JACE - St. Paddy's Fun

 March 17, 2024

Hey Everyone!

This week has been a bit more eventful than the last couple. It has been a fun time, but I did have one little problem.

On Tuesday, we had exchanges with the Elders in Virginia. I got to have Elder Morris here with me. We were able to have a good time. We got to do some Facebook work and knocking. We got a number and even met up with one of our less actives. Her daughter has actually been the driving force behind them coming back. It's been slow for them, but they've been trying. They are awesome.

We got to do some service this week. We helped President Mika stack a bunch of milled out wood so they could dry. To be honest, it wasn't the hardest job I've ever done, but we got to have some good conversation with him about things going on in the world. Then we were able to help one of our members pack up some stuff since they are moving in July. But the best part of that is that Brother Bay is big into Pokemon cards! We got to chat and marvel at his collection. I thought I had a lot of bulk, but he's got at least 10 times what I had. And he has graded cards and sealed product, too. We even got to play a round of the new Disney trading card game Lorcana. It's fun, and plays a bit like Magic. Thanks for that, boys. 

Now to the not so fun. We were able to have exchanges with the ZLs on Friday. That's not the bad part. I got to hang out with Elder Jones in Duluth for the day. We did some good stopbys, calls and even had a lesson. But on the first stopby of the day, the curb decided to say, "screw you." I went to step up on it and rolled my ankle pretty hard. So I was walking on a sprained ankle for the rest of the day. Since then, it's just been annoying to walk around. My leg is stiff and it does hurt if I bend it too hard the wrong way. It doesn't help that we aren't supposed to use our car this coming Thursday. But we'll make it work.

I also just want to testify on the power of the Book of Mormon. I've been doing the March Madness challenge, trying to read the Book of Mormon in a month. Reading it that fast has given me the chance to actually connect all the events together better. I recently made it through the record of Ammon and his brothers preaching to the Lamanites. It's an amazing opportunity to be able to relate more to their service and look up the vigor they had to keep going even when times were hard. Even though in my short time as one, I love to be able to have the chance to "Boast in my God!" I'm grateful for the privilege, and I know that it is a privilege, to be able to serve Him and bring the truth to those who need it. 

I love you all! Don't forget to look for the small miracles!

Sincerely

Elder Buchanan

JACE - Two Weeks In A Row!

 March 11, 2024

Hey Everyone!

Hope y'all had an awesome week! This was pretty good. It's kinda funny how the days can feel slow, but then it's already p-day.

This week was Zone Conference! It was a lot of fun and a lot of good Spirit. We were able to head down Tuesday evening and stay at the mission home so we wouldn't have to drive 4 hours in the early morning to be on time. I chose to leave behind a good pair of walking shoes because I thought we wouldn't do the morning walk the Gochnours do because of Zone Conference. Lo and behold, I was wrong. But I was able to keep up with Sister Gochour and one of the Spanish Elders the whole time. My calves were on FIRE! After ZC, our Zone met up at Raising Cane's for dinner, which was a blast. Just being able to be together for a bit longer was great. But it did cause us to not get back to Ashland until midnight. It didn't help that I was developing a cold all day, so I was dead tired.

The next fun thing was Saturday. We went out and did some service for the Rusts! They live in Iron River, which is a 40 minute drive from Ashland. Our branch reaches so far in every direction. In the morning Brother Rust checked in to see if we were coming, and then after we said yes, he said, "Also, here's dinner." and sent a picture of the hunk of pork he was smoking. The service wasn't even that bad, but the pay off of smoked pulled pork sandwiches was awesome. And Brother Rust has some awesome stories. We planned to leave at 6 and ended up talking til 7. Then when we shook hands at 7, we ended up chatting for another 40 minutes! It was a fantastic day!

Then we have the Sabbath, which is always good, no matter which way you spin it. But today was Charmaine and her kid's Confirmations. It is actually super special to be able to be a part of the circle to welcome someone fully into the church. We did end up having to do Charmaine's twice though, because Brother Wilber forgot to confirm her as a member before giving the Holy Ghost. But they each received beautiful blessings to go along with it. Her 6 year old didn't want to be left out, so we gave him a quick blessing. Then we had John's baptism. It was a great service. The ward mission leader, who has been giving John the rides to church, was the one to baptize John. The only issue was that John is a little taller than me, and Brother Cousineau is about shoulder height on me. Brother Cousineau said John is the tallest person he's baptized. And the baptism almost went bad, too. John's foot slipped out from under him in the font and almost caused him to catch the corner of the stairs with his head. Luckily, Brother Cousineau had a good hold on him and kept him safe. Then we did John's confirmation as well. I freaking love the Ashland branch. They've been so welcoming to our friends. We had a bit of a luncheon after, and Sister Mika, the Branch President's wife, made some butterscotch brownies and decorated it to welcome John. Too bad I didn't get a picture before the words got destroyed.

Which leads me to my invite this week. I'm inviting y'all to remember to be welcoming to those who are new somewhere. Whether it's church, a job, or team, it really affects the person's view of the thing they are walking into if the people there are wanting them to be there. Make people feel loved, and they want to stick around.

Love you all so much! Keep working hard and getting better!

Sincerely

Elder Buchanan

JACE - Marching Forward In Faith

March 4, 2024

Hey Everyone!

This week was an amazing one! 

This last Sunday was so special. Of course, it's always special because of the Sabbath and the sacrament. But we had Charmaine, Liam, and Z'Nyia's baptism! The Spirit was so strong while we were watching them make that covenant. I asked Liam how he felt afterwards, and he said he felt happy after coming out of the water. I even noticed Charmaine getting emotional as Brother Wilber was saying the prayer and after as well. Even little Elijah was asking if she was crying. It was also so awesome that her mom came and supported her and her kids getting baptized. Maybe it might spark something for her too, but who knows!

The rest of the week was kinda more of the same. We had a lesson with John, in which we marked him off for %100 of principles taught. His baptism is this upcoming Sunday, and he is going to be an amazing member! 

We had 2 lessons with Charmaine and the kids to get them all up to %100 taught as well. But after our Friday lesson, the reservation was having a Ring Dance event at Northland college and Charmaine invited us to go. So we went and got to watch some people do little hand drum performances and watched their elders do a prayer circle as well. It was quite interesting, and Charmaine said March is the start to Pow-Wow season. So hopefully we get to experience one of those.

The funny thing of the week definitely goes to Saturday. We had exchanges with the Grand Rapids Elders. Our exchange spot is in Duluth, which is an hour and a half away from both of us. So we got up and were out the door by 7:30. When we got to the spot, we sat there for about 30 mins. We decided to call them to see where they were at, and they weren't even in their car yet! They were still in PJs!!! So we found a new middle spot between G-Raps and Duluth and met them there. After Elder Barton and I made it back to Ashland for the exchange and did our P-Study, we only had 2 hours to do actual missionary work before we had to exchange back. Still, it was a good time. Just a funny circumstance. 

Now it's March! How is the time flying so fast! A cool thing for this month is that we were challenged to do the March Madness challenge. Which is reading the whole Book of Mormon front to back in a month. I've already made it to 2 Nephi. It's a little harder for me because I like to read my scriptures out loud, but I've felt the Spirit as I say all those words out loud. 1 Nephi 11 hit me a bit more because of Nephi seeing the life of Christ and what he would go through for all of us. So, although it's a couple days late, I would like to issue the same challenge to all of you. It gives a great reason to read a great book!

I love y'all so much!

Sincerely,

Elder Buchanan

JACE - HOW IS IT ALMOST MARCH!?!?!

February 26, 2024

 Hey Everyone!

This week has been an interesting week. Had some ups and downs, but overall for the better.

We had some awesome lessons with our friends this week! Our lessons with Charmaine were mostly pointed at the kids, since we are trying to get them ready for baptism this Sunday. It was some fun stuff. We taught them the Law of Tithing by using marshmallows as the money and Kit-Kats as the blessings we get in return, cause Kit-Kats are better than marshmallows, of course. Charmaine and her 2 oldest had the interview yesterday, and they passed! So I ask for prayers for them this week, because Satan is gonna try even harder to keep them from the covenant and gift of the Holy Ghost.

Our couple of lessons with John this week were about the importance of baptism and temples. John is a freaking super star! He's finally clean from his Word of Wisdom issues as of Saturday. Next week we'll have his interview and then his baptism is on the 10th! Ashland is such a blessed place!

A fun thing that happened this week was on P-Day we went out west to Iron River to have dinner with the Rusts. They are a cute little family that actually only moved here in the last year from Utah. They made us an amazing chili that was sooo good, I had a second round. Needless to say, I got full that day. They even gave us a bunch of their fresh laid eggs and some stuff to make orange chicken. They are just so awesome. The whole branch is!

Now for my favorite spiritual moment. There is a less active member that lives in Bessemer that we go and have lessons with when we make it out that way. This last Saturday, we decided to read through "Think Celestial!" As we were doing so and discussing different points that Pres. Nelson brought up, his daughter was actually sitting and listening to us read and talk about it, and even went over to read it with her dad! Just proof that the words of the prophet and the Spirit will even get kids attention and testify of the truth to them. It was so cool! 

I hope we can be like that member's daughter and want to hear the good stuff and be drawn to it. I'm lucky for the privilege I have to be in the situation where I can focus on it all the time with the least distractions. Just remember to take the time to look for it in your lives, and I promise the Light of Christ and the Spirit will testify when you find that good stuff!

Have a good week! Love y'all!

Sincerely,

Elder Buchanan

JACE - 1st Transfer Down!

 February 19, 2024

Hey Everyone!

I've officially made it out here in Ashland for the first transfer! And we're staying for another. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to be here, because it feels just like Pinedale! The town, the members and I even get to stay on Lake Superior!

Ok, this week has some fun stuff to it. For P-Day this last week, we went and spent the last P-Day of the transfer with the district in Virginia! The only other time the district had been together was Zone Conference, so it was a nice hang out. We went to a member's place in Virginia. His name is Jim, and he is so freaking cool. He took Elder Parkin and I for a ride in his side-by-side around his property and maybe a little bit on a frozen lake...shhh. Then when the rest of the Elders made it there, we played a new card game named swoop a lot, had some bonding in the sauna, and then Jim made us pancakes. It was a fun time and I'm glad we had the opportunity to have at least one p-day together.

One super funny thing that happened this week was a less active member invited us to dinner. Actually, it was a little seminar thing at the clinic on the reservation about clinical trials that they were cooking for. So we got to go and have some spaghetti, learn info on clinical trials and diversity, and then we got a $25 Walmart gift card for doing the surveys for the thing. Needless to say, we went and did some "streeting in Walmart" afterwards. We also got that member to join us for a lesson with Charmaine, so that was great.

Best part of the week is always Sunday. We had Charmaine and her kids show up, and they had one of their cousins with them. That was so cool. Then a dude we've been talking/teaching for a while named Walker came to church, too. We were super happy to see him, but he had also brought his dad along! And they really liked sacrament meeting, even though they couldn't stay for second hour. But the best part happened after church. Charmaine had learned about blessings last week in relief society, and they had told her to ask us about them. She was super busy this week, so we were only able to see her once this week. We offered one to her, with the help of Brother Wilbur, and she also had her kids brought into the room. They sat in a circle and held hands, which was interesting, but I think it added to the Spirit. After we gave Charmaine her blessing, little Elijah said, "Me next!" We ended up giving blessings to all the kids, too! My chest was on fire the whole time, the Spirit was just so strong.

Again, I'm so glad to have been able to make it through the first transfer. I know I'm only just off the starting block, but I know if I hold to Heavenly and Christ I'll keep doing good things. I invite you guys to look for the little ways you can strengthen your relationship with Christ, whether it be remembering to pray more often or looking for the ways he blesses your life every day.

Love you guys!

Sincerely,

Elder Buchanan

JACE - Beginning Of The End... of my first transfer.

 2-12-24

Hey Everyone!

Hard to believe I'm already in the final week of my first transfer. Not too much exciting happened this week. We were invited to a family home evening with the Gochnours last p-day. That was a good time. Pretty much the whole point was reminding us that missions are hard and we have the capability to do hard things. It was good to see Elder Timothy after the little while of not seeing him. He seems to be gaining confidence and a better stature about him. We got to stay the night with a couple other sets of missionaries because we finished at 8 and our drive back to our area is 4 hours. Getting back, it was almost an average week. We had transfers with the Virginia Elders on Thursday, and I stuck around Ashland for that one. Elder Morris is a pretty cool guy, but was having some issues with staying on task doing Facebook. When he's actually doing a physical act, he's in it. 

Update on our people, Charmaine's date got pushed back a week, but only because we need to be able to teach her kids. She really wants to do the baptism as a family, so our lessons will be primarily focused on the kids. They are such an awesome family, and they seem to enjoy church. Of course, sitting through sacrament meeting can be hard for the younger ones, but they all like the classes in 2nd hour. And then there's John. He's so on the mark that we taught him the big three(being chastity, tithing and word of wisdom) and he already finding substutions for his Word of Wisdom problems and was on board for tithing and chastity. He's reason is, "It's about time I said thanks." So cool.

I've started doing the little personal study boxes they have for each section of Preach My Gospel as part of my studies, and it's really opened my eyes to the privilege I have to be on a mission. I get to be surrounded by the spirit so often and I know it's gonna be the thing I miss most at the end. It's also amazing the privilege we have a members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to have the have Holy Ghost. Moroni 10:5 says "And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." I beg you all to not forget about that amazing privilege we have.

I've been so blessed in this area. Next transfer is shaping up for 4 baptisms, so I won't be surprised if I don't too many more the rest of the time. 

Love you all!

Sincerely,

Elder Buchanan

JACE - A Full Month Already!?!

February 14, 2024 

Hey Everyone! 

It's been an awesome, spirit filled week! There isn't a lot of big fantastical events this time, but there is still stuff!

Our friend Charmaine is coming along really well. We might have to push back her baptism, which kinda sucks, but I think it'll be for the better. With more time, we can teach her kids more and get them on the same track to get baptized. It really is a wonder to see the Spirit work on work. She able to think of herself in a different light and even pray for those that offend her. She really is amazing.

We had our friend John come to church yesterday. We hadn't really been able to get a hold of him, because almost every time we would try to meet him he had some sort of excuse. But while we were on exchanges, Elder Parking and Elder Moulton got to actually have the sit down lesson with him and even put him on date! One of the things he was saying at church is that it's about time I give thanks to God in some way. He's great. I do think he's gonna need some prayers, because we all know the devil kicks it up a notch when we're reaching towards the right.

Our big miracle this week was actually with an inactive member. While we were out doing stopbys on Friday, I saw that we were near a family we had tried to stopby before. The first time, their son answered the door and said "not right now, but come back another time. My mom would love to talk to you guys." So we went over and knocked and then the dogs started barking and no one answered the door. So we were heading back to the car when we saw a car leaving from what looked like the house. As we made it to the car, Gunnar, the son, turned around and yelled at us saying that his mom was inside. So we went back, and lo and behold, Nona let us in to talk. With barely even knowing our names, she told us all about her, what she does on the reservation, and her high school aged kids. Gunnar had even made the front page of the paper. Then Elder Parkin had the thought to invite her to Charmaine's baptism. As soon as we told her Charmaine's name, she recognized and connected to who it was. And apparently Nona and Charmaine are friends! That connection being made was definitely why we had felt to go knock on this inactive member's door! We invited to joint teach Charmaine with us and she agreed. I think that because of that connection, we might be able to reactive this family. It was just a huge reminder of the fact that God knows where we are and who needs a pick-me-up.

Well, I think that's all for this week. I would appreciate prayers for all our friends. The devil will try to work his evil on them, so they will need all the help they can get. 

Love y'all!!!

Sincerely,

Elder Buchanan