December 26, 2016

Liam's first baptism, Annalee

Liam found this family while out tracting

Zone Christmas Party

Liam with his first 2 companions, Elder Davis and Elder Wilkinson, at the Mission Christmas Conference

Hey guys! This week was the best week so far on the mission!!! So last P day, we had our zone Christmas party. We were at the stake center playing sports when we are told that someone is outside. So we go outside and we find Timothy. Timothy is that crazy guy we are teaching that is homeless. So he joined us in the party. It was pretty awkward. He went caroling with us and played the games and was part of the gift exchange. Good thing I brought two presents. He ended up with a blanket, so that is good. 

On Tuesday, we had Christmas Conference. That is where the whole mission gets together in Richmond. I got to see my past comps, Elders Maedgen, Davis, and Wilkinson! It was so awesome! I'll try to get the pictures from that soon. But what happened there were just a lot of musical numbers from other missionaries. 

On Wednesday, I went on an exchange with Elder Cox up in Fredericksburg. Not much really happened. Lots of lessons fell through. 

On Friday, I finally got my Hex Tie! It is so awesome! 

Saturday was probably the best day. Not only because it was Christmas Eve, but I baptized Annalee!!!! It's the best feeling ever to baptize someone that you found! Later, we went to our bishop's house for dinner. Then we had a white elephant gift exchange. But for this one, we ended up with like 8 things. I got a bunch of random puzzles and cheap games from Five Below. Five Below is a store that sells things for $5 or less, obviously. Then I opened my presents before I went to bed, because I couldn't wait. I got lots of cookies and clothes and Taco Bell gift cards. Thank you to everybody who sent me something! 

Sunday might also have been the best day. Since it was Christmas, I got to Skype home!!! It was such an awesome experience! But it did get me a little trunky, but I'll be fine. So that was my week. 

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas! I love and miss you all so much!

-Elder Turner

December 19, 2016

They did a 6 hour service project raking leaves for a family this week. 

They have quite a pile here.

I've been wanting to see Liam's apartment and today I finally got to! I know that many missionaries in other parts of the world live in VERY humble housing. I'm glad Liam is in a nice, safe place. Every mission has it's perks and challenges I guess. Here's the video he sent today.

December 12, 2016

Liam didn't send a picture this week,
so I decided to post the Christmas package that I just sent out to him

Hello everybody! 

This week was an alright week. Last P day, we played more umpa. I'm starting to get pretty good at it. Then later, we got Brother Strowmatt to come out with us to teach Jesus and Maria Cepeda. They have 8 kids. They are pretty solid and love how our church is set up. Brother Strowmatt gave them a ton of toys to give to their kids for Christmas. 

On Tuesday, the Spotsylvania elder have started coming with us to the food bank. We taught the Strowmatts later in the day. Annalee wants me to baptize her!!! She is for sure getting baptized on December 24 at 1 pm. We will be baptizing Sister Strowmatt some other day, but we don't know exactly what day. We also taught Jesus again and we took him on a church tour. That went pretty well. 

On Wednesday, we taught Jesus for a third day in a row. We took him to the church building again, but this time mutual was going on, so he got to meet a lot of the ward leaders and the bishop. Then he had us over for dinner after that. 

On Friday, we had interviews with President Smith. He told me that I can Skype home using my iPad!!! But he hinted that I will be leaving this area next transfer. I don't want to go. I love this area and want to stay with the Strowmatts! Later, we took bishop to go teach the Hamiltons. We haven't heard from the Hamiltons in a while because she just changed her phone and she didn't have our number. The lesson went pretty well. 

On Saturday morning, our ward had a ward find. A ward find is when a bunch of random ward members get together in companionships and find the inactive members in our ward roster and see what we can do to help them. I went with Brother Bair in his modded out Mazda RX-8. It was pretty fun. We didn't get ahold of anybody really. We found out that one member has started goi to another church now. 

On Sunday, we were supposed to have 16 investigators at church, but only 2 came. And that basically is a summary of what missionary work is like. Anyways, all is well here in Massaponax. 

I hope all goes well this week. I love and miss you all so much!


(sorry no pictures, I'll try to get some today)


-Elder Turner

December 6, 2016

Breaking Water Jugs....

Mom note - So, the first part of this letter again shows that these missionaries are young.  I have to keep reminding myself that he's only 18 and that sometimes 18 year olds make stupid choices.  I mean, who in the world thinks a $109 hard metal, gold tie is a good idea to buy on a mission?!?!  Seriously.  And he can't wear that tie there. He's always been so good at telling on himself.  Poor Liam got a not happy mom email this week.  It's hard to stop being a mom.  There are also wonderful things in the letter.  I really am proud of him for all he's doing.  

Hey everybody!!

This week was a little exciting. Last P day was my 5 month mark. To celebrate, I bought a $109 Hex Tie online. Hopefully it gets here soon. 

On Wednesday, it was super warm. It got up to 73 degrees. Then we got kicked out of a townhome complex by the sheriff. The complex manager thought we were tracting, but we really had some set appointments there that we were going to. But they fell through, so it looked like we were tracting random houses. 

On Thursday, we had dinner at the Strowmatts. Then we had a lesson with them on the ten commandments. Then we got Brother Strowmatt to come out with us to go try by some people. All those people fell through, but it was super awesome that he was willing to come out with us to teach people. Sometimes I wonder what the Strowmatts would be doing if I didn't follow the prompting to knock their door late at night. We are going to have to rebaptize Sister Strowmatt because the ward clerks can't find her records anywhere. And Elizabeth, the foster child, won't be able to get baptized, because her biological parents said no. So she will have to wait 4 years until she is 18 to get baptized. 

Elder Cox and I were on exchanges here from Thursday night until Saturday morning. We had the ward Christmas party Saturday morning, but we could only stay for 30 minutes because we had zone meeting that morning. The Strowmatts came to that and donated a bunch of toys to the angel tree thing that they did. Zone meeting was pretty fun. Got to meet a bunch more missionaries. Elder Shupe from Staunton is in my zone now. 

Then last night, we went over to the Strowmatt's house to watch the First Presidency Christmas Devotional. That was super cool. So that was my week. I hope all goes well with you guys this week. I love and miss you all so much!

November 28, 2016

Happy late Thanksgiving, everybody! 

Last P day, we didn't really do anything fun. The other elders gave blood, which took forever. Not much happened until Thanksgiving. For Thanksgiving, we went over to the Palomino's for breakfast. Then we helped do service at his house for a good while. Me and Elder Morris raked leaves with their 4 young girls, which just turned into us playing in the leaves. It was really fun. Then I took a nap instead of eat lunch. Then we had our weekly planning. Then we went to the bishop's house for Thanksgiving dinner. It was super good. 

On Friday, we were riding bikes around in a trailer park looking for people to talk to. Then we found the Spanish elders. Then we started riding more until we found the YSA sister missionaries in there, too! So that was pretty crazy finding two other companionships of missionaries in the same few blocks. Then we had another Thanksgiving dinner at the Strowmatts. We starting talking a little bit more about their baptism, then we came up with the idea of them getting baptized on Christmas Eve. That way they can get confirmed on Christmas day. It would be cool because it's like Heavenly Father is giving them a Christmas present: the gift of the Holy Ghost. 

On Saturday, Suri Palomino got baptized. We went there to see her get baptized, even though she is a child of record. We had to give a little talk about the Holy Ghost. So that was fun. 

Anyways, that is all the exciting stuff that happened this past week. I hope all went well for you guys on Thanksgiving. I love and miss you all! ✌️️

Thanksgiving 2016

I received this picture in a text from the bishop of the ward Liam is serving in, just as we were sitting down for our own Thanksgiving dinner.  I'm so thankful that Liam, and the other missionaries serving with him, were able to enjoy Thanksgiving with a family.  The holidays are hard! I'm missing Liam a lot and I hope he has a wonderful Christmas season.  I am just so grateful for members out there that take such good care of the missionaries. 💕

November 21, 2016

Hello everybody, 

This week wasn't too exciting. Last P day was our zone sport P day. We played volleyball, dodgeball, scatterball, and umpa, of course. Then we had FHE with the Strowmatts at the Erickson's house. The Ericksons are a super awesome family that invite us over a lot and go on splits with us a lot.  On Wednesday, Elder Croft came here on exchanges with me. We didn't really teach that many people, but that's just how missionary work goes sometimes. Thursday, we went to the Strowmatt's for dinner. The lesson went really well. We have to push back the baptism until December 10 because they will be busy with some other stuff on the 3rd. On Saturday, we went to the Swift Creek ward in Colonial Heights which is by Richmond. We went there because Elder Neuman baptized someone there. Well, first, he found a family a long time ago tracting. There was a couple and 2 sons. The couple wasn't married. So on Saturday, they got married at the church. Then right after that, the mom and the sons got baptized. So that was pretty unusual. Also on Saturday was transfer calls. Elder Neuman and I are staying here in Massaponax. My good friend Sister Erickson is getting transferred though, which makes me a little sad. Hopefully I see her again in the future. But anyways, that was my week. I hope everyone is enjoying the snow back home. I'm enjoying the few days that we have 70 degree weather, but not the days that have 40 degree weather. As always, I love and miss you all so much!

-Elder Turner

November 14, 2016

Hey guys! This week was fun. So, like I said last week, Elder Wilkinson left for Gayton and now I am here with Elder Rowdy Neuman. Elder Neuman has been out for 18 months. He is a convert. He was baptized about 2 and 1/2 years ago. He is from the Tri-Cities area of Washington state. He is 23 years old. His age is closer to the Strowmatts than it is to mine. That's super weird to think about. 

On Tuesday, we had dinner with the Strowmatts. Then we had an awesome lesson with them and set Elisabeth and Annalee on date for December 3! I'm pretty sure both will happen! 

On Wednesday, I was riding my bike down a steep hill that had a ton of wet leaves on it. And yes, I did crash and rip a hole in my suit pants. Oops. But I didn't get hurt at all, which is a total miracle. 

On Thursday, we had zone conference. We learned how we could work with the ward council better. We also learned that we shouldn't put in tracting just to fill time, but to be more creative and find better ways to find people. Then, I went on an exchange with Elder Grimaud in Fredericksburg. We didn't do that much. We taught a guy named Doug that they have seen everyday for the past couple weeks. 

On Friday, we went to Gayton because one of Elder Neuman's investigators was getting baptized. So I got to see Elder Wilkinson again. 

On Saturday, I went on another exchange with Elder Kohler. We went to another baptism in the Rappahanock YSA branch. We brought Denecia (the mom) and Annalee Strowmatt to that and she is super excited to get baptized! 

On Sunday, we had the primary program. And Everett and Annalee Strowmatt participated in it! I love them to death!! 

Anyways, I hope y'all have a good time under the sound of a Trump. Love and miss you all!!

November 7, 2016

Halloween in Fredricksburg with his zone

Note from mom - please excuse Liam's wording on the "stupid rules". It's just his 18 year oldness showing.  At least he has a good attitude about obeying rules.  He's a good boy. 

Hey guys! This week was just an average week. Nothing too exciting. Last P day was really fun! We had zone P day and we all played sports together. They tried to get everyone to dress up in a costume, but some of us didn't. I bought some awesome new Stance socks. On Tuesday, Sister Christensen from the ward (she grew up in Orem) gave me a haircut, but she accidentally cut one part super short. Haha oops. Oh well, I'm not out here to impress anyone. On Wednesday, I went on exchanges with Elder Kohler on the other half of Massaponax. We went to play basketball with the ward that night and Brother Strowmatt came to it!! The Strowmatts are progressing really well. They fed Elders Wilkinson and Morris that night. Elisabeth, the foster daughter, said that she really wants to go to young women's, so we will have to start having dinner with them on Tuesdays or Thursdays. On Thurday, I bought fabric to make a tie. I hope it turns out well. I'll show you guys it when I finish making it, but I can't wait to see what it looks like. I won't say what it is, so it'll be a surprise, but I'm sure all of you have seen this painting before. On Friday, we had zone meeting at 7 pm, which was awesome cause there's nothig to do at nights that are productive. I was way happy until they got to the policy changes. We can no longer workout at gyms, even if they are in our apartment complex or even if we have a bench in the apartment. We can't lift any weights anymore. We can't hangout with the other Massaponax elders after 9 or during meals we have at the apartment. We can't own any instruments. These are the stupidest rules I have ever heard of, but since they come from God, I will obey them. I know that a lot of times, we may be constrained by rules that we don't know why are there, but they are always there for a purpose. So if the prophet ever tells us to do something or to not do something, we should follow what he says, because it comes from God. We need to follow the prophet no matter what, even if we think it is the stupidest rule we have ever heard of. I know we will be blessed for doing so. On Saturday, I went on an exchange with Elder Cox up in Fredericksburg. I accidentally popped Elder Grimaud's bike tire, so we had to walk. A lot. We walked about 12 miles that day, some of it through a forest, some of it through a college campus, some of it through downtown Fredericksburg, and some through the Fredericksburg battlefield. It was an adventure. We went to Chipotle for lunch. Then before we could pay, the lady in front of us in line paid for us. That was such an awesome little miracle! Yesterday, the Strowmatts came to church again! Brother Strowmatt introduced himself in priesthood and said "Hi, I'm Jason Strowmatt. I have lived in Fredericksburg for about a year, and I am starting to come back to church now." It is so awesome that he has told eveyone that he is coming back to church again. And he fits perfectly into the ward! Since it was Fast Sunday, I was feeling pretty hungry, so I looked to see who we had signed up for dinner that night. But then I saw that no one had signed up. So I prayed and asked for someone to offer us dinner that night. Later in the day, Brother Erickson texted us and asked if we had plans for dinner. We said no. So then he offered to have us over for dinner. That was another awesome little miracle! And then late last night while I was in bed, President Smith called us. Elder Wilkinson is being transferred this evening and I will be staying here in Massaponax with Elder Newman. We'll see how this goes. Anyways, I hope you guys can see the little miracles that happen in your lives! And don't be afraid to pray for even the littlest things. I hope everything is going well back home or wherever you guys are! I love and miss you all so much!

October 24, 2016

Liam with Elder Wilkinson

This is umpa

Hey guys! This week was ok. It started out pretty boring, but finally picked up towards the end. So last P day, i played a whole bunch of sports. At around 8, we were tracting. Then we knocked into a missing member family, the Strowmatts. They are not in our ward's records. But we only met with Brother Strowmatt. He said that his 8 year old girl is starting to ask questions about the church and God. So that is pretty exciting. Then at 9 pm, I went on an exchange with the zone leaders up in Fredericksburg. So I was there for most of Tuesday. But the thing about them is that they are Spanish speaking. But we didn't teach anybody in Spanish. We just mostly went tracting. We found a Lamborghini Countach, which is one of my favorite cars. The people I went to for dinner didn't know that much English, so that was fun. Then on Wednesday, that was my first day biking. I had to borrow Elder Kohler's bike. Biking isn't actually as bad as I thought. But we didn't find anyone to teach. That day kinda sucked. Thursday was a little better, but still didn't teach that many people. Friday, things starting picking up a little. Tried by a lot of potentials. But not much are progressing. Played some volleyball that night. Got a couple of lucky hits. Saturday was a lot better. We found another missing member family, the Brennans. We also don't have their records. And they also are a less active family. They have a 20 year old son that is living with them, Austin. He has lost most of his eyesight due to a rare genetic disease. But he is genuinely interested in learning more about the Church. Then a member in the ward, Brother Christensen, gave me a bike to use while I'm here. That was super nice of him. Then Sunday was good. We met with the Strowmatts. They have a 14 year old girl that's a foster child staying with them, Elisabeth. She is very interested in the Church and asked us how she could be baptized!! The 8 year old asked us a lot of questions and is interested, too. It's pretty different trying to teach little children about the gospel. So, it's been a pretty ok week. During lunches and dinners that we have at the apartment, we have been playing a lot of Monopoly. And I am the worst at it. Anyways, hope you all are doing well! Love and miss you all so much!!

-Elder Turner

October 17, 2016

At the Sugar Shack

Chancellor Battlefield

With the Spotsylvania Elders

Hey guys! This week was very long and boring. Last P day, we went to the Chancellor Battlefield. It was pretty fun and talks about most of what happened in the Civil War that took place around this area of Virginia. 

On Tuesday, we received two more elders here in the Massaponax area. Their names are Elder Morris and Elder Kohler. They are pretty cool. They live next door to us. Bad thing about them is that since they are here, we had split our area. And they got most of our promising investigators. So for the entire rest of the week, we have been tracting and trying to find new ones. Also, we had to rearrange the district here. We lost both of the sister companionships and the Spotsylvania elders, but we picked up the new Massaponax elders and the two Fredericksburg companionships that are elders. 

We called a potential investigator in our area book. Her name is Sissy. She sounded really excited when we said we could come over and do service for her. We went over on Wednesday and Friday mornings to paint her house. She is a really nice short old lady. She made us lunch both days. 

I went on familysearch.org and found my way all the way to Adam and Eve. So that's pretty neat. That's all that really happened this week. Sorry it was so boring, but I try my hardest to make the week interesting. Have a blessed day! Love and miss you all!

- Elder Turner

October 10, 2016

It took a while for me to notice the picture and the pose

Hey guys! This week was pretty fun. Last P day, we went to the Fredericksburg Battlefield. President Monson actually told a story about that battle in a conference talk. The talk is called Mercy - The Divine Gift. It is from the April 1995 conference. Go look it up when you get the chance. 

For some reason, we have a second microwave here in the apartment. We call it our "experimental microwave." We put an egg in the microwave and it exploded. Then we put a hot dog in a jar and microwaved it for 5 minutes. When we opened the door, the jar shattered and exploded. So yah we find ways to stay entertained. 

Anyways, Wednesday was day 100 of my mission. It doesn't seem like it's been 100 days. It feels a lot shorter. I have changed a lot over these past 100 days. Normal life seems so foreign to me now. Thinking about life before the mission, it seems so different and weird. Mission life is almost all I know now. I've turned away from some ways of thinking that would distract me from missionary work, and now I feel much better being out here and I feel a lot closer to God. 

But anyways, on Thursday, some members out here in the Spotsylavania ward went to my house back in Utah and talked with my family for a little bit. So that was pretty neat. 

I'm staying here in Massaponax for next transfer. I'm excited because a lot of the investigators have started progressing and we have found a lot of new investigators that show true potential. I'm so happy to be out here and I love being on a mission. 

I love and miss you all!

-Elder Turner

October 3, 2016 part 2

Liam's zone went to the Fredricksburg Battlefield for p-day

Then they got pizza at a place in downtown Fredricksburg.  The girl at the counter grew up a member of the LDS church and likes missionaries, so she only charged them $2 a slice.

And it was a huge slice!

October 3, 2016

Elder Turner and Elder Turner

This was probably the fastest week so far. But it was weird, cause not much really happened this week. But I say that every week. This week we tried new ways to find people. One thing that we did was drawing the Plan of Salvation on the sidewalk with chalk. It was fun to do, but not really effective, cause it rained that night. It rained for most of the week. But it's awesome because it is perfect temperature. On Wednesday, we went to mutual and we learned how to do laundry and how to sew on buttons. Then we played volleyball after that. Then on Friday, we played more volleyball. Every Friday, we play volleyball with a bunch of the ward. So I think I'm getting good at it... I think. Then we watched general conference at the stake center for each of the sessions. All the missionaries have to watch it at the stake center. If you haven't gotten a chance to listen to conference yet, at least go look up the talk by Elder Oaks. He talks about how members can be good member missionaries. And I agree with everything he said in that talk. And I challenge you all to look for ways to be better missionaries. Whether it is just simply smiling at people you walk by, or it is giving out a Book of Mormon, you can choose what to do. Don't just leave all the work for the full time missionaries. We need your help. Anyways, that was my favorite talk from conference. We joined he Spanish branch yesterday afternoon in between sessions for a big lunch. It was super good. Now I have to go get a haircut soon. I  haven't cut the top of my hair since before my mission. So it's kinda long. BTW, one of my zone leaders' name is Elder Turner. There are actually three Elder Turners and one Sister Turner in my mission. So that's pretty neat. 

Love and miss you all! And have a blessed day! 

-Elder (Liam) Turner

September 26, 2016

Liam's district

Hey guys! Sorry this text kinda looks weird, but I'm too lazy to fix it. And sorry, but not much really happened this week. Last P day, I went on exchange with another Elder Turner, except he is my zone leader. That was pretty fun. He is Spanish speaking, so I got to sit in on a lesson while just him taught. I didn't really understand much that they were talking about. I can only pick out topics. Then on Tuesday, I went to a place called Steak n Shake. It is super good! I've had it couple times when would go out to Kentucky, so I'm super happy that there is one near me. On Wednesday, we were told that Massaponax is getting another set of elders. So they will take the more dense area and be on bike, then we will keep the car and go out in the boonies. Well, we actually have to share the car, but we'll see if we actually do. On Thursday, a member made us some chicken tikka masala. And if you know me at all, you would know that that is my favorite food ever! It's the best! On Friday, me and Elder Wilkinson signed a little paper where we agreed that if we didn't invite someone that day to be baptized on a specific day, we would have to sleep with no sheets or blankets. So yah, we had a pretty bad sleep. On Saturday, I went on an exchange with Elder Nichols up in Spotsylvania. I got one of their investigators on date for baptism! That's all that really happened this last week. Love and miss you all!

-Elder Turner

September 19, 2016

This week was pretty fun. Last P day, the zone got together and played ultimate, lightning, and kickball. I suck at all of those. But I love the people in the zone so much! There's a couple of awesome sisters from my last zone that are in this one. Then on Tuesday, I went on an exchange to Spotsylvania with Elder Eames. He's really cool. He is an amazing singer!! We had some Ghanan food from some members there. The food I think is called wachae. It wasn't the best food I've had, that's for sure. Then on Wednesday, we had district meeting. Finally
my district has more than 2 companionships in it. Then I went to Midlothian for a doctor's appointment. 1 hour 30 minute drive and a 45 minute wait just for a 10 minute check up. I taught Elder Wilkinson how to solve a Rubik's Cube because he was bored. On Friday, we played volleyball with a bunch of members. I suck at that, too. Then on
Saturday, President and Sister Smith came and had comp study with us. I was nervous at first, but they are so awesome that I don't know why I was worried at first. They are super nice and funny. They told us that we are gonna get another companionship in the Massaponax area this upcoming transfer. They will get bikes and we will keep the car. Then Elder Wilkinson donated some blood. He tried to get me to do it, but I don't hink I'll ever do it. Then a member took us sight seeing around Fredericksburg. There's so much history here! We are going to explore more of it later today. Love and miss you all!!!

September 12 ,2016

Elder Turner and Crissy

Elder Wilkinson and Elder Turner

Ok this might have been one of the craziest weeks of my mission, including future weeks. Tuesday, I did an exchange and went back up to Staunton with Elder Shupe. We went to Taco Bell of course. Blew $7 here. Then we went around tracting in sweats. Jk, we offered service to people, so it was kinda like tracting in sweats, but not actively sharing the gospel. Then we walked around Mary Baldwin University. That's an all girls college. Didn't really talk to anyone, though. Wednesday, we drove to Manchester, which is in Midlothian, which is kinda by Richmond. We had a sleep over there that night. Then Thursday morning, we had a combined zone conference with Elder Kopischke from the Seventy. He taught us how to approach people better. But that's not even the craziest thing that happened this week. On Saturday, I got emergency transferred to Massaponax, which is about 48 miles south of DC. I'm now with Elder Wilkinson. This is probably the nicest apartment in the whole mission. It is double the size of Waynesboro. Now I have a 2015 Ford Fusion. But we will be getting a new car in about 1000 miles. Bad thing about here is that I don't have Sharp Shopper anymore!!!! And I'm sure gonna miss everyone in Waynesboro. Got really close to a lot of them and didn't want to leave them. At least I got a picture with Chrissy Utt, the one armed lady. But I really like it out here in Massaponax. It has literally every fast food place to eat at. Sorry I can't really tell you much about this area, cause I've only been here for 2 days. I love and miss you all so much!!

September 6, 2016

Accurate comparison of elder and sister missionaries?

Here's Liam's letter for this week.

This week was pretty cool. We tracted into a part-member family on Tuseday. They moved there the week before and didn't know where the church building was. The wife got baptized about 5 years ago, but the husband doesn't like organized religion. But oh well, they are happy to have us over and talk about the Gospel anytime. 

On Friday, we did a blitz up at JMU in Harrisonburg with the zone leaders. Talked to so many people (girls mostly 😉) the same age as us. It's so awesome there. Nearly everyone let us in and talked with us. Then on Saturday, we had zone meeting in Harrisonburg. President and Sister Smith were there. It's nice getting to see the mission president every so often.

Then our zone leaders gave us a big giant keyboard. Now I can keep up on my piano skills. I also ate some cactus at a members house. It feels super slimy, almost like I ate snot. Anyways, yesterday, me and Elder Davis went up to bare our testimonies and we basically just rebuked the ward and told them to be better member missionaries. But we said it in a nice way. 

Man, I love having half off Tropical Smoothie Cafe almost every morning. Anyways, love and miss you all!!

August 29, 2016

Two months down! Only 22 months left to go! On Tuesday, Elder Davis went to Richmond for something we call mid mission. You go back to the mission home halfway through your mission and they basically get you pumped for the last half of your mission. But while he was there, I did an exchange with Elder Cole from Harrisonburg Spanish. Not much really happened, like, we didn't teach anybody. I guess no one happened to be home. Oh well, those days come and go. 

Then on Friday, I did another exchange with Staunton. I went up there and they have some pretty rich neighborhoods. We tracted into a neighborhood that had a BMW i8, Ferrari Italia, and Maserati GranTurismo. Too bad I didn't get any pictures. 

I've been really bored lately, so I just learned how to solve the Rubiks Cube. On Saturday, an exed member gave
me a pretty sweet necklace. Too bad I can't wear it around in public. Transfer calls also came in on Saturday and we are staying here in Waynesboro for another 6 weeks, but now Elder Davis is the district leader. 

Anyways, nothing too exciting happened this week. Love and miss you all so much!

August 22, 2016

Hey y'all! Nothing really exciting happened this week. Sorry if I don't write as much anymore, but just know that everything is going well. If something exciting happens, I'll tell y'all. 

Last P day, me and the rest of my district went to the arcade and played pinball for about an hour. A less active member owns the arcade and let us play for free. It was fun. 

On the 18th, I hit my one month mark being here in Virginia! This month went by super fast! I hope the rest of my mission goes by this fast. But I also hope I can do as much work for the Lord as I can in these two years. 

Anyways, on Friday, it was bring your own cup day at 7/11. So of course, we went in with gallon jugs and got a gallon of slurpie each. It was amazing. Haha. 

Then yesterday after church, this guy, Keith Graham, came up to me and he said he knows my mom! Apparently they were in the same ward back when my mom lived out in Texas! That was pretty cool that I got to meet one of my mom's friends out here! 

Anyways, love and miss you all

August 15, 2016

Hey guys!! Y'all shouldn't hate Monday's so much. They are the best days in the week. But anyways, this week wasn't really anything special. Wednesday was pretty eventful. First, we had district meeting. There's only four people in my district including me. I gave a lesson about chapter 4 in Preach my Gospel. That talks about recognizing the Spirit. It talks about how everybody is born with the Light of Christ and that is what lets people know between right and wrong. It also tells the difference between the power of the Holy Ghost and the gift of the Holy Ghost. The power of the Holy Ghost is like the Light of Christ; everyone can feel its influence. It is what manifests to people the truthfulness of what we teach. But the gift of the Holy Ghost is like that same feeling, but we can have that feeling constantly as long as we are living worthily. 

Anyways, after district meeting, we did an exchange. Elder Shupe from the Staunton ward switched with Elder Davis, so that meant I could finally drive!! Then the two of us went and picked up a member that is a little older than me and he is putting in his papers next month. Then the three of us went to teach a lady that was referred to us by the hermanas because she doesn't speak Spanish, so it should be us teaching her. Anyways, we had a big long hour and a half lesson in which we taught both the Restoration and the Plan of Salvation. She seemed very interested and said she'll pray about a baptism date, but I'm pretty sure she'll get baptized pretty soon. Later in the week, we taught a less active older couple that was from Poland. They got the accent and everything! It's so awesome! And then the next day, we went and did service basically the entire day. I think this was Saturday. But first, we went to the food bank and helped out there for a few hours. Then we did lots of yard work for a single lady in the ward. Then right after that we went over to that Polish couple and did the same thing there. But while we were there, they ordered pizza and fed us. It was nice. Then we finally got home at like 7. But I love doing service for people. Not only because I don't have to wear church clothes, but when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God. 

Anyways, I hope y'all are doin' well and keepin' safe. Love and miss y'all so much!!!

-Elder Turner

August 8, 2016

Don't let go!

Wow this week went by super fast! So, last P day was a zone P day.  That's just when the
entire zone gets together and does stuff together for P day. Pretty self explanatory. But
anyways, we hiked the "mountain" again. Then later, we played a game called umpa.
Umpa has the same rules as ultimate frisbee. But instead of a frisbee, it's a football. But
you also gotta shoot it into a basketball hoop. It's pretty fun, even though I suck at it.

And Liam's wearing the cat shirt, again.

Then on Tuesday, we did an exchange with the area next to us, Staunton. I was with a guy
named Elder Gehring. He's been out for 19 months. But during the day, we went by to
check in on an investigator that we haven't seen in a while. She finally answered the door
and told us that her husband forbade her from answering the door all the other times.
He's just been lying to us that she was gone each time. But I guess we came at a time that
he was gone. Anyways, she said she'd have to stop meeting with us, but she was still really
interested. She said she really wanted to keep the Book of Mormon, even though we weren't
gonna take it back. No one takes it back without the investigator willingly gives it back to us.
It was sad, but maybe future missionaries here will get back in contact with her.

Saturday, we had something called return and report. For that, all the trainers and trainees
that came out with me all went back to Richmond. We met with President Smith for a while,
then we were put in random companionships and then went through downtown Richmond
street contacting. It was funny because each person we talked to said that they met with other
missionaries like 5 minutes earlier. That was super scary, but the longer I did it, the less I cared
about what people thought of me. Then I was more willing to talk to everybody. Then yesterday,
during church, an internigator (someone who has been investigating for over a year) called us
up and asked us to come over and give her another Plan of Salvation pamphlet. She has already
been taught literally everything. But when we got there, she told us that she wants to change
her life and that she wants to get baptized. Except she is quite mentally unstable, so I don't
know how well this will work out. But I know that God can work miracles and help her out and
help her come to actually understand the gospel. I hope it works out. Right now, she is on date for September 3rd.

So that's how my week has been. I'm not really stressed that much. So many of you worry too
much about me, but know that I actually am doing perfectly fine here. I'm not just saying that.
I mean it.

But anyways, y'all better tell me 'bout how yer lives are goin'. Love and miss y'all so much!

August 1, 2016

Elder Turner with President and Sister Smith

It's Monday!!! The best day of the week!!!!! Sorry for some of the slang I'm using on here, but I'm starting to pick up this accent and their slang, and I think it's kinda fun, so I hope y'all forgive me. 

So, last Monday, after I sent my email, my district and I went up Blue Ridge Parkway and went on a hike to the top of the "mountain." Remember when I said that there's a ton of mosquitoes here? Well as of right now, I have 23 mosquito bites on my body. It's pretty fun. 

So yesterday I had to give a talk in church. And guess when I started planning my talk. That's right, I started Saturday night at 10. I actually had to cut some of my talk; I guess when you put in 8 scriptures to read, it takes up a lot of time. Hahaha, oh well. guess it went well for a talk that took 15 minutes to prepare. 

Also, Elder Davis hit his one year mark the other day. I guess that the missionaries out here do stupid videos for when they hit certain points in their mission. So in this video, I'm filming, and it starts with me going up the stairs. Then we walk into the bathroom, go over to the shower curtain, and open it. Elder Davis is in there in a suit with the shower on and water pouring all over him. Then he gets out, goes downstairs and makes a super sloppy bowl of cereal, then pours that down his face and neck. Then he gets on a bike, rides down the road, hits a curb, and biffs it. Then I run over and say, "Happy year mark, Elder Davis." Then he just smirks and then the video ends. It's super stupid and funny. I wonder what I'll do for my 3 month mark video. Idk. 

So the other day at Sharp Shopper, I bought 2 gallons of Naked Juice. And I only paid $8 for it. I think that once I come home, I'm gonna burn all my clothes and just fill my suitcase with Naked Juice. 

Ok, so, a lot of you have been asking what exactly goes on during a day in the life of a missionary. So here we go. 6:30 wake up. Run/bike 3 miles. Breakfast after that. 8:00 personal study. 9:00 companion study. 10:00 I have an additional hour of study called "12 week." 11:00 we either go tracting or potentialling. Maybe we'll have an appointment at that time, but about 75% of all appointments get cancelled or pushed back to another day. 12:00 is lunch. 1:00-5:00ish we go tracting, potentialling, or we watch some videos that I have to watch because I'm a greenie. We might also have appointments at a time in between 1:00-5:00. 5:00 or whatever time is set up by whoever we are going to, we have dinner. We usually have dinner over at a member's house, sometimes even lunch. But if not, we have so much food that people give us, that we just have some of that. Then after dinner, we go to our appointments or if we don't have one, we go teach less actives or recent converts (LARCs). then we go to the church at about 8:50 to sync our iPads because we need wifi to do that, but we don't have any at our apartment. I also usually check my emails at that time also. Yes, I can check emails whenever I have wifi, I just can't respond until Monday. 9:00 we go back to our apartment, get a little snack, call our district leader, then call our zone leader, then write in our journals, then we go to bed hopefully before 10:30. So that is a day in the life of me as a missionary. 

Some of you also asked about tracting. So, for tracting, you just choose a road you've never been to before, go from house to house knocking on the doors, and either drip from sweat or rain. 75% of houses that we knock, no one opens the door. 50% of those houses, I know someone is home, they just don't come open the door. For the other 25% of houses where someone does answer, 50% say no thanks, and close the door quickly. The other 50% will listen to us and 50% of those who listen accept a Book of Mormon. With those that listen to us, we put them in our area book as "potentials." When we go potentialling, we go back to the houses of potentials, and we try to have another discussion with them. Hardly ever do we have a second discussion. We hand out pass along cards with our phone number on the back a bit more often than we hand out Book of Mormons. But no one ever calls us or texts us. But yah, that's how it goes. 

The weather out here is crazy. One second, it's sunny, then the next thing you know, you're in the craziest rain storm of your life. The other day, we found a house that a giant tree fell on top of. It was crazy. But I love the storms here. Every time it rains, it's warm rain, which is the best kind of rain. 

But anyways, y'all should keep me updated with your lives, cause I love being able to read about what's going on at night once I download any emails I get. I love and miss you all!!! I'll email y'all again next Monday, or I'll try to respond to any replies throughout the day today. ✌️🙏