A lot happens in an hour in the life of a missionary.

Dear Ma and Pa,

 

   Things are well in the great NMAM! 

 

   Ryan is home!? Oh man! Tell that kid I love him! That's neat.

 

   Sounds like the track meet went well and that coach mo has the boys getting in shape! Hopefully the weather gets good for you all, track season was always full of fun weather!

  

    From the last time I wrote you to now a lot has happened. Of course, a lot happens in an hour in the life of a missionary. Sadly I can't tell you every little detail. I wish! At night when I write in my journal I sometimes pretend I'm sports center and I do the top ten highlights of the day! It's fun.  Sometimes I also do the not so top ten, that's fun as well.

 

The miracle story I shared last week was Dana! She came to church again this week! We weren't able to teach her at all last week, so she has now come to church two weeks in a row and has yet to meet with us once. Crazy right? She even called us at 1030 yesterday morning saying she missed the bus so she wouldn't be able to make it to church, BUT! We were able to find her a ride last minute. So cool that she called! We have a lesson with her scheduled for this week, we are very excited to teach her. Speaking of church, yesterday during fast and testimony meeting a member of the stake presidency gave a very powerful testimony of missionary work. He is a convert himself. During it he gave the ward an invitation to pray for missionary work, and he said "Don't pray for the missionaries to find, but pray every night as a family that you may be able to find people for the missionaries to teach!" It was very powerful. Coolest thing ever. The stake presidency calls our ward the flagship for missionary work. It is a great place to serve!

 

Last night was our monthly meeting with the stake presidency and President Miller. It is always a very humbling experience to be in a meeting with such amazing men, especially when they ask us what would help the work in the stake. It's very important that we are prepared for those meetings, they are great.

 

Hey - You all have a great week and have fun! Sending love and sun from ABQ!

 

  Elder Turnbow

 

 

 

Dear Ma,

 

     I am still alive.

 

Sorry for not emailing sooner. There has been zero time to get around to it! Let me explain why...

 

  Monday we had 29 new missionaries arrive to our mission, 18 of them were sisters! At the airport they just kept coming and coming and coming! it was so cool! We had the big transfer van, 2 other regular vans, and then we were driving a truck, and we barely had enough room for all of them plus their luggage. So monday was spent running around like crazy helping all of them, and getting things ready for transfer Tuesday. Monday we also take all of the new missionaries out knocking doors for an hour or so. I took an Elder Espinoza! Macies cousin right? It was a good time, he did just fine! I didn't know he was her cousin until reading your email today. He went down south, but I will see if I can talk to him in the future. 

  Tuesday started out crazy at 5 in the morning. We walked out to our car to find out it had been broken into, and all our stuff was stolen. The main things of mine that got stolen were my GPS, and all the things that come with that, and then just my fake Oakley Sunglasses. They also stole all of our supplies! (BoM's, mormon.org cards, pamphlets, and so forth.) Maybe something good will come from it? Hope so! Tuesday was very busy with transfers, and getting everybody situated into their new areas. We now have two new areas in our zone! Our area split which we are very excited about, now we serve with sisters in the ward as well! We have handed them over a few investigators which is kinda sad for us, but they will take good care of them no doubt! They call our zone the iron pony express! Almost all the companionships are on bikes, our sisters are tough!

 

  It sounds like things are good and well at home though! Good to hear spring is near! Bonus points for rhyming? Yup! The weather is absolutely gorgeous here this time of year!

 

  Last week we had a lesson with Brother Thompson, the husband of a member. It was one of the most powerful lessons I have been a part of on my mission. It's impossible to describe in words how it went, or even what was said. What I can remember is we taught the BoM, and the conversion power behind it.

 

  Sunday we had an awesome thing happen! We walked into church early as usual, and saw a lady sitting on the back row, we both looked at each other and said "Why does she look so familiar!?" It was Dana! Dana is somebody we knocked into my second day in the area. For our door approach we simply invited her to church, and she didn't seem too interested. So the weeks go by, we tried contacting her a couple times with no luck, and then over a month later she shows up at church! She said "I just felt like I needed to come" Things like that don't happen every day, it was truly a miracle. I will keep you updated as we teach her.

 

Things are simply great here, I am so thankful for each and every day. Wouldn't give it up for anything. I really feel like I am even coming to love the hard times, as weird as that may sound. 

 

Have a great week and I'll hear from ya soooon!!!

 

Love, Elder Turnbow  

 

  Here is a quick little think for you to laugh at.... A little taste of knocking doors sometimes.. A man opens the door and we hear the F word 5 plus times in probably 10 seconds. One sentence he said, "If you come back here again I'll shoot you in the face!"  I have a hard time not talking back at people like that, but I held my tongue. Good stuff.

 

 

 

Ten Investigators, Near-death experience, and Basketball vs. Mission

Thanks for the emails as always, I love reading what you all have to say! Every story I hear of Benson just sounds super funny, he is a hoot. That's so crazy you still have snow there and it's super muddy. Last week we had one day that hit 75, it was nice! Mom it sounds like your mission prep class is going great! Hey Dad- Are you itching to get out on the fields yet? I am assuming yes because I feel like I know you pretty well.

 

Looking back on the week and trying to decide what to write about is crazy hard! Guess what mom?? Last night I finished my journal. Yup, first one ever! I bought a new one and plan to start it today.

 

This week we had our monthly zone leader council, out of all the meetings we go to this one is by far my favorite! Three of my past companions are there! Elder Weston, Johnson, and Ashworth. Not to mention a few others who are amazing. It's a good time, and the things I learn in those hours are incredible. The day after that meeting we turn around and train it to our zone. Doing that meeting is something I have come to love. I really enjoy teaching, and training other missionaries. Oh, and because I saw Elder Weston and Elder Ashworth they brought me my new basketball shoes. Thanks Mom! You have great taste.

 

Yesterday something happened that has never happened to me on my mission, we had 10 investigators come to church! We didn't know what to do with them all! haha With 15 minutes before the meeting started, there were probably 25 members there, and then our 10 investigators, it was a great ratio if you ask me.

 

Oh ya! I almost forgot to tell you about the time I almost died this week. true story. We were doing service for a recent convert, we were helping him with his deck and the roof of his deck. Kinda like Grandma Turnbows. Anyway we were taking it down completely for him. Long story short at one point the whole thing was being braced up by 4 beams. I had just set one of them and was clearing some ground underneath it when I heard a loud SNAP!! A brace broke and the whole thing was coming down on top of me. All's I could do was jump off the deck! (Later Elder Eaton said it was one of the coolest things he has seen) I was flying through the air like a mad man, but it still wasn't quite fast enough to get completely out of the way. I got pounded on the back halfway down. Luckily I had my head ducked and it just hit my back. No doubt I would have been crushed if I hadn't reacted fast. It was almost like the sound of a gun starting a track race, so I think my instincts kicked in.  So that's the exiting story for the week. Good times!

 

A family I have mentioned we are working with right now are the Thompson's. The Dad and two adopted kids. The Dad has investigated the church for 26 years. They are a family we, and the ward are really focused on right now. They came to church again yesterday as a family! After church we went over and taught the restoration using a cup analogy for the kids. At first the lesson was going rough, not very good at all. I personally think it was because we knew this lesson was going to be a pivotal one for the both the dad and the kids, and I think the adversary knew this too, and he was trying to bring in any distraction possible. It was choppy at the beginning but we made it to the Joseph Smith story. Elder Eaton set it up nicely, and I retold Joseph Smiths experience. The entire feeling in the house changed, and the demeanor of all who were in the room was different. I love the spirit. After that the lesson went great. The Dad said he felt very calm, and the kids didn't know how to explain it. We testified of the spirit and told them it was there. It was a powerful moment. It's a process with this family, but the Lord is working with them.

 

Mom you asked how the Land of Enchantment was, and I must say I love this place. Albuquerque New Mexico was definitely an inspired call. Last night I had a dream that I was sitting in the back seat of the suburban and you and dad were driving me to my basketball game, and I was mad at you because I wasn't a missionary anymore. I woke up chuckling to myself. It was pretty funny.

 

Well have a great week! Thanks for all you do.

Love, Elder Turnbow

 

 

PS Give Gunner Mav and Spice a nice belly rub for me this week!

 

"Thank you for letting me play such a small part in such an incredible work!"

So we have a little rap that we sing and it goes like this......  "So much to do and so little time uh.  o much to do and so little time ya. So much to do that I don't know what to do!!!! "    That's the best I can do to describe my life. haha

 

   Sounds like state was a blast! Congrats to the boys on a mighty fine season!

 

Dad you asked me about a couple things so I will address them to begin. I have really enjoyed my first few weeks with Elder Eaton! He is 26 so a little older than me, it's kind of like serving with Ben or David. Cool huh? We have a good time together. We don't drop by the mission office, they call us and have us go over. We are having a huge influx of missionaries in the next couple of months so we have been going  like crazy moving furniture into apartments and figuring out where to put them all! It's kind of funny because we have a huge transfer van with a trailer, and the senior couple Elder who is in charge of all vehicles refuses to drive it with the trailer on. He calls us once or twice a week and has me drive it all around ABQ with furniture in the trailer. President told him I wouldn't mind, and I don't! It's not like driving a truck and trailer on the farm, but it's still pretty fun.

 

The Thompsons, who I have mentioned before, all came to church yesterday! The dad has investigated the church for 26 years and they have the two adopted kids Audrey and John. We had a really good lesson with them yesterday as well, they are an amazing family!

 

We had a very cool experience this last week. A member of the ward called us and told us to go give a blessing to a part member family who we have never met. The girlfriend of the non member was going into surgery the next day for her knee. We sat down on the couch to get to know them a little before the blessing and the spirit just came like a rush of wind and said, "Teach them about baptism and invite him to be baptized!" I was thinking, I don't even know these people and we've been here for two minutes! I looked at Elder Eaton and he was looking at me, I knew he was getting the same impressions. So we went with it. It was a short and powerful lesson and we invited him to be baptized. He said he would. They need to get married and that's really the only hang up they've had in the past. I love following the spirit.

 

Also this week we had dinner with another part member family we are teaching. The wife is not a member. Midway through dinner she says "Oh ya, I've quit smoking." I about choked on whatever i was eating! She comes to church every week but hasn't wanted to give up smoking. It was so great to hear her say that! We set a baptism date with her for March 16!

 

Saturday night as we were leaving our last appointment and as I was backing Elder Eaton out  I looked up into the beautiful ABQ night sky and simply said, "Heavenly Father, thank you for letting me play a small part in such an incredible work." I can't describe the feeling I felt. It's like trying to describe what milk tastes like to somebody who has never had it before. It's.... amazing?? I love it.

 

Well my time is short I could go on and on. But today has a good meaning... MARCH 4th everybody!!!

 

Love, Elder Turnbow

 

Ps. Here is a deep thought for the day...   Life is what if's divided by time.