Victory Day/Mother's Day

Hey everyone! 

To my family - It was so good to see all of your faces yesterday and for us to be together as a a family. I was thinking about it last night and it is just crazy that over the past two years, I have only spent about 4 hours with you over Skype and have not seen Riley in the flesh for almost 4 years - I miss and love you all! 

This week was Victory Day in Russia! Victory Day is probably the second biggest holiday next to New Year's and I think it is the coolest holiday around. Russians take so much pride in their country and especially in their veterans that fought in World War 2. They lost millions of people in the war and they are eager to remember that every year. This was the 72nd anniversary of the victory and we got to go out in street clothes and attend the parade and it was great. I was in Krasnodar for the 71st anniversary as well so it was deja vu to be in the same spot watching the parade a year later! We went with the youth to the parade and then there was a barbeque at the Branch President's beautiful home,  it was a great day- I love Russia! 

Wednesday we met with Anya who I met last year when I was here because she would come to our English Gospel Group Discussions and we mostly got to know her and what she believes and started to teach the Restoration. She believes that Joseph Smith was a saint and that the Church is true, but she also believes many other churches are true so we will be teaching her about that this week. A member named Margo helped on the lesson and she is great, she is always asking, even begging, to help us on lessons. It is great to have a member so willing and eager to help! 

Wednesday night we went over to Eddi's house to help him with English. Eddi is the 16 year old non member son of Varvara - a long time member who served a mission and the son of Andrei - a non member who often comes to church with his wife and is just the best guy. I got to know Andrei last year when we served him by helping him build his house. Andrei got home on Wednesday night and when he saw me,  he gave me a big hug and even remembered my name! That part member family has so much potential and I hope and pray that we will have the opportunity to teach Andrei and Eddi to unite their family!

That night on the bus home, it was just us and the conductor, an older woman. We talked for the whole hour home  she was so friendly and asked about my family and everything. She had no interest in coming to activities or giving us a phone number, but it was a good seed planted and you never know what will come from it!

Thursday we had a great District Meeting about inviting the Spirit into our lessons and just teaching by the Spirit. Someone shared that more often than not, our first thought, if it is a "good" thought, is more than likely from the Spirit. I have started to recognize those first thoughts more and although I am not perfect at acting on them, I am trying to be a first responder to promptings of the Spirit! I was also able to teach about language study plans since we have 3 new volunteers in the district and having goals, plans, and motivation to learn the language is crucial!

That night we got Yegor for Seminary and before Seminary started, we met with him and read the Book of Mormon together and discussed it. We read 1 Nephi 4 which is full of principles, one being spiritual promptings. Yegor shared different times he has felt promptings and the times he failed to act and the times he acted and how much better it feels to act although it is scary/outside of the comfort zone. He is such a great kid and will make a great missionary in a few years!

Friday we met with Anatoli- the man that approached us last week and gave us his number. We taught him the whole Restoration and it went very well, he told us he understood everything and it really seemed like he did. Towards the end, it seemed like he was a little ashamed to pray and would not accept a Book of Mormon, but he took the Restoration pamphlet and committed to read it. He is a good man with 4 kids and we hope that we will be able to continue to teach him and help him come unto Christ! 

Friday night we had Student Council which we are a part of. We mostly talk about the work going on with less active youth and plan upcoming activities. The youth here are incredible! 

Saturday morning we were at the Rinok getting groceries from Rustam! It is quite the challenge to get all the stuff he needs in the busy market but the people out there know us and are pretty helpful. We were able to start the Book of Mormon with Rustam from the beginning and we talked about how the Lord always calls ordinary people and magnifies them- from Moses to Lehi to Joseph Smith to his young missionaries and everyone in between! It is His work! 

Saturday night we taught a less active member named Murad who was active and even served as the Branch Mission Leader earlier this year(go figure). He has since been baptized in the Seventh Day Adventist Church and called us to talk about the Bible, we gladly agreed. He seemed pretty shocked when he realized that we too believe in the Bible and that we did not disagree with the things he wanted to talk about. We read the 8th Article of Faith with him and explained that the Book of Mormon does not replace the Bible but rather supports its teachings while giving us an even deeper understanding - it is truly another witness of Jesus Christ. I asked him how he was baptized in the Adventist Church and he explained what sounded very similar to our baptisms in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I then asked if he received the Holy Ghost and he said no, our bodies are temples and the Spirit already presides in them. He challenged us to find in the Bible where the giving of the Holy Ghost is written. We read in Acts 8 where Peter and John give the Gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands and he had no answer to why he did not receive the same gift in the Church he just joined. We had a great conversation and he wants to meet again. After we met, Elder Feldman and I were talking with the Lunds about how the Church is so true. I am so grateful for the Restored Gospel and for the Church that has the restored priesthood and all the ordinances necessary to return to Heavenly Father. I am also grateful for the Scriptures - the Bible, Book of Mormon, and others for all they teach us! 

Sunday was a special day - Happy Mother's Day to the greatest Mom in the world!! (I mean ever!!)  Great day to Skype with my family!!

We are the youth Sunday School teachers, they are such a solid group of youth, there is not a lot of them, but they are all faithful members of the Church! Yesterday we talked about how we can improve our scripture study and they themselves came to the conclusion to make a group chat over an app to share what they study each day in the scriptures! It was so awesome to see that they have the desire to improve their studies and to help each other out!  Thanks for all the love, support and prayers!!

Love you all!

-Elder Tucker//Старейшина Такер

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Pictures - All from Victory Day/Happy Mother's Day to all our wonderful MOMS!!

Return to Krasnodar

Hello from Krasnodar aka Paradise! 

Well, I am not going to lie, it has been a challenging week no doubt about it. However, I have grown a lot, made a lot of changes in my work, my testimony has been strengthened, and my flame of faith is burning brighter than ever. I am grateful for trials and challenges and how in the end, they really are for our good. It has mostly been tough, because we are white washing our area, meaning we are both new here. It is my first time white washing and is a lot harder than I thought it would be but I think the hardest part is over and sooner than later we will be fully adjusted and working! 

First few days of the week were also hard because they were filled with goodbyes in Rostov. As the days got closer to leave, it just got harder and harder! Monday, the Butenko family made a ton of Borsch and my favorite cake for us and for all the youth that had not returned home yet from the Conference which was way nice of them! Monday night, we were in the Inkeles home and saying bye to them was hard as well, they are like family to me, especially Sister Inkeles who is like a second mother to me. 

Tuesday morning I got be with Elder Norton which was great and we visited Sister Ludmila for the last time, probably the hardest goodbye of all. As we walked out of her apartment, she stood at the top of the staircase crying and it just broke my heart. I love her so much and I am so thankful that the Lord sent me to her to help her as she regained her eyesight and came back to Church. She will always have a special place in my heart and she told me that her door is always open for me. 

Tuesday I attended MLC for the last time, it was just a short one over Skype. We talked a lot about trying new things and balancing our work - we tend to focus on one aspect of the work and the others fall away but we need to find while we teach, teach while we find, while still reactivating, and serving! It is always a blessing to be taught by President Miner! After MLC, we had "Train the Trainers" which I have attended multiple times but it was different this time as I am actually a trainer and it was inspiring! 

Tuesday night we were with the Kiokasyan family, another great family from the Rostov branch that is Armenian and they made us some incredible Shashlik, I will send pictures. All the goodbyes were hard, but we definitely we were not hungry the first part of the week!

Wednesday morning was orientation in the Mission Home and that was where I met my trainee, Elder Feldman! He is from Reno, Nevada and is just a stud. He is shorter than we all expected, but is a bodybuilder, so he has got me beat in that regard. He has been adjusting quickly to Russia and it's unique characteristics. Having always been the younger companion my whole mission up until now, it has been interesting to see Russia through his eyes and it has made me realize how much I have gotten used to it! He tells me I walk to fast but other than that, we are getting along well! Training is also a new experience and pretty similar, I would imagine, to parenting in the regard that everything I do, say, etc. is seen/heard and he follows suit so I am constantly aware of what I am doing and trying to set the best example as possible for him which has helped me a lot to improve and be more diligent! 

Wednesday night Elder Norton and his trainee took us to the train station to help us with our big heavy bags and it was hard to say bye to Elder Norton as well, knowing that we will not see each other until we are home! My heart ached a little as the train pulled away from the station and soon the city of Rostov was disappearing over the horizon but a few hours later we were in Krasnodar! Had a rough arrival seeing as we had four huge bags and it was a late night,  but I was grateful to walk into a very nice apartment and a big bed! 

Thursday morning we had a great District Meeting about finding new investigators, specifically through members and we decided to fast as a district to find and we have already seen huge success! We have more potential investigators than I have ever had since the law came out last year and even got two referrals last night. We have high faith in this area and this week we should be teaching lots and finding new investigators even with the holiday tomorrow! 

Thursday night we picked up Yegor for Seminary just like we used to when I was here last year and got caught in a huge rain storm! Here it will be sunny one minute, a downpour the next, and back to sunny the next, I love it! 

We got to serve Rustam a few times this week! He welcomed back "Brother Tucker" on the phone before we went and served him in his home and taught him about the Book of Mormon. Saturday morning, he sent us to the Rinok to get his groceries because he recently got surgery and cannot leave the house. That Rinok can simply not be described, hope to show it all to you one day but the people there know us because we are there weekly with Rustam but this time we were without him and it was a miracle that we were able to find all that he asked for from the certain people that he knows!  Afterwards, while we were waiting at the train stop, a man came up to us and asked what we were selling. He soon asked where we were from and when I said America, he immediately asked, "Is your Church on this certain street, which he named" (which is the address of the branch). Turns out he had come to English club in the past although he hardly spoke any English. He gave us his phone number and told us he is very interested to meet with us! It was a much needed miracle and reminder that 1) the Lord is preparing people all the time and 2) people know who we are and we must be ready at all times to find/teach! 

Throughout the week, I was reminded of the words told to me multiple times as I prepared to enter the MTC. Everyone told me that the first few days would be hard, but to just hold on until Sunday, and that was exactly what I needed this week. Being back in the Krasnodar Branch for Church helped me so much. The Krasnodar branch is a special place, it is honestly like a big family. The people here are so great and loving, they are different than the people in other cities. Everyone was welcoming me back but they thought I was just here for the day for a split or something and they would ask where I am serving and I answered, "here!" and it was just a happy day. Some of the youth have matured so much over the past year and there were lots of new faces in the branch as well as most all the ones I knew and loved from a year ago! 

I was so grateful that Sunday was fast sunday! Helaman 3:35 was the theme of my week. I have prayed more than usual and fasted on Sunday and I cannot even explain how much peace, guidance, comfort, and joy that I have experienced thanks to fasting and prayer. It has been a humbling week but, just as the verse says, I feel stronger than ever! They are two basic actions, but they work, I know it and I experienced it this week! We got to break our fast at the Lund's home (the Senior Couple here) with all the youth which is always a great end to a great fast! 

Last night we were at Vitya's and his mom's place and when I walked in I said, "I'm home!" Vitya is like a brother to me and I am so glad that we get to be with them! We talked to them about missionary work and it turns out they share the gospel with everyone,  we read the section in Chapter 9 of PMG called, "No Effort is Wasted" because every conversation, act of service, etc. is a seed planted and we do not know when, where, and how it will get harvest but the conclusion we all came to,  is that we just have to plant! 

My theme for this transfer is to "Inquire and Rely" which means to pray more and rely on the Spirit because 1) I do not know what I am doing as a trainer and in this new area 2) the Spirit knows better than I do and 3) I have become to reliant on myself! 

Tomorrow is Victory Day so Happy Holidays to all! Talk to you on Mothers Day!! Thanks for all the love, prayers, and support.  

Love, 

Elder Tucker

Pictures - Borsch, me and the Taylors, Shashlik, MLC, Me and my new companion Elder Feldman, Me and Elder Norton,  Our new trainees, A lady made us take this picture...haha, Volleyball this morning (notice the Ute apparel).

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Goodbye to Rostov

Hello, everyone! 

What a week! Week 6 of transfer week is always crazy with transfer planning and all that but it has been a little different this time, knowing it was my last week in Rostov and in the Mission Office. 

I'll start with the exciting news! I am being transferred to Krasnodar where I will be training Elder Feldman who arrives in Russia tomorrow night! This is honestly a dream come true! I have always hoped and prayed for the opportunity to return to Krasnodar and for the opportunity to train! I am a little nervous seeing as we will be white washing and this will be my first time ever being the older one in the companionship, let alone training. Lots of growing coming my way, but I could not be more excited! And to add to the excitement, Elder Thayer will be with me in Krasnodar as one of the Zone Leaders so we will get to finish our missions in the same branch after hardly seeing each other throughout our missions! 

This week I have continued to study Doctrine and Covenants. I prayed to have my testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith strengthened and that is when I came across D&C 6 which is full of incredible scripture and guidance. As the scriptures say, we know them (prophets) by their fruits and one of Joseph Smith's "fruits" is Doctrine and Covenants. D&C 6:18 reads, "Therefore be diligent; stand by my servant Joseph, faithfully, in whatsoever difficult circumstance he may be for the word's sake." It is my privilege to stand by Joseph and share the message that he restored. Joseph Smith was a prophet, I know it! 

This week we got to share that very message of the Restoration in its fullness with Aleksei who has a great understanding of the Gospel and already knew the message but as we taught, he was reminded of the power of the Restoration and had some moments where it all clicked like it had never clicked before, like why there was even a need for a restoration. He has been praying daily and has the desire to get back to church!

Wednesday I spent the night in my old apartment here in Rostov and had splits with Elder Burgoyne, a Zone Leader in Rostov who will be taking over as Assistant! Thursday we attended District Meeting in Zapadny where Elder Thayer led a great discussion about relying on the Spirit. I reflected about how, at the beginning of my mission, I was fully reliant on the Spirit and grace of the Lord every single day as I could not speak the language or do much at all on my own. I realized that now, having been here a while and more comfortable with the language and the culture, I have become more reliant on myself. This transfer, I want to (and will need to) be more reliant on the Spirit and humbly follow the will of the Lord, rather than my own. 

We had a lesson with a man who, when I served in that area, was never home or did not want to meet. I probably stopped by his home close to 10 times with  a couple companions and never got to meet him. Turns out they meet with him regularly know and we had a great lesson with him! 

We also went out to the Andersen family in Bataisk and it was hard to say bye to them! Sister Andersen has been so great to me and I will miss that family! We had a great lesson about trials and how they are part of the plan and for our benefit! 

Friday we reunited with the Miners who had been on the road for 10 days with the Patriarch who gave 68 blessings during his three week stay! I attended my final staff meeting before the Miners took us and the Taylors out to dinner. There are many things I will miss about Rostov, the things will I miss most is working with the Taylors in the office and being able to work so closely with President and Sister Miner. When Elder Nelson visited our mission a few months ago he told me how blessed I was to have the experience to serve as President Miner's assistant and that I will never forget it - he was right. 

Saturday we got to translate for President Miner while Elder Semaikin from the Area Presidency conducted a training for all the District Presidents in Rostov. One of the points he taught from Elder Holland's recent trip to Russia was, "Did my visit really strengthen the faith of the people there or did I just preside?" That same question can be asked at the end of every lesson, talk, etc. Was it just a general lesson with no growth, or did the faith of others actually increase because of it? 

This weekend we have had all the youth from the whole mission in Rostov for a Youth Conference and it was so great to reunite with so many people that I love! The youth of the church in Russia are incredible, they inspire me with their firm testimonies and desire to share the Gospel with others. The future of the Church is in good hands! 

Sunday was my last Sunday in Rostov Center Branch and I will likely never forget it. I was blessed with the opportunity to not only testify, but to give a ten minute talk. I have felt for a long time that I need to speak about the power of testimony at the branch and was given the opportunity to do so. I spoke after all the youth in town testified and most all of them said how they did not really want to come to Conference but they did and were very grateful for it. I shared how, honestly, when I heard I was moving to Rostov, I did not really want to come either. But, 10 months later, I have gained such a profound, deep love for every single person in the Rostov Center Branch and now I do not want to leave. 

One of the many things this branch taught me was the power of a testimony! I told them that after 10 months of attending sacrament meeting here, the best ones are the first Sunday of every month when they all share their testimonies. I shared Mosiah 18:8-9 and a quote from President Monson that if we don't share our testimonies, we will lose them. I challenged them to share their testimonies and although Elder Holland promised a temple in Russia, when and where depends on them! Volunteers cannot legally testify on the streets, and we need them for the Church to continue to grow! I have never felt more guided by the Spirit and more help from the Gift of Tongues than I did during that talk. I felt like I was just opening my mouth and the rest came out for me. 

I was overwhelmed with love, support, and some tears after Sacrament meeting. One sister said that I have been here long enough that they are allowed to hug me since I am like family and before I could do anything about it, about 6 sisters gave me a big group hug.. I wish I could write down all the incredibly nice things that were said and all the love that was felt but I just can't do it justice. I honestly felt like I was giving a farewell  talk from my home ward. All I know is that although I will not physically be here, my heart will always be in the Rostov Center Branch. I am so thankful for the opportunity I have had to serve in different callings here and teach the wonderful members the good news of the Gospel. I will never forget my time here. 

The goodbyes continue today and tomorrow and we will be off to Krasnodar on Wednesday!  Thanks for all the love, support, and prayers!!

Much love,  

-Elder Tucker//Старейшина Такер

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Pictures: Taco night with some of the Elders, thanks to Elder Weston fixing them for us!!, some of the youth attending Youth Conference from the Volgograd area.

Brrrr.....Cold

Hey everyone! 

It has been one coooold week in Rostov. I have probably said "I am cold" more this week than in my two Russian winters combined. It has been rainy and really low temperatures all week but to make it worse, the heat in our building was shut off last week, and for a few days we did not have hot water so it really was a cold one! But, other than that, it was a great week! We had lots of opportunities to teach,  we were running around from appointment to appointment all week!

Recently I started studying Doctrine and Covenants and I have been loving it! Last week I studied D&C 5 which talks about testimonies. Testimonies are truly gifts from God, they are not just empty words, but rather a witness from the Spirit. That section talks about how we must be humble before we can receive that testimony and then how we need to share it because that is how this generation will hear about the Gospel- through us and our testimonies! Share your testimony this week! It was not given to you to be selfishly kept, for that which is selfishly kept will be lost, but if it is shared, it will strengthen both you and the person hearing it! 

Wednesday we got to meet with Mark Milkovich, a recent convert returning less active. The Selmash Elders had been working with him for a while and he started to come back to Church just this month. We now do not have Elders in Selmash so we have started working with him. It was our first visit so we did not know what to expect but he blew us away when he had some questions for us from his scripture study, he reads and prays every day and is even wanting to receive the Melchizedek Priesthood! We had a discussion about prayer and will continue to work with him to prepare to get the Melchizedek Priesthood! 

Thursday I was on splits with Elder Clark while Elder Fisher and a few others went on a visa trip and we had a super busy day together. We got to serve Sister Ludmila and read the Book of Mormon with her, yes she can read now! We also got to help the Taylors in the office. We had a lesson with Yegor who is one of the few youth members in the Center Branch. He is such a good kid who lives in a pretty tough situation. We talked to him about repentance and we are trying to help him see how the Gospel is applicable to his life and how important it is. 

Friday I was on splits again with Elder Foote, one of the Zone Leaders from Krasnodar. We also had a great, busy day together. We had District Meeting that day and I gave the spiritual thought about obedience and why we have so many rules on our missions. Missionaries are set apart from the world in a literal sense and therefore, the standards we have help keep us on that higher plane of thought, action, etc. We have authority and power to teach the Gospel and such a great gift requires great obedience.

Saturday we had an incredible branch activity- it was a "Good Deeds Auction." Everyone wrote down an act of service that they were willing to provide and in return received "money" to buy the good deeds of others. We "auctioned" 45 good deeds and it was a ton of fun, everyone got really into the auction! The Sister volunteers did a ton of the "behind the scenes" work to prepare for the activity, but the members did a ton of it which is something we have been wanting to see! It does not do them much good when the volunteers do it all and there is a better turnout when the members have responsibilities in the activity. It was a big success! 

Sunday was a good day of Church. While I was partaking of the Sacrament, I got emotional thinking about the limited time I have left in the Rostov Center Branch. I have been here so long and have gotten so close to them and it just broke my heart to think of leaving. But change is good! 

I was blessed with the opportunity to translate sacrament meeting for the Taylors and also translate Elder Taylor's Teacher Council Meeting. After Church, it was a downpour and the temptation to put on some sweats and go to bed was real but we of course went out and ended up teaching three lessons (everyone was home!) We were able to meet with Aleksei Pavlov who is the son of an active member. He was active last summer but then had some setbacks but has been recovering for a while and now he wants to come back to Church! He has made some huge improvement on his own and even looks like a different man. He has goals and plans to get back to activity and he wants us to help him spiritually along the way. We talked a lot yesterday about prayer and committed him to pray every day before bed. He offered a great prayer at the end of the lesson and he was surprised that the prayer went so well and it was visible that he could feel the Spirit. He thanked Heavenly Father for sending us His servants to him and he told us that it was so good to know that God has not forgotten him. It is such a privilege to be a servant of the Lord and to bring that comfort to God's children. 

Well this is the last week of the transfer so I will be finding out where I am headed soon. It is going to be extremely hard to start saying goodbye to Rostov, but it is time and I will go wherever the Lord needs me. 

I love you all! Thanks for all the updates, love, support and prayers

-Elder Tucker//Старейшина Такер

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Pictures - Best Dessert, Mom-this is the how your package came to me (I am sure this is not how you sent it, but I believe I received all the contents), Good Deeds Auction.

Христос Воскрес

Hey everyone!

Sorry for writing a little later today,  we played soccer this morning! 

This past week was a tough one in regards to teaching, we had so many appointments fall through. But it was a really rewarding week as we rendered service in our branch calling and serving others, we also had a couple spiritual feasts! 

One of those spiritual feasts was Wednesday's Zone Conference! The Spirit was so strong as it usually is, I love the special atmosphere that only exists when we all gather together, it is powerful! Sis. Miner gave a great talk about perfectionism, a big problem in our mission and a big problem for me! I learned that I am indeed a perfectionist and by the end of the week, I learned that I am so far from perfect, but that is how it is supposed to be! Heavenly Father does not expect us to be perfect, yet. We have a mission full of high achievers that are used to excelling in many different aspects of life and when we come on our missions and start to fall short, make mistakes, etc. we are hard on ourselves! "To be worthy does not been to be perfect," we are all just trying to improve and do what we can in the work of the Lord and our efforts are indeed enough! 

Elder Weston taught us about faith, specifically about the faith to find new, prepared people to teach the Gospel to. He broke down faith into three steps: 1) Hope - hoping for something that is not guaranteed or seen with our physical eyes, 2) Act - acting on that hope, doing something about it, and finally 3) Evidence - evidence that what was hoped for in the beginning is in fact there, it is possible,  and true, etc. I really loved those steps and they can be applied in so many different ways! 

President Miner taught about the Savior and showed us the Church's video, 'The Lamb of God" and I felt the Spirit so strong throughout the film. I thought, as we watched, that I would feel angry or hate towards those that betrayed the Savior and ultimately took His life, but as I sat there feeling the peace and warmth of the Spirit, I realized that Christ is the Prince of Peace and not of revenge, hate, or opposition and that was a great lesson to learn. 

Last week we were able to serve others by helping out with English! We are involved at a couple English schools and there are some potential people in both schools that could become investigators soon! Ilya (member) and Anya (recent convert) also asked us to meet with them and help with English and that was really fun and rewarding. As we were talking with Anya before we started, it was inspiring to see the fire she still has in her for the Gospel being baptized just a few weeks ago. She told us how last Sunday she got her Temple Recommend to go do baptisms for the dead in a couple weeks with all the youth and how she has been showing everyone her recommend. She also will be getting a patriarchal blessing at the end of the month and is so excited! She thought she had to wait for a year but we told her that she could get one and signed her up! 

We got to visit Sister Toma a couple times this week! Friday was her birthday and we took her some juice and flowers and the Sisters made a cake for her. She was so excited when we came, she said it was the best birthday of her life. She was going around thanking us all for coming and she looked at Elder Fisher and I and said, "especially these two, they saved me a couple weeks ago when they brought me some food." We also took her the Sacrament on Sunday and showed her the Church's Easter video which she loved. She has a great testimony and is a special woman! 

Last Thursday, the Patriarch arrived from Utah! His name is Gary Browning and he is just a humble, incredible man! He was the very first Mission President in all of Russia and although he is 80+ years old, he is magnified in his calling as a traveling patriarch and the members here have been blessed by his willingness to serve. On Saturday we were in the branch while he was giving blessings and there really was a different, reverent atmosphere in the center branch that one member talked about in Church yesterday during a lesson. Everyone that received a blessing was just so happy and filled with the Spirit afterwards. Our recent convert, Ruslan, traveled in to get his blessing and it was my first time ever seeing him in the flesh and not just over Skype! The coolest part is hearing what tribe everyone is from. From all the blessings Saturday, every single person belonged to a different tribe. I am convinced that all 12 tribes are present in the Rostov Center branch now, but will confirm this week. We often read about the gathering of scattered Israel and hear about it, but to actually see it with my own eyes was an experience I will not forget. The House of Israel is being gathered! We have been heavily involved with these blessings as the branch clerks and 16 so far from the Center Branch have received their patriarchal blessing and there are still more to go! 

Saturday every single one of our lessons fell through, but the day ended on a good note! Elder Holland along with his wife and Elder and Sister Dahlstrom of the 70 came to Russia and held a meeting in Moscow that we were able to tune into for all the members of Russia! I was pretty happy to be listening to one of my favorite apostle as he addressed the Russian Saints. He talked about the power of one and how Church members in Russia might be small in number and often times the only member at home, work, school, etc. but he challenged them to never forget that the Savior performed the Atonement all by himself and He did that so that we never feel alone. It was an incredible broadcast! After the broadcast we also sent in the branch's Quarterly Report as part of our Clerk responsibilities, and cleaned the branch. 

Yesterday was Easter! Easter is a major holiday in Russia and the one day a year we can "proselyte." Everyone, and I mean everyone greets you on Easter Sunday by saying, "Христос воскрес!" (Christ is risen) and then you are required to respond, "Воистину воскрес!" (Indeed He is risen!) Everyone also eats these things called кулич, I will send a picture, as well as painting eggs and onions and other traditions I probably don't know about. One member said, "Although we celebrate Easter differently, we have one common denominator and that is the Savior!" 

Sunday and Sundays in general are so busy but as Elder Taylor just said to me, "It is good to be needed" and that is very true, we are so blessed to be able to be so involved in the branch and serving the members. The morning started with Branch Council which went better than usual! We created an agenda for the meeting to keep us all on task and to do it as instructed and it worked! I got to translate sacrament meeting for the Taylors and Miners, we got to teach the Gospel Doctrine Sunday School class on short notice but it went well, translated some more for President in interviews, and after Church we were able to get out and have 4 lessons! Busy day! 

One of those lessons was with Aleksander who has been doing really well! He has been super sick and stopped reading and coming to Church but one night we went over and we saw him praying to bless his food through the window which made us so happy! He has started reading again with some new glasses that we got and he said that the hymn " Did You Think to Pray?" keeps coming to his mind as he prays and reads! As we left yesterday, he said with a smile, "I don't think I will miss Church next week." We had not even invited him but had just read with him and testified too him about the Savior and told him we all missed him yesterday! Slowly but surely! 

I love you all! Христос воскрес!" Thanks for all the love,support and prayers!!

-Elder Tucker//Старейшина Такер

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Pictures - night snack(toast,mayo,cucumbers), Easter, Helping the youth at the Branch, Zone Conference

A Conference Christmas #4

Good Morning! 

I don't know about all of you, but I am still on a spiritual high from watching General Conference this week! What a great opportunity it was to hear from our Prophet and Apostles. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the one and only true Church on the Earth, has living apostles and prophets who give us direction and guidance for today. We are so blessed! I prayed and fasted in preparation for this Conference, and as a result I honestly felt like the Conference was directly for me. I felt the personal knowledge that Heavenly Father has of me, He knows us all and when we put in our efforts, He puts in His. It was weird to think that it was my fourth and final time watching Conference on my mission. I received so many answers and so much hope, and will share a little of my thoughts, in just a bit. 

Last Monday we had our Cultural Activity, and this one will be hard to beat! We got to attend the FK Rostov vs. Krasnodar futbol game here in Rostov with Brother and Sister Inkeles! They were able to get us tickets through Brother Ivan who is the second main coach for Rostov, and a member of the Church. Futbol is a major part of Russian culture, but especially in Rostov- FK Rostov is supposedly the best in Russia! It was a dream come true to attend a game here and see the passion they have for the team! I will never forget it! 

Tuesday night we were at Sister Ludmila's, it was a special night for her as she turned 80 years old! She is such a light to the world, so full of love and joy at her age and with her physical limitations. I love her so much and have been so blessed to serve and teach her over the past several months! 

Wednesday we attended a new English School and the people there are so great! They understand our roles here really well thanks to former volunteers that have gone there, we understood that quickly when they offered us hot chocolate instead of tea or coffee. We hope to be able to find people to teach from our service there, but it also is a great source to improve our Russian as well! 

Sunday we got to take the sacrament to Sister Toma and we talked to her about the Resurrection with Easter coming up. It was so powerful to discuss with her the fact that her, and us, and all of you will be resurrected. She has one working hand and can hardly walk, but will be perfect at some point. She did say that she has been working out though and as soon as she can walk well enough, she is going to get to the branch for Church, that is her goal! We were able to get her some more food last week and her daughter that takes care of her is no longer sick so she should be in good hands! She is another light in my life and does not let her incredibly hard circumstances weaken her testimony or hope of what is to come.

Between Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday, we got all 10 hours of Conference in! I loved all of it of course, but my favorite sessions were definitely SaturdayAfternoon and Sunday Morning, Priesthood was also incredible! I don't know for sure, but I think the Plan of Salvation was mentioned in almost every single talk on Saturday Morning and that really stuck out to me. I have been pondering the Plan of Salvation often with the exciting recent news that we will be welcoming a new member to our family in September and I am so grateful for the knowledge we have of that perfect plan! (Yes, I am going to be an Uncle). There were multiple mentions about our discipleship, but I really loved Robert D. Hales' words about how we cannot be part time disciples of Christ! It is a state of being, not just actions! 

Elder Holland, as always, gave an incredible talk about staying in the choir. Sometimes it is hard to sing and sometimes we just need to listen to the song of others, but we just need to stay in the choir! I loved when he said, "come as you are, but don't plan to stay as you are." We are all trying to improve ourselves and change as we stand as close as we can to the Savior and try to match his perfect pitch. 

My favorite talk was probably Gary B. Sabin's about being "all in." That was something I really needed to hear as I strive to be "all in" at the end of my mission. He said that if what we are doing is not working, change it! If we are tired of walking, run! Change what needs to be changed in order to be fully commited to the Lord! 

Elder Andersen talked about overcoming the world, something I have studied and thought of a lot on my mission as we are set apart from the world. He gave a great tribute to President Porter who was our Area Presidency and truly did overcome the world. President Porter was serving as our Area President until the very end of his life and is a great example of letting the Kingdom of God come first. 

Elder M. Russel Ballard talked about goal setting and after his remarks, I took the time to set life goals as he advised and I would advise all that have not done so to do so! He, along with a few others, challenged us to study 'The Living Christ' in an effort to come closer to Him and renew our commitment to Him! 

We were so blessed to hear from our Prophet, Thomas S. Monson. Both of his messages were short, but some of my favorite as well,  because they were so simple and to the point. In Priesthood, he talked about charity, a true basic of the Gospel. We can be smart, cool, funny, happy, talented, etc. but without charity, we truly are nothing. If we do not have charity, we are missing the mark! He also talked about the Book of Mormon and I add my testimony to his that it is so important! If you don't know that yourselves, find out! Read it! 

President Uchtdorf also gave great messages about leadership in the Church which also really helped me. I loved the quote, "Never break rule #6- don't take yourself too darn serious!" Those were some words that I needed to hear! 

There was so much said about the Holy Ghost and the Godhead in general during Sunday's sessions that helped me to better understand the role of the Holy Ghost. I am trying to get better at recognizing the Spirit and being a "first repsonder" to his warnings, promptings, and guidance. 

I could go on and on about Conference but those were just some of my biggest thoughts and impressions. Lastly, just want us all to not look around so much, look up! I often look around too much and it gets discouraging, even seems to be impossible. We must always keep an eternal perspective and rely on the God that has everything planned out! 

I love you all and hope you all have a great Easter Sunday! Иисус воскрес!

Loves,

-Elder Tucker//Старейшина Такер

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Pictures -  Watching Conference, Bowling, Go Rostov, We got some scarves

MLC

Hey everyone!

Hope you all had an incredible Conference weekend, we will be watching this week and I am so excited I can hardly handle it. Conference is such a blessing to be able to learn from modern day prophets and it is like Christmas for a missionary/volunteer.

This past week was a good one, starting with Monday night. We were an answer to someone's prayer and one member testified about it yesterday so I will share her testimony with you. She said something along the lines of this: "Good morning brothers and sisters, I would like to testify today that God hears and answers our prayers. Last week, our grandson was taken to the hospital with a stomach infection and was in need of some medicine and something to help him breathe (don't know how it translates). It was already late, it had been raining all day, and we did not know how to get those things to him and his mom who could not leave his side in the hospital. We said a prayer and the next thing we knew, our doorbell was ringing, we picked up the intercom and heard, "Hey it is the Elders, we have some cookies for you!" We were able to, through the elders, get all that was needed to the little boy in his time of need..." The miracle is that we had not even planned or even thought to go to their apartment that night. We had taken some cookies to another less active but we got to her apartment and  heard that she moved,  we were by their house and just felt like we should go. I wish you could have seen the shocked look on their faces as we walked in their home with cookies and when we told them that that hospital is right by our home. It was a blessing to be able to serve them in a time of need! 

Wednesday we were serving Sister Pavlova again at her home and in her yard. We were also able to teach her and answer some questions she has been having in regards to the Plan of Salvation. I could not help but think how blessed we are to have the knowledge that we do of God's plan for us. It is the key to happiness in this life and for out eternal progression.  It is the truth! 

Thursday we had a great District Meeting about the Will of God and how in some scriptural and real life accounts it is hard to understand why things happen and how it could possibly fit into the Will of God. We came to the conclusion that He is all knowing and sees what we do not. His purpose is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man and all that he does will support that goal. 

Thursday we were also able to teach Ruslan, a recent convert, over Skype. We have been teaching him the lessons from the Sunday School course "Gospel Principles" because he lives multiple hours away and does not have a branch in his city. We talked with him about the Pre-Earth life and the plan that we all accepted to come here and the main part of the plan being the Savior himself. Once again, great knowledge thanks to the Plan of Salvation. Ruslan will be getting a patriarchal blessing next month, so I will finally be able to meet him in the flesh! 

Thursday night we had the Volgograd and Krasnodar Zone Leaders with us for Mission Leadership Council on Friday morning! We had a great meeting Friday morning in the Mission Home mostly discussing finding and teaching skills. Our teaching pools mission wide have been drying up so we are trying to focus on finding new investigators and have created a new standard of excellence to find two new investigators each week,  which will really be a challenge seeing as most companionships do not find any most weeks, it is exactly what we need! Of course if we find them, we have to be ready to teach them so we are also trying to improve our teaching skills, especially with the five missionary lessons. At the end of the meeting, we surprised all the leaders with smart phones which they were excited about! MLC has been a highlight of my month for the past 10 months.

For the rest of Friday I was on a split with Elder Clement who is a great friend of mine, he is pretty young on the mission but a great leader! We had a couple of great lessons together and it was great to be with him and council together on different things. 

Saturday morning we fulfilled our seminary teaching duties with our one student Anya. It has been pretty sweet to work with her because I was her Sunday School teacher a few months back and she was pretty quiet back then but she has opened up with us and we have good lessons with her! We talked about our testimonies and being bold in sharing them, not ashamed to be a Mormon! She is of course the only member amongst her friends but she shared some experiences of sharing with them what we believe! 

Saturday we had a baptism for a young boy from the Severny branch, I love baptisms! After the baptism, the sisters called us saying the branch was a mess and no one was there to clean so we got to clean the branch Saturday as well, makes the meetings on Sunday mean a little bit more when you clean on Saturday night! 

I want to share with you all some things I loved from Church on Sunday. In Gospel Principles, we were talking about the atonement and an investigator shared that he always used to ask his father what to get him for his birthday and his dad would always say, "Get straight A's." The investigator went on to compare it to the Savior and how we need to utilize the atonement and 'get A's" in this life to strive to pay back the unpayable debt that we are all in! In Elder's Quorom we talked about temptation and one brother said that we need to fill our minds with light so that there is no room for darkness (temptation.) When our minds our empty, that is when the adversary can come in but if it is filled with light, there is no room for his tricks and lies. 

After church we went out to Elena's, we have hit a major road block with her.. She has made great changes in her life and was blessed with some new work. That new work, though, is daily from 7 AM to 8 PM and her only day off his Sunday and it is her only day with her family and to get things done so she has no time to read, come to church, or meet with us. We have not lost hope, though, just need a miracle!  We have planted seeds and I am sure something will come of it.  

Hope you all have a great week!! Thanks for all the love, support and prayers!! Until next week!!

 

Much love!

-Elder Tucker//Старейшина Такер

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Pictures - Cleaning the branch, MLC meeting