Birthday Week!

My dear Elders and Sisters,

What a privilege it has been to serve as your mission president. I have learned and grown right alongside of you. The greatest lessons I have learned have come by watching you. Thank you for your hard work, dedication, obedience, consecrated efforts and for never giving up. You and I have been touched by Elder Tad Callister's talk on integrity. Let's get this Christlike attribute to sink deep down inside of us, to the very "fiber of our beings," to change our nature so that our behavior is changed as well. I am so thankful for the Spirit that encourages me to want to do better every day of my life. I have watched that happen to you as well.

I testify that setting our sights on becoming more like our Savior everyday, by acquiring Christlike attributes, will bring us safely home. Listen to the Spirit. Follow the promptings and directions you receive. Teach these marvelous principles to everyone you find in your path. Place yourself in the paths of others, intentionally, then teach, testify and invite them to live that principle.

Bless you all to continually filling your minds with all the beauty, fullness and completeness that is only found in the Lord's kingdom.

Our Savior is our Savior and Redeemer. We are all "hardened, fallen and lost" and would remain so without his atoning sacrifice. He is "the keeper of the gate," we have a living prophet. Keep learning and trusting and battling through the tough times. You will get to know the Father by living the gospel he has taught us so simply and so beautifully from before the foundations of this earth.

You have forever changed my life. 

All my love,

President Bubert

700+

Hey everyone,

That is the email that President Bubert sent everyone as he prepares to leave on Saturday. I'm excited and sad to have a new mission president. We'll see how President Tew is. My week was pretty crazy because I got a new companion. Elder Jensen is from "good ole" Utah. He's lived in St George before so I was talking to him about that. He's been out as long as Elder Komarek! Almost 6 months. We had an awesome lesson with Grace and she's going to be baptized on July 6th. She has become really good friends with a member who has been in her exact same situation before so it has worked out great. It has been amazing seeing God's hand in the people's lives that I have taught. I know it's not me getting people to believe something. I just invite them to learn for themselves and help them have spiritual experiences. I love seeing the Spirit change lives. 

My birthday was really good so thank you! I liked all the silly Spider Man toys Mom and the notes from the Ward was nice too. I had a pretty good day. The 18th I had to sleep on another Elder's apartment floor which stunk but I slept surprisingly well despite the hard wood floor. I was tired during the day but I had a good birthday dinner and a pretty good day. I missed you all a lot though. The members here were really nice on my birthday! One made me a cake and card. One bought me mango cheesecake with my name spelled out and everything. And one had me for dinner and made me tortellini. I'm glad that I have a good relationship with the people here. They are very nice and want to do all they can to help us. 

I read in John 15 this morning during my study time. Christ is the true Vine and we are the branches. I like that it says that if we bring forth fruit, God purges the branch so we can bring forth more fruit. I'm glad that there are answers for why we all go through hard things. God puts us through trials so we can become better people. I was a little down this week but I know that it's just so I can be a better person. Thank you for your support! I love you.

Silas

June 17th

Hey everyone,

I had a pretty good week! Since I bought an odometer for my bike in Feb I have biked 1000 miles. Crazy right? I've gotten pretty used to riding my bike everyday in the sun. It wouldn't be worth it if I was doing anything else. Last Monday President Bubert gave a training about a talk called Becoming Men and Women of Integrity by Tad R Callister. I think everyone should read it. Integrity is probably the most difficult Christ-like attribute to develop. It is literally our nature. What we would do when we think no one is watching. Adherence to a strict moral code.

This week we started teaching Lola and her two children Alex and Daisy. They are very interested and are really fun to teach. Her kids are 11 and 12 which means that we have to teach very simply. I really love teaching and answering people's questions. We are also still teaching Grace and she is doing great. There are a lot of people who we're working with that I love very much! I don't have too much more time so I may have to keep this short. Thanks for the birthday wishes!

Love you

Silas

Greenie! (forgot to post this June 10th!)

Hello,

I got a new missionary on Tuesday which was fun! I also got to see Elder Komarek pick up his new missionary so I was proud of him. In the mission the people you train are your "sons" so my "son" Elder Komarek had a "kid" so I'm a grandpa. Something has to keep us entertained right? 

This has been a great week. We're back on bike since Elder Hermansen and Heise left. We biked about 55 miles since wednesday. I've almost biked 1000 miles since Feb. Elder Allphin and I hit the pavement and we're already teaching very well together. It makes such a difference when a missionary has already had some experience knocking doors and contacting people. He sold security systems last summer so he developed some great skills that can apply to missionary work. The first lesson we taught was a lesson to Matt who has a baptismal date for the 23rd. We talked to him about faith and repentance. It was a great lesson with inspired questions and great teamwork. We also met Tabitha through a great family in the ward. She went to church with the Montierth's and they invited us over yesterday to teach a lesson. She committed to prepare to be baptized on the 30th. 

Grace also came to church! She is a single mother of three young women aged daughters who found a great friend at church yesterday! Sister Cossio is also a convert and single mother so they got a long really well. They sat together, exchanged numbers and are planning on getting together to read. It makes such a difference when members go out of their way to meet people who are new at church. We'll keep working hard.

I have a feeling that Elder Allphin and I will be pretty successful together. He's a good worker and is very personable. I forget that he's brand new so I'm excited! It is weird though because he's seen Iron Man 3 and that literally just came out ha. I guess I've been on my mission for a little while now. Thanks Mom for all the pictures you sent me! They're great. I'll send a picture of us that I took this morning. 

I miss you all and hope you have a great week.

Love

Silas 

Transfers!

Hey,

This week was pretty good! We had a baptism which I don't have pictures of this week but I'll try and get one from Elder Hermansen. His name is Nathan and Elder Heise was teaching him when we all became companions. His family hasn't been to church in a little while so he wasn't baptized when he was 8. I was able to teach him about the Gospel(Having faith in Christ and His atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end) and all of the commandments (Tithing, follow the prophet, word of wisdom, the ten commandments, law of chastity, pray often, study the scriptures, fasting, and honoring the law). That's a lot of commandments. Nathan is 13 and he's a really good kid. 

So this Tuesday is transfers! I am staying and Elder Heise and Hermansen are now companions in the ward where Elder Heise was serving. My new companion is another brand new missionary! It'll be fun training another new missionary. I like being able to help people develop good habits and start off their mission with hard and consistent work. I've had to be the one wanting to leave on time and get up and exercise and work so I'm kind of tired of that. I'd like someone who wants to work hard and follow the rules and usually that comes from a new missionary. 

We went to the departing fireside which is just a meeting where the missionaries going home tomorrow get up and talk about their experience and bear their testimonies. It was good! I saw Elder Komarek and Marco from the first ward that I served in. He said Mom always talks to him hah. 

President Bubert is leaving on June 29th and President Tew will be there that same day. I'm excited to have a new mission president but I'm also nervous. Hopefully he will be just as good as President Bubert. I've grown to really love President Bubert and I hope to stay in contact with him. 

Have a great week

Love 

Silas