Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Put on your Star Wars Armor of God and all will be well

Sup Y'all,
Killer week this week.  We got so much work done it was wonderful!  Monday we were able to meet with Eric & Autumn who are getting married in a couple weeks. We got to set a baptismal date with Eric!  After Harry came and picked us up for a lesson.  He is progressing so well!  He came to church yesterday and bore his testimony during Sunday School about how God has influenced his life turning him from a kid in Juvie to a youth pastor and now to a Mormon!  Such a stud!  Tuesday we got to have a final lesson with Chance and Leah before they left for the summer.  Then helped a less active get his house in order.  It was so flippin cluttered.  Got at least one room done and he fixed Elder Millard's tire.
Wednesday it poured down rain and naturally we were on bikes...we got wet in case you didn't catch that.  Not too much success during the morning but had a solid afternoon.  We taught this returning family about putting on the armor of God.  Best part is we used Star Wars as the analogy.  Kids are the bomb!
Thursday we weekly planned.  Taught a few people and then got to go on splits with a priest and our ward mission leader.  I got to hang out with the priest, Seth.  Seth is so freakin funny!  I love that kid.  Friday we went tracting and found a lady who's family is die hard soccer fans....safe to say that we had an instant connection.  After that Jacob Cooley took us out to see some people and we had dinner with him.  Came back to the church to find Elder Millard's tire was completely flat.  The tube the less active put in was too big, pinched and popped.  So a nice long walk home.....

Saturday was a beast of a day.  We taught 7 lessons!  We had no free time whatsoever!  Those days are the best!  Sunday we had a good Sabbath day and found out that we are going to be staying here for 7 more weeks.....I am going to die here in Niceville.  Good place to die.  Have a great week Ya'll!  Don't forget Jesus!  He's a good guy.

Monday, June 13, 2016

President and Sister Smith going out with a bang!

Hey Y'all,
Pretty solid week this week.  Monday we played some intense volleyball.  By intense I mean 8 missionaries who have become so uncoordinated that we spent more time running after the ball than playing.  Still fun.  Tuesday I got to go down to Destin to become a spanish elder for a day.  I was just as useful as last time!  Wednesday we had our final Zone Conference with President and Sister Smith.  Sad to see them go but they have done incredible things here in the South and in my life.  At the end of it all we got forgotten about....our ride forgot that he was picking us up so we had to wait another 90 minutes to get picked up.  hahaha
Thursday we had an awesome teaching day.  We were able to do almost all  of our planning for next week and still have time to teach six lessons!  Best part is this six year old of a less active told our ward mission leader that "You can't handle that many kids" speaking of the four kids our ward mission leader has.  So funny.  Friday we taught a couple guys in the morning who wanted to know more about the church and one of them was so knowledgeable about the Bible and yet so humble about it.  Best part was he brought up Revelations where it says nothing shall be added to or taken away, and he explained how that was just for that book of scripture not the entire Bible!  No one knows that or applies it.
Saturday was a rough day for us...Started off with me losing my helmet so I had to go get a new one.  On our way to the church for lunch we watched this elderly man fall on the sidewalk and kiss the ground hard.  So we stopped and helped him and got  him a ride to wherever he was going.  Elder Millard then proceeded to accidentally burn popcorn in the church.....smoke was everywhere.  hahaha it smelled so bad.  Sweated all afternoon and then we stopped by a less active's to end the night and he was going to fill our tires with air cause he said that they were low.  He fills one of Elder Millard's up and then BANG!  The first tire blew out and all we could do was laugh and then go to Walmart to get a new tube and tire for Elder Millard.  Funniest thing all week.
Sunday I was privileged to ordain Chance to a priest and give him the Aaronic Priesthood.  Super cool experience.  Yeah that was pretty much my week.  Hope y'all got a good read out of it.  Have a great week and in the words of Brigham Young, "There is no such thing as sacrifice, only exchanging a worse condition for a better one"

-- 
Elder Funk

Remember who you are and what HE stands for!


​Here Sister Smith was getting after me for something I did or didn't do....I don't know.   All I know is you can't be mad with a selfie stick!​

​But you can certainly look annoyed. hahahaha Love President and Sister Smith!​

Saturday, June 11, 2016

Baptisms!

June 6, 2016

Y'ALL!!!!
Solid week.  Let me tell you about it.  Monday we had dinner with a family and we had a game of pool with their seven year old.  I bet you can guess who won ;)  yeah....the seven year old....we suck.... Tuesday we went to Fort Walton for district meeting and interviews with President Smith.  While waiting I told Sister Smith my joke about two missionaries and a priest walking into a bar.....she didn't find my joke funny....she found it less funny when I told her it was a true story.....hahaha oh well.
Wednesday we had a lot of success working with some investigators and helping them prepare for baptism in the next few weeks.  Thursday we planned a lot then finally got up with our ward mission leader who has been out of town for a month.  Chance and Leah got interviewed for baptism and passed!!!!  Friday was a lot of biking and teaching.
Saturday we had the baptism of Chance and Leah!  They had their cousins there and their grandparents.  The mother and aunt (who are identical twins....made it super confusing) went all out on decorations.  One is a photographer and the other is a wedding planner so they knew what they were doing.  I got to give a talk on baptism and related it to video games.  hahaha it was a one of a kind talk and no one will forget it.  Sunday we had their confirmation.  Super cool.  It was a wonderful opportunity to be able to bring almost all of a part member family together and to have the family come in from across the country to support them.  We got to have dinner with all of them last night and it was awesome!  They are so funny and the step father freakin loves us.  So hopefully we will be able to help him join the family and make it an eternal family.  So yeah that was my week.  Here are some pictures.  Enjoy and as Elder Jensen told me, "If you don't like it, like it" - Elder Yoon Hwan Choi of the 70.  Enjoy these pictures whether you want to or not hahaha.

-- 
Elder Funk

Remember who you are and what HE stands for!

​Chance and Leah, homemade CTR cake, ​



Mission calls on both sides of the veil

May 30, 2016

Hey Y'all!

Pretty solid week this week.  Monday night I got a call from Dusty saying he got his mission call!  (Dusty was a convert from campus)  He is going to Pocatello, ID spanish speaking on July 20th!  I am so proud of him!  So exciting that I will be on the mission the same time as one of my converts!

We had a lot of success finding this week finding another 6 new investigators!  We also have got Chance and Leah lined up for baptism this week!  Super exciting.  Highlight of the week was probably either Dusty or a child prayed for us to find good wives one night at dinner.  Oh my heck that was the funniest prayer ever!  The father could hardly keep it together during the prayer.  Totally made my week.

This week I gained a strong testimony of the Plan of Salvation.  I also gained another companion!  With the passing of my grandfather I was able to gain a new perspective on the plan of salvation and more support from the other side of the veil.  The gospel is such an incredible blessing.  Don't take it for granted.  There is a plan.  Stick to it and all will be well in the end.  Short sweet and to the point this week.  Have a great week Y'all!

Monday, May 23, 2016

Missionary Army leads to new investigators


Hey y'all!
Super solid week this week.  Probably the greatest blessing was finding six (6) new investigators!  That never happens!  Super sick!  Well since it is a new transfer and I don't have my old planner I am going completely off my depleted memory.
Monday- not much happened....
Tuesday- we saw a less active who has something against the bishop and no one knows what his problem is and Elder Millard wouldn't leave the subject alone and the less active kind of let him have it.  I was still having some throat problems so I couldn't talk much.  So I was pretty much useless there.  We also met the neighbor of one of our investigators who talked to us for an hour earlier in the day and when we came back later when our investigator was home the neighbor talked to us for another hour.  Most of the conversation was just repeats of what she already told us....she has a lot of mental problems.  She told us the whole list of them too.
Wednesday- Returned back to teach said investigator and same thing happened with the neighbor.
​Thursday- We spent most of the day weekly planning.  We were able to go out and see a few people including the investigator mentioned above.  Finally caught her and her boyfriend at home.
Friday- Rained a lot.  We had the option of weekly planning or biking in the rain.  Easy choice right?  yeah we ended up biking in the rain and going tracting.  The bright side of the situation is we found 3 pretty solid new investigators!  The Lord provides for his diligent servants!
Saturday- The Primary held a missionary activity (74 primary "missionaries" attended) and we got to help the kids go tracting.  a couple of my favorite lines were:  (in response to an investigator saying they drink coffee) "God said No!"  and then another kid insisted on me (the investigator) saying an prayer towards the end of the lesson and after I said amen he piped up  "Okay, so what are the Ten Commandments?"  I said, "Don't worship any other gods before me, right?"  "Nope!"  hahaha
Sunday we had a guy come to church who had been in prison for a couple years and in between church times he told us all about his experiences with prayer in prison and how his testimony had grown.  Super legit guy!
So there is ya a brief overview of my week.  Have a great one Y'all.  Don't be strangers.  Be that awkward guy that talks to people.  It's fun to make things awkward. ;)
oh and this morning a member took us out to the Air Force Armament Museum.  Super cool.  Pictures included.
It's a bird, It's a plane







It's a missionary army

Family History with a GIANT

Hey y'all!
First off I am going to be staying here in Niceville for another six weeks with Elder Millard!  Super excited to see the fruits of our labors!
Monday night we were planning for the next day and we had a member of the college basketball team walk into our apartment and just chill on our recliners asking us for help.  He is like 6'10" or something like that.  Freakin GIANT!!!!
Tuesday we taught a less active who is angry with the bishop for some weird reason and won't do anything to resolve it.  Sad to see how some people use their agency.  (that awkward moment when you realize that you suck at using your agency as well a lot of the time)  Wednesday we had a lot of success working with a couple of our BCD's, Chance and Leah.  They are doing great!  Hopefully they will be baptized next week! 
Thursday we had a Family History booth at the college.  Not quite the same as FSU but still cool to be around college kids again. Friday we did some hard core less active work and saw a lot of success.  The highlight was setting a BCD with a young girl named Kristy!  She is so prepared and loves church and everything about the gospel!  She is a wonderful little girl and baptism will do wonders for her and her family!
Saturday was just packed with service.  We started off moving a hot tub and raking a yard.  Then 30 minute lunch followed by moving a lady a couple blocks from here current house.  Follow that up with moving a member family a couple of blocks into their new house and finally helping an investigator move furniture around in their home.  Of course it was all of the heavy stuff.  I don't know why people look at me and think I am strong.....I am actually very weak. 
Sunday was another wonderful Sabbath day.  So much happiness and joy comes on the sabbath day.    so yeah that is my week.  Have a great week everyone!

-- 
Elder Funk

Remember who you are and what HE stands for!


​His name is Simon. We like him.​

​Look at all my people work!​  I trained them well hahahaha.

​oooooo I look good ;)​

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Elderado Funk

What up everyone!
Pretty solid week this week.  Tuesday we had intercambio's with our district leader and I went to Destin to be a spanish elder for the day.  Safe to say I am probably the most useless spanish elder this area has had.  hahahaha  Yeah ended up having super bad allergies down there so for the next three days I couldn't breath well and ended up in the Urgent care center.  Fun stuff.  Kind of butt hurt about the whole situation cause I had to get a steroid shot. ;)  On the bright side we were able to set 3 BCD's this week.  Super exciting.  We had a part member family who's daughter has been coming to church and asked to be baptized and then her brother wants to be baptized by his cousin that same week so we are working hard to get that worked out.  The other one has been taught for quite some time by missionaries and the only thing holding her back is smoking so we are going to help her break the habit.
Oh and of course talking with the family is another great highlight ;)  But yeah solid week of missionary work despite not being able to breathe for most of it.  Well have a great week and for all of you spanish speakers out ther
Yo say kay el libro de mormon es verdedero!
(don't judge my spelling you know what it says)

-- 
Elder Funk

Remember who you are and what HE stands for!

​It only took 3 and 1/2 years to finally get a high five from the older brother!​