Wk 27: Hey Era Body! (say with an accent for the full effect)

Hello! It has been a few weeks since I have written. 

I'm now in Salem, Indiana. Wait, what? Where is that?! Yeah, that is what I said. It is in the middle of nowhere. It is all good through. Let's just say I am going through some big changes and adjustments. 
My new companion is Elder Krogh. He is from Oregon. He is a cool bean. He likes D and D and a lot of interesting things. I am sure he will teach me how to play by the end of the transfer. Elder Krogh has been out for 14 months. My comp has been here for one transfer already. This area is tough. Let's just say he is tired. I'm trying to find out how to work such a small area after coming from the city. There's nothing to do out here but service and visiting with people in the branch. Not a lot of teaching going on yet. The branch has 60 to 80 people that attend their Sacrament meetings. It is a branch not a ward because there is not enough members.  It's gonna be a hard adjustment, but hard things help us to grow. If there is one thing I've learned about the mission, is that accelerated growth will stretch you and pull you until you've changed completely. Mission's are one of the most stressful things in the world. Stress happens to our bodies when things go wrong. Trust me, if you have been a missionary, a lot can go wrong. People cancel their appointments, and people don't want to talk or listen to you.  It's hard work. 
To all of you that are preparing for a mission, if you know how to manage stress you are set. If you don't, start out by getting a job. Jobs can be stressful and that is something that will emotionally prepare you for a mission.  
Anyways, I hope to hear from you all soon. Thanks for checking up on me. I appreciate all the emails even if I am not able to respond quickly. 

I'll see you next week! 

Love you,
Elder Greenlaw

Elder Greenlaw and Elder Krogh

Saying goodbye to old comp and sister missionaries! 

Drive from Kentucky to Indiana! Everything is so green and lush. 

Wk 24: Hello Baptism.. What?

I don't have much time this week to write this week. I apologize. 

This week has been a very eventful one as you can tell by the title of my blog post. I had 2 baptisms!!  Morgan and Brayden. They are two super extraordinary kids who's situation remind me a lot about what my father went through as a child. I've gained a realization and appreciation for giving the gospel to people in harder upbringings. These kids were very blessed to have been in the custody of a member who was recently less active but is now fully devoted to raising these kids with the gospel. We had the opportunity to teach them and see them get baptized. I baptized Morgan who is 15 years old. He is a loyal, obedient, and smart young man. He has a very promising future in helping build the Lord's kingdom here on the earth. Brayden is 12 years old and is a little more stubborn. He was having some difficulties having a desire to learn about churchy things. I get it, he is just a kid. This last week we stuck by him and supported him like two big brothers coming over at the end of the day. They haven't had strong role models or anyone to look up to in their lives until now. We became very close with them. Brayden changed and was very excited and committed to the gospel and to launch into the next steps of his life. He had some concerns on the confirmation, but all was well in the end. And now we have two more members of our church!!! We are so lucky. It was a very humbling and wonderful experience to give those boys the gift of the Holy Ghost and confirm them a member of the church. 

I'll share more next week,

Elder Greenlaw