How Do You Say "Korean" in Sign Language?

Big news everyone! I'm getting transferred again! Yep, I'm going to Canoga Park in the San Fernando Valley! I'm also serving in a deaf ward! Yep, I suddenly have to learn sign language. In addition to that, I'm going to be a zone leader now... and the Zone I cover includes the Korean district. Many of the Korean Elders speak almost no English... So I'll probably have to learn some Korean too. Yeah the stress level in my life just tripled lol. My new companion's name is Elder Lyman. I've met him a few times before, and He seems like a great missionary. Other than that I don't know much about him. From what I've seen though, I'm sure he and I will get along great. Because transfers are today though, I have hardly any time to write. I hope you'll continue to pray for me! Now I'll be needing them more than ever. I so appreciate all of your support. Love you all!

The Source of All Light and Truth

I have been thinking a great deal about light this week. I'm sure many of you have heard the story about the professor and the student. A Philosophy professor at Princeton university got up and told his class "I just wanted to let you all know before we start, that I do not believe in God. Anyone who believes in God is a fool, and we will not be discussing anything religious in this class, are we clear?" A return missionary, who was in the class, stood up and basically bore his testimony to the professor. He told him that he knew there was a God and that He loved every one of us. The professor sneered and said "God loves us does He? Let me ask you this, where does everything come from?" The student answered: "From God." Professor: "Where did evil come from?" Student: "From... God." Professor: "Ah. So all of the evil things in this world, whether it be terrorist attacks, the Holocaust, kidnappings, murder and rape, all came from God. How can you possibly say that God is good and that He loves us when He made all these horribly evil things? If there is a God, He must be evil, for all evil comes from Him." The student felt ashamed and had no response, so he sat down.

Then, a second student (Also a return missionary) stood up and asked" "Professor, may I ask you a question?" Professor: "Ah. Another believer. Yes, if you must." Student: "Is there such a thing as heat?" Professor: "Yes." Student: "Is there such a thing as cold?" Professor: "Yes of course there is." Student: "Actually, you're wrong professor. There is no such thing as cold. You can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don't have anything called cold. We can hit 458 degrees below zero which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it."

The student then asks further: "What about darkness Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?" Professor: "Yes. What is night if not darkness?" Student: "You're wrong again professor. Darkness is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light....But if you have no light constantly, you have nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it? In reality, darkness isn't. If it were you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?"

Professor: "Alright then, what's your point?" Student: "Sir, my point is your philosophical premise is flawed." Professor: "Flawed? How so?" Student: "You say that evil came from God, but in reality, evil is just a word we use to describe the absence of good, or the absence of God in someone's life. God didn't create evil, He created good. When we choose to turn away from Him, and to stop following the path He wants us to take, we start losing light in our lives, and all that is left is darkness, just as if you dimmed the lights in this room. Evil is not the opposite of good, merely the absence of it."

My point with this story is to illustrate the importance of the light of the gospel in our lives. When we choose to turn away from the teachings of Jesus Christ, meaning loving one another, serving each other, etc. we allow darkness into our lives. When we come closer to Christ, however, we gain more light in our lives, and things become even more clear and wonderfully bright. Christ Himself said: "I am the light and the life of the world." That is completely true. Christ is the source of all light, or truth. Draw near to Him, and He will give you light to find your way through the darkness of earth life. Move away from Him, and all that will be left is darkness. I know that Christ lives, and He will give us the light we need if we but come unto Him. Love you!

Learning to Love Others without Judging

This week has been a good one! We were able to go to a baptism on Saturday, and that was an amazing spiritual experience for us. I also was the one who got to interview the woman being baptized for baptism. I love being able to perform those interviews. They are always such amazing spiritual experiences. I have only done two of them so far, but I have another one coming up this week, and I am so excited for it! We also taught a lesson this week on judging. I feel like I always learn more about the lesson I'm teaching than the people I'm teaching it to. One of the biggest problems in the world today is stereotyping, or when we think we know someone's situation but really we don't. Sometime we take one look at someone and think we know everything about them. For example, we'll see a beggar on the street and we won't give them money cause we assume they'll spend it on drugs or alcohol (Not that I'm saying you should always give money to people like that. Just an example.) Or we see a big guy walking down the street with chains and a big Mohawk and start to feel nervous, like he's a really mean person. It remind me of the movie Shrek (I used to watch that EVERY SINGLE DAY with Kyle), when Shrek says "People take one look at me and go 'Ah! Help! Run! A big stupid ugly ogre.' They judge me before they even know me." In a funny way, that illustrates what I'm talking about. President Monson last year gave a talk to the relief society about Charity, and not judging others unrighteously. I would encourage you to go online a read that talk again. We all have problems with stereotyping, or judging others unrighteously. I know that if we work on seeing the good in others, rather than what we assume to be their flaws, that our lives will change. "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which He hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of His Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when He shall appear we shall be like Him, for we will see Him as He is; that we may have hope; that we may be purified even as He is pure. Amen." (Moroni 7:48) Love you all!

Mothers Day Phone Call Home

Happy Mother's day yesterday! It was such an amazing day for me. I was able to talk to all of the people that I love the most and have made the greatest impact on my life. It was such a wonderful experience. I really can't even describe the joy I felt as I talked with everyone. The only you can really know what I'm talking about is if you have served a mission of your own. I am so lucky to have the family that I do. I know without any shadow of a doubt that families are completely ordained of God, and that He organized us into families so that we could learn how to love, serve, and better understand how our heavenly Father feels about each and every one of us. I love the scripture in Moses 1:39 "For behold, this is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." If you really think about that scripture, God isn't just saying "I like making men able to live forever." He is saying "The thing that brings Me the greatest joy, and the thing that I strive for the most out of everything else I do, is to raise My children, to teach them how to love, and to bring them home again to live with Me forever someday." Yes, God is the almighty ruler of the entire universe, but He is a Father first, and a ruler second. He loves us, and He wants us to find joy and happiness in this life, as well as in the life to come. I can honestly say I have come to know Him much better as I have been out here serving His mission. I love Him, I honor Him, and I will trust Him forever. To all the wonderful mothers and women of the church out there, thank you for everything you have done and continue to do. Your actions do not go unnoticed. They are recorded by angels in heaven. You have made more of a difference than you even realize, and someday, you will look into the eyes of your heavenly Father, and He will personally thank you for helping Him to raise His children. Love you!

The Los Angeles Temple, Trainer Training and Service Projects

This has been a fantastic week for me. This Tuesday, I was able to go through the Los Angeles temple with all of the other missionaries in my zone. What an amazing temple. I've never been through a temple like that one before. The spirit was powerful, and I was inspired to work even harder. That was one of my best experiences this week, but I also was able to attend a training for trainers and their new missionaries on Wednesday. We learned being an example to our companions, as well as the members in our ward, so as to inspire them to be the best disciples of Christ they can be. The other cool thing that happened this was a mission-wide service project called Mormon helping hands. All of the missionaries in our mission, as well as members from throughout the mission, went to different locations in the mission to help with service projects. The missionaries in my zone and I went to a high school and helped rip out all of the sod and bushes in front of the school. There were at least 250 people there, members and nonmembers alike. There was also a news crew there, with a reporter and everything. They interviewed a few of the members there, and talked about the church and what we were doing. It was SUCH a good publicity boost for the church. I was happy to be a part of it. I have also been very busy with training Elder Ackley and doing the District Leader stuff. Everything has been going really well lately, I can only hope that things will continue to improve. Love you all!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter everyone! I hope it was wonderful for all of you. I know it was for me. We had such and amazing easter service on Sunday. We had many lessons on the Atonement and the resurrection of Christ. The speakers in Sacrament meeting also did a wonderful job. They read from Luke 24 and other New Testament stories of Christ and His resurrection. What a blessing it is to know that Christ lives today, and that because He lives, we will all live after death as well. One of the speakers yesterday spoke about how a mother was not allowed to use the word "Easter" in her child's school class. I was astounded by how much the world has been turning away from God and Jesus Christ. I know that I for one, "am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth." (Romans 1:16) I hope we can all always remember why we are here, and who is truly responsible for all of our happiness and hope, even the Lord Jesus Christ. I have also been having a wonderful time training my new greenie! His name is Elder Ackley and he is from Gilbert Arizona. He has a powerful desire to serve and has already taught me so much. I still can't believe that I am training a new missionary, I still feel like I was just in his shoes a few weeks ago. How the time flies. I love you all and hope the Lord is abundantly blessing you!

A Letter from President Martin

Dear Sister Crow,

I am pleased to let you know that your son, Elder Garrett Hunsaker, has been called to serve as a Trainer. This calling comes because of faithfulness and dedication to the work.

To train a new missionary is one of the most important responsibilities in any mission. Our future success as a mission depends on how well the trainers prepare our new missionaries. Your son has now been entrusted with that important responsibility.

Our trainers are asked to train through personal example, by teaching obedience to the mission rules and standards, and by following the outlined daily study program. This requires love, patience, kindness, and an understanding of the benefit of dedicated service to the Lord.

Thank you for the part you have played in helping him qualify for this opportunity.

Sincerely,

Jerald L. Martin
President

Bringing About the Lord's Great and Eternal Purposes

This week has been fantastic! I had a baptism on Saturday! It was soooo amazing. I had been teaching this woman in Ridgecrest for almost Seven months, and she was finally baptized on Saturday. I was asked to speak at the baptism, and while I did I couldn't help but cry because the immense joy that I felt. After the ordinance, I talked to her and asked her how she felt. At first she said "A little overwhelmed." I said, "I hope it's a good overwhelmed." When I said that, she paused, and began to get emotional as she said "I feel wonderful. I really do." It really helped remind me of what missionary work is really all about. I am so grateful to my Father in heaven for giving me the opportunity to have been an instrument in His hands. I am sure this woman would have been brought unto Christ eventually; of that I have no doubt, but I got to be a part of it. That is what missionary work is all about for me. We get to be a part of bringing about the Lord's great and eternal purposes: "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." In doing so, we receive blessings and joy that can only be received in doing the will of the Father. It is an honor and a privilege to serve Him.

Also, transfers are today, and I found out that in addition to being district leader for another six weeks, I am going to be training a brand new missionary fresh from the MTC! I am now going to have two leadership callings at once. Man, I'm going to be busy. It is kind of bizarre to me that I am going to be training a new missionary now. I feel like I was just in his shoes a few days ago. The time sure flies. Anyway, I am very excited to be able to train him and help him become the missionary he is going to be for the rest of his mission. I don't know anything about him yet, I get to meet him Tuesday! I'm sure he will be a great guy.

As we approach this easter Sunday, I hope we can all remember what it is really about. Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, rose from the dead so that we could also do so when we pass on. He was lifted up unto death so we could be lifted up unto life. I am so grateful to him for doing that for us, for me. It means more than I know how to express. I love you all and hope you have an amazing week!

An Ensign to the Nations

I hope everyone enjoyed conference! I know I did. I learned so much. My favorite talk was Elder Holland's (although I am a bit biased, as most of you know...). It made me feel so grateful for the fact that we have apostles and prophets in our day, that literally speak for God, and not for themselves. I know that those men really are inspired of the Lord, and that President Monson really is the Lord's mouthpiece today. I was touched when Elder Holland said that President Monson was ordained an Apostle at the age of 36, and that his family has had to give him as a full time servant of the Lord for over fifty years, ever since his kids were little. Wow, what a sacrifice. I am so grateful to them for giving their father and husband to us, and the Lord. He has blessed the lives of tens of millions, myself included. What a blessing it is to have him as the Lord's prophet today. I also really enjoyed President Uchtdorf's talk in priesthood session. He talked about how many priesthood holders are living beneath their potential and could using their priesthood for so much more than just for emergencies. I loved when he said: "If you had bought the most powerful computer in the world, would you merely leave it on your desk as a keepsake? Yes, it might look impressive to others, but until you actually hit the POWER button, you would be wasting such an amazing, powerful blessing." That really put it in perspective for me. I hope I can do better at using the priesthood in my own life, so I can better bless the lives of others. I would encourage you all to do what Elder Holland spoke so movingly about yesterday, ponder for a moment just how amazing general conference is. As we receive the conference Ensign and have the talks all posted on lds.org, go through the talks and find "Your personal epistle." It you haven't found it already, you still can. I bear witness that those men that we the opportunity of hearing this last weekend really are the Lord's messengers today. I know God lives, that He cares about us, loves us, and fights for us every day so we can be happy. I am so grateful to a part of this wonderful work, to shout a testimony of love, and a warning, as an Ensign to the nations. Love you!

Bring a Question to Conference

This week was kind of a slower one... Probably due to spring break and such. Most people weren't home, and we had a lot of cancellations. That's okay though, because I know the work will pick up again soon--it always does. We have a bunch of people we are teaching, but unfortunately, most of them aren't progressing yet. Something cool happened on Saturday though: The man that I baptized in Ridgecrest right before I came to Palmdale married the woman who refferred him! Kind of unexpected, but I'm really happy for them. I also found out that a woman that I taught for seven months in Ridgecrest is finally getting baptized in a few weeks! I'm going to ask President Martin if I can go to the baptism in Ridgecrest. I may not be able to go, but if not I'm sure Elder Bennett will send pictures. I'm also really excited for general conference this weekend! Something I have done that has made conference more meaningful for me is to bring a question to conference. Write it down, and then listen for the answer. I promise you, that if you really pay attention to the words spoken by the speakers, something that one of them says, will be the answer to your question. Try it! Love you guys!

Testimony for Those Who May Feel Alone or Discouraged

Today, I just wanted to use this week to bear my testimony to you all. I know that many of us are struggling right now, due to many different circumstances in our various lives. I have also been struggling as well. Many of the people we are teaching aren't progressing, aren't coming to church, or are canceling on us every week. We all have different trials in life, many of which seem incredibly difficult to bear. Many times when we are facing these trials, we feel alone, or worthless, or helpless. I know that the gospel is the answer to these trials. I testify, with all the surety of my heart, that we do have a savior. Namely, Jesus Christ. He lives, right now, at this very moment. He cares about us, He worries about us, and He weeps for us when we are struggling. I know that Jesus Christ was born through the power of the Holy Ghost of Mary, thousands of years ago. He was raised, and taught by His Father in heaven, so He could carry the burden of our salvation. He was the perfect example for us. Everything He did, He did for others. Never once did He think a selfish thought. Even though eventually all of the people He was fighting so hard to save would turn on Him in the end, He never gave up on them, not once. I know that He atoned, not just for our sins, but for our imperfections, our sicknesses, and our mistakes. Every hard time or difficult trial we have ever gone through, He felt personally. I believe He did this act person by person, on a very personal and individual basis for us. He didn't just suffer for all liars, thieves and murderers all at once. There are no blessings, baptisms, or any other priesthood ordinances done for groups. I don't believe the Atonement was performed for groups either. Think of the garden of Gethsemane as a temple, the temple of Gethsemane. Kind of like how we take names through the temples, Christ took our names through the temple of Gethsemane. One by one, person by person. That means, at some time during that brutal experience, Christ was thinking of you. your life, your pains, your heartaches. You. He atoned for you, and because He did, we have the ability to conquer anything life can throw at us. We just have to turn to Him, the one who made it all possible, our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. His infinite and eternal Atonement has the power to give us strength to do anything that is expedient in Him. I know that the fullness of the Gospel was restored to earth, through the prophet Joseph Smith. We now have had restored to us all of the precious truths that were once lost. I know that this is the very church that Christ Himself once established upon the earth over two thousand years ago. This is it. I know it. I learned this for myself, independently of any other person. It wasn't easy. Many nights I cried myself to sleep, because of confusion and loneliness, and just being unsure and full of doubts. It took a while, but God did answer my prayers. It has now never been more obvious to me. God is everywhere, in everything good, and always with us, especially in our darkest hours. It is never too late for anyone to ask for His help with anything. He will always be there. Even if we give up on Him, He never gives up on us. I know that one day we will see our Father in heaven again, as well as our Savior, Jesus Christ. nothing will shock us more than how familiar their faces are to us. They will embrace us, shower us with tears, and say "Welcome home, I missed you." I know that day will come, however, I will not know any better then than I do now, that they live. They love us, and that they are fighting to bring us home. Of this, I earnestly testify, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

First Week in Palmdale

Greetings from Palmdale everyone! It's so weird being in a new place. I'm so used to being out in the middle of nowhere that I'm not used to being in civilization anymore. Now I hear sirens and cars honking all the time, and see so many people walking around everywhere... I am not used to that anymore... Everything seems so huge and loud. I'm sure I'll get used to it quickly though. My new companion is named Elder Smith, he is a great missionary who is a really hard worker. It turns out, we are also distantly related! Abraham Hunsaker is both of our great, great, great, great grandfathers. Small world huh. We have had many great experiences this week. We've also had some crazy ones, but I guess that's just how the mission goes. This next week I'm going to spending three days in Santa Clarita getting leadership training for seven hours a day. So, twenty one hours of training... Wow, that's going to be long. I'm sure I will get so many great things out of it though. I'll be sure to let you all know how that goes next week. We have three baptisms coming up on April the ninth! We are really excited for that.

I already have a crazy story from being out here. We stopped by a member who has a few nonmember roommates. One of them is a guy with schizophrenia. When went over there, he hadn't taken any of his medication, and he had also been smoking weed. Yeah, not a good combination. He was basically freaking out from the moment we walked in. He was yelling and screaming about how God had possessed his body and that he could "Feel our aura of goodness." He kept grabbing me and shaking me too. Pretty much every other word he said was profanity. He started to say how he wanted to punch us so that he could beat some some of the spirit out of us... I was kind of fearing for my life at this point. The other two roommates had to restrain him while we ran for our lives. Yeah, it was intense. Elder Smith and I were so freaked out afterwards we drove off at like ninety miles an hour, then we just pulled over and sat in the car for like half an hour until we calmed down.

We are excited for general conference in a few weeks. Something I have started doing for general conference that has really made a difference for me, is thinking of or writing down a question (or questions) that have been on my mind lately. If you pay attention to the speakers in general conference, something somebody will say will always give an answer to your question. Whether it be directly addressed in one of the talks, or given to you by the spirit, the answer will come. You just have to be listening for it. I have received answers to some of my deepest questions by doing this, and I know that you will too if you try it. I love you all so much and I thank you again for all of you love and support. It means so much to me. I promise I will continue to work hard and do my best to bring many people the joy of the gospel. Love you!

Palmdale District Leader!

I don't have much time to write today, I'm getting transferred to Palmdale! Palmdale is a bigger city in the Desert. I'm also going to be the new district leader of the Palmdale district! I'm pretty nervous, but I'm going to do my best, and I know the Lord will make up for my imperfections. Saying goodbye was so hard yesterday. In fact, it was without a doubt one of the hardest days of my mission so far. I have come to love the people here so much, it almost shocks me. It also shocked me how much they have come to love me even though I have only been here for seven and a half months. I bore my testimony and told everyone I was leaving, then people after me got up and bore theirs about me. Many cried and said that I had made such an impact on their life. It was such a blessing for me to see the fruits of my labors. I took a ton of pictures of people I have been teaching here when I said goodbye to them, and I'll send a bunch of them your way next week.

The Book of Mormon as the Foundation of Your Testimony of the Gospel

We had a baptism on Thursday!!! The spirit was so strong there. The man who we baptized was referred by a woman who he is now engaged to! She spoke about Baptism at the service, and at the end she said to him. "When I asked you to take the discussions to find out more about what I believed, I never thought you would join. I'm so proud of you." It was such a great experience. It was one of those moments where I felt like I was really doing my job. I am so grateful that the Lord led us to him, and prepared him for us so that he could make the commitment to be baptized. We have three more people who we are planning to baptize in the near future as well. I just want you all to know that I know with all of my heart, that this is the Lord's church. This is the exact same church that Christ Himself set up while He was on the earth over 2000 years ago. I know this because of the Book of Mormon. I have read it, and prayed about it. Without a doubt that book is the word of God. It has brought untold peace and happiness into my life. Every time I read it, I get the same feeling of peace and the spiritual reassurance that everything will be okay. That Book should be the foundation of all of our testimonies, because it can literally serve as a shield against anything the adversary can throw at us. If your testimony of the church is based on something else, like "Well, my family goes to church, so I guess I'll too." Or even if you believe the church is true because you love the bishop and you believe he is an inspired man, what happens when you are living on your own and your family isn't going to church with you anymore? What happens when the bishop gets released and a new one is called who you don't like as much? The foundation of your testimony will be shaken. However, if your testimony is based on the Book of Mormon, then no matter what happens, if somebody offends you, if your bishop were released, if Satan himself threw everything in his cruel arsenal at you, you could still say "I know that the Book of Mormon is true, so it doesn't matter what anyone else says or what else happens. That Book is true." Elder Holland said that the Book of Mormon could be considered "'A stone of stumbling... A rock of offense...' A barrier, in the path of one who wishes not to believe in this work." If the foundation of your testimony is the Book of Mormon, then your foundation will always stand, even if the rest of your house has been blown over and burned up by the fiery darts of the adversary. I know this to be true. Love you all!