"Take me down to the paradise city..."

Ladies, gentlemen, and other assorted grasshoppers,

After three transfers - 18 weeks - my stay in Buffalo, Wyoming is coming to a close. It is time to open the next chapter, where I will serve in Montana, the state in which I was actually called to serve. (Montana is a lawless, yet God-fearing state. God, of course, having been introduced to Montana in 1874. Montana's main export is rocks. Germany was discovered in Montana!) More specifically, I will be serving in the Missoula 5th Ward, where I will continue as a district leader. I have heard many things about Missoula, ranging from, "Oh, you're going to the zoo!" to "It's really pretty there," to "Have fun with all the college students." We'll see how this goes. Google Maps tells me that Missoula has three record stores, though, so that will be an adventure. (Pls send money.) Missoula is a city of something like 70,000 people, which is much closer to my speed. I guess we'll see how I like it after being in sleepy Buffalo for so long. Regardless, I am both excited and not excited for the nine-hour van ride. Pray for the people of Missoula - they won't know what hit them!

A quick eulogy to Elder Campbell: Elder Campbell has made this last transfer an absolute joy, and I am so grateful for the fun that we have had serving and working together. Buffalo will flourish under his stewardship, I am sure. I feel a little gypped that we only get one transfer together, but I guess good things must come to an end. I'm sure President was considering transfers, came across our companionship, and though, "Oh, heck no, that companionship is far too much fun to last!" Sigh. If only, if only...

Alright, so for this week: We had exchanges. That is all.

For Elder Campbell's kindabirthdaysortof (he was born on February 29th), we had dinner with the Thomas family. They make pulled pork sandwiches and we had an awesome cake! It was a good time. I am sad to be leaving the Thomas family.

Elder Campbell and I had story time and read a book called Because Jesus. Shout out to the lovely person who sent said book my way! It was a good time. We now feel a renewed sense of purpose for serving our Lord.

Elder Campbell won at Scrabble (finally, also again), making the record for this transfer Bette: 3, Elder Burch: 2, and Elder Campbell: 2. This is significantly worse than last transfer against Bette, where I used my superior skills to best both her and Elder Ferrara six out of ten games. I guess one has to share the wealth a little bit.

We had a lesson with Megan and Branden. (Side note: Megan and Branden are one of the major things that make leaving hurt a little. Sure, I'm ready for a change of scenery, but Megan and Branden are not only progressing investigators, but they're my friends. Continue to pray for them, please.) We had a lesson with them where we read from 2 Nephi chapter 2, and we discussed the miracle of Christ's atonement and what it means for us. We then talked about baptism, and the blessings which come from following this commandment from God. Along with that, we detailed for them the requirements of baptism, and what the promised covenant entails for them. After this, we left them a challenge: Pray together and separately, and come up with a date for baptism. Once you do, we'll set goals and make plans to help you to progress towards baptism on that date. They accepted, and I think that they are quite sincere in their desires to follow Christ. They accepted, and mentioned once again how us teaching them has been a blessing in their lives. We will be eating with them tonight. We have been commissioned with bringing the rootbeer floats.

We took a hike! It was very nice!

The church got all smokey toward the end of sacrament yesterday. It was quite odd.

Aiden, the kid of a returning less-active family, is progressing as well.

I think that is all I have for now. Spiritual thought: The atonement is sufficient to help us to change and become the best people we can be if we are willing to let it change us. "Let it change us" sounds like a passive invitation, but it is the exact opposite: It requires effort on our part to bring our will and action in line with the Lord. Josiah in the Old Testament was appointed king at 8 years old. Eighteen years into his reign, he found the book of the Law of Moses - the law that Israel was supposed to be following. Josiah looked around at the wickedness and idolatry of the people perpetuated by decades of unrighteous kings, and decided things needed a change. Through his efforts, he was able to return Israel to following the Lord, if only for a short time. No matter how far you feel like you've sunk, you can always return to the Lord and He will accept you with open arms, just like the Israelites.

I realize more and more how proud I am of my home state. Whenever anyone mentions Arizona, I give the "rock on!" hand sign and mention something about how great it is or how it is the promised land. Elder Campbell told me the other day, "You are so proud of your stupid state that I bet you bleed red, white, and Arizona." To that, I say simply this: Heck freak yeah I do!

Keep being awesome. Rock and roll ~

-Elder Burch π

"... Where the grass is green and the girls are pretty. Oh, won't you please take me home!"

Disclaimer: The grass may be green in Missoula, MT, but the Arizona skylines and desert vistas are still unmatched. Also, Arizona girls.

Look at that handsome face.

Some rad people we met on our hike!

Because Jesus.

Look! It's old Uncle Sam, wielding the
slightly-faded-but-oh-so-American flag!

Goodbye, Sheridan. It's been a good run.

"I wish we could open our eyes..."

Loyalists and revolutionaries alike,

Miracles? Miracles? DO YOU WANT TO SEE MIRACLES?! ... So do I. To be fair, this week was full of them.

First off, we went on exchanges. Elder Munroe came to Buffalo with me, and we had a rad time. We got a tip from Sister Jenkins regarding a guy who was moving, and he called us up. On Tuesday, we went over to help him move stuff. Towards the end of packing things into his trailer, he comes out of the building looking disheveled. Turns out that he had just gotten a call informing him that his father had passed away.

Crap.

Elder Munroe snaps into action. "Hey, man, you know we're Mormon missionaries, right? We believe that God gives power to his servants, and part of that is the power to give blessings. Some of those blessings can be for comfort. Would you like one?" The man agreed, and we were able to give him a blessing. Since then, we've been over twice more to help him move and share a short thought. Here's to hoping that us teaching about eternal families will be enough to spark his interest...

Later that night, we took a trip to Kaycee, a little town 45 miles south, to visit the Olsen family. After a very enjoyable time with them, we head back. Well, we realized that we were out of gasoline. The little display that estimates how far we have to go didn't even have a number, it just said "LOW" in big, bright, foreboding letters. "Elder Munroe, I need you to offer a prayer over the gas tank if you would. Due to the nature of me driving, I will not be closing my eyes for this prayer." And so, he did. On the drive, there were two times where I thought I felt the car lurch for fuel, but we were able to make it back into town and fill up. The Lord gives us tender mercies, and I think this is one prime example.

We had dinner with Jean Bourdin, the sick French guy, again. It was pretty good. He fed us lentils and sausage. Also, he showed us his collection of firearms. I'm not a gun person, but I was a little worried that Elder Campbell might faint, or maybe drool on himself. I knew he liked guns, but I learned then that he is quite good at identifying weapons on sight. I have to remind myself that we are in Wyoming, but I do hope to one day find someone with which I can talk about audio equipment or music. To be fair, I did find someone with an electric guitar the other night that I messed around with. I have met someone who collects records, too, but they don't have any credibility with me because all they have is Beatles and Rage Against the Machine, and they don't store their records correctly at all. Oh, well.

Elder Campbell sent the first letters of his mission! ...They were both to friends of mine that he has never met. *shrug*

I was reading in 1 Kings the other day, and there is an instance where a king inquires of his dignitaries whether he should go to battle. They all reply in the affirmative, to which he asks, "Are there any actual prophets of God in this city?" His second in command says, "There is yet one man, but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil." When the king asks the prophet, the prophet tells him to not go to battle, or he will die. The second in command gets all up in arms, "See! I told you he would prophecy evil concerning us!" What is the lesson here? The king and his friend ignored truth because it just didn't suit them. That led to a miserable defeat, and the downfall of that reign. When the prophets speak, they speak the words of God. If that means we need to change, it means we need to change. We shouldn't disregard the voice of the Lord simply because it doesn't suit us.

Keep being awesome! Thank you all for what you do!

Rock and roll ~

-Elder Burch π

"... To see in all directions at the same time. Oh, what a beautiful view if you were never aware of what was around you."

Buffalo's Dynamic Duo

Elder Campbell likes trains more than he likes girls.

Meagan is making me a pinky-promise that she will say
the prayer next time. This is my proof.

It snowed again. Freaking again!

Dinner appointment with the Ruby's

We have been editing pictures from the children's version of the Book

of Mormon. Oh, the joys of the iPad mission.

"An act of God..."

Happy Monday to those I haven't seen in at least seven months!

        Early this week, we went on exchanges. I was in Sheridan with Elder Emms, and we did a lot of bike riding. Riding bikes on ice is precarious. I fell and damaged a pair of pants. How lame.

        We were on a hike the other day, and Elder Campbell fell in the river. I guess that's what you get for rock-hopping when there's lots of snow.

        In the same vein, Elder Campbell and I get along very, very well! We make an obtuse amount of jokes, and we just have a really good time doing the work that doesn't feel like work at all because it is just too much fun. I'm thinking that I might get transferred this next transfer (March 8th is the transfer day, with calls being on the 5th), which would be sad because Elder Campbell is cool. Also, I want to see Meagan and Branden get baptized. They are doing well, and slowly making more and more progress.

        Saturday was simply a day of miracles. It began with our ward missionary coming with us to contact a potential, and we decide to stop at a less active member's home. Turns out, them and our ward missionary are friends, and we were able to sit down with them and even give them a blessing. It was rad. We also were able to have a surprise sit-down lesson / service opportunity with a less active part member family. Later that night, we had dinner with Meagan and Branden. It was a good time, we enjoyed ourselves (especially playing with their little boy, Kaden), but what came after was the real kicker. They are still taking the Word of Wisdom stuff slowly, but it seems like they are trying. That, and Meagan told us towards the end that us coming over has really helped them, and they feel more peace and have less conflict. That, my friends, is what I live for out here. It doesn't happen often, but when people tell you how much of a serious difference you've made to them, it makes it all so worth it.

        This email is short. I apologize, no pictures. Have a great day!

-Elder Burch π

        "... and nothing less will be accepted."

"Everything is going to be alright..."

My small band of heroes,

        This week, the zone had a conference in Gillette. Gillette is a place
about an hour south east of Buffalo, and it may be one of the
dreariest places that I have ever seen ever. That didn't matter much
to me, though, because I slept in the car on the way there as well as
on the way back. Missionaries need to get in that rest, you know.

        Elder Christensen and I went on exchanges after that. He came to
Buffalo while Elder Campbell went down to Gillette with Elder
Dougherty. Elder Christensen taught me how to exercise. Look out,
world!

        We taught a lesson on the Word of Wisdom to Meagan and Branden. I
feel like it was taught well, and Elder Christensen was an absolute
necessity for that lesson, but the reception was mixed. They both
understand it and the reasons, and they also both know it will be a
struggle. Meagan seems to have more desire to try than Branden, but
we'll keep tabs on them. Little setbacks are no reason to go dropping
them or anything rash. Also, they came to church yesterday! Any tips
for helping them to live this commandment? Send them my way.

        Sister Croft is one of our investigators. She's been taught for a
long, long time by missionaries with her husband, Brother Croft, but
the issue is that she has a language barrier. She is from China, and
she speaks English, but is quite broken. We've struggled with how to
get across to her. The last two lessons that we've taught with her,
though, have been excellent! The keys that we have found are teaching
slowly, teaching excruciatingly simply, and using visuals. She's still
not in to come to church, but we'll get her there. We've taught the
Gospel of Jesus Christ and Plan of Salvation. The Restoration is
next...

        Everything is melting. The sun is such a beautiful thing.

        I love the phrase used in Isaiah often: "... but His hand his
stretched out still." The phrase is usually preceded by something a
little more foreboding, and it speaks to me. No matter how stupid we
are sometimes, and how we often have to face the consequences of dumb
things we do, God will still reach out to us with His mercy. He wants
us to grow, and sometimes (often) that growth isn't comfortable.
Nevertheless, He will be there to help us with His hand stretched out
still, if we seek for it.

        Keep being cool.

        Rock and roll ~

-Elder Burch π

        "... Be strong, believe."

Up towards the Big Horns

Companionship Unity

Our investigators trapped a bobcat!

Onderdonk

Animal Shelter

The animal shelter here! We give service there on Wednesdays. 

"These things will change. Can you see it now?"

Welcome to transfer number three in Buffalo, Wyoming, and transfer
number one with Elder Malcom Campbell. Before you ask, yes, he falls
in the middle.

        The last few days with Elder Ferrara were good, though a little sad.
He was leaving his first area, a place where he'd been for a solid
four and a half months, so I don't blame him. He is now off to the
land of Thermopolis, home of the world's largest natural hot springs.
Too bad missionaries can't go swimming! I told him to just have a
baptism and do it in the springs. That'd work!

        Transfer days are always really weird. Elder Emms, Elder Christensen,
and I were in a trio in Sheridan for the day until the transfer van
showed up with Elder Campbell, my new companion, in tow. Elder
Campbell is an author and a world-builder, and his constant cynicism
is both entertaining and occasionally worthy of an eye-roll. Elder
Campbell and I have been doing quite well! We get along and all that,
and all that. We've been making too many references to Homestar
Runner, an internet site of our youth. "Yous was tryin to jank me!"
and "Yeah, *shaped* like there's a bite taken out of it!" have become
popular phrases in the apartment. It's been good.

        As far as investigators go, things are pretty much going as well as
they have been. Not many new developments to mention as of now, but
that will change! See, I've entered that stage of district leadering
where I have decided to talk with each companionship in the district,
have them set a goal or two for the transfer, and that I will attempt
to match their goal if at all possible. The idea being that this might
create more unity and be a good way to encourage all in the district,
as well as make it easier to keep each other accountable. So, the
Sheridan 3rd elders set the goal to give away an entire box worth of
copies of the Book of Mormon in the transfer, which translates into
about forty books. That is a difficult goal, I think, but I'm
committed if they are. So, here we go! The missionary work in the
Sheridan district is going to be the hottest in the entire mission!
Here's to a brand new vision!

        Spiritual thought: Israel can't seem to get it right. They're wicked,
are put into bondage, repent, and are delivered, and then it happens
again. In reading this, I get really frustrated with Israel and how
quick they are to forget, but then I think about us. We hear a general
conference talk that touches us deeply, but how long do we let the
ideas and teachings become part of our everyday lives? The talk on
refugees, Holland's talk on home teaching, or others - how quick are
we to forget these things? Let us not be like Israel, and let us
remember and observe the things we are taught.

        Keep rocking and rolling.

-Elder Burch π

        "... The walls that they put up to hold us back will fall down..."

Bette at the care center! We just finished a game of Scrabble and
she won, making the record 6-3 in favor of Elder Burch π.

Off in the distance...

Elder Campbell and I

"All he kept talking about was glory days..."

Good day to everyone!

        Transfer news is in, and I will be remaining in Buffalo, Wyoming, but
Elder Ferrara is heading off. To where, you ask? He is off to
Thermopolis! Elder Ferrara is a fantastic missionary, and I am excited
to hear of all the good work that he'll do on the west of the Big Horn
Mountains. We'll be dropping him off Tuesday night. It's been a good
run, Elder Ferrara. Thank you for all the good times and the things
I've learned from you.

        The other night, our friend John fed us escargot! It was a first for
both Elder Ferrara and I. I liked it a good bit, actually! I mean, I
probably wouldn't go out of my way to purchase and cook it for myself,
but if I came across it at a party or restaurant or something, I'm all
over that! Elder Ferrara, on the other hand, described his experience
like this, "It wasn't horrible, but I don't exactly like the taste of
dirt." John is cool. He's the French guy that has been mentioned in
emails past. (So, if Tinley is reading this, yes, his name is spelt
"Jean." Like Jean-Luc Picard, I think.) He isn't interested in
changing, so we don't spend much time with him, but we drop by here
and there to let him know that we think he's cool and that we're his
friends. Maybe in a future life he'll be able to take the seed we've
planted and grow it into a testimony.

        Also on the topic of new foods, I had crab legs with Bishop the other
day. That was actually way more fun and tasty than I had expected.
Kind of a weird dining experience, but worth it.

        So, these investigators we're working with? One of the big things
that we were going to hit in a lesson with them is chastity - they're
not married. Guess freaking what? They showed up at church the second
time, and had rings on. They've got the papers and are aiming to tie
the knot soon! That makes everything so much easier for us. Phew.
Also, super exciting! They're progressing so well, and we love
visiting with them. Apparently we make good cookies (just add water
cookie mix, man), so we brought them cookies with the Restoration
movie the other day. More updates on them to come!

        Elder Ferrara is going to change the world with his inventions one
day. That's all.

        In the Old Testament, there are chapters upon chapters emphasizing
this simple truth: "And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken
diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do
all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy
God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all
these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt
hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God." -Joshua 28: 1-2
It really is that simple. If we are obedient, we will be blessed. The
Lord is bound when we follow His commandments (D&C 82:10). Look for
ways you can improve and follow God more closely!

        Rock and roll ~

-Elder Burch π

        "... Oh, they'll pass you by..."

The District. RIP

Puppies!

A child! (That I am definitely not holding
in accordance with missionary rules.)

The best investigators on this side of the Big Horns.

The Escargot Adventure

Happy Birthday Elder Burch!

"So, this is the New Year..."

Welcome to 2017, everyone!

This week had a few key events that were pretty sweet. Here we go.

So, first with Kieth. We had a lesson with him in Sister Blackburn's home. In the lesson, we laid footsteps on the floor, leading to a picture of Jesus Christ. We detailed the footsteps as the parts of the gospel of Jesus Christ: faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. Kieth took the floor as he stood up and placed his foot on the first step. "Kieth, do you have faith?" And so forth. We discussed repentance and the steps to that, and then we got to the third step. "Kieth, this is an important step, but you can't step there yet. That step is baptism. We know that you have great faith, and you've made great effort in your life to repent and come closer to God, and so we invite you to be baptized by someone holding the priesthood authority of God. Will you prepare yourself to be baptized by the 14th of January?" Kieth accepted, and we started talking more about baptism. Kieth was struggling with the Word of Wisdom (not bad, just a coffee and a beer here or there), and we told him, "Kieth, following the Word of Wisdom is a requirement for baptism. And, per the standards of the mission, you need to be Word of Wisdom clean for a week before your interview (January 7th). That means that this goal that we've set of baptism for the 14th is attainable, but you have to be willing to commit today, right now. Kieth, will you give up coffee and alcohol today to prepare yourself to be baptized by our goal date?" Kieth was down for that. We put our hands together and gave a little cheer, and we reassured him that we are there to help him every step of the way in whatever way we can, not to condemn him if he messes up. We let him know that we know he can be ready by the 14th, but if he slips and we need to push it back, that it isn't the end of the world. We will keep working until we're golden. I'm so proud of and excited for Kieth and his desire to follow Jesus Christ! With faith, trust, and some divine help, I know that Kieth will be able to enter into the fold of our Father in no time, and he will be blessed in his life from having the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. Send some prayers this way for Kieth!

The other night, we had an experience that bewildered me as much as any time before. The results are positive, though, so stay tuned. A woman named Jill was dressing the hair of Brother Thomas (something I will never have because of my ethnicity: sweet hair). We showed up, and a conversation about religion ensued (I mean, how could it not?) She expressed some of her beliefs (non-denominational Christian, at this time). Along the line, she mentioned, "And, I'm sorry, but I do not believe in the Book of Mormon." 

That's fine; I wouldn't expect you to, considering that you're not a member of the Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter-Day Saints. 

"Why is that?" I inquired. 

She looked at me with a wry smile and said, "Because I believe that anyone can paraphrase the Bible." 

Oh no, not one of these people. "And that's what you believe the Book of Mormon to be? A paraphrase of the Bible?"

"Yes, and that's why I don't read it," she said confidently.

"Have you ever read it?" I asked, trying my best to not let my eye-roll enter into my voice.

"No, I've talked with missionaries before and told them that I respect their faith and what they do, but I will not read the Book of Mormon."

Here we go. "If you've never read the Book of Mormon, how do you know it is a paraphrase of the Bible?"

"That's-"

I usually do my best to not talk over others, but I continued at this point. "How can you claim to know what is in the book if you've never bothered to crack the pages? You have to try the Kit-Kat before you decide that you don't like the Kit-Kat."

Long story shorter, she accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon and said she'd be down for Elder Ferrara and I to drop by and talk with her and her boyfriend. Score.

Cody is doing super well! He is on track to get the priesthood within the month, and he is doing so well at committing to follow the Word of Wisdom, even when his brother offers him a hit on a cigarette or something. I am super proud of Cody, and I am excited to see where he goes from here.

That's all I got for today, I think. Thank you all for your continued love, prayers, and support! Keep on rocking. 

Much love,

Elder Burch π

"And I don't feel any different..."

The Sheridan District

One of the best meals yet! Thank you, Divine family!

New Year's Eve

Snowing Selfie

Helping the Petersons move into their new house on the hill