Happy St. Patrick's Day

Hey Family,

                  This week has been good. On Tuesday we had district meeting. It was good and we talked about using the Book of Mormon more in our teaching. I don't know how much you know but we recently got the 2013 Book of Mormon to give out so I have been comparing the old and the new. It's really cool to see the little changes they made to the introduction and the footnotes. Wednesday we walked around and talked with a few people on the street. We saw the Orey's while we were walking around and talked with them. We then went and saw the Orey's parents. That evening we had a meeting for the branch mission work. On Thursday we went with Gene Jones to deliver some couches out in Colt, AR. He is an investigator that has been investigating for about 2 years now. He comes to church and has read the Book of Mormon but I don't know why he is not baptized. He picked us up around 12 and we went to lunch. Then went to his house and got his truck and went and got the couches. We then went and drove to Colt. It is about 30 min away and still in our area. We then helped his aunt rearrange her whole house for the couches to fit. Then we drove home and had dinner with Gene and the other Elders. It was a fun day. On Saturday we woke up and went to the church for a service project of cleaning up the branches on the ground. We then went home and cooked some tacos and fried Oreos for a social we had at lunch. We then went to the social and it was lots of fun. we had good southern food and played some Mormon Family Feud. Later that day we saw Noland. On Sunday we went to church. Noland got called in to work so he couldn't come but we did have Delores there. She loved church and said she felt the spirit and wanted to come back. It was good to see that she really loved church. After church we went to the Russells. We ate at the Anderson's for dinner and had a good time talking about faith with them. 

                      That's about it for my week. Sounds like y'all had a great week. I hope that y'all have another good week and know I love and pray for y'all.

Elder Talbert

Letter from March 10

Hey Family,

                  This week has been good. On Monday I mentioned that it had iced and everything was covered in ice. Well we didn't do too much of anything on Monday. Tuesday was about the same. We drove around a little which was scary because people here don't know how to drive in the snow. It took us an hour to drive about 5 miles because everyone was going 5 mph and getting stuck in the snow. It was fun to play in the snow and see snow again. Well on Wednesday we had zone meeting in Bartlett. The roads weren't too bad but it took us 2 hours to get there. Memphis didn't get hit as hard as we did. They had nothing on the ground just a little snow here and there. Zone meeting we talked about faith, repentance, baptism, holy ghost, and enduring to the end and how there is an order to the principles of the gospel. President came and did interviews it was lots of fun. After zone meeting I went on exchanges with Elder Schut. We had a good time in West Memphis trying too see lots of people. We talked with Delores (a lady me and Elder Sakurada found the week before) and she seemed excited to learn the gospel. After seeing Delores we had dinner and then went to the Teeters. They are doing good and we had a good visit with them. On Thursday we exchanged back and went around and saw a few people and talked to some people on the street. On Saturday we went to Sherry and David. We talked with them about Mormon.org and the gospel library app. We then went to the Barnums and taught Noland at their house. It was a good lesson and this next week he should get interviewed for baptism. After Noland we went to go see Delores but she wasn't home. We then went to the Teeters for dinner and had a good time over there and shared some Mormon messages with them. on Sunday Noland came to church. We tried to get Delores to come but she had a family emergency when we got there. Well church was good and we learned a lot about being humble. Also cool thing the 2nd councilor in the temple presidency came with his wife. They are brother and sister Moline. We had a good talk about how cool everyone is and especially G&G Talbert. After church we went to the Russell's for a little then we had dinner at the Andersons. That was lots of fun because their house is always so crazy- it reminds me of home with all the drama going on. 

                           Well that's it for my week. I hope y'all have a great week and have a good day off of school. Thanks for all y'all do for me. I will be praying for y'all.

Love Elder Talbert

Bipolar Week

Hey Family,

                  This week has been bipolar. The weather has been crazy. It was really nice and I was excited for the warmer weather but this weekend has been terrible. On Tuesday we had district meeting. It was good and we focused on the Book of Mormon. After district meeting we went and contacted some referral's. One was named Freddie. She is really cool and wants to learn more about the church. That evening we went and saw the Teeters. They are doing good and we had fun talking with them and having dinner with them. On Wednesday we had lunch and then tried to see a bunch of people but like no one was home. That evening we went to mutual and had a good time there. Then on Thursday we went and saw Keith. He is doing good and says he wants to come to church but they never do. On Friday we were walking to our mailbox in the morning and we waved at this lady. She asked us what we were doing and who we were. We told her we were missionaries and we teach people about Jesus. She got excited and told us to walk with her and talk about Jesus with her. Her name is Delors and she said we could come by this week and teach her some more. She seems really cool. On Saturday it had started raining but nothing too bad. Well we went with Brother Barnum to Forrest City to go see Noland. We taught the WOW (Word of Wisdom) and the Law of Chastity. The lesson went very well and he said that he would be willing to live them. He had a slight problem with drinking tea but other wise he was following the WOW. Saturday evening we went and we taught Sherry and David. They have problems with the WOW and don't quite understand why we can't drink coffee or tea. Then we went to the Teeters again for dinner. On Sunday we went to church and it was really good. In gospel principles we learned about prayer. We talked about because we are literally talking to our Heavenly Father so we should make our prayers personal things. All day on Sunday it was raining and freeze raining. After church we didn't do too much because of the weather. This morning we woke up and there was about an inch or two of ice on the ground. After lots of scarping and lots to fun playing in the ice and lots of heat we got our car where we could see out of it. After we scraped our car off we came to email. It will be interesting to see how long this weather lasts. 

 

               That is about it for my week. It has been fun and eventful. Hope y'all have as great week and have fun in the rain. I love and pray for y'all!

                                       Elder Talbert

Letter from February 24

Hey Family

                 This week has been great. On Tuesday we went and saw Sharron and Keith. Keith didn't really understand the first lesson so we taught it to him again. We then went over and saw Nanna (Sister Oreys mom). That night we had dinner and then went and saw the Oreys. Wednesday we went to the Lotts to get haircuts. That evening we went to mutual and had a meeting. It was a good meeting where we talked about the branch mission plan. On Thursday we went to Bartlett to zone conference. It was a good meeting about how to use the Book of Mormon in your teaching and how to get investigators to really understand the importance of the Book of Mormon. It started to storm so President made sure everything went fast so we could beat the storm home. It was a cool storm and their were rumors about tornados but I didn't see any. On Friday we saw a few people but not much exciting happened. Then on Saturday we went out with Brother White to go see Noland in Forrest City. It was a good visit and it really helped having a member along. I have realized how important members are in missionary work. That night we went to the Teeters for dinner. Then on Sunday church was really good. The talks were about member missionary work and the atonement. Sunday night we went to the Anderson's for dinner and then taught their oldest daughter about the stop smoking program we have. It was really good and we are having dinner at the Anderson's this next week so we will see if she has stopped smoking by then. 

                       That is about it for my week. Sorry this email is short but not much has gone on this week. Thanks for all you do. I love and pray for y'all.

Elder Talbert

Doctor

Hey Family,

                  This week has been great. Monday we played games and then because Elder North and Elder Oveson were getting transferred we said goodbye to some people. Then on Tuesday Elder Oveson packed most of the day and I straightened up the house. Then we went and taught this guy named Eugene about the Book of Mormon. That night we said goodbye to a couple more people. On Wednesday we went to transfers. My new companions name is Elder Sakurada. He is from Roy UT. He has been out for a little over a year (1 transfer less than me). Elder Fredette's new companion is Elder Cassler. He is from Orem, UT. I did not know him before the mission but we know a lot of the same people. After transfers we loaded all of their stuff in our car and drove back to West Memphis. That night we went to mutual and they got to meet lots of the members. Then me and Elder Sakurada took the other Elders' car and drove to Little Rock. We were on bike week so we didn't have a car. We got to Little Rock and stayed with the Pinnacle Mountain Elders. The next day we got up and went to my doctors visit. I wore an awesome doctor tie ( I will send a pic).

This is my doctor tie- it is pretty legit!

  It was a fairly normal visit. Some lab work, an echo (ultrasound), and some chest x-rays. The doctor told me I was doing perfect. Because it was my year mark I needed to get a special blood test to check for rejection. I had to go to a different hospital for that blood test. So after I was done we got in the car and plugged in the GPS to the hospital. We drove there and after wandering around to find the lab because the person we asked told us it was downstairs, we found the lab. We walked in and told them why we were there and they said we were at the wrong hospital. We needed to be in Little Rock not North Little Rock. It was LAME. It had the same name and was just as far from the children's hospital as the one we were supposed to be at. We finally got to the right hospital and after I told them why I was there they said come on in we have been waiting for you. I got the blood test and we headed back to West Memphis. We then went around and saw a few people. On Friday I had to wear a holter monitor that the doctor told me to wear for 24 hours. We went and saw Anne. She is doing better and is not sick anymore. We were teaching her and her grandchildren wanted to listen so we scheduled a time this week to go teach the whole family. It was awesome. Saturday we went and saw Janette and Sharon. That afternoon we had a great discussion with Sherry and David. After we went up to the Teeter's and had dinner and a good visit with them. Sunday Noland came to church. It was really great and after church we read 2nd Nephi 31 with him. We are still working on baptism and trying to set a date with him. That night we went to the Anderson's for dinner and a lesson. It was really good and lots of fun. 

this is a pic of the moon at 5 o clock

                That was about it for my week. Hope y'all have a great week and a fun Presidents day. Thanks for all y'all have done for me. 

Elder Talbert  

Force Fields

Letter from Feb 10

Hey Family,

                 This week has been great. We have transfers this next week and I am not getting transferred. I am excited to stay in West Memphis. Well on Monday we did our usual thing and played lots of games. We had dinner at the Lotts. On Tuesday we went on exchanges. I stayed in my area with Elder Schut. He is a new missionary that came out this past transfer. We had lots of fun going around and seeing people. Since we had the car we were able to go and see Janette. She has been busy as ever and only had a few minutes to talk. We then got a call from the other elders to come and pick them up (they were on bike week and it was raining really hard all day). When they got in the car they were soaked. Right as we were about to back up 3 firetrucks, a city truck, and 2 fire cars pulled in around us. It was nothing too big just a smoke scare I guess, but after about 20 min of waiting we got the attention of the fire chief and got one of the fire trucks to move so we could leave. Later we had dinner with Brother Barnum and a less active named Thomas John. It was lots of fun. We gave Thomas a blessing because he wants to change his life around. We then went and saw the Russell's. On Wednesday we had zone meeting. On the way to zone meeting there was a mysterious ticking noise on the way over. When we arrived I glanced at the place it seemed to be coming from and saw nothing. Zone meeting was good. It was all about using the Book of Mormon more and always having a copy to give out in your hands. On the way back from zone meeting the ticking noise continued. About the time we got to the Millington exit our tire made a pop noise. We pulled off the freeway and it was flat. 

This is what our tire looked like

 We called everything in and after about an hour we were able to get the tire off and put the spare on. We drove home very cautiously on the spare. By the time we got home we had dinner then another meeting at the church. It was a long and eventful day. On Thursday we were able to go to Firestone and get the tire replaced. The old one looked like it had been stabbed several times. Friday was fairly boring. There was a social thing at the church in the evening which included food so we went. After they were playing jeopardy and I realized I knew most of the answers. On Saturday we tried to see some people but no one was home so we went to a gas station to get a drink. A guy walked in and asked us what church we go to. We then talked to him about the church and asked if we could stop by some time. That evening we saw Sherry and David. They are cool and asked a bunch of good questions. On Sunday, church was great. We had a talk about the atonement. It was awesome and really focused on how essential the atonement is to the plan of salvation. It was a great talk and priesthood was about the creation and how everything was made for a purpose. That night for dinner we ate at the Greens. In the middle of dinner their daughter Carly (she is like 5) walked up to Elder North and asked him to explain what a force field was to Holly ( she is like 3) her younger sister. He did and Holly just gave him a weird look. After dinner I shared a spiritual thought about Samuel the Lamanite and how he had a spiritual force field around him when he was up on the wall teaching the Nephite people.

We got this cool pic of a beetle bug and a guitar = perfect Kodak moment

                 That's about it for my week. Thanks for all y'all do for me. Hope ya'll have a great week and a fun valentines day. I love and pray for y'all.

Elder Talbert

L Tom Perry

Letter from Feb 3

Hey Family,

                This week has been great. Monday was usual, we played games. Then on Tuesday we went to  district meeting. It was good and both the AP's and the zone leaders where there. We learned about the restoration of the gospel. Sometimes you think that oh I have already learned about this but everything we believe in hangs on whether the restoration it true or not. So it was good to review it and learn that if our investigators don't understand the restoration we have no point to move forward till they do. That evening we taught this lady named Sherry and her husband David. They are really cool and are very active in their church. On Wednesday we went and tried to see a less active but she wasn't home so we walked around for a little. While we were walking I saw a dollar on the side of the road. I bent down to pick it up and as I did a truck passed us. We kept walkin and saw the truck that had passed us were some guys that work for the city. They asked me if I had picked up a dollar I said yes and then we got in a conversation on what each other does. Then we talked to them about the gospel and they seemed interested. We are going to go to their house this week and try and see them. On Friday we saw this less active lady named Sis Misskelly. She is really cool but I don't know why she doesn't come to church. After that we went to the Oreys. Then with the Oreys we went to Cordova to a meeting about hastening the work with Elder L Tom Perry. It was awesome and he is super energetic and happy and funny. He is also 90. He talked about how the bible was written a long time ago and is ancient and we need to be focusing on the D&C because that is modern. Out here its all about the bible but the bible is old we need to read the D&C. That is something I am going to try and do these next couple weeks. Another thing that really hit me was he said that Salvation is a personal affair and Exaltation is a family affair. It was a great night and awesome to see L. Tom Perry. On Saturday we went and we saw the Russells. They are a less active family that are really cool. We had a good talk with them. Then we went and saw Sherry and David. We taught them the Restoration and they seemed to grasp most of it. Then on Sunday we had fast and testimony meeting. It was great and Noland came to church. He stayed for all 3 hours then he had to go get ready for  work. He said he loved it and he would be back this next week. After church we went and visited the Oreys and it was lots of fun. 

                        That is about it for my week. Sounds like y'all had a great week. I hope y'all have a great week and have fun at school and work. Thanks for all y'all do.

Elder Talbert