its lit!! (Week 92, Stourbridge, England, Elder Odle)

this week was nuts! it flew by and it was just a party! honestly I don’t even know where to start. we did loads of service this week, mainly gardening and the stinging nettle got me! that stuff hurts like woah. we taught quite a few lessons throughout the week. the main person we are working with is a YSA named Sxxxhaun. he’s what we’d call a “dry-mormon”. he loves the church, and he soaks everything in like a sponge! he even watches the flippin district! we are working on getting him a testimony of the Book of Mormon and he’s keeping his commitments! 

we met one guy named bxxxill while knocking doors and he was telling us about his bible reading, so we asked him “have you read much about Christ’s visit to the people of the ancient americas?” and he was hooked! he was hyped to get a Book of Mormon! lots of other good touches and things are heating up here! 

we went to harbourne for interviews/district meeting and while walking from lunch to the chapel I ran into a guy named Axxxlex, who I taught for 6 months while I was serving in Wylde Green. it was such a great reunion! we had our last interview with president and sister Leppard. at the end of June we will be getting a new mission president...interviews went great though! oh one of the craziest moments of the week, we were walking with one of our investigators to a place to talk with him and on the 5 minute walk we got bashed three flippin times, it was nuts. 

i just wanted to share some thoughts on missionary work. paul counselled all to “be thou an example of the believers”. each of us has the responsibility to live our lives in a way that others will see Christ in us. Someone once said “preach the gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words”. missionary work is not just for full time missionaries. never forget “every member a missionary!”. make plans today to do your part!

happy Memorial Day! I love you all! Have a lit week! I’m gonna go give the footworks to the homies in chair football!

Elder Varner

wiping the board! (Week 91, Stourbridge, England, Elder Odle)

dang this week was so lit! i can’t believe how fast it went by! this area definitely has its struggles but we are having fun and putting in work! stourbridge has to be the most interesting area I’ve been in, []

we had a few good touches, we are trying to figure out what’s most effective, and we are pulling a los angeles clippers move by wiping the board and starting fresh. the work here is rough but we are doing all we can, this week will be another interesting one. i went out to woodsetton to go on exchange with elder chick, he’s from new zealand and he’s so cool, that was a blast. i wish I had more to tell you all about but to be real, this week was just hitting the grind, hopefully next week I’ll have some more fun stuff to share, but I’ve got a plethora of pictures for you all to enjoy.

a quote I’ve really reflected on lately goes as follows “brothers and sisters, let us do the best we can and try to improve each day. When our imperfections appear, we can keep trying to correct them. We can be more forgiving of flaws in ourselves and among those we love. We can be comforted and forbearing. The Lord taught, “Ye are not able to abide the presence of God now … ; wherefore, continue in patience until ye are perfected.” We need not be dismayed if our earnest efforts toward perfection now seem so arduous and endless. Perfection is pending. It can come in full only after the Resurrection and only through the Lord. It awaits all who love him and keep his commandments.” it’s so easy to beat ourselves up when we make mistakes in our every day lives. making mistakes is part of this mortal journey we are on. as long as we are better today than we were yesterday then we are on the right track. as we rely on the atonement of the saviour Jesus Christ, we will become more Christ like. his grace not only saves us, but changes us.

i love you guys and hope you have a rad week!!

Elder Varner

kick start! (Week 90, Stourbridge, England, Elder Odle)

week 91: kick start!

hey everyone! first off it was so great talking to the fam and josh yesterday, last skype call! also a happy Mother’s Day shoutout to all you awesome moms out there! I’m grateful for having two awesome moms, one of whom is out here constantly with me and to my awesome mom over across the pond who’s done a ton for me!

before jumping into my new area, we stopped by the Leicester tigers rugby stadium and the Leicester city football stadium. while we were visiting the football stadium gift shop I asked one of the workers if they gave tours, to which he said they usually did but not on bank holidays. we got talking and he heard my american accent, and he said to me “well you’ve come a long way, I’ll take you down to the pitch” so he took us down to the flipping field for this top level premier team and it was so sick! got a few pics as well!

with help from angels I made it to Stourbridge with my two heavy bags and my bike, I’m pretty confident I’ll never have to travel with so much again haha. at the Leicester train station I actually met a really cool family visiting from Southern California and they were so nice to me, that was a major tender mercy. we’ve been at it working this last week! stourbridge is a little town on the outskirts of Birmingham, the ward only has about 30 people and to be honest, it’s struggling a lot, a ton of people have gone less active over the past few years because of a controversial bishop, BUT they just called a new bishop and some big plans are being put in action to kick start this dying ward! I’m excited for some of the stuff ahead!

here’s some random stuff:

• we balled out with two random guys and no joke I was just draining three after three after three, it was some of the best shooting I’ve ever done
• we each prayed and picked 10 streets one day and we got 2 in common, we then, after further inferring of the lord, picked one, we knocked one long side and nothing too notable occurred, but when we went back to the other side we ran into an African lady working on her lawn, so we offered her our help and I was on the ground working hard on the garden and elder odle was teaching her about the Book of Mormon, that’s the dream team right there! we will be back again soon

lots of good touches this past week. here’s a thought I’ve shared before but I came across it as I was in Alma 34 this week. President Eyring once said “There is a danger in the word someday when what it means is “not this day.” “Someday I will repent.” “Someday I will forgive him.” “Someday I will speak to my friend about the Church.” “Someday I will start to pay tithing.” “Someday I will return to the temple.” “Someday …” The scriptures make the danger of delay clear. It is that we may discover that we have run out of time. The God who gives us each day as a treasure will require an accounting. We will weep, and He will weep, if we have intended to repent and to serve Him in tomorrows which never came or have dreamt of yesterdays where the opportunity to act was past. This day is a precious gift of God. The thought “Someday I will” can be a thief of the opportunities of time and the blessings of eternity.”

there’s no better time to do something than NOW! now is the time to change, now is the time to tell someone that you love them, now is the time to forgive, to serve, to sacrifice. 

i love you all and hope you have a legen-wait for it-dary, legendary week!

Elder Varner 

goner!!! (Week 89, Stroud, England, Elder Andrulevicus)

in the words of twenty one pilots, I’m a goner. it looks like I’ll be finishing my mission out in stourbridge for my last two transfers! it’s a town near birmingham and I’ll be with elder odle who I’ve only heard great things about so I’m pretty hyped up! i definitely wanna go out with a bang for these last two, i ain’t dead yet! 

wow this was a crazy week. first things first, we went to nottingham for a zone conference and we got...smart phones! its a bit weird having a normal phone again, to be honest I’m faster with texting on the crappy phone haha. it was fun to see some old friends and then after, was what I’ve been waiting for. there’s only one Taco Bell in our mission and its in Nottingham, and of course I couldn’t pass up that opportunity. boy was it good, actually scratch that, it wasn’t just good, it was gold star worthy! 

last pday bishop toogood took us golfing and that was a blast! we played 9 holes of pitch and putt and hit the range! when I got hold of that driver I caught fire again! brad cook and hunter better watch out!

we taught our friend dxxxaz again. he’s so humble and he came to church yesterday and loved it! he’ll be bringing his kids down next week! hopefully I’ll come back for the baptism! #dunk  we got let in a few times this week while knocking doors which is rare, and we taught a fair amount of street lessons. I loved getting to teach a lot this week. we do so much finding out here. but this last week we really taught when we found and found while we taught as preach my gospel puts it!

we met with our panthers fan, Dxxxan, last week as well and we watched a talk by brad wilcox called “His Grace is Sufficient” and it is so so good!! I shared it on Facebook so check it out! Here’s a few of my favorite quotes:

• “Christ’s arrangement [him asking us to follow his commandments] with us is similar to a mom providing music lessons for her child. Mom pays the piano teacher. Because Mom pays the debt in full, she can turn to her child and ask for something. What is it? Practice! Does the child’s practice pay the piano teacher? No. Does the child’s practice repay Mom for paying the piano teacher? No. Practicing is how the child shows appreciation for Mom’s incredible gift. It is how he takes advantage of the amazing opportunity Mom is giving him to live his life at a higher level. Mom’s joy is found not in getting repaid but in seeing her gift used--seeing her child improve. And so she continues to call for practice, practice, practice.”
• “There should never be just two options: perfection or giving up. When learning the piano, are the only options performing at Carnegie Hall or quitting? No. Growth and development take time. Learning takes time. When we understand grace, we understand that God is long-suffering, that change is a process, and that repentance is a pattern in our lives. When we understand grace, we understand that the blessings of Christ’s Atonement are continuous and His strength is perfect in our weakness”
• Paraphrasing: I have other Christian friends who say to me “you Mormons are trying to earn your way to heaven”, to which I say “no, we aren’t earning heaven, we are learning heaven” and then I ask them a question they might have not thought about “have you been changed by grace?” Latter Day Saints understand not only what we are saved from, but what Christ save us for

That talk is laced with gems! Watch it! 

I’m so grateful for this chance to be a missionary, to be a representative of Jesus Christ. I’m grateful for all He has done for me. By living His gospel and applying the principles found in the Book of Mormon, I’ve found so much peace and happiness. I’m looking forward to what’s going to be a LIT week! I love you all! 

Elder Varner