ON THIS EPISODE OF STORM CHASERS !!!!

YOU GOT A FRIEND IN ME!! YOU GOT A FRIEND IN ME!!!

Hey everyone! So glad I get to talk to you again! This week was pretty good, nothing too crazy was going on but let us jump right into it!!

On Monday this past week we went to London to play sports. When we got there the missionaries had locked themselves out of the Family History Center where their stuff was and the computers so they could email back home. They were trying to get back in but their efforts where failing and they were about to lose hope, until I offered to give it a shot. If there was one thing I learned from going to church back at home, it was that you could open almost every door there with a metal hanger. So wouldn't you know that the same principle applied for this door too!! I just slipped that hanger in there and popped that door right open!! Now everyone that was there thinks that I am some kinda thug or something. Oh well they can think whatever they want I guess. 

On the way back from sports we were driving in the middle of a freaking hurricane!!! Crazy storm was just passing through and was absolutely wrecking us. I took a video of it so you can see the full effect of this storm because there is no way that I could explain it in words...I know surprising isn't it.

On Tuesday we volunteered at the Salvation Army some more and while we were there I decided to climb to the top of this mountain of clothes that they had and started sorting things out. Everyone there thought that I was crazy climbing to the top of that pile just to sort clothes, but they were extremely thankful also.

On Thursday it was Bill's birthday, the guy I play darts with, and we decided to get him a little gift and go over and celebrate with him. He doesn't like having his picture taken like at all! Sooo…. our gift was a framed collage of all of the secret pictures that we have taken with him. Needless to say he was laughing pretty hard when we gave it to him.

Friday we were in Kitchener all day for a Zone Conference. My companion and I actually had to get up and give an instruction about our purpose as missionaries and why it is important. It went pretty well and everybody said that they really enjoyed it. The conference was super good. We got to hear from the Mission President and his counselors as well as the rest of the mission staff. I am glad that I am able to go and experience meetings like these as well getting to see a whole bunch of other missionaries and get to chat with them a bit.

Sunday was an absolute crazy day!! We were constantly moving from appointment to appointment with no time in between! We ended up teaching 5 lessons that day with one new person who is looking into the church!! It was super awesome but also super exhausting at the same time!

Well that is about all I got for this week, hope the rest of your week is great and that you continue to have a great summer!!

--

Elder Murray

SIGN ME UP FOR THE US OPEN!!!!!!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY EVERYONE!!!!

Big thanks to all of the fathers and role models out there for truly affecting our lives. BIG SHOUT OUT to my Dad for all of the things that he has done for me. I truly appreciate it and he will forever be my hero. I love you Dad!

So pretty much the theme for this week is lots and lots of service!! We were all over the place doing service this past week ranging from unclogging floor drains to taking satellite dishes down. But we will get into that a little bit later because we need to start from the beginning!!!

On Monday this past week a member actually hooked us up with a free golf game out by the lake!!! It was super fun, however if there is one sport that is my kryptonite it is without a doubt golf. For whatever reason I cannot get the swing down for that!!! I just end up looking like I just played a game of fruit ninja on the ground or I end up having to yell "Heads Up!" so I don't kill anybody! I need at least an hour of driving range time before I can even be half decent at hitting the ball. But oh well what can you do, can't be good at everything I guess.

Speaking of golf balls we got a call last week for a member whose basement was flooding because the washing machine was leaking and the floor drain was over flowing with water. So we went over and were trying to figure out what the problem was. We took a plunger to it and wouldn't you know but a golf ball came to the surface! So we got the golf ball out but the floor drain still wasn't draining. We decided that stronger tactics needed to take place. We ended up going to Home Hardware and buying the strongest chemical that they had for unclogging drains. This bottle came in a plastic bag with about a mile long warning label on it. Basically the label talked about how everything needed to be in the right condition or an explosion would take place. A big challenge lay ahead, but my companion and I were confident in our abilities to take care of the situation. After some safety measures were taken and a little bit of praying we were able to fix the floor drain without creating an atomic bomb in some lady's basement. She was super grateful for our help and we were super grateful that we didn't injure ourselves in the process.

Speaking of dangerous situations, we were over at a members place eating some delicious salmon and potatoes. After we had finished the member asked if we could do a favor for them. As always we said of course wanting to help out in any way that we can. They proceeded to tell us that they had got a satellite dish a couple of months ago but could no longer afford the services and didn't want the ugly thing on their roof anymore and asked us to take it down for them. A weird request but nevertheless we were willing and able to do it. So we get up onto the roof and of course they had no ladder so we had to finagle our way to get on top of it. We get to the dish which is at the very edge of the pitched roof making things even a little more sketchy. The satellite dish is bolted in the roof but the member didn't have a socket set or wrenches, all they had was a pair of pliers. So I am up on this roof at the very edge trying to unbolt a satellite dish with a pair of pliers. Not the most ideal of circumstances but I like a challenge. Eventually I was able to get the satellite dish off without falling and injuring myself. I am just learning to do all sorts of things while being out here!!

Other than that it was just regular service. Went to the Salvation Army on Tuesday and Saturday and volunteered there for a couple of hours and then went around and did the regular yard work routine.

I hope you all have a good rest of your week and that you were able to spend time together with some family. I am truly grateful for my family and the constant support that they show me while I am out here. I can't wait to be with them again!!!

Love and miss you

-- 

Elder Murray

I WANNA BE THE VERY BEST!!!! LIKE NO ONE EVER WAS!!!!

Hey everyone! So glad I get to talk to you again and read about all of your awesome experiences from this past week. This week for me has been pretty good overall so let us just get right down to it!!

Last week on Monday the Zone got together and went to Buffalo Wild Wings to celebrate the last day of the mission for Elder Layton. He was a super awesome guy and was an amazing missionary. However, while we were at Bdubs we all decided that we were going to try the hottest wing that they had on the menu. Let me just tell ya, bad decisions were made that day. So we all get our wings and we are doing the countdown of when we are all going to bite into this piece of molten lava. We all take a bite and everyone instantly regretted the decision they made. Sweat starts pouring down people's faces and tears are just popping right out of the ducts. I made the mistake of getting the sauce all over my mouth, so for the next half hour my lips felt like they just took the brunt end of a flamethrower being blasted in my face continually!! Luckily the waitresses supplied us with enough water so I could cool the fire and brimstone that was my face. But I have survived and I now know what the hottest wings Bdubs has to offer are like. I will probably never do it again but at least I got to experience the pain.

This week my companion and I have started volunteering at the Salvation Army. We go there twice a week on Tuesdays and Saturdays and serve for a couple of hours. Surprisingly it is actually super fun! The people who work there are so nice and friendly and they love having us there to help out. Justina is one of the people that works there and she is so adorable. She is this small, old, Mexican lady that just loves having us around so she can have help with the things that she has to do. Also, I can't believe the kind of things people donate to the SA!! It can range from just straight garbage to fine china plates. There was somebody that donated a full functioning tablet, like in the box and everything. Just blows my mind sometimes but some people just need to get rid of things and I guess it is better than just throwing it out.

We have also been doing a lot of service for people this week and that has been super good.  I am still mowing lawns like a mad man!! Seems like everywhere we go there is always somebody that is looking for a little lawn care to be done. I guess it is good that I am not losing my skills as a lawn maintenance expert while I am out here. But we also have been doing just random things for people. One that I remember the most is that we went over to someone's house because we had an appointment with them and as we walked in the door they asked us if we could install an overhead microwave for them. Well my companion and I are always up for a little change and some adventure so we spent the next couple of hours mounting brackets, drilling holes and placing a microwave. It was super fun and the people really appreciated it and took us out for dinner at the local fair that is going on!! The food was great and I am very grateful for their willingness to take us out.

Well I think that is all I got for this week. I love and miss you all so much and can't wait to talk to you next week.

BYYYYYYEEEEE!!!!!!!

Elder Murray

coleton.murray@myldsmail.net

THE KING HAS TAKEN HIS THRONE!!!!!

Hey everyone great to get to speak to you again. Hope you all had a great week and that you are starting to enjoy the warmer weather! Anyways let us get down to it!!!

First of all let me just say that today is a good day. Let me tell you why it is a good day. THE DART KING HAS CLAIMED HIS RIGHTFUL PLACE IN THE DART HALL OF FAME!!! That is right, I finally won a game of darts so now I can claim my rightful place and start making my way to the pros!!! I was so happy to win because now I know that all of that practice actually paid off. So just goes to show ya practice makes perfect. ☺

Last Monday we went to 168 Sushi with the zone and just had a super good time hanging out with one another and grubbing it up on some good food. This week we are going to go to Buffalo Wild Wings and hang out there and get some wings just to have a good time since it is the last day of the transfer and there are some people moving around. Speaking of being the end of the transfer guess I should tell you what my transfer news is… well actually there is no news!! I am staying in St. Thomas for one more and I have the same companion so that will be super sick as well!! I am excited to be here and to continue to work with the members a little more and hopefully bring people to the gospel.

Yesterday we had a member missionary work fireside that my companion and I ran by ourselves. It went super well actually!! We had a member of the mission presidency come in and talk to the members a little bit about what they can do to be better missionaries themselves!! Then my companion and I did some role plays with the members and helped them practice how to invite people to church so they could be a little more comfortable when they do it for real. Overall it was a really good experience and all the members said that they really enjoyed it and learned a lot from it. It warms my heart to hear that I am actually making a difference in the lives of the people that I meet.

Other than that the rest of the week was pretty normal, nothing too crazy or out of the ordinary. We met with a couple of people but most of the week was trying to organize the fireside and make sure that everything was running smoothly.

Hope you all have a good rest of the week. Love and miss you all!!!!

--

Elder Murray

coleton.murray@myldsmail.net