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1/19/2021
Monday 1/11/21
-Today we made the necessary preparations for our day tomorrow, mainly getting me all packed up, deep cleaning the cabin, signing the rest of transfer journals, and saying my last goodbyes to some of the members of the district who I won't see again.
-In the evening, we picked up dinner from the Haynies, then headed over to the Fisks' house to say goodbye to them. They have been amazing members, and they are always close with the missionaries because they are pretty recent converts (of a few years). I will miss them and the Calhan ward very much.
Tuesday 1/12/21
-TRANSFERS!!!
-I put my last few things in my suitcase, said goodbye to the Lewises, and headed over to the other Elders' house to pick up Elder Manwaring. He was being transferred too and came with us in the truck to the transfers building. I took one final picture with Elder Ellsworth and then he headed inside the building to "Train the Trainer". I found Elder Vail, who I would be traveling down with and we packed our stuff into the new truck. We made our way down to Pueblo and stopped to grab some lunch and a couple of things from Walmart. Then we continued our drive through Colorado City, and finally made it to Rye! We pulled up to our new apartment, which apparently is in a church building, but not one of ours, very interesting! Then we met up with Elder Gray (my new companion) and Elder Franco (Elder Vail's new companion) and unpacked our stuff.
-The Rye ward has two companionships of Elders, and we all live in the same apartment, which is fun. It will be interesting to share an apartment; I haven't done that before. New experiences!
-Later we had a great lesson with a lady named Dawn over FB Messenger, and it was really spiritual! We talked about the Plan of Salvation and about how Jesus Christ and His atonement are the central event and focal point of the gospel.
-In the evening we had a Zone leadership call to get to know each other and to set some goals for the rest of the month. Then all the other missionaries joined in on the call and we talked about those goals, and everyone in the Pueblo zone introduced themselves.
Wednesday 1/13/21
-Today we helped out a woman named Haley at her house, moving some stone to cover up places where the snow runoff melts and makes standing water. She runs a pitbull rescue, so it was fun to see all the dogs running around! She also has a couple of pigs that we helped feed, very cute.
-We went to the church's youth [Young Men's] activity tonight. We played some ultimate frisbee which was pretty fun, and a good opportunity to fellowship with the ward, especially for Elder Vail and I to meet the members here.
-When we got back to the apartment Elder Gray and I got a call from the Mission President asking us to be the Facebook admins for the FB pages down in this areas. It looks like we'll have some extra responsibilities this transfer.
Thursday 1/14/21
-The main things we did today was our Weekly Planning session and went to our ward missionary correlation meeting.
-Our Ward Mission leader (WML) is SO BOMB!! His name is Brother Taylor (ironically the same name as the WML in Calhan) and he is super involved with the missionary work here in the ward. He has been coordinating with all of the ward leaders and asking each of them to think of ways they could help us in our efforts to find, teach, and baptize.
Friday 1/15/21
-In the morning I led my first District Council meeting here in Rye. I think it went well - I tried to make it as efficient as possible, so we could all get back to our work. Unfortunately it still ended up being over an hour, but it was a good meeting for me to continue to get to know all the other missionaries in my district.
-For lunch we went to Subway with the Trinidad/Raton Elders, Elders Armstrong and Elder Corless. They are pretty funny dudes! I'm getting along well I think.
-In the afternoon, we had a member lesson with Brother Lohse, who has a pretty interesting backstory. I won't won't go into detail, but he reminds me a lot of Andrew back in Calhan. Maybe we'll have to set up a lesson with Andrew and Brother Lohse in the same call - I think he might have some interesting insights for him. Anyway, Brother Lohse is also an avid guitarist, and when Elder Gray and I mentioned that we were trying to learn how to play here on the mission, he said he wanted to give us one of his guitars that he wasn't using! So nice!! He also gave us a DVD of guitar tutorials haha, so we'll have to find some time to check that out. But it's really nice, because Elder Gray has a good guitar already, and now I will have a good guitar too. I have one that Elder Whitted gave me a while back, but that one is pretty roughed up and tough to play!
Saturday 1/16/21
-Elder Gray and I looked through our Facebook page schedule for the zone and did a bit of housekeeping items in relation to that. Then we had a call with the Social Media Specialists who gave us some pretty interesting news! I can't share it though, because some other missionaries in this mission read these emails, and it's a secret for now.
-We had a New-Member lesson tonight with the Edwards Family, who are recent converts to the church. Brother Reeder came with us and he was great at leading the lesson back on topic when it veered off.
Sunday 1/17/21
-First Sunday in Rye! Elder Gray and I have two church services [Sacrament meetings] that we go to every week, one at 9:30am and one at 11:00am. Because of Covid the ward meets in two halves, so we have the privilege of attending both sessions. It was great for me because I got to meet a lot of people in the ward.
-After church we had a messenger video lesson with Sarah, who is looking into the Church, and the Garners (from the ward) joined us on the call as well! Sarah has had some difficult experiences with some other churches and is hesitant to accept some of the concepts of the Restored Gospel, but we know that as she continues to read the Book of Mormon, she'll be able to feel the spirit and receive answers to her questions.
-The Garners are amazing! We talked to them about some service opportunities in the area and they said they would love to introduce us to one of their friends who needed some help. So we met at a café in town and then walked to her house, which is right across the street from it. Marty invited us all in, and the Garners visited with her for a bit and then told her about who we are and what we do. It was really good to meet her. She said that she and her neighbor might need some assistance with a couple of things, so we are excited to help both of them out.
HEY!!! So I got my new address for out here in Rye. It's actually a PO Box, so if you want to send me anything, you can send it here:
Elder Nathan A. Bird
PO Box 205
Rye, CO 81069
Because I'm so far away from the mission office, this will be a better option. The Zone Leaders only bring stuff to us, out here like once a month, so the PO Box would be preferable. Thanks!
Hope you all have a good week,
-Elder Bird
1/12/2021
Tuesday 1/5/21
-The guy we are working with, Andrew, texted us last night asking us how to study more effectively. So, we had a lesson with him this morning giving him some good tips and ways of how to study and understand the scriptures better. We've found that the most important way to understand scriptures is to start with building a foundation on knowing the basics and then building your knowledge line upon line, and precept upon precept. Done with prayerful consideration, we know he will get a lot out of his reading of gospel topics. He is a quick reader and is already in Alma now!
-In the afternoon we had a lesson with Kathryn, the lady from Elizabeth. We had to pass her off to the missionaries in her area. It was a really good lesson about the Restoration, and she is excited to keep meeting with the sister missionaries there.
-In the evening, Elder Ellsworth and I tried to make some cookies without a recipe, but it turned out to not be a good idea - haha. They did not turn out well at all and went promptly into the trash. On our second try, we used the recipe on the back of the chocolate chip bag and those turned out great!
Wednesday 1/6/21
-Our day started off with doing some service with Sister Hamblin for Billy, the huskie dude (he has a lot of huskies). We just wrapped up his old AC unit with a tarp and then she took us to Subway and bought us lunch.
-After lunch, we headed over to Falcon to do some district Facebook work and worked with the Meridian Elders on our video planning guide. We are making a video next week for our FB page and we want to make sure it's a good one!
-Then we had an exchange with the Meridian Elders again, and this time I went with Elder Manwaring. He is a super great missionary! We talked about methods of finding more people through Facebook and then did a good companionship study session.
-Sister Kelley, the organist in our ward, learned I could play the piano and asked if I would play for her for church on Sunday, so that she could go out of town. I said yes of course, and so we went to the church so I could practice the hymns we would be singing on the organ.
-Word must have spread that I can play, because Sister Bringhurst sent us a text today asking if I would play a piano accompaniment for the young women as they sing a song for Josiah Rasco's funeral tomorrow. Luckily it's a song I already know, "Peace in Christ." I'm grateful for my talent and that I can use it to bless the lives of others.
Thursday 1/7/21
-This morning our housing coordinators had a cleaning devotional with all of us. They talked about how to deep clean our apartments for transfers (speaking of which, those are coming up, exciting). They made a video with some of the social media specialists and it was pretty funny!
-In the afternoon, we attended the funeral for Josiah Rasco. I was glad to see that a lot of people came, and that there was so much support for the Rasco family. Please pray for them if you would, during this trying time.
-After the funeral service, a couple of people came up to me and told me they liked hearing me play the piano, including Sister Kelley, the ward organist. She said she wants to grow up to be able to play like me, and that I was her role model - haha! I know she was just being nice, but it made me really happy!
Friday 1/8/21
-We had our district council this morning, like usual on Fridays. Then we did our district Facebook work. Transfers are coming up next week, so we also did some transfer predictions. It's where each person guesses where everyone will go for transfers! It's just kind of fun to conjecture.
-We were able to set up a couple of lessons with some people over FB messenger, so that's good! A guy named Daltry said he is interested in learning about the Church and in coming to church! Also, we've been messaging with a lady named Danielle, who has been having some trials and said she wants to have a priesthood blessing. So now we are working with some ward members to make that happen. She also said she wants to come to church!
Saturday 1/9/21
-In the morning we were able to go over to the church and join a Zoom link for Elder Ellsworth's brother's baptism, which was awesome!
-Then I practiced the organ some more for tomorrow.
-We got lunch with the Meridian Elders who were also at the Calhan building. They were there for a baptism in their ward. That Subway gift card I got for Christmas is coming in handy!
-In the afternoon, we started our deep cleaning of our cabin. I think I spent like half an hour just cleaning the back door which had these red splotches all over it. Then I did the windows, Mr. Clean-ed the black marks on our walls, and steamed and mopped the wood floors.
-The transfer sheet drops tonight. Elder Ellsworth and I were expecting a call from the Mission President because we had a hunch that one of us was going to leave. Also, I had a hunch that Elder Ellsworth would be training for this next transfer. He's a great missionary! We got the call as we were coming home from picking up dinner from the Moyes family. President Eccles asked Elder Ellsworth if he was willing to train another missionary and become a District Leader!! He was shocked to hear that, but he accepted.
-Later, when the transfer sheet dropped, we were both surprised to see that I would be the one who was actually transferring out of the area! There were a bunch of changes made to our district: the Woodmen Hills and Meridian areas were being combined (Elder Wilde and his trainee will have fun with that), Elder Omer is moving to the Fountain Zone to be a District Leader, Elder Duffin is going to be a Content (Social Media) Specialist in the East zone, and the Sisters missionaries will be training as well.
-While I will be super sad to leave this area, as it has been a great district to work with, I am super excited to meet my new companion and get to work in my new area. I'm pretty much moving to the other side of the mission, haha. I'm heading down west and south to a town called Rye, which is a small town just west of Colorado City. It's in the Pueblo zone and part of my district actually goes clear into New Mexico. I've already heard so many great things about Rye from a couple of people, so I'm super excited to see what the southside of Colorado has in store for me!
Sunday 1/10/21
-We were all set to have four people come to church this morning. All said they were coming, but as it turned out, Andrew couldn't come because of the snow (it dumped quite a bit last night), Daltry said he was busy even after we found him a ride, Danielle pretty much said she doesn't want anything to do with us or the Book of Mormon, and Joel and his family didn't make it. So that was disappointing.
-I played the organ during sacrament meeting [Sunday service]! It was a bit nerve racking because the congregation doesn't actually sing (as a Covid restriction) so everybody just listened to me play while they looked at the words in the hymnbook.
-The Bishop asked me to bear my testimony during the meeting also because I am leaving the area on Tuesday. Sister Bringhurst came up to me after the closing prayer and said that her family is actually from Rye, so I'll be looking our for them.
-We went and visited with the Lewises, our cabin owners, and he said they're gonna have to revoke the order for me to leave, haha. He gave us the key to the shop where my suitcases were, and I grabbed them and started to pack a bit.
-In the evening, our district got together for one last time finding and then we wrote in each others' transfer journals.
Have a good week,
-Elder Bird
Pictures:
--One last picture of our district
--Zoom call with district
--Call with my parents
1/4/2021
Tuesday 12/29/20
-This morning the snow continued to come down from last night, and so the Mission President decided to "park" all the zones in Colorado Springs (which means we cannot drive). Being out in the country and not having any bikes meant we had to postpone our lesson with Andrew until further notice, when we can once again meet him at the church building.
-We were however, able to have a lesson with a person we found on Facebook over a messenger video call. Her name is Kathryn and she is great! She has met with missionaries in the past, but had a bit of a weird experience with those previous missionaries. But, she loves God and we were able to clear some things up. By the end of the call, we found out that she lives in a town called Elizabeth, which is a bit north of Calhan, and is actually outside of my mission. It is in the Denver North Mission where my brother Ryan served. We were able to coordinate with the missionaries assigned there and they are going to drop off a Bible and a Book of Mormon to her. It was so interesting, because it turns out I know one of the sister missionaries there. Her name is Sister Rosenlund and we were at the Brazil MTC at the same time. She was actually on the same crazy flight down to Brazil that I was on, part of what we called "the Miami District" haha! Anyway, she happens to have been re-assigned to the Denver North mission, and now we are kind of working together to help Kathryn come closer to Christ. Crazy crazy!! #smallworld
-Good news, the snow stopped and the weather cleared up in the afternoon so we were able to pick up some food from Sister Whipple. She always has so much to give us - she is so nice!
-In the evening we made another video lesson for Donny and his family, talking about the Great Apostasy, which went really well. He said he liked it! We are trying to get to the point where we can actually meet face-to-face and really get to know him and his family.
-Being the District Leader isn't always fun. Tonight I had to message some of the companionships I'm responsible for in my district, and do a a bit of chastising. But, they received it well and I feel like they all respect me and my leadership, and I'm grateful for that.
Wednesday 12/30/20
-This morning we joined in again over Zoom for this months goal setting portion of MLC (Mission Leadership Council), which was really cool! It was much more efficient this time, and our mission is setting much higher goals than in previous months and years, which is super exciting.
-We coordinated with Brother Taylor, our Ward Mission Leader, to take pies to people in the ward for New Years. It was pretty fun driving around to people to bring them some cheer and to share a scripture with them.
Thursday 12/31/20
-New Years Eve! It doesn't really feel like a holiday out here, we just had a regular missionary day.
-In the morning, we had a really good lesson with Andrew. He told us he's been looking all over the place for answers to questions he's had and then he found a really good YouTube channel called "Saints Unscripted" that has answered a lot of them. The hosts are members of our Church. We talked a bit about the things he was curious about and then we jumped into the Book of Mormon. We read through chapter 10 of Moroni and went pretty much verse by verse sharing insights and principles of the gospel. He really enjoyed reading straight from the Book of Mormon and said he would try to focus more reading from there.
-In the afternoon, the Meridian Elders joined us for a really short service project and then we did a missionary exchange [trade companions for the day.] Doing exchanges helps me as a District Leader to know the Elders better. I was with Elder Wilde, and we had a great time together talking through some ways to build up his area and have some really good study sessions. At the end, he said he really looks up to me. That made me feel good. I'm just so grateful and hope to be a good example and role model for the Elders in my district.
-Had a great lesson with the Fisk Family tonight and they gave us street tacos for dinner, bless them! Haha
-On the way home I joined in on the call for the High Plains zone leadership meeting. It was great to hear about everything else that happened at the Mission Leadership Council that I wasn't a part of, and come with ways to help motivate my district.
Friday 1/1/2021
-Elder Ellsworth and I made a New Year's goal/resolution to go on a jog every morning, except for Sundays and Mondays because that's kind of like our weekend - haha. It's been chilly in the snow, but we've been doing it. You can see pictures from some of our mornings below.
-Not a whole ton exciting about our New Years day - haha - just had a good District Council and then set goals for our district for the month of January.
Saturday 1/2/21
-In the morning we went and opened up the Calhan building for the Woodmen Hills ward because they had a baptism. We helped fill up the baptismal font while the missionaries doing the baptism sat in on a mission wide training call. It was a trainee meeting for all new missionaries, which one of them was. We were glad to help.
-Later we joined in on a lesson of a guy who was referred to us by the Springs Elders. This guy started bashing a little bit [putting us down, arguing]. We try not to engage when this happens because contention never brings the Spirit. But, it was very interesting listening to him and to see what his interpretations of the Bible was. I'm thankful for the Spirit and the knowledge I have - haha.
-After that we had another lesson with Andrew. He is making some spiritual progress as he continues to read the Book of Mormon.
-In the evening, we got dinner from the Moyes and then shared a quick spiritual thought with them about New Years.
Sunday 1/3/21
-In the morning we went to ward council. One of the families in the ward has a teenage son who just died. He was about mission age. It is very sad and the whole ward is mourning his passing and doing their best to help the family.
-After church we had a quick lesson with Dustin and Rusty. Re-teaching and going over again Gospel principles and their testimonies of Jesus Christ. It went really well.
-In the foyer of the building, somebody from the ward left a ton of old books and study resources with a sign that said "free" next to it. Elder Ellsworth and I looked through it and found some really good stuff!! The most exciting thing for me was a hymn book from 1948! It has a lot of hymns in it that aren't in the current hymnal used by the Church, which is pretty cool!
-In the evening we had a really good lesson with a guy named Joel and the Limon Branch President was able to join us. It's good to have someone from the ward or branch join in lessons because after the missionaries teach and then leave, there is someone in the area that knows them and can befriend them. We talked about and answered his questions about priesthood authority, and how it comes from God. He has been reading the the Book of Mormon and he is almost all finished with it. We asked him to pray about whether or not he should be baptized. We are praying that he will recognize the answer when it comes.
-On Facebook, there's a group called Worldwide Missionary Referrals. On it there was a missionary who made a post for a person they're teaching who's actually from Calhan! So they made a group chat with us and we are going to have a lesson with her on Tuesday.
Monday 1/4/21
-We got confirmation last night that the county we are in went back down to Orange (from Red). Which means we are allowed to hang out again with our districts on P-day and teach in people's homes again! Yay!! So today we went and played pickleball with some of the missionaries from our district. It was super fun! It's great to play games with people in person again.
-After lunch we played a board game and then came home. We talked with our families and wrote emails.
I hope you all have a good week,
-Elder Bird
12/28/2020
Howdy,
Tuesday 12/22/20
-It really is the season for remembering Christ, and I've come to gain a much greater appreciation for the reason behind all the celebration, which is to commemorate the birth and the life of our Savior.
-We have been trying to visit as many people as we can before Christmas Eve and Day and share a Christmas message with them. It's been great to visit with people and share His light. Today we had a lesson with the Wagner family over the phone, which went great!
-When we picked up dinner from the Hendricks, they invited us to go down the road to one of their neighbors' houses and check out Saturn and Jupiter through their telescope! It was pretty dope, and apparently the convergence of the two planets only happens about every 800 years or so. Crazy cool!
Wednesday 12/23/20
-Today we had a super packed schedule of 6 lessons to share Christmas messages! (Well 5 actually and one chapel tour, but I'll get to that in a sec.) We were scheduled to have 4 member lessons and 2 non-member lessons, which is usually a great WEEK for us, so to have those planned for one DAY was pretty exciting, but also a bit daunting. I remember having 3 lessons back-to-back in my last area, and it was so good, but so spiritually draining. We prayed for the stamina to get through them all!
-So as I mentioned earlier, our fist lesson was actually a chapel tour with a guy that we found on Facebook, Andrew. We met him at the Calhan building, and he had some great, genuine questions that we were able to answer as we went through the rooms and talked about each room's purpose. He even mentioned that he had heard of missionaries from the Church and was just waiting for them to come and knock on his door, so when we messaged him on Facebook, he jumped at the opportunity. We set up another lesson with him this Saturday, which will be super great!! I'm really excited to meet with him more!
-The rest of our lessons went pretty much the same, we talked about fun Christmas traditions they might have, what their favorite part of the Nativity story is, and about how Jesus Christ is the Light of the World. It was awesome to meet with so many people and families.
Thursday 12/24/20
-Christmas Eve! Today we were in meetings for most of the day up until about dinner time.
-We moved our district council (which is usually on Fridays) to today because of the (obvious) big holiday tomorrow. In the afternoon we tried something new with the zone and did a zone weekly planning. Usually, a weekly planning session is done just as individual companionship, but Elder Wilkinson, one of our zone leaders, said he did it a few times in his previous mission and it was really effective. So we set up a bunch of tables in the cultural hall [basketball & stage area] and each companionship had their whiteboards and stuff, and did their planning. Zone Leaders and District Leaders were able to walk around and see how everyone was doing, and companionships were able to ask questions or get advice much more easily. It turned out to be pretty effective in my opinion. Afterwards we played a game called signs with (almost) everyone.
-After meetings, we went to pick up dinner from the Fisk's in our ward, who are super great, and we shared a quick message with them. They said our visits with them are the highlight of their week, which made me really happy!
-Later that evening, we gathered with our district and read the Christmas nativity story in Luke and Matthew chapter 2 (in each respectively). One of the Sister missionaries thought it would be fun to re-enact the story and all have a role. It was really fun - and funny! We then got a bit more serious and sat down together and read through the story again, each sharing our favorite parts, our thoughts, and insights with each other. This invited the Spirit and made us all feel closer to each other with the work we are doing.
-For our activity, we exchanged our Secret Santa gifts with each other. It was nice to see that everyone was so very pleased with the gift they got!
Friday 12/25/20
-CHRISTMAS!!!! We had the day off for the holiday so that we could celebrate.
-We pre-arranged to be with the Meridian House Elders for Christmas morning, so, bright and early we got up, showered and dressed, and brought all of our wrapped presents to their house. When we arrived we ate some breakfast and then started to open our presents! We went one-by-one, picking out presents for each other to open, and we all got some pretty great stuff! The things I received that I'm most excited about are a really nice digital watch, a Bluetooth keyboard for my phone, some nice ties, a cool motion-censored drone, and a really nice-looking sweater! I also got other things like snacks and candy. I'm thankful for the keyboard because it will be so much nicer to type out emails with that, than on just the phone's keypad. I am so grateful to all those who were so kind and sent me a card or a letter as well - thank you!
-After presents, we played some games, picked up dinner, and called our families! It was SO great to see my whole family together on a Zoom call, and to be able to catch up with each other a bit. I love my family so much!
-In the evening we had a Zoom call with President and Sister Eccles who shared a spiritual thought with the whole mission, and then we had a movie night. This time we watched The Other Side of Heaven, a great movie about a missionary and his experiences serving in Tonga.
Saturday 12/26/20
-In the afternoon, we had a long, hour and a half, lesson with Andrew. He asked a lot of awesome questions, and said he would come to church tomorrow! Then we did some Facebook finding. In the evening we had a lesson with the Moyes family and then they gave us a delicious dinner to take home to eat.
Sunday 12/27/20
-Today was a great Sunday! We went to church, and unfortunately Andrew didn't show, but we are having another lesson with him this week. After church, we had a lesson with Dustin and Rusty and watched a movie about the Restoration. Then it was awesome to be there as they received the Aaronic Priesthood.
-After we got home, we did some study, and then got dinner from the the Bishop and his family.
-In the evening, we went to a Baptist church service with this guy we thought would be interested in learning about our church, but it turns out he just wanted us to come to his church. It was a fun service, but I'm grateful for the spirit of discernment, and the gift of the Holy Ghost that we have as members of our church, and I'll leave it at that.
Monday 12/28/20
-Today was our p-day, which we made a very chill day. We didn't go anywhere and just had a relaxing day at home. In the afternoon it started to snow and get pretty windy, so we may be parked tomorrow, but we are hoping for the best.
I hope you all have a good week and Happy New Year!
-Elder Bird
12/21/2020
This week has mostly been getting the final preparations done for Dustin and Rusty's baptism on Saturday. We wanted to make sure they were completely ready for it. We filled out all the forms, had their baptismal interviews with the zone leaders, and had daily contact with each of them individually to give them things to study and videos to watch as they prepared. They are both so diligent in following up with their studies and prayers every day, and the baptismal service was amazing!! Their dad was the one to baptize them, which was a really great moment.
The next day, during Sacrament meeting [church], Brother Moye confirmed both of them as members of the Church and blessed them with the gift of the Holy Ghost. We were invited to be in the circle with him and were grateful to be a part of it. After church they an interview with Bishop Simmons in preparation to be ordained to the Aaronic priesthood!! They are really moving along with everything, and they are truly ready to be making these steps on their individual covenant paths.
I'm so grateful for miracles and to be able to see the hand of the Lord these past couple of months. Especially in the opportunity to teach these two young men. I am grateful that they were able to understand all of the principles and that they felt ready to make this commitment in their lives. I love the Lord and I love His gospel, and I continue to be amazed at both Rusty and Dustin's example of Christ-like faith.
I am grateful for this season and for the opportunity to reflect on the birth of our Savior. I hope you all have a Merry Christmas.
-Elder Bird
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