Glendale week 9 *October 14, 2013

Hey everyone!

Things are looking up out here in the mission field. I dont think that there was a huge change as far as the actual work I have been doing but there was a change in my attitude and the attitude of my companion. There is always a way to judge missionaries to see if they are being successful and that is by their "numbers". Which means the number of lessons they have taught, the number of investigators found, the number of referalls and of course the number of people baptized. For the bulk of my mission so far these numbers have not been all that high and I finally could not help but to become discouraged. At that very moment the thought of my family popped into my head. I began to think about all the blessings that have come to them since my desicion to serve a mission. I realized that everything they tell you about our Father in Heaven and prayer is absolutley true. Of this I am sure. He really does hear all of your prayers and does want to bless you in the ways you ask. But the thing about God that I have not really noticed until now is that He does not do things in the way that you want Him to. He will bless you in the ways that you need it most because He know all of us perfectly and knows how we need His help in our lives. I am really grateful for Him and for this new found knowledge.

The way that I have come to measure success is not by the numbers that we have put up on the board that week but by the number of lives that we have been able to touch. I know that numbers show the work that is going on in the area but I dont think that they are the best way to judge success. People have agency and can choose to accept the message that we share with them or not. We could talk to 100 people in one week all about their lives and how God can bless them and report in that we taught zero actual lessons. Does that mean that we failed that week? No. I dont think so in the least. The seeds that we plant in peoples lives will one day be harvested by future missionaries. We cannot reap if we do not first sow.

We have been trying hard to progress the missionary work among the ward members because they know their neighbors and the people that could benefit from the gospel. There is a particular family that has really blessed my life. Their name is the Evans. The husband is a convert and he was coverted after marrying sister Evans. They have a fire inside of them to share the gospel and the blessings that have been brought into their lives. It is such a motivation to me to be better because they are so willing to go out of their way to talk with people they come in contact with and I'm over here like I am a missionary and will probably never see half of these people again so why not share the gospel. Cause if they reject it I just move on and try again. The Evans told Elder Pettingill and I the other night just how big of an impact we have made in not only their lives but also the ward missionary effort. I am not telling you this to brag about how awesome I am but I say it to show you how loving people in all aspects changes their view of you. I have been worjking really hard at outwardly expressing the love I have for all people here in Arizona because I was not very good at it when I was home. I know for a fact that no effort is wasted and every good thing we say to people will not go overlooked. We really are being watched every minute and even a simple smile can go a long way. Never give up on people and always share your love. Dont bottle it up because it does no one any good.

The weather here is changing so rapidly! Just the other day we woke up to go work out in the morning and it was raining and 60 degrees. I didnt even bring a jacket with me so I was a bit chilly haha. But it is so pretty when its not raining. The air is so crisp and wonderful. I love it. I know that I will be needing some cold weather gear in the near future which I never thought would be a possibility. On the plus side its supposed to be under 90 all this week so I wont be sweating all day long! Thats a real plus. I am finally starting to see why anyone in their right mind would ever live in this barren dessert. The secret is the winter season.

Well I love you all and I cannot wait to tell you about next week. Life is what you make of it so go out there and make it an adventure. Write your experiences down because one day we will all be too old and senile to remember them

. Take too many pictures!

Until next week,

Elder Cole Safford

Glendale week 8 *October 7, 2013

Hello everyone!

Another week in the books. It is really crazy how much goes on in one week out in the mission field. Everyday is jam packed from sun up to sun down of great things. I mean it does seem like we do the same types of things everyday but then again they are all so different. Different people, different lessons, and different experiences to write about. The good news is that I have so far been good about keeping up a daily journal and have already seen the benefits from it. I have found that there are things I am learning now that I would have taken way longer to learn in the "real" world of an 18 year old kid. There will always be good moments and bad moments our whole lives so seeing those on a mission is not out of the ordinary. But there is a problem when you stop working and stand still to dwell on them. Move forward. Keep going because everyday will have good in it if you look for it. Make the memories you want to remeber and talk about.

I had the great opportunity to go on exchanges for the day with another elder that has been out just as long as I have. He is a really great young man so I was excited to get to work with him. I had to stay in my area while Elder Pettingill went over to this elders area to work with his companion. I was not too stoked about this considering I didnt feel ready to take on the area all by myself but I just had to give it my best. It turns out that I actually was more prepared to do it then I thought. The day went really great and we taught a couple of lessons and just had an overall awesome day. At the end of the day the elder commented on how good of a job I did at taking over the area. It was a huge confidence builder to see that an elder that started at the same time as me was able to see the difference I had made and how ready I am to be the senior missionary. I know that I still have a long way to go and I am really excited to see and learn as much as I can. I dont ever want to stop progressing or learning. I just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other and move forward.

I had another really growing experience this week. There was an elder who had been out in Arizona for a week and he had to spend the day with Elder Pettingill and me. even though he was 18 he seemed kind of immature. By the end of the day I told Elder Pettingill that a lot of what he did and said was kind of annoying. Then I was given a huge piece of humble pie when Elder Pettingill said that I acted the exact same way my first week out here. I was like WHAT?! Holy crud I dont know how Elder Pettingill put up with me. I took a step back and realized that we are all growing constantly and at different rates. We need to be accepting of everyone and their differences. I guess that without noticing it I have become a different person. Dont get me wrong I am still the same Cole that left but just a little more mature and I have learned what to say and do in certain situations. There is a time and a place for everything and I think that the key to being mature and acting as an effective missionary is to know when those specific times are. Like I said before and will continue to say for a long time to come I have a long way to go. I wont ever lose who I am but I will refine myself and become the best that I personally can be.

General Conference was awesome! It was super weird though to hear the people saying in their prayers to pray for missionaries around the world. I was like hey thats me! The talks were all super great! I think they have taken on a whole new meaning to me because I am not only listening to learn for myself but to also help the people in Arizona. I took away from the conference in a whole that times are going to get really bad pretty soon. We need to build up our faith so that we can resist anything the advisary throws at us. There are multiple paths that we can take to get to the Celestial kingdom but the best path we can ever take is the one that allows us to bless those around us and help them make it as well.

I love all of you and will continue to think about just how much you have all blessed my life so far. Stay strong and keep moving forward.

Until next week.

Elder Cole Safford

Glendale week 6 *September 23, 2013

Hey everyone!

This week has been a really big learning experience for me.  We have been working extra hard to be the best purpose driven missionaries that we can and the Lord was able to turn peoples hearts toward Him and allow us to be there at the right moment to witness that change.

We have really been trying to talk to as many people on the streets as we can and these very rarely turn into anything extraordinary but just spreading those seeds is a great way to help the work move along. One night we were on our way out of a lesson and we had the impression to go and swing by the local supermarket to try and street contact some people. We locked up our bikes and saw a lady standing there waiting for her 5 gallon water container to fill up. She was all alone so we asked her if we could carry it to her car for her. She said yes and we started to talk. She told us that her husband was out of town and she was really nervous as to how she was going to get the water to her car. She also told us that her father and brother both recently passed away and she was having a hard time with them being gone. We were able to teach her right then and there about the plan of salvation and she said that she would be willing to have us over to teach her more once she talked it over with her husband. I know the Lord put that situation in front of us and if we had not just stopped to ask her if she needed help then we could have missed it.

There is a "do not contact" list of less active memebers in the ward and we try to go and stop by at least one of these a week because the Lord softens peoples hearts over time and sometimes we can just happen to be there knocking at their door. Anyways, we have tried this particular family for like the past 6 months and they have never answered the door. We went and knocked on there door and boom. We got in and had a 30 minute conversation with them all about his mission and her obsession with Halloween. haha It was really cool to be able to see them open up and talk with us like we were normal people. Most people are afraid to talk with missionaries because they think we are trying to sell something. But its just the opposite. We are normal people with somthing very special to give away free!

I want everyone to go and read Ether 6:1-10 and learn all about how trials in our lives are really just Gods way of stengthening us. He will never throw anything at us that we cant handle. All we need is is a little faith and a determination to do all we can before we just go to him helplessly. This has answered so many questions for me and I know it will help some of you.

On a lighter note I have found out that E. Pettingill has no balance whatsoever. We try most of the time to ride on the side walk next to eachother. Almost everytime he manages to go off the side walk and smash through the bushes and whatever is in his path. Its so funny to see his huge legs trying to spread out and balance himself mid fall. Now he has added a new element to his bicycle riding... Taking pictures while riding. We made it a goal to take as many pictures as we can so that we always remember the great moments we have but its so funny because he makes the most serious faces all the time. I have had to yell at him to just laugh and have a good time. He likes to be very serious and mature but I have a way to bring the kid out in him and its so much more fun to be around that version of him.

I love you all so much and cannot wait to tell you all about my adventures next week.

Until next time

Elder Cole Safford

Glendale week 7 *September 30, 2013

Hey everyone!

What's going on? Everything here is going really great. It is a bit tough because we are not seeing the "success" that I would like to be seeing but we are seeing big changes happen everyday in ourselves, the ward and those people that we come in contact with. The Lord really does have a plan for all of us. I want you all to know that. He is there for us all the time and is putting both people and things in our path to help us grow spiritually, emotionally and physically. I have been learning a ton about myself over these past 2 months that I know for a fact would not have happened if not for me making the leap of faith and serving the Lord on a mission. At first I thought that it was just going to be all hunky-dory and I would just float around on a cloud bringing people to Christ because that is all you hear about from returned missionaries. You only hear the great times that they had or the spiritual experiences that go on in this chapter of their lives. I didnt have an older sibling that went on a mission to learn from so I had this image of a mission in my head. Let me be the first to tell you that although my days are filled with great things there are still plenty of trials that I go through physically but maybe even more in my own head. I have found that I am getting in the way of the Lord working miracles through me. My head is in the way and I try to think about things that dont matter. I have come to the conclusion after hearing the quote "Lose yourself and go to work" a 1,000 times that that is EXACTLY what I have to do. I am glad that I have figured it out this early so that I still have plenty of time to make the necessary changes.

I have always been a pretty curious person and I love asking the seasoned missionaries questions about their time out here in Arizona so I can better my own mission experience. I believe that every missionary has different trials and they all need to figure different things out. My missions is the most physically, emotionally, and spritually demanding thing that I have ever tried to do because you are constantly looking for ways to better yourself so that you are not the reason for someone not hearing about the gospel. It is a wonderful blessing to have the spirit with you so strong all the time. It makes self evaluation very easy and useful. I have a long way to come but I can already see a change in the way I see others, the way I talk to others and the way that I act. I now know why you only hear about the good things from returned missionaries. Its because the good things outweigh the bad things 10 to 1. I am so thankful for the opportunity I have to talk about the gospel so openly and freely. I truly see the difference in my life because of it.

I am also very thankful for the priesthood which I hold and the ability to administer blessings. Today we had the great opportunity to give a blessing of comfort to a lady whose father had passed away last night. He lived in Bolivia and this woman could not afford to fly back there to see him. She could not see her own father be buried and that really was hard for her. We went over to her house with our Bishop and he gave the most beautiful and comforting blessing I have ever heard. The spirit was SO strong and I was glad I was worthy enough to stand in that circle and be apart of it.

Thank you all for the love and support. It really means a lot to me. I also want to publicly share how much I love my family! They are my whole world and I know without a doubt that I would not be the person I am today without them. My mom writes me a letter every week without fail and let me tell you, those letters along with all the other letters that people have written me are my most cherished possesions out here on my mission. I love reading them and they make me feel that I am doing some good for people back home without actually being there.

Until next week. Adios!

Elder Cole Safford

Beautiful Arizona sunset

High waisted sweats and dress shoes. Nice.

That's one big cactus!

Glendale week 5 *September 16, 2013

Hey everyone. At the very beginning of the week I had the opportunity to go to a trainer/trainee meeting with the whole Arizona, Phoenix mission. Which means that any new elder that came out in my group or any elder that came out a 6 weeks before that met together to talk about how things have been going so far in our missions and our personal experiences that have made big impacts on us. It was really great because I got to see all of the elders in my MTC district and talk to them about how they are doing and how their trainers are and everything. The whole meeting was all focused on companionship unity and being able to talk with your companion about whatever it is that is on your mind and how he can help you. Considering that I am an open book and tell my companion EVERYTHING it was cool to see the other elders and to hear their stories. E. Pettingill took from that meeting that he really wants to work on wearing his heart on his sleeve and sharing it with everyone. I could see a huge change in him as he started to talk about things and get them off his chest. He has high expectations for himself and tends to bottle emotions up inside so seeing him just let it out was great.

I have so much fun with him! We are a great companionship and really good for each other. We are constantly laughing and making jokes and really working well together. He knows the gospel and I talk to people with love so it works out great. He thinks of himself as my bigger brother so he is always trying to pick on me but I am pretty buff so I intimidate him with my large muscles haha Good news is though that I have gotten him stoked about drawing and he does it all the time now whenever we have time. He just sits and doodles and makes little note cards with inspiring thoughts on them. He is getting really good!

 The priesthood has taken a large role in my life since coming on a mission. You don't need it to do missionary work (sisters are a testament to that) but you get the opportunity to use it with so many investigators and less actives who need blessing or other ordinances that we can perform. I had the wonderful opportunity to give two blessings this past week to less active members of the ward. The spirit that you feel is so strong and I love doing them. At first I was really nervous but after the first one I am confident the spirit would guide me through them all from now on. I am learning how to use my words in such a way that they bring peace and joy to those who hear them and the spirit makes that all possible. I have to really think before I speak because I am so excited to talk sometimes the words that just come out make zero sense. But I am getting better and E. Pettingill really help me out in that area.

 I have come to the realization that this gospel is very hard to teach if you dont have a basic understanding of the principles. I know that they are true and now I am just really working on developing a greater understanding of them so that I can teach them very simply and powerfully. Its great to see the progress based on how easy it has become to teach certain aspects of the gospel. I have a long way to go but I have my whole life to continually learn and grow. Thank you all for the love and support that you are giving me through emails and letters. It is fantastic to open up the mail box and see a letter addressed to me hahaha I love it.

 Until next week.
 Elder Cole Safford

Glendale week 4 *September 9, 2013

Hey everyone! This week has been full of appointments and lessons and talking with our investigators. Not much has gone on besides that stuff but it has been really great. We did get this one new investigator from a referral from a recently returned missionary in our ward named Michael. He has a co-worker named Yarillea (pronounced Yadi.. dont ask me how haha) and she has been asking him questions for quite some time about the gospel. One day he just said that he knew of two young men that would love to talk to her all about the gospel and answer any questions that she had. Needless to say that the next day we were over at Michaels house having lunch with Yarillea and talking about the Gospel. We taught her all about the Restoration of the Church and the Plan of Salvation. She was so ready to hear our message and just soaked up everything like a sponge it was CRAZY! We extended the commitment to read the Book of Mormon and to pray to know the truth and she accepted. Then the spirit testified to both Elder Pettingill and I to invite her to be baptized at the beginning of October. I knew we should ask her so out the words came and then she accepted! It was so cool to see the spirit light up her eyes and to feel how ready she was. I know the Lord had been preparing her to receive the message and we were obedient enough to share it with her.

 I had the great opportunity to go to the Mesa Temple on Saturday to witness the Crandell family make their eternal family just a little bit bigger. They adopted four new kids Sonny 13 Ammon 5, Aaron 5, and Charlie 3. I had been anxiously waiting for this day to come all week not solely for the sealing but also so I could go inside the temple and feel the great spirit that is there. The moment that I stepped foot inside the Temple the most immaculate of feelings came over me and the spirit bore witness that I am of worthy nature to be in the Temple and to witness the family bond become an Eternal one. Each moment I spend in the Temple is another that I grow closer to my Father in heaven and having the feelings that I will feel as I live with my own family for Eternity. The peace I feel is indescribable. It has taken a whole new meaning to me as I try to help people come to the Temple and feel the way I do. The Lord beareth witness to me through the spirit as I walk down these hallowed halls of the truthfulness of the gospel.

Those have been to two highlights of my week and I have just been moving along and continually having fun and making the best out of every situation. I know this is where I am supposed to be and I know that the Lord needs me to do His work. I love missionary work and the adventure that I am on. Thank you for the constant support and love. Till next time.

 Love Elder Cole Safford

Glendale week 3 *September 3, 2013

Hey everyone,

Another week gone by and I have no idea where it actually went. I think that that’s how it is going to be from now on. There are so many great moments that make all the hard times seem like nothing and after a little while I am able to just brush them off and move forward.

This week we had Zone Conference, which happens every 3 months so it was cool that I was able to go to it within my first month here. I find that I feel most at home when I am surrounded by missionaries who are going through the same trials and experiences that I am going through. I know that everyone is a different missionary and member of the church, but it is comforting to see that so many teens are trying to grow closer to the Lord through service. The main focus of the conference was how our faith is used to find the principles behind all the rules of the mission and the principles that God has given to us. You really have to want to have a desire to be better and closer to you father in heaven. As this wanting grows your ability to put action behind your words increases. If you have more faith, you will have more success. Plain and simple. Whether that is being a missionary, a parent or a youth in the gospel, as your faith increases so will your success in following the commandments of God. As we learn to humble ourselves and let the Lord take us by the hand and lead us in our time of trials, our faith in his help grows and we build upon the light we have.

A little bonus to the conference was the announcement that our mission will be going online to use Facebook as an online proselyting tool. We are in the process of making Mormon.org profiles and cleaning up our personal Facebook pages. It is going to be so cool to teach people from all over the world and people back home. I cannot wait to broaden my horizon and really talk to people that I was too scared to talk to before about the gospel. It’s a huge blessing but at the same time a very big temptation for wasting time each day living back home through the posts of my friends. I am up for the challenge though.

I have really discovered the importance we all have in being missionaries to the people in our lives. There is more to being a member of this church than just being an example to those around us. We all really need to look within ourselves and find enough love to serve other people and share with them the joy the gospel has brought to our life and the life of our family. This gospel is more than a Sunday religion. It is an everyday thing and we have to strive to always teach people about it or at least help the missionaries in your ward know of the people that you feel would benefit from the message they have been set apart to share.

Hearing stories from men in the ward that have served missions has really helped me to realize the importance of obedience.  Some of their experiences show just how bad a situation can get if you are not being obedient all the time and listening to the promptings of the spirit. I don’t want to look back on my mission with regret in my heart because all I ever did was "knock and walk". There is never a situation that we cannot change or make happen if we truly want to.

I have reached the point where the newness of my mission has worn off and I am ready to get down to work. I am becoming more in tune with the spirit and finding new ways to lose myself in the great work everyday. I keep asking myself if I was all alone would I truly serve the Lord how I am now or am I doing it just because I want my companion to believe that I am trying to be a great missionary. Its really challenging to stay focused all the time, especially for me, but I am working really hard, because I know it will help with everything I want to accomplish on my mission and for the rest of my life.

The weather here in Arizona has been so great!! All last week was a little humid during the day and the sky full of huge billowing white clouds but as the sun started to go down the heavens opened up and poured down the most rain I have ever seen in such a short period of time. There is Lightning that lights up the whole sky and deep thunder rolling everywhere. Its so much fun to be out riding to or from an appointment when it hits and just getting soaked haha

This next Saturday Elder Pettingill and I have the great opportunity to go to the Mesa temple to witness a sealing session of a member family. The Crandells have just adopted 4 new kids and the oldest one they adopted just got baptized right before I came out. They now have 8 kids so the sealing rooms should be packed. It will be a great experience! One I am sure I will never forget.

Apparently my favorite primary song is Happy Birthday... at least that’s what my companion said I told him a couple of nights ago in my sleep. (For those of you who don’t know, I talk in my sleep ALL the time haha) He said he asked me all sorts of questions and I answered them very specifically and most of them made perfect sense but then there was the question of what my favorite primary song was and I yelled out in a weird voice "Happy Birthday!!" and then stopped talking and continued sleeping haha

This is what has been going on in my mission and I am loving every minute of it.

Love you all.

Elder Cole Safford