February 27, 2012

Hello Everyone!

Well, the highlight of today so far was that we are getting more senior couples in the mission, but because of that we are low on cars so they took ours away...but they gave us another one. HOWEVER, the old one was a 2011 brand new automatic meriva...this one seems to be a 2000/1999 MANUAL meriva. So we drove the 30 miles down to swap the car at the office. Then we scooted and bumped our way home as I remembered how to drive a manual again. PS: THE GEARS IN THIS ONE ARE NOT IN THE RIGHT SPOT...Just wanted to throw that out at ya. Also you have to do some crazy lifty thing to get it into reverse, but I managed. I am sure Grandpa is loving the fact that I am driving stick again. Also, when you slam the gas pedal all the way down to the floor...NOTHING happens. It takes a good 30 seconds for it to get from 60 to 70...so the Motorway was a fun place to drive! =D...This is from the Scotland/Ireland mission and this thing is BEAT UP...I mean bad! And our car director was afraid to give us them thinking they were unsafe to drive so he says to have us get it checked out. Well we will have driven a about 150 miles before we have a chance to do that, but it will be good! 

Elder Jackson and I are loving and laughing our lives away at the moment. There are way to many silly things to write/record/remember. Today I had the phone in my pocket which I had actually forgotten about. Then he pulls out his camera (which I thought was a phone) and he acts like he is answering it and talking to someone on his "personal mobile" and it just didn't click on me for awhile, but that is obviously a big no no to have a phone to yourself as a missionary, but those little jokes like that keep us on our toes and having a good time. 

Miatta came to church this past week and brought her two adorable daughters. One is 2 and the other is 3. Maddie (her niece) also came and brought her mom from London with her. We haven't taught Augusta (her mom) yet, but we definitely will try. She said she is coming back next week because she really liked it. Maddie is 17 and a little too cool for her age. She has two little sisters as well. Her mom is moving up to Manchester because it is about 1/2 the size of London and Maddie will stay out of trouble here then.

Everything just turned gray. Sorry if this email is all gray haha. Oh well. Anyways, things are good here. I am trying to work hard and push myself. Where is everyone in their Book of Mormon reading? If you aren't reading the Book of Mormon, you are not as close to God as you could be...

Love,

Elder Blackburn

February 20, 2012

Hiya family,

It was a good'n...aren't they all. The zone had 24 at sacrament which is really good and there are 10 dated throughout. 3 of them are ours and we actually might be seeing Diego and Geraldine get baptised finally instead of continuously pushing their date back. They are living together at the moment and aren't married so they can't be baptised if you didn't know that...

But we have a less active 25 year old who has recently come back to church and who is trying to find a new place. They will hopefully be moved out by this week with our help! We are excited about that. 

People seem to be progressing well. Funke Ogunnaike is back in town and is struggling a bit with her uncle still in Belgium. We got threats from an old african sounding man from London telling us not to visit her again. She knew nothing about it. But she does have an anti-truth uncle living with her upstairs. He has been trying to turn her kids against her and us. They all speak german because that is where they grew up and so we sent around Sister Rothmund (Switzerland) and Sister Mauch (Austrian) and they went in. Helped the kids feel the spirit and they all accepted to be baptised! (Take that mr. uncle!) So we are passing them over obviously to the sisters...

But that is ok. We are plenty busy trying to solve the issues of the missionaries and with our other investigators.

Things are good here. It hasn't been too cold. The wind has been the worst part. The car is pretty nice in keeping us dry haha! Hopefully you got some of those pictures last week...

Love you all,

Elder Blackburn

February 9, 2012

Hello!

Well this is the first time I am staying in the Ashton Zone for more
than 2 transfers at a time. I am staying put here in Oldham for #3.
Elder Smart was made the assistant and my new companion is Elder
Jackson from Sacramento,California! So I am stuck with one of your
lot. =D But he is great. Really he is. He is 6'8" haha. I have
nicknamed him "subwoofer" when he sings. He is definitely a bass.

I just feel like I have been thrown in a tumble dryer for the past
week. I honestly have no idea how I got here. Went on exchanges with
Elder Miranda in Bolton. Then planned to go on exchanges with Elder
Sandor in Oldham and as we go to Bolton to exchange we get the "red
letter" call. Meaning, come to the office you are an assistant (to my
companion, not me) =D. It is in my journal. Then from there we pass
from Ashton 2 to Elder Cunningham. Oldham ward cancels church. I go to
church in YSA ward with Elder Cunningham. Then back to Ashton 2. Elder
Schmid in Ashton 2 needed to go to Preston 50 miles away for a doctors
appointment and the Sat Nav took us somewhere else and we almost drove
out of the mission boundaries but don't worry I TOTALLY knew where we
were...sort of...Then we went back to Bolton, had lunch with Elder
Sandor and Jenei and then took Elder Sandor to the MTC in Chorley
where he was meant to talk to a missionary going to the Leeds mission
where there is a Slovak branch because that is 99% where this
missionary will be serving and there are some problems he needed to
know about and so we spent an hour there and I got a sneak peek at the
new missionaries and how crazy they really are! Transfers comes and we
are asked to pick up the new missionaries but instead of that, we get
treated to lunch cooked by the wonderful one and only Sister Preston,
do role plays with the new missionaries who are so excited to be here!
Transfers was great. I felt the spirit and as we sang the last song I
felt like crying while looking over at the departing missionaries.
They have been there for my whole mission (obviously), well not the
sisters, but I was in each one of those missionaries districts,
including the sisters. Every single one, I know and love, and have a
connection with. I will also miss Elder Smart and how much he was able
to teach me. It was a traumatic week.

I hardly feel like a missionary this past week. I just felt like a
driver. We have a monthly mileage of 1300 miles and it is only the 9th
and we are over 700. Can you say Mileage extension anyone?! I hope
President Preston can. I am sure he will understand when I explain it
all to him. I need to renew my temple reccomend on Friday at Zone
Leader Council. Can you believe it has already almost been 2 years
since I got my Temple Reccommend?! CRAZY!

It will be definitely an experience this transfer, but there are not
any problem children in the zone this transfer that I know of so I am
really happy about that!

I love you all!

Elder Blackburn

PS; Oh yeah,...I got THE CALL this week talking about which airport
and it will be Indianapolis, Indiana on May 3rd/4th depending the
hours I land. They do not know the exact details...but yeah...done
talking about that now, but y'all have been asking about it so there
it is. Do with the info how you please.

January 30, 2012 Hello Family!

Hello everyone!

It has been a weird week. A lot has happened, but it doesn't seem to
have been too long since I was emailing you all. I have one scripture
I learned this morning in 1 Thessalonians 1:5
 "For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power,
and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner
of men we were among you for your sake."

Is this not what we promise investigators in every lesson and in every
prayer earnestly offered to our Heavenly Father that they will not
simply receive our Words, but that they will feel power and assurance
from the Holy Ghost, so that they may know what manner of men we are
coming to preach the gospel to them. That is our promise and I love to
know what company we as missionaries and members of The Church of
Jesus Christ are in when we make such a promise. The Apostles of old
had to rely on such power and if men of their standing needed it, how
much more do we need it?

I learned a lot from that short scripture. That is why we need to be
worthy so that our words can enter with power, the Holy Ghost does not
testify through us if He can't enter into us. What can't go in, can't
go through. It is like a tunnel.

But, I love you all, England is cold, wet, rainy, snowy...should a
mission be any other way?

Love you,

Elder Blackburn