A Horse! A Horse! My Kingdom for a Horse!... Week 95

G'day all!

Today I am feeling unusually spiritually filled, and I feel like saying something uplifting. But first, an update on the week.

We have one new investigator! The first one in three weeks! Welcome to my mission. His name is Harry, he's 84 years old, and the only reason we found him was because we were referred to him by the friend of a former that we had intended to see but wasn't there. I have a testimony of asking everybody for a referral, because -as I predicted, or rather, estimated using previous knowledge gained from past outlying areas- the only investigators we are going to receive and baptize are going to be referred to us while I am in Port Pirie, of that I am certain. Our first lesson was appalling, which made me into a raving psychopath in my head because that's where you lose investigators: that first lesson needs to be darn-well near spotless, tailored perfectly, made to fit, and topped with a cherry if we want to get a return appointment. The Lord made up for our imperfections and shortcomings; we're seeing him again on Wednesday and we'll be covering the Book of Mormon. That's about the most exciting thing that's happened all week. Oh, well, just to report, I've given probably 10 blessings since being in Port Pirie- I reckon we give two-three blessings a week. This is a branch full of widows, and there's not enough Priesthood to go around. The Lord's church really does need the Priesthood to function and we're feeling the lack thereof.

Recently I've been thinking about what I'm going to share with the mission for my leaver's testimony. I know, I shouldn't be thinking about that, but here's the thing: two years of my life has been spent being a missionary. At the end of that two years, I will have approximately 3-7 minutes to testify of 1-3 things that have helped me as a missionary. This assignment is challenging, so I want to make sure I pick the right things to say. A common theme for my mission I've discovered is simply this: true discipleship.

Over the course of my service thus far, I've come to several conclusions (many of them the hard way) about how missionary work should be conducted in order to be effective, and thus, display Christlike discipleship.

1) A missionary needs to forget him/herself and get to work. I don't mean this in the way that most people think of when they hear that phrase. Rather, I intend to communicate the following: if a missionary is worried about what he (I mean she's as well) is going to say next whilst speaking with someone, he has not forgotten himself. If a missionary is worried about how he did not plan an effective day and is finding it difficult to accomplish anything, he has not forgotten himself. If one's thoughts are still self-centered in the least degree, he/she hasn't forgotten him/herself yet. When the missionary begins instead to worry about the person's salvation, and what they need to hear and what they need to learn, then the missionary begins to show true discipleship. Paul did not write all his epistles whilst worrying about the possibility of sounding like an egg; he wrote them understanding that those who were receiving his words needed to be told what the Lord had told him, and that was the end of it. A missionary should not worry about himself and the way he looks or sounds as he preaches the gospel; that is not Christlike discipleship.

2) A missionary needs to stop worrying about the numbers. Numbers (referring to the numerical goals that we use as missionaries) represent people. We need them to hold ourselves accountable to something. But the Lord doesn't care about statistics. Surely, as Jeffrey R. Holland pointed out, a God who will leave the ninety and nine to save the one is not worried about or preoccupied by percentages or statistics. At the end of the day, a disciple is not asking himself "How many lessons can I teach today?" but is instead asking "How many people can I draw to Christ today?"

3) A missionary needs to go back to his purpose in the most pure and raw form. "My purpose is to invite others to come unto Christ." That is all. That is the end of the story. When we engage people in conversation on the streets, we should not be pushing for more than that which they are willing to do.  A disciple does not condemn, because a disciple is not the Judge. A missionary that is a true disciple of Christ will show mercy, forgiveness, and will do all he can to leave a positive impression of Christ in the life of the individual he just entered to whatever degree. A missionary will do all that he can to invite the person to learn of Christ, not do everything in his power to force the individual into doing something he/she does not want to do or is not prepared to do.

But I've actually got to go now- my computer was slow and didn't start up properly so I'm behind as it is, but my companion is finished and as per the usual, P-Day is already not going according to plan and it probably won't. Ahhh... P-Day's are the most stressful days of the week. But a disciple does not stress about P-Day!! xD

Love you all, I'm good to go =D

-Elder Schomburg

Down to Port Broughton... Week 94

G'day all! 

We got mail! I don't know who's mail or who sent it because we haven't opened the three big, yellow envelopes that we have yet, but we will. If you wrote me recently, I probably have what you sent! Thank you!

Now for the week:

This week we made a trip down to Port Broughton; having become impatient with the lack of people whom we can preach to in Port Pirie (Elder Barnes has literally spoken with everyone), I brought to his attention that perhaps it was in the outlying towns that we would find who the Lord had prepared. We planned on it, prayed about it, prayed about it personally, and then reviewed our feelings the following morning. We both felt like we needed to go to Port Broughton, so we did. Upon arriving, we stuck to mainly walking, getting a feel for the town. I am so ready to teach somebody (our investigator pool became 0 yesterday) that I wasn't very shy about knocking random doors. I got the vibe that Elder Barnes wasn't really keen on tracting, but I knocked some doors anyways- anything to talk to someone who hasn't been contacted in more than a month. As we approached one house, I held in my hand a Gospel of Jesus Christ pamphlet, and I felt a very quiet prompting that the Plan of Salvation was the way to go. I hadn't felt such promptings at previous houses, so my hopes got up in that we might be tracting into an investigator-to-be. We knocked the door and an older lady came out. She is religious but because of her recent move, has been displaced from her chosen church. She was considering going to the one just across the road from her house. We got to talking a bit more, having decent conversation, waiting for her to say something that we could tie the gospel to, and we caught a break- she's recently had several deaths in her family, and though she stated that she remained faithful, sometimes she found herself asking why the bad things always happened to the good people. Was the Spirit spot on or was it spot on with teaching the Plan of Salvation? We leapt on the opportunity -as calmly as we could (well, Elder Barnes seemed alright; I was just so excited!)- and taught her using the pamphlet. She said she was going to be busy soon, but that we could stop by another time when she was more free. She also said she would give the pamphlet to her 13 year old daughter to have a look through, as well.

Well, we kept on with our little outing and walked about some more. The little port town has a nice, seaside feel to it (I reckon Dad might want to live there- I'll take photos next time if I can get my hands on a camera that actually works...). As we walked, we saw a group of six teens coming down a hillside- three boys and three girls. They looked like they were up to no good, and knowing the history of the Port Pirie area, my combat mind kicked in and I deduced that we would have more than a fair chance at winning if they decided to start something. My companion was better than me; he told me later that he was getting ready to turn the cheek, when in comparison, I was getting ready to turn theirs. Anyways, before we got to this group, we heard someone call out, "Elders!" from inside a house. We spun around and who should come out but a woman named Janine! I've never spoken of Janine before, but Janine was a less active member I knew when I serving in Evandale. She was the Assistants' less active and had made the decision to begin coming to church again. She had planned on taking us to lunch one day, me and my companion, but things fell through. She is a lovely lady and she loves missionaries!

The fact that we had found her in this little town with a population of maybe 1,000 was far beyond coincidence- I reckon that was inspired. We gave her our number and she told us she would take us out for a feed to catch up sometime when she came to Port Pirie next, and she'll be in the area for about a month. So we're anxiously waiting to catch up with a lady whom I met a year ago and somehow found in one of the smallest towns Australia has to offer. Far out, that was pretty crazy.

So anyways, we continued on, and two of this group of six teenagers engaged us; it was one boy and his less-than-confident girlfriend. He said something about wanting to talk about his Church of Satan or something like that. Elder Barnes kept going; I stopped and got ready to listen. I try to talk to people every day about my beliefs, it would be hypocritical of me to ignore him, no matter how muck-around he is being. Elder Barnes didn't get far, though, and soon he had both our attentions, and that startled him. He went on to stammer something out about how we have the ability to choose for ourselves what we will do in this life, who we will become, all the rest of it- he basically was teaching the principle of agency. Elder Barnes and I exchanged glances, and then in unison said, "Yep, all that is true." Talk about a shocked, 16-17 year old boy. What he had to say wasn't anything remotely satanic in nature, but in fact was true doctrine, and he was defending avidly the very thing which we fought for in the Premortal Existence: agency.

He suggested we check out Youtube for more information (didn't give us a proper title for which video he was suggesting) and then began to walk away with his girlfriend. His mates were laughing, as proper mates would be. I admired him, though; even if he had been egged on by his peers, he was the only one that had brawn enough to do it, and not only that, but what he thought would happen -two churchies keep walking past- didn't happen. For a moment, I thought about teaching him how to do proper missionary work; he had the approach down, bold and fearless, almost, but he didn't give us a proper place to find out more, there was no testimony offered, and he didn't acquire a means to follow up with us. But it was his first go, so he handled himself well.

Church on Sunday was splendid- I love Sundays, and I look forward to the days when I will be able to -before doing more Sabbath thingson Sunday like reading scriptures or Ensigns and what have you- take a mohe' (nap) as soon as I get home. I. Am. Trunky in my head. But I'm trying my best to stave it off. I must be honest- I really want to see my family again. It's been a long time, I am tired, Port Pirie doesn't have the Paewai's so missionary work is frustrating (Sister Paewai, because I know you read this, will you please come to Port Pirie and teach these members how to missionary?), and I miss Mexican food. Still haven't decided if I want real Mexican food or classic American food when I get home. There better be heaps of whatever it is, though (sorry, it's time for lunch over here, at least for me).

Anyways, I love you all heaps and I will talk to you soon! Please pray for us- we don't have any investigators at the moment and I really am getting tired of not having anyone to teach.

-Elder Schomburg

I saw this photo earlier today and it definitely reminded me
 of Elder Schomburg when he was just a little tyke...
and maybe as he is now, too.  Always pushing the envelope. :) 

The 12 Week Dying Program... Week 93

G'day all!

I have officially begun my 12 week dying program- not the 12 week training program, but the dying program. Does that sound morbid at all? It should- I have 11 weeks left to be a missionary and I have mixed feelings.

First, thank you all for your Christmas cards and letters and packages, of which I received many! Christmas was yet another wonderful experience and was unseasonably cool this year, which was a blessing to me. As of late, it's been fairly warm. Also, I'm so excited for my Sissy!!! She went to the temple, she's missionarying off in a month or two, and wow, she is the man and no one can convince me otherwise!

I find myself in Port Pirie, a small, barely coastal town west of Adelaide across the Spencer Gulf, if I remember correctly. My companion is Elder Barnes, the "son" of Elder Litstir. Elder Callahan was Elder Nay and Elder Litstir's son, so I find myself asking the question, "Why do I keep getting paired with Elder Litstir's seed?" Either the Lord is trying to straighten me out or he wants me to offer the balance that is needed for Elder Litstir's type of missionary work- I haven't figured out which, yet.

Elder Barnes is very obedient. I've been being a good boy, but it is very difficult, and sometimes I want to pull my hair out. Elder Witehira (who went home this past transfer) warned me of this. In his words, "The last 12 weeks are the hardest, but not because of what you think; being obedient and not being trunky is the hard part." That is a true statement. As I've thought of where I am as a missionary, I think back to what Elder Covey told me about being at this stage in the mission. On occasion I asked him, "How does it feel to be a dying missionary with only a transfer left?" He responded, "It's weird- part of you wants to be a missionary still, but most of you is done; you're ready to go home and do something else." I'm finding this to be true, as well.

That might sound really bad, as I'm sure most people want to hear missionaries say, "I want to be a missionary forever!" and some days I do, but for the most part, I am really ready to do something else.

This has been fairly frustrating- I want to not only endure, but I want to endure well, and thus far I feel as though I am enduring very poorly. Some say that this time in the mission flies past especially fast, and others say that it goes by excruciatingly slow. I'm tasting a little bit of both.

But enough of that. The branch here in Port Pirie has about 30-40 people in attendance, and most of them are older, single sisters. Elder Barnes has tracted every single street with Elder Litstir and he knows about 70% of the town, which makes conducting our own finding difficult, at least in as much as being effective goes. The branch president is actually an American and I have yet to formally meet him (church doesn't count) so we'll be going there tonight to have a yarn with him. President Armstrong seems like a very good guy, very organized, and he loves his branch. He loves missionaries too, but that doesn't excuse me from giving him even more reason to love missionaries. I'm excited to serve here and in this branch.

Port Pirie is a small town, not unlike Broken Hill.  Adelaide-style missionary work cannot be conducted in small towns if you want to baptize. These towns require adaptability and a lot of tact, and lots and lots of member work. I'm discovering that -because so many of the single sisters do not have males to accompany them- very little member-missionary work has been done. The sad part is that there is a clear avenue to getting into their homes because we have a male YSA here who, coincidentally, needs more fellowship from the branch members in order to stay active. All we need to do is bring him along and we're golden. Why wasn't this done before?Tracting does not do anything in small towns where doors have been knocked countless times. We need to encourage the members.

So I've decided to do what I know to do best and that is to rub shoulders with as many members as possible. After all, it is the members that have the friends that need the baptizing, and many of the members here are missionary-minded; they just haven't had opportunity to be taught how to do missionary work. And I've decided that in these last 12 weeks of mine, I'm going to get my hands dirty and rub some elbow grease on everything BECAUSE this area really needs it. I've spent a total of 7 1/2 months in Adelaide and the rest of it in outlying areas- (not to boast) I think I know a thing or two about conducting missionary work in isolated towns.

But that's about all I've got to say. I couldn't have picked a better "grave" according to missionary jargon, as it's highly likely that I'll stay here until my time is spent. I reckon this transfer Elder Barnes will be sent away, and I'll spend my last one training a new missionary; Port Pirie has a reputation for being an area where missionaries die and missionaries are born at the same time, and I reckon President has the same idea for me. But we'll see what happens.

I love you all and I hope to share some spiritual experiences soon.

-Elder Schomburg

B-B-B-B-BAPTISM!!!! Week 90

That's right, ladies and gentleman, the Lord has blessed myself, Elder Schomburg, with another baptism!

 

G'day all!

 

To start, we've just about finished teaching Annie all of the lesson content she needs to know. We always check for her understanding and it's always there. She's really shy in teaching settings, but last night we had the opportunity to have dinner with her as well (usually it's just Brother and Sister Pioch that stick around for a feed) and we got her to open up a bit and have a few laughs. It's good to see that there is a great personality behind her generally shy demeanor. Sister Pioch and Brother Pioch teach her in a less formal way when we're not there, and we always ask them where Annie's understanding is. Even if she's shy in front of us (and I reckon she's just shy about saying the wrong thing or something) she's not shy in front of her auntie and uncle, which helps Elder Callahan and me a lot, as indirect as it may be.

 

She gets baptized on Dec. 21st, and we're trying to go through and make her a program with our branch mission leader, Brother Seve.  Annie was fairly indifferent about the program -not a whole lot of preferences as to who did what- so Sister Pioch suggested the missionaries baptize her. Then came the golden question- which missionary? So we made sure to give Annie all the options available and in the end they settled on having me baptize her. Lest my ears deceive me, I'm going to baptize someone personally whilst serving in the Zion Australia Adelaide Mission. I wanna show you all something, okay, it's called my surprised face: WHHAT!? I'm a bit nervous- her full name is Tongan (Annie is her English name) and actually consists of five names. Even Elder Callahan said, "I'm indifferent, but deep down, I'm thankful that I'm not the one baptizing her- that's a long-as name." Well, well, sir, you've dodged one bullet, but he might be the one confirming her, so HA! xD

 

Also, we saw the Paewai's again! I love serving in Mildura because I get to be so close to my Kiwi Whanau- it's the best! Oh... I need Sister Paewai's email address. Ah, shucks! I'm not allowed to email her yet 'cause we're still in the same boundaries... bugger. Oh well, someday soon.

Dinner with the Paewais

Mildura MiniConference with Sister Paewai!

 

Speaking of soon, guess who has two thumbs, wears a badge that says "ELDER SCHOMBURG" and got asked a terrible question today? Ya, this guy, and that question was from the office, from the beloved Sister Sheffield, who is leaving after Christmas... all the good missionaries and senior couples are going home.... anyways, the request was this:

 

"For your March 25th travel date, please advise us of your home airport asap, please. Love you all- Sister Sheffield."

 

To which I responded: "Sister Sheffield, this is the worst email I've ever gotten from you... but I still love you heaps. Denver International Airport."

 

Did you read that correctly? They're starting the process of sussing out my flight information. I wanna show you all something, okay, it's called my negatively surprised face: WHHAT!?

 

Hmm, ya, so moving on. This week was relatively hot- yesterday was about 38C or 39C so it was pleasurable on the bikes. Something about the hot weather makes me want to work more diligently- couldn't tell you why... maybe it's because biking is the only way of creating a substantial breeze to cool down and cool off.

 

On average, I find myself eating a lot of chicken, or chook(s) as the Aussie's have dubbed them. My favorite is probably the chook kebab. We eat lots of Tongan food, which is alright- I'm not a fan of the way they prepare their pigs, and they don't really flavor much of their food, but it fills us up, so it's good. I like Brother Pioch's cooking, though, and Sister Strathairn (both Aussies, coincidentally). They make a mean-as feed, probably because it's always closely related to what we have back home (potatoes with steak or pork chops, casseroles, seafood salads, all the rest of it). I just don't really like Aussie salads, though- they don't serve them with dressing. I always feel like it'd be equally good to go outside and eat some grass in exchange for eating the salad, but alas, such is a first-world problem; some people don't even have grass to eat, and that's saying something.

 

Aside from that, we eat a lot of rice for lunch. I've come up with a good way of cooking sugar rice that involves adding butter, heaps of raw sugar, and milk, which gives it a nice, creamy texture. A bit easier than eating it plain. All the missionaries that know of it always ask me to make some when they come on trade-offs or are traveling to and from, so it must be good. It also turns out that I give a really good back massage. "Magic Hands" is a common nickname for myself now, so I guess it's not so bad a thing- just extra practice for when I've got a tahini or wahini, depending on your language (Tongan and Moari for "girl" if I recall correctly). But we don't think about those kinds of things for very long- only when the other missionaries tease me about getting ready to receive the next ordinance xD

 

ANYWAYS!

 

I don't know what else to say, and I'm probably out of time by now. I hope my less-than-spiritually filling letter was at least informative. I love you all heaps, and I'll talk to my Whanau soon and to the rest of those whom I think of, I'll do my best to send you a Christmas card or note or something. I love you all!

 

-Elder Jeffrey Schomburg 

WHAT!?... Week 84

MY SISSY GOT HER MISSION CALL!?!?! WHAT!?!?

Whoases, I am officially and utterly dumbfound right now! I can't believe that my little sister, my Sissy, is going to the Chile Santiago North Mission! What an adventure that will be! Can you ask the prophet for another week or two, though? March 11th, that's SO close! [Elder Schomburg returns from Australia on/about March 27th.] Way to go, Elizabeth! I am so proud of you and your decision to go on a mission.

What words could I possibly offer my little sister as she gets ready for this great journey? What is something that I wish I had done before I left for the field that I didn't do? I'll tell you what- forget about your social life right now, bury yourself in the scriptures and Preach My Gospel, and don't do anything else for up until you go on a mission, where you'll just do even more of that xDD

Jokes xD but seriously, study everything that you can about the gospel (not just the scriptures and PMG but all the books that the prophets and apostles and other inspired folks write).

In all seriousness, though, I really want to direct this letter to my little sister, so forgive me for doing so.

My sweet Sissy, what have you done? ;D You've got all grown up and you're getting ready for a mission now. I know you didn't need my permission to do that, but I wish you would've at least asked me if it was okay first xD I am so excited for you and for the place that you'll be serving. When I think of Chile and try to picture you walking through cramped lanes and busy streets, I can't help but think that the Lord picked the perfect place for you- something about it just feels very right. Coming from your older and incredibly protective brother, it amazes me that I'm not worried about the potential dangers of one such a country, and you shouldn't be worried either.

If it's one thing that I've learned on my mission, it is that the Lord is the One who is taking care of everything. A scripture that I constantly find myself referring to is D&C 101:16 which reads, "...be still and know that I am God." [See also in Psalms 46:10.] That is a powerful invitation from a Supreme Being. You may be very excited, anxious, and feel ready and able to serve a mission. As time draws closer to your departure, I daresay you might start feeling something similar to what I experienced; fear. Flying 9,000 miles out of the country over a massive body of water with not enough money to return by my own means is a bit frightening. Not knowing which of your friends you'll still have by the time you get back can be a very lonesome thing. Putting yourself out there and choosing -on your own accord- to do something that others would say is downright ridiculous is challenging, and not easy. There probably already have been -and there will continue to be- those who challenge what it is that you're doing, and they will oft times come in the form of those whom are closest to you.

Don't. Worry.

=D

"Be still and know that I am God." Your Heavenly Father is not just the Father of your spirit, my dear Sissy, but He is also the Creator of everything you see, everything you hear, everything you haven't seen, everything you haven't heard, and everything that you have yet to see or hear. God is in control. Through means unbeknownst to myself, He is capable of reading every thought that his currently 7 billion children are thinking. On top of that, he is capable of reading every single thought all of His deceased children have, and further still, He is doing the same with the populations of "worlds without number." Yet because He created your spirit, gave you existence, you have become His daughter, and because you are His daughter, He will take the time out of His impeccably planned schedule to comfort your timid heart. You are His daughter and He loves you with a Godlike love- something we mortals cannot even conceive of in this mortal existence.

Because you are the daughter of a Divine Being, you have actually inherited some of His traits, and by implication, you have most definitely inherited some of your Heavenly Mother's traits. Do you know what that means? A better question- do you understand what that means? You have the potential to become like Him and like Her because you are Theirs.

Just for a moment, Sissy, think of God's qualities, traits, and capabilities. Let's start with His nature as a Father:

He knows you individually despite having numerous concourses of children that only He can number.

He loves and cares for you with a perfect love that no mortal being can comprehend in the slightest.

He is willing to let you struggle because He knows you will grow from it.

He has been where you are... think about that. "As Man is, God once was; as God is, Man can become."

His sole purpose in creating you was so that you could experience what we refer to as "joy".

He watches over you constantly, so much so that you know when it is that He is telling you to turn right instead of left.

He cares about the mundane things of your life- the things that you don't feel are worthy to be brought before the great Alpha and Omega are the very things that He has taken an interest in.

He is a physical Being, and He can laugh, too- I imagine that He does a lot of that.

He can cry, as well- whenever you cry, He cries. God Almighty will weep with you when you are sad, lonely, hurt, betrayed, or otherwise distraught. Think about that.

This is my insignificant and certainly not all inclusive list of a few traits of our Heavenly Father as He is in His divine station as our Father. What about His role as a Supreme Being?

He spoke, and the very atoms which are called intelligences responded and formed an earth, the stars, the "void" we call "space", and everything else He commanded.

God spoke -just spoke- and the cities of the unrighteous were toppled.

God told the earth to rain for ages, so it did.

He organized a star to exploded billions of years in advance so that it would be visible to those on earth in exact coordination with the birth of His Only Begotten (again, impeccably timed schedule).

Because we're on the subject, God found a way to impregnate a virgin with His own DNA without violating His own law. Figure that one out and I will be more than impressed xD I do have a theory about that one, though- ask me about it sometime if you really want to know ;D

God lifted up mountains and dropped them on wicked armies.

God made it possible for a stone slung from a youth's sling to fell a 9' giant (keep in mind that the stone would have had to penetrate Goliath's helmet, which -if proportionate to his size- would have been -I'm guessing- at least a quarter of an inch thick).

He told a whale to swallow His wayward prophet, so it did. When He told the whale to give him back, it did.

He destroyed whatever it was that was occupying earth's current position until it became "matter unorganized." (Jacob 5: 43-44- the Lord destroyed something so that He could plant His "vineyard"). He probably killed the dinosaurs in the process, and they're probably awaiting the Resurrection (that last bit is not doctrine, just speculated guessing supported by doctrine... ;D).

  

He has called you to serve in the Chile Santiago North Mission.

Now I ask you, Elizabeth, my Sissy... are you still worried? If you are, that's okay- we would only feel something like worry if it was something we inherited from our Parents. I dare not say that They are ever worried, but to some point, They must be. They would only ever be worried about who finds the truth in this life and the next, because having the truth -and acting upon it- is what helps Their children return to live with Them.

That is your commission; to help Father's children get back to Him. Worry about that, but nothing else.

A few things to remember that have helped me on my mission:

-God is in control of what you are not, so be in control of what has been given to you to control, and let God handle the rest.

-Father will not ask how many people you baptized or how many people you helped save at that great and last day; He will ask you if you did your best, if you gave it your all, and if you endured to the end.

-You cannot convert anyone beyond your own conversion. If you don't know something is true, believe it is true and work towards gaining a knowledge that it is true.

-At the end of the day, everyone has their agency to choose for themselves if they will accept or reject the restored gospel. Don't worry- this is part of God's Plan.

-There are a lot of things said about what a good missionary is, what a great missionary is, how to teach this and how to teach that; you'll get a lot of trainings on how to do certain things a certain way. Don't you EVER let the amount of trainings or programs you receive block out your receptiveness to the Holy Ghost. Just because you didn't do it the way the training says to do it does not mean that you have not done your job properly.

-Your loyalty is first to the Lord! Listen to the Spirit before you listen to your mission president, your assistants, your zone leaders, your district leaders, your senior companion. If what they say feels right, it is right. If what they say feels wrong, pray about it and see what you can take from it. Your leaders are not perfect and they will not always tell you the right thing, so pay attention to the Spirit. If someone teaches false doctrine, be the first one to say that's wrong. If someone teaches correct doctrine, be the first person to support and sustain it.

-Adaptability in Application. Take whatever you learn and look for ways to apply it in ways not originally intended and you will become a master missionary, and that ability will help you throughout your whole life.

-Obedience. I've heard some crazy stories about missions that are not as obedient as my mission, and to be honest, my biggest worry for you is not even that you're leaving home or the people you'll be talking to daily; it is that of the obedience of your mission and fellow missionaries. The ONLY thing that I regret from my mission is the time I spent in disobedience to God's commands. Remember the Spirit of the Law, but never rationalize or justify disobedience, and don't condone or take part in it. You have a job to do for 18 months, and after that you can be as silly as you want to be.

-HAVE RIGHTEOUS FUN!!! Sissy! Have fun! You're going to be a missionary, and it the best, most gratifying work you could ever involve yourself in (aside from that of being a mother, but that'll be later for you xD).

-Remember that the most important work you will ever do will be done within the walls of your own home. You won't be a missionary forever, so give it your all in the homes of others, take what you learn, and use it for when you get to organize your own home.

That list was longer than I wanted it to be but the counsel just started flowing. I think the most important thing to remember is to listen to the Spirit before you listen to anyone else, and that includes yourself. If you get that down, you're set to go.

I love you, Elizabeth. You're my Sissy, my only Sissy, and I will miss you SO much!!! I wish I could give you a great big hug and tell you just how proud I am of you and how amazing I think you are. You're my Sissy, and I love you! <3

Love you all heaps!

-Elder Jeffrey Schomburg

Bugger... Week 83

There is no better way to describe my feelings of this week than by stating this simple word which the Aussie's hold to be slightly rude. I'm a Yank so I can say it. I got a tie and shirt from Sister Welch and Skittles from Nan this week, so that was definitely a bundle of fun! Thank you! And I got lots of birthday cards and letters, too. Thank you! And speaking of birthday's, me Mum's is tomorrow!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM!!! You'll probably be getting a signed sheet of paper that needs to go to the DMV for your birthday (isn't that exciting!?) but I wish I could send you something more =/ for one such a Mum that is as great as my Mum, there should be no limitations as to what can and should be given to pay tribute to my life-giving mother xD doesn't that sound sophisticated? ;D Love you Mum!!!

G'day from the Under Down, or the Down Under xD

This week's spiritual highlight was -though General Conference was indeed every bit as revelatory as it could ever be- my companionship inventory with my companion Elder Callahan. We had an honest and realistic look at what we needed to change to get our area moving, and not even that it might start moving but something we needed to do regardless. We have committed to being as diligent and hardworking as we can this week. I told my companion that I oftentimes thought back to my time in Darwin, when I was working my hardest yet yielding little to nothing. It wasn't that I was working ineffectively, either- things just weren't happening. I've since learned a thing or two that allows me to cope with lacking results, but I came to the conclusion that it was my level of diligence and my overall casual attitude towards the work that was making me feel a bit frustrated with the way things were going- I knew deep down that I needed to be trying harder, and that I was capable of more than I was putting out. I told my companion these thoughts, and as it turns out, he was having similar thoughts. We have 3 weeks left in the transfer, and I have 5 months left in this mission, and I want to be able to return home utterly exhausted. I may not be the best missionary, but if my effort is there, then I know the Lord and our Heavenly Father will be alright with that. These are the things we talked about during our Inventory, and now we're bound to helping each other remain diligent and active, without casually going about our days.

It was watching Conference that really solidified my decision to be more diligent. I have to be more diligent if I want to leave the mission with no regrets, and lately I've been wondering just exactly what will be said of me after I leave the mission. A scripture that has been speaking out to me recently is found in Helaman 5:7 which reads, "Therefore, [Elder Schomburg], I would that ye should do that which is good, that it may be said of you, and also written, even as it has been said and written of [Elder Covey, Elder Nay, Elder Dos Santos, Elder Lisati]." Those missionaries are the missionaries that I have aspired to be like; they are my examples, and each one of them has taught me something that has made me who I am. But sometimes I feel as though who I am -or who I want to be- is not manifested in my works, and so for the rest of this 5 months, I am going to do my best to make who I strive to be, the person I perceive myself to currently be, and the person that I am, the same. I hope that makes sense.

(For Mum) I was very touched by your email- thank you for always putting so much effort into helping me see and feel what it's like to be on the homefront; it's good for me. In response to your question, the first thing that I do when I get into a new flat is leave again- we have to proselyte, you know xD but when the night is over, after we've finished planning, I unpack. I unpack everything I have if I can and make the place my home. I arrange my things the way I want them to be arranged, I stow my gear, make my bed, and by then it's time for evening prayers and lights out. But that's the first thing I do- the flat is going to be home for the next 6 weeks, so I make it my home and try to make the most of it. I also don't really think about it as "my" home- may sound paradoxical, but I more or less consider it the place to be where I will be resting my head for the next 6 weeks at least, and this allows me not to get attached to it, thus making future moves easier. I've never really been attached to any one flat or had feelings attached to it. That might sound weird, but it is what it is xD I don't know if that helps you at all, because I know there's lots of unpacking to do, but if I were you, I'd start with my own things and my bedroom. I'd then move to the kitchen or living room probably- wherever it is that I'll be spending the most amount of time. The rest will just come as it needs to.

I'm excited for it all, though =D can you see my excited face!? Oh, I guess you'll get my SD card for your birthday, too- my camera is broken and dying, and so my SD card is all I have with all the photos on it, and a few more on a USB stick I have. Hope you can do something with it.

I love you all, I've nothing else to report. I apologize for the briefness of this! Cheers!

-Elder Jeffrey Schomburg

Another Year CLoser to Meeting Heavenly Father... Week 82

Such was the sentence written in a card given to me by the Mildura Zone, or the majority thereof. So true, though- there's something about turning 21 that punches you in the gut and says "Wake up, good sir- you're a man now." Legally speaking, we become adults at the age of 18, but let's be reasonable- no one at that age is an adult. No, 21 I reckon is the age in which one can call themselves an adult. As told by Sister Hartley, in Maori culture, no one becomes an adult until they turn 21, and I reckon that's a bit more accurate.

G'day, by the way! I was blessed with a simple birthday this year- Elder Callahan and I purchased a cheesecake and ate it, we spent the day proselyting as per the norm, and that was about it. Simple albeit enjoyable. It's like I said in one of my previous letters- it's more fun when you're little, but what a blessing it was for me to "celebrate" whilst in the service of our God! That's good enough for me, but I am thankful for all the cards and package and emails! Thank you all for thinking of me!

It's starting to warm up around here. That's nothing I'm going to complain about- being a Broken Hill veteran (xD) a decent 36C isn't worth getting worked up about. It'll be time to mourn when it hits the 40's in coming months. I keep trying to explain this to my Canadian companion, and sometimes I worry for him- he doesn't take the heat very well. But he's a good missionary and I like him. Sometimes he asks a lot of unnecessary questions, and when myself and the older missionaries are making plans for multiple missionaries when we have certain things to do, he sort of gets nervous and tries to but in by asking things like "What's going on?" "Who's going where?" "What are we doing?" before we've even formulated a whole plan, which is patience-testing. I'm trying to be patient; I understand he just wants to be in the loop, but sometimes I wish he could just roll with the punches- it's a good skill to have.

We have seven investigators and haven't been able to see any of them, not really. We dropped by M the other day and thought he was out or sleeping, and just as we were about to leave, we heard the most ungodly noises from within. The man -or some man- was screaming and gasping as if in pain and so for a moment, my companion and I tried to figure out what we should do. The thing that came to mind was perhaps a bad acid trip (e.g. he was using drugs and was seeing/feeling unpleasant things). We debated as to whether or not he was physically in trouble and we should break down the door, or if we should just let him do his thing and come back when he was more sober. Ultimately we came to the conclusion that it was best if we leave, so we did.

We saw him later in the week, and he looked fairly unhealthy. He set up another time for us to come by, and so we saw him again, later in the same week. This time he looked worse and told us that he would give us a call (in other words, we're not going to see him for a long time). 

One of our other investigators -the next potentially progressing investigator, if you could call him that- is on his honeymoon right now; after a long awaited year, he finally was able to take his Misses out for a 3 week holiday of sorts. Well, my companion and I talked about it, and decided that neither one of us would want to be called by anyone during our honeymoons, so we decided not to call him; we'll wait until he gets back to set up a time to see him.

Another investigator, Mk, is slipping into the very dark and lonesome cavern of depression. We showed up, briefly taught him about the Priesthood after he had his yarn, and offered to give him a blessing. He declined- that's the first time I saw the Spirit working on someone and then have them refuse it, deny what they knew they should do. He told us he didn't want to be rude, but he was going to go and take a nap and he wanted us to leave. You can't do too much when you're invited to leave, so we left with a prayer and departed. I sort of wanted to grab him by the shoulders and shake him whilst loudly proclaiming that sleeping does not make problems go away, it just delays the inevitable moment in which one must square their shoulders and deal with their issues. Sad, disappointing, frustrating, painful to watch... that's how I've chosen to describe that encounter.

We went to follow up with a potential investigator, A. He's got some sort of speech impediment but that was no concern for us. He's just getting over ending a marriage of 2 years. He asked us to teach him what we were teaching everyone else so we went into teaching the Restoration, personalizing it to himself, of course. He admitted that he believed Joseph Smith could have seen God the Father and Jesus Christ, but as we went on to explain how he could know for himself through prayer, he suddenly pulled back and expressed his disinterest in joining a different church or being baptized into a different organization. The Spirit had yet again been present and bore witness that what we were teaching was true, yet he denied it, just as Mk had. I was appalled, star-struck, in awe- call it what you will, but in the same week I'd seen the Holy Ghost -with a surety- been rejected. I'm sure it happens all the time when we teach people in the streets and on the highways and byways, but in a formal teaching environment when we all had felt the Holy Ghost testify to us of truth... and then to have them reject it...

Maybe it's because I'm a bit more seasoned now, and you'd reckon such a seasoning would just make my heart sore for them -and it is- but really, honestly, I just felt angry; angry at the increased hardness of men's hearts, angry that God could be denied despite His very presence being there via His Spirit, angry that my companion and I were working so hard yet yielding nothing. You would think I would have learned this divinely instituted lesson by now, whatever it is, because this is yet another area that I am assigned to in which nothing is happening... nothing that I can, anyways, and my own eyes are very prone to missing the long-term effects of missionary work.

I think the most frustrating thing for me at this time is that I know and understand the doctrine- I know that I should take heart in the fact that I am doing my all and that is all the Lord asks. I should take courage in knowing that I'm fulfilling my purpose by inviting others to come closer to Christ. I should be confident in knowing that, despite their choice to reject the gospel at such times, it's part of the Plan. Yet for whatever reason, knowing all of the above does not make me feel any better about not having any investigators progressing towards covenant-making with our Father in Heaven. I don't really care that I'm giving my all or that I've done my best- I want to see something come from it. This is a selfish desire, but perhaps I feel this way because I have yet to accept the Lord's timing; I'm still trying to get things done according to my timing, and right now, it just looks like my timing is not in alignment with the Lord's timing.

But what can you do? Pray to accept the Lord's timing, look for opportunities to accept it, and then accept it. Such is my battle plan, if you will.

That's about all I've got to say, though. Working and working hard as usual, but trying very hard to not get caught up in the motions, and trying very hard to not get too excited about doing all of the things ever in the next 5 months or so- that's me xD

I love you all!

-Elder Jeffrey Schomburg