10 July 2018 - Elder Milius Week 106

So much to do and so little time.

I feel like that statement pretty much sums up to course of the last two years. I can’t even begin to describe what I’ve learned and the things that I’ll be walking away with. Unfortunately, I’ll have to walk away but that just means that I will be able to walk into something greater. A lot happened this past week but I want to share a few of the best experiences and then I’ll attach a “Final Testimony.”

First, Wil is doing better than I could have hoped. He is progressing so well and he just gets it. I am so impressed with him and with the Lord allowing us to knock on Wil’s door. We met him last night so that I could say “See ya later” and it was awesome. I realized that I’ll be friends with Wil for a while and I think that that is one of the coolest parts about a mission. You go home, but you don’t have to lose the relationships you’ve made while serving the Lord. I’m excited to see Wil progress and even more excited to be a part of his conversion even after returning home.

AL is a guy Elder Holm and I met the very first day we arrived in Weatherly. On Sunday we were over there talking to him about the scriptures and about the things that he had read and such. When we were talking I was thinking to myself, “What a waste of time. He isn’t going to get baptized so why do we keep coming over and entertaining him and ourselves? What example does this set for Elder Holm?” etc., etc. Then out of the blue he told us that he didn’t really feel like he was being “feed” spiritually at his church and was actually looking for somewhere else he could go. When we invited him to church we were shocked that his answer was “Yeah!” At that point the Lord taught me something very important and that is when we are doing His work and fulfilling our purpose-nothing is a waste. Furthermore I felt like that moment was a “pat-on-the-back” from my Heavenly Father, telling me that my mission wasn’t a waste.

I love this work, and I love the people here, and I love my Heavenly Father for giving me an opportunity like this one. Thank you all for your support and love.

Much Love,

Elder Milius

PS: Elder Holm totally crashed this week on his bike--funny story of the week.

PPS: Elder Holm is also getting transferred out of Weatherly and Sisters are getting doubled in, crazy!!

PPPS: For those of you who need to contact me post-mission you can find me on Facebook, “Michael Steven Milius” or mikemilius14@gmail.com  

The Best Two Years So Far:

There are a lot of thoughts that go through the head of a returning missionary, at least there are for me. The past several weeks has caused me to reflect on not only what I learned but who I’ve become and what I now know, without a doubt, to be true. I know that Jesus Christ lives. I know he came to earth to live and to die and to live again. I know He showed us all the way to get back to our Heavenly Father again. I know God the Father also lives. I know He has a body of flesh and bone and that we are literally His spiritual sons and daughters. I know He cares for us just as any Father would and that He loves and is involved with the details of our lives. I know He uses the Holy Spirit to teach us, guide us, and comfort us along this journey of mortal life. I know that trials are necessary for our preparation to enter into the Kingdom of God. I know He will shape us into the instruments He needs us to be in order to accomplish His purposes among His children on earth. I know that His ultimate purpose is “to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39) and I know that He wants us to be a part of that great work. I know that this, the gathering of Israel is that grat work and I know it will end with the Second Coming of our Lord. I know that the Gathering began in this, the last dispensation with the Prophet Joseph Smith. I know that he is a man of God and a Prophet called and ordained from on high. I know he was prepared to bring forth the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I know that that Restoration is true. I know that Christ's church is established once again with all the Priesthood and necessary principles and ordinances of salvation. I know that it is by preparing for and receiving our next ordinances we can access the power of the Atonement. I know that both the enabling and saving power of the Atonement is real. I know that Repentance is a gift from God and a means whereby we can change and improve. I know that Christ will always forgive us as we confess and forsake our sins to Him and the Father (D&C 58:42-43). I know the Book of Mormon to be the word of God and a tool that He uses to accomplish His work. I know that it is the most powerful tool of conversion and the keystone not only of our religion but of our individual testimonies. I know that it teaches and testifies of the Living Christ. I know that Russell M. Nelson is a prophet of God and that the perfect organization of Christ church was also restored through the prophet Joseph Smith. I believe in personal revelation and I know that it is a necessary principle to understand as we seek out answers to our questions and doubts. I know that service and humility are the epitome of Christ’s ministry and therefore should be the focus and epitome of ours as well. Once again I know that God cares for us all individually and that we are all given different opportunities and experiences for our welfare and for the welfare of those around us. He is in charge, and if we let Him, He will direct our paths (Proverbs 3:5-6).

I love my mission because of all the things I learned. These are three of the many principles that have been realized during my missionary service.

1. Learn to recognize and act on spiritual promptings. As a missionary it seems easy and simple to follow spiritual promptings because you are assured that you’re always being lead and guided. I’d like to share an experience that I had a year ago in Prattville, AL. One evening we went out with Brother Campbell, our WML, to see some people. When we were walking away from one house we had someone else to go see but there was this lady in the street a little ways and I had the impression to go talk to her but I talked myself out of it. I told myself that we were with Brother Campbell to see people and so I shouldn’t waste his time in trying to chase down this lady and talk to her. After we left I felt terrible. I told myself that if she was close enough as we were pulling out of the neighborhood I’d roll down the window and talk to her that way. But, we were too far away and before we got to the end of the street to leave where we were I was overwhelmed with guilt. I felt like a failure, and when we got to the next house I asked for forgiveness and promised that I’d never disregard a prompting ever again. The person we went to see wasn’t home either and we were then going to grab some dinner. Brother Campbell offered to take us out and at dinner I brought a Book of Mormon inside and set tit at the end of the table hoping to make up for the loss of an opportunity. I told Brother Campbell that it was to make up for ignoring a prompting to talk to someone earlier. “Who?!” he promptly asked. I told him there was a lady down the street… He cut me off “...in a green skirt.” I said “Ya,” and he responded, “You’re going to make me cry. I had the same prompting and the entire ride in the car over here I was beating myself up about it.” I will never, never ignore a prompting as long as I live. I learned a lot from that experience but the most comforting thing about it is even after the mission I will still, if I choose, be able to receive promptings-like Brother Campbell-to talk to random individuals about the gospel. As I’ve gone throughout my mission I no longer credit much to my own thoughts. In the words of Elder Bednar, “If it’s good it comes from God.” This is the essence of Ministering after all: to be able to understand the Spirit, then to set goals and make plans (we know that phrase well as missionaries) to help those around you. We are all called to minister to our fellow men and the only way to effectively do that is by learning to rely on the guidance of the Holy Ghost. He is our gift, but as with every righteous gift He is given to us by our Father to help bless others. I know that as we listen and act on spiritual promptings the Lord will bless us and allow us to be a part of His work, no matter our calling or position.

2. The who, what, where, when, why, and how of ‘Becoming.’ A scripture that has rang true to me recently in in Mosiah, chapter three, verse nineteen and it reads: “For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.” I have come to understand the profound effect the Gospel of Jesus Christ can have on us as we allow it to change out character; as we allow Him to change our character.. Developing Christlike Attributes and Attitudes has been a major part of my mission. Early on in the beginning of my mission I wrote a “Missionary Constitution” of the things I wanted to do and become because of my two year service. Many of the items recorded had to do with myself. As I’ve reflected back on that “Constitution” and on the things I’ve “become” I have been able to accomplish my goals. What surprised me is that the only reason I accomplished them was because I didn’t focus on it. I didn’t focus on becoming patient or charitable. I didn’t focus on being the most affluent teacher or the best scriptorian. My purpose was to, “Invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end” (Preach My Gospel). Focusing on helping others receive the gospel and reach their goals is the only way I’ve succeeded in my own. And these skills and attributes I’ve developed have helped me come to differentiate between my natural, unrepentant man and my spiritual desires. It’s hard to become as a little child, but that is how we well find ourselves in the Celestial Kingdom (Mosiah 15:25; Moroni 8:8; Matthew 5:5 (3 Nephi 12:5) ). I know that the divine attribute of meekness and humility is the foundation on which all our growth in the gospel develops and that as we strive to stay in-tune with our spiritual selves, we can become who our Heavenly Father wants us to be.

3. Love of God and love of fellow men. I love the Lord. There are several reasons why anyone does the things that they do, but there are four main motivators. The first is fear. Fear of making a fool of yourself, fear that people will look at you different, fear of not fitting in, fear of losing status, etc., etc. The second is reward. Reward of money, reward of praise or accolades, the reward of popularity, the reward of education, etc., etc. The third is out of duty, or out of an obligation regardless of your actual desires to complete the task at hand. And the fourth in out of love. The greatest motivator of all is love, or to take it one step further, charity. A famous scripture here in the Bible Belt is John 3:16 which states, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” On my mission I have come to know what it means to be a true Christian; to be motivated simply by your desire to serve and to love others because Jesus loves them; to be a true “example of the believers” (1 Timothy 4:12). The reason Southern Hospitality is a thing isn’t because of the sweet tea and sunshine; it’s because the majority of the people here are looking to serve each other. And, as we learn from King Benjamin, “when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God (Mosiah 2:17). In the service that I’ve rendered for the past two years I have come to know and love my Saviour, Jesus Christ. My favorite Bible verse is in John 17:3: “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” I have been able to taste a little of what I believe eternal life might be like as I’ve been out here on my mission, and I attribute that simply to the fact that I’ve been able to learn more about the Living Christ here in Alabama as a missionary over the past two years than the previous eighteen years of my life. It’s truly a miracle to have the opportunity to testify of Christ and to help others gain a little of the same experience I have in coming closer to Him. I know He lives, I know He loves us, and I know that He knows that I know that I love Him; more than anything else.

Areas and Companions:

Florence, AL--Elders Kris Wheatly and Dallin Areno

Fort Payne, AL--Elders Quinn Morley and Dallin Porter

Wetumpka, AL--Elders Kayden Harris and Isaiah Schrubb

Prattville, AL--Elders Jax Matthews and Ryan Foudy

Tupelo, MS--Elder Simi Stanford

Smithville, MS--Elder Peter Nielsen

Hoover, AL--Elders Chrisandrew Lewis, Russ Egbert, and Chane Canty

Weatherly, AL--Elder Daijun Holm

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

“Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;”

~2 Timothy 1:7-8~

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And remember: “There is no time for sleep when you're gathering sheep.”

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Godspeed,

ELDER MICHAEL S. MILIUS

ALABAMA BIRMINGHAM MISSION

"Behold I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of Him to declare His word among His people, that they might have everlasting life." ~3 Nephi 5:13

2 July 2018 - Elder Milius Week 105

It's July in Alabama!

Well we had a great last week of June, and I think that this one is going to be even better. We taught quite a bit this past week and went on exchanges with Elder Hanratty and Elder DeMille so that was fun. Things a going pretty good in South Huntsville.

The Lathams are doing great. They are going through some crazy trials that I'm not going to get into but fortunately they are still facing a good direction. They all came to Sacrament Meeting which was awesome and they were all dressed up in their clothes that were given to them last week. Go Sister Latham for bringing them all. We are going over there again tonight to start the new member lessons. Keep praying for them.

Wil and James, a couple of the people we are teaching (by the way the word investigator doesn't exist in the new PMG, pretty interesting) are doing good. We are trying to get them involved with the YSA branch and Elders so that they can progress and be baptized so that is our goal for them this week. Wil is doing great though, he is just one of the most mature people in coming to know what we share is true. He just got it all figured out.

While on exchanges Elder DeMille and I contacted a guy named Anthony that Elder Holm and I had found. He is really open but I don't know how easy it will be to sit down and talk with him and such. But, we had a good conversation about families and why they are important. We also met a lady named Judy out in Lacey who was really nice and interested in the Book of Mormon. We taught her and are hopefully doing back to see her again this coming week. Also, with Elder DeMille that night we turned down a street simply because I felt impressed to. There were a few people we could contact but with it being around 8:30pm we had to be a little more careful on who we saw. We passed the first home, nope; we passed the second home, nope; on the the third home and as we stop to go follow up with the lady around the corner she comes. We talked to her only for a minute when another guy comes up and asks "Are y'all the Mormons?" Apparently he had talked to some guys in Walmart not too long ago and they told him they would give him a Bible. So we have him one as well as a copy of the Book of Mormon and we went away saying that he would make it up to church one day. Interesting experience following the simple impressions. There were a lot of those this past week. In addition to mine and Elder DeMille's adventures, Elder Holm and Hanratty talked to a guy we've been trying to see for a couple weeks named Jeremiah. They shared the Restoration with him. Elder Holm had started to get sick that night but said that even in his groggy, mucus-filled throat the First Vision still brought an amazing Spirit. I know that's true.

So, going back to following the Spirit we had the most successful change of plans ever this week. We were going to see James at 6:15pm or so but Elder Holm needed to pick up a prescription. So we are sitting in Walmart watching the time go by. We messaged James and pushed the appointment to 6:30pm. We waited some more and eventually had to send the script to Walgreens because the insurance wasn't running. By this time it was too late to go see James so we called and rescheduled. Then we ride to Walgreens a little frustrated that we missed a teaching appointment. However, we had several opportunities in Walgreens to talk to people! I visited with a young lady named Kaitlyn (it's the hardest thing to talk to girls my age without it seeming like flirting but somehow it worked out-it took me several minutes to figure out how I was going to talk to her but it was good). She was friends with a somewhat recent convert in the YSA. She said she snapchats her every so often so I told her to take a snapchat of me and send it to her friend asking why she became a Mormon. So she did a I got to share a little about what the Book of Mormon was as give her a copy too. I don't know how that will turn out and for whatever reason it was so exciting! Good experience. Elder Holm also got to visit with the Pharmacy lady he had talked to a few times about the church. We then saw someone we are trying to teach as we walked out of the store. And then as we were riding away we talked to Cecile, someone that the Spanish Elders are teaching and I was able to "practicar mi Español."

To continue the "change of plans" we also went to the Pine Tree Apartments and saw a former who wanted to meet with us again and another potential the previous Elders had contacted in the Dollar Tree. We saw the Latham boys mowing a lawn riding by as well. It was just cool to see that even when we were frustrated about the prescription and missing an appointment I felt oddly okay with it. I guess all of the previous story explains why. Moral of the story is the Lord is always in charge of we allow Him to be.

We did quit a bit of service this week which was good. We helped the Shellmans get ready for a Baby Shower they were having and moved some furniture around and got some more stuff out of their storage unit. We helped Sister Rodarte do a landscaping project in her backyard. And we helped Brother Chiri, a non-member, move some stuff around in his home. On all of those occasions we were able to talk to and visit with those who are not yet members of the church and hopefully leave a positive impression for the future. Service softens stoney souls. Not to mention it let's us wear jeans and a t-shirt and get dirty every so often.

Every thought could be a prompting. That is my new motto. I remember a message that was given by one of the General Authority visits we have had in the past year where he said something along the lines of: Just because you don't find any immediate success or things don't work out perfectly doesn't mean you were not prompted to go there. Sometimes we receive impression and the Lord is testing us to see if we will listen, and regardless of the results of the action He knows that we will act according to our impressions.

We went to see Cathy again this week. I guess we figured things had cooled down since we last talked with her. Apparently she was approached by a few other people and they told her things that weren't true. She is also dealing with some mental health struggles but all is well now. We were going to see her a day earlier than we did but it didn't end up working out for reasons God knows. But, because we didn't see them the first night we ran into Yancy and Abby and were able to help them out a little bit. They got thrown out of their apartment and it was a crazy not good situation but another example of the Lord needs you where He needs you.

I had several "thoughts" this past week. Some that worked and others that didn't. On several occasions however I received a confirmation that I was where I needed to be doing what I needed to be doing. We met Jentri and Daniel this week who we are hoping work out pretty well upcoming. We had a handful of great lessons and a good Facebook Live message this week. We got our ward 40-Day Fast rolling and our Ward Mission Leader got back in town.

Every good week has some funny moments though:

• I almost crashed in front of a couple people late one night... I was tired.
• Elder Hanratty tried to take off on his bike with no hands and ate it.
• Elder Holm got a steroid shot in the buttox and wouldn't let me do it.
• My bike pedal fell off, I lost a piece and then the road I lost it on was paved over the next day.
• A cat followed Elder DeMille and I around for about a mile or two.
• "He who cares the least wins." Good way to think when doing things like buying a car.
• I threw, and I mean threw, a Book of Mormon across the yard because when I looked down there was a wasp on it very close to my hand. How many pounds is that?
• Elder Holm took his order in the Sonic Drive-thru and a preacher took some pictures of it. Unfortunately we didn't get the pictures.
• Speaking of pictures though Elder Barker sent me the report of the van that Elder Canty hit me with nearly three months ago. Shoutout to him again, love ya bud. (I'll attach those pictures to the email).
• I was finally kissed on the cheek by an old lady-check that one off the bucket list!

Lots of thoughts running through my head at this point and I don't really know what to think. But there are three quotes from Sacrament Meeting that I would say sum up my conclusions:

1. The Lord always has more in store for us.

2. I love the Lord more than anything else.

3. "Where'er thou art, act well thy part."

Along with that I want to share an experience that I had last night. As expected I could really fall asleep because of the racing thoughts. During all of that I thought about the countless times I've testified that the Book of Mormon is true. The many times I have added my witness to others that this is the true church. They thousands of times I heard, quoted, or testified about the First Vision and about Joseph Smith being a Prophet of God. Do I really know these things? Or have I simply said it so many times I've convinced myself they are true. So, with all these questions and thoughts going through my head I asked each of them. I know that all these things are true. Not because it's what I've been taught, not because it's what I am supposed to say as a Mormon Missionary, but because my Heavenly Father has witnessed to me that each of these things are true, independent of one another. I know it, and I know that God knows I know it. I would invite each of you to gain your own personal witness of Jesus Christ and all the truths you've been taught by taking them to God and allowing the Spirit confirm to you the Eternal Truths of the Gospel.

I hope you all have a wonderful week and I'll email you once more. Thank you all for your support. God bless.

Much Love,

Elder Milius

PS: P-Day will be on Tuesday next week so I'll talk to you then.

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Godspeed,

ELDER MICHAEL S. MILIUS

ALABAMA BIRMINGHAM MISSION

"Behold I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of Him to declare His word among His people, that they might have everlasting life." ~3 Nephi 5:13

25 June 2018 - Elder Milius Week 104

Weatherly got wet!

This was a phrase that Elder Maness used a lot when he served here and he was here for about 7.5 months. We finally did it though. I'll send pictures! :) Other than that not too eventful of a week, but when you're competing with a baptism nothing else as a missionary is more exciting. We did find a few more potentials to start working with and re-contacted a couple formers who are interested still. Fun times, fast times!

Number One:

Evans Baptism was amazing. I don't really know how else to describe it. As a missionary you always kinda hope that you'll be able to baptize your last transfer; that you'll be able to see one more person enter into the waters of baptism. Fortunately, Heavenly Father allowed me the privilege of being a "lucky" Missionary. I can't thank my Heavenly Father enough for being able to watch the Latham family. Thoughts of Alma 32, Moroni 6, and 2 Nephi 31 come to mind when I think of their process and mine with them. But, it was more than just a baptism, it was more than just one person starting on the path, it was more than I could have ever thought. It was a family taking a huge step to come back on the path, and it was a young boy who was setting the example and bringing Light to his family, and it was a ward who, after years of trying, finally got to see some of the fruits of their efforts. It was perfect. I can begin to express the spirit that was at that particular service. All were emotional, and I believe it's because we all understood that it was much bigger than what we actually saw. Evans Baptism was not only something he will remember for the rest of his life, but something all those who were in attendance, myself included, will never forget. It has been a miracle long coming with the prayers, fasting, hard work, and patience in the Lord's work exhibited by members and missionaries alike. I know that the Lord is aware of all of His children. And I know how much He cares about the little things. I am a witness that this is His Gospel, it is His church, and it is the way to live with our Father in Heaven-and our families again-for all eternity.

And, if that whole experience wasn't enough, his confirmation topped it off. I was asked to confirm him (the last time I was asked to do that for a lady who got baptized in Fort Payne the Branch President started the ordinance himself, haha) and all morning I was thinking of things to bless him with. In the end however, I can't tell you what I said but I know that he is going to be a huge leader and example in the future to his family and to all those he associates with. It was a powerful experience and an even greater miracle to be a part of it.

Moving on from that, I want to share a story about last week. We were playing sports in the gym on P-Day and one of the Elders in our District started having some breathing problems and problems controlling his heart rate. After him resting a bit he asked for a blessing. I had the privilege to anoint and then Elder Hanratty (remember him?) gave the blessing. It was a neat experience first because I remember giving a blessing two years ago in the MTC with Elder Hanratty, and both of us have come a long way. That was kinda nostalgic. Second however, it was powerful having five 19 or 20 year-olds in a circle giving a blessing to one of their friends. How amazing it was to me to stand and feel the "spiritual power" coming from us missionaries. Normal kids our age don't do what we had the opportunity to, and to me that was an event worth reporting.

District Meeting this past week was another one of those spiritual, "this-wouldn't-normally-happen" experiences. We had a really good discussion on how to teach the members of the church how to do missionary work. I believe that most members want to share the gospel and just don't really know where to start. That's where our responsibility comes in as the missionaries, to help them find out where! It's never been so clear to me until now how important of a job it is to teach and train the members in this great gathering that the Prophet is calling us all to participate in.

Following District Meeting we had exchanges up in Byrd Springs. I went out with Elder Braithwaite...again. Its weird to go out with people you've already been out with just in different places. Back when I was in Tupelo I went on an exchange with Elder Braithwaite and also after I moved to Smithville, we went on exchanges. Anyway we went and visited several members and did some great work there. We had this one lesson with Sister Hundley who has been less-active for a while. Elder Braithwaite hadn't even met her he had only talked to her on the phone. But we went and visited for a while, brought Brother Gallagher with us-which was amazing-and the Spirit got really strong. So strong in fact that she literally said, "I don't know, I believe in God it's just hard for me to feel like I have a personal relationship with Him." How plain and clear is that for a concern?! So we invited her to pray to know if God loved her and to read the Book of Mormon looking for God's love. It was a really cool lesson and I'm glad I got to be a part of it. The rest of the exchange went pretty well, a lot of good laughs.

Like I said, we contacted a few other people and re-contacted others. One of those was a guy named Eric. He had been taught a little under a year ago and was really interested, on baptismal date and everything. Well he backed off for a while and we haven't been able to contact him since we've been here. Until one day when it was stormy outside. We decided to walk to see this lady we had previously met and she wasn't home. I thought to go down a particular street to knock on some doors. And, what do you know, we tracted into Eric's in-laws and he came out and met us! His son Aiden met us too and was pretty excited to see the missionaries again. That was cool. I'm convinced that at this point any thought I receive comes from the Spirit so I just kinda follow it and it usually works out. Another experience that was kinda like that, a domino effect, started with the Brownings. We had them for dinner but they had to cancel. So we came and ate at home and therefore spent the time around hear finding rather than by their house. We went to an apartment complex and followed-up with a guy we met who was more or less actually interest and found Alesha. She had talked to missionaries before and said she would let us know when we could come back this week. Then we ran into another former named Anthony who set up an appointment for us to come back Wednesday. Spiritual Dominoes is a fun game haha!

Last night we had a cool meeting with the Shellmans. Sister Shellman, the member, has been super stressed. We had planned to share a Restoration lesson with them but instead ended up talking about the trials and pressing forward and telling jokes. Sometimes, a joke can be as powerful as a scripture.

We met several other people just by talking to everyone--funny how that works. That's one thing that I hope I'll be able to keep up once I got home, talking to everyone.

Funny Ones:

• The Parable of the Sundae: After District Meeting we went to Dairy Queen and all got lunch. It took a while for some of us to get food and stuff but eventually we all got it except for Elder Holm's summer-berry blizzard. The lady came around the corner with summer-berry sundae in hand. Immediately Elder Holm politely corrected her when she offered it to him and told her he ordered a blizzard. She said okay and then asked if anyone wanted it and Elder Briggs quickly responded in the affirmative. Elder Holm got what he asked for eventually, but missed the opportunity to have a Sundae as well. Just as blessings come in life, we sometimes are too busy looking for exactly what we want that we miss the small miracles and opportunities right in front of us. When it comes to receiving answers, blessings, miracles, or guidance...don't be picky.
• Over the phone Elder Holm said, "Fortune Cookie" in an Asian accent and it sounded like he said a naughty word cookie...
• While on Exchanges

-Elder Holm: "Gordon B Hinckley said tracting is horrible!"

-Me: "That is not what he said."

• Elder Braithwaite fell on his bike and almost ate it. The funny part was when I came up on the curb I thought to myself, "I wonder if he will make it up that." My thoughts were interrupted by him falling.
• I saw a bumper sticker that said "I'm a Rocket Scientist." Only in Huntsville.
• Is 'color' spelled with an "-ar?" "Motar?"
• As we were about a mile or more away from home on foot we got a text for a tornado warning. Unfortunately I didn't have to use my Priesthood to stop the storm.
• We ate at this place called Peppered Pig. It was a good truck with amazing barbecue. Not really a funny story but it was good food!
• Someone yelled, "Hail Satan!" at us as we were walking down the street. That's literally like the fifth or sixth time we've gotten that. Maybe it's the same people.
• We brought three clipboards in to church for different sign-up lists.
• We found a bike route street sign that fell down in a storm and I want it. Those bolts are hard to undo though :/

It was a good week. And one of the lessons I learned the most was that Ferris Buller had it right. He said, "Life moves pretty fast; if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." As a missionary and as a missionary with two weeks left to go I want to get as much in as I can. While that is good, sometimes I feel like you can go too fast and forget to stop and look at all the miracles around you. You can forget to stop and laugh with you companion or other missionaries and you can forget that this is His work and it will get done eventually, so enjoy being a part of it. I love this work and I know it's true. If nothing else, it's changed me.

Scriptures of the Week:

"To preach my gospel by the Spirit, even the Comforter which was sent forth to teach the truth....

"Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?

"And if it be by some other way it is not of God.

"And again, he that receiveth the word of truth, doth he receive it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?

"If it be some other way it is not of God.

"Therefore, why is it that ye cannot understand and know, that he that receiveth the word by the Spirit of truth receiveth it as it is preached by the Spirit of truth?

"Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together....

"That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.

"And again, verily I say unto you, and I say it that you may know the truth, that you may chase darkness from among you;

"He that is ordained of God and sent forth, the same is appointed to be the greatest, notwithstanding he is the least and the servant of all."

(D&C 50:14-26)

I love y'all! Hope you have a blessed week!

Much Love,

Elder Milius

-- 

Godspeed,

ELDER MICHAEL S. MILIUS

ALABAMA BIRMINGHAM MISSION

"Behold I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of Him to declare His word among His people, that they might have everlasting life." ~3 Nephi 5:13