Check the cupboard!!!

Hey everybody! This is my last week at the MTC! Can't believe how fast it's gone by! I have some great stories to tell this week. First thing's first, I haven't laughed so much in my whole life. All we do as a district of all elders is laugh. We can be studying away, and someone makes one dumb joke or fart noise and that's the end. It's our greatest strength and weakness! But the fact is we love each other and lift each other up with our testimonies.

My first story happened on Saturday night. We got back to the residence after a long day, and we were in a weird delusional mood. We were all just laughing and joking, when Elder Judd suggested we play hide and seek. I was so in! I wanted to win! So he started counting and I hid in this giant cupboard in the hall. I was so proud! Well, the minutes went by... and more minutes... So I finally crawled out and asked my comp Elder Comish where Elder Judd was looking. He looked at me and said, "No one is playing hide and seek." I sat in that stinky cupboard for 20 minutes for no reason!! Hahahahaha the joke this week has been that I'm the hide and seek champ!

We had a new investigator this week named Bubba. He is a gang member and a really rough guy. We walked on eggshells the first few minutes of our lesson, but he started to open up a little more. Near the end of our lesson, I asked if he would pray for us at the end. He said no, but he would pray at home, and then went off on a tangent. So a few minutes later, when he finished his tangent, I said, "so you will pray at home?" Then he exploded. He yelled at me that I had a funny feeling about me and that we were no longer welcome and kicked us out. We had no idea what to do! Well it was 2 days before we taught him again. We walked in his room and he looked at me with a very angry face. I apologized for offending him and told him we were there to share a message about Jesus Christ. He accepted my apology, and said if we had been on the street teaching him, he would have pulled his gun on me. (mind you he is a gang leader). So we can all thank heavens we were meeting in the training center!

It's been a really calm week here, so I think that's about it! I love this gospel! It really is my happiness. Through Jesus Christ we are made whole, and because of Him we can return to our Heavenly Father. I love you all! Keep the emails coming! I love reading them!

Next Stop, Portland!!

Elder Hall

PS If you can't find Elder Hall, check in here!

I ATE SPAGHETTI AND LOVE CANADIANS!

Hey everybody!

It's my first P-Day here at the MTC! I love it here! There have been so many incredible experiences I want to share with you guys.

Our district is so incredible. We have:

Elder Judd and Elder Reichmann, Elder Brunt and Elder Tonga, Elder Grigg and Elder Jones, Elder Whatcott and Elder Gray, Elder Wallace and Elder Ahleman, and Elder Comish and I! What an incredible group of men! We are truly blessed to be a district. We have something so special as a group. We get laughing and going and it is so funny! We are really bad at focusing sometimes. Elder Tonga says something or makes a face, I start laughing, everyone starts laughing at my laugh, Elder Judd says something stupid, and it's all over. We have so much fun, but we always have incredible spiritual experiences together too! What a blessing!

I hate spaghetti. The other day, I was so hungry, and all that there was for dinner was spaghetti. So I manned up and ate some spaghetti! The church must be true! 

So Sunday we as a district decided to go to choir because most all of us love to sing! Well we got there a little late, and they made us sit in the overflow that doesn't even face the same way and we were so far away! Well choir was horrible and not a choir. hahaha. Well anyways, they were like, ok the devotional is starting, elders just turn your chairs around. So we turned our chairs around to watch the devotional and we were on the 3RD ROW! We were so excited because sometimes general authorities come. Well we watched a talk by Elder Bednar that he gave a few years ago at the MTC. It's called the Character of Christ. So we watched that and changed our lives, and then the closing song starts and this guy starts motioning to stand up. So we stand up and ELDER BEDNAR WALKS IN. Keep in mind we are sitting only 10 FEET from the podium. It was so crazy! Our jaws dropped!!! So he came and just started talking to us as missionaries and sharing thoughts, and then he said, the next hour is yours elders and sisters. You can ask me any question you want. He was so frank and hilarious, it was awesome! Not anything like General Conference. What an incredible experience!!! It was so amazing. I won't ever forget it! He looked me right in the eye so many times, I totally felt the love of Christ just explode from him. 

Saturday night, I got on my soapbox about how much I hate Canadians... Well, On Monday, Elder Comish and I went to the MTC  store to get some things, and I paid for what I was getting in exact change. Without anyone saying anything, the cashier looks at me and says, "Elder, you don't need any change, but I feel like I should give you this Canadian penny. Have a good day!" The Lord heard me and told me I needed to change in a pretty miraculous way. I am proud to say I love Canadians now! I repented!

So the district next door to ours found a picture in one of their rooms of a girl. It looked like it was a girlfriend of an Elder that had stayed in that room before them. Well this district is a bunch of screw-offs that no one can stand. So of course, they started to worship this picture of this girl and named her Trish. They thought it was so funny, but I did not. So, I confronted their district leader, Elder Dewey, and we had some words. He got upset that I was trying to correct him, and I ended up sharing some very loud and strong words about two inches from his nose. He was trembling by the time I was finished. I spoke with enough power and fire I could have burned down the building. Let's just say that whole district doesn't get within a few feet of me now. Don't worry, I did apologize for yelling at him.

Elder Judd is in my district and has become one of my best friends. He is from AF and went to AFHS. I know, the church is REALLY TRUE. Well, he got pretty sick yesterday, and asked our teacher if it was ok that he got a blessing. She said yes. Without hesitation, Elder Judd asked if I would give him the blessing. I was so nervous, but I said yes. So, Elder Judd sat down and I said the blessing, with all 11 others of us with our hands on his head. It was a powerful and humbling experience to me, showing me that the spirit will flow through us when we ask with a sincere heart!

This is all I have time for today, but I know that this gospel is true. Jesus Christ really did die for us and suffer for our sins. Because of Him we are made whole.I know this is true! The Book of Mormon will change your life! Search the scriptures, and God will talk to you. 

I love you all! Keep the emails and letters coming! 

Elder Hall