Visitors welcome

Hello friends!

Well, it is good to be able to E-mail you all again! My new calling to leadership has been a blessing as well as a challenge for me.  I am still doing my work at zone, though I simply have more responsibilities now - it has been related to being a supervisor in a work situation in my most recent leadership meeting.  I still have much to learn, though I know that if the Lord trusts me to do it, then I will either be able to do so, or I will become so. As well as leading my district, I have also been helping out around the contact center. As of now, I am tied with my former companion, Elder Argyle, for having spent the most time in the zone, and I have spent the most time out of everyone for doing the specific work we are doing. So, I have been helping others out with working cases and answering phone calls. I haven't gotten as much of my own cases done as I have before I became the experienced one here, as well as receiving my new assignment, but it is still good to be able to help others out here in the zone.

I may not have mentioned this in my last E-mail, but the move to my new apartment was a bit of a shock in one way - specifically, me and Elder Beeson moved out of a nice, deep-cleaned, tidy apartment into one which people have not maintained too well. It was quite cluttered, and just generally messy. However, my companion did have to stay home for the morning yesterday, so we took that time and did a clean sweep on the apartment (I will admit, it was Elder Beeson's idea). Of course, we were already doing a little bit here and a little bit there to keep it clean, but this was the day when we really hit it hard. And when we finished it all up, you would not believe it was the same apartment! Of course, there is still some work that could be done, but it is a huge improvement from where it was before. As a result, I have asked Elder Beeson to be the district cleaning coordinator to keep the apartment nice and tidy. It will be good for him to have some responsibility, as well as the feeling that he is doing more than just his zone assignment.

I have also began planning meals with the rest of my district again. This is something which I have not done in a while, due to the people living in my previous apartment not wanting to do so, but now there are more willing people to help me out with this. I feel that it is good to not only plan meals (or at least dinners) together as an apartment/district, but also to prepare and cook them rather than simply buying pre-made goods. This is generally cheaper, healthier, and more delicious, even if you only buy the generic stuff! My companion still is not overly interested in collaborated meals, though, so I think it might be a while before he decides to join in with us. Then again, if he would rather not, then that is alright too. I guess that having that freedom is nice too.

The mission presidency wants this particular zone to become the best that it can be, so now, the first counselor in the mission presidency, President Buffington, has met with the district leaders in the zone to discuss what could be done to improve it. Aside from that, our supervisor has also met with us to discuss similar things. I won't tell you what exactly was discussed in those meetings, but I will say that it is interesting to meet with others to discuss the best ways that we can improve. I guess that is just another part of leadership. However, I have learned one thing from these meetings: it does not help anyone to simply tell a leader that everything is going fine, when it is not. This I also understand first-hand now. In this sense, there are certain circumstances when complaining, when done in a mature and formal manner, is not only acceptable but also useful. Anyway, it is nice to know that leadership is open to the opinions of the young elders in the zone on both ends (ecclesiastical and administrative), and that I can report issues I see in a more direct way.

Well, I have not yet told my district this yet, but I have learned in my most recent leadership meeting that the mission has actually planned a visit from Elder Kevin R. Duncan, of the Seventy. Not only is he coming though - President Dallin H. Oaks, perhaps in his inability to come tour the mission himself, has asked that the report of this tour be sent to him. This is a rare occurrence, in which a member of the First Presidency, rather than one of the Twelve, receives a report of a tour of a mission. As you can imagine, President Fenn is a bit anxious to get this mission in shape for this visit. He has a lot of faith that we can become so much more than we are right now, and so he wants to leave the best impression that he can on the church's leadership. I also look forward to this visit, and I too hope that we can show the church's leaders how great this mission is!

Well, there is my E-mail for the week. Thanks for the support everyone, I love hearing from you! Have a good one!



From,

Elder Bryce Petersen



Challenge: Ever since the passing of President Monson a month ago, we have sustained President Russel M. Nelson as the prophet who leads this church today. Put simply, the word "sustain" means "to support". The best way to sustain a prophet of the lord is to obey him. Even if we keep all the ordinances of the gospel, it will not matter much if we do not obey (see 1 Samuel 15:22). Surely, the scriptures have many important commandments contained therein, all of which we should be holding strongly to. However, revelation has not ceased, and prophets, seers, and revelators with the same authority as the ones who's words are recorded in the scriptures live today. Because of this, their words are just as important as the prophets of old, and perhaps even more so. Why so? Because their words are what God wants us to hear today. The words found in the scriptures give us the word of God which never loses value or significance, as well as the mysteries of the kingdom revealed to man. The words of modern prophets are what God wants people today to hear and apply so we can make it through this day and age. So, my challenge to you is to study the teachings of modern prophets, seers, and revelators, as well as the scriptures. One example of how one could do this would be to read a general conference talk together for family home evening, or to look through one of the books in the series "Teachings of the Prophets". Studying what modern prophets have taught us and warned us about will give us a road map to get through the trials of this day and age, and will help us grow closer to God than was before possible.