And That's A Wrap!

My arrival into Salt Lake City......did I mention that Oscar surprised me in Phoenix and flew home with me??  How cool is that?

Meeting my new nephew for the first time.

So good to see these people again!

This was a perfect afternoon and it just kept getting better.....

The boys came to see me too!

It's great to see my brother who became a father while I was away.  And now on to new adventures. I am so grateful for my mission, for the people I met, the people who I learned from and the people who changed me.  I wouldn't change a thing!

PHOTOS FROM THE LAST WEEK

Roller blading with the Zone - I was back in my element with this one!

The Antioch Zone on P-Day!

Tina - the manager of Loaves and Fishes - I love this lady and I love working with her.

Tina and the gang - she asked today, "What does someone have to do to become a member of your church?"  We took care of that answer real quick!!

We met a friendly T-Rex on the street and posed for a photo. Who wouldn't?

Street Art in Pittsburgh

Early in the morning on P-Days, Elder Raymundo and I like to take the truck out and explore. We found this boat on a dirt trail in Discovery Bay.

I love this companion of mine and I love this mission!

Anitoch Zone - we know how to have a good time.

My zone held a funeral for me after our Halloween party!

The funeral antics - I will miss these missionaries!  I will miss this mission!

The Final Chapter - 103rd Email!

大家好! 

Before I acknowledge the ever evident fact that I'm going home, I think I'll say a few words about how absolutely remarkable this past week was. It was one where I faced my fears and worked really hard, and Elder Raymundo and I saw miracles I never thought would happen come to fruition. 

Firstly, we found three new people to teach this week. The first was a referral, a woman requesting we bring her a copy of the Bible. We met with Pearline for the first time earlier in the week, and had a very short by positive conversation about Jesus Christ and how we come to know Him. She accepted both a copy of the Bible and Book of Mormon, and shared with us that her arthritis stopped giving her pain just as we showed up. Coincidence? Not in the slightest. 

On another note, we have added Tina, the dining room manager at 'Loaves and Fishes,' to our teaching pool! We went to help out in her kitchen on Wednesday, and she started talking to us, asking us questions like, "so, what has somebody got to do to join your church?" She has asked this multiple times, but we didn't realize that she was seriously interested. We went to lunch with her on Saturday afternoon, and were able to answer a lot of her questions, particularly about Joseph Smith. That same day, she attended the adult session of Stake Conference with us! She's a really special lady, one of the absolute best people I've met on my mission. I will really miss working with her! 

The greatest miracle of all, though, happened with Sylvia Novero. We had scheduled to go to the Visitors Center with her Friday evening, and we planned to invite her to be baptized while we were there. Just as we were about to leave for Oakland, however,  her friend Sis. Arnold, a member of the Oakley 1st Ward, called and said that Sylvia's daughter had just been taken to the hospital, and we would have to cancel the lesson. We left really disappointed and totally bummed thinking that nothing would come of our night. Minutes later, Sylvia asked us if we would come over to give her a blessing of comfort. We of course said yes, and ran over to Sis. Arnold's house to meet and gave a blessing. Our contact turned into an unexpected opportunity to teach about the Atonement. As we continued to teach, we decided to go right in and share the scriptures that we had planned, and then prepared to invite her to be baptized. At first, I thought we were absolutely crazy for doing that; the woman's daughter just got checked into the psych ward, and now we were supposed to commit her to baptism?! WHAT WERE WE THINKING?! Anyway, we got to bear some powerful testimony, especially Elder Raymundo who shared his powerful conversion experience. It all culminated to Sylvia accepting the invitation to be baptized on November 25th! It was nothing less than a miracle! It was a special moment, and incredible send-off for me. 

What did all of this have to do with? FAITH! COURAGE! TRUST IN THE LORD! These are attributes that I learned to develop this week. I learned that the Spirit of fear is not of God, and when we are scared to do something right, that is Satan influencing us to turn away and hide from a miracle that could increase our testimony or change someone's life. The idea of going home is one that I have been wrestling with for a while now. Its scary to think about, but Elder Raymundo shared something with me I'll never forget. 

"Tell the Demon inside you THEY SUCK, and you are a Child of God!" (I think we could all benefit from that advice. I have a great companion) 

Now that we've addressed the elephant in the room, I guess I better wrap things up. I have thought about the past two years for this entire transfer. This phrase from a song I remember from a High School Dinner Theatre comes to mind.

"I have fought, I have cried,

I've been broke, I've been bruised.

Yet, at the end of the day,

This life is what I still choose."

This mission experience has not been easy. I have faced challenges, rejection, my fears, doubts, and weaknesses almost on a daily basis. However, I have learned to find joy, to love others, to trust in God, and to keep moving forward. This has been an incredible experience for me. I will cherish the chance I had to bear my Savior's name on my chest these past two years as long as I live. 

I know God lives, that He knows and loves me. I know our Savior is the Christ, and that He has walked every path I will ever take in life. I never have to do anything alone. I know God speaks to us today. I love the Book of Mormon, which testifies of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Inside the Gorgeous Tabernacle Tent

It is hard to believe this is a tent on the outside once you come inside. This week has been one of hard work, constant explaining and teaching and completely busy.  More than 3,000 people came to visit the Tabernacle and Elder Raymundo and I felt like we talked to all of them.  What an awesome experience!

A focus on families.

I loved this unique way to spend time on my mission!

Ancient Israel in Antioch

各位大家好!

Can you say BUSY?! 什么东西!! This was a week that was exhausting and all over the place, but one with a lot of good that came from our business. 

Firstly, the Tabernacle of Moses event went on throughout the week. I'll give a little more of an introduction to this special exhibit: a groups of members decided to build a life-size Tabernacle replica for a youth conference in their home stake. Soon, stakes from around the country were contacting them like crazy, hoping to host the building for a time. The Antioch Stake decided that now would be a perfect time to bring it over here, just to help people be prepared for the rededication of the Oakland Temple sometime next year. The courtyard of the Tabernacle was divided into a few stations, each one focusing on a different portion of the Tabernacle, whether the Altar of Sacrifice, the Holy of Holies, the Ark of the Covenant, etc. Youth from the Stake were the primary tour guides, but we got to jump in and help out every so often. I feel like I've learned so much about it! It has been a massive project and undertaking on the Stake's part, but one where we saw a lot of success. Over the course of eight days, 4685 people were able to take tours! We also received a couple of referrals to give to missionaries to go contact. More than anything, I was so impressed by how much unity this event brought.  We had people from all different cultures and religious backgrounds come visit,  and it brought all kinds of people together,  regardless of their faith.  It was a very memorable experience, one that I was glad to have to finish my Mission. 

Of course,  we've been pretty heavily involved with the Tabernacle, but we had a lot of other things going on simultaneously this week, as well. We have had meeting after meeting after meeting, from our classic District Council to Mission Leadership Council. We have also spent all week preparing for an upcoming meeting with the Stake Presidnecy, planning for Zone Leadership Council, and planning classes to give at a Regional YSA Conference we had this past weekend. We were able to go, even though we never got the chance to teach our class on Priesthood power and Authority. Regardless, the miracle of the Conference was the fact that Chad was there!! He came and toured the Tabernacle with all of us, participated in a testimony meeting, and stayed for dinner and the dance that was held afterwards! It's been a while since we've been able to reach out to him, and he really enjoyed the event. Our Ward is great at fellowshipping him, too! Still no sign of Diego, wup I'm a little worried for. He's going through some tough times emotionally right now. Prayers for him would be most welcome!

I guess I could also address the elephant in the room to close up. I'm going home, and everyone knows about it. This has been an emotional week, honestly, thinking about my time after my mission. Elder Raymundo has been a big help. I'm grateful for a companion who patiently listens to me and encourages me to have faith. Faith and trust have really become the central themes of my Mission. This will be yet another step for me to show my Heavenly Father that I trust Him. I got to bear testimony of that fact this past Sunday. I know God lives, and that He knows each of His children personally. I know Christ died for each of us, and wants us all to safely return home. I am grateful for the Atonemet, and the comfort it gives me. I hope to develop my Faith throughout the rest of my life, and see miracles during my final week of service.

I love you all! I miss you all! Have a fantastic week! Keep praying, keep believing, and keep loving. 

Elder Butters

包长老

The Never Ending Checklist

各位弟兄姐妹、午安!

It's nice to have less time in between emails to write. Though only five days have passed since our last contact, I feel like it's been a complete week. We have been up to our necks in planning, meetings, studies, exchanges, and Tabernacle shifts.

Speaking of the Tabernacle of Moses, we are officially open to the public as of last night, and thus far we've had incredible success. Elder Raymundo and I spent our entire evening touring the grounds with people, explaining bits and pieces of the building and their spiritual significance, and helping people see the connection of the Tabernacle to modern day Temples. We also got to participate in a unique multifaith panel discussion on the significance of the Tabernacle and the children of Israel to all religious beliefs. It was both informative and spiritual. I was happy to see so many different people brought together in unity by our common beliefs, instead of pointing fingers and condemning others. It was a nice evening.

We weren't able to meet with Diego or Chad face to face this week, but we did manage to connect with Chad over the phone. He is really in a depressing place emotionally, and is really having trouble finding hope. We read Enos with him, and said a prayer on the phone with him. Sometimes I feel bad that missionaries can't provide more literal or immediate comfort to people, but it is good to know that the gospel does bring inevitable peace. Hopefully Chad got something out of what we said. I'm really worried right now about the people we are working with. 

In other news and ongoings of the week, I went on exchanges with Elder Fish on Saturday in his area. It was a busy day full of different activities. Hes very good at doing his job and getting to the point. We worked on trying to have more genuine conversations as part of our finding efforts. We had a good practice of this by visiting with some people living at a local senior center, which went well.

I got to sing a lot this week, which is great! I was asked to sing by one of our members at the funeral of his mother. It was a small gathering, but powerful. I sang as part of Zone Conference, And am working on a musical number to perform over the last few Sacrament meetings I have here. The more time goes on, the more I wish it would slow down a little. 

I got to start reading in the Book of Mormon just like Pres. Nelson has asked us to. I have been blessed to see how much that Book testifies of Christ. It's funny, as I focus my study on Him, learning about other important Gospel principles and attributes comes much more naturally. I am grateful for that. My invitation to each of you this week is to take our Prophet's invitation to heart and study. Blessings come as we do what the Prophet asks. 

Love to you all!

Elder Butters/包长老

Building Me Up (And The Tabernacle of Moses)

大家好!

It's weird to be coming to you on a Wednesday, but we had a busy week full of projects. As I've said in previous emails, the Antioch Stake is hosting an event involving a life size replica of the Tabernacle the Children of Israel used when they travelled in the wilderness for 40 years. This past Monday, I was off helping a ton of other volunteers set up the massive structure. It's beautiful, and will definitely lead to some unique spiritual experiences over the next couple of weeks. It is a project that will continue to involve us very heavily, and will take me up to practically the end of my mission. 

The past week has been filled with meetings and conferences, and lots and lots if sitting, so we haven't been up to our typical proselyting activities as much as we normally are. We haven't seen Chad in a while. He's gotten suddenly very busy with a job that takes him out to Oakland. Diego sprained his thumb earlier this week, but we still were able to meet with him for dinner, which was fun. He's way into comedy and satire, so that made for interesting conversation. Unfortunately, neither of them were able to watch General Conference, but Sylvia was. She watched it with some members at their home, which we were really happy to hear. We were also again able to do some service for our friend Pam, who has had a really rough couple of months, with lots if deaths in her family circle happening suddenly. It was hard to see her in such pain, but she knew that they were all in a better place now. Christ can really bring us all so much hope. 

Jumping back to an earlier thought, Conference was spectacular! One of the Stake Presidnecy counselors made a comment to all of us watching it at the Stake Center that Conference in essentially the "Missionary Superbowl" and I couldn't agree more! Some of my favorite message included those by Sis. Bonnie H. Cordon (how I can best "feed His sheep"), Elder Robert C. Gay (See as He sees, serve as He served, and trust him), and Elder David A. Bednar (recognizing how all things are one rather than simply checking things off of my spiritual To-Do list). My favortie talk in particular was by Elder Ronald A. Rasband, whose message on living with courage and faith as opposed to fear and doubt touched me. I have been experiencing some significant fears of life after the mission right now, and his message of continuing to stand in a Holy Place and to not be troubled was one practically written for me at this time. Most importantly, I learned I need to remember how the Lord is always with us, and I need to do better at trusting Him. There have always been doubts, but Heavenly Father is helping me, and I know He will help all of you as you take seemingly impossible steps into the unknown. I know that we are led by men called of God. I admire His chosen servants, and aspire to emulate their goodness. Also, 12 NEW TEMPLES!!! We have missionaries serving in our mission from such places as Puerto Rico and Cambodia, so it was so fun to be able to celebrate an amazing and unexpected spiritual milestone with all of them. 

Speaking of an international missionary, I went on exchanges this past week with Elder Saengsevarng. He is a hard worker, but is very worried about his English speaking and how it will affect his mission. He is nervous about a lot of the "unknowns" in his life, too, especially because he is still so early on in his mission. We were able to have lots of good talks as part of our day. I love giving advice to people. I don't mean that to sound conseated, but it's something that has brought me a lot of joy and deep relationships on my mission. Elder Saengsavarng is a good missionary, and I have no doubt he will work wonders in both the Laotian and English languages. 

The Lord is building me up. It's strange, as the weeks of missionary service come to an end, I can feel Satan working on me. I am trying to maintain the place that Heavenly Father has built me up to, but it's proving to bring unexpected challenges. Mostly just lots of questions. Regardless, I am grateful for the Gospel, I am grateful for the scriptures, a great companion who cooks, sings, trains, prepares trainings, and laughs with me (not to mention is great himself a providing council) and my Savior. 

Love you all, and thank you again for another week of prayers and thoughts and pleas on my behalf. 

下个礼拜间!

Elder Butters/包长老

Photos from Week 99 (Burn Victim)

Chad and the Elders, visiting the Temple grounds.

Wigs after exchanges......never a dull moment!

Making Lumpia with Elder Raymundo.....so tasty, but....

frying pan oil can be extremely hot!!  Ouch! Don't play with oil, kids!

Lest We Think The Day of Miracles Has Ceased

你们好!

Wow, what a week this has been. God is proving to have a real sense of humor, and he is really pushing me to my limits even in my last few weeks. 

Thank you all for your prayers for Chad! We had a great week with him. He had taken the week off so we decided to take full advantage of the opportunity. We took him to lunch, and it was nice to be with him in more of a casual setting. We also went to the Visitors Center with him, which, though a very last minute decision, led to a really inspiring lesson. We viewed a lot of the displays, and he said that slowly and surely he is feeling something powerful, feeling God's love. We have been praying to give him opportunities to have those feelings a lot now, and this trip was definitely a spiritual one. It was undeniable. Ome of the moments on my mission I will never forget. 

We also started teaching a new person this week. Diego has been attending the YSA Ward for a long time now, and has found a lot of friends there. Our lesson with him was an interesting one. He came across as challenging the Gospel, although I don't think it was intended. Teaching him is going to make me face a great fear that I have. Relationships are very important to me, and I absolutely loathe disappointing people or getting people mad at me. I've been scared that as we continue to teach Diego, our friendship will suffer. But, as I've thought about it and studied courage and faith, I've realized that this exact kind of situation is something Heavenly Father does with each of us. He loves us immensely, but expects us to grow. In order to accomplish that purpose, he doesn't coddle us or shy away from what is right just to keep us happy and our relationship with him on good terms. Instead, he throws us into the deep end, but is ever watching us as we rise to the surface, pleading with us to rely on him and his divine help to go the distance. I continue to be in awe of how much God knows me, and how willing he is to throw curve balls at me to help me grow and turn my specific weaknesses into strengths. It's inspiring. 

I've been thinking a lot about the future lately as well. The phrase "the future is as bright as your faith" came to mind several times throughout the week. I need my faith to be stronger as I move forward into the unknown that lies ahead.

Elder Raymundo is doing great. He's a really caring guy, and is super willing to lend a listening ear and go the extra mile for the members of our Zone. This week he taught me how to make lumpia, a really good Phillippino dish. We were able to help out a family whose home was burned in a fire, buying them lunch and offering kur services. He's also had some good talks with me. I admire his selflessness and faith, not to mention his testimony. We faced some awful "bashers" this week, and he bore powerful testimony of the Restoration. One of the greatest witnesses I've ever heard. 

I also had tthe chance to go on exchanges with Elder Hall, one of the missionaries in our Zone. He's a dedicated, motivated, and humble guy who really knows his job as a Missionary and wants to do it well. It's refreshing working with someone who has a much fire as he does. 

We've been trying to do a lot of finding lately, really trying to utilize more creative methods of finding, and open people up to the Book of Mormon. It's had some successes, but some lows as well. We keep trying, but we definitely had a miracle filled week. 

All in all, things are good. God continues to mold me, and I hope I can be the servant he needs me to be. I am excited to have the chance to hear the words of the leaders of His church this week. I hope it provides a lot of answers to a lot of questions, both yours and mine.

Have an awesome week!

Elder Butters/包长老

Photos from Week 98

Elder Steinke, my very dear friend, departs this week.  I will miss him.

Elder Ratliff left me this week also.  We had such a good time together, I will miss him as well.

Elder Raymundo and me out on the town.

Elder Raymundo has yet to lose to me in a chess game.....

Doing service at Loaves and Fishes.

We made a birthday cake for an Elder in our Zone - pretty impressive, I think.

#98: Administrative Work Beyond Belief

大家好!

The word of the week has been BUSY! Transfers have now come and gone, and there was a lot to be done in order to prepare for the weeks ahead.

The question on everyone's mind is, of course, the new companion. It was hard to say goodbye to Elder Ratliff, but the Lord has blessed me with another great companion. His name is Elder Raymundo. He's from Corona, California, but was born and grew up in the Philippines. He was initially called to speak Tagalog, so it's cool to have a common bond of initially being language-speaking missionaries. He's a convert to the Church, and (get this) was baptized by Jacob Dyer, someone I grew up with in China! He's really into football, cooking and baking, and is very committed to missionary work. I have never met someone who is able to feel the Spirit like he can. He's been a lot of fun!

Like I said, the majority of this week was spent doing logistical stuff. We were so busy moving Elder Raymundo in and getting situated to the new transfer that we have had little time for proselyting. We've been busy with Stake Reports, trainings, and meeting. Earlier this week I got to head up to Oakland to train a new group of District Leaders about their assignment. It made me miss preparing for trainings and studying for meetings more often. Our Zone was also able to be given a training by our Stake Presidency all about the upcoming Tabernacle of Moses event. The whole thing is hopefully going to play off like a Temple Visitor's Center, and we will be there to facilitate and guide people through it. It is probably the coolest way I can think of to end a mission experience. Elder Raymundo and I will be up to our necks in preparations for that. Already we have put together a schedule of "shifts," and will have more to work on as we get closer to October.

Unfortunately, Chad hasn't made contact with us for a while, and he didn't come to church. We are really worried about him; we have heard that he really doesn't feel comfortable at church. I am learning the importance of ministering as a result. This whole experience with Chad has taught me that loving others must always come first. I will continue to pray for him. I've challenged myself to be more charitable and loving with others.

I have had the opportunities to begin the My Plan Course for returning missionaries this week...that was SCARY!!!! This week, I had the chance to reflect on all the things that I have learned in my mission. It's hard to sum up a two year experience in a 400-word summary. I have learned that I need to do better at trusting God, I have learned that God's love is real. I have also grown in my desire to develop Christlike attributes, some of which that the Lord has helped me to develop in particular are Hope, Virtue, and Diligence. It's so interesting. I feel like I have one foot out the door and one still very much wanting to be inside. So strange. 

Lots of good things are happening, and I am definitely feeling the weight of my responsibilities. I I need to do better at getting out and about next week. We have some plans for lots of finding and reaching out people, some plans due to some miracles of calling people and then picking up and responding for our invitations to make appointments. Fingers crossed we start finding some new people. 

I love you all. I pray for each of you, and thank you for the prayers for Elder Raymundo and I. Please continue to do so, and pray specifically for Chad!

Have a great week!

Elder Butters/Bao ZhangLao

Service For Baby Puppies (Does that Even Count?)

They asked us to come help "serve" but I am not sure holding something like this counts as service. This is probably the tiniest thing I have ever held!

#97 - Enjoy As You Endure

你们好!

We are done with another week, and with that, another transfer as well. This has easily been one of my favorite transfers on my mission. This has been a week that has brought me a lot of joy. I have just been happy, and for anyone who knows me, being happy most of the time was not the common thing for me before my mission. But, more lessons of the week later.

In sad news, we unfortunalty had to drop a few of the investigators we've recently been working with. Unfortunately, Heavenly Father can't do much with someone who doesn't want to let Him into their life and help them to change, and neither can the missionaries. However, in GREAT news, we had an amazing lesson with our friend Chad. We asked Chad about how he has changed since he began meeting with missionaries, and what followed was a very open conversation about having a sense of belonging at church. The more I work with Chad, the more I realize how much we all need the Gospel. Because we are all imperfect, the church is the one place we all belong. Why? We are all reliant on our Savior' s Atonement. Though sometimes it may not feel that we are worthy of it, or that it applies to everyone but us, it is very real and personal to each of us. It was amazing to talk with Chad about justice and God's love as well. I learned that God will guide us to what is right, and warn us of dangers that come from choosing contrary to His will, but He will let us choose. He will not withhold the consequences of our actions, but He will try to warn us before we can get too far off track. Chad has been one of those people I feel so blessed to be able to work with. I will never forget the experiences I've had with him.

I've really enjoyed the companionship of the Spirit this week. I feel that I am understanding more and more what it means to have the Spirit to always be with me. I had some really good studies on trust and integrity, and how I can continually increase my trust in the Lord. That has been a theme throughout my mission, and continues to be an area where I need to grow more. I am trying to rely more on Him instead of worrying about things that are out of my control, but we'll keep working. In general, it's been a really spiritual week for me, which I feel is part of the reason I have been so happy. 

Some other reasons to be happy; we have a new music rule, and my companion and I now rock out to Disney songs most every time we are in the car! I forgot how much I LOVE MUSIC! We got to do wash a ton of dishes for service and also hold newborn puppies. We had a picnic activity with the Oakley 1st Ward, which was awesome. And, people who know my family from old college days are filling our cupboards with food. People are wonderful!

Now, the sad news...transfers happened...and my friend Elder Ratliff is leaving! He will be spending his last transfer in Union City, where I started my mission. I will remain here in Antioch to spend my final transfer. I cannot believe that I am saying that...final transfer... Anyway, a big goal that I have for this last transfer is to have joy while I work. Elder Ratliff has showed me thay life is to be enjoyed, not just endured. I think I found a new philosophy in that statement. I hope to continue feeling happy.

Love you all. I miss you all. I cannot believe that we are now at the beginning of the end. Look for more details on new companions and new adventures next week! 谢谢 for your prayers, love, and concern. Keep them coming! 

我爱你们!

Elder Butters/包长老

Wig Fun and Elder Uchtdorf!

A little bit of craziness relieves the pressure of a long day!

Elder Uchtdorf visits the mission!  Check the upper right corner to find Benjamin.

Much Ado About Nothing

早安!

A word I would use to describe this week is uneventful. Nothing spectacular really happened, but I'll share some highlights.

We started the week having a lesson with Sylvia. We are really trying to help her progress, but have come to a standstill. The next point for her is baptism, and after being taught by missionaries for almost a year, she still isn't ready to commit because of fears of what her father will do and think as a result. Granted we don't know the whole situation, but it is frustrating at times when a 50 year old woman doesn't feel confident enough to make her own decisions. We taught her a lesson on the Tree of Life and her personal journey down the Gospel path to the Tree, and how we need to constantly be taking steps forward in order for this gospel to really have effect in our lives. We won't be meeting with her as much as we have been, so we will hopefully be able to find more people who are ready to progress.
Chad came to church yesterday, but we were unable to meet with him. We planned to go to a YSA fireside on church history with him, but he didn't show up, which was a bummer... He's pretty quiet, but we've been able to get him to open up about some of his concerns as we've been talking to him about his Book of Mormon reading and his questions. He's doing well.

Now how about some positives of the week? Wednesday, Elder Ratliff and I attended Mission Leadership Council, where we got to talk a lot about policies and the general status of the mission. I love seeing missionary friends at these meetings, and knowing that they are all working so hard and caring so much makes me feel like Alma reuniting with the Sons of Mosiah. That was fun, as were the changes in policy to our mission.
I also got to go on exchanges with Elder Saungsevarng, a new missionary who is a convert from Laos. He is one of the most sincere and genuine people I've ever met, and so happy to be a missionary. We had a good day of raking leaves and knocking doors together. Loved his positivity. My favorite moment of the week was a miracle that happened on that exchange. We got a call from one of our less active members asking us to come over and give the grandmother of the family a blessing. We were able to do so, and Bro Tupou talked to us afterwards. He said that us coming over was the first time he's felt the Spirit in his home in a long time, and said that the night marked the beginning of a change for him. That experience spoke to me about the true power of the Spirit and the incredible influence it has on people. It brings things to our remembrance, whether that be knowledge and testimony, or not we previously felt. I was grateful to be apart of that evening for the Tupou family. They are now one of the families we and our awesome Ward Mission Leader, Bro. Aiello (who else can say that you have a Ward Mission Leader who invites you over to a dinner of leftovers and then out of the blue decides to grill us up some T-bone steaks!), will keep an eye on. 

Good things are happening. The Zone is doing well, but it's about time that we really try to keep positive and have faith. I learned a lot about having faith to overcome doubt while preparing for a talk that I gave in Sacrament Meeting yesterday. Even when doubts arise, we need to rely on the testimony we already have and remember the things we already know. It's like the story of the man with the son possessed with a devil; if we do indeed believe, Christ will help us overcome our "unbelief," or the areas where we lack faith. I found the whole experience really insightful.

We are doing well here, and looking forward to fall. As always, thank you for all the support and love. It never goes unnoticed.

Love to you all!

Elder Butters/包长老

#95: Crunch Time!

各位大家好!

This has been a really busy week for me. We get up to a lot of teaching, training, working, and silliness in between.

As usual, let me start with the teaching pool. We had another great lesson with Chad this week. He is very thoughtful and brings a lot of questions to our lessons. We were able to review the concept of Repentance with him, while teaching him about the Holy Ghost, Enduring to the End, and Obedience. The idea of having a completely clean slate after we repent sincerely is a really hard concept for Chad to grasp, and I've been pondering that same thing this week. It has lead me to rely much more on the promise of the Sacrament, and how it allows me to recommit myself on a weekly basis. After a lifetime of membership in the church, I feel as though I've finally learned the significance of that ordinance.
We had another lesson with Sylvia where we taught the Plan of Salvation, which I really love to teach. It's been hard trying to find a way to teach her, because she has been taught for so long and knows so much. We are really just hoping for a miracle that her Dad will allow her to be baptized soon. We had another great lesson with Enrique as well, and he's now been "passed off" to be taught by some of the sisters in our Zone. He's also a really cool guy, and seeing the Spirit enlighten him during moments of teaching is really interesting to watch.

We continued our finding efforts, which to be honest, were pretty repetitive and tiring. I've had more rude comments over the last few days said to me while tracting just over the past few days than I have in a really long time. Tracting has brought a few very interesting people to the door. We met one man who is writing a series of books about people with superheroes based on the fruits of the Spirit, and another who was very much into heavy metal bands and surprisingly accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon!

We attended a lot of meetings this week; a Zone Conference reviewing our visit with Elder Uchtdorf and giving a training, and my first Stake Coordination meeting. In between all of that, we went on exchanges with the Brentwood 2nd/Marsh Creek Elders. I spent the day with Elder Fish in his area. We got to experience a cool miracle in finding a potential person with interest, which was very welcomed for their area, one where it's really hard to find. We managed to find her after a massive day of contacting people. Cool little miracles. 

That's pretty much the brunt of it this week! 

I love you. I love what I am doing. It can be hard and frustrating, but it is pretty rewarding. I am grateful for this experience. 

Have a fantastic week! 

Elder Butters/包长老

Number 94: A Certain German Pilot In Antioch

Good Morning Everybody!

Holy cow, was THIS ever a week to remember! We had some really cool experiences that have helped me to make some lifelong memories.

As per usual, I'll start with the people we are teaching. We had an AWESOME lesson with Chad yesterday after church. Chad is progressing well and has a lot of questions about the Book of Mormon. We were able to explain the Vision of the Tree of Life as part of our lesson on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We invited him to be baptized, but he got pretty nervous about making such a life-changing commitment just yet. He seemed a little scared. Elder Ratliff and I were able to talk to him about the commitment and made him feel a lot more comfortable about it. I am learning that conversion is a huge process and that it should be taken at one's own speed. He got much calmer after we reassured him that we can take this process at his pace. I felt like it was a lesson where I really was able to "teach to needs." Chad has reminded me that God doesn't expect immediate perfection, rather steady progression. I am grateful for that knowledge. In other teaching news, we were able to meet with Sylvia and talk a TON with her about the Apostasy. It made a lot more sense to her.

We attended a ton of meetings this week as well. We participated in a Stake Priesthood Leadership meeting where we were panelists talking to all of the Ward Mission Leaders in the Antioch Stake about how they can make their work more effective. We had to get up ridiculously early for it, but it was fairly decent. However, that meeting doesn't even even compare to the meeting we had on Friday. We had a very special visit from Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf himself! He held a mission conference with all of us, and we all got to shake his hand and hear his amazing words. Getting the opportunity to hear from the current head of the Missionary Dept. was super special. He told us all about how much the Lord loves us, and also how much he expects of his servants. He asked us to always serve like we are in the middle of our missions. Mostly, he asked us to make sure that we have an increased ability to receive personal revelation so that we can help others with our personal access to the Holy Ghost. I loved how much he brought up how missions are a personal thing, and the Lord wants us to use our personal gifts to help others. Our service is personal, and the Lord wants it to be that way. I am grateful to have met him, have performed a musical number for him, and to have this in my list of experiences.

We also did some service this week, and did a ton of finding. We are busy planning out all of these routes to use to contact people, and it leads us to knock on some pretty interesting doors in the process. We knocked into a woman named Cheryl this week, and she had a conversation with us about nothing much in particular for about 45 minutes....that was memorable. Another memorable finding moment happened while we were looking for less-active Ward Missionaries. We chased one down into Marsh Creek (otherwise known as "No Man's Land"), and finding him had us walking around a farm and up a hill, with only a very angry dog behind a gate to greet us (or me...Elder Ratliff turned tails and ran...) In addition to the heat, we've done Stake Reports (a fun Zone Leader activity), had good interviews with President Durham, etc. It gave me the chance to ponder my obedience and my sincerity when I repent. I feel like I can always improve, but should probably have the "progress not perfection" attitude Elder Uchtdorf suggested, and apply it to that. Always a work in progress. 

It was a good week. I am grateful for the support of all of you in these last few months. Keep having faith and I will too! Have a great week!

Love you all!

Elder Butters/Bao ZhangLao

Roxene Visits Benjamin

Benjamin was discovered in his new Antioch ward by none other than, Roxene.....she was Grandma Reynolds' college roommate many years ago and then these two connected!  God protects us in many, many ways! Roxene is so lovely to Grandma and has already promised goodie bags and care packages for this good missionary!

The McDonald Family Provides Dinner and Photos!

Mom got these surprise photographs on her phone on Thursday evening from the McDonald family! They had invited Elder Butters and his companion, on exchanges, to dinner!  Always good to see this smiling face and the good people taking care of these Elders!

It's a good day when this face appears magically on my phone!

Photos From Antioch

Great companions and now one is leaving - Elder Li will hold an important spot in Benjamin's mission memories forever!  Thank you, Elder Li, for many many wonderful weeks in San Francisco!

The ward mission leader and his wife love Disney!!  Check out their mailbox!!!

Elder Ratcliff entered Benjamin's world this week and has made a lasting impression.  He is from Massachusetts and loves theatre!  Perfect match!

After serving in the Museum of Antioch, the Elders had some time to "play around" with the costumes.

There is never a dull moment with these two now that their paths have crossed.

Proof continues......

The Holy Hand Grenade (hand made) of Antioch from Monty Python and the Holy Grail!!!

#92: Weirdest Week in The Mission!

你们好! (If I can even say that anymore...)

I come to you all today in my new area. I have now been in Antioch for a full week now, and HOLY CRAP, I feel like I am serving in a new Mission! There have been so many changes thrown at me all at once, and it's been a little overwhelming. 

Anyway, a little about Antioch. It is a nice little utopia smack-dab in the middle of nowhere, and hot...BOILING HOT!!! It's a pretty cool area, though. My new companion is Elder Ratliff, a missionary from Massachusetts. We are pretty similar; we are both the second of six kids and are the first missionaries in our families. Fun thing, we entered the MTC on the same day and will return home together as well. He is a pretty cool guy. We have really enjoyed quoting movies and cracking jokes together. He's teaching me to really have fun, which I need to have more of! Work wise, we are the Zone Leaders here, and we cover two Wards, Oakley 1st and Antioch YSA. I don't think I could've been transferred to a more different area than what I've been used to in the Chinese program. Not only does everyone speak English here, but we work with people my age! It's really kept things exciting and different to what I am used to. 

We have dived right in this week. Elder Ratliff and I are teaching a few people right now. We were able to add someone new to our teaching pool yesterday, a guy named Chad. We were able to teach him the Restoration, and he had a lot of great questions about prophets and modern day church leadership. I'm grateful we have leaders to direct us and help us know where to go. He agreed to read and pray about the Book of Mormon, and seems like a genuine and sincere person. We are also teaching some people who have been taught for a long time, who have questions about the definitions of Priesthood Keys and the Abrahamic Covenant. Teaching them has led me to go more in depth in my studies, which keeps studies exciting. 

There are some very interesting people here, and we have had some pretty crazy experiences with all of them. Some of those people include Tina (a lady with a massive personality who runs a kitchen for the homeless), Danny (a recent convert who is applying to go into the military police) and lots of members with absolutely insane family stories...some of which I wish they weren't as open to share with us as they were. Anyway, we've had a couple of really fun days. 

I think the spiritual highlight of my week came as Elder Ratliff and I prepared and gave our first Zone Meeting. We created a Zone Vision with our missionaries, which will hopefully inspire them to work hard and work to become the missionaries they imagine themselves becoming. That has led me to think a lot about that idea for myself. We also had some really great lessons on hard work and forgiveness as part of Sunday School classes. One of my favorite quotes was about forgiveness and how the Atonement helps us to forgive:

Forgiveness is when we allow the Savior to carry the burdens we can't carry on our own. By saying I forgive you, Christ can take burdens from us. 

You'll forgive me if I don't have much to share spiritually...most of this week has been a blur of learning my new area and my completely new situation. Lots to get used to, but Heavenly Father is proving to me that he will keep my mission interesting right up till the very end!

We had fun this week... Elder Ratliff and I built the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," we quoted movies, sweated like crazy, etc. Antioch is proving to be a crazy area. 
Things continue to be interesting. I am grateful for all of the love and support you show me. Thank you for being my rock. I hope you all are safe and happy. Heavenly Father loves you all! So do I! 

Love,

Elder Butters 
包长老