January 17, 2012
Hey Family and Friends,
Woodburn continues to be the best place on earth and I’m grateful to be here. I really enjoyed your letters this week and it’s good to see that you’re all doing well. Thanks again for the Sonicare toothbrush and you have started a revolution out here. After I got my toothbrush my comp started to covet it and went and bought his own the next day ha-ha. Now that’s what I call comp unity, we even brush with the same kind of toothbrush. Now the Elders from Gervais that live in our apartment complex have decided to get some Sonicare toothbrushes as well. We will have the brightest smiles in the mission ha-ha. Next thing you know the Silverton Elders will be using Sonicare and all the missionaries in the branch will have one ha-ha. Well I would like to go get a cleaning from a Dentist but I feel bad because there are going to be a lot of medical bills coming your way.
Yesterday I saw Doctor Perez about my ADHD and he said he thinks it would be a good idea to start me on a new medication called Vyvanse. Then he told me to go get an EKG so I can make sure that the stimulant doesn’t mess up my heart since I had SVT. I have to go to the Doctor tomorrow to get my EKG and I feel bad because they always charge a ton of money for like 10 minutes of work. I guess I have to do what I have to do to reach my full potential. So no I haven’t started the medicine yet but the Doctor said in a week or so, I just have to get the EKG cleared by the heart Doctor and get permission from SLC. All the missionaries here are telling me not to take the medicine because I will lose my personality and turn into a robot. I told the Doctor my concern about that and he said that this medicine won’t do that and if it does I've got to go off of it. The medicine shouldn’t make your personality flat but should keep it the same. I hope that’s the case and let me know if it’s still cool to go get my teeth checked after all these tests.
That’s good to hear that the jazz are picking it up and not getting rocked every game. That’s so cool that Pope got its first state title and is leaving a legacy for Coach Haskin. I loved wrestling and now I miss it. We are teaching a family that has a 13 year old kid that wrestles. I taught him the firemen’s carry and he said we would use it in Regionals. The kid is the man and he is going to be a state champ in the future because he’s got the talent. I also have exchanges with Elder N tomorrow, the 2 time state champ from Arizona. We will probably wrestle for morning exercises. O yeah, I told you I wouldn’t wrestle that kid because he’s too big but as always I couldn’t turn down a challenge. We wrestled about a month ago and I got rocked ha-ha. I scored a point on him but he was just too big for me, but we will see what happens tomorrow ha-ha. I saw the picture of my boys from the old wrestling squad and it seems like they are doing well. I miss their attitudes and they were truly my brothers.
That’s really awesome that things are going good with the missionary work out there and that the Rama is exploding. We too are hoping to have a baptism soon so we will have to keep on praying. By the way I’m about to finish up with my journal and send it home with some pictures. Yesterday I bought another journal at Deseret book and it’s amazing looking. It looks like scriptures except its blank inside. Well I’ll send that home soon but the journal I bought will most likely be my last one of the mission. Can you believe it, 5 journals full of the best memories a missionary could ask for ha-ha. Anyway the mission life is the best. I’m just super happy to be an instrument in the Lords hand so I can accomplish His will.
In answer to your question, what would you say is the most important lesson you have learned on your mission and how do you think it will affect your life in the future.
Well I don’t think there is just one thing I can share that would be the most important thing I’ve learned but I can tell you about something I learned the other day. Yesterday I was reading in D & C 84 about my duty as a priesthood holder and what the Lord expects of me. As I was reading I was really impressed by verse 85 that basically says to not worry about what you are going to say but more trust in the Lord and the Holy Ghost will give you what you need to say in the right moment. Well I meditated on that and found myself guilty of not trusting fully in the Lord. Usually when I teach the gospel, I like to plan out what I’m going to say in my mind so it comes out right and by doing that I don’t exactly hit on the needs of my investigators. I decided to pray for help and ask the Father to help me have the trust sufficient to let the Holy Ghost guide me in all that I do. That night I was able to let go of my own thoughts and I was truly guided in what to say and do in the lessons we had. I had been praying a lot before that experience to know what I must do to be a more powerful teacher. From this experience I learned that the scriptures are full of answers and can direct us to the knowledge we need. I am grateful for this experience because not only was I able to speak with my father in heaven about how I felt, but I truly knew he was there listening to my desires. That’s a cool lesson I’ve learned and since that experience I’ve been less stressed about what to say and more concentrated on what the investigators needs are. I love the Lord and I love being in his service. I have learned so much about how the Lord works with his children on earth and how gaining a stronger faith in him can help us in our daily lives.
Thanks for being there for me family and I hope you have a good week.
Love,
Elder Payne
