Wahoo Last Week

First question, how is my beautiful mother doing!?!? The breakfast you made for dad looks very very yummy! You and dad have never not made a good birthday breakfast since I have been alive I think so that’s freakin awesome! 

I don’t know what you were talking about when yu refered to your Jonah story, so maybe you can tell me the story again! I got to teach priesthood this week about the priesthood which was great! Super awesome opportunity! I just love teaching whenever I can and it’s great. My comp doesn’t like to plan much for anything so we usually just have a kinda outline for everything and the rest is winging it! But I really have had a good week with my comp. we have gotten along a lot better this week. I just chose to not roast him this week and just be kind. It is super hard when he wants to roast me a lot , but I have gotten used to it. One of the things that makes the days so much better is our awesome teachers! They are super cool! Very very grateful for them and the help they give me because sometimes I need major help!

How is work going? How is it being just you and dad at the house? Does it feel a little empty? Or are you guys keeping busy. I heard you guys are going to Florida for Christmas! Too bad you can put wait for Jess to get back before you go. Glad you have a fun trip planned! 

So for calling you guys on Monday. Are you planning on sending me a phone that I can call on? Or should I just buy a phone card? Also, I either need cash or money on my card so I can pay for at least 100 dollars of baggage fees. They reimburse me when I get to Korea. I will send you my travel times so you know when I can call. Let me know what the best time to call you will be. I’m super excited to talk to you guys!

Last week of the MTC is gonna be awesome! I’m super pumped to work hard and do awesome things! Love you mom! I will let you know if some things I need if I can think of anything.

Love you mom

Elder Meeks

This week I got to actually see some missionary work in action. My companion and I actually got to teach someone who was a non member(at least that’s what they told us and that’s how the person acted). Our korean really isn’t to the level that we can teach a very interactive lesson because when we ask them to share, we have no idea what they say. We really have to rely on our very limited vocabulary and the spirit to understand what she was saying. Our second lesson she asked my comp and I if we could explain why Adam and Eve ate the fruit. We were definitely stumped! I guess that is how missionary work goes sometimes! We definitely went back and studied it.

We got the new missionaries this week! They are all super cool and really nice! This is the group that is mainly going to busan! I guess you can say that we set an example to them because we are the oldest group. When we first came in, we were all blown away about how the older missionaries could speak so well and even bear their testimony about keeping the sabbath day holy. Now I can do that pretty well and so I/we gotta set a good example for them. Of course the best examples we have of missionary work is the missionaries in the scriptures! They are such powerful and astonishing  missionaries! And we strive to be like them.

We had a cool experience doing Skype TRC. We taught this amazing korean lady who lived in DC. Our topic was keeping the sabbath day holy. We just taught the basics of what the Lord expects on his holy day. After she told us(in English) that she had prayed last week about what she could or could not do on Sunday. She was confused because she was raised in a family where keeping the sabbath day holy was not practiced. Our lesson was a direct awnser to her prayer. I am grateful for the change that we can make in peoples lives even in the MTC.

The MTC choir is probably going to sing in general conference which is pretty cool. I won’t make it because I will be in Korea, but I will still practice because music really brings the spirit!

It was Sister Urbano’s birthday this week! We through a class party for her and it was really fun! She is such a light to our class and is basically my older sister.

Shout out to my super good friend Joshua Sperry who just got called to serve in the Korea, Busan mission! Same as me! It will be so cool to have AHS represented in Busan by one of the most amazing people I have ever met, Joshua Sperry!

These two verses(VS!)  really stuck out to me this week! I just think about how many times in my life that my mind has not been sound. It has it been where it needed to be. It was troubled with thoughts about friends, school, family, work, or even my belief in God. We are blessed to be in a time where the Supreme Being on High cares about us as much as he has done in the past. He never has stopped caring for us. He wants to give is gifts. On of the gifts is mention in 2 Timothy 4:7 is a sound mind. It sometimes seems to be quite difficult to have a sound mind when we live in a world of constant interuptions. But the statement in Philippians 4:13 proves that we can have a sound mind through Christ. He lends you the strength to step away from a busy mind and make peace within yourself. I know that if we really want to have a strong sound mind, Belief in Christ is the only way!

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

13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Check out the awesome blog my mom keeps for me!  elderjacobmeeksinkorea.blogspot.com

Love you all family and friends! 

Elder Meeks

Pictures

1.My companion and I after a session in the temple

2. My Tongan buddy elder Hansen who left today! Gonna miss him.

3. Elder Erickson and Miller(I think) who also are heading off! They made nights fun!

4. Elder king, my Chinese startalk friend, taking off to Cambodia! 

5. My comp fell asleep during choir and everyone mostly left. I was giving him and rockin back scratch too so that’s probs why he fell asleep.

6. Elevator selfie!

7. Sister Urbanos bday!

8. On of my favorite murals of Joseph and his colleagues in prison. The Lord makes amazing promises to Joseph while he is there.

Don't eat the peppers video

Halfway There! (Insert a non missionary approved song here)

Hello Friends and Family!

Elder Meeks checking in for the weekly missionary update! I have officially made it halfway through the mtc. I have 29 days until I head out to korea! SO SO exciting. I have really gained an understanding though about why we are here for so long(9 weeks). Elder Holland says in one of his missionary talks that we are here to gain a better and more strong testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Our path to Heavenly Father is  based on eternal progression.(My Fathers Words) so we will always be gaining a better and stronger testimony. The testimony of a missionary is only as good as the Spirit residing with in the missionaries heart and how converted he is to God's way. I have seen so much change in myself and I am so humbled and grateful to the Lord for the opportunity I have to feed His Sheep.

Anyways, on to my week. Tuesday was an awesome day where my companion got up at 5 to study more...which I did not do because I love sleep to much...so he had a nice snoring session in the study room that evening. We are constantly asking our teachers to take us outside for our lessons, but we had yet to suceed until this week! It was awesome to have the view of the moutains and hear the peaceful sound of missionaries studying the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

We got to sing a arrangement of "I know that my Redeemer Lives" for choir on tuesday! I know I talk about Choir almost every week but I love it soso much. Such a great opportunity to feel the Spirit in a different way. Some of the guys in our district my try out for a musical number so watch for that in the upcoming weeks! 

There was some heated debates during one of our excercise times on Wednesday! I was not participating, but lets just say that my companion decided to switch sports that day. I have a testimony that 4 square is way better than volleyball;)

Funny story. So my companion and I were assigned to the mopping of the residence hall floors. We were quite bored and just mozein around washing the floors. Then we saw some elders in the stalls of the bathroom. So we decided to have a little fun and mop the floor in those occupied stalls. Lets just say that the elders within were quite suprised how their day was started off:)

Fast sundays are a major grind here in the MTC. 6 meetings with no sustanance can be quite hard sometimes. Bt I really do love our opportunity to fast. It is so amazing and such a powerful way to show the Lord your faith. I am more focused and attentive to the lessons and words being spoken on Fast Sundays than I ever am any other time else. This brings me to something elder Holland shared in one of the talk recordings I was able to attend sunday night. He shares his thoughts about Ephesians 6: 10-18.

Pictures:

1. Selfie on Pday after lunch

2. Me showing the world that I am a pass the pigs legend. I came. I saw. I conquered.

3.Ran into elder ng at laundry this morning.

4.The Crew

5.Us focusing on our lesson outside;)

6.My district and the view.

7.We found a random dawg on campus!

8.Elder Hanks:FOOTY KING

10.Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

There is so much here to study and look at. Each piece of armor is for our defense from the "wiles of the devil" except for the "sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God".  This is OUR WEAPON! This is where we as missionaries and we as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints need to take up the word of God and PREACH by words and by deeds! we have been blessed to know, we have been blessed to understand, and we have been blessed with a loving Father in Heaven who will put people into our paths if we are faithful. I can even express how much the word of God means to me. It gives me the ability to fight against the enemy to my soul. The one being who hates what I am doing more than anyone else. Lucifer hates righteousness. I imagine that every time someone does something righteous, the devil steps on a lego. There might be nothing worse than stepping on a lego. Those who have experienced that can attest. So let us wield the sword of the spirit so powerfully that all the legos at walmart will be poured onto the the roads of hell so the great deceiver will not be able to tread one inch without stepping on a lego placed there by a kind deed, a service done, or a uplifting word said!

Love you all and I hope you have a great week!

Elder Meeks

Pictures:

1. Selfie on Pday after lunch

2. Me showing the world that I am a pass the pigs legend. I came. I saw. I conquered.

3.Ran into elder ng at laundry this morning.

4.The Crew

5.Us focusing on our lesson outside;)

6.My district and the view.

7.We found a random dawg on campus!

8.Elder Hanks:FOOTY KING