“I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling 22...”

This week was easily one of the busiest of weeks, at least since the last two weeks of my ninth transfer. But, that doesn’t mean it was bad. To the contrary, there were plentiful wonderful experiences about which I will now tell you.

On Tuesday, Elder Craig and I packed up the Frontier and headed up the road to the mission headquarters in Billings, Montana. We pulled into the biggest city in the mission (still not even half of Mesa), and ventured up to the temple off of Rimrock Road. There, we met with President Wadsworth and the rest of the MLC (zone leaders, sister training leaders, and the assistants). Going through the temple with the entirety of the MLC, including many past companions and many more dear friends, is easily one of the best experiences I have ever had. Seeing everyone in white, and knowing that, despite anything, we all had our sights on the Father and the Son, was powerful. I happened to be the final missionary to finish the session, and walking into the Celestial Room to see all the people that I have come to love so much was a powerful and glorious experience.

10/10, would do it again.

 Wednesday was MLC in Billings (which featured Jimmy Johns instead of Pizza Hut for lunch, thank heavens ), and it was one of the better ones, I think. Things are coming down to the wire. President and Sister Wadsworth will conclude their missions at the end of this month, and President and Sister Larson of Queen Creek, Arizona will come to lead the Montana Billings Mission. Anyway, one of the things we discussed as an MLC was what our goal for convert baptisms as a mission would be for the month of June. After prayer and pondering, people began to offer their feelings. 

I’m normally reverent, I swear.

After some numbers tossed around, “Twenty five,” and “nineteen,” and “twenty three,” and more, someone asked President, the key holder for the mission, what impressions came to him. He looked up and offered, “The number that came to me was twenty two.” There was a short time of silence, which was concluded by me announcing to the MLC and motioning to President Wadsworth, “I don’t know about you, but he’s feeling 22.”

Like I said, normally reverent.

Maybe that isn’t true. Last MLC, I made reference to Star Trek. *shrug* Happens.

After MLC, we drove back, a new dresser for our apartment in tow. But that wasn’t the end of our driving for the week.

Thursday we packed up and headed over to Byron to conduct a baptismal interview there, and then took off from there and went south to Worland, where we conducted another baptismal interview. The candidate for baptism is a native Spanish speaker, and so, despite five or more years of Spanish class in the public education system, I had Elder Loran with me to translate. I did get to add in a few phrases of my own, probably highly butchered (“¿Podemos hacer un oracion final?”), and it went well. And then we packed up and came back home.

Friday was in our area. Good times. Lessons and all.

Saturday we gave some service at the community garden before cleaning up and going back to Worland for the baptismal service. It was one of the coolest ones I’ve ever been to. The woman being baptized spoke only marginal English, with Spanish being her first language. The majority of the baptismal service, including the songs, were in Spanish. The Spirit was very strong, even though I understood about half of what was said, at most.

I will close this email with a short testimony. I testify that the priesthood authority has been restored to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and that because of it we have access to the ordinances of the gospel with which God seeks to bless us. The gospel is all about love, progression, and service. We gain access to all that God has for us when we follow the path He has shown. More happiness than we have ever experienced awaits us as we labor in the Lord’s vineyard.

Keep the faith. Rock and roll ~

-Elder Stephen Burch π

At the baptism, JJ thought we
were the coolest. Happens.

MLC

Billings, MT Temple

Dinner after the temple, feat.
Elders Craig, Madden, Wheeler, Donaldson,
Wadsworth, Wright, Peterson, and Burch

Bro. Cheatham and I

Airplanes in Greybull 

Shell Falls, WY

“It’s my own advice I need...”

After a long dearth of any kind of pictures from my end, I present to you the week of MLC. Photo ops, man. Photo ops. 

“Op” stands for opportunity, by the way. You know who you are. 

This week I was able to go on exchanges to my old stomping grounds, Greybull Wyoming. We got to visit some people that I had worked with previously, and I also treated myself to a conversation with Sister Tolman, as well as Brother and Sister Cheatham. I’m sure I’ll be back on exchanges there again, so it’ll be good. Turns out that Brother Cheatham found the thing I left for him long ago. It took him a while to find it after I left, but he did. (It was a dinosaur book that I got from the Basin library while doing service there many moons ago, and on the front was a T-Rex skeleton. I put a sticky note that said, “Look Brother Cheatham! It’s you!” and an arrow to the skeleton. Good times. It’s been a while.) So much changes, but it is good to know that the Cheathams are still the same Cheathams I knew and loved. I’ll be back post-mission. Brother Cheatham is intent on teaching me how to shoot. Also, Vector and Radian, their adorable Yorkies, are hopefully going to have puppies one of these days, and I’m going to adopt one. Because adorable. Also, I have been tossing around being a pilot? (That’s first news to a lot of people. And I’ll probably decide I want to do something else just as fast as I thought I might want to do this. *shrug* Happens.) So Brother Cheatham and I could go flying. That would be fun. Man. Good times.

After dinner, we headed to Billings to begin the monthly process of revelation and lack of sleep that is MLC. We didn’t get to Billings until 10:25 that night, slept in the mission home, woke up at 3, and went to Helena. Cool experiences there. There is a lot of power when a group is unified in faith and petitions the Lord for knowledge. We set a goal, and we discussed it. Honestly, I was a bit apprehensive about it at first. But, then we knelt down in humble prayer, having faith, and one of the missionaries acted as voice as we asked the Lord if the goal we had set was worthy and attainable. The confirmation of the Spirit was palpable, and I am sure that this is what the Lord wants for us and the mission. I felt like that kind of an experience would be cool for everyone in the mission to have, not just the leadership, so we have talked to all our district leaders and asked if they would have a similar prayer in their next district meeting to allow all the missionaries to experience the confirmation that this is the goal the Lord would like us to work towards. That way, (hopefully) all of the missionaries will be on board, and there is power in unity towards a goal.

“If Star Trek has taught me anything, it is that we can’t function on half engine power.” - Elder Burch π

I think I forgot to mention this a while back, but it is important enough to mention now: Billings has only one record store, and it is really super lame. 

I like Montana, and I like Wyoming, too. Funny throwback to the Elder Campbell days in Buffalo, Wyoming: 

Me: “We’re tracting!”

Elder Campbell: “In the wind!”

Me: “In the strong wind.”

Elder Campbell: “Wyoming has little else but sales tax!”

Yes, Montana doesn’t have sales tax. What you buy actually costs what it says. I mean, property tax is real, but still. Missionaries don’t care about property tax.

Member missionary work is fantastic. It is the most effective way to find solid new investigators. Invitations to learn more about the truth of the restored gospel means more from a friend than a random stranger who is dressed funny. And, I know the Lord will give you opportunities that you wouldn’t ever normally consider if you pray to Him in faith with a promise and commitment to act on promptings you receive to share the gospel. That is what a family in our area did this last month. About four weeks ago, we visited them and shared a message with them about missionary work, complete with some role plays with the kids on how to talk with their friends. Then, the mother asked, “Can we set a goal to have someone taught in our home by the next transfer?” And so, they set the goal, applying the things they know, and this last Sunday, we were able to teach two new investigators in this family’s home. The Work is true, and it blesses us all when we chose to be a part of it. 

Last thing: Transfer calls were yesterday. Elder Bly is being transferred to the Gillette 2nd Ward, being reassigned from zone leader to district leader / trainer, and he is stoked. He’s been a zone leader for more than 15 months, and is ready to be done with dealing with all the junk zone leaders often have to deal with. So, he takes off Tuesday night, and Wednesday evening I will be blessed to receive Elder Craig as my new companion. I know Elder Craig a little, and he is awesome! This will be his first transfer as a zone leader, so I hope to do a good job at not just being a good companion, but a good trainer in the ways of a zone leader. 

Elders! Pray for me!

Elders! ... Pray for me!

Alright, I will close this thing up. Thanks for reading.

Rock and roll ~

-Elder Stephen Burch π

“Living trapped inside the chase...”

The Worland District
(Greybull/Basin, Worland 1&2, Worland 3, and Thermopolis)
plus us, feat. heavy photo editing

The Worland District plus us

Sister Tolman and her adorable adopted child

MLC pictures

Farewell, Sister Hymas. 

Sami, Kaili, myself, Logan, and Elder Bly

“No sunlight, no sunlight...”

This week included a trip to Helena for MLC. Going to MLC from Powell is way worse than going to MLC from Great Falls or Missoula. A fun time, for sure, but far more stressful and time-consuming. Let me lay it out for you in steps.

Going To MLC in Wyoming West: A How-To Guide

1. Monday night, drive from Powell to Billings

2. Stay the night in the mission home with the Wyoming East Elders

3. Wake up at 3 to get ready to go

4. Depart the mission home in Wyoming East’s man-van (SaVANna) at 4:15

5. Stop in Bozeman to pick up those Zone Leaders

6. Arrive in Helena for MLC at 8:00

7. Enjoy MLC

8. Drive back to Bozeman to drop of those elders

9. Drive to Billings, arrive around 7:30

10. Get dinner in Billings (we went to Outback Steakhouse)

11. Sleep in the mission home again

12. Drive to Cody in the morning for district meeting

13. Drive back to Powell

14. Have a wrecked day because we’re dead tired

Good times. It actually was really good, though. MLC was great, and we really enjoyed the time with the other Elders.

Besides that, we have set some finding goals and have been striving to succeed. The recent weather (WHY IS THERE MORE SNOW) might hurt that a bit, but we will remain committed. 

Conference was awesome. Just, straight up. I loved it. Revelation is strong. Miracles await in the near future.

I feel that the next decade and beyond are going to be years marked with many miracles, much sacrifice, and a powerful surge of the furthering of the Work of the Lord. I feel that, through the inspiration of the Lord through our living prophets and apostles, the Lord will accelerate His Work as never before seen among the children of men as the world begins to draw nigh to the Second Coming of the Messiah. I feel that the coming years will provide opportunity for the saints to definitively declare “Who’s on the Lord’s side, who?” as the lines between the teachings of the world and the teachings of God are drawn more clearly than ever. Satan is a very real being bent on the misery and destruction of the souls of men, and as the battles of the last day intensify, we will face increasing trials and temptations that are ever more subtle and ensnaring. The evil one will seek to bind us with addiction, doubt, and complacency. While these things are intimidating, the blessing that will come from them is more opportunity to become the firm and steadfast disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ that we were created to be. As the heat intensifies, so does our refinement if we keep our hands firmly on the rod of iron and our gaze always towards the Mountain of the Lord. Grand opportunity is before us, more than ever before, and ours is the commission to lift up the hands which hang down and build the Lord’s kingdom in these last days. As President Nelson said, the grandest miracles of the Lord are to occur in the time between now and the Second Coming. I feel strongly to echo the admonition of Joshua: “Sanctify yourselves​: for tomorrow the ​​Lord​​ will do wonders among you.”

Thank you all for all you do. Rock and roll ~

-Elder Burch π

“...It disappeared at the same speed, the idealistic things I believed...”

WHY IS THERE MORE SNOW?!?

Watching General Conference

With Elder Bly

“With the morning comes the rest of my life...”

Jedi and Sith,

I’ve been thinking about time periods, and how certain periods of time seem shorter than others, even if they’re the same length. I don’t really know how to describe it. Like, when I think back on history, the time period between 1947 and 1977 seems a lot longer than the time period between 1776 and 1806, even though they are both periods of thirty years. *shrug* Ah, well

This week was pretty awesome. Good news: We found a new investigator! Bad news: They are currently residing in the Cascade County Regional Prison. But, hey! Everyone needs, the gospel, right?

There have been some really cool experiences with following the Spirit this week. Like, there was this time we had twenty minutes before dinner. What do we do? Twenty minutes is pretty easy to just shrug off, but I had the impression that we needed to try a person, this “new investigator” that was in our area book, but I’d only met once of the numerous times we had tried to contact him. I even said in my heart, “Okay, Spirit, if they don’t answer, or if they DO answer and don’t set a specific return appointment, I am going to drop them.” We parked across the street, said a quick prayer, and knocked on the door. Lo and behold, he was there. And he was cordial. And we set a return appointment for Friday at 3pm (which went great, by the way). As we walked back to our car, I felt like the Spirit was giving me that kind of raised eyebrows I-told-you-so look. And, then we felt to try one other person before heading to dinner, this referral from a member in the other stake. We tried him, and got another specific return appointment. The Spirit is really working with us, and it is cool to see those moments where you realize truly how little you control, and how often God has His finger on your head pointing you to where you need to go.

Sunday morning, we are doing our studies before church, when we hear this rustling over by our washer and dryer. It sounds like a small animal is scratching around back there or something, but we don’t see anything. We’d heard something like this a few days before, but it had stopped relatively quickly, plus we live in a complex, so we figured it must just be the neighbors. This time, it happened again, and the exhaust hose of the drier even moved a little bit. Weird. I tried to pass it off as temperature and pressure changes in the exhaust vent, but continued scratching noises caused that theory to be destroyed. So, we scooted the drier out, and disconnected the vent at the bottom, and kept studying, seeing if anything would happen. It did, but nothing came out, so we finally took the hose out of the hole in the wall, and found a little bird inside of it. We put a torn piece of bread in there for the little guy. Eventually, he flew out, and we had to trap him in a box, but we were eventually able to release him into the outside again, and make it to church on time. Score!

I have been studying agency in the Book of Mormon and I have never had more powerful or insightful study sessions. I highly recommend reading through the entire Book of Mormon with one topic in mind. It’s crazy cool what you might find. Agency is a cool place to start. Helaman 6 is a wild chapter.

Thank you all for reading! I hope you do well. 

Rock and roll ~

Elder Stephen Burch π

“With this empty glass, I will break the past. ... I want this to be my awakening.”

"This [manufactured home] ain't big
enough for the two of us!"

The bird in question

Elder Brown, myself, Elder Lester,
Elder Madsen and Elder Campbell

Ice crystals are cool

Missionary Leadership Conference
Helena, MT

Zone Conference

“I am a visitor here, I am not permanent...”

Everyone,

Alas, my time in Missoula is about to come to an end. Wednesday morning, I will drive the Man Van for the last time to Helena, where I will meet up with Elder Lester, and head up to Great Falls to spend the next part of my missionary service. Cool thing, Elder Lester was my best friend in 4th Grade. Check that out! My new address will be: 1109 9th St. NW #7 Great Falls MT 59404

Saturday, we had the awesome opportunity to attend the baptism of Gary, the guy we interviewed last week. It was awesome. There was definitely a strong feeling in the air - easy to tell that the Spirit was there in abundance. I mentioned in the last email (I think?) how it was obvious that the Lord had been preparing Gary to receive the message of the restoration of the gospel, and the baptism felt so natural - like any other step, he was taking his next step in progression on the path of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He started the journey home to our Father. And, it will be a journey full of joy, because God wants us to be happy here as well as in the life to come. It was a powerful experience. “There must’ve been something in the water...”

We talked about Christlike attributes in MLC, and the takeaway I received was about how we can identify Christlike attributes in others, and when look for those positive things, it naturally increases Christlike attributes in us as we increase in love through focusing on the positive of others. Seeking out the good in others is an important thing to do. So, this week, take an extra effort to identify positive things about others, and point them out! It’ll be a good change, I promise. (See the picture I made down below for a list of Preach My Gospel’s identified Christlike attributes. There are more, but this is a good start.)

Love you all! It’s getting colder here. Christmas will be here before we know it!

Rock and roll ~

-Elder Burch π

“... The district sleeps alone tonight.”

Frozen Yogurt with some awesome Elders

At Gary's baptism with Elders Zitto, Ritchie, and Wheeler 

With Elder Ritchie

Saw the Kambale family again!

Look what we did. Feel proud.
I actually ate two. It’s better the second time. 

We watched the Testaments one night on the little portable
DVD player we have.It was a good time.
(No, Elder Wheeler is not flipping you off.)

"I don't care what they say about us, anyway..."

All,

Good week. Short email.

MLC was the most fantastic meeting. I feel like I received a ton of
revelation on how to work effectively and help the zone to do the
same. We got an entirely new Chapter 8 for Preach My Gospel, which is
only in a few missions thus far. It has a completely new, more
streamlined, technology-integrated approach to planning, which is more
focused on the individual. Also, Technology is no longer a gimmick in
the missionary work. Need proof? The 5th Ward Elders taught a lesson
over Skype and then a lesson over Facebook messenger the other day. It
was awesome.

I had a few experiences with blessings this last week. Besides giving a
few blessings at the hospital, the Sister Training Leaders got in a
bad wreck. It was raining, and their car was totaled. They were fine,
besides some bruising. Understandably shaken, though. I was on
exchanges with another Elder a that time, and he didn't feel
comfortable blessing, so I gave a blessing to both sisters. I felt
really led by the Spirit in those blessings and it was really neat. I
like the priesthood.

Interviews went way over. Our mission president is one of the most
amazing people to have ever been born. He is personable, and he cares
for each of us in the mission. He is awesome.

1st and 2nd Ward sisters stole our Lego people that we put on our
dashboard. It is war.

Rock and roll ~

-Elder Stephen Burch π
1101 Greenough Dr Apt E10
Missoula, MT 59802

"... I don't care about that..."