February 11, 2013

So I found out how Rashad died. I found out from the missionaries who are now serving back in Lexington so I'm thinking that it’s pretty accurate information. It started with the flu that has been going around, then he went into the hospital to get it checked out and while he was there in the hospital he was diagnosed with diabetic and his sugar level was extremely high, so they kept him over night in the ICU. On Sunday night he started to do a lot better, but then randomly on Monday morning he ended up having a heart attack. I was able to ask a few questions and stuff, and it turns out that his mom and girlfriend are extremely friendly and open to the missionaries now. They kept thanking the missionaries for being there for Rashad and the difference before and after he started meeting with us was incredible. Also his mom said that she was going to look up the missionaries in Washington D.C when she goes back home. So there is still some silver lining in all of this, but I am doing much better now. Change happens but you can't change the past, so only have hope and embrace the future.

This last week we were able to go to Louisville again and participate in the Zone Leader Council. It’s basically a 7 hour long meeting and we have to give reports on how our zone did this last month and what we are going to do this next month to help resolve the problems. It’s pretty hard because it’s like the problems that keep coming up are reoccurring ones and the ways that we are trying to fix them, isn't working, or else the problems wouldn't keep coming back. So we gave our report and our ways to fix it, but I still don't feel like our solutions are good enough. Anyways it was a good time is Louisville and I learned quite a bit.

 I have been thinking a lot lately about the good leaders that I have been able to serve with and around. They had something that just made them a leader and they had "it" the natural ability to lead. I believe I can achieve that but it’s also much more than just that. Elder Wood was telling me of a story of Elder Shaffer, Elder Mason (I replaced Elder Mason when I came here), and Elder Wood all sitting around discussing leadership stuff and Elder Shaffer and Elder Mason were just going off on different Zone Leaders who had "It" and those who didn't. He never found out what "IT" was but as soon as he told me that story, all I have been able to think about was how I can get "IT." 

Love, Elder Taylor

February 4, 2013

So not to put a damper on things, but I want you to know just a little bit of how my week went. I found out that Rashad actually died on Monday of last week and I found out on Thursday. I didn't ever find out what from, but his girlfriend let me know in just a quick letter that he had passed. It went through my heart like a javelin. That was probably the hardest death I have had to deal with since Tyson. I was so close to him and I really considered him as one of my brothers. I learned to love him and care for him tremendously. He was like my best friend and we had plans to hang out after the mission and he was actually going to come down and go to my homecoming talk is what he was telling me the week that I left. I haven't really told anyone how bad it hurt, but it hurt pretty badly. The Thursday night that I found out feels like a big ole nightmare. I didn't sleep hardly at all, and I spent about 3 hours out of the night just tossing and turning and wanting to cry, but not really sure what to do except to pray. I was in a bind and I was trying to pray, but I just felt like there was no one there. Like no one was listening, but I do know that he heard my prayers because eventually I felt a calm assurance that everything will be alright and I was able to finally lay my head down on the pillow and fall asleep. A lot more has happened, and last week I felt empty, but at the same time I have also been able to feel the love and strength that he gives me. Today I feel much better than I have the last few days, but it’s still a healing process and there is nothing that I can do about it now. I did, however, make myself the promise that sometime after my mission, somehow I was going to get in contact with his family and get their approval to take his name to the temple and do his ordinances for him. He was so close to getting baptized and since I wasn't able to get him baptized before he died, I will have to get it done in a year. It was so hard and I just felt weird and empty for the last half of the week almost like I was in a dream. I am grateful for Heavenly Father in sending me this trial, because I learned to rely on him more now than ever. I hope this lesson will stick with me and I can use it for good. When they say that you experience it all on the mission they were right. Also I know that the mission is designed specifically for me. I know that we ran into Rashad for a reason, and even though we weren't able to baptize him, he had said over and over again that he didn't know why he let us come back the first time because he had tried out religion and hated it. I know however that he didn't ever regret it. The Lord had set things up, and hopefully things are working out on the other side, and I would like to think that Tyson is tag-teaming him over there. That would be really neat. 

Anyways things here in Elizabethtown are going great and the ward is doing well, and feeding us pretty good. We average about 3 dinner appointments per week and so it’s nice not having to cook everything. Well family I have to finish up here, we are going to go play some ball at 11, and a missionary whose name is Elder Garrity is coming to play. Usually he doesn't play with us because his area is so far away, but today they came down and supposedly he is really supposed to be good. Like good enough that he went and scrimmaged and played with UK basketball team at a practice and he did so well that the coach wants him to come and walk on after his mission. So I'm really excited to see him play.

 Love you all!!
Elder Taylor

Picture of Elder Taylor and Rashad

 

 

January 28, 2013

Having Fun with Alex and Charlie

Ice cycles hanging from the mission car

Baptism of Alex and Charlie

Yikes, Ice Skating on the front step

Dear family,

This last week was awesome! We were able to get two out of the three baptisms.   It was amazing to see what the Lord can do and how he truly blesses us. The gospel truly can change people’s lives and give them a hope of a future. Alex and Charlie are their names, and they have had the roughest lives ever. It broke my heart and still breaks it when I heard about what they have gone through, but because of them being baptized they now have a hope of leaving it all behind and becoming something greater than the circumstances to which they were placed in. They really have good hearts and are truly amazing. They asked me to baptize them and then Elder Wood to confirm them. I was so honored that they asked me, it was a testimony building experience. Their mom was found and baptized by Elder Shaffer, but since she doesn't have full custody, we weren't able to baptize the two that were of age. So things finally aligned themselves up and Juliet filed for full custody and instead got temporary custody and so we just went ahead and did it.( haha take that satan)!  It’s a really good family, and I am excited to see both of them progress, and really excited to see Charlie go on a mission in like 10 years. 

This last week we were able to go down to Sulpher Well and blitz them. I was able to go out with Elder Hildenbrandt and Elder Wood worked with Elder Berube (my MTC Comp :) but Elder Hildebrandt and I literally had so much success in that day it completely blew me away. That day we only talked to 10 people and 4 of them because investigators and 3 of them became potential investigators, and then we were able to teach 7 lessons. That is almost a day unheard of because it usually takes like 10 rejections before you finally find someone who will at least give you the time of day. It was almost as if everyone we talked to was so nice and friendly and just wanted to hear the gospel. It blew me away from how much the Lord had prepared those individuals. So that was a small miracle, but the biggest one came that night when we found out that everything had been prepared so Alex and Charlie could get baptized.

Also while we were up to Sulpher Well there was a big ice storm and the entire ground was covered in 2 inches of ice! it was crazy!  After the ice storm, we all walked/skated down to the well where sulpher water is springing up out of. It took us so long because we had to be careful and we were like clenching our hips the entire way so we wouldn't fall. It was almost like snowboarding, so I think we may have broke a rule "No winter sports aloud." woops! but  anywho, we were able to taste it, and it tasted and smelled like rotten eggs!!  But apparently it is really good for you.

The place that we are staying is 262 Metts ct apt 4. Elizabethtown Ky, 42701, actually just right around the corner from my last apartment.

Time is running short, Love ya!! 
Elder Taylor

January 14, 2013

Hey family!! So much has happened this week; it’s been way.... exciting to say the least! But that is way cool to hear about Annie, I am excited for her. Alaska will be awesome. Also tell Christopher that I wish him good luck! Tell the Andersons I say HI back!
I would like to ask for forgiveness from Ashlyn, I didn't forget her birthday... I just forgot to write it in the letter that I wrote two weeks ago and last week. HAPPY late BIRTHDAY! My mind has just really been preoccupied with the work here that I tend to forget what day it is back home and then before I realize it, its a week and a half past my sisters birthday. So I will wish Porter a happy birthday now so I don't forget next week.... HAPPY BIRHTDAY porter.

So this last week, as I stated earlier was crazy!. On Tuesday we were able to go into Louisville and have a Zone Leader Council conference, which was long and very much like a meeting. The highlight of the trip however was on Tuesday morning all 14 of us zone leaders got together and played some basketball and also a trash can game. It’s a mix of ultimate Frisbee and lacrosse that's played with a soccer ball. It was very fun. Then after that trip we were stuck for like 3 days in a row in the apartment planning for a training that we had to give to our zone. It was one of those, these are Presidents initiatives, how are we going to get them across and get the missionaries excited about them. So that was fun and we gave the training on Friday. Then on Saturday we were actually able to get out and proselyte some. So I have been a little jumpy and upset about the lack of proselyting time that we have, but I have faith that the Lord will provide people for us to teach and baptize.
On Saturday night however was probably one to never forget. We saw a Less-actives name on the roster and his wife is a non-member so we went over there. His wife let us right in and she was way nice and friendly towards us. She started talking to us and then the husband came in and sat down. Right as soon as the husband came in, the wife stopped talking and left promptly. The husband sat there for about like 2 minutes and we tried to break the ice with him, but he wasn't having it. He wasn't answering any of our questions. Then all of a sudden he asked us the question. "Who sent you here?" and it just blew up from there. So to make a long story short, we sat there for about an hour and a half getting railed into by this old has-been Colonel who was in the army. He wouldn't even let us talk and he would only let us answer the questions that he would ask us in a yes-no answer. The funny thing is, they weren't even questions that dealt with the church, because what I got from his rambling was he had a "testimony" (more like a quarter of a testimony), he had just been offended and hasn't come back since. Most of the questions that he asked had to do with our personal life. I felt so disrespected and my tailbone still hurts from him chewing us out so much. I didn't just want to get up and leave and be rude, but finally that’s what we ended up doing. We kept our cool and peace the entire time, but the man was just so unhappy and angry that he was taking his anger out on us I guess. So that was a fun growing experience

So to tell you a little bit about my companion, is his name is Elder Wood and he is from Orem, Utah (all of my companions except for one have been from Utah- Elder Manzano). He enjoys sports, so that’s pretty cool. This is something that I found out that is way cool is that both of his brothers and his dad are Green Berets. That is way neat. He enjoys standup comedy and really likes to impersonate people. He really does a good one of President Woodbury. It’s the best one that I have seen yet.

To close I just wanted to say a few things to Gentry, Ashlyn, and Porter. You were talking about how going through high school there is a lot of peer- pressure and there is. I was just thinking about the new Youth Theme and motto for 2013 and the theme is "Stand Ye in Holy Places, and be not moved." I have thought a lot about that and what it means to stand ye in holy places. When we think of Holy Places we often think of places such as: Church, Temples, Dedicated sites, the home, seminary, Etc; and you could interpret the motto to mean that we need to go to these holy places as often as possible and spend as much time as we can there. For it is in these Holy Places that the Spirit of the Lord is and it is in these places that we can receive revelation, seek shelter from the world, and gain a stronger testimony. Yes that is the case, but I think that the motto can be interpreted this way, and I hope that this can come across as a humble interpretation and not prideful. We are children of God, we have a divine Potential to become like him and as such everywhere we go should be a Holy place. We need to live our lives in such a way that it is proper to call every step that we take a holy step. We need to live our lives in such a way so that we do not diminish the sacredness and the potential that Heavenly Father sees in us. We need to purify ourselves so that we can say that we are always standing is holy places because the person standing in the place is holy. Be not moved :)

Love you all!

Elder Taylor

January 7, 2013

Hi family! So things here are going crazy!!   I feel so inadequate and like I'm in over my head,  it’s not even funny. I'm in the area that all the mission legends have passed through and right now I feel pretty unqualified to be in this position. I just keep holding on to the saying that, "God doesn't call the qualified, he qualifies the called." I am trying, and luckily I have a really good companion who is good at showing me the ropes. I have a bunch more responsibilities. As a district leader I only had to look after 2 other areas beside my own. Now as a zone leader I have to look over 3 district Leaders who each have 3 areas in their District. So needless to say I have done a bunch more planning and trying to figure out how to help all of our areas. Also the Zone leader before I got here baptized everyone that they were working with and so we have like no body that we are working with right now.... UHHHH looks like its starting over from phase 1 all over again. It was good however that most of the ward recognized me and they welcomed me back. It was crazy. They kept saying that it was my first homecoming.

I was a little bit bummed however because Elisabeth, my other baptism while I was here went inactive. So I am going to work hard to get her active. I'm thinking that the Lord is just testing me, but I don't know if Im passing or failing because I feel like sometimes I am miserably failing, but its a good thing that we have the atonement that we can actively use in our lives to better ourselves.

Love Ya,

 

December 31,2012

I'm sitting here in Lexington for the very last time in the Eagle Creek Library. As you all have found out I am getting transferred, and going back to my birth-place Elizabethtown. I actually wanted that to happen. I knew that there was some unfinished business that I had to attend to, and so right as soon as President called and told me, I felt like it was the right place to be. I'm not sure what that reason is, but I do know that I need to go back.
It was really cool, yesterday we started to make rounds and say goodbye to a bunch of people, and we stopped by Pastor Mike’s house and he had lunch all ready for us and told us to sit down and eat. So during the middle of eating we brought up some of our different beliefs and I was able to explain to him our belief on the Pre-Earth life. It interested him quite a bit. He sat back and was like, "I've never thought about it like that, but that's really interesting view to look at things." So it was neat again. Then as we were leaving he told me that if I ever come back to visit, then I have always got a place to visit and to stay. It was awesome. We really have a mutual bond of friendship and its rooted more deep than that. I feel like that last meeting won’t be the last time I see him. Also Rashad says that he will fly out to Idaho when I get off my mission because he wants to come and meet you all.

I learned something really neat yesterday and it’s a topic that I have been trying to wrap my head around for some time now. I know it’s not what I'm supposed to be studying about as a missionary, but it was about how we obtain our inheritance in the Celestial kingdom. It’s done on an individual effort. "For we are saved by grace after all we can do." So if that be the case, what happens when a family is sealed in the temple and a child goes wayward?  Yesterday I learned the importance of keeping your covenants, and if we live truly faithful, we could be the means of "saving" our loved ones.   So much more relies on us, because we have been sealed and have take upon ourselves covenants so how faithfully we hold true to our covenants could have a big swing on the outcome of our relatives. It’s intense!!

Love ya family, have to go pack!
Elder Taylor

12-30-2012

Message from the ward missionary leader Elder Kopher

Your son is being transferred! We will miss him so much in the Pioneer
Ward. He is doing great and in good health! Hardest working missionary
we have ever had! Congrats!