Rice. The breakfast of champions.

November 4, 2015

Some of my mission posterity. 

I don't know how I got so lucky to have such short people 
to surround myself with. 

We are the best hide and seek players in the game. 

Short = the best hiding spots available. #RollWithUs 

Elder Casela my current companion is the one to the right of me. 

This week has been one of the more interesting weeks of my mission. Elder Casela and I are opening this new area and we pretty much have no work to start out with. We have been spending tons of time going through ward lists and old area books to try to get in contact with some of the people missionaries in the past have worked with. Just in the last week or so, we have been able to scrape together a teaching pool. There are many prepared souls here in this part of the Lords vineyard. Who knew Stamford, Connecticut of all places would be so sick? 

Area: The area is beautiful. Connecticut is off the chizain this time of year. Trees errywhere. The city of Stamford is a decent size and then on top of that the surrounding areas are fairly wooded. I can kind of see why there are so many horror films that are shot in Connecticut. It's cuz once it gets dark it's flipping scary. It's getting dark pretty early here and every time it gets dark I'm afraid to get out of the car because I'm afraid that a witch is going to bite my head off. #NomNomNom

Companion: Elder Casela is sooooo sick. He is a new missionary but he doesn't act like it. This guy has a powerful testimony. He is from a small island in the Philippines and comes from humble circumstances. The whole "America" thing has kind of been a shock. Things are apparently super different. The littlest things amaze him. 

For example the other night he saw a fire truck pass by with its lights on and he was staring at it passing us like Frosty the Snowman had just come to life and was streaking across the park. 

It's been so fun because he gets excited about the littlest things. It helps me remember how gratitude is a choice and there are a ton of blessings everywhere if we are willing to look for them. 

Also, Elder Casela eats more rice than Joey Chestnut eats hot dogs on the Fourth of July. He literally eats it for every meal. The other day I got out of the shower in the morning and he had made me a huge plate of rice for breakfast. Rice is the breakfast of champions. He is such a boss!

Roommates: I currently live with Elder Brown who I was companions with in Scarsdale and Elder Pulu who I just served around in the Bronx for the last 6 months. Life is a party. 

Spiritual quote of the week: "There will be times when you will feel overwhelmed. One of the ways you will be attacked is with the feeling that you are inadequate. Well, you are inadequate to answer a call to represent God with only your own powers. But you have access to more than your natural capacities, and you do not work alone." -Elder Bednar

That quote gave me strength this week as I felt super inadequate. God will help us with the work if the work is His will. We can feel reassured and strengthened when we do Gods will. Even if the task is hard we can know it will all work out if it is what God wants us to do. 

Think of Nephi for example. He was asked to go back to the city that his father was just about stoned to death in to get the plates from Laban, probably knowing full well that there would be a chance that they could suffer the same death that their father almost had, or worse. But he knew that the Lord wouldn't ask them to do it if He wasn't going to help them out with the task. 

We do receive help in our lives from deity! I know it because I can feel it. If you can't feel it just remember that we put the limitations on ourselves of how much we feel of Gods love and guidance. 

Love you.

Elder Tyler J Johanson

 

Saying goodbye to my homegirl Barbara in the Bronx. 

It hurt leaving that place.