Life's Good in the Blue Ridge Mountains

Hey folks!

I've got no time. We had a crazy day yesterday. I did get permission to send y'all a brief email a day late though. :)

Our week was great! We had stake conference. Randall, our investigator, came. He's doing well. He says he isn't ready to set a baptism date just yet but he wants to be baptized sometime in the next 6 weeks.

We haven't been able to get ahold of Karla. If you wouldn't mind praying for us that we can get in contact with her again, that would be really helpful.

I had a super powerful experience on exchanges this week! I was with Elder Hull, the district leader down in Blairseville, GA, and we got a call from someone asking if we could come to the hospital and give someone a blessing. We had a flexible evening so we were able to go. It turned out to be a man in his 20's. He's been married about 2 years, they have a 5 month old daughter, and he had been in a bad car accident. It involved someone else going 150mph in a 25mph zone and hitting his car. If he lives through it, he'll be paralyzed from the chest down. His poor wife was devastated.

The blessing honestly should have been way more nerve wracking than it was. There was a lot of pressure on us after all. And what if it isn't the Lord's will that he be healed? But we just felt this complete feeling of peace and calm and comfort, that it would be okay. And as we gave the blessing it just felt to me like the Lord was trying to tell us all that these things are according to His will for this young family. Things will be okay. That even if our lives don't go exactly as we might wish, they do go according to a plan that is far greater (and ultimately far more joyful) than any we could ever dream of. It was such a powerful experience, one that I'll not soon forget.

The gospel is true. I know it! I love the Savior Jesus Christ. He lives, He loves us, He is the Captain of our lives, and this is His Church. He will lead us to beautiful and joyful paths if we will allow Him to mold and shape us. Let's all try to be a little more like Him this week, and let's strive always to invite others to come unto Him.

Love,

Elder Alex Swindler
132 Springside Rd Apt D1
Asheville, NC 28803


Videos: From our drive back in to Asheville from Knoxville

Enjoy this video of me spanking Elder Stockinger as he was trying to spank Elder Creasey:

1) Asheville traffic

2-3) Pretty stuff

The rest) We visited the Biltmore Estates yesterday and it was awesome! I took about a million pictures. Here's a few of them.

Adventures in Lebanon

Hey everyone!

I don't have time to send much this week but suffice it to say that we had a good one. Highlights were that Fabian is making good progress! We brought a member with us named Brother Keefe to see him, and he told his own conversion story, and it made such a difference for Fabian. He inadvertently ended up addressing, like, all of Fabian's major concerns. We are excited to see how far he has come.

Also this week, we had a worldwide Missionary Broadcast, and there were some major changes made by the Apostles in the missionary daily schedule! The new schedule they presented allows us much more flexibility to decide when and what we do during the day. They also taught us a lot about true repentance and how we can help people to make real changes in their lives.

And then a couple days later we had a wonderful zone conference with President Griffin. He talked about repentance a lot as well. We all carry heavy chains of sin that weigh us down, but because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, those chains can be dropped, and they need not be picked up again. Which means we don't need to keep beating ourselves up over past mistakes which we have repented of. We have changed, and now we move on. And while we cannot take the chains of others from them, we can help them bear the weight and help and encourage them to let them go themselves with the help of the Savior.

I have to go but I love you all and the gospel is true! I know that as we strive to serve God and keep His commandments, He pours out His Spirit more abundantly upon us, and our hearts begin to change. Let's all try to do that more this week.

Elder Alex Swindler
11320 Station West Dr. Ste. 101
Farragut, TN 37934


Here's some pictures from our week:

1) Oh look, a floating head. How nice.

2) We decorated the other Elders' toilet today.

Videos: We did apple cider vinegar shots, just for fun.

168 Hours

Hey folks!

This week was good. One highlight was finding a guy named Jack Presley! We saw he had a bunch of military stuff outside his house while we were tracting, so we mentioned it at his door and he let us right in and told us about all his family who have served in the military. A couple of his brothers even lost their lives serving our country. We talked with him about eternal families and he asked us to come back. It was pretty cool.

Another highlight was that we went on exchanges with the zone leaders, and one of our new zone leaders is Elder Constantino, an Elder I served around in my last area! I love that guy. He is so genuinely kind and selfless. We had a good time together talking about people and catching up. Also this week we had a whole bunch of our members come out with us. It was pretty great. This ward is awesome. Our members really want to support us and be engaged in the work of the Lord.

A not-so-highlight of our week was that a lot of our investigators cancelled on us. We weren't able to meet with James, or with Allen, or Fabian, or a few of our other investigators. But! James did tell us that he has been reading from the Book of Mormon. So that's good.

Elder Urry and I have been working hard and doing a lot of tracting. We have actually gotten pretty good at it. We found several people this week that could become really promising investigators. Also, I love my district. Elder Vellinga and Elder Hatch are super cool, especially Elder Vellinga. And I really like our Sisters, Sister Beare and Stevens. I'm gonna miss this district when transfers roll around again in a few weeks.

I wanted to share something that stood out to me in the Book of Mormon this week. In 1 Nephi 7:13, Nephi exhorts his brethren to be faithful to the Lord: "Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to His will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to Him." How often do we forget that? It struck me because I realized I had forgotten that this week. The Lord is able to do all things according to His will for us if we will exercise faith in Him.

One more thing stood out to me as well from this story. A few verses later, after being bound by his brothers, Nephi prays to the Lord and asks: "O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren; yea, even give me strength that I may burst these bands with which I am bound." Nephi does not pray for his circumstances to be changed - for his bands to miraculously disappear or fall from his hands. Rather, he prays for the strength to change his circumstances - for the strength to burst his own bands. Then he went to work, trusting in God, diligently working at his bands to break them, and he was given strength from the Lord beyond his own. This is how he exercised faith in the Lord. When we find ourselves bound and trapped in our circumstances, we can learn from the example of Nephi. We can exercise our faith in the Savior, pray for the strength to change our circumstances according to His will, and then go to work, seeking to bring about His will and the desired change in our circumstances.

I testify that if we will exercise faith in Jesus Christ, He is able, according to His will, to do all things for us. And He is able to give us His enabling and strengthening power, to make us able to change our own circumstances. Let us excercise faith in Him! Let us seek His help as we go to work striving to change our own circumstances.

I love you all!

Elder Alex Swindler

1) Half mission conference pic, from a few weeks ago

2) Cool lookin' tree

3) We were dead after weekly planning this week

4) Nice

5) My jack-leg guitar. I broke my guitar string this week (again! I just barely got new strings after breaking the exact same string a few weeks ago), and I didn't want to buy another string, so I tried just tying it in a knot, and it worked! This guitar is basically being held together by wood glue, a knot, and prayers.

Video 1) I tried to dump ice cold water on Elder Urry but I missed by about an inch.

Video 2) We made a quartet!

Short One

Hey folks!

I don't have time for much of an email this week, but I'll send some pictures. Alan wasn't able to make it to church, and neither was Cory, but James read from the Book of Mormon this week! And we found a cool new guy named Brian. We taught him the Restoration out on his front porch in subfreezing weather. It was awesome.

This week I've been thinking a lot about submitting our will to the Lord's. In times when it is hard to trust and obey Him, or when exact obedience to gospel standards and the higher law is difficult and inconvenient, remember and be grateful for the choice our Savior made when He said in His agony in the garden of Gethsemane, "not my will, but Thine be done." He made that choice, so that now we will have access every day to His infinite Atonement! Where would we be if He had not chosen the difficult, but right, path that night? We can choose the harder right. We can obey the higher law. We can be exactly obedient. Because we love Him, and He loves us. He will help us.

I love you all!

Elder Alex Swindler
11320 Station West Dr. Ste. 101
Farragut, TN 37934


1-2) Elder Urry got pooped on by a bird

3) New Christmas sweater

4) Last District pic before transfers, plus the zone leaders

5) Whippoorwill Rd

6) It snowed this week!! :)

7) Shouldn't that read "road closed?"

Videos:
 Pranking the other Elders

Hey, It's Actually Kinda Short This Time!

Hey folks!

I'm really sorry, I don't have any time for an email this week. Suffice it to say that our investigators are doing well and so are we. We had some cool experiences finding and following promptings. Also the ward here is awesome and they seem to be really trusting us a lot. The ward council keeps giving us referrals and it's awesome.

Crazy story! We got the number for the missionaries in the area in Nashville where Esther moved, and when we called to explain more about Esther, the sister missionary who answered introduced herself and her name sounded really familiar. I asked her a couple questions and sure enough, it was Sister Abby Harward, a girl from my home stake! Of all the people who could have answered, we ended up calling someone I went to high school with. It blew my mind. Haha it was neat to talk to someone I know from home, and even more neat that she'll be taking over working with Esther.

My message this week is brief. The Savior's gospel is designed to help us become perfect eventually. Remember that perfection is His job; improvement is ours. Let go of perfectionism! Take time to feast upon His words every day and to communicate with our Heavenly Father in prayer, and listen to the Holy Spirit as you do so, and He will help you to know how to improve right now. That's something that stood out to me this week, because I get pretty hard on myself sometimes for not being perfect. That's not how it should be though. Our lives are not just a time of probation, they are also our loving Father's gift to us. So if you're anything like me, maybe consider being a little kinder on yourself. Improve whatever you need to improve, repent of whatever you need to repent of, but be patient. "Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..." (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Well. Somehow this still turned out to be longer than I meant it to. I love you all! Make yourselves a great week!

Elder Alex Swindler

Duh Pics

1) Found this lovely sight when we came home one night

2)Video: #missionaryfood

3) Selfie outside the children's museum where we volunteer. Love that place.

The Unrated Pics: Some slightly more PG pics and things. View at your own discretion.

1) Courtesy of Elder Lambert

2) No captions necessary

Videos) Elder Frederick discovering the (fake) poop I left all over his toilet seat hahaha

Attitude and Excuses

Hey folks!

We had a good week once again. It started out a little slow but ended really well. Wish I had more time to tell you about it but once again P-day is basically over so I'm going to have to at least try to be brief.

We had a lesson with Michael, one of our less active members, again. He is great. We taught the plan of salvation and he took it well and learned a lot. Although we did hit a doctrinal roadblock at the degrees of glory. He's got some concerns there that are super hard to figure out and get past, and we ended up having to cut the lesson short. It's got us both thinking and studying a lot though which is good.

We also mowed and weed whacked Crystal's lawn for her. It was actually Elder Frederick's first time ever mowing a lawn - I guess they don't have lawns in Arizona? It was fun, especially when it started dumping rain out of nowhere right near the end. Tennessee rain is crazy, it can be totally dry one minute, and then literally 60 seconds later it could be absolutely pouring. I love it.

Had a really great zone training meeting. President Griffin was late (he was actually taking care of Elder Lakko's current companion Elder Smith, who got hit by a car which only nearly missed Elder Lakko, and he is in pretty bad shape...) and was super tired but still gave an epic training, as always. He talked about a story involving the prophet Samuel and King Saul. Saul was given a specific commandment by the Lord to wipe out everything living in a particular city, in consequence of that city's earlier attack on the Lord's people. Saul obeyed at first, but then decided to hold back just a little, and spare some of the animals and the King of the land as trophies. He then tried to justify his disobedience by saying the animals were for a sacrifice to the Lord. Samuel replies to his lame excuse by teaching him that "to obey is better than to sacrifice." What figurative sheep are we holding back from the Lord? What small things do we continue to hold back in disobedience, perhaps even justifying them as somehow helping us be better disciples and Christians, or as not really applying to us? It is tempting to hold back just a little, and to try to justify ourselves, but that is not God's way. Obedience is the first law of heaven. The Lord asks for all we have, not just most of it and some lame excuses.

Those are just some of my thoughts from the training. It was super good.

After that, we went on exchanges with the other Elders. I went with Elder Nelson and we ended up talking a lot more than we should have, but it was still fun and we still were able to see Crystal and Camille and Cameron. Elder Frederick went with Elder Merrill, his mission "grandpa." They sounded like they had a ton of fun.

We taught Esther for one last time this week before she moved to the Nashville area. It was super powerful. We drew out a chart with her of what Nephi and Laman and Lemuel were each commanded of the Lord by the prophet Lehi to do - first to leave Jerusalem, then to obtain the plates from Laban - and how each of them responded to those commandments. Then we drew another column for Esther and what she has been commanded to do - first to be baptized, and then to tell her parents about her decision to be baptized - and how she has chosen to respond. She was able to see that she has responded like Nephi to the commandment to be baptized - she has prayed, she has studied and exercised faith, she has followed the promptings of the Spirit - but more like Laman and Lemuel to the commandment to tell her parents. It can be really hard to help Esther understand some things sometimes, but this time it seemed to really get through to her. I'm a little sad to see her go, but I'm sure she'll be in good hands with the Hermitage missionaries.

Found a couple new investigators this week as well. One is named Amy. We saw her name in our phone and didn't recognize it, so we called. She's the ex wife of an inactive member. She's going through a tough time right now and is really reaching out to God - finding her when we did was actually really well timed. We had a good visit this week and she wants us to come back.

The second is named Andrea. We were about to leave an area when we were prompted to knock on a specific door, and sure enough, she answered and was really friendly. It is crazy how it all lined up actually. She only answered because she didn't see us through the peep hole, and then she only talked to us because of my hot pink tie that gave us away as not being Jehovah's Witnesses. She is just now starting to try to get back in church for the first time in years. We came back this Saturday with a member and had a really great first lesson, and she came to church on Sunday! We are really excited about her.

We also had a second meeting with Crystal and Camille and Cameron on Sunday at the Valdez's house (awesome members here in the ward). Crystal is doing great still, she's slated to give a talk next week actually. Camille and Cameron have started reading the Book of Mormon together now, and they accepted a baptismal date of September 24th. Cameron feels ready, but Camille feels a little unsure because she is struggling to recognize answers to her prayers. But she is willing to trust the Lord and work towards a date.

Wish I had more time for a message. I'll leave you with the bits of President Griffin's thoughts I shared above, and a challenge also to examine your attitude about the Lord's commands to you. Are you choosing to be more like Nephi, with an attitude of "I will go and do," seeking for ways to do as you have been commanded and moving forward with trust and faith even when you do not know exactly how to act, or when you don't feel like it, or when it is hard? Or are you choosing to be more like Laman and Lemuel, making excuses and seeking ways to get out of doing it, or even trying a few times but giving up when success is not immediate? Is being a true disciple of the Lord a priority in your life, or an annoyance? I think we are all like Nephi sometimes and about some things, and also like Laman and Lemuel (and Saul) at other times and about other things. Let's choose to be more like Nephi. And remember, "it is our duty to be better today than we were yesterday, and better tomorrow than we are today."

I love you all! Christ lives, He loves us all, His gospel is true, and His Atonement is real! Make yourselves a great week!

Elder Alex Swindler

Pictures and Things

1) "Hey, this porch is actually pretty nic--oh gosh, is that a dead rat??"

2-3) We tracted into a master woodworker. This guy is seriously incredible. I am going to go back and take as many pictures of his work as I can. This is like the least of it, but I didn't think to take pictures until he showed us this at the end. He didn't even make it, his friend did, but the wood grain is incredible and the work is so pretty, I had to take a picture.

4) Elder Frederick examining the local wildlife

5) Goodbye to Esther

6) Hillbilly clothesline

Video) Elder Frederick fell asleep

Promptings and Selflessness

Hey folks!

We had a pretty great week this week! It went really fast though, I can't believe it's already Monday. Let's see if I can remember any of it.

I will give you some highlights and we'll go from there. Hopefully this doesn't end up a mile long like it somehow always seems to do.

On Wednesday we had a really good lesson with a less active named Jacque (pronounced "Jake"). He has a lot of worries about what has been going on in current events and how it will affect his family. We talked about Lehi's dream and what it means to "hold fast" to the iron rod. It really struck him and was definitely inspired by the Spirit. We were also inspired to talk about weaknesses and how they actually come from God, and the reasons He doesn't just take them away when we ask. They are for our benefit and when we choose to humble ourselves and exercise faith in Him, He responds with help and strength and makes us better instead of just taking them away.

On Thursday we had a great lesson with Andrea and Justin (Justin is the one who's father just passed and they are both asking a lot of questions). It was super long but they are genuinely interested and really seemed to like a lot of what we taught.

On Friday we had several cool experiences following promptings. We resolved in studies that morning to talk to as many people as we could, and also to follow everything that felt like it might be a prompting. We ended up talking to quite a few cool people and also finding several of our hard-to-contact investigators just as they pulled in the driveway. Probably the coolest experience, though, was when we went to contact a potential investigator named Johnny. I'll give you some background first though. So back home, Elder Frederick was in the temple one day, and one of the old guys who was there that day asked where he was going on a mission. Elder F told him TN, and the guy said he had a referral for him - his member grandson named Travis who wasn't coming to church. The grandson lived in a town called Oak Ridge. Well, sure enough, Elder Frederick gets sent to Oak Ridge his very first area. So we check the ward roster and can't find Travis's info anywhere.

Well, we go to knock on Johnny's door, and he isn't home. But we both feel prompted to knock on the next door neighbor's door, even though we've tried it before. This time though, someone was home. When we introduced ourselves, she told us "Oh, we're Mormons! Well, at least my husband and kids are." We asked her husband's name, and guess who it was? Yup, the same Travis that Elder Frederick was asked to visit. Crazy right??

The last highlight from our week is also my message. On Wednesday we went to the New Missionary Orientation meeting with President Griffin and all the new missionaries and trainers. It was really great. Some of the things that stood out to me were when President Griffin talked to the Elders about how we are preparing to become fathers. God has put in me a desire to be a father, and He has done so for a great purpose. Ultimately this desire can help and enable me to become like Him. He also talked about how my life from this point on is no longer about me. As a priesthood holder, my purpose for the rest of my life is the missionary purpose (to "invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end"). Right now, that purpose is for investigators, and it will also be for those I serve in my Church callings throughout my life. But not too long in the future, that purpose will be most of all for my family. Everything I do now and for the rest of my life is and must be for my family, both current and future. As I learn to serve God and work to improve myself now, as I get an education in the future, as I work in a job, as I serve in church callings... Everything I do is to help, and to support, and to serve, and to strengthen, and to show an example for my family. That is where true happiness is - selflessness. If we want the eternal happiness God enjoys, we must learn to live as He does, losing ourselves in the service of others. We must make our purpose His purpose. His happiness and joy is beyond our comprehension, and His whole purpose is utterly selfless: "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of [His children]."

So that's my challenge to you. Don't let the little details of life distract you from the grander purpose of our lives. Yes, we all have struggles and challenges, and we mustn't neglect to take care of ourselves. But if we want to live like God does and enjoy the happiness He enjoys, everything we do - even taking care of ourselves - must be for the higher purpose of serving and blessing others, first and foremost our families. Make the missionary purpose - His purpose - your purpose.

I love you all! Make yourselves a great week!

Love,

Elder Swindler

Picktchyers

1) Sunsets here are super pretty

2) Lots of geese!

3) Gotta protect mah wheels, bruh! (Yes, that is a jazzy chair next to the bike)

4) Another sunset

5) Post-haircut selfie

6-7) More selfies

Video) Fun with ice water

Another Week in Bristol

Knock knock!
Who's there?
The Mormons!
*a pause, some shuffling, the TV cuts off, then silence*

Hey folks!

This week was super quick. I can't believe it's already Monday again. Although sadly it wasn't quick because it was busy. We had a lot of appointments lined up that fell through, which was unfortunate. But we had some good experiences so it wasn't all bad. We had a really good discussion in ward council on how to improve ward council. We had another good appointment with Anna. She is crazy close to accepting the gospel but she's still just not ready yet. She also had us over to her church again on Friday for another dinner service (they've been having Friday dinner services for lent for the last few weeks apparently) and we made chocolate hazelnut bars at her house for it (thanks for the recipe, Mom!).

We also had an appointment with a couple of old investigators named Travis and Katie. Well, they're actually a fairly young couple, but they're long-time investigators. They're close friends with some of the members and they've investigated off and on for awhile. We and their member friends are pretty sure that Katie will get baptized if Travis ever does. His main concern seems to be with the priesthood. They've got a 3 year old boy and they just had another baby within the last few months, so we're going to emphasize eternal families. We think this might finally be the right time for them. And they're really awesome. They have a lot of real intent. They both want to know if it's true. Travis was saying he just hasn't gotten an answer yet for some reason. We'll focus on helping them find answers to their prayers too. They could sure use your prayers.

We are being blessed with some opportunities to work with new people. Remember that family I mentioned? The one wit the grandma Charlotte we gave a blessing to in the hospital, and the grandson Skyler we got in the door with, and the grandson Tanner's girlfriend Kelly we also gave a blessing to? Well, Charlotte's brother just passed away this week. And as a result, at least one of his less active daughters and her non member fiancée are wanting to come back to church and meet with us to take the discussions. It's neat to see God working in their lives. They are going through such a hard time, but at the same time so many blessings are coming throughout all the hard stuff.

We could use your prayers too, for help finding new investigators and for some guidance on how to help the investigators we have, and so that we can actually meet with them (Jon cancelled every appointment we had with him this week because of his dying mother in law keeping them awake all night. We have to be patient, but it can be frustrating).

I'm short on time, as usual, but I'd like to leave a brief challenge. Take some time to prayerfully examine your Sabbath day observance. It is a "sign" between you and the Lord (as Elder Oaks put it) of your desire to obediently serve Him and consecrate your life to Him and of your gratitude for all He has given you. Do you need to make some changes? Make them!

We've been watching training videos in Ward Council from the Brethren on Sabbath day observance. Here are a few quotes I wrote down.

Our Sabbath observance is a sign between us and God. Personal preparation for the sacrament begins long before you walk into the chapel.

"Every week we have access to the powers of Godliness that help us in our ongoing process of sanctification." -David A Bednar

Sabbath day observance should not be regimented by leaders but should be decided by individuals in council with the Lord and by families in family councils (also with the Lord).

"As we humbly seek the Lord's help He can help us progress from good to better to best" -Linda K Burton

"As we keep this one commandment it will increase our capacity to keep all the others." -Russell M Nelson

"The particulars of exactly how each of us tries to keep the higher law don't matter [as much as] that we are truly and sincerely trying to keep the higher law, and as we do that He will enable us... As we do that our homes will become [a] refuge... -one of the members of our ward council

And finally, one from an email from our mission president about self discipline:

"I’m not asking you to turn over a new leaf today, or commit to a new program. This is merely an invitation to live life as Christ intended, which includes difficult choices, some hard work and increasing capacity to enjoy all the goodness the Savior offers those who come unto Him. Choose to worship, serve and love the Lord this day."

I love you all! Thank you for your prayers and support. The Gospel's true! Make yourselves a great week!

Elder Alex Swindler

Fotos:

1-2) The new district, from left to right: Elder Hill (who is actually not in the district but was on exchanges in place of Elder Nelson), Elder Dyment (district leader), Elder Baird, Elder Collins, me, Elder Lambert, Sister Crawford, and Sister Johnson.

3) One of the members we do service for on Fridays is building a geodesic greenhouse in their backyard.

4) I got a new haircut! (I know it looks just like the old one, shhh...)

5-6) Elder Lambert and I pranked the other Elders last week with the fake poop my mom sent me. Elder Baird was FREAKING OUT. He was like "how does anyone even poop like that?!? You'd have to like grab your ankles and have, like, explosive diarrhea!!!" To top it off, even after chipping off the "poop" with a q tip as it started to peel off, they STILL haven't sat on it since. They're too grossed out. This was last Monday. :D