I see fields of corn, another week full of thorns, Tony goes home, our teaching pool is dry as a bone, and I think to myself, why am I in Iowa?

So my week isn't as bad as what the intro is and by the way it goes to the tune of that one song

 

Dear President Jergensen

  It's been an alright week. We weren't able to teach any of our main investigators right now and that's been the biggest downer for us. We do have some folks that are high on the potential investigators list that may very much be in line for new investigators this upcoming week.
  Tonight we are going to teach Chris and Sheri and Quentin and that is going to put them right back on the path towards baptism and towards the temple. They haven't been to church the past few weeks and that's been letting the wind out of our sails, but we're definantly excited to teach them again. From what it looks like we may have to set the date back again just to make sure that they are trully ready for baptism.
  Something that Elder Pope and I have been working on is having good member lessons with our dinner appointments and trying to have the members bring someone to the dinner. Our lessons have really varied depending on who we are teaching whether it's an older couple or a young family. I find I find more success in having the members commit to doing missionary work when we focus the lesson on the children.
  I have felt some concern from Elder Pope this last week regarding our efforts here. He seems to be a very go get it done now person, and it's been a hard transition for him to be patient and pray and let the Lord work things out and then go when it feels right. Daily contact with our investigators has been a must and it's been able to get us on a more non-hostile level with the investigators.
  I see great improvements in the 3rd ward with Elder Mckeon and Knight. I think that they are understanding more of who they are and what this work is all about. This past district meeting the assistants trained on being a "spiritually mature missionary" and that had a great effect towards the district.
  I see the Sisters are doing better and I know that they are working hard, and I want to help them so much, and I'm trying all that I can with the district meetings to get everyone pumped and ready for the work. Prayer is one of the most powerful ways that I feel I'm helping out.
  I'm so glad for the studies every morning in the Book of Mormon. It has been bringing so much more light and truth into my life. Both Elder Pope and I are excited to get out and share our testimonies of the Book of Mormon with these good people.
                                         Elder Gonzalez  Des Moines 2nd

 

 

 So this is the last email that Tony will read from me as a full time missionary............. that sucks..... no more cool missionary letters..... no more talking bad about our companions......... no more dreaming about golf back home because he'll be doing it......... no more cool phone calls on the holidays......... no more getting letters into the mail before p-day is over........ no more complaining about being out of msf............... no more trying to not get trunky because your trunk is already packed.................. now i'm out here all alone in this place called Des Moines  ........................................................................................................................................................................................................... looks like the only option that I have is to suck it up and just teach and preach and work as missionaries do

 

   So i'm kinda excited for Tony to go home but then I realize what it must be like to not have the sacred oppurtunity to testify of Christ all day everyday and that is what quite frankly keeps the fire underneath me.... I'll tell ya what if President Jergensen said your going home I'd say

" oh heck no I ain't going back to the real world, with it's bills and school and worldly stuff and those things with a tail!"    I love the missionary life even when life does get tough all I have to say is wow I'm a missionary and that means that all i have to do is jugle one ball and that ball is missionary work and it's the greatest task that I could ever have and to have to add more to that like school and a job and girls and car payments and insurance and a phone bill and all that nonsense is just a hastle. So in the mean time I'm going to be here in Iown hiding from all of that because there is certainly a lot of ways to hide from all of that out here.SOOO our week is alright we have been trying to clear out potentials list and try to get all of our area book up to date as far as who is even still a potential and that will make life so much easier in the future. We did have some cool lessons, one was with a man named Bill who worked with a good member of the church up in Minn and he is a researcher for a medical institution and the dude who he said he work with was a leader of the church over a really big group and he said that it was several different congregations, so I told him he was probably a stake president and he said that that sounded familier. So Bill has had some positive impact with members in the past and we are going to meet with him again on Wednesday and begin to teach him. He is bound to a wheel chair because of some tumors that he has had in his legs before and so he seems to be pretty humble towards our message.

  Well once again the time is starting to fly here, I'm spending way too much time looking out the window of the library at the lake and watching the cars drive over the him never to be seen again.... kinda like Tony is going to fly away from OK and never be seen again hahahaha naaaaaaaaaaaa that ain't going to happen because we goin to go to some Thunder games later on and party it up hardcore... the righteous way of course..... but as for Iowa there ain't a whole lot of stuff to do here except go to the farmers market and look at all the corn and soy beans and corn and apples and corn and pork and corn and lettuce and corn and radishes and corn and corn and corn........... pretty exciting huh?

  Take care  family if I don't ever come home it'll be because some John Deere Tracker ran me over and I got turned into pig feed

 

                                       One love          Elder Gonzalez         

 

  ps I think that I'm going to get an Iowa drivers license because it's what true Iowans do.... maybe and illinois one but who cares

Read it, Roll it, Hole it, I'm ready to work!!!

Thanks for the good talks that I had with yall it was good to hear all of your voices and see how things have been going. with out delay here is the presidents letter

 

Dear President Jergensen

  It has been an up and down week. We had some great lessons with some investigators, but have been struggling to get them to church these past couple of weeks.
  We have a lesson scheduled for Saturday with Chris, Sheri, and Quentin. We are planning on teaching Quentin the message of the Restoration. I know that the baptismal date is coming up and we are excited to start making arrangements with the ward for their full support with this baptismal service. Elder Pope and I plan on stopping by today to see how they're doing. Monday's and Saturday's are the only days to catch them due to work schedules.
  Elder Pope and I had a great oppurtunity to do some service with the Mulhern Family on Saturday.  While doing service with them I had the chance to talk to Matthew about the church and gospel for about 40 minutes and he understands a lot and knows that he wants to make a change. The ward yesterday is going to try to get the Mulherns to do a presenting of the colors at our Memorial Day breakfast and so that'll get them out and exposed to the ward. Slowly but surely we are seeing improvements with the attitude towards the church in that family.
  We did meet with some of our investigators who will first need to get married before they get baptized. We have Eric and Alicia who is a part member family, and Erick and Heather who are both non-members. Any advice about how to go about making preparations for marriage and then baptism?
  I do notice a change in the work with Elders Mckeon and Knight. I know that the zone leaders went on an exchange with them and that has helped direct them in a better path and attitude.
  My current concern right now is with the sisters. I'm just hitting blank as far as how to help them get the work going in the Racoon River Ward. I'm definantly going to be going to the Lord in prayer to see how I can serve them.
  Elder Pope and I are doing great. I've yet to see an elder be more excited to teach and to go the extra mile in trying to talk and commit our investigators to really dig deep and find out for themselves.
                                      Elder Gonzalez   Des  Moines 2nd

 

So like I've been able to explain it's been a slight struggle to get folks to church these last few weeks.  I know that the Lord has a plan for everything so Elder Pope and I are going to be working our aces off the get this area busy with investigators and with baptisms we have some much potential here and it's good to know that I have all of you as a support here and to back me up when tragety strikes.

 Getting Referrals from the ward is probably the hardest thing to do right now... It's really a bummer when in the past missionaries have just gone to member's house's and just layed around after the meal and talk about a scripture and don't get any ward trust. Elder Pope and I have been working with some members trying give messages that will not only give them a message but gives them a committment.   Just like Uchtdorf's talk this past conference... the WHAT informs.... the WHY transforms

 

  I think that you guessed it mom I come to this email session and don't have much to talk about and so I'm sitting here witha blank just wondering what's for lunch.......mmmmmm how about some classic Iowa Pork and corn....... noooooooo I can't give into this redneck culture I will not I cannot do it I mmmmuuuuusssssttttt resist.......... ok it's pork and Corn for lunch

 

So talking with Tony was pretty awesome mostly because I got the last little advice that I could out of him and I'm just super charged for the work here for at least till Christmas(which won't come because the world is going to end) and that recharge me some time.  I just have to say make sure that he takes good care of my golf clubs because when I get  home I expect something of equal  value or greater in return those are my prized possesions when I get back. Probably because they're my only possesions when I get back.  But no really our talk was all just about how we are going to  be missionaries always and how I can be a better District Leader and just do all the good stuff that missionaries do and do them with a purpose. The weather is now good and so we have no excuse whatsoever to be cold or achy because it's summer and things are alive and well in the summer and so should the missionary work be wherever a righteous Elder is.

 

I'm mostly just putting random stuff down because I don't have much more to right about.

 

I do want to start sending certain emails to ya mom that I find while on Mormon.org and so be aware of these mid-week emails from me .

 

                                                                Elder Gonzalez    Des Moines 2nd Ward...........     Hollands Last talk in October..... "what better way to say then by word and by deed, In this family we serve missions."

We got some stuff rolling in Iowa... and it's not the John Deere Tractors!!! (from May 7, 2012)

Hi everyone it's been a crazy week and it got even crazier with our huge basketball tournament at the state capitol but here's president's letter

 

Dear President Jergensen

  It has been an up and down week. We had some great lessons with Sheri and Quentin as well as with Erick and Heather. Sheri and Quentin are now scheduled together for June 2nd and that is going to give Chris some more time to prepare to be able to perform those baptisms. We were to have another lesson on Friday with them, but Sheri wasn't feeling well and canceled and wasn't able to make it to church yesterday.  I do have a question concerning Quentin, do we need to have written consent from his dad to be able to teach him? I'm not sure how his dad will respond to us but as far as I know he's letting him go to church with Chris and Sheri.
  Elder Pope and I got to teach Erick and Heather the Restoration and it was a great lesson. I know that the adversary was trying to stop that lesson because the dog was going nuts and the phones just kept going off and the baby decided to cry during the Restoration DVD. I know that they felt the spirit and they deffinantly did during our first lesson. Both Erick and Heather have a foot in the door in regards to the gospel from Erick's side of the family so it's good to be reviewing some things concerning the plan of salvation with them. Again with Heather, just as with Sheri she got sick over the weekend and wasn't able to make it to church.
  I did get to go on an exchange with Elder Mckeon on Thursday and it was alright. I spent more time with Elder Philips than I did with Elder Mckeon that night due to Elder Parkinson handing off an investigator to them. I do notice a dramatic increase in the work in the 3rd ward but I'm still concerned about the obedience and use of time. I did take some things off their walls that didn't need to be on there, and helped go through their area book. 

  I know that the district as a whole is trying to find people to teach and so I'll focus on chapter 9 of Preach My Gospel this upcoming week.
  The sister's are having troubles with getting those teaching opportunities and I'm praying for their success and have just hit a dead spot with trying to help them so any advice would be much appreciated.
 
 Eder Pope is doing well,we did get behind on our 12 week program this week and will have to catch up this upcoming week.  He's doing great and he's keeping me on my toes about being fired up for the work.  There's always ups and downs but he's been great and I'll have him give a training this upcoming district meeting.
                                      Elder Gonzalez  Des Moines 2nd

 

  So like it's stated above Elder Pope and I are super excited to be having Quentin jump on board with the lessons and a desire to be baptized. It's difficult to schedule when we can be able to go teach because Chris works and like 3:30 and Sheri does a regular 8 to 4 shift and so our only times to meet are Monday and on the Weekends. I know that Chris will be ready to do those baptisms and see his new family get on track towards the temple. He has a smoking issue that he is trying to get rid of but fyi alot of folks don't know this but according to the new handbook Father wishing to baptize family members do not have to be clear of Word of Wisdom issues probably because the spirit that comes from baptizig a family will change the hearts of those in the family. 

  SO the coolest thing that we were able to do was this massive 3 on 3 basketball tournament called "Hoopin at the Dome" It started and 8 and ended at like 3:30. It was all outside in the parking lot and it's all part of the Iowa games that goes on in the state. So we the missionaries were the official time keepers for the games and kept the score sheets and kept score for the games. The ages ranged from 4th grade all the way to adults. so elder Pope and i got to be with the young bucks and there were about 20 missionaries out there doing these games. it was soooooo much fun and we got completely baked and it wasn't pretty not many had sunscreen and you'll see my arms in the next memory chip that you have because my arms look like the real redskins. The shirt that they gave us has a list of sponsers on the back and the church is actually one of those sponsers so that's pretty cool to see. 

  Life is not to bad here but I do want you to know that you are in my prayers and like the experience that Tony had with the door guy we get our fair share of losers that just yell and get angry...... One day i swear one day I'm just going to mailto:*&%5E%25$@#$%25$@#!............... i love the  people here.

  So It's May and that means that Tony goes home and does stuff......... I don't know what but he'll do stuff and I'll get to call home this next Sunday which I'm super excited about it will probably be around 2 3 or 4 in the afternoon for you people in the utah time zone.  Again I'm blank as to what to say to you all but what i can say I'll do it with the call on sunday...... Again there are some problems with the Elders in my District and it's getting really old  so Praying for patience and for the ability to get to them is tough at the moment.

 

 

  I love you all and I know this email sucks but that's just going to have to do because I can't think and we're going to go play some ball and get into some fights on the court hahaha jk but for reals......... When life gives you lemons make Kool-aid

 

                                   Elder Gonzalez

A Tough Week With Some Roses at the End!! (from April 30, 2012)

Hey Family it's good to be an Iowa native today........ mostly because nobody cares about Iowa but hey it's all good

 

Dear President Jergensen

  It's been a great week and the work here in the Des Moines 2nd Ward is starting to get underway. Yesterday at church the 3rd hour was combined with Priesthood and Relief Society. The focus was on the ward mission plan, and it was so wonderful to see the ward get excited for the work. Elder Pope and I slipped a Mormon.org card into each program at church with our number on it and they enjoyed that. I really like to ward's mission plan because it is so simple.
1) Pray- for oppurtunities to share the message.
2) Visit- see oppurtunities to strengthen and encourage members and non-members.
3) Share- Let others know about activities and our basic beliefs.

  It was so nice to see the ward get these steps into action and to tell the ward that we are always available to help them. Elder Pope shared with the ward what an invitation to learn can do to a person and he shared how if he never was asked to go to church, he wouldn't be on a mission right now.

  We are meeting with Sheri tonight and are going to be getting the last preparations set up for her baptism this Saturday. Chris still needs to get interviewed by the Bishop to see if he's on good standing to perform that baptism. Sheri's son Quentin will be there and we are going to extend the invitation for him to begin learning.
  A miracle happened yesterday. Elder Pope and I have been trying to meet with a family that just had a baby for the last week and yesterday to oppurtunity came. We taught about how we are all God's children and how the gospel is for the family and how it not only blesses us here on earth, but also in the eternities and that really hit home with Eric and Heather. Elder Pope did a great job with teaching and giving a sincere testimony and extending the baptismal invitation. We are having dinner with them on Wednesday and then teaching.
  Elder Pope did hit the wall this week with the realization that this is not easy. I knew it would happen because it just happens to everyone who comes to this mission. We had a good talk about finding those that are prepared and really putting to test the "trail of your faith". He is doing a great job and it all payed off for him with the lesson with Eric and Heather.
  It's been a rough couple of weeks with teaching, but the future looks great and I see many converts on the way.

  The district is a little down on the teaching appointments right now so that's going to be a focus for district meeting. I'll brainstorm again different ways to share this message. The Sisters are doing good, but they're having some problems getting their Branch Mission Leader to follow through with the Elder Zwick Questions. Elder Mckeon and Elder Knight are still having some issues with teaching. I'm going to go on an exchange with them and help get all the junk out of their appartment.
  The Doctrine of Christ is real and I'm excited for Leadership this week. Elder Gonzalez Des Moines 2nd

 

Sooooo like the letter above stats things aren't to bad in the area right now. I'm so excited to be teaching a brand new couple who just had a baby like 3 weeks ago. We orignally knocked into them on the night that they brought the baby home and it's just been a miracle to hear how they have been prepared. Eric's stepmom goes to the spanish branch in town and so he already knows a little of what's going on. Heather has had some talks with Eric's stepmom and she said that everything that she says about the church just makes complete sense and that its a lot better sounding then her old baptist church.

   I got a new bike because i had to leave my old one back in Bloomington boy do i miss that place it was so much fun the ward there was great but this ward is just so close nit that man it's going to be tough to leave this one because I just enjoy it so much. So this week we'll be biking all around this place which has many hills which wouldn't seem typical for Iowa but hey to me they are mountains.

  St. George........................ I love that place and will live there if I don't live here in West Des Moines... I have the picture of me and the gang on the steps of the St. geezy temple like a week before i left on my mission. It's cool to think that 3 out of the 4 are on missions and the other got to baptize Drew which would be Devin.

  I did get a letter from Drew this week and he's doing good and is dating a girl THAT I HOOKED HIM UP WITH. It may be a mistake but hey she's Mormon and Drew is starting to internalize the change already in his heart. He has been called as a ward missionary in his AFA Ward. He's going to be something big in the church I just know it because he's got a very intelligent mindset and has the gift of leadership.

  So the current news from the Prison in Provo is that John is getting ready to leave and Taylor is leaving this next week and Luke is starting to get homesick. He'll be fine I sent a letter to him that will make him stay.

  So i want to hear from Jared because i sent him an email and didn't get anything back ;(   

 

  I hate this I get to the library and don't know what I want to say............ The weather ain't to bad.......... I stepped on a weird bug in our apartment today....... It's the end of the month and I'm broke as ever hahaha i feel poorer then a Med student at DMU hahaha those suckers are going through some tough tests right now........ Elder Pope is a good missionary...... the peeps are all gone and the redvines vanished in a day......... the jerky is good but peppered jerky is even better.........  I"m scared of bugs in my apartment now and that really makes me mad because there's spiders out here that make spiders in utah look like Zoe next to a Tiger.......... Ah a miss Zoe with her little meows and the way she just falls on the ground when she's ready for a good pettin........ and i miss a fridge full of food........ I don't miss however the NBA playoffs though well actually I do but I'm not obsessing over it like I have in the past...... I'm still looking good....... my hair looks good........ my shoes are falling apart......... I need more pink ties........... the water here tastes like death....... Elder Pope is from Belt Montana and Virginia which makes no sense.... This letter is going to end because it makes no sense

 

WEll everyone I love you like the fat kid in Mitilda loves chocolate cake all is well in Zion.... just let me know where it is when you find it

 

 

 

Elder Pope is His Name (from April 23, 2012)

hey family it's a great day outside is this place called Des Moines Iowa .................. not much of anything to do here but hey it's a good day!1

 

Dear President Jergensen

 I'm so thankful to be serving with Elder Pope. He is a great missionary and has a true and simple testimony of this great work. I love having his insight as he is a recent convert and our Real Plays are much more realistic and we are both learning so much from each other. 

 

...

 

   Elder Pope and I had a great spiritual experience on Friday during our Weekly Planning Session. We were going over some potentials and we both wrote down the name Eric and Heather at the same time and we both just got this feeling that we needed to go see them. We got up and went to their door and she said that we could come back at anytime in the afternoon and teach and that Eric's stepmom (who is in the spanish branch) needed a blessing. So we said that we would be back the next day at the same time and we didn't catch them but Elder Pope and I both knew that we had acted on a spiritual prompting. 

  We are both having our studies focused on the Doctrine of Christ this week and it's been great to see new insights that I've missed before. 

  The 12 week program is great although this is my 3rd time going through it I'm still learning new things and improving on my teaching skills as I help Elder Pope through the ropes. 

  The District is doing well Elder Knight seems to have had a positive impact already on Elder Mckeon. Sister Neville and Thompson are doing well and I'm going to keep their spirits up as much as possible.
                                              Elder Gonzalez

 

 

So about Elder S.  He was from Atlanta Georgia and he wanted to become a navy seal which is never going to happen and he liked to play drums and play rugby back home. He is a good missionary just had a low drive to get out and work which is always tough.

 

 Elder Pope on the other hand has only been a  member for about a year and 3 months now. He is a great missionary and has an awesome drive to be doing what's right and to get working. I think that I started him off on the right foot this time and he is doing just great.  He is from a place called Belt Montana but was living in Arlington Virgina before he came out on his mission he was there for about 4 years till now. He's the only member of his family and his parents are divorced. He's about a month older then I am and had some great friends in school and in the homelife that helped him find the church and get moving towards Christ. He's about 5' 10" and sitting at about 165. He is athletic and played High School football and has a love for the outdoors just as any Montana boy would.

 

 As you  can see from the letter above we did have sheri to church on sunday as well as several less actives who we have been working with for the past few weeks. Mom and Dad Mulhern were there and they have a 12 and 14 year old son who aren't baptized and we want to start working with them, but Mom Mulhern says that she doesn't want to force them to do anything and so we have to be very careful in how we handle this one. Because Elder Pope is a new member to the church I think that it would be really helpful in getting him into the home to see the boys who would be in teh same situation way back when.

 

Mom I hope that you are getting better I know that it is hard to be going though what you are and I want you to know that I have a box with a few sweet books that hopefully you will like and my memory chip which I will need back asap because I'm taking pictures like crazy right now. Did I mention last email that I used a Chainsaw last week and was like rambo with it on a tree! it was so much fun.

 

  So it's time to go and play ball and get super tired for tonight so that we can actually get some sleep. Our matresses are crap and the springs are so bad in them.. I might just start sleeping on the floor.

 

Tony just sent his email and fyi I'm not trying to get him trunky he's the one sending me letters that have all these golf pictures and quotes from all my favorite movies and stuff in them. The only advantage I have on him is that I have the ladies in Des Moines checking out the handsome half breed that I am!

 

 Well I love you all and I wish the best to you mom you are in my prayers as well as  Dad and Jared and yes even that THING with a tail!!!!!

 

                   A wize man once said...... Live Long and Prosper.............. Elder Gonzalez           Des Moines 2nd Ward