Monday, July 1, 2013

Im not Dead!

This is a message to inform you that I am NOT dead. I MAY be able to e-mail later today, but perhaps not. Only time will tell. Farewell.

Love, -Elder Ryan A. Bell

Monday, June 24, 2013

iPad's and Stuff

Yep. iPads and other gadgets are coming to missions. Missionaries are now being authorized to use social media sites and blogs to proselyte, but they are phasing these things in mission by mission. I may be here to see it or I may not. They also talked much about how they want MEMBERS to mobilize the missionaries, and not vice-versa. Very few of our members came to the broadcast, and I don't know how many watched at home and will begin applying what they taught. If they do what was taught, then we will have a great next few months!

Have a Great Week!

Elder Ryan Bell

Monday, June 17, 2013

New Members!!














Ryan & Betty Kinnel who was Baptized June 15, 2013
















Rocky & Christina LaRocco

This week was great here with the 3 baptisms. It was awesome to see the miracles that brought these 3 people to the gospel and to see and hear of the growth of others who are hopefully coming closer. The La Rocco's are awesome! And Betty is like my adopted Grandma. We meet and go out to lunch quite a bit, and she is just.... one of the coolest. This mission thing is tough, but it is so worth it for people like her and others who have the Restored Gospel change their lives!

Monday, June 10, 2013

Photo Time Ya All!

    Elder Ry chatting with President Pingree (something about a Guitar and Mission Rules?!?)



   Elder Bell and his new Missionary/Companion (Elder Murdock) he is assigned to train this transfer


Monday, June 3, 2013

Hearken!! The week in the life of a Texas Houston Missionary as narrated by Elder Ryan Bell



This is a slightly altered version of a letter I sent to one of my companion's parents telling them what their son did this week, mixed with comments of my own. Hearken-

On Monday, Read some of the New Testament, followed by a dinner at the home of a rockin' member.

On Tuesday, taught an investigator named Ron Malick Matthew 14 when Jesus walks on the water and calls Peter to him. After that, he taught a lady named Lisa the first lesson- The Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Not to use the same phrase twice, but HE ROCKED IT!

We get to Wednesday. We ate lunch with a very nice older member couple and taught them about the Armor of God. After this, we mowed a 70-something-year-old couple's lawn. We then ate a rib dinner and all went on splits and met with the ward mission in one of the wards.

Thursday, just to shake things up, Elder Williams suggested that we go to Denny's for a pre-breakfast breakfast before beginning a hard day of grit, sweat, and missionary work. Neither of us can remember what happened after Denny's so it must have been awesome. Then we went to the home of a member for dinner. The deacon-aged son had a shiny guitar in the entryway to their home, so probably as is customary, Elder Williams asked him to play us a song. And oh, that kid played us a song, alright. There is no forgiveness in this world or the next for how many rules we broke listening to this young man serenade us with some rock. We are all very content with our new place in the mid Telestial kingdom because of this.

Now we arrive at Friday. An investigator named Betty Kinnel took us all to Red Lobster! We dined on fresh fish and great conversation. After this great lunch we helped Betty do some family history work and prepare to take some names to the temple after she is baptized on June 15th. Again, the rest of the day was a blur.

On Saturday, Elder Williams was found crammed in the back of a sedan visiting the home of less-active and part-member families and knocking on some doors. Our Mystery Van ran out of miles so we hit the streets after this, walking to our next destination and trying to talk to people along the way. As we did so, we met a man named Saul, playing with his dogs in a park. Elder Williams invited him to Church! Then came time for dinner, and we ended up at the home of a part-member family named the Bells. The husband is a Catholic, but is willing to listen to missionaries, so Elder Williams helped to plan out a lesson around the principle of John 8:31-32 and then we explored examples of some who have sought truth and have in turn been made more free. It was an awesome lesson! Since our car was parked a couple of miles away, we set out to talk to more people while walking to our car. On the way, two new investigators were found. Out curfew is 9 pm, so by about 8:20-something we all literally started running through neighborhoods to make it back on time. We did.

Then comes Sunday, on Sunday while walking through Church, an investigator couple who have been coming to Church for over a year and have been on the VERGE of baptism for months came up to us. "Hey guys!" they said, "just to let you know, this is our last week visiting your Church. It has been great and everything..... but...... we decided we want to become members!"

Wait........... wait.......... wait.......

It was a hilarious and well-planned prank. They are both in their 30's and have four girls. But this was their way of telling us that they have decided to be baptized before they leave out of town on June 21st. We took them to Gospel Principles class, announced the great news to everyone and then did a lesson on what to expect for their baptism. And better still, the couple wanted Elder Williams and Elder McKell to baptize them. Two relatively new missionaries who definitely need that!

So... all in all, after doing the math, it was a week!

Hope you all have a great week!


                                                     -Elder Ryan A. Bell
 





Monday, May 27, 2013

Happy Almost Birthday- Letter to Dad May 27, 2013


HAPPY ALMOST BIRTHDAY!!!!!!! It feels like just yesterday, I was writing you a letter on the P-Day before your last birthday telling you that you age like George Clooney. So awesome! What are your birthday plans? They better take you somewhere real nice n' fancy. Like Chili's. That's high-class stuff.

Just kidding, go to Tucano's. Make Jordan pay.

I LOVE YOU, MY MAN!!!!!!!

                                                      Love,
                                                 Your FAVORITE Son
                                                  -Elder Ryan A. Bell

P.S. Thanks for sharing this mission with me!

Monday, May 20, 2013

That's RIGHT I'm your favorite son!

Hey Dad!
That's RIGHT I'm your favorite son! I never hear from the other two on the same P-Day. Once every 3 or 4 weeks I will get something from Jordan; Zach will write about the same frequency.
And Jordan..... very interesting there. I figured as much. They gave up on any prospect of reproducing...
Personally, I am doing alright.  Some good prospects for this week, so I will definitely let you know how it goes.
I am reading through the New Testament right now and am almost through Romans. The Bible is incredible! I have not read the New Testament through since I was but a lad! It is wonderful! What are you studying these days and learning from Church, family study, etc?
Thank you for all your wonderful prayers! Thank you for telling me that you are proud of me and expressing your compliments and love. That helps so much. Your caring for me means a lot. I think often of some of our experiences before I left and treasure these; things as simple as going to Farr's for some peanut butter ice cream and seeing those F-16's fly over, or you coming home and us watching Netflix together after a frustrating day at work, and then going to get some Wendi's Sukiyaki, sitting in the hot tub and talking, etc.
I look forward to those again!
I love you, Dad!
                                                                                   Love,
                                                                        -Elder Ryan A. Bell

Monday, May 13, 2013

Picture Time


Elders McKell, Williams, Harms and Bell out in Katy, TX

President Pingree's Message to his Mission

Dear Sisters and Elders – 
 

I hope that each of you were able to speak with your parents yesterday and that you had a meaningful experience with them.  Please know that not only are you in our prayers, but your families are also.  We recognize the sacrifices many of them are making so that you can be here.
Today, I want to re-emphasize the Texas Houston Mission's areas of focus for 2013.  Certainly, there are many other principles of effective missionary work, but at this time I feel impressed that we need to pay particular attention to the following four:
1.     Prepare for the Spirit every day (planning, morning schedule, living Missionary Handbook)
2.     Talk with everyone (invitations to learn, asking for referrals)
3.     Have a member present at every possible lesson
4.     Baptize each month
 
As we faithfully strive to implement these four principles in our day-to-day efforts, we will see the overall performance of the mission improve in other areas as well.  Please review these areas of focus as a companionship and prayerfully determine how to integrate them more fully in your proselyting efforts.
Thank you for your examples of faith and devotion.  Have a great week!
Love,
President Pingree



Editors Note: I have had the chance to meet Pres Pingree and I have talked with him and Sister Pingree on various occasions during Ry's time out in the field.... I am so glad we have such great Mission Presidents and their esteemed Wife's for our Guys and Gals serving in the Mission Field!!

Monday, May 6, 2013

Hello Father Letter to Dad May 6, 2013


Hello Father!
 
Thanks for your e-mail today and for your words of encouragement! Yes, time passes away like a dream; it is already May. Soon the summer will roll on.
 
Cool to hear about Mom's work and your employment options as well. That is sweet stuff, I guess only July will tell what happens.
 
Betty Kennel, an investigator that I have been helping to teach for the last couple of months informed us all on Friday that she has decided to be baptized on June 15th at 12:00 pm, so I am excited for her! In the mean time, we will keep teaching her and building her faith while trying to find and teach someone who will get baptized in May. EVERY MONTH, baby!
 
Anyway, proud of you! Have a good week.
 
                                                                                                                Love,
                                                                                                     -Elder Ryan A. Bell

Monday, April 29, 2013

A Quick Update... Letter to Dad Apr 29, 2013


So, I will just give you an update on what is happening now- a missionary in our Zone just went home so now we have his companion as our third companion. This third companion is so cool, so I am excited to have him!  I am excited to be helping both missionaries. This week will be interesting! Thanks for your prayers! I can feel their sustaining power. I love you, my good man!
 
                                                                                                    Love,
                                                                                        -Elder Ryan A. Bell
 
P.S. What if you cut a few inches at a time off the branch by the power line so only little pieces might touch the line, rather than the whole thing coming down? Has Jordan tried to develop any crazy mathematic formulas to remove the branch? It might not help, but it sure would be entertaining!
 
HA! Just kidding, I love that boy. He just makes me laugh. You make me laugh too.

Monday, April 22, 2013

Ripple Effect


This week, my companion and I got to teach a one hour class 5 times at the local Stake Youth Conference. The whole conference was a simulated mission. Each Youth had a nametag, was assigned to a mission, and had a companion. Elder McKell and I were supposed to teach what a day in the life of a missionary is like, so we brought in bedding and really acted out waking up at 6:30 am with all its accompanying orneriness. Then we studied from our scriptures and included the class in a "companion study" asking them for input on what we should teach the people we would be teaching during the class.
We had Betty, a lady we are teaching, come in and play a real investigator. The kids did so great at teaching her and the other "lessons" we had. (Elder McKell and I played the other characters).

It was a lot of fun, and the Youth were pretty impressive, being so involved and actively engaged. It was sweet!
But my miracle for the week was when I looked out at the classes and realized that there were three kids in attendance who I taught and got to see baptized at different times on my mission. Now these three great youth were sitting there with glowing faces and nametags of their own, preparing to go serve their own missions. I cannot describe how this felt! Remembering what each of these kids were like the first time that I met them, comparing that to this moment. The Gospel of Jesus Christ really does change lives!
Maybe these kids will go on missions, and maybe not, but either way, their countenances and influence will bring others to Christ, even if it is their own children in just a few years, but this will continue to grow and spread until a couple generations down the road, there will be hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of exalted saints because of the faithfulness of great people who got a lazy Elder Bell out on his mission, who happened to be in the area where these three Youth were being taught, who grew up to serve their own missions and raise righteous families, and the miracle goes on and on.
How can this NOT be true?
                                                                 Love,
                                                        -Elder Ryan A. Bell

P.S. And then they gave us Great Harvest cinnamon bread.