Summer Lovin'

Sorry I don't have a lot of time to write today either. Things have been going great here, the people are awesome, sometimes I think I love them too much for my own good, and I'm starting to realize how Heavenly Father feels about us when we don't do the right thing even though we know we should. 

This week has been really hot, and the humidity doesn't help. I keep forgetting to put on sunscreen so I've been burning, but it hasn't been super bad yet haha. I love it here, and am starting to talk like I'm from Jersey, and it's scary! The other day I asked Elder Tan to turn the oven on to "three fitty," I'm starting to change my f's into t's, AH! And I'm starting to say "wuter" instead of "water," I'm a mess. 

It's great though, I love serving, and love being a missionary. There's no greater calling than spreading the gospel, and from the broadcast, that's something that all members are responsible for, not just missionaries.

I love you guys and hope you're loving summer. Hope everything is great and will talk to you next week (hopefully I'll have more time)

Love,

Elder Horne

Picture Time!

Hey guys!

Sorry I don't have a lot of time to write this week, so I'm going to send pictures instead, but I'm guessing that's what you all want to see anyway haha.

So Elder Tan is still getting used to my limitless amount of love for animals. 

I saw this turtle in the street, and pulled over so I could get a picture with him. 

Charlie Jr apparently didn't love me as much as I loved him.

 

 

We had zone conference this week. It was great, but it was the last time I'll see 

President and Sister Schaefermeyer before they leave. I love them. 

It was POURING at the zoo, but it was still a lot of fun, even though most
of the animals were hiding.

Summer Storms

This week was awesome, we had a couple tropical storms! They're different than rainstorms back home because it's still really hot, but it's POURING rain. We've been trying to stay dry but there is only so much we can do, good thing I like the rain.

It's been a busy week though, and a busy P-day today, so I don't have a lot of time to write. We went to the zoo today and it was pouring rain, hopefully I can send some pictures next week. We were able to meet a lot of great people and have a lot of great lessons.

We went on exchanges this week, I was with Elder De Leon, and it was really great and a lot different than being with Elder Tan. It was a nice change to have for a little, but I'm glad to be back with Elder Tan. Elder De Leon leaves in a couple weeks so I'm glad I was able to work with him before he left.

I've found a Yogurtland!! Haha, Elder Tan isn't as sold on frozen yogurt as I am, but every time we go in I make sure I talk to people so we're not taking a break, and we've met some great new investigators that way. I know the Lord is preparing people, and it's miraculous seeing how he places them in our way.

Highlight of the week, Elder Ronald Rasband of the Presidency of the Seventy came and spoke to us! We drove to Newark, Delaware, and it was great being able to see all the other missionaries I know. I sat by Elder Blake Billings who was in my ward/dorm at school! It was great getting to talk with him a bit. I wish I could talk more about the things that Elder Rasband told us, but I would encourage you to read his May 2012 talk*, I think it's during a Sunday session, and I can't remember what it's called, sorry.

This week was great though, and I'm loving the work and the rain.

Miss and love you all, the gospel is true!!

Elder Horne

*Note from Taryn: This may be the link to Elder Rasband's Talk 

'Ello Gove'nor!

This week was great! There isn't as much this week as there was last week since P-day was on Tuesday, but it was still great week. 

On Wednesday the Atlantic City English Elders, Elder Rockwood and Elder Jenkins, had a baptism! A mother and her son were baptized, and Tyrone was able to be there! The Spirit was so strong, I was smiling at Elder Jenkins the entire time, he was the one who baptized them, and I was so grateful Tyrone was able to make it. The Spirit was there and I know that he was able to feel it, and realize that this was something he needs to do. 

Thursday we headed up to Vineland for Zone Training, and left early in the morning with the AC Spanish Elders. Zone Training was great, Elder Wells and Elder Stauffer went over some things that we need to implement into our wards and we were able to do some role plays and it was great. Now, because Golden Retraining was Friday in Vineland, we were planning on staying there and  then coming home Friday afternoon. So at Zone Training we met with Elder Madsen and Elder Kitsell, the Elders that we, as well as the AC English Elders, would be spending the rest of our day with, as well as staying with that night. Elder Madsen and Elder Kitsell are fantastic. Elder Madsen is from Magna, UT and is very nice and very service oriented, and Elder Kitsell is British! (needless to say, I said 'ello gove'nor many a time). It was awesome, we ate and I got to know Elder Kitsell a little better. We're pretty much twins, except he's cooler because he's British. I realized that I'm glad we aren't companions because we would never be able to stop talking and would get off task all the time. That evening we split into two trios, the goldens (Rockwood, Madsen, and myself) and the trainers (Jenkins, Kitsell, and Tan) and it was a great learning experience going out with someone other than Elder Tan, I was able to learn so much from both Elders, it was a great night. 

Waking up Friday morning was hard, mainly because we had stayed up talking well past lights out, and also due to the fact that I slept on the floor with the pillow I brought. Golden Retraining was incredible. President and Sister Schaefermeyer were there, and they taught us a lot of great things, we had some incredible role plays, were able to talk about our missions and trainers thus far, and were able to watch an AMAZING Elder Holland talk (1/11/11 MTC address). It was a great experience, and I'm so grateful for it. The Spirit that was at Golden Retraining carried strongly throughout the day. We were able to meet with a referral that evening, and he was really interested, we taught him part of the Restoration and he accepted baptism for July 13! It was an incredible experience, Elder Tan and I were so excited, and are meeting with him again this week and we're so excited. It was an incredible night, the Spirit was with us and we were able to accomplish so much and witness so many miracles. 

Saturday was rough, the morning and afternoon was very difficult, nobody was there for our scheduled appointments, and it was hard. Thankfully our evenings are always great, and we were able to have a wonderful lesson with a man who originally met with us for the Quit Smoking Program we help people with, but after the lesson he agreed to have us teach him the lessons and is so determined to quit smoking it's awesome. We're starting the program and starting the lessons with him later this week. 

It was a wonderful week, I'm continually learning how to improve and how to become the missionary that Heavenly Father needs me to be and knows I can be. I'm so grateful for this gospel, it is SO TRUE! There is no greater book on earth than the Book of Mormon, it is rightly the keystone of this church. I encourage everyone to start reading it, or read it a little more often and I promise you that you will be blessed for doing so.

Love and miss you,

Elder Horne

One Week Out!

Hey everyone!

It's been a great week! 

Earlier in the week we went to Ocean City to see some members and eat dinner with them. We ate on the boardwalk and it was fantastic, I love Ocean City. We're never there when it's sunny though so I still haven't taken any good pictures. Hopefully I will soon, even though we're advised to stay away from the boardwalk, because although that's where everyone will be, there will be too much immodesty. While we were there I noticed that one of the main roads running parallel to the boardwalk is Ocean Avenue, and because I love Yellowcard so much I got really excited. I told Elder Tan that when it gets nice out he's taking a picture of me next to an Ocean Avenue street sign. He doesn't know a lot about American culture, so for the most part he just listens to me talk about random things he's never heard of. 

On Friday we were able to meet with some wonderful women. That morning we visited an older lady, Alma (interesting name since she's a convert) and it was incredible. As missionaries it's so inspiring and humbling to see how we can be the answer to prayers. She is going through a lot and had been praying that the missionaries would stop by her house again, and it was wonderful just being able to sit and talk with her about the gospel, and how it can help her and it was just wonderful. That evening we met with Heather, whose husband away in military service, and she too is going through a hard time having to raise two sets of twins (two babies and two little boys) on her own, and it was great to share a message of the gospel, and see the peace and the comfort that it brought her. Wonderful, strong women are what keep this world going round. 

Saturday the Spanish branch had a baptism at our chapel, and it was incredible. It was so powerful to me to witness the saving ordinance that I'm daily asking others to make, and it was very inspiring and humbling as it reminded me of the sacred nature of my calling and my purpose. After that though we had some fun and went and played soccer with the Spanish branch, and even though some of the guys playing were twice my age, they more than twice as good. They're all yelling at each other in Spanish and I'm just running around trying to kick the ball haha. If they ever needed my attention they would just yell, "Elder Elder Elder!" and point where they wanted me to go, it was a lot of fun. 

Sunday was amazing, we met with Tyrone Saturday night and taught him about the importance of church attendance, but we were worried he wouldn't be able to make it. But lo and behold he walked in a few minutes before church started. Throughout the entire church service the Spirit was so strong and we could tell Tyrone was feeling it. Afterwards he told us how great the church is and how he knows that it's true. He's spent his whole life searching, and nothings ever felt right, but after one time at church he told us he knows this is true and wishes he could be baptized earlier, except he is still trying to quit smoking. It was awesome, I had never seen so much commitment or desire coming from him, the Holy Ghost really does have the power to enlighten peoples minds. The rest of the Sabbath carried this awesome Spirit as well. 

So there are a few guys living right across the street from the church, the closest house to the church, and they are, for lack of a better term, hicks. The first time we stopped by they had cigarettes and beers in their hands and I didn't really think they were worth our time; but my wonderful Elder Tan had faith in them, and had faith in the power of the gospel, and had us go back and invite them to tour the church. And they actually came, I was so surprised, and while we were going around the church talking about it, one of them was getting really interested and we could tell they were feeling something. Afterwards, the same guy is planning on coming to church next week and wants us to visit with him, and another one of them is thinking he wants the bishop to marry him and his fiance next month. It was incredible, and incredibly humbling; it reminded me of when Jesus said, "O ye of little faith," because these people were able to have a spiritual experience, and I had given up on them the moment I saw them. I have a long way to go as a missionary that is for certain. 

One last Sunday miracle: as we were walking around that evening visiting some potential investigators this woman called us. She'd gotten our phone number from somewhere, and she had a friend who lived in Utah who had been sending her a bunch of church materials, and she basically just took the next 10 minutes to bear her testimony to me over the phone about how she knows the church is true and wants us to baptize her, "the Mormon is for me." I was so overwhelmed, I'm truly grateful for this member missionary who was able to bring her friend to Christ. We still have to visit her and do the necessary things, but this woman already has such strong faith in the Book of Mormon, it was truly a miracle. It's experiences like these that really make it clear to me that this is the Lord's work, and that He's moving it forward, and I'm just here to facilitate while He does everything else. 

This whole week has been fantastic, I'm so grateful to be a tool in the Lord's hand and to serve Him. I know this church is true, and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I'm so blessed to witness countless miracles as I see people draw closer to Heavenly Father.

I love you all and am wishing you the best,

Elder Horne

P.S. So we're a Facebook mission, which means that missionaries can contact members, investigators, and potential investigators via Facebook; Elder Tan has a Facebook that he gets on roughly every day to talk to people, but I have to wait until I'm done training before I'm eligible to get one. Which means that while Elder Tan is on Facebook, I've spent a lot of time on the church websites, and I would encourage everyone else to do so as well. Mormon Channel has so many fantastic videos, it's my favorite sight to explore, and I would encourage everyone to watch some of them. One of my favorite ones is Mountains to Climb  http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=2176618422001,  as well as The Power of Hope http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=911104791001.