief Society president. He is such a nice guy
and we are trying to work with him to take the discussions. We went to
his house and helped dig ditches so we could lay down pipes for a
sprinkler system and a pipe from his shop bathroom to the septic tank.
Later tonight, we went to the Solomon's to have dinner. They invites a
family member and her boyfriend over there. We taught them the
Restoration and watched the video. They seem like really cool people!
I hope they felt the spirit as much as I did during the lesson.

1-2-16
We helped Pete again for a bit and got a lot done! It's finally
starting to get a little chilly. Daniel Thompson was able to come out
with us for a bit! We had some appointments, but they kind of fell
through. We were still able to teach some people!
Later, we met a guy named Jeff who we knocked into. He was really neat
and spot on with our beliefs! He also, was watching the Oregon Bowl
game so it was hard to teach the lesson when I wanted to watch it so
badly! I was able to catch some glimpses of it and they were looking
pretty good! Hopefully we can sit down with him again soon!

I love you!
-Elder Mitchell

12/28/15