Hello again!

 

Well, we are still working hard! We had a bit of an interesting week with some interesting challenges but we are still going. Here's the scoop.

 

We had 6 baptismal dates about 2 weeks ago. The families were progressing really well, staying on track with the plans that we had made with each and everyone of them. Then, it all fell apart. 2 of the 6 were not married, she had photo id but her "esposo" lost his so now the only way they will get baptized is when she goes back to Mexico and he quits his job. 3 more have the exact same situation but NEITHER have photo ID (The interesting thing about this one: They have been active for 2 years and can't get baptized because they aren't married). The other one requires us to re-activate a family which is always fun. It's great to see a family come back. Basically, there are 7 baptisms being held up for our branch because of marriage issues. It's been fun but, like I said, you keep going forward. The families are still doing really good so there isn't a ton to be concerned about. We know that Satan will be attacking them here pretty soon so we still have our work cut out for us.

 

Apart from that things have been pretty calm. We did some splits this past week and I had my quarterly interview with President Beck on Tuesday. It went well, short and enjoyable as always. As a whole, the mission is doing really well.

 

I guess to end of this post (sorry it is a little lame) I wanted to include something that I have been pondering about this past week. We've had the opportunity to really see Heavenly Father's hand in our work with all the legal problems that we have been having. I've often thought "What do we need to do to qualify for Heavenly Father's grace?" As I sat pondering I began to think about the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the Savior's prayer in Gethsemane. We have a quote in our apartment that explains the choices that Christ had to made. He, even the greatest of all, had to willingly submit beneath everything. He could have turned back at any moment. He could have said, "I don't want to do this anymore." But he didn't. He completed his task as he suffered such pain as to shed blood from every pore, was crucified on Golgotha or a place called Calvary, and was Resurrected by Priesthood power on the third day. As all these thoughts came to my mind, it came to me "Christ had to do the whole will of the Father before he could complete his task." The same applies to us. If we so desire to qualify for the grace or mercy of Heavenly Father, we must be obedient and do ALL THAT WE CAN to be so. I know that God loves us, that we are his children, and that he wants us to succeed. Our purpose here in this life isn't to fail but rather to be happy by being obedient. I know that as we do these things and strive to be the most obedient we can be, we will qualify ourselves for Heavenly Father's mercy and obtain all that he has in store for us. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

 

Sincerely,

Elder Klemme

Hello again!

Well another busy week in the Arizona Phoenix Mission. We are starting to get into the latter half of the transfer so things are going to be heating up here pretty soon. We work very close with president for the few weeks leading up to transfers so he can give us our assignments and make all the arrangements for cars, meeting times, etc. It will be an interesting experience and I’m looking forward to it.

NOW to more important things!!

I love being a missionary even though you get weeks when it is just downright tough. This was one of those weeks. Elder Bingham and I had a lot of trainings, splits, and other things to do this week so we weren’t in our area a ton. But, gratefully Heavenly Father made up for our slight absence. However, even though we work hard there are just sometimes when the adversary plays a higher hand and you lose a battle. We had 6 baptismal dates at the start of the week and lost all 6 of them by this past Sunday. I have come to realize that Satan even uses good people to cause havoc in the Lord’s work. We were able to reset 3 of them but the other 3 aren’t going to happen anytime soon. But, you know what, we keep pressing forward!

I had a pretty awesome experience this past weekend. We were blessed with the opportunity to have Elder Richard G. Hinckley from the 70 hold a mission wide conference where he addressed us on the Fundamentals from Preach My Gospel: Teaching More Effectively and on the new www.mormon.org Website that was launched about a month ago. I would encourage you all to check it out. It’s a pretty site (pun intended) to see. But, not only were we able to see Elder Hinckley but as Elder Bingham and I went in to set up for the meeting we walked right passed Elder Hales from the Quorum of the 12. Simply said, he’s a very nice man. J

I really didn’t have much to say for this week but I know that this church is true and that what I’m doing is what Heavenly Father needs me to do at this time. I read Moroni 7:45 this past week and I really began to understand (began being the key word) how the Savior must have felt and still feels for each of us. I know that I have lots of faults and I make a lot of mistakes but I always know that I can go to him and change. Just something to ponder on for the week.

That’s all I have! I hope that you all have a great week and that you have success in whatever you do. iQue Dios esté con uds.!

Sept. 13th, 2010

 

Hey everyone!

 

I really have no time to write this post so it will be relatively short but there were a couple of things I wanted to share with you all from this past week. I apologize if it seems rushed :)

 

We had an incredibly busy but a great week this past week. We ended up doing 4 splits out of the last 7 days but were able to see some pretty incredible miracles. We had the blessing of being able to set 2 more baptismal dates this week which brings our pool up to 6 people with a baptismal date. We are seeing great amounts of growth in our area as well as the whole mission. I can't tell you just how powerful of a testimony I have of being obedient. It truly is the first law of heaven upon which all blessings are predicated.

 

Also this week I had the opportunity to study some missionary examples from the Book of Mormon. I found some pretty interesting connections between all of them (bore powerful and frequent testimony, complete consecration of their lives, humble, etc.) but when I brought that up with Elder Bingham he brought something else to my attention that I never had thought of before. In each example that I studied, each person had a very profound understanding of the Atonement (Alma the Younger, The sons of Mosiah, Abinidi, etc.) I began to reflect on how my own testimony of the Atonement has grown. I thought back on an experience so sacred that I've have only shared it with 2 people: My companion at the time and the investigator I saw it work in). My dear friends, we are never left alone to walk the perils of life. Christ has already suffered all of our pains, sorrows, and afflictions so we could have someone to lean on. I have come to realize the true power of the Atonement by personal experience and by studying the scriptures. I love our savior so much. His call to "come unto me" is one that I am blessed to share with everyone I meet. I know that he walks alongside us, encouraging us to press forward when we are doing well and lifting us up when we fall. His grace is sufficient to all who just take hold of his hand and follow him.

 

I love you all and hope you know that you are loved and prayed for daily. I know that this gospel is true. I wouldn't be anywhere else besides right here on a mission. Have a great week and look forward to next weeks post!

 

Sincerely,

Elder Klemme

 

 

"I hope they call me...": I know it is a typical picture but I thought it was funny. I was on a split and we locked up our bikes not even realizing where we put them until we got back. :D

Hello again!

We had an incredibly busy week this week but, wow, did we see some awesome things. We had a 3 day leadership training that took quite a bit of time out of our schedule but it was incredibly uplifting. There was a big focus on the role of the Holy Ghost in conversion and how we, as missionaries can act as a conductor for the spirit in our lessons. It was very well done and I know that I left feeling very edified. As a side note, I should mention that a couple of weeks ago I was transferred from my area as a zone leader and was called to a new assignment. President called me as the new Spanish Assistant to the President for the mission. It has been a great experience and I have seen some pretty incredible miracles.

Speaking of miracles :), we were able to see a miracle in the baptism of a family of 6 this Saturday! The other elders in our ward have been working with them for about 2 months and the service was amazing. When they finished taking pictures they came in and all sat down on the front row. I can't tell you how amazing it was just to see a whole row filled up with people in white baptismal suits...the spirit was most definitely present. They incredible part for us was the fact that we had an investigator present and she committed herself to be baptized in four weeks. She told us "I've never felt anything like this before....it's like my heart is jumping inside of my chest and I feel so peaceful...I want to be baptized." It was an incredible experience to say the least :)

As we've had these trainings this past week I've been pondering a lot of different things. From the role of the Atonement in the life of a missionary, to humility in leadership roles, to the power of innovation. I was pondering on how dynamic the work of the Lord is. Not one thing happens as a coincidence. Heavenly Father's hand is in everything. The trick is, will we follow the promptings as we receive them from the Holy Ghost or turn them away as something unimportant? Something came to my mind this week while doing my studies. As missionaries we consecrate our lives for 2 years to focus ourselves 100% on this work. I thought to myself of instances when growing up I decided not to do what I was told and to break the rules a bit (nothing serious but the small things) and it came to me: "As missionaries, when we fail to do all that we can (talk with everyone, ask referrals from everyone, etc.) we are possibly denying someone their right to having the full power of the Atonement in their lives." That hit me pretty hard, not because of anything I've done but along the lines of making me reflect "Am I doing everything I can to help these people come unto Christ?" In a talk titled "Good, Better, Best" by Elder Dallin H. Oaks, he quotes President Hinckley who said, "...Work at our responsibility as parents as if everything in life counted on it, because in fact everything in life does count on it." I thought to myself, "what if I change some words around here to make it say this."

"...Work at our responsibility as [members of the church or missionaries] as if everything in [eternal] life counted on it, because in fact everything in [our or someone else's eternal] life does count on it."

My dear friends, this is the work of the Lord and we must open our mouths to help bring those elect of God back into the fold. We have a very sacred opportunity to lift anothers burdens and in many ways be a guide for others to come back unto Christ. I have come to realize that, in the grand scheme of things, nothing else in this life matters besides sharing the gospel. May each of you commit to helping those you know come unto the Savior so they too can enjoy of the benefits that you now enjoy is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.