Week 16, November 14, 2016

Howdy Yall!

This has been the most amazing week here in the columbine area! We have taught more people and found more investigators than any other week in this area! We are also feeling like Clarence Brooks, our most progressing investigator, will be ready for baptism very soon! Its so inspiring to see how the gospel changes lives! I love this work so much!!!!! I love this church and this gospel. It is so true! I love it all!

And besides that we had a lot of fun this week as well! Yesterday was Elder Christensen's birthday! Happy B day comp! I love this guy and he is so much fun! I included some pictures of the birthday boy along with the cupcakes we had to celebrate his birthday. The member we live with got them for us and it was awesome! We also got to have some fun adventures at the car show. There werent very many cars there and everyone was saying it was probably the last show before winter so they wont be happening anymore. But I got some awesome pictures to remember it by. I would also like to mention that if the Chevy nova just happened to be sitting in the driveway when I got home I would be very happy! (Hint hint) 😉

We also happened across an antique sale that a couple was putting on in their front yard. They had a pair of cuff links, the matching pin, and a penknife that I just had to have. It was only $7 so I didnt feel too bad about the impulse buy. Unfortunately the couple wasnt interested in hearing our message but they were still some pretty cool people.  I love being able to meet all these amazing people. It is such a blessing. I love them all so much. No matter how they receive me.

I want you all to know how much I love you all. You are all such amazing people and I love you all. you have all helped me to become the man I am today. Thank you.

Sincerely

Elder lindh!

 

 

Week 15, November 7, 2016

Howdy yall! 

So its transfers tomorrow and so we got our news this saturday. This is going to be a weird couple of transfers but I am so happy cause I get to stay in my area with my companion! I love elder Christensen so much and am excited to get to serve another transfer with him. But this transfer will unfortunately only be 5 weeks long. Due to transfers being so close to christmas president has decided this next transfer will be 5 weeks long so that missionaries have an extra week to adjust before christmas. But that also means that the next transfer after that will be 7 weeks long. So it could get interesting. 

Other than that I have had an awesome week here in the columbine area. We are finally getting to teach people. Admittedly not many but still, some is better than none. So we are very happy to see this awesome progress. 

I love it here and I love all of you. You guys make life so awesome and fun. I miss you all and am thinking of all of you.

Love 

Elder Lindh

 

 

Week 14, October 31, 2016

Howdy Y'all! 

So today is halloween but thats not even the highlight of my week. This week has been amazing for so many reasons and most of them have to do with the fact that we got a lot of work done and are preparing to teach a lot of people. It is so exciting to finally find people to teach. Its hard to feel like you are being successful and useful when most of the time you just have doors slammed in your face..... But now we have people to teach! YAY! It was interesting to see how we got to meet them too! We picked up some former investigators, had a referral from recent converts the brooks, and the last one was through potential investigators. The last one should be very interesting. She teaches a bible study and it seems she is more interested in proving that we are wrong, but any chance to teach the truth is a good opportunity. I know that this is the true church. I would not be far away from home and those I love if it wasnt. This is worth it because this is the Lord's work. I know that for myself. I love each and every one of you. You are all so amazing. Thank you so much for being my friends. I love you all.

Sincerely

Elder Lindh

Week 13, October 24, 2016

Howdy y'all!

So not too much to report this week. We have been truly struggling to find anyone to teach which has been rather rough and somewhat discouraging. But we have also had a lot of fun and seen a lot of neat things. Yesterday by far was my favorite day of the week. Not only was it the Sabbath which is always my favorite, but we had some fun new adventures. So it turns out that in our area at the Dairy Queen there is a car show every Sunday. I of course made sure to squeeze that into the schedule so I got to see a lot of very pretty cars. It was lots of fun and we saw a surprising number of members, along with a couple of jehovah's witnesses. But most of all it was just fun to get to see all the cool cars and meet all these amazing people who all shared a love of classic cars (my type of people :). It was so much fun. So last week I promised to send some pictures so here you go. Though sadly I didnt take any pictures of the cars, I was too busy talking to the people.

The one with the suit is from the temple dedication as we were getting ready to go. The other is from P day fun. 😁😇 

I hope you all know how much I love each and every one of you. You are all so amazing and I am always so grateful to have met and gotten to know each and every one of you. Y'all Rock!

Love

Elder Lindh

 

 

Week 12, October 17, 2016

Howdy Yall!

So this week has been filled with fun and lots of new experiences. We got a request for a book of mormon which was awesome! Unfortunately at the moment he isn't interested in learning more just wanted to read the book for himself. Which is a great place to start. We also were able to contact a few referrals we had received from the members. But other than that we haven't done much. Although during weekly planning we discovered that we have found 38 different people who have either moved or do not live where the records say they live. Which in the process has meant a lot of slammed doors and people yelling at us that they don't want us to come there. Which has been lots of fun. But what can you do. People get to choose and sometimes they do not choose to be nice. But you love them anyway. Beyond that I had an awesome time on sunday getting to see the Fort Collins temple dedication. It was an amazing experience. Although it was somewhat frustrating because my companion forgot his recommend and as we went to go back to the house to get it my bike malfunctions and the front derailer gets all twisted so we were gonna have to walk all the way home, likely miss that session of the dedication and have to walk back at 3 to catch the next dedication. Luckily our district leader pulled up just as we were leaving. They gave us a ride and we were able to make the session. Still had to walk my bike home after but It was all good. And just so I dont cause anyone to worry, I already got my bike fixed today so Its all taken care of. I am sorry I dont have any pictures, I forgot my cord to upload them. But will send this weeks pictures next week. 

I want you all to know how much I love you all. You are all so amazing and I have loved every second I have been able to associate with all of you. You all have taught me so much and quite frankly without you guys, I would not be the man I am today. Thank you all so much. I love all of you.

Sincerely
 Elder Lindh

So for all of you who are not familiar with what a temple is I would like to share my fellow missionaries letter. I think he did an excellent job of talking about the temple and would like to mention that I am open and willing to answer any questions any of you might have. But here is what he said.

HEY!

Ok, so this week was interesting. We couldn't invite people to church because there were not any church services on Sunday. Instead, another temple was Dedicated! The Fort Collins Temple. I got to go to the dedication and it was absolutely amazing. And that is why I want to talk about temples this week.

Some of you may have wondered what exactly an LDS temple is, what goes on inside them, and why Mormons are so quiet about said interior activities. I'd like to address these questions. 

An LDS temple is, quite simply put, "The House of The LORD". We believe that He follows patterns. After all, he is "the same today, yesterday, and forever". In the days of Moses, God commanded his followers to build a Tabernacle (a portable temple) where sacrifices where to be preformed and the priests where to go to commune with God. When the Children of Israel reached their promised land, God commanded that the Ark of The Covenant be placed in a permanent resting place, or a Temple. This building was the new tabernacle. It was used for Mosaic Law purposes until Christ fulfilled that law, and replaced it with a higher law. The Temple was still used by the Saints until around 180 - 250 A.D. for the performance of Ordinances. One such Ordinance was Baptism for the Dead (see 1st Corinthians 15:29. Yes, I know. The topic that is the focus in this passage is the Resurrection, whereas Paul's mention of Baptism for the Dead is mentioned almost in passing. But that is to be expected due to how common place the practice was back then among the saints. His point is simple. Allow me to put in in modern English.
"Why are they baptized by proxy for the dead, if there is no Resurrection? There would be no point in the Baptism, if Resurrection was not a true principle.")

When God restored His Church through a Prophet (just as he did through Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Moses), He commanded just as he did in the Church of Jesus Christ of Former Day Saints that the children of Israel build him a house. This is why we build temples. 

Now, I've already covered some of what occurs inside these Holy Edifices. In addiction to Baptism by proxy, Other ordinances are preformed in the Temple. Through these Ordinances, we receive instruction and further dedicate ourselves to God. We DO NOT perform sacrifice within the temple. 

Now, why are we so quiet about the Temple? Because it is sacred. I'm sure you all have heard of the Book of Mormon play. What we don't want is for someone to make a mockery of something even holier to us than simple church history. (By the way, the only true parts of the play are: the fact that we call our missionaries Elder or Sister. The first presiding member was named Joseph Smith. And That we Believe in Jesus Christ. Everything else is false.) If we were to speak openly about the temple it would truly be "casting [our] pearls before swine"  The details of what happens inside are for everyone to learn. but that knowledge must be gained the way all of us gained it. By being worthy to enter the Temple, and then going to learn for ourselves. 

If I need to clarify anything, please please please let me know. I want everyone to understand what I am trying to say.

Again. I am willing to answer any questions. whether its about the gospel or not. You can ask me anything. And even if I cant answer perfectly I will try my best. I love you all and hope this letter helps you understand a bit more about what the temple means to members of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints.

Week 11, October 10, 2016

Howdy Yall

So this weeks been quite a bit of fun, although rather hard on my legs. I am quite sore right now. 

So in summary of this week there is only one word that suffices. Biking, Lots and lots of biking. this are has SOOOO many hills!!!! The largest of which is right next to our house as we leave to go basically anywhere.... Its rather annoying. 

Other than that there is not much to report. We are having a hard time finding people to teach but just last night we had an AMAZING time with the Duffy family! They gave us FIVE referrals! thats insane! most people wont even give us a referral so to leave a dinner with 5 new people to see is AMAZING! And not only that but they are all people that have either been really into the gospel or just had an amazing experience. Its so amazing to see how the Lord is preparing people for us to teach and help them progress closer to Christ. Thats just about all for this week although I had a run in with someone who owned a 1923 model T. That was kinda crazy. He wasnt interested it didnt seem but he really liked that we liked his car. So yeah. Anyway I want you all to know I love and miss each and every one of you. You are all amazing children of a loving Heavenly Father.

Sincerely

Elder Lindh

Week 10, Oct 3, 2016

Howdy Yall!

So this week has been a bit crazy as well as full of miracles. So to begin with, I am in another biking area. So I finally had to break down and buy a bike. The first bike shop we went to the cheapest bike was around $500 and even then didnt have all the features that would be nice. So I decided I needed to keep looking in order to find out what type of price I might expect because I wasnt happy paying $500 dollars when I don't need to. So the next place we went was Dick's sporting goods. While surveying all the bikes I found they were all similarly priced. I was beginning to accept that that might just be the way it was when I found the perfect bike. It had all the features I wanted/needed and more. Its an absolutely beautiful bike. And here lies the miracle, It was on clearance for $300! The original price was $750! I was saving $450! and so by the time I walked out with a brand new helmet, a light, a lock and 2 protection plans for the bike and all the parts, I still came out under $460! I got everything I needed for less than what it would have cost to just get a bike! it was such a tender mercy to see the Lords hand in making sure I got the bike I needed. I was just absolutely shocked. And for those asking, "so whats wrong with the bike?" there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. It just had been sitting in inventory for so long that the owner just wanted to get rid of it. And it was just the right size and everything. I felt so loved and watched over. 

The other miracle that happened was general conference. For those of you who watched it, I dont know if you got much out of it because that conference was meant for me. Every talk seemed to address a problem I was facing or a doubt that I had. Each talk was the answer I needed from my loving Heavenly Father. I love conference so much. I am so thankful God has given us a prophet in these latter Days. I love the Lord. I love you all. I wish the best for all of you and am sincerely praying that all goes well for all of you. You are all there in my thoughts and prayers.  I love you all! Have a great week!

District Leader

My Companion: Elder Christensen

Address update

Here is Nathan's new address as of 9/28/16

Elder Lindh
8005 W Ontario Pl
Littleton, CO 80128

Week 9, Sept 26, 2016

Howdy yall!

I hope most of you are enjoying the warm weather wherever you are. Its pretty much officially autumn around here and going to be winter soon where I am headed. So prayers for me not freezing are appreciated. 

So I found out on saturday that I will be headed to the Columbine area in the denver side of the mission. I get a new companion and elder tufu will be staying here. Its going to be really hard to leave because although I have only been here a short time I have really come to love the people and the area. I love my companion and am sad to have only served one transfer with him. (I think he is sad too because he gets to train a new missionary again) 

I have so many people here that I have grown to love. Our investigators are all amazing and I will miss them. The Roybals are on date for baptism so I will probably miss that. But thats okay. I know that the lord needs me in columbine. So I have faith that everythings gonna work out.

I leave tomorrow with the transfer train and am not sure when I will meet my new companion elder christensen. I am not sure where he is serving. So yeah. That ought to be fun. 

I have loved it here so much and will probably come back after my mission if I can. I love the people. I want to make a special shout out to Larry Davis. He is an amazing guy and one of my best friends. He is like another grandfather to me. He is amazing and I would like to encourage him to continue to try and read the Book of mormon. I know the book of mormon is true. I know it to be the word of God. I love it. I love this area. I am sad to leave but I will be going where I am needed.

Sincerely

Elder Lindh!

So here are some pictures from the week. The food is called "Super fries" from a place called los Jilbertos. Its pretty famous among the missionaries so while on exchanges I went there with elder Swanger. As a side note I only got a half portion. And I have no idea if I could actually eat an entire whole portion. So that was fun. I also took a picture from the top of the hill which had an awesome view of what I believe is mount Garfield.

So earlier I was in a rush because we were going to go get haircuts. I want you all to know that I know that this is God's work. Truly I am only a servant in God's hand. We have had some amazing success here and I can feel that the Lord has prepared these people to be taught. I love them all. I am going to miss them. But hopefully at some point I can end up back here. I love the people here. But most of all I love my Savior, Jesus Christ.

Sincerely

Elder Lindh

Week 8, September 19, 2016

Howdy Yall!

So this has been a crazy exciting week. Its been a lot of fun but a lot of work as well. If anyone ever tells you that missionary work is easy they are lying or crazy. Its just that. Work. But that being said, its the most exciting, most fun, most rewarding, and greatest thing you could ever do. I absolutely love it. I have gotten to meet all sorts of amazing people and even in this brief time I have seen many of them come closer to Christ. 

So as I said its been an exciting week. On Tuesday we had an awesome day. We started off with 2 hours of service splitting wood. Fortunately the sister had a hydraulic wood splitter. Unfortunately me and my companion didn't get to show off our muscles. 😉 But that's okay because I am already sore enough from just riding my bike. So anyways, after helping her we went home had lunch and did some training. We then tried to contact people, didn't have a huge amount of luck with that but we did contact a few people. Most of them though either weren't home or just weren't interested. Which is sad that they don't want to grow closer to their savior but that's okay. So then at 4 we had an awesome lesson with a family that was baptized about 2 years ago. The mom is a single mom with 3 kids. 2 girls and a boy. And she lives with a man named Liam. Liam was more of a jokester and didn't seem to take things too seriously at first but then when we really started the lesson he seemed to have some awesome questions that really made me think and definitely invited the spirit to testify of what we were saying. SO that was awesome! then we had dinner with the Ramirez family who live right behind us, they are amazing! Pretty laid back yet definitely have an amazing testimony of the savior. So then we had a scheduled appointment with the Hotz family but that fell through because sister Hotz had come down with something. So we rescheduled for next week. Then after trying to contact some potential investigators we had in the area we had a lesson with the Smith family. The smith family really seems to love the gospel but sister smith has to work on sundays and her son and husband just dont seem really motivated to go without her. But we are getting there! Anyway! We had an eight pm lesson with a recent convert who is also a ward missionary. Sister Nail is awesome! She had some inspired questions and we were able to help her to overcome them and answer them through the scriptures. It was amazing.

Then Wednesday we had exchanges with the Orchard Mesa Elders. I got to stay in my area and my companion went over there. So that was fun. We gad a good day and also did some service which was fun. Then we tried to contact a few people but again not much luck. Finally around 4:30 even though we hadn't contacted the person we were hoping to we went and tried to tract the neighborhood. We were just doing that when we noticed this guy outside working on his bike. Turns out he is a member although he hasn't been to church in almost 16 years. We got his name, Brian Matern, and address and phone number. It was awesome. Then we went to dinner, which ended up just being fried chicken with ice cream afterwords at the apartment. Then we had two appointments, both of which ended up cancelling or just not being there. the First one had a sick kid who had been puking, the other just didnt answer the door.... But all in all a good day.

Thursday was awesome. We had breakfast with the Harts, a family in the ward, and they had some friends over. We got to teach them and it was amazing. Hopefully that experience will lead to them taking interest in the church. Unfortunately none of them seem all that interested at the moment. But there is always hope. Then we had district meetings which went alright. I had to do training and teach the other missionaries but I didnt make a complete fool of myself so it couldnt have been too bad. After that we did some more service and then had dinner with sister Dodge. She is a super sweet sister in our ward. Then we taught DJ and Kathy, two investigators who really want to baptized. There are going to be some holdbacks though... unfortunately they havent been able to meet with the bishop so they cant get baptized when they were supposed to. But we still have hope! Then we met with the roybals who are AMAZING! they are super awesome and love the gospel! We are meeting with them this thursday and we will invite them to be baptized then. I honestly think they will accept so we might be getting a baptism soon! then we went and gave sister Davis a blessing because she has been having terrible migraines. And during the blessing I felt prompted to say that "Heavenly Father wants you to know he loves you" and afterward she told me that in every blessing she has ever received since she was a sophomore in high school has included that  same sentence. That is almost 50 years of blessings. It was amazing to see. 

So friday was pretty hard physically. We had to bike all over the area and up and down the biggest hill in our area. That was lots of fun. but we had a baptismal interview that Elder Tufu had to do for the pear park sisters because Elder Tufu is the district leader. So that was awesome to see the two boys get ready for their baptism. They were hilarious! After one got baptized he goes "Pizza for Everyone!" like they were just so cute and funny! 

Saturday, we had an AMAZING DAY! We didn't contact many people we had planned to but what was more amazing is that we had to stop by a members house, and we ran into Brian again! once again he was out working on his motorcycle.  Which I might add is an amazing motorcycle and I want one like it when I get home. 😉 Plus we had an awesome lesson with a new investigator named Jade. We gave her a book of mormon and she seemed super excited to come to church. Unfortunately it sounds like she was unable to because she was dependent on her dad. So yeah. But She has a desire which is amazing! We also talked to Brother Murphy. He is a recent convert that was baptized just last march. He is 65 i believe. And he has some of the most amazing stories to tell. He was in the Army police at the end of World War II so he got to travel all over. He also served in vietnam where he was assigned to protect ammo convoys. He is super awesome and I wish I could see all the places hes been. Whats super interesting is he has lived in almost every place I have. He started mines and would get them up and running then move to start another. He lived in Wenatchee, near Reno, and has been all over. Every time I mention something about the places I lived he has a storie about it. Its so cool to hear about it.Then we had a baptism, the pear park's baptism really but we got to attend so it counts! and then we had ward coordination.

Sunday was amazing. Always is. I love taking the sacrament and being able to renew those covenants I have made. It helps me to remember I am here to serve Christ and bring Gods children closer to him. It helped me to remember the love God has for his children, and the love I should have as well. There is also a temple dedication coming up soon so the talk on that was amazing. He compared the temple to an embassy. Just like in a foreign country, the US embassy is part of US soil. The Temple is the same way. It may be on earth but once you step inside you are really in a part of heaven. Its so inspiring. I love the temples so much! 

And then the craziest thing happened. We had a random guy walk in off the street. He was interested in the church and what we do in it and so he had come in. We were able to show him the last half of the pear park's sacrament meeting and the ward mission leader came over and sat next to him then introduced him to the sister missionaries. He loved it and went to all three hours! it was AmAzing! and then elder Tufu had an interview with the mission president to get a patriarchal blessing. He is so excited to get it. I am so excited for him! I love my patriarchal blessing and the revelations that in it. I love the revelation we are able to recieve through the holy ghost and power of the priesthood. Its amazing. I love it. 

So that was my week. It was amazing and I loved it. One thing that stood out to me is we visited a sister who told me that we need to tell our loved ones we love them every chance we get. So I LOVE YOU ALL! 

With Love

Elder Lindh 

Week 7, September 12, 2016

After wrecking on his bike. Lesson learned: helmets work!

Howdy Yall!

Sorry that I am emailing so early in the morning. There is a meeting in the family history center so we had to go to a public library and needed to be here early to get a computer. In fact even now there are no available computers so I got lucky to get one. 

So there was quite an adventure on saturday.... we were late to ward coordination, a meeting where the missionaries meet with all the ward missionaries and the mission leaders. So it was around 8:15 ish. The parking lot of the church is not very well lit and has some unmarked speed bumps... so me and my companion were racing in the dark across the parking lot, (not a good Idea let me tell you) and I slammed on the brakes because I didnt want to hit my companion, and I hit the speed bump.... and well.... you can see the result. Luckily I always wear a helmet. I felt my head hit pretty hard and let me tell you I am now very pro helmet. I am pretty sure I would have ended up in the emergency room that night if I hadnt been wearing a helmet. I am fine though. I landed on my back so my buts a little sore and so is my neck from sliding out, but all in all I am fine. Unfortunately I cant say the same for my shirt, my washing machine is broken so I haven't been able to wash it very well and so it still looks like it does in the picture.... But I should get it washed soon so hopefully the stain comes out. 

Other than that me and my companion did exchanges with the zone leaders and their area is absolutely beautiful. It has some great views of the mountians so I took some pictures. I love the beautiful area. The mountains are amazing. I love looking over at Mesa or Mt Garfield. 

I love the people most of all though. I love teaching and being taught. Cause guess what? I actually DONT know everything! Shocker right? It blows my mind too! But thats okay because there is no better place to learn than while you have the spirit to teach you. And the spirit is always there when we are teaching others. Well I say we are teaching but in reality its just the spirit but we get to take the credit. ;) 

I love the things I am doing. I want you all to know that I know this is where God wants me to be. That I am needed here. I am doing God's work. I know that. 

Sincerely

Elder Lindh!

P.S. those arent all the pictures. Thats just all it would let me send. I will send more next week. I love You ALL!!!

Week 6, September 5, 2016

P-Day! September begins!! Howdy Yall! This week has been amazing! We have done a lot! Including place 3 Book of Mormons and set up 3 appointments with new investigators. Which was awesome! Hot and exhausting but AMAZING!!!!! I am really growing to love this mission and these people! I KNOW this is where God called me to be. I really am making a difference and I can see that. So on Wednesday was my first zone conference! That was fun! I am really lucky cause I have an amazing zone with some AMAZING missionaries. I love my companion, I love my district, I love my zone. They are all so amazing and have such amazing testimonies. They definitely strengthen my testimony a lot. I love it. During zone conference we did a lot of training, had lunch, and listened to a few talks from leaders in the mission. It was amazing. I learned so much! I also felt the spirit so strongly as we discussed the things we needed to be doing to be effective missionaries. It made me realize that as prepared as I am (thanks to the best parents ever, and some pretty awesome leaders and family) I still have a LOT to learn. I am so excited to see the Lords plan for me! Its gonna be great! The rest of the week was basically spent trying to contact as many people as possible. We only had one appointment that really paid off..... the rest kinda bailed...... but that's okay! We did a lot so its all good. The appointment was with the Roybals, a part member family I have mentioned last week. Once we started the lesson it was amazing. It was kinda weird though. I didn't feel like much that me and my companion were saying was making an impact. But right near the end the member we had brought, Brother Jester, began to bear his testimony. It was a simple testimony of how he had been converted and how he had gained a testimony of the Book of Mormon. But I look back at Rose and she is in tears! she simply said, "the spirit of your testimony just really hit me. It was so tender and true" It was amazing! sometimes its the simplest things we say and do that make the biggest impact. So that's most of the big things... There were a few tender mercies as well. Our bikes are working and have not had another flat (yet). We have been able to contact more people. We are often just in the right place at the right time and I have really seen the hand of the Lord in my life. Its amazing. Anyway! I Love you all! Thank you all so much for your support. It means the world. Thank you! Sincerely Elder Lindh!

Week 5, August 29, 2016

Howdy Y'all! (That's right I still haven't lost my ability to speak Texan ;)

SO! its been a bit of a hectic yet AMAZING week. The best part is we now have TWO people on date for baptism!! okay so the truth is they basically already were planning on getting baptized.... we just got to be the ones who asked...... BUT THAT COUNTS!! ANYWHO! The other exciting news is we have a new family of investigators. The ROYABALS! They are so AMAZING AND I LOVE THEM!! The father is already a member although he has been inactive for a while. But the mother and two daughters are not yet members. We have only met with them twice but already I love them and can see how amazing they are gonna be. The second time we met with them was an accident of sorts. We were visiting a former investigator and they were in the same apartment complex. We saw the daughters out on the balcony so we went to say hi. And the mother, Rose, had so many amazing and insightful questions! It made me have to stop and think. But in a good way of course! So we are excited to teach them again on Thursday. We gave them a challenge to read the Book of Mormon and rose in turn challenged us to find some of the answers we gave in the bible. It was awesome! I love the work so much! its AmAZING!! 

The bike on the other hand..... is less so. SO in the past two days I have had three flat tires. The first time I sealed the tube and just refilled it. The second time I just replaced the tube. the third time..... well its now a walking area. So.... yeah. But I bought a new tube so that should be fun. Plus I will be borrowing a different bike from other elders so hopefully that pans out and doesn't have as many flats. Anyway. This week was mostly spent tracking down former or potential investigators. The last elders didn't leave so great a record..... so its been lots of fun and a lot of work. But that's all good! 

Btw for those of you who know who elder Gekeler is (I.E. my parents and aunts) So the area that I am in, Melody lane, was elder Gekeler's last area. SO I took over it from him. That and the day of p-day I was with my trainer and he got a call from none other than Elder Gekeler. So I spoke to him on the phone. He is at 19 months so I doubt we will serve together but really its a huge case of small world syndrome. 

So that's about all that I have for this week. It was amazing and so much happened but I just don't have the time or the ability to tell you guys all about it. There was just too many amazing things where I could very clearly see the hand of the Lord. 

So in closing I have to tell you all a few things. 1. The Lord loves you and is aware of every need you have. 2. I love you. 3. You have others around you that care and are waiting to help. Reach out to those you love. They love you and want to help. Let them help. 4. learn to forgive quickly. Its very hard I know but when you let things go ultimately it makes YOU happier. I promise. Be wise but be forgiving. Don't let others use you but also do't be bitter. Its a hard line to walk. But it will make you happy. 

I will close with this statement. I LOVE YOU ALL!!!! No matter what. I love all of you.

Sincerely,

Elder Lindh

Week 4, August 22, 2016

First PDay in the field

Howdy Yall!

So today is preparation day. Sorry it took a while. My last pday in the mtc was Wednesday and then we left for the field on Monday. We got here Monday and met our companions on Tuesday. So I have not had an opportunity to write. So yeah. As a brief update; Mission Work is Hard! Like really hard. Like the absolute hardest thing I have ever done in my entire life. But GUESS WHAT?!? Its also the SINGLE GREATEST THING I HAVE EVER DONE!!!! Already I feel like I am doing more good than I have ever done in my life. Its been so interesting to see how the Lord works. But I will get into that later. I am sure you guys want to hear about how my week has been and what its like.

So to start out I have an amazing trainer named Elder Tufu. He is from American Samoa and totally awesome. I really like him. He is super awesome yet kinda quite. He has been out 13 months and I am his third trainee. I am in a biking area (one of the very few, I think there is like 3 or something) and well what started out as a biking mission has quickly become a walking mission. First I was riding a bike that a past elder left behind, we were going up a hill and I broke the bike. So we were an hour late to our next appointment and I had to find a new bike. I think that was on Wednesday. Well Thursday I got a new bike from a member in the ward who doesn't use the bike anymore. So that was good, except it had a flat front tire. So we filled that up and turns out the tire was warped. So I rode on it as much as I could for about 30 minutes before it died and so we had to go back to the apartment. We switched the tire out so that was all good. Well the next day the bike worked fine so all was well in the world. Then Friday night I got picked up for exchanges with the zone leaders. I come back Saturday night to a flat back tire. So nothing I could do. So we walked everywhere yesterday. It was pretty exhausting but fun and gave us plenty of opportunities for OYM ( open your mouth) which was cool. I bought a new tire today so keep your fingers crossed that all goes well. I hope this time that it will be all good until I transfer out to a car area. That or I might just have to bite the bullet and buy a new bike if anything else breaks. 

So besides it being a biking area (which has been fun so I don't mind) I am also White washing the area. For those of you who don't know the lingo, whitewashing is when Two new elders (Or sisters) come in and they both are new to the area. Meaning we both don't know the people and we are both unfamiliar with the roads. We are in the Melody lane area of Grand Junction. So luckily if you know the area you know that it is laid out on a grid. To a degree of course. The roads that go north south are numbered and each number that goes up is another mile from the Utah border I believe. I might be wrong. But the west east roads are all according to the alphabet. Each letter is another mile. I can't remember what they start from. So yeah. Its been lots of fun. Apparently I am a lot better navigator than I thought. My companion relies heavily on me to navigate. Its been great. 

So just in case it wasn't clear I am in Grand junction for right now. I got to drive quite a while to get to my area. It was a long drive through some beautiful country. I love the mountains. I have missed seeing mountains while I have been in Houston! So this is very nice. 

Btw for any of you in Reno and for my parents sake, I saw Jay Worlton. He is serving in the metro Area. One of my district members is his new companion. Elder Cross. I am sure he has already told everyone but wanted you all to know.

So as a close up I want you all to know how much I love you all. You are all so amazing. I miss you all terribly much. Its been so hard because I love you all and miss you guys so much. But its been so worth it. I know this is where I am meant to be. Its a little scary to think of how much I miss you guys and how long this is going to be, but as I serve and show others how much love they can have for one another, how they can have the same amazing blessing that I do, its been worth it. I don't want any of you to think for an instant that I regret coming. I regret nothing. I have loved every second of this mission. Because this is where I am meant to be. Don't worry about me. I am doing more than fine. I add my testimony that this is the true church of God. That he speaks to the prophet and that we are led by that prophet Thomas S Monsen. He is called of God. I have been called of God through a prophet of the Lord. I love the Lord. I love the Savior. He saved my Life. I love him. For any of you members I definitely feel like the sons of Mosiah. The Lord has blessed and protected me. I know it. I am so thankful for it. I love this work. I love you all. Remember that. If you ever feel like you aren't loved. Remember that I love you. God loves you. and so does the Savior. They know your challenges even if I don't. Remember that. I love you all so much!!!!

Sincerely

Elder Lindh 

Nathan's address

As of today, Nathan's address is

Elder Nathan Lindh
558 1/2 Garfield Dr. Apt 2
Grand Junction, CO 81504-4935

Week 3, August 15, 2016

August 15, 2016 Elder Lindh flew to Denver early in the morning and arrived safely along with 21 other new missionaries. He was greeted at the airport by President and Sister Gifford. They then had a luncheon, posed for pictures and met their companions. A few days after arriving in Grand Junction, CO we received an email from a family who had hosted Elder Lindh for dinner. He's alive and well.

Fresh from the MTC

Luncheon and pictures

With Elder Tufu at the home of a member.

Week 2, August 10, 2016

Last P Day in the MTC!

Hey!
So today is p day and I am just starting laundry so will be here for a
while. As an update I am doing awesome and have my travel plans! I
leave the fifteenth. So anyone sending mail might want to hold off
until I am in the field or send it through dear elder.com. But I am
loving all the emails and letters of support I have gotten.
I have been very busy with classes and studying but I have tried to
think of ways to respond so I can email today.
I just want to share my love for all of you. I am having an amazing
time and learning so much. One of the things they really stress here
is divine nature. That means that you are Heavenly Fathers child and
that means you have infinite value no matter what you do or who you
are. I want to share that and add my testimony that I know it is true.
I KNOW for myself that we are all children of God and that he loves us
very much.
 
And I would also add my testimony that this church is true. That isn't
something I have been brainwashed into saying. I know for myself
because I have studied the Book of Mormon and asked God my eternal
Father whether or not it is true. And I received my answer. This is
the truth. I know it. I live it. I love it. And as I am here and go
about my life here at the MTC my testimony and faith in that truth has
grown. I love you all. I BEG of you to read and study these things for
yourself. Then pray to know they are true. Don't take my word for it.
Find out for yourself and trust in God. I love you all. Thank you all
for all the support I have recieved.
 
Love,
Elder Lindh

BTW!! I almost forgot!!! guess who just visited last night!?! Elder 
anderson of the quarumn of the twelve!!!!! It was amazing!!! and it was 
his birthday so we got to sing happy birthday to him here at the mtc. we
 also got to be in a worldwide broadcast to all the mtcs in the world. 
It was AMAZING!!!!! 

Week 1, August 3, 2016

Howdy Yall!!!!!

So in case its not clear today is pday. That means I can email and share pictures for a bit. i am just sending this so people can know pday is today. i am in the process of uploading pictures so i will send those shortly. For those I just added this is Elder Lindh. 

I love my district and my companion and will send those pictures and details in a second.

Sincerely,

Elder Lindh

 

There you go. There are the pictures I took while we did our temple walk. My companion is elder Clark. In case you cant pick him out he is the one with the nametag. ;) I love him already and we are getting along really well. He is from Saratoga Springs Utah so he just drove 20 minutes and got dropped off. But I am already learning so much and am just so overwhelmed by the spirit that is in the MTC. I am so excited to see some new faces as i anticipate the arrival of Elder Moses. Don't worry too much. I will take good care of him. I am hoping he is in my residence hall because he will be serving in Colorado as well. I have had some amazing experiences here in the MTC. If any of you have the time PLEASE WATCH "the Character of Christ" by elder Bednar. It is AMAZING!!!!!! It totally changed how I saw my service. I am learning so much including how to study and how to love. I thought it would be much harder with a companion but honestly its just like having 6 siblings. Youre never alone but you know its because they love you. 

I am having such an amazing time in the MTC and cannot WAIT to go out into the field. And to all those who sent emails I would just like to say thank you and that they are very appreciated. 

I am not sure what else to say.... its just so overwhelming. There is so much i have done and plan to do and so much to learn and study that I haven't had a moment to sit down and think about all that's happened. If you have any specific questions please email me separately. I want you all to know that I love each and every one of you. Please share that with everyone I knew. I have just been filled with the love of Christ and know that you are all amazing sons and daughters of God. 

I love you all

Sincerely

Elder Lindh

 

 

 

 

Heading out July 27th, 2016

I left for my mission at 7:40am from Houston International. I arrived in Salt Lake City at 10am and took a shuttle down to the Provo MTC where I checked in to begin my mission.