Arizona Week 98 - Baptism

Added by Elder Kirk’s Mom:

Elder Kirk has been made a District leader, which he won’t tell you because he is modest. In essence, “district leaders have many responsibilities such as supervising, teaching and inspiring the missionaries in his district, planning and conducting weekly meetings, interviewing baptismal candidates and generally looking after the well being of the missionaries of his stewardship.” [http://mormonmission.blogspot.com/2008/12/district-leaders-and-sister-leaders-on.html]

Hello Everyone,

I was able to spend a day with the Elders in Concho this past week. I thought that St. Johns was a small town....Concho definitely is. The Elders there are doing really well. The members of their branch love them and are always excited to see them. That is pleasing for me to see. This week I'll be spending the day with the other elders in St. Johns. They seem to be having some difficulties, so I hope that I can learn more about their situation.

There was a baptism on Saturday in one of our wards. The woman that was baptized was taught by the senior couple serving here. The senior couple was so excited and happy about their first baptism on their mission! The woman that they baptized is a wonderful lady. Her daughter had joined the church some 30 years ago and served a mission for the church. The daughter's husband is in the bishopric, and they have been raising their children in the church. The joy that this sister felt to witness the baptism of her own mother was apparent in her face and in the words that she spoke the following day in Sacrament meeting.

That was pretty much my week. The weeks are getting shorter and shorter. On the 19th they'll be training us on ipads. Just in time for me to go home haha.

Have a great week everyone,

Elder Kirk

Arizona Week 97 - Cows

Hey everyone,

This week went well. We taught some good lessons and there is a lady that is going to be baptized this Saturday.

This week had a lot of service though. It seems that in Saint Johns everyone owns cows, which is great for us because people always need help with their cows.

This week we helped one of our bishops feed his cows. His property is really cool. Some of the rocks had carvings on them from the native tribes that used to inhabit the area.

On another day, we got a call pretty early asking for help to get some calves out of an irrigation ditch. There were 4 of them that had been stuck there for a day or so. The first two we got on either side of and they ran right out. The other two we had to push and lift to get them out. They were smaller and weaker. It was pretty fun.

In the near future we will be helping with branding another person’s cows.

We helped a member clean out his storage units last week. When we found where he kept his bullet proof vests he let us each take one. So now I have a bulletproof vest. 

Also this week, we had the opportunity to give a woman a blessing. She was going down to the valley and checking into a rehab. She's a real sweet lady and the blessing we gave her brought her to tears. She has so much support from her family. It always nice to see that kind of love.

Elder Kirk included a couple of pictures holding horned lizards and a snake...you can tell that he is my son, love it!  J 

I hope you all have a great week.

Elder Kirk

Arizona Week 96 - Exotic Birds

Hey everyone,

This week went really well. We have been doing a lot of service for people.

I would have never thought that I would have been cleaning out cages of exotic birds in a small ranching town like St. Johns. But that's what we did. 

It's been pretty fun meeting everyone and having them kind-of poke fun at how close I am to the end of my mission.

This is going to be a great place to finish though. The people here love the missionaries and the ward has had quite a few missionaries finish their missions here.

 This week, we will be branding cattle for our bishop. That will be fun.

Then later this month or next, we will be helping one of the councilors in the mission presidency with branding his cattle. 

There are a lot of people preparing for baptism. We should have about 5 this month and next. I'm having a great time, and my companion is early enough in his mission that he keeps me pretty focused, and we work hard. 

Here are some pictures from our week.

I ran out of time or I would write more.

Love you all,

Elder Kirk

Arizona Week 95 - An Unexpected Journey

Hello Everyone,

If you're a fan of The Hobbit then you should understand the title of my email. I wouldn't necessarily say that I'm a fan of The Hobbit, but I thought it was an appropriate title for the email and a fun connection to pop culture. It might not be as funny now that I spent a paragraph explaining it though. Oh well.

Anyway, as the title suggests, I have taken an unexpected journey. I fully expected to finish my mission in Payson but the Lord has different plans. I have been transferred to St. Johns Arizona a little bit farther up the mountain to spend my last transfer. I already love it!

My companion, Elder Peters, has been filling me in on the area and it sounds great.  Elder Peters is from Minnesota. There are a lot of people preparing for baptism and the members here are just wonderful. I think that we will get a lot of work done and have a great time.

Apparently we get to do a ton of service, not the standard moving or yard work, but like things with cattle and ranch stuff. I’m excited to get started.

We live in a house (yes an actual house) with two other elders that serve in town. The next closest missionaries are in the neighboring town of Concho. It is very laid back, which I like, and the members love missionaries. 

I'm hoping to have some fun stories to share over the next few weeks. For now, I send my love and my best wishes to all of you.

Love,

Elder Kirk