Mother's Day

Daniel gets to "call" home twice a year. (We have always been lucky enough to get to Skype with him.) Once at Christmas and once on Mother's Day. Sunday was his last time to call home before he comes home for good in October. It was SO good to hear from and see him. He is doing great and loving every minute of his mission. We are all a little anxious to get him back home, but we couldn't be more proud of him and the work he is doing. We love you Elder Peterson! See you in 5 months!

New Address

Daniel got transfered again! Here's his new address:
575 W. Pecos #2006
Chandler AZ 85225

Get Ready. Get Set. And Go!

Hey bud -
Can you read the email below and respond for the young men (& women) in our stake. I just need you to send me any advice for those who are preparing/considering a mission and a few comments about what they can expect once they're in the field.
Love and miss you son!
~Pa

I dont know if I ever went to anything like that?! But I think this will be an awesome thing and I’m happy to help!

How to prepare... hmmmm… I think there are a lot of things you can do to prepare.  Helaman 5:12, a very familiar scripture, talks about building upon the foundation of Christ.  In 3^rd Nephi 18:12, Christ talks about how as we come to church, partake of the sacrament and renew our covenants we are building upon that "rock" or foundation and he makes some great promises!  He tells us that if we don’t do those things "the gates of hell are ready, open to receive them."  Well, conversely, this also means that if we are continually coming to church and living worthy to partake of the sacrament that those gates will be closed.  Point #1: GO TO CHURCH!!

Second word of advice comes from 2nd Nephi 33:10, one of my absolute favorite verses in the scriptures.  Nephi testifies of Christ and the divinity of his calling as The Lord's mouthpiece.  He admonishes all of us to listen to his words because they have been given to him by Christ.  It is surprising how often we’re asked to listen.  As we listen to living prophets and the prophets of old we will gain a divine understanding of His work that will benefit all of us.  Point #2: READ THE SCRIPTURES!! STUDY DAILY!! (Yes this also includes PMG).

The third and final word of advice on what to do to prepare for a mission comes from Alma 26, one of my favorite CHAPTERS in the Book of Mormon. Ammon is talking to the people about the great effect their work is having and will have on the people. He talks about how as they went out they had hoped "to be the means of saving some soul." But as they went out their work affected many! "Now behold, we can look forth and see the fruit of our labors and are they few? I say unto you, nay, they are many." This happened because they shared a message that was important to them. They bore sincere testimony of the things they knew to be true.  Point #3: BARE YOUR TESTIMONY!!  GO HOME TEACHING AND TEACH!! GO OUT WITH THE MISSIONARIES!! Father's, have your sons share the message during your home teaching visits (I’m so glad you made me do that!).  Sons, have faith that you will strengthen the testimony of your wonderful families you have stewardship over!  Experience is the best teacher.  I wish I would have learned that sooner. The testimony inside of you has been given to you by The Holy Ghost, a member of the Godhead!!  What a precious gift!  It truly is an amazing thing.  The adversary will try to tell you differently.  Don't let him! 

As for what to expect when you're in the field, expect hard work!  Expect to be out of your house most of the day.  Expect to be tired.  Expect The Spirit to work so strongly in your life you will be exhausted in every sense.  You will have spiritual promptings you didnt know you could have.  Listen to them!  President Monson is a wonderful example of this.  Your nature will change if you align your will with God's.  You will become an instrument in His hands. You will see lives change because of this wonderful message.  Expect your testimony to grow.  Expect your horizon to be expanded as to what you are capable of.  Expect your companions to teach you what is right and what is wrong – you don’t know everything!  Expect their teachings to come by counsel and by example, both the good and the bad.  Stay firm in your testimony and reasoning for being on a mission.  "Remember who you are."  (That phrase has stuck with me my entire life. I remember you telling me that as I would walk out the door to go play football with Clayton and Robert in our front yard and not knowing what you meant.  You said it when you dropped us off for seminary and every time I left the house.  But, every time you said it I felt the Spirit of Truth remind me of what was right).  Expect your mission to become hard enough, at times, you feel like turning back.  Every missionary, as REPRESENTATIVES OF CHRIST, will be expected to walk through their own Gethsemane.  They will have to carry their own cross to Golgotha. But as we do that remember that there was One who walked before us.  Remember what He has done for me and for you because it WILL change your life.  It has to!  Just as Joseph Smith says in the 127th section of the Doctrine and Covenants "Deep water is what [we] all want to swim in."  As we sign the bottom of those mission papers we are declaring to Christ and our Father in Heaven that we want to do a hard thing.  It is something I have come to know and come to love. This work is literally the greatest work we will ever do. Paul glorified in his tribulations, as we should glorify our God when the going gets tough. 

Go forth and Serve!

Your son, 

Elder Daniel Peterson

E-mail Address

I didn't get to e-mail with Daniel this week, but he did make a very interesting announcement in his initial e-mail to let everyone know he was on...

Hey Everyone! I'm on! And an announcement has been made that we can now e-mail anyone outside of the mission boundaries! Regardless of whether they are family or not!

So, if you've been wishing and praying to be able to e-mail Daniel, but haven't been able to because you're not technically his family- Wish Granted!! He can still only e-mail on Monday's and he doesn't have a whole lot of time on the computer, but I'm sure he would LOVE to hear from you!

If you would like his e-mail address leave a comment here with your e-mail address and I'll send you his!

White as Snow

Here's another awesome conversation between Dad and Daniel...

Dad: Okay… so I’m going to respond to your “why white” email here instead of from my gmail because it’s too slow…

The field is “white” as in “pure” because they’re prepared!  The Lord is saying, “Hey, I’ve prepared these people, now thrust in your sickle and get to it!”… LOL.  I’ve never really thought about it until this last Sunday when I was in gospel doctrine… I totally branched off on this deep dive and forgot all about class, but it was awesome.  In HPG later I asked Dave and he just looked at me like I was an idiot… “duh, Al… you know that!”.  LOL… ummm… actually, no I didn’t but I do now!

You mentioned the Olive Vineyard… wow, we’re firing on all cylinders together!  Just last night I studied this.  It was awesome.  Did you know how symbolic the whole olive vineyard is in the garden of Gethsemane?  The way olive oil is made, they crush olives under this huge wheel… that makes a ‘mash’.  Then the take all the mash, put it in wicker baskets and place it under a ‘press’.  The press squeezes out the water and the oil from the olives.  When the first drops of liquid come out of the press they’re actually red – like blood – and it stains whatever it touches (this isn’t folklore, it’s fact… and I confirmed it with a talk from a GA).  Think about all the connections there… the garden, the ‘press’ or weight of the world, the drops of red – blood, the stains – our sins… I never knew this!  As I study more and learn about this infinite atonement my eyes are opening to the depth of pain and suffering the Lord endured – because of us.  And He did it out of love, honor, and respect… and we all benefit from it every single time we’re willing to avail ourselves of those blessings.  Amazing.

Daniel: Haha that's awesome!! I'm glad you're getting a lot out of your studies and ponderings! The Atonement, The Savior, His teachings, they are all amazing. I love it! It's crazy how much you learn on your mission, or rather, when you study!! Hahaha, I was such a loser and never did that before my mission but now, I would almost rather do that sometimes. The way The Savior taught and the stories, symbols and parable he used definitely go a lot further than most people realize. Like the Olive Vineyard! I never knew any of that about how they make olive oil and all that jazz. It's crazy. I did a lot of that type of studying, well... not a lot but some, while reading from Jesus The Christ. I LOVE that book. I use a lot of that information when I'm talking to people in OYM's and especially in Zone Trainings. When I need to make an impact, teach as The Savior taught. When I need to bare testimony, testify as The Son testified. When I need people to realize the importance of our message, be bold as The Great and Last Sacrifice was as He bore testimony of the Father and invited all to come unto Him, as He gave up his life by bolding telling Pontius Pilate, "I am The Christ." When I need to show compassion, I look to The Light and Life of the World to see how He told His disciples to sleep another hour as He suffered for their sins. I love The Savior so very much. I KNOW that He lives. That when we face times of trial or peril, tumult or strife, we stand beside the greatest life to have ever walked this earth. Christ is there, shoulder to shoulder, with us in every aspect of our lives, if we allow Him to be. He knocks, ever so patiently, at each of our doors waiting for us to beckon Him in. I love Him to an extent I didnt realize was possible.

Another Amazing Week

Sooo... We had another pretty amazing week! It was great! 

On Monday we went and played sand volleyball with one of our districts and killed our feet. It was definitely worth it though, SO much fun!! Then we went to a FHE (Family Home Evening) activity where we brought a couple girls that we talked to on the street and they really enjoyed the activity and had a lot of fun. But, than we taught them a lesson and they weren't really into it. Too bad... But, on Tuesday, we talked with our zone about the previous week and how it wasn't as good as the week prior. Still good! but not as good. So we kinda leaned into em a bit and them finished with an outpouring of love. It's amazing how following the counsel of a prophet works out. This last week was better than the first one I ranted and raved about!! It was awesome!! Our zone taught 151 lessons, talked to 1399 people out on the streets, and KICKED BUTT everywhere else!! Than on Wednesday we had interviews with President Howes which went really well. We had to give a training on Planning, which everyone seemed to have a lot of fun with and took some good things from. Thursday I got to do an interview for a man who cant speak, so he only knows ASL, and he's crippled. It was a crazy experience. Friday and Saturday were pretty normal days. Yesterday, Sunday, we went to church and a few other meetings we had with Stake Presidents. We did our transfer recommendations and taught a lesson to a new investigator, Derrek. He's got a little bit of a mental disability but, he can still learn. Than we went to a Mission President's Devotional with an investigator named Dani. It was awesome. At these MPDs there are always 2 Recent Converts that get up and share their conversion story with everyone. After that there is a musical number that is given and then a member of the Mission Presidency gives a talk. Well this time Pres. Howes gave the talk. It was really good. He talked a lot about the Atonement of Christ and how it effects our lives. He also talked about love. It was great, it was a good spiritual experience. And then while we were there, after it was all over President always offers anyone that wants to to come and talk with him for a little bit and just get to know him. After that happened with Dani, we stayed and talked a little bit with the Assistants, which is Elder Carroll and Lanier. It was really good to talk to them, specifically Elder Carroll. He goes home next week and has been a HUGE impact in my mission and my life. I love that kid. He's done a lot for me and I'm definitely gonna miss him, but that's part of the mission and part of life, right? People come, people go. 

Yeah, that was the week! Everything is going great!! I love it. It's starting to get a little hotter but that's alright. I still get another 7 months of doing The Lord's work as a set apart full-time missionary. What an opportunity!! I love you all and miss you much!

~Elder Daniel Peterson
3939 w. Windmill Blvd. #1063

Chandler AZ. 85226 

He loves his job!

This is an e-mail chain sent between my Dad and Daniel earlier today. I don't think there is a better message you can get from you missionary son/brother. He certainly LOVES His work!

Dad:Got one for you… who said this… “We can never hold within ourselves the great blessings of light and truth which have come to us from the Almighty. Ours is an obligation, a serious responsibility to carry to the world not only the secular truth we acquire . . . but also the great good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Ours is truly a message of hope and reconciliation. It is a word of hope for all mankind, a beacon of eternal truth to which men may look as they lift their eyes and souls to their Creator and in the process come to recognize their common brotherhood.”

Daniel: So... I'll be honest, I looked it up. BUT!! Only after I had taken my guess! I guessed right!! I actually read over it a couple of times with a few different people's voices in my head and G.B. Hinckley just fit! Especially with some of the words and phrasing he used. But, I do love that quote. It's a great one for sure! 

After a few more e-mail exchanges it's back to Daniel. Now here's the good stuff:

Things going? Great!! Never a better day!!

Spirits High? Always!! Haha, our zone is doing awesome. Last week we lead the mission in just about every aspect of the work. This week, we did pretty close to the same. It wasnt as good but it was still pretty fantastic. 

Companion great? For sure!! Elder O'Toole and I have served together in the past, I love the kid!! Works hard, has fun, keeps the optimism in the zone high. He's got a lot going for him.

Work Progressing well? For the most part yes. We had a lot of lessons fall through this past week but, that happens every now and then.  We found a few more people to teach but havent been able to get in with them yet. Hopefully this week will be much better. 

Anything I need?? I dont think so. I got an iPod from a missionary that just went home. It's only 4GB but, I only have 136 songs or so on there. There are actually 212 but there are a lot of duplicates. But that's all temporal, doesnt really matter. Everything is going great though. I love being out here. It's crazy. I was thinking, the other day, about some of the things I used to do back home and some of the missionary experiences I had or how I reacted when The Gospel was brought up and realized I've wanted to do this for a lot longer than I realized. I didnt ever think about it but when I was in Deacons, Teachers and Priests quorum I was always doing something. I know I didnt always do it the best but, something was going on as far as inviting people to mutual or trying to get some LA *(less active)* kids back to church. Whatever. I didnt know it. But I freakin love this Church. I love The Gospel and everything it does, not only for me but, for everyone. It's amazing!! I love the opportunity I have to go and testify to people on the streets or in their homes or in sacrament meeting during a talk or testimony meeting. We are all SO blessed to be a part of such a wonderful and perfect organization. Christ's church IS The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. There's no question. The spirit that is felt while at church, reading from the scriptures, in particular the Book of Mormon, and the comfort and joy that comes from kneeling down in humble prayer to speak with our Heavenly Father is incredible. If only people would listen to The "Great Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ"... everyone would know what happiness they can truly experience. It may not always be easy but we will always know that we have a Loving Father in Heaven. I love it!!