I'm currently serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, in Salt Lake City (Central Mission), Utah! This blog will be a list of the weekly emails that I'll be sending home!


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Tuesday, February 26, 2013

February is OUTTA HERE!

By this time next week it will be March! I can't believe that this month is already over. February treated me very well! ;)

So Paris and Jenna got baptized!! It was a very good baptismal service. They weren't lying when they said that there was going to be a lot of people at their baptism. There was probably about 70 plus people! We set up around 60 chair thinking oh man that will be plenty. NOPE. We had to keep setting up chairs, and people were standing in the back. Crazy. But yeah they were really excited to get baptized. Man I'm almost out of time!! I'm really sorry. I'll try and write more next week to make up for this!! But yeah. that was the main thing that happened this week. Heather, their mom is on date for the 9th of march!

I'll write next week for this week and for next week!! haha. (30 seconds left before it logs me off!)
I love you :)
Elder Wilson.
 
UPDATE:
My bad about last week! I just wasn't keeping track of the time very well. But now looking back (and I was afraid of this, haha) I can't remember it! And I didn't write in my journal either those few days so I can't type what I wrote. So you're just going to have to deal with that short one! haha. ;)

OH! I do remember one thing though. We talked in Sacrament meeting, and Elder Dean and I were assigned to talk for 15 minutes. But the first speaker took about 25, plus a song in the middle, and so it left Elder Dean and I a total of about 10 minutes to talk. He took five, and I took the last five. So I had to cut down on my talk a ton, and I was just praying that it would make sense and still have the Spirit to be there. I decided I'd talk about a minute on things I had prepared, and then read a story that I had heard a while ago but Elder Dean reminded me of it. That brought the Spirit in so strongly it was awesome!! I'll attach it.

Seminary Donuts:
There was a boy by the name of Steve who was attending Seminary in Utah. In Utah, Seminary classes are held as part of the school curriculum.

Brother Christianson taught Seminary at this particular school. He had an open door policy and would take in any student that had been thrown out of another class as long as they would abide his rules.

Steve had been kicked out of his sixth period and no other teacher wanted him, so he went into bro. Christianson's Seminary class.

Steve was told that he couldn't be late, so he would come in just seconds before the bell rang and he would sit in the very back of the room. He would also be the first to leave after the class was over.

One day bro. Christianson asked Steve to stay after class so he could talk with him. After class bro. Christianson pulled Steve aside and said, "You think you're pretty tough, don't you?" Steve's answer was "Yeah, I do." Then bro. Christianson asked, "How many push-ups can you do?" Steve said, "I do about 200 every night." "200? That's pretty good, Steve," bro. Christianson said, "Do you think you could do 300?" Steve replied, "I don't know… I've never done 300 at a time." "Do you think you could?" Again asked bro. Christianson. "Well, I can try." Said Steve. "Can you do 300 in sets of 10? I need you to do 300 in sets of ten for this to work. Can you do it? I need you to tell me you can do it." Bro Christianson said. Steve said, "Well… I think I can… yeah, I can do it." Bro. Christianson said, "Good! I need you to do this on Friday."

Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in front of the room. When class started, bro. Christianson pulled out a big box of donuts. Now these weren't the normal kind of donuts, they were the extra fancy BIG kind, with cream centers and frosting swirls. Everyone was pretty exited— it was Friday, the last class of the day and they were going to get an extra early start on the weekend.

Bro. Christianson went to the first girl in the first row and asked, "Cynthia, do you want a donut?" Cynthia said, "Yes." Bro. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Cynthia can have a donut?" Steve said, "Sure," and jumped down from his desk to do a quick ten. Then Steve again sat in his desk. Bro Christianson put a donut on Cynthia's desk. Bro. Christianson then went to Joe, the next person, and asked, "Joe, do you want a donut?" Joe said, "Yes." Bro. Christianson asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Joe can have a donut?" Steve did ten push-ups, Joe got a donut.

And so it went, down the first aisle, Steve did ten push-ups for every person before they got their donut. And down the second aisle, till bro. Christianson came to Scott. Scott was the captain of the football team and center of the basketball team. He was very popular and never lacking for female companionship. When bro. Christianson asked, "Scott, do you want a donut?" Scott's reply was, "Well, can I do my own push-ups?" Bro. Christianson said, "No, Steve has to do them." Then Scott said, "Well, I don't want one then." Bro. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't want?" Steve started to do ten push-ups.
Scott said, "HAY! I said I didn't want one!" Bro. Christianson said, "Look, this is my classroom, my class, my desks, and my donuts. Just leave it on the desk if you don't want it." And he put a donut on
Scott's desk.

Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow down a little. He just stayed on the floor between sets because it took too much effort to be getting up and down. You could start to see a little perspiration
coming out around his brow.

Bro. Christianson started down the third row. Now the students were beginning to get a little angry.

Bro. Christianson asked Jenny, "Jenny, do you want a donut?" Jenny said, "No." Then bro. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Jenny can have a donut she doesn't want?" Steve did ten, Jenny got a donut.

By now, the students were beginning to say "No" and there were all these uneaten donuts on the desks. Steve was having to really put forth a lot of effort to get these push-ups done for each donut. There began to be a small pool of sweat on the floor beneath his face, his arms and brow were beginning to get red because of the physical effort involved.

Bro. Christianson asked Robert to watch Steve to make sure he did ten push-ups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all of Steve's work for all of those uneaten donuts. So Robert began to watch Steve closely.

Bro. Christianson started down the fourth row. During his class, however, some students had wandered in and sat along the heaters along the sides of the room. When bro. Christianson realized this, he did a quick count and saw 34 students in the room. He started to worry if Steve would be able to make it.

Bro. Christianson went on to the next person and the next and the next. Near the end of that row, Steve was really having a rough time. He was taking a lot more time to complete each set.

Steve asked bro. Christianson, "Do I have to make my nose touch on each one?" Bro. Christianson thought for a moment, "Well, they are your push-ups. You can do them any way that you want." And bro. Christianson went on.

A few moments later, Jason came to the room and was about to come in when all the students yelled, "NO! Don't come in! Stay out!" Jason didn't know what was going on. Steve picked up his head and said, "No, let him come." Bro. Christianson said, "You do realize that if Jason comes in you will have to do ten push-ups for him." Steve said, "Yes, let him come in." Bro. Christianson said, "Okay, I'll let you get Jason's out of the way right now. Jason do you want a donut?" "Yes." "Steve, will you do ten push-ups so that Jason can have a donut?" Steve did ten push-ups very slowly and with great effort. Jason, bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down.

Bro. Christianson finished the fourth row, and then started on those seated on the heaters.

Steve's arms were now shaking with each push-up in a struggle to lift himself against the force of gravity. Sweat was dropping off of his face and, by this time, there was not a dry eye in the room. The very last two girls in the room were cheerleaders and very popular. Bro. Christianson went to Linda and asked, "Linda, do you want a donut?" Linda, too choked up to talk, just shook her head, no. Bro. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?" Grunting from the effort, Steve did ten very slow push-ups for Linda. Then bro. Christianson turned to the last girl, Susan. "Susan, do you want a donut?" Susan, with tears flowing down her face, asked, "Bro. Christianson, can I help him?" Bro. Christianson, with tears of his own, said, "No, he has to do it alone, Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Susan can have a donut?"

As Steve very slowly finished his last push-up, with the understanding that he had accomplished all that was required of him, having done 350 push-ups, his arms buckled beneath him and he fell to the floor.

And so it was, that our Savior, Jesus Christ, plead to the Father, "Into Thy hands I commend My Spirit." With the understanding that He had done everything that was require of Him, He collapsed on the cross and died. Even those who didn’t want to accept His gift.

Isn't that an amazing story?? I love it!
Love, Elder Wilson
 

Jenna and Paris got baptized!!

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