August 25, 2014 Week 59

Wooooooooow 10 months to go!!??? man I don't know what happened!  

It sounds like the fin legacy is still at school nice... FIN SWAG!! Yeah Purcell has a football team I don't know if they are any good, everyone in town says they are good... but they don't really have anyone to compare to.  Maybe Brighton can set up something and play against the Purcell dragons then we will be able to compare! I am sure that Brighton would win!

Also knowing that I have 10 months left kicked my head in a different gear!  We asked around and this week, we have a member going out with us every day!  The gear has kicked in the ward a little bit but there is still something that is holding it back. 

It made me reflect on something I studied this week on partaking of the sacrament.  I figured a way we can actually apply the atonement in our lives. 

It is by going to the ER(E-xamine R-eport).  

Lots of times I find my self just partaking of the sacrament or trying to think of all of the things that I did wrong that week…

Well does this change me into a better person? not really. 

It takes a truthful and deep examination of ones life to really apply the sacrifice of Christ.  

Then find the thing that is holding you back the most and then work on it! 

Harold b Lee said, 

"the most important of all commandments of God is the one that you're having the most difficulty keeping...conquer it then start on the next"…

This is a true principle.  It has gotten me to examine all aspects of my life...personal, mission and family and try and find the things that are holding me back the most.  Then making sure that we report day and night, repent and ask for help! Just in the past week I have seen greater change(for the better). 

“The nearer man approaches perfection, the clearer are his views, and the greater his enjoyments, till he has overcome the evils of his life and lost every desire for sin; and like the ancients, arrives at that point of faith where he is wrapped in the power and glory of his Maker and is caught up to dwell with Him. But we consider that this is a station to which no man ever arrived in a moment” 

But this made me think what is the biggest thing holding back the ward right now... because something is and something will until it is perfect! 

The work is going great here!  The member presents are really starting to pick up. When a member is at the less (less active appointment) the whole mood changes and usually a friendship is made.  Rocky fishburn(bro fishburn's son) took us out this week and we were able to have a good lesson with the Munday family.  They are a family that we found tracting 2 weeks ago.  We taught them the plan of salvation and it went really well.  It is amazing to teach the plan of salvation because it is something that everyone used to know... so once they hear it, it makes sense!  After the lesson they expressed how they are going to try to read the scriptures every day and have family councils... we didn't give them either of these commitments! 

It is amazing to compare families and how they work! the kids really do reflect the parents!  Another experience we had was with Andrea.  Andrea is probably in her 20's and has 4 kids under 9! Her husband isn't home a lot and speaks spanish.  She has been great in expressing to her children about God.  She usually doesn't go to church but she went last week to the First Baptist Church in Purcell...yey...well she got antied!  Got to love anti…. she told us we believe in God(s)...classic.  It is always awesome when other churches talk about mormon 'beliefs'!  ahhh but anti has nothing on the spirit! She shared how she didn't really believe it and thought it was weird they were talking about LDS beliefs in a Baptist church.

Well there is so much that happens in a week but not enough time to share it! Good job everyone! Keep on trucking! 

August 18, 2104 Week 58

Hello how are yall doing??!!

It great to hear that Eli and Joel are doing great in football...they are looking a little (just a little) bigger! Good Job that is how it is done!  

To Eli: Yeah don't worry about not starting- you are a year younger than most of the boys! BUT Make sure that you are working as had as you can and have the vision to start! "A vision without action is daydreaming". 

But don't let one of those boys/coachs/teachers/"friends" mess up your testimony.  It is easy for it to happen in school! But if you read, pray and go to church. You will be fine! Really strive to get in a scripture study routine now! That is something that I regret not doing!  You will have some awesome opportunities to share the gospel too. Whether they are members or non members!  Last thing is to recognize the spirit... I think one of the greatest blessings of the Holy Ghost is not only the great feeling one has when he is worthy of it but also the terrible lost feeling that comes when we make a mistake! I think the quickest way to loose spirituality and really the root of all sin, are the things we see and hear!  The sooner you turn it off or stop listening to it the better off you will be! 1 last thing I would do haha... repent every night, really look for the little things that you did that day that were wrong and then CHANGE them! We have a few investigators that are in your same age group! Honestly this is all stuff that I didn't do in high school and I regret it!  But y'all are probably better then me and are already doing it! GOOD JOB

The missionary work is doing great in Purcell.  The ward is starting to pick up in helping us with our missionary work!  All of our recent converts are doing great...Purcell is great as usual!  We knocked some doors in a trailer park that we found the week before.  It was funny though we had a helper, this 14 year old boy was riding his bike around and he started following us up to doors and introducing us to everyone haha it was great!  We got 3 doors slammed in our face 3 times in a row, all of them were women... he said, "DAAAAANG all the ladies turn you down!" I lost it, haha good ole Oklahomians but we did get 9 potentials out of it!  Maybe that boy will be a future missionary who knows!

I have been having some awesome studies.  My love for the new testament has really grown these past months.  When 9 oclock hits I feel like I have been studying for 10 minutes! 

First Corinthians 2     

4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

This hit me! Really the best way for us to help our investigators/friends is to put them on the path which that they will start understanding the spirit and building their faith on what they receive!! or in short helping them build a testimony! 

Well good job y'all.  Thanks for all that you do! Have a great week and have fun!

ELDER FINLINSON

cows

 Dollar G

Elder Taggart Easy Cheesey 

Freshhhhh Peaches

Kyle Windrix-sculptor

Sunset

Bike Riding Fun

August 11, 2014 Week 57

"GOOD JOB!"

--Bro. Fishburn

This week was great we had a fun time!  As you can see from the pictures I forgot about my goal a couple of times and had to take some random shots.  We had a good week this week though. 

I think we had the shortest investigator in Purcell history this past week...We found him last Sunday taught the restoration, then the plan of salvation on Tuesday and then dropped on Friday it was crazy! He was a nice guy but I guess it wasn't what he was looking for... probably too hard. ehhh if only they knew it is actually easier to LIVE when you are in the true church and obeying the commandments!  We had a member bear his testimony on that last week... he lived the party life before he was a member and he talked about how he never felt happy!  Maybe that will be a new finding technique, "do you want to live an easier life"... we will try it out this week!

Church yesterday was mas o menos.. We had an investigator come Doyle Springs we have been teaching him and his wife for a while.  His wife was a member of the church and is trying to come back! Luckily they only stayed for sacrament meeting!  Our ward mission leader taught gospel principles and it was terrible... he bashed on the class and was calling our recent converts on things they were doing wrong... luckily the Hoffman's didn't show up! Luckily the buffering spirit was there! One of the recent converts told us after that she didn't even understand what happened in Gospel Principles... and she got called out in it! miracle

So we had exchanges this week and I went up to Blanchard...well first problem …  for lunch we had Chinese food ... second we forgot the phone in the car(of the new castle area... third we got dropped off in a neighborhood 14 miles away from the apartment.  We thought we were saved when we had a less active member stop by and ask if we needed anything.  We used his phone and the other Elders didn't answer... so we told him that they would probably be there soon... well we were deceived.  So we started walking down the highway haha we were getting honks and screams! GOT TO LOVE IT IN THE BIBLE BELT!  But a member stopped and picked us up after 2 miles! haha we probably would have gotten to our apartment around 10! miracle

We have been doing some fun less active work.  Yesterday we visited one family who is having a lot of troubles in going to church and in obeying commandments.  Well let's just say I got a cup of ice dumped (it was 'cold') on me on purpose and Elder Taggart got paralleled to Satan.  So after that it was rebuking time, but we leave that to the holy ghost!  We told them that we were there to give them a commitment and that commitments are commandments!  She disagreed, I told her to go look at Preach My Gospel...silence... we continued.  Our commitment for them was to set up a family Scripture study/prayer every night.  

So this sister found a good scripture found in moroni 7:16 For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God.

She then asked her daughter what were some evil things in the world these days… she responded, "smoking" (this less active member has been having a hard time with the word of wisdom and hearing that from her daughter was probably the best thing that could have helped her!). We then testified that is why he have family scripture study.  We truly learn more in the home then in any other place!  It was great! 

So y'all make sure you are doing your family scripture studies!  I feel like a hypocrite for saying that but... it is true! I was rebuked about it the same time that our less active was! That is the great thing about missions! 

Something that stood out to me was the story of Peter and Cornelius. Cornelius was visited by a angel to visit with Peter. Peter had a vision to seek out Cornelius. The account ends with the baptism of Cornelius.  This displays the principle of looking for the elect and the elect looking for us. I know when we are led by the spirit nothing can stop this from happening... whether it be tracting a house or asking a member for a referral, it is all done by the spirit!

Well I hope yall have a good week! 

GOOD JOB

ELDER FINLINSON

Braums

Elder Favilia doing my journal

Elder Taggart-Pday Planning

Problems in Purcell

Random

Redneck dryer

Stranded

OKC Temple with Zone

August 4, 2014 Week 56

Well it sounds like Eli and Joel are having some fun!! ohh yeah baby football!!! uhh i kinda miss it.  The fundraising no. haha but kinda the conditioning!   We played early morning soccer on Friday and the temperature reminded me of football in the mornings...except the humidity was way different!!  

This week was great!  We had interviews with President this week.  It went great but I have a feeling that I could be staying in Purcell for another transfer after this one-- that would be until October ahhh 9 months in the great Purcell!  But who knows what can happen.  We did talk with him a little bit after and learned about the iPads that are supposedly coming this year.  It will be crazy!  I can see positives and negatives but I guess we will see what happens! 

Last Wednesday was probably one of the slowest days of my life!  All of our appointments fell through and no one was answering the door.  Ohh well I guess that just happens sometimes.  But that is why we have harmonicas to cheer us up after.  We have gotten pretty good, it is easy just to mess around and figure out hymns!  

We had a great lesson with the Hoffmans this week.  They said that it was and answer to their prayers!  It always make you feel good when that happens, I guess they really wanted to have their kids included in the lessons and what better way to do that, than to start from the beginning!  We were also able to bring the young men's president with us so that made it even better!  He was able to invite all of the kids to the Wednesday activities and I think the Hoffmans are going to make them go!  So we taught them the restoration, but we did it in a different way.  We first watched the first part of that mormon message with the rock climber and asked them throughout the lesson to think of ways that God helps us.  Then we finished by watching the rest of the video!  It went really well and it was a different way to look at the restoration. 

From the restoration we can see 

1) God loves us and wants to hear from us through PRAYER

2) God loves us and blesses us with FAMILIES

3) God loves us so he gives the world PROPHETS 

4) SCRIPTURES

There are definitely more points than that but we focused on those 4 and it was good because they remembered them throughout the lesson!  and of course baptism was a part of it!  The Hoffmans are doing really good!  They have been fellowshipped like no other and everything is going great!  The only thing with them is their disk golf but that will eventually change!!

Well missionary work is great... so just do it...

Quote of the week

A Vision without action is daydreaming--pres Monson

LOVE Y'ALL

ELDER FINLINSON

A picture a day…