Elder Landon Welch

What a fantastic week it has been here in the good ole FTM! This week has been full of adventures. Because we were going to be gone all week on tradeoffs we had to pack all of our appointments into the time we had on Tuesday. A recent convert we met last Sunday invited us to come by and start teaching her the new member lessons. She has a fantastic conversion story of how her daughter was an atheist and found the church and so she was interested too but a few weeks before both of them were suppose to be baptized her 17 year old daughter passed away, she is such a strong member. We met with Celine that day as well. we taught her half of lesson 4 and then addressed concerns with her, a lot of them were brought up at church too. She came to the singles ward with us and lucky for us there was a baptism happening after church there so she was able to come. She has been a little worried about telling her parents but she is so set on joining that she doesn't care what they say, she's so solid, i love it. She also has been getting a bad rap for even considering this church from her friends, growing up in the south would be tough. Wednesday we set off for Mobile to do some tradeoffs with them on the next day, I went with Elder Miller and elder Frederiksen. Friday I went with Elder Riddle in Pensacola, and Saturday I went with Elder Palau in Fort Walton. All in all it was a super busy week.

This week have been one of reflection and looking forward a bit too and with that I wanted to share a few things. First off make sure that you know where your testimony is centered and check if it is anchored, the world is getting nasty out there and things will get worse. On the subject of The Church. With being on a mission all missionaries get a bit of anti Mormon literature thrown at them but i have seen a lot of it with being in the south and this ties back to where the testimony lies. Peter denied Christ, Paul watched people kill Steven, and Judas sold Christ and yet they were still fantastic men called of god to do His work. Likewise Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and Thomas S Monson have had their mess ups in life and are mortal, so what? If you know the Book of Mormon to be true then you know none of that matters and that this church is of God. Any of you that have been baptized, received the priesthood, been married in the temple, and especially gone on a mission I want you to ask yourselves a few questions. #1-Why was I baptized? #2-Have I ever received a witness from the Holy ghost that either the Book of Mormon is true, Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God, or that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day saints is true? To those that are reading this that may have gone inactive, been offended, or are just anti Mormon in general; if you said yes to any of those questions...do you think God lied to you? I think a lot of us have problems in this life with a number of things because we ourselves don't agree even if it may be the truth. There is a phrase that I would like to change and then have everyone apply...many may say to swallow our pride and move on, to that I say it is time to SPIT the pride out of ourselves and our society. The church is true. Everything in this life is a restoration of sorts whether it be the gospel to the earth in 1820, us trying to restore our wills to god, us trying to restore our perfect state we had, restoring our body to a perfect frame, and restoring ourselves once again with our families in heaven never to be separated again. In closing I want to remind us of something that will never lead us astray, and that is about the Holy ghost. I believe that we are always being prompted to act, what we need to do is be spiritually prepared to recognize and act according to those promptings. I love and miss y'all. All is well.

Elder Welch

What a crazy week it has been, it went by so fast but Monday seems like it was so long ago! On Monday we went out to a huge park here in Tallahassee to play a huge football and sand volleyball game, it was so fun! We went out at about 1PM and left there at about 5PM so as you could imagine in August we were all super fried! I don't burn that bad at all but I even got a good little torching. Good thing was that I listened to good ole Grandma Nae and put some apple cider vinegar on there and the burn was gone! Tuesday we woke up at 6 and had to all drive to the middle of the mission before 9. We went for the mission leadership council with Elder Zwick of the first quorum of the seventy. That meeting was really powerful! I had to take minutes for the meeting and it felt like I was getting a drink from a fire hydrant and that my fingers couldn't type fast enough for all of the good stuff he was telling us, it was fantastic! After that meeting we had to bolt back to Tallahassee to watch a broadcast that night for the members that was at every meeting house, we didn't even get back to our apartments until like 10:15(approved)!

On Thursday we had an even better meeting for half mission. Every single talk had personal relevance to me at that time, I don't think I have ever had that happen before. I have had one or two hit me pretty hard but not a whole meetings worth. We taught Celine the Gospel of Jesus Christ this week as well as gave her a church tour. We still have a baptismal date with her on the twentieth and the only thing she said she was scared of is not being able to live up to the commitment, that is always a good fear when we hear some like those. Saturday we were going to have a tradeoff with the Tallahassee two zone leaders but we got a call that there was going to be an emergency transfer going on so we had to travel all the way out to Mobile and back that day. A wonderful week full of adventures and driving. We actually went over 3,000 miles this month, that is a lot for those missionaries out there that know the miles limitation rule. I love my mission and loved this week. Love and miss y'all. All is well

Elder Welch

This week is one of the two weeks that assistants look forward to and they just fly by...transfer week! So all of last week we were sitting in Presidents house actually moving around the transfer board but this week is when it all comes to life. Tuesday we had our district meeting and then went and picked up the new missionaries at the airport. There were 14 new ones and they are quite solid! We went back to the mission home and fed them, showed them who their new companion and new area is, and had a short little get to know you. Wednesday morning we go to the mission home for a breakfast and then we are down at the church by nine o'clock to start the real training. I conducted for the first time there and it wasn't too bad. Elder McPherson and I taught for a good portion of it. We did role plays, taught about the culture of the mission (discouragement), the mission theme for 2014 (missionaries of uncommon valor), and did a Q&A. We always go out to Chipotle for lunch that day and Elder McPherson and I always try and place a Book of Mormon when the new missionaries are around just so they can get a feel for it. The more and more you place them, the more comfortable and easy it is to do it. For some reason or another Elder McPherson and I were having such a hard time with it but we did it! Thursday is the actual transfer day for the rest of the mission so we are on the road by 9am on our way to each transfer spot loading and unloading these missionaries and being back in Tallahassee by 6pm, its a long time to be driving with a trailer behind each of our cars, from that day on it has been really really hot here too, the heat index has been a wet 115 degrees. Friday we shipped off the missionaries and that makes up the transfer week!

For P-day this last week we were able to go fishing. I had never had too many memories of fishing when I was a kid, I could just remember a few times doing it and I wondered why...I now know why. It was fun to relax and chill with the members and Celine (our investigator I'll talk about in a minute) but boy was it boring, its just not my thing. I caught a few fish but we didn't go at the right time of the day. Overall i enjoyed myself but the actually fishing part just doesn't connect with me. We taught Celine twice this week but I just want to talk about the first lesson. We met Celine through a member and it seems like every single time we go over there to teach there is someone new, it is fantastic! Celine and Jennifer were the ones over there this day and we had planned on teaching the plan of salvation. As we taught it was going pretty well but nothing spectacular, until the end. We asked if there was any questions and then Jennifer just started bawling. I guess she had taken lessons before and had prayed about it but never had received an answer until then. We committed them both to a baptismal date and are still working with them, opposition comes when frequent visits don't happen! Elder McPherson and I both thought it was one of the most powerful lessons we have ever been a part of. We will be going over to teach Celine again, hopefully Jennifer is there!

Shout out to my ma! Happy birthday, i hope it all goes well. I'll be there for the next one. All is well! Love and miss y'all!

Elder Welch

This has been a fantastic week! Our p-day last week wasn't even much of a p-day and we actually got approved to have another one because we were busy doing administrative stuff the whole day so you'll be getting hints of p-day activities throughout the week. Tuesday was a lot of our preparation day but the highlight of that day was definitely the lesson that we had that night. I don't remember how much i have talked about her before but we had a lesson with Celine. She was a member referral we had dinner with a few weeks ago and we finally got to teach her. All we did this time was set up expectations and do how to begin teaching and it was a really good one, Elder McPherson and I both have a feeling that it will just be a matter of time before she just blooms.

Wednesday there was no time for any proselyting. We got up early in the morning to go to mission leadership council over in Fort Walton. Many things were discussed there, i was able to take minutes for the meeting on the IPad and boy have i gotten good at typing on that thing, its so had on a touch screen. We travelled back and had chipotle for dinner(i miss good mexican food, that's the best we have here). We knew that it was going to be a long day that day because we got up early for MLC and then we had to make sure we stayed up late because there were going to be two new missionaries coming in from Sierra Leone at 10:20. As we were waiting we saw people come off the plane, then the stewards came off the plane and then the pilots came off the plane. We then realized that our missionaries had missed the flight and were somewhere in either Madrid or Miami, we found out they missed their flight in Miami. The next morning we were able to pick them up. One of them has been out for 10 months and the other 4.5 months and they had the coolest accents. We were able to spend time acclimating them and helping them shop for stuff over the next few days. That experience was definitely the highlight of my week, they are solid elders and the experiences they had gave me motivation. It was a great week! We have a good week set up and will be doing the transfer board this week so another busy couple of weeks are ahead! love and miss y'all! all is well

Elder Welch

This week has flown and from this point until the end of next transfer will fly too. Coming up with have transfers, Elder Zwick visiting, zone conferences, tradeoffs, and anything else that pops up. Its a time everyone is looking forward to, a fun few weeks. On Tuesday of this week we started our tradeoffs and I was able to take over the area, Elder Hintze came with me. Elder Hintze is one of the coolest elders I know, he came out with me and was my zone leader in the MTC. We went to Marvin Goldstein's (yes the famous pianist) and helped him with some things he needed moved around in his basement. Once we were done he sat down and played a few songs for us, he gave us free CD's and a folder that was signed. Some how word got out that I sang and he asked me to sing Joseph Smith's first prayer as he played. It was awesome! He told me to schedule a time to do that in church so that'll be coming up shortly. A funny thing about all of that is as I was singing his wife (who is a little out there) came up to me and started fixing my posture and all that good stuff, reminded me of the good ole days. I really enjoyed doing that though because he just was making it up and it was sweet!

Thursday came around and we had a really really busy day. I had to go to the doctor and I'm not going to give any specifics of names or what was wrong but what he told me to do was to meditate over what was wrong with me(yes it was physical, not mental) and then it would go away, most awkward doctors appointment ever, very entertaining though! We had interviews with President which are always great, a little different now that I'm always around him and we know a lot more about each other but it was still nice to get some one on one time with him. Right after that we were headed off to Mobile, my old stomping grounds! I had a tradeoff with Elder Wright and Elder Truman. It was so nice to be back. I got to go red cross and see my boy Patrick, such a nice surprise. We went to Navarre(the same place i saw a bear with Elder Judy at the beginning of my mission). We moved someone and went and saw a lot of less active members. All in all we had a fantastic week. Yesterday we had 2 potential Investigators from members. The only reason they aren't investigators yet is because we haven't taught them a lesson yet, they will be come tomorrow.

Nothing big to share. I know the church is true, its the way to happiness and eternal life!

All is well. Love and miss y'all

Elder Welch

What a great week it was! It seems like so much has happened since I have written y'all! Monday you heard about all the fun that we had and Tuesday was no less fun than Monday was. We were able to go to district meeting where Elder Browne (my district leader), one of the Elders from Mobile taught us and basically set up expectations. We then went on a "road trip." We recently have just gotten a van for our new mission car and so we were able to go pick up all of the missionaries that were going home early in there. We were able to go clear over to Destin, Florida, it was a lot of fun. One of the Elders going home was one of the ones in my district when I first came out, the only thing weirder than seeing that was seeing Elder Musgrave get on the plane Wednesday morning. I don't really know why but goodbyes and me have never really mixed but I was just fine.

We had lessons with two of our investigators this week. Joe, who has had problems with drinking in the past was sober for both of our lessons this week. I was only there for one of our lessons but we taught him the plan of salvation in two different parts focusing on how he needs to do the work not only for himself but also for his ancestors. I feel like it recommitted him from what I heard from Elder McPherson.

We basically lost another day of proselyting because we had to go do an interview over in Bonifay Florida. I was the initial one to give the interview but Elder McPherson had to go in after me to talk to her, weirdest interview or conversation i have ever had on my mission, good stories though. Our other lesson was with Derrick. He is one of them that doesn't meet with us all for the gospel aspects of it, his girlfriend is a member and that is where most of his motivation is coming from, we had a bit of a come to Jesus lesson with him and we feel it went really really well. I did have one tradeoff with My zone leaders and all we did all day was move them out of an apartment and help one of their members move, i was so exhausted by the end of the day! really fun tradeoff though.

Nothing really mind blowing this week other than you need to study the scriptures! You wont progress a single bit without it. Love and miss y'all! all is well!

Elder Welch

This week we actually got to do a lot of missionary work! That's nice when we are this busy. We have another good week of proselyting this next week but the sad part about it is that week will be a man down, Elder Musgrave is leaving on Wednesday. I sent some pictures that showed what we did last Monday. We went to Wakula springs and a boat tour...yes it was approved you missionaries who are now raising an eyebrow about me getting on a boat. There were a bunch of manatees, alligators, and turtles, the river was no deeper than 2-3 feet until you got to the deep springs. I really really enjoyed that.

Tuesday was zone conference and oddly enough, they do things a lot differently here in Tallahassee than they do in Mobile even though it is the same mission, good meeting though. A few highlights of the week. The first one was the lesson with Joe Suber. They have been teaching him long before I got here and he had been doing really really well in that time. He has had some issues with the Word of wisdom and the only times I've seen him is when he is under influence of those things. However, we had a lesson with him on Friday and we had planned to just got in there and read a chapter with him to set up for the next visit but topics were brought up that made us not even read and we just went crazy. Now I cannot tell you exactly what happened in there because #1 it was not my experience, it was my companions(Elder Musgrave) and #2 it is too sacred to share. Topics went to the spirit world and family history and all I will say is that he became more coherent for the end of the lesson and his whole attitude changed. The spirit was so strong in there! Wednesday's lesson with be amazing with him, we will be teaching him the plan of salvation. Finally, I don't know if you remember but I was having a hard time my last couple of weeks in mobile because of member involvement. The elders here have been doing service lessons here that are amazing so I have had a ton of opportunities to serve here. We teach Mosiah 2:17 and commit them to find something for us to do this week for a service opportunity, the bonds grow so much stronger between the members and missionaries, I love it!

Things we learn as missionaries and just people here on earth is that life at times can be hard. I have had some great studies that explain why. The Lord chastens us to try our faith and patience. We have to have faith and be ok with it at times. The Lord only chastens those He loves and if we endure the chastening that is only when we can be counted worthy(he's proud) as his Sons and daughters. Additional study that makes this make more sense.

Mosiah 23:21-22

Hebrews 12:6-7

Proverbs 3:12-13

All is well. Love and miss yall

Elder Welch

What a fun week it was! Tuesday we had a great district meeting and then had to prepare for the new missionaries coming in. This transfer was a little weird for everybody. It was weird for me because this was the transfer that I came into the mission field a year ago but now I was picking them up. It was weird for everyone else because with it being all of the new missionaries coming in after school is done so it was a pretty large transfer, I believe there was 15 that came in. That night we had a dinner at the mission home and a small orientation. The next day we had to get up at 6am to go and pick the sisters up at the hotel. All that day we did training with them, it was really cool to be able to help the new missionaries. Going back to Tuesday night; we gave the missionaries their trainers names and their new addresses for the next couple of weeks so they could let their parents know. There was one specific Elder that was having a super hard time on the phone with his parents. I remember specifically how hard it was for me to be away from home at the beginning of my mission I was able to help him, he should be doing fine now, he looked fine, it was just the call that killed him.

Thursday was the actual transfer date for the whole mission. President Smith does nothing with transfers other than the actual placing of the missionaries, all of the logistics are done by the assistants. We hooked up a 12 passenger van and a truck to a trailer and set off. With there being 3 assistants driving wasn't that bad because we had to drive from 9am to 6pm. There was a stretch when I was driving the van and the trailer that it was just down pouring for about 10 minutes, it was super scary but i did it, of course it would be the stretch that I was driving the most difficult vehicle! Once we got back that evening we had a dinner with all of the departing missionaries and had a departing testimony meeting. That was amazing but one of the saddest meetings i have been in on my entire mission. President Smith through down a mean sermon about home life, it was really nice to hear. The rest of the weekend we had some proselyting and good contacts but nothing too big yet, really really good potentials though. We have one investigator who had a baptismal date but he has had a problem with drinking, he was sober for a month and fell back into it this week so we are praying and focusing on him.

What hit me hard this week points directly to those of you who have served missions but can be applied to anyone. You had amazing faith to go on a mission and you learned and grew a lot because of that experience. You have now grown up and learned a lot more but i see a reoccurrence in a lot of returned missionaries that is sad. They may not go less active but they are "less active" than they really should be in the church. Be active! Work how you wanted members to work when you were on a mission. Just because you took a physical badge off doesn't mean you took the spiritual one off (baptism). You had the faith to enlist in the mission field. Make a choice now. Do you think you have the faith to reenlist as a representative? love and miss y'all. All is well!

Elder Welch

Boy oh boy what a week it has been! Monday after I was done emailing shaped all of it so I will start there. Since y'all heard about my wonderful accident two weeks ago with tearing a ligament in my foot we had arranged to get myself a boot last Monday. With how crazy it was with arranging that I was in contact with the mission office a lot that day so when President Smith's name popped up on my phone it didn't shock me all that much, I just figured it was about my foot. As I answered the phone he did exactly that, asked me about my foot, how I was doing, and if I was going to be coming to the mission leadership council that Wednesday. It is only my toe so I told him of course I would be coming to the council. Then he hit me with it....he said "will you have your bags packed for me when you come on Wednesday?" I was somewhat confused until he told me he was calling me to be the new assistant to the president and that he wanted me there to help him with figuring out transfers. The big thing was that he told me I couldn't tell anyone because transfers were for another week or so. I thought that the people in Mobile would catch on super quickly with all of the hints that were thrown out but I guess the Lord didn't want them knowing either. Once i actually left word went around pretty quickly.

I absolutely love my new companions; Elder McPherson and Elder Musgrave. They are some of the funniest people I have ever met. It will be sad when Elder Musgrave goes home in two weeks. We have only done 1 hour of proselyting since Wednesday because of all of the administrative work that was going on. I am thankful for the call, I am thankful for my companions, I love being around them, I love being around "the keys"(president) so much and to see how he works...brilliant man! Know that all situations we are put in are for us, our learning, our understanding, and people that we will need to help in the future. Learn everything now! love and miss y'all.

All is well. If you need my address...talk to my ma!

Elder Welch

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