Greetings from Ridgecrest...Good ones and Bad ones

Hey everyone! Greetings from Ridgecrest! Things are going pretty slowly over here, but I guess that's just how it goes sometimes. I've been working SO hard, and I just know I'm going to find that person that the lord has sent me here to find. Its even hotter here than it was in Rosamond! It was 107 degrees yesterday! I also serve in two wards now. So I get to go to six hours of church on Sundays. It brings a great spirit, but it takes a lot out of you.

About the Laxatives... Yeah it was really weird. The night I got here, this ward member named Jeff called and said he wanted to bring some brownies over to welcome the new missionary. We told him sure, and he brought them over. We ate a few and I started feeling sick. Then Jeff called back and told us the brownies were full of laxatives, laughing hysterically while he said it. That was a really rough night. None of us could sleep because we were in and out of the bathroom all night. It also messed with my blood sugar. I took insulin for the brownies, but since they went right through my system it made my blood sugar low. Like really low. I almost had to go to the hospital. It turned out alright though. I met Jeff at church yesterday and I forgave him, but it was tough cause I was still pretty irritated with him.

I would really appreciate your prayers that the work can start moving faster here in Ridgecrest. Your support means so much to me, I know that I have already been receiving strength from your prayers. Thank you all so much. Love you all!

Elder Hunsaker is Transferred!

Hey everyone! Things are going pretty well for me! I had my first baptisms yesterday! It was such an incredible experience. I didn't actually baptize the girls, their grandfather did. Just being there was amazing though. The spirit was so strong and one of the girls (Shelby was her name) was crying with joy. Whenever she introduced us to members of her family, she would say "these are my missionaries." That felt so amazing. I was one of her missionaries. I've always wanted to be that for somebody. I've always wanted make that difference in someone's life, by helping them come unto Christ and receive all the joy and blessings of the Atonement. Now I have. I can't wait for more experiences like that. The other big news is that I'm getting transferred today! From now on, I will be in a place called Ridgecrest. It's even deeper into the desert. I'm kind of bummed that I'm getting transferred so quickly cause I feel like I just got here and finally got to know everyone in the ward. Oh well, I guess that's just how life goes sometimes. My new companion will be Elder Jenkins. I've actually been out on exchanges with him before, he seems like a great guy. I hope and pray I will be able to continue to do good work in Ridgecrest. I hope everyone's doing well!

Its funny, you mentioned how I'm getting near the "crash" part of my mission, but I don't feel depressed or homesick hardly at all. I mean, I miss everyone a lot, but I've never thought "I wish I was home." I love it out here. I feel like I was born to do this. I mean, I'm sure things will get harder, but I know this where I'm supposed to be. As I mentioned earlier when Shelby said "These are my missionaries", that was the greatest feeling in the world. I wouldn't trade this for anything. Don't worry mom, I'm about as close to heaven as I can be right now; I'm just excited to see what's coming next.

Well, I'd better run. Tell everyone I said hi.


[Note from Kristyn: These emails he sends home are actually three times as long as these posts, but he lets me know what he wants me to make public.]

Email Home 8/2/10

Hey everyone! Things are going pretty well over here. I now have two baptisms on Sunday instead of one! I'm so excited! One is Shelby, a 14 year old girl who we have been teaching, and the other is a 9 year old girl named Trinity. Its going to be an amazing experience. We have also gained two new investigators this week and gave out four books of Mormon! This is the best week I've had out here so far. I hope it keeps going this well for at least a while! I'm glad everyone had fun at the Crow reunion. Wish I could've been there. Although I heard I made an appearance as Darth Vader in a video. I wish I could've seen that. This week I really noticed that Satan is truly launching an all out attack on families. There are many families in our ward going through divorces and other really hard things. I feel prompted to say to not give up on marriage, no matter what. I know that marriage is ordained of God; and that it is extremely important to him that we keep our families as strong as possible. I urge all of you to try your hardest to have family home evening every week, read the scriptures as a family, and pray together as a family. If you have the spirit in your home, Satan will have no power over you and your family will remain strong even in tough times. There have also been lots of fires down here! I don't know if anyone has heard about that, but the fires were so big that the entire sky was full of smoke and it was snowing ash. Planes were grounded and the freeway was closed too. It was crazy! Luckily, the fires have been pretty much contained now. It was getting pretty dicey there for a while though. Thank you so much for all of your love and support. I really couldn't do this without all of you. Well I'd better run; love you all!

Hand-written letter from Elder Hunsaker's Bishop

To the Parents of Elder Hunsaker:


My name is Nat Adams and I am the Bishop of the Rosamond Ward, where your son serves. I want to let you know what a wonderful job your son is doing early in his mission. He has come to us with so much energy and with a great desire to serve.


The other day I had decided to have the elders and our ward mission leader speak in sacrament. During testimony meeting I decided on a topic for your son to speak on. No sooner had I written it down when Elder Hunsaker stood at the pulpit and bore a wonderful testimony – it just so happened that he bore testimony of the exact topic I had just written down.


He and his companion gave wonderful talks the next week and the spirit was so strong throughout their remarks. As your son closed the meeting I felt very strongly that I should write you and thank you for your part in getting your son on a mission. So, thank you!


Bishop Nat Adams