Episode 30: Thanks to the cardboard...

Dear friends and family,

This last week was a pretty good one. A lot of random stuff.

On Friday night we were under a tornado watch. Winds were pretty bad, but nothing really came of it.

On Saturday it was still a little windy, but I felt good enough to get on the bikes. I don't know if it's really because my back was feeling better that day, or if I was just sick of not being able to bike and contact people that way, but we did finally take up the bikes again to contact some less-active members of our ward, at the request of the bishop. It was a good workout... I think the wind was blowing in our faces 100% of the time, and it's a lot hill-ier in Spring Lake than it is in Greenville. A few hours and several miles later, we came back and my legs felt like jelly. I forgot how long it had been since I had used a bike that much! And the best part is I think it helped my back out a lot! We'll see if it keeps helping... I hope it does! :) If anything, it might strengthen the inside part of my quads, which should slightly pull my kneecaps into the groove they're supposed to be sliding in (I don't remember if I mentioned last time that the xrays show that my kneecaps are moving just a little bit to the outside of where they are supposed to be sliding---it's nothing we didn't already know, but biking might help address that problem a bit). After biking, we attended the adult session of stake conference, which was great.

On Sunday (yesterday) we had the general session of our stake conference, which was awesome! It was a broadcast for many stakes along the east coast. The speakers and topics were:

• Elder Pieper of the Quorum of the 70: choosing the right rather than "going with the flow"
• Sister Silivia H. Allred, 1st counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency: Strengthening home and family through family prayer and scripture study
• Bishop H. David Burton, Presiding Bishop: Following the counsel of the prophets
• Elder Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles: the sanctity of womanhood.

The entire session was amazing and I have a lot of great notes on it. Elder Scott's talk was particularly touching; through him, I felt that I could see, just a little bit, how much God loves each of His daughters, and I was reminded of how much I love the wonderful women in my life and how proud I am of their righteous decisions. Keep it up, ladies! :)

Not much else to report, which is good cause I'm running out of time. Oh yeah, remember the cardboard cut-outs from last time? If not, go back and read about it or this won't make sense (http://www.elderschank.blogspot.com). So we went to Lena's house to teach her again last Thursday. When we presented our gifts to her she laughed and began to cry. Through her tears, she said, "Thank you! This is the nicest thing that anyone has ever done for me!" She cried for several minutes after mulling our little makeshift missionary-replicas over in her hands and reading our testimonies on their backs. She expressed her deep gratitude for these little pieces of cardboard that we had made for her, and I learned a very important lesson that day: it is the minuscule acts of charity that we can choose to perform each day that makes a profound effect in the lives of others. I had no idea that Lena would find so much worth in just some simple slabs of decorated cardboard. Later that night, the little reminders influenced her to study a chapter we had left with her to read (Alma 34), and she was so engrossed in it that she continued to study beyond what we had assigned her, even into the early hours of the morning. She was able to find deep self-applications and receive personal revelation for her own life because of that study, and she has been improving since that day to understand to a greater extent the role and power of the scriptures. And this because of a couple pieces of cardboard. Never, ever think that your little actions don't matter. We can create dramatic differences in the lives of others by making small, righteous choices.

I know that the Book of Mormon and the other scriptures are true. They lead us to Jesus Christ and show us how we can become more like Him. They bring us happiness and when we read them, we have the opportunity to feel the Holy Ghost: the Foretaste of eternal life. I know that "by small and simple things are great things brought to pass" (Alma 37:6); by the simple media of prayer and scripture study, we can receive wonderful revelation to guide us into greater peace and joy in this life and to prepare us for that life which is to come.
I testify that Christ is the perfect Exemplar. He is our Savior and Redeemer, and has the power to free us from the self-bondage that sin creates.

I love you all and hope to hear from you soon!

With love,

 

Elder Schank

 

Episode 29: Elder Schank Gets Feeling Better

Hey everyone!

Whew! I am happy to say that this week was not as depressing as the last. I've gotten some of your letters and packages (thank you!) and the work has been much more successful. I don't really have too many exciting stories to share, so... I'll try to think up something to write down here. :) I guess I'll start from right now and work backwards chronologically.

Right now... I'm in a computer lab near Fayetteville State University. Not too exciting. The person behind me is blasting Miley Cyrus and Ke$ha through his earbuds and it's really annoying.

We just came from the church building to help out with the Bishop's Storehouse. For those of you who don't know what that is, the Church provides groceries and other necessities to some of those who need financial help. The groceries are purchased with some of the tithing money and they are shipped to different areas throughout the world. We came this morning to unload the truck, set the items out on tables, and then help people gather the items that they ordered. It's pretty fun! You get to know different people and, as with all service, you feel really happy doing it.

Yesterday was our preparation day (we're emailing today because yesterday was a national holiday). We wrote some letters, went to the doctor's, went grocery shopping, buzzed our hair, and played a little bit of catch. The doctor took x-rays of my back and knees and found that everything in my back is structurally sound, and my knees are near perfect as well. He ended up prescribing me with a couple of medications. One was an anti-inflammatory and the other was a muscle relaxant. He told me to take them as prescribed and check back with him in two months and see if anything's different. Nice. So basically more waiting and just hoping that something happens. I'm just hoping that whatever is going on with my back gets fixed, by some miracle, soon, so we can work harder and so I can exercise more... or else I may come back twice the man I was when I left... if you know what I'm sayin.

Oh yeah, yesterday I tried my hand at a recipe Sis. Cotterell gave all the missionaries. She called them "chicken packets", and they are SO good. Mom made them sometimes at home. Anyway, I made them and they turned out really well. In fact... I ate them all. All 8 of them. Probably a bad idea, because they're not very healthy. But it was worth it. SO good. (Basically you just mix chicken with cream cheese and a ranch dressing packet then roll that mixture into croissant dough. Mmmm.) I am very proud of myself for developing such amazing cooking skills. Now I can actually cook an egg and I never (a.k.a. less than half of the time) burn my grilled cheese sandwiches anymore. So it's been a big deal. Dang... my stomach just reminded me that I haven't had lunch yet....

As far as the work goes, it's going pretty well. We have been fairly busy. Last Monday we taught a less-active man in the ward who was very interesting. He was telling us about how everything in the Bible and Book of Mormon was true... from a historical and scientific standpoint. Doctrinally, he has no idea, but he loves the more secular aspect of the scriptures. He was telling us about 36-foot tall giants called "Nephilim" that were discovered in ancient Palestine and made a huge deal out of it. Oh yeah, and they had horns. (Maybe that's where the 'Mormons have horns' theory comes from?) He had other theories that were pretty... different. We invited him to read from the Book of Mormon again and pray to know if its doctrines were true... and then we left after a prayer. Fun times.

Our investigators are doing well for the most part. I don't remember what I've already said about them so I might repeat myself.

• Sharron (shuh-RON) is an amazing woman. She's flying through the Book of Mormon... already to 3 Nephi 13 as of last night. She's been taught everything we have to teach her, so we go over there once in a while to support her and try to provide her with spiritual experiences that can help her overcome her smoking addiction because that's the only thing keeping her from getting baptized, which is something she REALLY wants.
• Tom is amazing as well. His wife is a member returning from inactivity, and they are progressing together quite a bit. Luckily, his job in the army isn't keeping him too busy, and he wants to be baptized before he deploys to Afghanistan this June. His father-in-law is going to fly in to baptize him. He quit chewing tobacco and drinking alcohol and coffee, and we just need to finish teaching him the lessons. Then he's ready! :)
• Pepe and her family are from American Samoa. Pepe is 19, but her comprehension and communication skills are at about the level of a 9-year old (at best) due to some learning disability. In the past, she's only been able to answer yes/no questions with a nod, head shake, or shrug. We were unsure of her need to be baptized, because we know that those who are mentally incapable of understanding the need for baptism or what it means to repent are pardoned from this otherwise necessary requirement. We went back, however, and found out that she is actually very capable of communicating and understanding... to those she's comfortable with. We just need to get her comfortable with us, and I think things will progress just fine.

Those are our main investigators. We have another three, but I've only ever met with two of them once (the third was "given" to us by the neighboring missionaries who used to teach them before our area split and we moved in), and I don't really know much about them. Hopefully we'll be able to get in contact with them soon, which would be a nice change.

The less-active members and recent converts we are working with are also doing pretty well. We've been trying to get a time set up to meet with one of them, but he deploys on Thursday. He's really just too busy... he's rescheduled our last 4 appointments. Lena, however, is doing great... she's really working on saying her personal prayers! Last time we visited her, she told us that the only reason she prayed at the end of the lesson was because we were with her. I made the joke that we needed to have cardboard cut-outs made to put in her house so that it would be like we were there and she would pray. She said that if we did that, she'd pray. So... we made some!  She better like them.

Well... that's pretty much all I've got for you this week. I hope to hear from you soon, though! I have a new goal to write people back the same week I get their letters. Thank you so much for all the mail I've been getting! I love it! For those of you who have written, I'm working on writing in reply... I've kind of procrastinated so I'm pretty behind, but I'll catch up soon!

Remember Proverbs 25:25:

"As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country." I second that one. Even bad news. Even no news. Any letter would be great.

I know that God watches over all that we do and think. He cares for us and He loves us. He provided a way for us to change and be clean because He knew we would make mistakes in this life. I testify that He rejoices when we utilize the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I also know that when we fail to repent and seek forgiveness through the blood of His Son, He is offended and He is sorrowful. I know that the Book of Mormon is true and can direct and instruct us to gain such forgiveness. It provides the spiritual strength needed to do whatever it is we must do to repent and obtain a forgiveness of our sins.

With love,

 Elder Schank

Episode 28: *Yawn*

Dear Family and Friends,

Wow. This has been a tough week. It's been very long and tiring, and it seems like even very little things are happening just to weigh us down and test our stamina and patience (e.g. the baby on the other side of the rice-paper-thin wall that wakes up and cries during the wee hours of every night... the water turning itself off... the neighbors blasting horrendous music on the other side of the other wall during our study hours... etc.). But oh well.

Goodness. Where to start? Our investigators are all having many challenges.  We no longer have any progressing investigators, nor do we have any with a baptismal date. I think we had around 7 or 8 cancelled/postponed appointments. It's been impossible to get a hold of our ward mission leader, and none of the ward missionaries came to church. We did have one investigator come to church, which we were really happy about, but the others didn't show up. We got a total of 2 lessons to nonmembers this week. (At least we taught 5 to recent converts/less-active members.) And I didn't get any mail. *Cough, cough.* So, that, on top of the pain and the fatigue... yeah. It's been a tough week.

Speaking of pain, I actually have news on my back. After almost 4 months of my trying to do personal exercises to decrease the pain, our mission doctor wants me to see an orthopedic surgeon. Hopefully he'll be able to figure something out. Chances are good that he will then send me to physical therapy. If the physical therapy works but will require more than 4 appointments for me to fully heal, I will likely be sent home to finish therapy. The good and bad news is that I'm so skeptical from past experiences with physical therapy that it will actually work. I've pretty much just declared that's there's nothing I can do, and I've surrendered all to the hands of the Lord. I've done everything I can... I've quit anything that could hurt it more, including sports on preparation day, morning exercises, biking, etc. It's been really hard because I need to rest a lot and it affects the amount of work we can do each day... and it pains me to see Elder Benson bored and "out of work", which is making it hard for him to focus on being a missionary instead of being home. I just hope something happens. The Lord's will be done.

Sorry this one is so short and not very exciting. I hope to hear from you soon! In closing, let me leave with you the scripture that has helped me get through the week:

Doctrine & Covenants 128:

 7 And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.
 8 The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?
 9 Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever.

I know the Church is true and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I testify, as a representative of Jesus Christ, that He is ever-reaching, ever-loving, and ever-pleading for us to humble ourselves and apply His atoning blood, that we may feel the peace and comfort that He always offers. Remember, Alma 7:11-13.

With love,

 Elder Schank

Episode 27: Elder Schank Ages Quickly

Dear Amigos y Familia,

Hey. This week has been a long one. Last time (or two) I mentioned how I'm officially a "grandpa" here in good ol' North Carolina, but I didn't feel that old (at least not more than usual) until this week. It's been right nice, and over-all, I'm doing great, but I am exhausted.

FIRST of all, it's been cloudy and rainy, and that never helps. I guess we need the gloomy days to enjoy the nice ones, right? Right.

A lot of our appointments have been cancelled or postponed for whatever reasons. You'd think I'd be used to it by now. I think more than half of all the appointments I've ever set up haven't gone through as planned, but such is the life! :)

My back and legs have been acting up more than usual, too. I talked to Dr. Smalley who is still working with me over the phone for the next two weeks to see if I can get it better through some exercises and position-changes. If it doesn't work by the end of the two weeks, he's sending me to a physical therapist or an orthopedic surgeon. I'm still pretty skeptical about any of these courses of action, but doing nothing sure doesn't help. PLEASE keep me in your prayers, that someone out here will be able to figure out what is wrong with me so maybe I can get feeling a little better, if that's the Lord's will. I'm basically just worried that if I continue to be unable to exercise, I'm gonna put on more pounds. I DON'T want to get fat.

The most stressful thing that's happened, though, this week is we've been working with two members of our ward who are just having the toughest time. The first, Robert, works in the army at Fort Bragg as a mechanic for aviation equipment. He's a 25-year old single parent of a 4-year old son (his wife died from cancer of the adrenal glands just a few years ago) and he's a recent convert with a miraculous conversion story.  He's a genius when it comes to the scriptures. He has the strongest testimony of them. He's taught me more than I already knew about how the scriptures---yes, including the Bible---prove that the Church is true. If people honestly studied them, they wouldn't be able to deny that fact. Sometimes he calls us when he is having a hard time and we go to the Book of Mormon to help him overcome it and the change in the tension within his mind is visible and practically immediate. I'm really amazed and inspired by him. He's a really good friend by now. After all, he was the man who brought me my bed. :)

The other member of our ward is pretty similar but way different. Lena is returning from inactivity but is about as knowledgeable as a nonmember when it comes to churchy things. She has been in the army for a long time now and, like Robert, is also is a single parent. She is really shy and gets really nervous in public places until she gets to know people. When we met her for the first time, though, she warmed up after a few minutes and explained to us her story. She was baptized in a kiddie pool during basic training without ever having been taught about the Church by missionaries, and she doesn't remember ever being confirmed. She wants to learn more about the history, culture, and lifestyle of Church members. We're going every Thursday to teach her the lessons and help her to improve her faith. She's an awesome woman... she's hilarious and really nice and she's going to feed us beef stew before our lesson on Thursday. Awesome. She introduced us to Olivia, her sniper rifle, and Oliver, her pistol. By the end of our first lesson with her she was teasing me a lot for being "Mom" and being kinda strict about mission rules. She was trying to guess our first names and she sarcastically said to me, "Let me guess... Joseph." I was honored. :) She still calls me Joseph. Haha At the very end of the lesson we asked her to say the closing prayer. It was the most interesting and beautiful prayer I've ever heard. At Church on Sunday she was a lot more reserved and very shy. I sat next to her during Gospel Principles (Sunday School). Before the class began, she was asked to give the closing prayer.  Our lesson was on sacrifice and when it was time for her to pray for us, she took a deep breath and began another very beautiful prayer. She expressed that she was very nervous and scared to be praying in front of so many people, and she shared insights that she had learned during the class and prayed that we all would be able to understand the "Why?" behind each sacrifice we are asked to make.  When she closed the prayer, I was deeply touched and I told her how good of a job she did. She smiled and I could tell that she felt the Spirit telling her that God was proud of the sacrifice she had made to leave her comfort zone and give that beautiful prayer.

I know that the gospel is true; that Jesus is the Christ, that He has restored His church through a continuing series of living Prophets, and that He has brought for Another Testament of His words and works: The Book of Mormon.

I hope that you are all doing fabulously! Please remember that the Atonement of Jesus Christ allows for us to change and repent. Repentance is a gift and a blessing. The Atonement allows us to receive the help we need to overcome pain, sickness, burdens, weaknesses, trials, temptations, sins, and, yes, even death. As a representative of the Lord, Jesus Christ, I testify that this is true.

Elder Schank