July 21, 2010 Update

Namaste,
This has been an eventful week! Last Thursday we found this Anglo-Indian couple named Dean and Beth. They immediately invited us in and were eager to learn more about the gospel, and what we thought about India. They thought we were pulling their leg when we told them we love India. They kind of wanna be American. They invited us back for the next day, and asked, "Are you affiliated with the Mormons?" I looked them in the eye and said, "We are the Mormons." They thought that was pretty cool. We pulled out a Book of Mormon and told them we would use scriptures from it and they got excited to see what it was about. When we finished the lesson they were in awe. They thought it was so wonderful that we have a living prophet today; they think it’s important that we don’t teach from our own knowledge, but God's. They were unable to come to church because Dean has some legal issues he wants to get sorted out first.

This has been a fun last 2 days with zone conference and interviews. President Funk just took a bunch of time to get to know us. I brought him all my photos and he got really excited. He asked me about what I am gonna do with my last 3 months and I basically told him all my goals and how I related them to football or to some sport. But the best part about zone conference is when all the other elders, from the rest of the mission, get to come and stay with you. Elder Chigurupati has been staying with us! He is awesome, and Chennai is doing really well. He gave me the phone last night, and said, "Talk." I was so happy to hear Donald and Pethal, 2 of the people who I worked so hard with to get baptized. Pethal said that they talk about me every day and in their prayers they always tell Heavenly Father thank you for sending us Chigurupati brother and Sorensen brother. Pethal is about to get a calling as YW teacher. Donald, like only he can do, said, "Brother, I am angry with you. Why didn’t you come to my baptism? I asked for you to baptized me. But instead I had to have Elder McKinley do it." I laughed at him, and he did too. Elder McKinley is one of the senior missionaries who helped us out a TON with getting him baptized.

Then, this morning, Leslie and Cheryl call!!!!! Oh how happy I have been! Leslie is doing wonderful. He hasn’t been hanging out with his old friends, and last night he did, and denied their request to drink with them. He still doesn’t have a job, but today and tomorrow he has interviews. Please pray for him! Even if you get this months later. Please pray for him. They were all so happy to be talking with me. Leslie is a teacher in Gospel Principles and in the YM. Cheryl is the YW first counselor. They are doing wonderful and are a great addition to the branch.

Time is less, and I gotta run. I love all of you. Thank you for your letters. I know that this is God's true Church. I know that the BofM is true. If you don’t believe it go read Jacob 5, or 2 Nephi 31. I love being a missionary. I know this is what He wants for all worthy young men. Hugs and kisses till next week.

Elder Sorensen

June 23, 2010 Update

Hello,

Well, I just wanna start of with a funny story. We taught an investigator about the Plan of Salvation, and he said, “Well, what about hell? I cannot accept this message if there is no hell.” So, I pulled out my picture of Calvin burning his butt off in hell, and I explained it to him. I said, “Only a few people like Cain and Judas go here because they had a perfect knowledge.” He replied, “Why does Judas go there? He repented. That’s why he hung himself. That’s what they teach in our church.” Well, he doesn’t believe in his church anymore because 2 20 year-old boys came over and taught him something that his pretty pastor knows nothing about. It felt good. Daniel, the investigator, is going to become a member soon. He is excited to see what else he doesn’t know because his former church did not have all of the plain and precious parts of the gospel.

On Sunday night I had an awesome, eye-opening, experience. We had a bunch on members lined up to come with us and meet our investigators. Well, everything blew up in our face and we were unable to meet with anyone. We decided that since our week was pretty successful thus far we would go a visit some less actives and some recent converts. The less active family that we visited was amazing. They told us all about how they were treated poorly and how the district president thought that the daughter was going with a married man. But, they said that they would come back to church if they could speak with the district president and he would say sorry. So we set it up and hopefully everything will go well. The daughter Preetha is 23 and just needed to cry. She loves the Church and the gospel, but her mom won’t let her go to church because of this incident. The mom only speaks Telugu and I think she likes us so much because we can speak Telugu.

The recent convert that we visited was Timothy. I really wanted to watch the Finding Faith in Christ DVD, so we did. Timothy broke down and told us about all these problems he is facing. He got a new job and is sad because he cannot come on exchanges with the Elders. He talked about how it’s difficult being the only member in his family and how he needed the DVD to help him stay positive. It was a touching appointment. That night I realized, not that I hadn’t before, how much Heavenly Father’s plan is more important than mine. He needed those people to be taught, and He sent us. I was grateful that my attitude about the night changed when I prayed at night, “Not my will, but Thine be done.”

I love being a missionary. It’s been the greatest experience ever. I know that this is God’s true church, and that the Book of Mormon is true and that it was translated by the gift and power of God. Hugs and kisses from Bangalore!

Love,
Elder Sorensen

June 2, 2010 Update

May 26, 2010 Update

Dear Family and Friends,

This was a bittersweet week; Leslie’s family is all ready for their baptism this coming Sunday. I was getting ready for it as well; my companion and I were really excited. On Friday night, about 1 hour after we visited Leslie, the Assistants called and told me that I am being transferred to Bangalore. I was so sad. I called President because he has let a few people stay back before, but he said that they really need me in Bangalore and that it wouldn’t be a good idea for me to leave my companion alone for 2 days.
When I broke the news to Leslie’s family, they were very sad, but Leslie soon put me in my place with, “The Lord has blessed us; He sent you. I know that He wants you to baptize another family somewhere in Bangalore.” That made me feel really good. So, on Sunday we took some photos with them, and on Monday during their interviews, we played cricket with all the kids. After their interviews Cheryl, who is very fond of me, said, “I asked if you could baptized me. I thought if I said that they would let you stay.” I told her, “We need to pray for another cyclone.” Her response was funny, “I have made the person saying family prayer do that for the last 3 nights.” How about that?

Even though things will be hard, I feel good about Bangalore. It’s not the same as the rest of the mission...they cannot wear their tags or contact people. They can only knock Christian doors. I am tired of teaching Christians! But everyone needs the gospel. I will probably finish my mission there, which won’t be a bad thing. I am excited for what the future holds there. I love being a missionary, no matter where I am.

Sorry this one is so short, I cannot think of much else except for all the sad goodbyes I have had to say. I love you all and I hope this letter finds you in good spirits.

Love,
Elder Sorensen

May 19, 2010 Update

Dear Everyone,

This was a really good week! We had a lot of success with Leslie and his family. We taught a few of the commandments and they loved it. We went to their home and we helped them fetch their water from a pipe that comes out of the ground. We were afraid that this would keep them from being on time to church, but the water turned off at 8 a.m. and we weren’t really able to save them any time. All we did was relieve the daughter from her chores. While there we played with their cat and entertained the kids with stories. Then we all headed off to Church and they loved it! They got amazing fellowship from EVERYONE! Leslie would introduce himself, “Hello, my name is Leslie. This is my first time to the Church of Jesus Christ, and I hope to continue in this wonderful fellowship.” What a great thing for him to say?!?!? Then, another elder asked him, “Are the Elders teaching you nicely?” and Sheryl made me feel really good, “This Elder (pointing at me) is so sweet and kind. They are both doing really well.” Awesome! Tonight we are teaching them about tithing, and a few other small commandments, and then we are having lunch with them on Saturday. But, we are unsure about the lesson tonight because of the cyclone that is hitting Chennai. Usually we meet them outside in their front yard (no one else in our area has a yard), but their house will probably be flooded. This cyclone is really cool; I never thought that I would be able to experience something like this. The water is getting higher the longer I type.

That’s about all I got - nothing too exciting this week. I love you all. Thank you so much for your letters and support - it makes everything better. I hope y’all have a great week!

Love,
Logan

May 12, 2010 Update

Dear Everyone,

This was a really good week. Even though I was really sick, the missionary work has been awesome! We have begun to make preparations for our Missionary Fireside. We will be watching Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration…ooohh…goosebumps. We were waiting to see if I got transferred. Good news is transfers will be postponed for 3 more weeks! The thing that I am most excited about will be the baptisms I will get to see!

On Thursday we went to visit Leslie and his family. They were receptive to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and we set them for May 30, 2010. The happiest of them all was Sister Sheryl - she was all smiles. Then when I turned to her kids and challenged them to be baptized, she was even happier! She thought that they would have to wait a few more years. Lucky for us they are above the age of accountability. They had the funniest doubt. Anyone who was/is a missionary has had people ask about being rebaptized. It’s a really big concern and it’s understandable. Well, Sheryl is smart and she said, “If I need to be rebaptized then do I need to be reconfirmed? We were already confirmed.”…I let it be silent. Then she said, “Alright, we will do it. Reconfirm us.” YES! We were shouting for joy when we left. We had to celebrate that night with a big thing of Maaza! Heavenly Father has really prepared them. The second time we went we taught W.O.W. and afterwards they said, “We were talking this afternoon about how to quit our vices, and what things were bad for our body.” The 3rd time we taught the P.O.S. afterwards Sheryl said, “This afternoon we were wondering if we would ever see our loved ones again…” she trickled off and you could see tears in her eyes. Then, Leslie said something I’ll never forget, “Brother, we lost a cat a few years ago. She was very fond of this cat. It’s good to know that she will see it again.” ARE YOU SERIOUS???? YOUR CAT! WHAT ABOUT YOUR SON!! She mentioned seeing her son again as we left. It was cool. Then, the 4th time, when we set them, Sheryl said, “This afternoon we were talking about whether or not we should be baptized into your church. I think we should.” I love them so much. And that will probably be the last baptism that I see in Chennai.
We are still working with Donald and Pethal…still! They are coming along. Donald committed to quit smoking by Saturday, and he has only smoked one cigarette since then. He didn’t make his goal, but he is doing awesome. They fed us pork and beef last night. Donald is hilarious. He hates pork. All but a few Indians believe that all pigs have devils in them. It has to do with Jesus casting the demons into the swine. I have to tell people, “What happened to all those swine? Are they still living? NO, they ran off a cliff and died. EAT IT!” Donald was making jokes about it all night and Pethal kept on giving it. She loves pork also. I was joking with him, “Why would you let your wife cook pork in your home? Don’t you know that releases the devils?” he laughed and she said, “He didn’t know I was cooking it.” They are preparing to be baptized on the 30th, but Pethal still thinks she needs more time. I just want them to hurry up and get baptized.
Mother’s Day was good. I called home on Monday. My companion got good news that his brother got married. His brother was one of the members who loved to come on exchange with us in Gajuwaka. The funny thing about being on the other side of the world is the 3 week lag. Everything that we talked about on Mother’s Day came in letterform the day after we spoke! But I still love letters.
Thank you for all of your prayers and your support. I feel your prayers and your love. Sorensens who read this update: have fun at the family reunion. Someone needs to jazz that thing up without me there. Although, Cajuns know how to party with or without their team winning the Superbowl! I love you guys!

April 7, 2010 Update

Interesting story before I begin with the awesome spiritual experiences that we had. I was on an exchange with an elder in my district; his name is Elder Mehan. He was my follow-up trainer and luckily he is finishing his mission here with us. We were teaching someone about prophets and he kept throwing out names. I think he listed the most obscure Old Testament prophets he could. Well, his name is Joel, so I piped up, trying to be funny, and said, “Yeah, like Joel, he was also a prophet, he has one of the shortest books.” Then, under his voice he said, “It’s the best one. And,” he laughed to me, ”there’s also a prophet named ‘Reid.’” Afterwards we laughed about it and I asked, “Where is there a prophet named ‘Reid’?” he asked, “Don’t you read the Apocrypha? That’s where it is.” When I come home I will look for my name in the Apocrypha. It sounds cool.

This was a week unlike any other. We were really blessed by the Lord. It's not that He hasn’t blessed us any other weeks, but I felt more like I was aligned with His will and not my own will. In the beginning of the week, missionary work always seems to be a little slow, and this week was even slower. We faced lots of cancelled appointments, and we found a lot of people who had really hard hearts and didn’t want to hear about the gospel. So by the time that Thursday led around we were pretty worried. We only have one new investigator and 4 member-present lessons. These are VERY low numbers, especially for someone who is suppose to be an example. Well, after I murmured I decided that it was all part of His plan. Friday we found 7 new investigators. Saturday we found 3 new investigators. Sunday we found another family of 3! Heavenly Father blessed us for our hard work and perseverance. This week, we have been blessed for doing the small things, like talking with everyone, always finding and stuff like that. We have 13 new investigators already with 4 more families lined up for the weekend. I love how Heavenly Father tests you, and then gives the blessing. Often times as a missionary I think, “I am serving a mission. I should be rewarded for that.” I don’t realize that I am receiving blessings already (like my health…), and I need to do MORE to receive MORE.

More amazing than that is Donald and his progression. We visited him and his family on Sunday night. It was then that we challenged Donald to be baptized on May 2, 2010! He said, in his raspy voice, “Surely, brother, I will be baptized. Then, my family will see that change and they too will be baptized.” He is awesome. He is still smoking about 15 a day, but we have gone over some plans with him, and he is committed to quitting. “I don’t know when I will be able to quit, but I know it will be before May 2.” he said. I believe he will be able to quit. He choked up a little bit when he was telling his wife about his priesthood blessing. He is doing awesome; tonight we plan on setting the rest of his family. We committed his wife to go out on Saturday night, stare into space, think about all that God has done for her and then get on her knees and pray and ask Him if this Church and baptism are true. She would like to be baptized, but she wants to know if it’s true first. She has been in Ooty this week, so that’s why we told her to pray outside and look at the stars. Both of those are 2 things that she cannot do in Chennai. We have high hopes for their family.

I love you all. thanks for your support. Keep working hard to forward the work along. "No unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing." I love you!

Elder Sorensen

March 24, 2010 Update

Hello Everyone,
This was an awesome week for missionary work. We found 10 new investigators and got 10 member present lessons, which has been something that we wanted to focus on. The district is still struggling to get people to church; it seems to be a problem all over the mission. I had to give them a little bribe. I told them if we meet our goals that I will buy everyone a cake and we will play Jeopardy or something.

I love being a missionary. My testimony grows everyday. The other day we were on a bus, the wrong one, and we had to get off in 20 seconds. I saw this girl with a cross on her neck. I didn’t want to talk to her because we were about to get off. Then, she whispers to her friend, "Jesus Christ." It really helped me to realize whose service I was on and who I represent. I love it. I ended up talking to her and she invited us over. We will see how it goes!

I realized that the Gospel just makes sense. We were teaching someone about tithing and how it is used to bless the members, whether or not they pay their tithing. It makes sense that God doesn’t play favourites, like most pastors do. He doesn’t care if you pay 100/- or one crore, you are going to be blessed, and HE loves you the same. I am grateful to know about the true Gospel, and I am grateful for my opportunity to serve Heavenly Father. I am especially grateful that I can serve Him here in India. I love this country.

Last Thursday we set up an appointment with an alcoholic named Donald. We have been teaching him for a few weeks and he talked about wanting to be baptized. He is always sober when we come, and he loves our visits. He HATES pastors, and anyone who comes in the name of Jesus. He feels everyone just wants to rag on him and he feels they all want money. He is literally a wreck. But, we went this time with Elder McKinley, Donald calls him McKinzie brother. Elder McKinley helped him to realize that he is addicted, and then helped him know how to stop. He committed Donald to go 3 days without alcohol. If he could do that, then we would know that Donald is not addicted anymore. However, the cool part was when Donald asked for a blessing. Mckinzie brother gave, and it was amazing. Donald got up and said, “Oh, something tingly happened. I cannot describe my feelings.” Then, we asked Donald to say the closing prayer, which he did. By the time he ended he was crying. I was about to cry. Donald prayed for help, and he prayed for us and his family. He is awesome. We left immediately and he was left all alone to ponder about what had happened. His wife noticed a change, he didn’t drink for 3 days and all he could talk about was how amazing Mckinzie brother is. He has a strong desire to be baptized. We just have to help him quit smoking now. I truly love being a missionary. This was the first time on my mission that I have seen a grown man cry. The spirit was incredibly strong. I look forward to more great experiences on my mission!

I love you all. Thank you for your prayers. I hope all is well.

Love,
Elder Sorensen