Our Missionaries

Here’s where we brag about our missionaries. The bragging does not extend as far as their spelling and punctuation skills. Those are carefully edited.

Elder Kowallis

Elder Kowallis has been serving in the Kentucky Louisville Mission since June of 2010. He is learning to speak southern 'real good' and is not alarmed anymore when people greet him at the door with a Bible in one hand and a gun in the other. He has had great success among the refugee community from the Congo and is currently enjoying working with a Spanish speaking companion.  Elder David Bednar recently visited their mission and was able to speak to all the missionaries, which was a great testimony builder for Elder K. The mission is difficult, but Elder K. is a pretty laid back young man and takes it all in stride.

UPDATE: July 2011

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An excerpt from his last letter:

A few weeks ago this old guy invited us over to his store to have lunch. When we got there he sat us down at this table next to pretty much every Baptist preacher in Winchester. It was pretty intense, but they didn't say much to us. The preacher sitting next to me was reading the sports page and said, "One of your brothers is the best player in the country right now." I just kind of stared at him and looked confused so he said, "You're Mormon right? Jimmer Fredette from BYU? Ever heard of him?" So that was pretty sweet I guess. Even Baptist preachers know about Jimmer.

This week the most important thing that I learned is to not look at the past, because it can be really distracting. Whenever I think about life before the mission, some quote Dr. Fullmer or some other teacher I had pops into my head and helps me to be focused again. It is really weird, but I guess it works!

Dr. Fullmer was E K’s band director all through high school. Thank you Dr. Fullmer and all the 'other teachers' who influenced Elder K. along the way. This mom is very grateful.

Elder Johnson

Elder Johnson has been serving in the Argentina, Salta Mission since October 27, 2010.

UPDATE: July 2011

Well this week was actually really good.  But then again I don´t think a week goes by in the mission that isn’t ¨really good¨.  Just being a missionary is good enough, and it doesn’t even really matter what happens, I´m going to enjoy all of it.  But this week we have been focusing lots on the Hermana Silvetti.  We taught her what the Book of Mormon is and how she needs to read and pray to really find out if these things are true.  She said she already knows just because of the changes she has seen in her husband and kids, but we clarified that she needs to have her OWN personal testimony. . . I hope she will be able to receive and recognize an answer that these things are true. . . I’m absolutely loving the mission right now.  . .  I know that this is the work of the Lord, and I have never been closer to the the Lord than I am right now.  I know that He lived and died for us and that this is His true church. . . . I just read Alma 37.  What a great chapter, especially near the end when Alma is talking to Helaman about how we should pray to God about EVERYTHING, even the little details.  I can´t believe how much I love the Book of Mormon now.  I never knew how precious and sacred and perfect it really was.

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An excerpt from his last letter:

“Isn´t it crazy that I’ve been in Argentina about 2 months now! It feels like a week. It is so wierd to think that the MTC was only 2 months ago when it feels like another life. The time warp is so odd. . . OK so a few things from this week.  On Thursday, I went to my first capacitacion (conference?) for our zone.  Pres Northcutt and his wife came and taught us.  They taught how the church is a changing church because we are growing and we get revelation and also how to use the Book of Mormon in teaching.  We did practices with all of them.  Then we had a scripture chase.  I gotta study the references in spanish.  But all in all I really enjoyed the capacitation.  I think it all will help me a lot. . . This week I was thinking about how I´m enjoying my journal writing so much, and how I will enjoy it in the future too.”

Looks like Elder Johnson is in a tough area:

Elder Bruun

Update August 2011

Things right now are going really great here in Hägersten.  The ward is increasing their amount of missionary work significantly and we are starting to work more and more together.  . . .  Just recently in the Hägersten ward we have been working with a South American Family.  The Father is not active and the mother her daughter and grand daughter were not active either.  Through our visits we have been able to move them from less active to coming to church every week and being solid in their testimonies of the gospel!  They have also become one of our best sources for member missionary work!  They are wonderful and it has been so rewarding to see the light of Christ come back to their eyes as they once again embrace the truth they know to be true! . . .  One really exciting piece of news is that we will be having an apartment inspection this friday and guess what comes with the inspecting couple.  2 bunk beds!  That means that this coming transfer we are getting one more set of elders here in Hägersten!  We are so excited.  The apartment is easily big enough for 2 more missionaries, its big enough if they wanted to put 4 more elders here but we are excited to get new elders and hopefully push the boulder here down the mountain even faster.

Elder Bruun serves in the Stockholm, Sweden mission. An excerpt from his last letter:

I love being able to share the gospel to everyone cause I know how much happiness it brings people!  I can see it when they really make an effort to change that Christ he comes to them and helps them then that is when they feel the most happiness in the world!  I hope that you are all doing well cause I am doing great.  Being in the service of the lord is the most rewarding work there is! . . . Right now I am still studying chapter 5 in Preach my Gospel and it is still going great!!!  I love that chapter and I love reading and studying how I can better apply the Book of Mormon to missionary work!  I am reading right now in the Sons of Mosiah Chapters in Alma and it is going great!  They are such good examples of great and outstanding missionaries!  There words are so easily applicable to us as missionaries and even to you as members!  My scripture that I have picked as my 2011 them scripture is Alma 18" href="http://lds.org/scriptures/bofm/alma/18?lang=eng" target="_blank">Alma 18:34-35. I think that is a great scripture for all missionaries so I made it my 2011 theme scripture.