Week 27: Snakes in Oklahoma

I really am going to have to pick up the tracting because well... we only have one real investigator and she is a really new one too! Her name is Tishila and she is so cool. She is really young and super nice. She has 2 little boys named Liam and London. Liam is 16 months and London is 6 weeks old. Her boyfriend's mom wanted her to explore religion more and so the kids have a life where they grow up with Christ in it and coincidentally (jk there is no such thing as a coincidence) she requested a Bible and Book of Mormon from us. She also attended church this week and she enjoyed it and her little son loved it as well. The best part was that she is hardcore fellowshipped and has like 5 real friends in the ward so that is a massive bonus.

This past week we have had 2 different members who have had pet snakes and my fear of snakes has decreased as well so I decided to put those snakes around my neck while I was doing the dishes of the members who made us dinner. 

So this last week was the last week of the transfer and I am actually staying in the Village ward at least another transfer but for my companion, Elder Wright, he is getting sent down to Texas. My new companion is named Elder Hardy and I don't know anything about him except that he is quiet and that he has been out one transfer less than me. I am super pumped though.

An awesome quote I found is "Choose carefully the paths you walk, for others will follow you." -Jayne B. Malan

Elder McMinn

"Our greatest happiness in this life will come as we follow God's commandments and obey his laws."

- President Monson

Week 26: Cars and Coffee

So the baptism is not a go this week because Ray did not make it to church this last week.His neighbor passed away and the funeral was on Sunday so we will meet with him this week and see if he is still down to get baptized. I am pretty sure that he will say yes to being baptized because he was so pumped about it the first time. 

Todd was super sad and depressed this week but I was able to cheer him up because he LOVES cars.  I can relate to him really well and his love of cars. This helped him cheer up because there is no point in trying to change someone if they don't trust you or if they are depressed and just want to be happy. We talked for a little bit about what's new in the car world and he filled me in on a lot of classic cars that he loves.

Speaking of cars. Oklahoma City puts on an event called Cars and Coffee. It is a car show that happens every first Saturday of the month. We went to that and talked to the owners of the cars and the people that showed up to the car show. It was so awesome I loved it. (I am sure that Kyle was in heaven walking around admiring all of the cars on display. Missionaries are blessed for serving!)

So with the passing of President Monson this week I have tried to study some of the stuff that he spoke on. My trainer, Elder Bowman gave me a book called, "We're With You." It is a book that is filled with BYU devotionals and other young adult setting talks. There were a few from President Monson and it was so cool to read a lot of the things that it has taught.

Love,
Elder McMinn

Wonderful, glorious things are in store for you if only you believe, obey, and endure.

- President Monson

Remember that you are never alone.

Never forget that you are loved.

Never doubt that someone surely cares for you.

- President Monson

It's in the doing, not just the thinking that we accomplish our goals.

-President Monson

Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says, "I'll try again tomorrow."

- President Monson

Week 25: Happy New Year

These past few weeks have been really fun! The temperatures have dropped to between 5 and 25 degrees and it has not been above that much at all. That has been fun...

I had a fun Christmas. We woke up and went to our church building and opened our presents with the whole district. There was about 10 of us there and we all ate breakfast there. After church, we went to lunch at a member's home and then went to a different member's home and got to Facetime my family. That was really weird to only be able to call them but it was also a lot of fun. We ended up spending the rest of the night back at the church and being with those same missionaries and playing a few games.

Service with a smile! Just in time for Christmas!

We had a really fun New Years as well. Our church starts at 2:30 and that is so late. (We are changing to 8:30 this next week). So after church, we went and had dinner with a member who actually competed in the Olympics when it was in Sydney so that was way cool to hear about that. Then our mission president invited the missionaries that live close to his home over for the New Years Eve. We ended up playing ping pong and a game called signs. It was a way fun holiday.

New Year's Eve at the Mission President's home

We actually have 2 good investigators. One is named Ray Roberts and he actually has a baptism date set for January 13 which will be so awesome!! He has only been taking lessons since the week that I got to The Village but there haven't been too many speed bumps with him. Just the usual Oklahoma things like smoking and drinking coffee but that will be easy for him to quit those habits. He is so close. The other investigator has actually been investigating off and on for about 20 years now so that is kinda worrying me but he has made more progress in these last few weeks than the past few years. His name is Todd Walker. He was in a car accident a couple years back and he is mad at God because he thinks that it was His fault. We are helping him recognize that it is not and that he can actually be happy again through the Gospel of Jesus Christ and that it can once again give him a purpose in life!

Dinner with the Sturgeon family

Mission life is great!

Elder McMinn

 Kyle loves the older homes in his area. His days of watching HGTV are really paying off!

  

Now is the best time to start becoming the person that we eventually want to be.

-President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Week 24: Merry Christmas from Oklahoma!

Elder Wright and Elder McMinn

Kyle is doing great! We had so much fun talking to him and seeing his face on Christmas day! Mom only cried when it was time to say goodbye. We sure love him! He is right where he needs to be and he loves his mission.

 Best Christmas present of the year!

Week 23: The Village is awesome!

The Village is so awesome! The area is a lot different than Moore and I am actually thankful for that. I am in the heart of Oklahoma City some days and it is the most fun things. There are neighborhoods that have homes built in the 1930s and 1940s and a lot of them have been restored and redone and they look so awesome! My days of watching HGTV have helped me notice some things around the area. 

Soccer on P-day

We have a lot of investigators and there are so many people who are down to talk. We had some interesting experiences this week. There is an investigator named Trudi and we have tried to get ahold of her every day this week and last week. We were in the middle of our companionship study and we get a text from a member of the ward telling us that Trudi is ringing the Salvation Army bell at Walmart. Right when we saw that we both hopped in the car and drove up there as fast as we could and saw her! Turns out her phone was broken and she is now living in Chickasha with her son. We finally got a hold of her and she is doing way good. 

So we met with another guy named Todd Walker this week and he has been investigating the church for about 18 years now off and on and this past week we actually tried to set a baptism date and he was so close to doing it but had one little hang up and then backed out but he has been coming to the ward every week for all those years. He has been helping the older single sisters with service and comes to all the ward activities. He is seriously a member without being baptized. He is so close. He is the nicest guy ever too. 

Todd Walker with Elder McMinn

The coolest thing that we did this week was that we set up a free hot chocolate stand at the Walmart and handed out hot chocolate and Mormon.org pass along cards. We were out there for maybe 3 hours and we handed out hot chocolate non-stop! We had to run into Walmart 2 times just to buy more cups. There was a lady who worked for the local news station and she took a picture of us and a picture of her and posted it on twitter and it made it up on Mormon.org so that is so awesome!! This week has been stellar!

It is starting to feel just like normal life when I wake up in the mornings too so it doesn't bother me anymore. I honestly love it now. I was super hesitant about the whole missionary life but now it just keeps getting better.

Elders Christmas Card

Christmas time is so awesome. There is a lot less commercialism that we see and there is a lot less that we have to deal with when we are cut off from the world. I like it a lot. This Christmas is going to be very different but a really good day. I read Jesus the Christ chapters 7 and 8 and those have some of the greatest things that I have ever read on the birth of the Savior. 

As we seek Christ, as we find Him, as we follow Him, we shall have the Christmas spirit, not just for one fleeting day each year but as a companion always.

Thomas S. Monson

Elder McMinn

Week 22: Welcome to The Village

Elder McMinn has a new address:

1301 W. Hefner Rd. Apt # 3502
Oklahoma City, OK 73114

This week was transfer week. I had to say goodbye to a lot of the people in Moore those last few days but the Village is way cool. The top of my area is in Edmund and the bottom is in South OKC. You get a little bit of everything. Edmund is the richest and the South is not. We have an area called Nichols Hills and that area has some of the largest homes that I have ever seen. There are so many more people here outside for us to talk to then there were in Moore. 

Joe 

JT

My new companion is way cool too. His name is Elder Wright and he is from Nephi Utah. We have both been on our missions the exact same time so that is fun to be both learning the new things. I have a feeling this transfer is going to be awesome so I am way excited! I am really excited to be in the Village. It is way cool and I like it here so far. There is a lot of investigators but also a lot of people that we can just talk to outside because there are more people outside here than there was in Moore and I love that. I saw Elder Riley at transfers the other day so that was way cool. I am pumped for my new area because the people here are so cool. My new zone leader, Elder Berrett, was actually the first missionary that I spent the night with when I got here in OKC. 

The Village apartment

Elder McMinn and Elder Wright New Companions (both in the back)

He who gives money gives much. He who gives time gives more but he who gives of himself gives all.

- President Thomas S. Monson

 Have a good week.

Elder McMinn

Week 21: Last Week in Moore

Oh, you know...just out here chasing storms in Oklahoma!

My week has been a good one. It almost just felt like we were going through the routine but it was still a good week. We have been looking for part member families and have had good success with being invited in and teaching them. 

We were able to set a baptism date for Joe Ferrera. December 16th. Sadly I am getting transferred out before then. He has been looking into the church for 6 months now. I am super excited for him. I never thought that I would love and care for someone who was a total drug addict but when you look at them for what truly matters it doesn't matter what they did before only who they have the potential to become with the help of our loving Heavenly Father.

I am going to the Village. I have no clue where that is but it should be good I hope. I really didn't want to leave but thats how it goes. JT Alvarado and I both were almost in tears when I went and saw him last night. He is the recent convert that I myself baptized back in September.

The Alvardos with Elder McMinn

Today for P-day we are going to see the Native American man who helped us finish the flutes last time and the other elders in the area are going to make some before they leave. Should be good to see all the other missionaries before we all leave.

I have loved Moore so much and the people here are seriously the greatest people ever. I am going to miss it. 

Love,
Elder McMinn

Heavenly Father loves all His children. No matter where they are on or off the path. He wants them back home.

- Linda K. Burton