Lying flat on my face in the New Mexico desert?

What a week!

   Please tell me that you all watched the world wide broadcast last night?! "The Work of Salvation" Nobody mentioned it in their emails, but I really hope you saw it. If not... I call you to repentance and get on to LDS.org and watch it! haha It was incredible, and it will change the way we do missionary work forever. I can't believe how inspired our prophet and apostles are. As I sat next to Elder Ballif and President and Sister Miller and our branch president and watched it at the ABQ stake center, and I couldn't believe how many times my heart was touched.

 

     So this week was a really good and busy week! We went on three different exchanges and got a lot of good work done. Thursday I went back to Rio Rancho to my old area and was with Elder Vial. We were able to stop by and see Keith. As soon as he saw me he started crying, and gave me one of the most sincere hugs I have probably ever received. He is struggling right now, not doing the best. My heart hurts to see him struggling, but I know he will be OK. He kept saying, "You don't have to say anything. Just you being here and seeing you makes me feel guilty. You and Elder Chalk saved my life." We had a really good talk, I was pretty bold and loving. I heard from the zone leaders that he was at church yesterday.  Boy that made me happy. Also while I was there, we were able to visit Margie Kamakaokalani and her husband Jim! Teyshia has since moved back to Hawaii and is doing well there. Boy, it was great to see them!    

 

     Friday night we drove down to El Paso to do exchanges with the Mount Franklin zone leaders. We got there super late, and then Elder Smith and woke up super early and drove back up to ABQ to work for the day. Elder Smith is one of my favorites! He is from North Logan, and he actually lives really close to Grandpa Phillips. We have been able to make a ton of connections. We had a great day together. There is this place on campus where all the students go to eat lunch called the Frontier, and we went there for lunch and contacted while we ate. It was a blast! That is actually how we found one of the investigators that we are teaching right now. It is a great place to be!  Jessica got home from her vacation with her mom and we taught her that day as well. Something Incredible about that lesson though is that we had Dylan Salahien come teach her with us! Dylan is the young man that Elder Chalk and I taught in Rio Rancho. Before the lesson we talked for a bit and he told me he is working to go on a mission this winter! AAAHHH!!!! I cannot tell you how happy that made me. As we were in the lesson he bore his testimony to Jessica, and as I sat there and listened to somebody I taught and watch go through the conversion process bear a powerful testimony to someone who is at the same place he was 9 months before, I almost couldn't believe it. What a lesson to be in. Wow. What a happy day.

       After our lesson with Jessica we loaded up and headed back down south to exchange back. Funny Story.... I got pulled over.... darnit... haha No ticket though, just a warning! Phew! As soon as the cop flipped on his lights we put a Book of Mormon on the dash, along with temple mormon.org cards, we think that is what got him ;)

        So we exchanged back in Las Cruces and spent the night there with the Las Cruces zone leaders. We got there super late and then woke up super early to get to branch council by 9. Church was great! We had two investigators there, and two members brought their friends that we are going to start teaching! One of the members plays on the UNM soccer team, and she brought her friend who plays on the men's soccer team. He's a cool guy! After church we watched the broadcast that I noted.  After that, and then we and the sisters went to our branch president's house and had an amazing dinner and discussion about the work in our YSA branch. It's on fire! Time to flame it!

       

           President Miller goes home a week from today. I don't know where the days went. It flies by like "my hand out the window in the wind."   Elders Echo Hawk and Villa Real are coming this weekend as well. We are super busy preparing for the departure and arrival of both President Millers, and for all the crazy details of that and the details for the 70. I know that Dallas Turnbow wouldn't be able to handle the things that have been going on, the church must indeed be true or I would be lying flat on my face in the New Mexico desert. I love you all, thanks for the strength!

 

Love, Elder Turnbow

 

PS. President Miller quote of the week "The Nob Hill YSA Branch is a unique beast!"    AAAHHH YEAAAHHH ;)