December 23

Merry Christmas!!! 

We had a really fun week. On Saturday morning we had Christmas at the Metler's because they are in Utah for Christmas so Santa came to their house early. They asked us what our Christmas wishes were so I got a really nice CTR ring and Elder Byam got a projection clock (I am still selling those on everyone).  We also spent some time going around taking cards to members in the ward. That takes a while because they all want to talk. We are told all the time by members that we are loved because they see us working hard. Missionary work is really simple... Work hard and success will come!!! I found out today by talking with Elder Adams that Dayton has died!!! While I was there we were teaching about twenty lessons a week and they are now teaching about 5 a month. It is really sad to see old areas die because of missionaries that don't work.

We are seeing a lot of success right now. Jeff is still progressing toward baptism. We are also teaching the Mossbergers (a part member/less active family). We are also teaching Brandon  who is about to graduate from High School and wants to go to BYU. We are working with a few others but those are the who are the strongest.

I got a care package this week from the ward and there was the funniest card in it. I took a picture so that you can see it.

I will be calling around 2 pm Pacific time. 

Talk to you tomorrow!!

Merry Christmas!!!

Love Dustin

Holiday Pictures

Dustin and Santa

Dustin at a family Christmas Party with Santa (Brother Trost)!

Dustin and Elder Byam

Thanksgiving Dinner with the Schoonmakers!

December 17

Hey! Hope that everything is going well. 

I guess that you probably know this but the shooting that was in Oregon was pretty close to me about twenty to thirty minutes away. Last Christmas I went to that mall two or three times. It was weird to be able to have people describe the situation and be able to see exactly where it was and know that I had eaten in that very same food court only a year ago. People here are really shaken up about it. It is so sad how the decisions of one person really effect so many more people. I know that they shut down the mall until the investigation is complete so I don't know if they have opened it back up yet or not. 

On to happier things we had a great week. This week we had the opportunity to leave the mission and go into Vancouver to the Ensign Choir Performance. It was great! We took Jeff, The Mossbergers, the Pritchetts, the Metlers and the LaBars. It was great! We introduced them all to President Morby after. We also had the Chance to help Eldon Mossberger set up Christmas lights on their house so that he could surprise his wife. That was way fun and really helped to build up a relationship. 

We also had the chance to do a solo (duet) in sacrament yesterday... not so good. It was a tenor solo and really pushed the limits. It was called the Sussex carol. So hard to sing but we got it done and Sis Wahnschaffe says to tell you that it was fantastic. 

At the concert on Friday right after Jeff was introduced to President one of the first things that he said was "You need to keep these two in my area longer." I am glad that we have been able to really build a great relationship with him and with the others in the area. Plus after that President looked at Elder Byam and I and said "I think we can work that out." That would make me so happy!! Elder Byam and I figured it out so that we could be companions until March 25th. That would just be fantastic. We will see though. I am sure that whatever happens will happen for a reason.

On Christmas I will call you from the LaBar's in the afternoon. I don't know what time yet because they also have a phone call to make with their son but it will be after two. 

I hope that everyone is doing well and that I hear from you next week. Merry Christmas!!! 

Love Dustin

Picture - Christmas

Christmas from President and Sister Morby!

see Letter from December 10

December 10

Hello!!! 

This has been a bit of a rough week. On Tuesday night Elder Byam got really sick (He was a trooper though because he still went and taught our lesson) but he wasn't able to get out of bed on Wednesday and has been sick since. Talk about cabin fever I was going crazy on Wednesday. I watched all of the Church Christmas movies that we had and a few church movies from the 80's but I was going CRAZY. I also felt bad for Elder Byam because he was super miserable.

We did have a couple of great things happen this week though. Jeff has decided that he is going to live the Word of Wisdom. We also got a new investigator Brandon. He is 17 and is very open. He is hoping to go to BYU because he has seen great things that the church has done. I really hope and think that he will get baptized.

Friday we had our Zone Conference and our mission Christmas party. That was good. There were a few exciting things that happened

1) Elder Hansen who is the Area 70 over Oregon came for the devotional

2) We got a Christmas gift from President and Sister Morby (see attached photo) it is based off of Elder Nelsons talk in Genereal Conference.

3) This is the big one.... The April 1st transfer was moved to March 25th which shortened all missions by one week. They said that is all they know for now so I am not sure if there are more changes coming or not but we will have to see... 

Thanks for the packages. I love the t-shirt. It fits perfectly!

DO I have anyone for the family exchange??? 

I hope that you got the cards. Mom I put the list of people in with yours. If you don't have it yet you should soon.

Merry Christmas!!! Love you all!!

Dustin

Christmas pictures - more

Christmas pictures

December 2

This has been another great week! Elder Byam and I got our apartment all ready for Christmas. There was a tree in the closet and I had some decorations that Olivia sent me last year that I put on there. and then Sister Schoonmaker gave us some lights and a nativity. It looks really good. There are a lot of families in this ward that will be taking good care of us this year. The Metler's keep asking what our Christmas Wish is. 

This past week was a little bit hard. It was one of those times where everything seemed to just go wrong. People having family emergencies, families that are sick but it was also really good because we saw many small miracles happen this week. Jeff who told us that he wouldn't give up coffee is praying to see if it is something that he should do. The Mossbergers were planning on coming to church for the first time in many years (She is going to accept baptism this week I hope and pray). We were able to set up a lesson with a new investigator who has his application in to BYU. Just many great and small things happened. I just hope that I can keep seeing many great things happen. 

Ya'll are crazy!! I can't believe all that you did on Saturday. Some people would say that it isn't good for your health to go all the time like that but I think that for our family it is more the once you stop moving you are dead. We have always been goers. I love that about our family.I I see many different people and see the way they live their lives and I am so glad that our family is the way we are. We have purpose in life and a reason for the way we live. I am convinced that the Gospel blesses us in every aspect of our lives because it gives purpose to all that we do. It makes all the hard times seem easier and all the easy time seem greater because it helps us look forward to what the next life is going to be. It is fun to see how things work and how what the Savior teaches brings us happiness in this life and in the life to come. 

Thanks for all that you do for me!! I love you all very much!! 

Dustin

pictures

THE BATTLE OF THE FAN!

story in letter in November 26

November 26

Hey!!!

I am glad to hear that you had a good Thanksgiving. It was a fun day for me as well we got to play in the unofficial ward turkey bowl and that was really fun. Nothing like playing a little football in the mud and I also had the first touchdown of the game. After that we went back to our apartment and did some cleaning and wrote letters. President Morby doesn't have us go out and proselyte on holidays because he wants people to know that we celebrate them. About two we went over to the Schoonmakers and put up some Christmas lights outside (that's why we were in jeans and t-shirts) and had dinner about four. After dinner we played scum for a while . It was really fun, on days like that we get to build relationships in a much different way. After that we went over to the Murdock's for desert. Never can have too much of that right? It is crazy but holidays are so much different out here. I think it is because we just do things different. 

So this week we had the battle of the fan. In our apartments there are exhaust fans in the laundry "room" (closet off the kitchen) that are on a timer that runs them twelve hours a day. I hate it so I pulled our timer out. So our fan isn't a problem. But the lady downstairs from us moved out a couple of weeks ago. Well last Sunday night her fan came on at about 1AM (so really Monday morning) and there was something wrong with it. It was SO Loud!! It started to shake our floor and we really couldn't sleep through it. So we figured that it was probably just a fluke thing right. WRONG! Tuesday at 1AM all we hear is thunk, thunk, thunk. So we went to the office to tell them about it. Wednesday morning... Same thing. Thursday same thing. Friday Same thing. Saturday same thing. Ok at this point I am starting to get really upset (possibly mad). There is nothing worse than not being able to sleep and waking up with a headache. SO we went to the office but I told Elder Byam that I probably shouldn't be the one to talk because I might get a little too passionate. So we talk with them and the one lady said that we will get that fixed. Well we had heard this before so I had my doubts so we decided to write a note and put it on the dead bolt so we would know if they even tried to fix it. We get back on Saturday night and the note was still on the lock so we knew that it was going to be another really long night. So we pulled our beds into the office (actually the bedroom but it works better with the desks in there and the beds in the living room) and just plopped them on the floor and shut the door and played music. Still woke up many times in the night and with a headache but it was better. Sunday night we get home and there is a reply note saying that the fan had been fixed. AHH! Best night of my life!! So in the end we won the battle of the fan!!!:)

Other than that it has been a great week. Jeff is still progressing towards baptism and the Mossbergers are getting closer. We are going to challenge her to baptism on Sunday (lots of prayers).

I love being a missionary and all that comes with that. I love this Gospel and pray that we will continue to have great success!

I love and miss all of you!!!

Dustin

November 18

Hey!! 

Sorry it is late there was a problem with the computers at the Library.

Happy Thanksgiving!!! We are going to be having Thanksgiving at the Schoonmakers. It should be a really good and fun Thanksgiving. They are one of those families that really love the missionaries and they really like us because we are "normal." That is one good thing about following missionaries that are less than fantastic. i will be here at least until the first part of January. I hope to be here until February with Elder Byam.

We had another great week. We are really seeing that when we put our effort into the work and really focus on helping others it allows the Lord to work miracles. All that he asks us to do is to work hard and do what our leaders expect of us, nothing more. There is no other way to get this work accomplished other than to work hard and trust in him. The longer that I am out the more I see that this is His work so I need to do it His way. I love being with Elder Byam! We go out and really work hard. We need to get better about effective time use but we are seeing great things happen and we are hearing time and time again how grateful people are that we are here to serve. They love seeing us out working and riding our bikes. It is weird how something as small as riding a bike can make such a big difference but it really means a lot to people. Jeff is still progressing forward. He had an interview with the Bishop this past week and afterwards he said that he felt "SO much better about being baptized."  Brother LaBar is also helping Jeff. They talk almost everyday. I am also seeing how important it is to have the members very heavily involved with all that we are doing. There is NO way we could do what we do without them. I hope that you have the chance and are taking the chance to help the Elders in the ward. Really small things are super helpful like last Sunday the Trosts gave us 24 eggs. That was breakfast for like a week. We are really seeing such a difference in the attitude of members and it is really fun.

I was able to find some shirts, I should be good for the rest of my mission. I did have to get some at TJ Maxx and then others at Fred Myer. So you can just pull the money out of my savings to pay off those charges that would be great. Thanks for the help there!

I am so thankful to be a missionary, to live in this wonderful country, to have wonderful people that help me here in Tualatin, for President and Sister Morby, for the Gospel, For Temples, for family and for my Savior. I hope and pray that we will all be able to remember how much we have been blessed with and remember to show that gratitude through our service to others and through prayer.

I love you all very much!!!

Dustin

November 12

Hey Family!!!

Sounds like life is still happening! I love that everyday we all get the chance to wake up and decide what we are going to do with the day. We are really super blessed in all that we have. Yesterday in Gospel Principles I was talking with a man who isn't a member of the church and he was just going on and on about how hard life can be and how people stole all of this money from him etc. and I couldn't help but think about all that we have been blessed with. We have our lives, family, friends, the church, the gospel, a beautiful world and most of all our Savior Jesus Christ. When we really think about the blessing that it is for us to be able to have all of the unfairness of life made fair through our Savior Jesus Christ in the next life. When we go out and talk with people a lot of the time we see that the "grind" of life has really gotten to them. I just want everyone to know and feel the happiness that I get from the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In our mission we refer to the Atonement as the MIT or the Most Important Thing. When you look at the eyes from the perspective of the Plan of Salvation you really see that none of the small things matter. 

We had a really great week here, We were able to set a baptism date with Jeff. He is going to be baptized on January 5th! It is a little further out than I would have liked but he wants to be very sure that he is ready for baptism. He is really accepting the gospel into his life and wants to make changes that will bring him true happiness in the end. I am probably going to be coming up next year when Jeff goes to the temple for the first time. It is awesome how much love you get for those that you have the honor of sharing the Gospel with.  I think that it might be the closest that we can come to knowing how our Savior feels about us! We also had a first lesson with a less active/part member family. We have been fellowshiping them and we had Brother and Sister Metler come with us yesterday and it went SO great! She seems really open to the Gospel and keeps talking about how the spirit is telling her that she needs to make changes in her life. We are hoping that she will be ready for baptism about the same time as Jeff. 

I love my mission right now. Attitude and the spirit are so important in sharing the Gospel and it is great to know that what I am doing will effect the eternities. I hope and pray that we will continue to "have success in bringing them again unto [Him]." (Alma 31) I know that this work is the work of the Lord and that there are so many things that I could be doing right now but this is exactly where I need to be and where I want to be. Thanks for all that you do for me!!!

Love Dustin 

November 4

Hey!!

This past week has been good. We have had a few set backs... Tuesday Elder Byam popped a tire on his bike so we were on foot for a few days and then we decided to ask for permission to go to the store and get it fixed that we could have use of our bikes again. So we get that and then I decided to put a little air in my tire because it was a little low... well the valve stem was broken so when I put the pump on, it broke off. So now I had a flat. So we called and got permission again and got my bike fixed... But now my back tire is leaking so we have to get that fixed today. So frustrating.

Other than that though things went really well with Jeff this past week. We taught him the Plan of Salvation (Elder Byam did really well) and he said that it was perfectly clear. I love that because that means that we are teaching for his understanding:) Then on Wednesday he called his mom and told her that he was "probably" going to be baptized and she supported it:) Then he called us on Saturday to ask us if we wanted a ride to stake conference, sweet! But wait... He is visually impaired!! We are getting a ride to church from someone who cant really see... Scary! So we get in the car and the first thing that he says to us is that up until he was 36 he was considered legally blind. That isn't the first thing that you want someone to tell you when you get into that car with them. But we live to tell the tail so all is well. The other exciting thing is that he asked me to be the one that helps him in and out of the font (due to the fact that he can't see) so that should be cool. Now we just need to get him to accept a date.

We also this past week had a part member family that we took to the Visitors Center up at the temple accept the invitation to take the lessons and they seem really excited about it. There has been a lot of great fellowship in the ward which really makes it easier to come into the Gospel.

It is fun to be a part of this great work and to see the Lords hand in others lives. Thanks for all the love and prayers

Love Ya'll

Dustin  

October 28

Hey!!

I am glad you got the package. The hats are for the kids yes but as I was packing them up I think that they might be too small so if they are sorry. The brown ones are for the boys and the blue for the girls. Elder Byam and I are going to be making 14 beenies for our district for Christmas. This past week we got almost three done so I think that we will make it.

The work here is going really well. The ward is way excited and happy. We saw Jeff this past week and showed him Elder Hollands Mormon Message "Safety for the Soul" and after we watched it he said "By the way I just wanted to tell you that I have decided to join your church and get baptized. (pointing to me) You closed the deal." The big joke in the ward is that I am the "Closer" because I have a way of being.... well lets just say bold. I really have never had problems expressing what I think/ want. The members love it because  I am bold but still loving.The Halloween party was great here. They really went all out and had a fear factor which included live cockroaches that Sis Schoonmaker went into Portland and bought. It was awesome though! We had Jeff there as well as three other part-member families that we have been working with. It was fantastic!

Really funny story. We were helping Bro LaBar (who is so awesome) with a move and he was telling me that he bought a new 55" LED TV without asking his wife. So he asked if after the move we could come over and help him set it up. So we did and needless to say Sis LaBar isn't super happy with it but the entire thing was so funny just because of everything that had happened. Also yesterday we were on our way to church and we had just started up the three mile long hill to the church and Elder Byam said that he forgot his jacket so we had to turn around and and go back. We were riding really fast down the hill and the light turned red so Elder Byam slammed on the brakes and stopped but my bike is a road bike so when I slammed on the brakes all that happened is that my back tire slid out to the side and I was sliding. Super funny and scary because I was sliding into a really busy intersection but somehow I got stopped and didn't even fall over. It was great!! Plus we were still on time for church.

Thanks for all that you do for me! I love you all very much! Have a great week!!

Love Dustin

Dustin's "mission son"

Dustin is now a trainer and as is the mission culture Dustin now has a "mission son".

Dustin before he got his "mission son"! 

Dustin with his new trainee Elder Byam from Alberta!

October 14

Hey!

 

This week has been really good.  I went and worked with one of our Zone Leaders. It was really good. We are really seeing many great things start to take place and I am super excited for the upcoming transfers. I don't know if Sis. Schoonmaker told you or not but I am training. President told me that about 5 weeks ago so I have really been looking forward to try and get ready for that. My companion is Elder Byam (said by-um).  It is really fun. He is from Southern Alberta and his parents dropped him off at the Stake Center yesterday morning and today are on their way to the MTC to drop off his sister. So they are loosing two of their three kids this week.

 

We have lots of great things happening. This week we got two new investigators and possibly picked up a former. It has been great. In Tualatin we are really close to the Temple (10-15 min) so we have a goal of taking one person a week there. The spirit is so strong and it really helps connect the dots. Thats what we were doing with the Schoonmakers on Saturday is we went with the former to the temple and she had tons of questions. But I think that the trip to the temple really helped. We also went with Jeff last night. He is having a hard time accepting baptism but I hope and pray that understanding the importance of the temple helps him understand why we really teach baptism. It is really great how the spirit works and prepares people. I am beginning to realise how important it is to have members closely involved in missionary work. There is nothing that we could do without their help. Our efforts would be entirely wasted.

 

So because I am training I now have a mission "son." So I have a pregnancy picture and also a picture of us this morning.

 

I hope that things are going well. I love you all so much! Thanks for all that you do for me!!

 

Love Dustin

bike story in picture

Science experiment with old bike

Read the Blog post for more info!

Dustins old bike not chained up 

 Dustin's old bike - Stolen within 3 hours

 Dustin's old bike now chained up by the new owner!

October 21

Hey!

This week has been really good. So last Tuesday I got my new bike... way better!!! So Elder Byam and I were trying to figure out what we should do with the old one. We decided that it would be really fun to do an experiment and take it to the train stop by our apartment  and leave it without locking it up to see how long it would take to get stolen. We left it there on Wednesday at 7am. That day we got picked up for a meeting at the church at 10am and we drove by and it was gone. So in less than three hours it was stolen. So that night we went and took pictures to document our "science" experiment. It was really funny!! Well there is a twist in the story now... Monday morning we are on our way to the Library and Elder Byam (whose first name is Dustin... Crazy!) said I am just waiting for it to show back up on this rack one day. So we are walking and he looked over and said, "Wait isn't that your bike?!?" So whom ever took it is now riding it and they are even going as far as to lock it up. Super funny and we have pictures to document all phases of the experiment. 

I am so happy with where I am right now. The longer I am in Tualatin the more that I really love it here. I think if I end up being here six months or more that I will move here later because I really love it!! I also really love Elder Byam! He is a lot like me.  Plus we have so much fun while we are out working. It makes the work go so much better!!! We had a rough week where Satan kept getting between us and our investigators but we are going to Destroy Satan this week!!! He is going down!!!! We had to spend a lot of time in meeting and other things that took us away from real work but we are ready to go out and really "Beast it!!!"

Picture #1) My bike on Wednesday morning right after the drop off

Picture #2) The rack where my bike was 14 hours earlier

Picture #3) My bike back on the rack five days later only this time locked up (not with my lock)

Thanks for all that you do for me! I love you all so much! Have a great week!

Dustin

Lunch at McDonalds - picture

Stacie Schoonmaker from Tualatin area sent this picture.

They had just been to the temple visitor center with them and an investigator.

She said Thanks for sharing you with them.

pictures

October 8

Hey!
 
So My LDS Mail still won't let me send anything so I will have to get that worked out with the Mission Office. But, this has been a really great week. The power of prayer became very real to me this week. We have a few investigators that for one reason or another we have not been able to contact or they are not progressing. That has been frustrating but I decided that I was going to just keep doing what I could even if I could do nothing other than pray. Well the Lord heard those prayers and we had many miracles happen this week. Our investigators that have really pulled back came to conference at our WML's and in talking with Bro Metler last night he said that Andre` really opened up and was able to sit and listen. Our investigator that we have not been able to contact for the past five weeks contacted us and let us know that she still wanted to meet but that life happened and that she is moving this week but wants to meet after that. Our new investigator from last week was able to watch conference with us on Sunday and felt the spirit and said that it really answered some questions that he had. We also went and had a lesson with a former who the ward has started to fellowship. They were very warm and friendly to us and we are going to the Visitors Center with them on Saturday. We are planning on asking them to start taking the lessons again while we are up at the Temple. So we have a lot of really cool things that are starting to happen!
 
Wasn't Conference great!! I loved it. Elder Grimes and I had to split so that we could watch it with our investigators. So I went and watched it with Jeff our new investigator from last week at the Labar's house. Jeff loved it! That was fun. This ward is so great to work with they are WAY helpful and will do anything for us. It is sad that they lost trust in the Missionaries because of almost a years worth of bad missionaries but Elder Grimes and I have been successful at rebuilding those relationships. 
 
It is fun to hear about the family. I am glad that everyone is doing well. I hope that all of you know how much I love you! I hope that you all have a great week! Transfers are on Monday so I will e-mail on Tuesday!
 
Love Dustin

September 30

Hey!!

 

It really is crazy to look back and see how the time really has flown by. One year ago to day I was sitting in the MTC watching conference. It is really weird to think that after this weekend I will only have one more conference before I am home. WERID!! I am so excited for this weekend though. If there is one way to know that there is a prophet on the earth today it is to spend ten hours over two days just listening to the words and the spirit that comes from these men, truely called of God.

 

There were a few AWESOME things that happened this week;

 

1) We had Zone Conference on Friday! it was great! President Morby is really good about making sure that everything that is talked about will really lift us and make us better missionaries. The conference focused on the Atonement of Christ and how it is the Most imprtant thing and how we need to relate it to everything that we teach and about the Doctrine of Christ as our missionary purpose. It was way good! If you want a really good read 2 Nephi 31. There are not too many times in the scriptures that the Father is quoted but in this chapter Nephi quotes Him 3 times (I think).  

2)We also had Bishop Goodmenson** (Bishop over my ward) come and talk about building realtionships  . . .

computer problems to be continued. . .

Notes from Mom!

**Monday the 1st I got a call from Bishop Goodmenson - he was in Grandpa Mickelsen's mission as a missionary.  He spent time with Grandpa and Grandma at the ranch and at his home in Bountiful after everyone was home.  They did a mission reunion every year at the Ranch and he was part of the planning of those events - I know Grandpa and Grandma really looked forward to those summer outings.  Uncle Lynn as a member of the 70 was the visiting authority in their stake several years ago.  He also worked with Uncle Dale when they were setting up the Chevy Dealership in Rigby.  It was fun to talk with him and have stories to share.

***I think Grandpa Mickelsen is still watching out for Dustin!  They were such good buddies!

Hump Day Pictures

Celebrating the 1st year!

One year left to teach and lead those around me!

September 24

Hey!

 

So I talked with President Morby this week. The look on his face was beautiful. It was really hard no to laugh. The letter got sent to the wrong family.   He said that he really owes the bishop and the ward good missionaries.    So the bar for missionaries in this ward has been set very low, no wonder that they really like Elder Grimes and I - we are visable.  We went to dinner with a part member family on saturday.

 

I did get one package and the mission office called and said that they got another from UPS so they will get it to me on Friday at Zone Conference. 

 

Other than that this week has kinda been a blah. I did finally get to meet a few of our investigators which was great. And one of them made it to church. Hopefully he will start to progress.

 

I really like Tualatin. It is way nice and the ward is so eager to help with missionary work. They are way excited about having missionary experiences. It is way fun. I haven't had a ward like this yet on my mission. I hope that you really help the missionaries out as much a possible. There is no way that they can do it by themselves.

 

I love you all very much and pray for you. Thanks for all the support and love!

 

Dustin

September 17

Hey!!!

 

We had another interesting week.  It is crazy to think that it has all ready been a year. On the bright side we have been able to gain some more of the members trust. This ward has had really bad missionaries for almost a year now and so it has been really easy to get them to trust us because they see us out riding our bike and making visits. We are out working and improving.

 

Interesting facts... Elder Grimes family used to have a cabin right next to the ranch and now they go camping right behind the ranch. Also Grandpa Mickelson was who sealed his parents.

 

Funny story... Elder Grimes had a count down calendar that he had made on a piece of paper and he was scribbling through everyday. He took out his lighter and decided that he was going to burn all the days that had all ready passed. Well the paper burned much faster than he had thought that it would so he tried to blow out the flames which just made it bigger. So he throws it into the garbage, right after he did it he realised that it was very stupid so he reached into the can and pulled it out and ran to the kitchen sink leaving behind a bunch of charred paper pieces. 

 

I think that my major accomplishment this week was that I finally got our apartment cleanish. It was so gross when I first got there. The first thing that I had to do was clean the sink so that I could have a starting point. To finish it all off today the carpets are getting cleaned which will be great so that I will no longer have sticky carpet:)

 

Thanks for all that you do for me! I love you all so much and am grateful that I have the chance to serve the Lord. I pray that I will be able to see success and have good thing happen in this area.

 

Love you all so much.

 

Dustin

Letters

We got some great postcards from Dustin this week.  They are of his trip to Mt. Hood.  They are the old fashioned ones that look like they used to be the advertising to get people to come visit.  They are really cool.  It looks like a beautiful area.  We look forward to visiting there after he returns!


We also got a letter from Dustin's mission President.  There are 16 stakes in the Portland Oregon mission.  There are over 200 missionaries serving in that mission.

Notes of encouragement can be sent to:

Elder Dustin Hatch
Oregon Portland Mission
1400 NW Compton Drive, Suite 250
Beaverton, OR  97006

P-day pictures September 10, 2012

September 11

Yesterday there was a member that rented a 15 passenger van and took our district, the ZL's and the AP's on a big tour of the mission. We went up to Mt. Hood first. That was cool. It is the tallest mountain in Oregon (I think). There is an old ski lodge up there. Tell you what though I was struggling to breathe. From 200ft up past the tree line is a huge change in oxygen content. That was really fun to see though. After that we went to the Columbia River Gorge. That was really pretty. It reminded me of Alaska. Lots of water and green trees. We then went to a fish hatchery. They have a pond that has white sturgeon in it. The biggest is Herman and he is over 10 ft and 450 lbs. Crazy big fish!! We also got to see Multnomah falls. Super pretty!! It was a really fun trip but a lot of time in a van.

 

I am starting to get to know some of the members as well. People in Tualitan are super nice. Missionaries refer to this area as the Idaho/Utah of Oregon. Elder Grimes has only been yelled at once in this area which is crazy. In Portland it is a several times a day occurrence. I really do think that I am going to like it here though. It reminds me a lot of home. People that are more well off but that are super loving and giving and would do anything for others. It will be interesting seeing how different the work here is. I feel like I finally figure out how to become successful as a missionary and then I get moved to an area with complete different challenges. I feel like part of that is so that I don't become dependant on my own knowledge but that I really have to rely on the spirit.

 

Thanks for all that you do for me. I really love all of you very much and am grateful for the chance that I have to serve the Lord and to help others come unto Christ. The Gospel is true and I know that there is nothing that can bring us more joy than living by Gospel Principles.

 

I love you all very much!!

September 3

Hello Family!

 

Another transfer has come and gone. I seems crazy how fast the time flies. I got transfered to Hedges Creek in Tualatin. Super fancy place. I really like it so far. i have not met anyone really yet because all we did yesterday was transfers and dinner at Carl's Jr because we didn't have a dinner. Crazy thing though... This is Elder Mecham's second area and my new companion served with Elder Mecham in Oregon City four months ago. Also super crazy Elder Grimes lives out Sunnyside and graduated from Hillcrest a year before Krystal. I think that this is going to be a bit of a testing ground for me. I think that I am really going to have to draw my line in the sand and not move from it. He goes home in October and is really ready to be done.

 

Funny story (also shows how much of a cluts I am)... Saturday we decided to take 30 minute lunches so that we could go out for ice cream as a district at 8:30 that night. So we all met in Dayton and went to the new ice cream place by the park. So after I get my ice cream i go over to the park and start to play on the merry go round with some other missionaries.  So i get it going really fast and then go to grab it and jump on... didn't work so well. I ended up doing something to my hip and now I have a limp and have to ice my hip and Sister Morby called the doctor and gave me some PT things to do. The worst part of the whole thing is now I am in a bike area.

 

Sunday I was also given a bike by Brother Walker. It is super old but I didn't have to buy one. I think that I might have to end up buying Elder Grimes bike when he goes home but we will see how this one works for now.

 

Love you all and know that the gospel is true.

 

Dustin

P-day pictures

Playing games for P-day!

Elder Adams with a box hat!

Elder Vander Werff trying to drink!

Elder Vander Werff eating a donut!

Aug. 27

Hey Family!!

 

This has been another great week. Thanks for the package. I have all ready used all of the pop corn. Also this Monday is transfers so don't mail anything to Dayton, I will more than likely be tranfered. We have a very active zone leader who likes to influence transfers and has been successful at it in the past and he said that he called the AP's and asked for me to train and for our area to be white washed (two new missionaries in). I don't know if that will happen or not but there are 14 new English Elders coming in this transfer so it could happen. Elder Harris (ZL)  said that in his opinion Elder Martinson (my MTC comp) and I are the only two Elders in the Zone who are ready to train. Also crazy is that Elder Mecham goes home in Tuesday!!! He is in Oregon City right now in Kacie and Jason's ward. He said he is going to come by and say hi and borrow my seasons of House. 

Yesterday we had a really fun p-day. We all came to our apartment and played QUELF. Such a funny game. So the pictures are of Elder Adams with the box hat and Elder Vander Werff when he wasn't able to use his arms and had to eat/drink whatever we gave him. Super funny! 

 

The coolest thing happened this week. A less-active  sister, and has been for some time. I think about six years which is when she moved to Oregon. She is super nice to the missionaries. I guess that about a year ago the missionaries invited her to take the lessons and she was surprised because she has been to the temple and knows the gospel. Well over the last seven months we have been going over and helping her around the house because she has MS.  At the end of the last transfer I asked her to take the lessons. She accepted and was actually excited about it.  She and I have developed a really good relationship (I think that is because of my connective personality LOL). Well because of health problems and other things we have only been able to teach her twice over this past transfer. Last Friday we went over and had a lesson then did some service and then had dinner. Before we ate she came over to the table and offered the prayer. Her prayer was the cool part. In  her prayer she prayed for us, for our investigators, for those who would become invesigators, for the less actives that we were working with, "including myself." WHAT!?!?!?! Super exciting. She is starting to want to make changes. I am going to tell her on Friday that it is probably going to be my last week in Dayton and that I want to see her in church this week. I hope and pray that she comes because as soon as that first time is overcome it just becomes that much easier for her to keep coming.

 

I hope that you all have a really great week. I love all of you very much and pray for you.

 

Love Dustin

Aug 20.

Hello!

 

It is a little late in the week to be e-mailing but such is life. 

 

So our apartment is on top of a warehouse with a office in it. If you saw the outside I need to send some pictures of the inside. IT looks really bad on the outside but it is completely different inside.

 

This week was a terrible week for missionary work. I don't understand how we can have everyone that we work with go camping all on the same week??? How does that happen. Oh well live and let live I guess. We are just going to have to make this week count for double!!

 

That being said it was an awesome week for strenghtening of testimonies. On Saturday we had the entire mission in Lake Oswego and the meeting started with President and Sister Morby and then Elder Bussey of the Area Seventy spoke on "Christ Believes in You." He was followed by Elder Clayton of the Presidency of the Seventy who spoke on what is meens to be a special witness of Christ. Then Elder Nelson got up and said I feel that there are one or two people here that are fasting and seeking answers so lets hear them. So for the next hour he just answered quesions that he was asked. It was a great meeting. He then gave all of us a Priesthood blessing (as a group) where he blessed us all with the desire to go out and to labor and to feast from the scriptures. He also blessed all of you through me that you would be watched over and protected and that yorur testimonies would grow as a result of my service. It was awesome!

 

Then on Sunday we had a special Stake Conference with Elder Clayton and President and Sister Morby. That was also really good. Sister Morby talked about one of her favorite word (I think that it might be her favorite) but it is happify, happification and happifyer. I think that shows what kind of person she is. Then President spoke on being a missionary.  Elder Clayton then spoke about getting our roots deep in the Gospel and teaching within the family. It was a great conference.

 

Then Yesterday we went to Oregon City (to Kacie's ward building) and were taught by Elder Corbridge of the Seventy. He spoke in the October 2008 conference and his talk is called The Way. You should watch that because it will give you a little bit of what my day was like yesterday. It was all focused on the Doctrine of Christ- Our missionay Purpose. He really shared about how as missionaries we don't take the time to teach the most important thing- the Atonement of Christ. It was so good. I left so ready to just go out and work. He also taught us how to become better teachers as we follow the teaching patter that Christ used. It was incredible and you could really feel the Spirit.

 

Also yesterday as a District we all pitched in five bucks and got President Morby a pair of Steve Madens because we all have them. So he now has the Official Mac District Shoe. He was really funny and was about ready to cry when we gave them to him.

 

Thanks for all that you do for me. I am so lucky to have a great family that really supports me and that loves the Gospel. The Church is so true and Christ is really at the head of it. I know that and as we follow our leaders out of the desire to come closer to our Heavenly Father and our Savior that we will really feel the Strength that comes from the other side. I love all of you very much and miss you. Have a great week.

 

Love Dustin

Aug. 13

Hey!!

 

Sister Smith has a ring tone on her phone that goes off almost everytime that we are at their house and I dont know the song other that it says something about CRAZY (I think that might be the name of the song), that is all that I have to say about your week!

 

That is also all that I have to say about my upcoming week. On Saturday Elder Russel M. Nelson is holding a meeting with all the missionaries in the OPM. Sunday Elder Clayton of the Presidency of the Seventy is holding a special Stake Conference in the McMinnville Stake and President Morby will be bringing him out here. Plus President said that he thinks that Elder Clayton wants to have a meeting with all the companionships in the Stake which will be sweet if that happens. President wasn't sure if it would or not. Then on Tuesday we have a mission tour with Elder Corbrage of the Seventy (So I will e-mail on Wednesday!!!). So we will be having a very uplifting four days!

 

So this week was fun and interesting. I think that the funniest thing that happened is that Wednesday night we got home about 8:30 and then walked over to the Smith's (we are now next door neighbors practically). We talked with her for a few minutes and then our phone rings and I pull it out... President Morby is calling. Generally President doesn't just call to say hi so I think to myself I wonder what this is about. So I answer and he says that he is with Elder Lawrence (one of the AP's) and they are in DAyton and want to how to get to our apartment so they can see the new place. So I tell them how to get to it and we walk home because Dayton isn't very big and so it wont take long for them to get there. So we go up stairs and open the door and who is inside but Amy our landlord. So it is us and Amy in our apartment at 9pm and President Morby is on his way there. So I leave the door open and put some things on the counter and tell AMy that She needs to call it quits for the night (she was putting in our new washer and dryer) and then we go outside. Just as we go out President pulls up and gets out of the car. Soon after we come out so does Amy and President gets a very confused (maybe even worried) look on his face. So we all go down the stairs and talk with him and Elder Lawrence served in Dayton and Amy was one of his investigators. So we all had a good conversation and then we went upstairs and Amy left. When we get up there President said I have to tell you I was a little concerned when I saw a sister coming out of your apartment. It was funny and it really looked bad but was innocent. Thankfully President saw that it was. He also said that we now have the nicest apartment in the mission.

 

Out of time 

August 6

Hey!

 

So the biggest thing that happened this week is that we moved! That is so nice to have over with but also super nice to have. It feels that we are much more effective in our ability to plan our days so that we spend less time on the road and more time with people. I think that is my favorite part of missionary work is getting to be with people and help them come closer to Christ. It was kinda funny the lady that was in the apartment before us was 7 months behind on rent and was supposed to be moved out on the 28th but didn't actually move out until the night of the 30th. Amy our landlord that I have a good relationship with was super funny about it. She is a very sarcastic person and has a way of making everything super funny. So we get all in and the first thing that I do is throw my sheets into the washer and..... The water all leaks out the bottom. So we call her and she comes over and I quote "Its funny how someone who owes you seven months rent neglects to tell you that the washer doesn't work." You would just have to hear her say it. The new place is nice though. It feels much more like a home than an apartment. It has pergo floors and the walls have color on them and there is an island in the kitchen. It just feels homelike rather than like every apartment in America.

 

It was a little sad this week because our new investigator dropped us but it was a very soft drop. His dad committed suicide when he was 11 and the news made it a very public thing. So because of that he suffers mentally so he is going through counseling and on new medicine so he wants to get baptized but wants to have his life in order first. It is sad because I know that the Gospel is the answer that can bring him peace but he can't see that right now.

 

 You learn so much as a missionary and even about things that are not related to the gospel at all.

I don't know what my new address is yet. We don't quite have the mail figured out yet (much to the dismay of Elder Osgoods mom who sends him something every week). I will get that and sent it to you next week. Thanks for allowing me to be an independant person. 

 

I only know of one family that is coming over to BYU-I but they have family that live in Ammon. But if I hear of anyone else I will let them know.

 

I love you all very much and am greatful for all that you do for me!!!

 

pictures

P-Day / Moving Day.  

Dustin loves to get rid of the unused items!  

I bet he had a great day getting rid of things!

July 30

Hello!!!

 

Ok first things first, Melissa has 2 kids now? When did that happen? Also did you say that Kacie has 2? This is crazy the family just keeps on growing and growing.

 

This week was good. We are still teaching our investigator and he is progressing towards baptism which is great. The only problem is that he hasn't come to church since we started to teach him so we are going to have to push back his baptism. That is really sad because he really wants to be baptized. We will be teaching him today and we are going to focus on why church attendance is so important.

 

We are also getting ready for our move. It is great for me because that means that we get to go through everything in our apartment and throw all non-essentials away! I love doing that. It was sad though we found a box in our apartment full of old VHS. We just threw them all away because we don't give them out anymore. The crazy part was there were tons of them that were in Samoan. Uh...wrong country!! There are 2 Tongan wards in the mission but not Samoan. It was sad because you know that those were purchased with tithing money. We also had well over 100 hangers that have just been built up over the years that were not being used that we had to throw out. One problem though, My suit was getting repaired so it wasn't on the hanger so I accidental threw that hanger out. But then I also had thrown out all the extras so I had to take a few of my t-shirts off and just fold them. It was kinda funny.

 

I also gave Elder Osgood a hoodie that I had inherited. You would just have to know him to understand why it is funny but it is FAR from his style. Then I also had him put on my huge glasses and it made him look way different. AH the things that are funny at the end of the day. So that is what the picture is this week.

 

Chloe is much cuter than the last picture that I got. Is she going to be an indoor/outdoor dog? If so just don't become an Oregonian and feed her off of your plate with a fork. I don't think that anyone in the world love animals more than Oregonians.

 

Thanks for all that you do for me. I love you all so much.

 

Dustin

July 23

Hey!!

 

Sorry but I am running short on time so this might be a little short. The first big news is transfers... no changes. I am still in McMinnville with Elder Osgood. We will be moving the middle of next week so I will still have an address change soon so anything that gets mailed please send it to Beaverton.

 

Also this week we just got a new investigator with a baptism date for August 11. His name is Cameron. He really wants to change his life which is way fun. I love missionary work. Something that President Morby really focuses on in the difference between missionary work and missionary activities. That is something that you deal a lot with is the work that you do. What will bring results and what will just make you look busy. So I love missionary work but not really missionary activities. I love working with people and making connections. It is something that I have always really enjoyed.

 

I don't really have any funny stories this week. No keys locked in the trunk etc. but it was a great week.

 

It was really fun to hear from everyone. I love you all very much and hope that you have a great week.

 

 

Love Dustin

pictures

The Brass License plate surround for having the cleanest car in the mission!

Make sure to read the story about the car inspections!

July 16

What a Week!!!

 

I will start with the story that starts out really small and then evolves into a giant story (make sure to read it the sme way you read 'twas the night befor Christmas)...

 

Once upon a time there was a missionary that wanted to pass his car inspections at zone conference. So on P-day he washed the car, he waxed the car, he vacumed the car and he also cleaned the windows on that car. But car inspections are not until Friday so that gives four long days to try and keep that car clean. That missionary wasn't able to do so because he had to drive on dirt roads. So on Thursday night on his way home for the evening he stopped at the car wash and just gave his little car a little rinse. Friday he had to meet another missionary at the car wash so that they could follow him to zone conference. While he was parked there he noticed that in those four long days that the carpet had gotten very dirty. So he put some money into the machine and got the carpets all clean because he really didn't want to fail. The missionary got to the church and the inspector got out his clip board. They walked around and around the car looking for any new scratches but to their great suprise there were none. So this missionary passed his inspection. No longer did he need to fear the wrath of the inspector. So he went into zone conference and he learned many things about how he could be a better missionary. The inspector came in and asked if he could give out the awards and the mission president said that he could. The first award was for the cleanest car at the conference with thwe award as the golden plates (or brass licence plate surrounds). What to this missionaries suprise but that his car had been dubbed the cleanest. And there was the added award of a gift certificate for 100 extra miles! Then there was the awards for the dirtiest car award but this time there was a tie. The first to the sister missionaries and the second to be given to the AP's.

 

Ok for the sake of time I hace to end the story there but that was very exciting. The next day as I was leaving our apartment I had a case of water in my hand that I wanted to put into the trunk. So with my hands full I drop the water into the trunk and shut it. The great suprise is that I no longer had the keys in my hand, they were in the trunk:) so now back in the fear of the Vehicle Coordinator i had to call and ask him to bring the spares so that we could have the use of our car. Seven hour later a senior couple comes to our rescue and we are saved.

 

Also involving the car another companionship in our district lost their car due to the repair shop so now we get to play taxi for the next weekish!! GREAT! Super complicated becuse now we have to get our appointments and theirs to mesh.

 

But enough of the car stories, I could keep going but I would run out of time. We had someone just show up to another ward and he told the missionaries that he wanted to join the Church. He is YSA so we get to teach him which is way exciting. It is also the same way that we found Nate. That should be way cool and a huge blessing to us.

 

Love ya tons

July 9

Hello!

 

I know that this makes me a horrible person but the puppy isn't so cute there. She will grow into her face I am sure but without getting to see her personality I don't know for now. I am super excited about it though. I knew that you would get another dog one day even if it was one that I bought and just dropped off (The precedence is all ready there). 

 

The Fourth was fun. It is interesting though that holidays are not the same. It really feels like I am not missing them because it seems as if they don't exist. It was fun though. We played five crowns, bunco and croquet (which I won). The Smiths and family all love me. I have always had the ability to have people drawn to me though. When we move we will be right across the road from the Smiths. Brother Smith said that now we will show up at their house everyday! Probably not though but that would be an easy way to save on the food bill:)

 

So Sunday Elder Osgood and I started the "Purification Challenge." It is super hard! In order to do the challenge you fast and pray for things that you need to get rid of in order to become more pure. So through out the day every time that you think of something that you need to do or not do you write it down on the list. So on my list I have things like not joking around or teasing. So for forty days you do this. It is basically a "forty day fast" and is meant to help you become more in tune with the spirit. I will keep you posted as how things are going but I can tell you that yesterday was really hard. As soon as you put those things on your list that is all you want to do. All though I think that it more comes from the fact that you are more aware that they are happening.

 

Funny story from yesterday. I think that I told you about getting locked out of our apartment until 11:30. Well the lock smith told the manager that she needed to change the door nob because it was super old and was going to malfunction. So we are gettong ready to end our p-day and go to an apointment and we are supposed to meet them at 5. Well as seems to always happen in we are at the door leaving at 5 so I am all ready stressed because its hot and late. I go to open the door and the nob won't turn... I think to myself you have got to be kidding. Well there are 8 missionaries locked inside our apartment, its hot and we are late. I don't get stressed out or upset very easy but this did me in. So I call and cancel our apointment because we are all ready running late we take the door nob off and get the door open. I was so mad. So we haven't had a door nob since yesterday but I  think that we are going to go and talk with tthe manager today and get a new one.

Also really cool on August 18th there is one of the 12 coming to the mission and then on the 21st and 22nd there is a member of the 70 doing a mission tour. So we get to have a very uplifitng couple of days. And if I dont get transfered that sunday there will be a special stake conference with the General Authority.

 

Lots of great things taking place in Oregon. Love you all so much and pray for you often.

 

Love Dustin