Mansfield OH #18

What a great General Conference! I didn't think I could learn so much at one given time or that I would feel so much. What a Conference to remember also with the calling of three new Apostles. I loved Elder Renlund testimony and how we should be emotionally involved. I don't think I have a specific talk that was my favorite but I loved the theme that stuck out to me. Unfortunately Joe was not feeling good so Elder Larsen and me are going to get them to him somehow so that he can watch them.

Great to hear that Grandma and Grandpa and Judy made it up to visit and spend the week end with you. Also great to hear that dad maybe getting benefits if he takes another work day. Seems like everything is going well you all for the most part. That is always a blessing for me to know that you are all doing well.

Got a new district leader today and he is from Hillsboro and his name is Elder Jackman, who knows Ammon. It's a small world in our church and a mission makes it smaller in some ways. This is now my fourth District leader in this area so it keeps me on my toes and allows me to meet new people. Just one of those funny things that happens in your life.

Not much has happened this week that is really fun or exciting to tell other than that Elder Larsen spilled ink all over the carpet. We talked to a member about how to take it out and it worked well. WD 40 and soapy water and the carpet looks better than before but will need some more work. I did a very deep clean of the kitchen and I now feel clean. I have become a clean freak and delight in cleaning this apartment, I will be sad to leave it. I love that robe and the fabric wasn't to expensive so I'm very happy with it and it's very warm.

Well I hope everything continues to be great with you all and I hope you all try to ponderize a scripture every week. Mine is Isaiah 1:18 which is a verse that has been sticking out to me a lot lately, so I will memorize it and try to reflect on it daily. I really love yours mom and is something I am also trying to do is clean up my life in those ways. I love you all and wish you a great day and week. And if I don't see you again good afternoon, good evening, and good night. 

Love Elder Young

Mansfield OH #17

Hello Family,

Yet again I email you latter in the week because this Thursday is the wonderful transfers that just throws everyone out of whack. Anyway last week was good and we taught Joe again and invited him to come to General Conference. He is really interested and is looking for answers on whether there are is a prophet on the earth today. It's cool how all these things are lining up to help Joe and his conversion to the church.

This Sunday was a interesting one and I still don't know how to take it. There are a lot of converts in this Ward and in any Ward in Ohio, and so they are very informal in their testimonies. Which is fine except for this girl got up and started crying and apologizing to the ward for her behavior and that she was going to better and be the person that they are trying to help her be. It was rather weird but Joe liked it so that was good at least.

One fun thing that happened this week was that we helped a member take down a for his daughters reception. It was fun an I got to go on the roof and take of the tin panels because I'm one of the lighter Elders. It's nice to go do things like this to add verity to your life, and it's always fun doing service for people in anyway you can. Also a member made me a bath robe and it is very warm and soft. I will send pictures of it.

I'm happy to hear about Emma and the path that she is thinking about going on and I wish I could give her all the knowledge I have gained since I have been out. There is nothing more fun and rewarding than serving the lord and your fellow man. She should start reading Preach my Gospel and learn the material and what it teaches. The missionaries of course can help her get an idea of what it's like. Do you have sisters in the area? If so go out to lessons with them. Start exercising and learn how to fix a bike. 

Sorry to hear about mom and the tumble she just took and I hope that she starts to feel better. Falling is never fun and always leads to pain, so stop falling! Hope that everything continues to go well with dad and work. Sounds like you are also getting settled into the new home and making it the way you want it. As always I wish you the best and love you very much.

Love Elder Young

Mansfield OH #16

Hello Family,

I get to write you way earlier than usual this week because this morning I am going to an end of summer fun day with some of the zones from the mission. It should be fun even though I won't have time to do anything after. Anyway I have mixed feelings about these events, you know how I am. This week was really good though!

So we had a good number of lessons this week but of course the lesson with Joe is the most memorable. He is such a spiritual giant and he teaches me every time we meet with him. What was funny was this lesson he told us that he learned something and that he doesn't always learn something new. That was funny and awesome to hear at the same time. We taught him the Plan of Salvation which he had some interesting views on, but we pushed forward following the spirit and he loved it. He said that it was new and something he had never heard before but it went along with what he felt was right.

It cool how the spirit works no how we don't teach new things we just bring to remembrance what they had already learned before this life. Nothing we teach is new to them because they have accepted it before they came here. All we can hope is that they have a open heart and open mind. Joe is on a path and is going to be baptized once we get some things in order but he will be baptized. I may not be here to see it but it will happen.

I love it here in Ohio, and I love the people and how they are so open to talk about religion. They are searching for things that will bring them happiness and a knowledge of there savior and Heavenly Father. We as members of this church have the special chance to share what we believe and to show what has brought us closer to them. How we our selves have peace and happiness because we know that we have a modern prophet and how through the Book of Mormon we are given further light. That our church is patterned after the bible with Apostles. That our families can be sealed together for all eternity in the temple by the proper priesthood authority. 

I love you all very much. I love all that you have ever given me and taught me. I am what I am today because of all your efforts and I thank you for it. I think I am one cool dude. Hope everything goes well with you this week. Remember you can email me through the week and I can read them. Love ya'll so very much.

Love Elder Young

Ps. Thank you for the video of the house!

Mansfield OH #15

Hello Family,

Glad to hear that you had a great rest of your week and that you got to go and and have some fun as a family. We are getting spread out and soon we will all be on our own. What a very odd thought that we are getting older and that we have our own lives to go and make. Sorry to hear that your sick mom and that you have not been feeling well. My heart also goes out to Grandma Kinsman as she goes through this chapter of her life. I will keep her in my prayers and I'm glad to hear that she is taking it like the champion that she is.

My week has been good and we had a great lesson with Joe. He is taking leaps and strides towards becoming a member. One of those strides is that he is going to work on some of his Word of Wisdom issues. He also is starting to admit that he has questions about doctrine that before he was not budging on. The spirit is working on him and he is starting to see more and more that the Book of Mormon is true and hopefully that Joseph Smith is a prophet.

This Monday we had fun as a district playing werewolves a different way than I have in the past and it was really fun. This version everyone had some type of character and we didn't say who we were when we died. We only knew how many werewolves were left after each cycle. It was fast and fun.

I don't know what to say other then that I love you and that I am working hard as I can. The weather is starting to think about becoming cooler but who know with Ohio weather, just what 10 minutes and it will change. Love you all very much!

Love Elder Young 

Mansfield OH #14

Hello family,

So just another one of the weird weeks on the mission where the mission president told us not to email you till this day. Today was my Pday and I got to go to the Temple and that was my whole day. We drove to the Temple and went through our session and then drove back and were able to buy a few things to make it to make it to Monday. But that was my day and because today is my Pday I can now email you.

So last week what stood out was we were given a call to come visit a member who was on his death bed. When we got there we were asked to say a prayer with them and I'm not going to lie I was scared out of my mind. But I said a prayer with them and I felt the spirit even though the reason and environment was a little strange. Then we learned that he died the next day and that they were very thankful for us being there. What was funny was they didn't even remember my name but they remembered Elder Larsen's, so the spirit works in mysterious ways. But yea that was most definitely a first for me.

So investigator update for this week and last. Joe is doing really well and says that he can't prove the Book of Mormon wrong and that he wants to be baptized once he quits smoking. Which is a big step for him,next will be the Plan of Salvations. I met a former investigator with his uncle who is a less active member and that was awesome and weird at the same time. So Danny Rhea who is less active gave his testimony which was so powerful and I have no clue why he is less active at all. In fact that whole lesson was lead by him and I was just kind of there but to be honest I don't think I was meant to say anything. 

Also I had an really big testimony building experience this week. So we were biking along and a guy flags us down and then proceeded to bible thump us. In the end we stood there for three hours while this man told us that our church was false and why the trinity was really. He had a terrible argument bases and Elder Larsen did a good job at pointing out the holes in his argument. Any way it was a great faith builder because now I know even more that what we believe is true because in went and found those answers in the scripture and I prayed. Also before this happened I had prayed to gain a stronger faith in the things we teach and long behold we get bible thumped the next day. So a rude awakening answer to a prayer that helped a lot so I'm very happy right now. 

So that was what stood out in my week and I am sorry it took so long to respond. Sorry to hear that mom is getting sick and that Emma has that infection. Also happy very late Birthday Mom! I am a terrible son. I however love you all and wish you a great week and that you achieve your goals what ever they may be. Love you so very much and think about you oft.

Love Elder Young

Ohio Temple

Elder Larsen and Elder Young

Ohio Columbus Mission: Elder Young and his District

Mansfield OH #13

Well I am glad to hear that you all have moved in to the new house and that everything is done with moving for a long time hopefully. Sorry to hear that Emma is sick and not feeling good, and that mom got all bruised from the move. I hope everything gets all figured out and you get everything were you want it.

This week was really good but the heat decided to come back for a little while and it's starting to get dark earlier. Elder Larsen and I are getting along great and are working really hard here and are trying to meet all the Less active families and all the accumulated potential investigators. Also we have been finding out that a lot of our investigators just need some time so we will see them a little latter down the road maybe. We are just out trying to build our teaching pool again and to hopefully meet someone who will progress.

So we are meeting the majority of our goals and we re getting a lot more lessons in a week then before. Our investigators are doing good an we are trying to help them feel the spirit and to convert them selves. Joe is doing good and we have been meeting with him more and he is very happy with what he sees in our church. We have also lately been meeting some really cool people that are really interested. So we will try to continue to meet with them and teach them.

This week has been really good and I have higher spirits now that I am not with someone who is dragging me down. I think this area is going to see some great changes as we work hard and follow the spirit. I hope everything is going well with you and that you get the rest that you need from this move. You should send me a video of the new house! I hope that you all are doing well and continue to be awesome.

P.s So the time has come that my eyes need glasses to read. I have noticed that when I read the paper Book of Mormon the words are harder to read then they use to be.

Double Rainbow!

Showing off his wrist watch tan

Tayler's District

The people in Mansfield keep losing their bullets 

Tayler's companion Elder Larsen

At the penitentiary 

This almost looks like it could be an album cover for some Rock Missionary band haha

Mansfield OH #12

Hello Family,

Sorry for the long wait of my lovely emails I grace you with. I got a lovely comment from Judy about my writing skills so that means Emma or mom are doing a good job of fixing my grammar before they post them. So thank you. I had a great birthday full of service and hard work, and I had a blast. I also got a great tan, and my neck got fried. Over all a great great day. Oh and I got to spread concrete as it came out of the cement truck. I had a blast but my pants and one of my shirts are now covered in paint I washed the cement out when it was fresh.

Anyway in this apartment it is just Elder Jones and me. This apartment does not have have a washer and dryer in it, but it is down the hall. It coasts $1.50 for each machine, so three dollars total when you are done with one color or load. It kind of sucks but it's what we have to work with.

So what was cool this week was that Elder Cook came to town and we as a mission got to be taught by him. There was also Elder Hallstrom and Elder Titera of the Seventy and they also taught us. It was very fun and I learned a lot about how to work with the ward and to work in unison. The spirt was very strong when he bore his apostolic witness and gave us a blessing. It was a great experience and I was lucky to be there.

Also something that was really cool this week so far was that we went and saw a potential that we met last month. He was kind of shocked that we remembered him and that he said to come back in a month. I felt very strongly that we needed to see him and I'm glad that I did because he he is awesome. He was very open to talking with us and asked tons of questions. One funny thing about him is he is a big fan of American Pickers and is picker himself. So he had some of those little kids cars that you peddle. He calls them his rusty treasures. I can't wait to meet with him again and hopefully he read the Book of Mormon.

I'm sorry to here that Emma is having trouble at work with some of her co-workers and that people are that way sometimes. But it sounds like you figured it out and everything is cooling down a little. Happy to hear that you will be finally moving into a house that will be yours. No more rentals! That's exciting!

Sorry again that this is happening latter in the week than usual. This week is transfers and so they have started having us email on Wednesday instead of Monday. Yep today is my prep day instead of Monday so my whole schedule has been changed. Anyway I love you and wish you a great rest of the week.

Love Elder Young

I almost forgot. Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad! 

I hope I am remembering this correctly.