August 26, 2013 Letter

Hi Family!

How is everybody doing? First of all, holy cow Richard and Leslie! That is crazy that you are having triplets! I can't believe that. You are going to be busy. How are you feeling Leslie? Excited? Nervous? I guess there are going to be more nieces and nephews when I get home than I thought. I hope everything goes well! I will be praying for you every day. And it sounds like everybody is finishing up their partying down at Echo. I always remember leaving echo for the last time in the Summer. It was sad.

Well my email today might be kind of all over the place. I am just really excited to go to Australia. I go to the mission office right after I am done with emails. And yes Mom I am going with Elder Nakatsu. Hopefully I have time to call home. And Cammie tell Kelsey congratulations for me! That is awesome. Kind of sounds like you and Robbie. I guess when you know you know.

Well we were definitely busy this week. But I feel less exhausted now that we drive a car around. We did have Sephy's baptism on Saturday. It went well! It was a little funny though. Sephy was really nervous before the baptism. When it was time for her to come down into the font it took her a little while. Finally we got her to come down and I was able to baptize her. After she was done, she was really excited. She was telling us how easy it was. It was funny. It was a good day. I love seeing the people that we work with take those steps closer to Christ. It is an amazing feeling.

I can't believe that my time serving in the Provo mission is coming to an end. It went by so fast. It hasn't really hit me yet that I am leaving. I am sure it will soon though. Something really cool happened last night. There is a 24 year old man that we have been working with named Adam Barton. I am not sure if I have told you about him, but we have been working with him for a while. It has been a little frustrating because he often cancels our appointments and doesn't keep his commitments. But last night he called me and wished me luck in Australia. He told me that he appreciated everything I have done for him and that he really looks up to me. He told me that he is going to work really hard to get back to church. It was such an awesome feeling to know that all that work wasn't for nothing. This is the Lords work. He has prepared so many people for us to teach. It may take some time, but it is worth it. I have loved serving here in the Provo mission. I know this is where the Lord needed me for the past couple of months. And now I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for me in Australia.

Sorry this is such a short email. I am just really excited. I want you all to know that I love you all so much. I love serving the Lord. It is amazing what can happen when we try to see people the way the Lord sees them. 1 Samuel 16:7. This Gospel is for everyone! I hope everybody has a great week and I will email you next week from down under!

Love,
Elder Low

Letter from Pat Zeeman

Dear Brian and Cynthia,

     I am sending you some pictures of a baptism that your son performed while he was about one week from his transfer to Australia.

     It was quite a funny experience. Persephonie was afraid of water so she had to be coaxed into the water, then she was afraid to go under, so about 3 or 4 times had to be tried to get her to dare to be baptised. We all quietly had to smile.

     Your son is an awesome young man. We hope that all is going well for him. My husband is Bishop of the Mtn. View 5th Ward, Payson Utah. I am Pat Zeeman- The "Ward Mom."

                         Thanks,

                               Love Pat

                 P.S. Tell Dallin "Hello" from us!!

 

August 19, 2013 Letter

Hi family,

Well it sounds like a lot of people are ending summer with a bang. That is fun having so many people at the cabin. I wish I could see all the little kids. It is going to be really weird for me in a couple years to see how much they have all grown. Do we have any water skiers yet? Did Zach try this year? Alvin how are you enjoying your first echo experience? Also thank you so much for the package Karen and Alvin! I love getting mail. Mom what do you mean by having nobody in school? Karen are you not enrolled for the fall semester?

This week has been pretty crazy. As you know, my old companion Elder Baisden went home. He left Thursday morning. It was tough, but I think it was best for both of us. I am now in a trio. My companions names are Elder Va'enuku and Elder Clare. Elder Va'enuku is from Texas and Elder Clare is from Wisconsin. They are awesome Elders! I love serving with them. We are pretty busy though. Because of everything that happened, we are now covering my stake and also the two other stakes that they were covering. So we have lots to do. The best part about it though is that we have a car! I love it. It is definitely more efficient for us and now I don't have to worry about turning into a lobster as much.

As far as my flight plans go, I think I like them a lot better. I don't know how many of you have heard, but I no longer have a 14 hour layover in LA. I am flying with another Elder that came out of the MTC with me. We fly out of Salt Lake around 5:45 pm next Monday, and we are flying to Texas. We only have about a 50 minute layover so we will have to move really quick. Our next flight to Australia though is about 16 hours. So that is a lot of flying! Should be fun. I am so excited though! I know that Australia is where the Lord needs me, and I am excited to serve there. I think most of the Elders I knew from the MTC are already there. So I am excited to see some of them as well. If I have time to call, I will definitely be calling from the Salt Lake airport. I will try calling home, and if that doesn't work, Mom and Dad I will try your cell phones.

Well as far as the work goes this week we were plenty busy. A lot of the lessons we teach now are in the other two stakes. So I am getting a chance to meet a lot of new people. It is great. The baptism for Sephy is still on date for this Saturday. I am really excited about that! She has been learning so much and I am really surprised how much she remembers. She is a bright girl. We are also teaching a new family in the stake, the Farnsworth family. The Mom and Dad are less active, and they have 5 kids. I think I may have mentioned them last week. But it is amazing to see there progress. The Dad really wants to come back to church. The oldest daughter Mia is 8 years old and she is really into it. We gave her a Book of Mormon stories and she is already read to about 1 Nephi 20. I love seeing children getting involved in the Gospel. Something interesting was mentioned in a meeting yesterday. They talked about how children are so close to our Heavenly Father because they have been with Him a very short time ago. It is so true. I have been able to see that a lot on my mission especially in Utah where we work with a lot of younger kids.

I just want to share my testimony with all of you that I know our Savior lives and loves us all. It has become more apparent every day on my mission that He knows us personally. We have a special opportunity to communicate with our Heavenly Father every day. He still speaks to us. We can receive revelation just like the people did in the scriptures. That has been such a blessing to me, especially on my mission. I love you all so much and pray for you every day. Have an awesome week!

Love,
Elder Low

August 12, 2013 Letter

Hi Family,

Well it sounds like Summer is starting to come to a close at home. I remember by the time the parade rolled around I felt like school was just around the corner. Sounds like everybody is still busy and enjoying life though. Karen and Alvin I bet you guys are excited to get finals over with for a few weeks. Coming out of that last final is one of the best feelings ever. Robbie and Cammie that is pretty awesome that you will be in Justin and Amelia's ward. Cardston is being overrun by Lows.

Well this week was pretty interesting. Transfers were last week, and they didn't move me anywhere. So I am still here in Payson with Elder Baisden. But then something else came up. Like I said earlier, my companion Elder Baisden has had a rough mission. He talked to the President yesterday and he is heading home this week. So I am not sure what they are going to do with me. I am guessing I will be in a trio for two weeks until I leave to Australia. So I am not sure what my mailing address is going to be or where I will be at. I will let you know what happens next week.

I am glad the mission office sent my flight plans to you. It sounds like I am flying out of Salt Lake around 8:30 a.m. on August 26th and I will get to LA around 9:30. Then I have a fourteen hour layover before my flight leaves to Australia. I am guessing I will probably be meeting up with some other Elders or I might fly out of Salt Lake with some Elders from the MTC. We will see. So I will probably be calling that morning before I leave Salt Lake and I will use the calling card. If you want me to find some other way to call let me know.

I will try to answer a few questions quick. Dad the other bike I have kind of broke down as well. There are just so many puncture weeds in Payson. I have had a ton of flat tires. We have patched them multiple times but it just keeps happening. But I think they may put me with some missionaries that have a car anyway. So it shouldn't matter. Doing missionary work on facebook is very interesting. The only person we are teaching online is Elder Baisden's sister but I have been asked questions by other people. It is actually a really effective way to get information out. I doubt my mission in Australia will be using it yet, but maybe in a bit. And I am definitely excited to go to Australia! I know it is going to be a lot different, but I know that is where the Lord needs me. Hopefully I can do some good out there.

 

Well we still tried to make the best out of this week with everything going on. Everything is still on plan for Sephy Dodd's baptism on the 24th. She actually asked me if I would do the baptism. So if I am still covering this area, I will get to baptize her the weekend before I leave. I would love that. If not, some other Elders will take care of it. Cami and Brock came to church again this week as well. It is awesome! It may take them some time, but it is amazing to see them taking steps in the right direction. I am not sure if I have mentioned much about Mike Sorenson, but he is probably around 40 and has a rough couple of years. He has really been wanting to come back to church for a long time, but his work doesn't allow him. He is a truck driver and he has been working Sunday's for years. So we told him to pray about it. Last week we found out that his work changed his schedule. He said he had no clue why. But now he has Sundays and Mondays off. So he came to church! I love seeing how the Lord works.

Robbie I love how you said that missions are so personal. It is true. I have learned so much on my mission, even though I have only been out for a couple of months. This is exactly what I need right now in my life. I got to speak in church yesterday, and I decided to speak on prayer. I love how much I learn as I study. Prayer is something that I think I have taken for granted a lot in my life. I have really coming to realize that we are literally speaking to our Father in Heaven. It is such a blessing to be able to talk to Him wherever and whenever. I heard a great description that goes something like this. God isn't behind us pushing us, He is in front of us leading and guiding us. He has His hand stretched out and He is just waiting for us to grab hold. Through prayer we can begin to do that. He wants to bless us. He sees us going through trials, and He wants us to succeed. That is why He has provided us with prayer. When we don't ask for help, we are only hurting ourselves. It is my testimony that our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ know each of us personally. Because of the atonement, Jesus Christ knows how to help us. He has been there. Just like it says in Alma 7:12. I am so grateful for that. Thank you for all your love and support. I really appreciate it. I hope you all have a great week. Love you!

Love,
Elder Low

August 5, 2013 Letter

Hey family!

Well it sounds like everyone is enjoying the Summer. I can't believe that it is already August. Time is going by so fast! Also Happy birthday Leslie and Amelia!! Sorry it is late again. I hope you both had great birthdays. Justin and Amelia I am glad you guys are settling into Cardston. Sounds like work is going pretty good Justin. Do you enjoy it? That is cool that Zach has Mrs. Remington as a first grade teacher. She was there when I was there. I can't believe it has been that long. Brian and Julie your family is getting so big! Claire is getting so old. That is awesome. It will be weird to see all the new nieces and nephews in a couple of years.

This week has been pretty awesome. I am not going to lie though, I can't wait for winter. It will probably be quite a while until I see that though. It has been extremely hot down here. Maybe Amelia, Robbie, and Cammie will get some of that when you come down here. And I don't think I need anything, or at least anything that I can think of. I am already fat enough. To answer some of your questions, Cammie I do email Aaron. Do you play basketball with those girls pretty often? Who does Aaron play basketball with? And Mom I would love you help packing for Australia. Just kidding. I am pretty sure I will be fine. I handled it pretty well last transfer. As for the scripture on my mission plaque, I would probably put 1 Nephi 3:7. That has always been one of my favorite scriptures since I was little.

Well I am sure some of you have heard this other news, but I am on facebook now! We are the 8th mission in the world to use facebook. It was a little weird at first. I had to go on there and hide all my old pictures because they didn't want us creating a new facebook and they didn't want old pictures on there. The rules are pretty strict though. I still have to communicate through email. We are only allowed to use facebook for missionary purposes only. But we are allowed to teach anybody across the world. We are even allowed to teach family if we have permission. We are actually teaching my companions sister right now. She has been out of the church for 10 years and wants to come back. It is awesome! We are allowed to teach by typing or we can video chat. It has been pretty interesting.

The work went well here in Payson this week as well. Like I said, we have been teaching a bunch of kids and we put a few of them on date for Baptism. The 9 year old girl named Sephy Dodds is on date for August 24th. So if all goes well, we will have a baptism the weekend before I leave if I am still here. Transfers are this week and we are waiting for our call. I am wondering what they will do with me since I am leaving in the middle of next transfer. Maybe they will put me in a trio. Anyway, we also put Nicholas Bingham on date for September 14th. As for Brock and Cami, we are really trying to get Brock ready so he can baptize his son Stetson. I would love to see that happen. I love seeing people accept the Gospel! We had 6 families that we are teaching come to church this Sunday. Most of them are less-active families, and a few of them were the families we are teaching that their kids are getting ready for baptism. So we went to 3 different fast and testimony meeting yesterday.

Well I am not going to lie, the mission can be tough sometimes. Yesterday was a pretty long day since it was fast Sunday and boiling hot out, but it is so worth it! This Gospel is so true! We already know who is on the winning side. I am so glad that I am on the Lord's side. I am so grateful for His atonement that allows each and every one of us to repent and be happy. Like Dad always says, "If you want to be happy, keep the commandments." It is so true. We are given commandments to help and guide us in this life, not to restrict us. I hope you all have a great week. I pray for you all every day. Love you!

Love,
Elder Low