More yucky ducky

At La Jolla

Ry got really excited about these seals

"Cheers to the duckies!" 

This is round 2 of eating aborted ducks...gross. 

He said he'll eat one with me when we go back to visit in August. 

I said, "Umm..NO SHANKS!"

Das nasty

Hey everyone!

How's it going!? Things have been really good here! Elder Linnemeyer and I have been working our bums gettin people to do things to progress. Sometimes it's so difficult to have someone that you're teaching and you do sooo much on your part but they do nothing on their part but we've got some investigators that are really searching and really wanting to know! It's amazing to see the power that the Spirit has in the conversion of people. It really isn't us missionaries that do the converting it's the Spirit, it's just a tender mercy from the Lord that we are able to be a mouthpiece and to witness true conversion take place.

We had a baptism that we went to and I spoke in the intermediate about the similar topic of how we as children of our Loving Heavenly Father witness tender mercies from Him each and every day. They really are all around us. Our bodies and health, nature, our family, having work, waking up out of a bed each morning, our families, the opportunity to love and to be loved....whatever it may be we are all witnesses of the work of God, meaning we are all witnesses of Him each and every day and it's those tender mercies that keep us going. For anyone who is struggling, for anyone who is lost or in despair just stop.......listen.....watch.....smell.....touch......taste...... this life is to be enjoyed...not endured. In the beginning we knew it would not be easy. We knew we were going into a hostile environment where we would be tempted, where we would be tried, a place where heartache would be present but we had faith to come here and that's the faith we need to make it through. Just take a second out of the day and look around it's amazing how present God really is and how much He really does love us! It makes sense that a Father would want His children to succeed and so He's given us all the tools necessary for our journey back home. Today we are soooo blessed to have the same church that Jesus Christ Himself established on the earth restored and re-established in it's fullness. We are soooo blessed to have that same Priesthood authority that He gave to His apostles, the same authority that all the Prophets have had. And we are soooo blessed to have a living-day prophet leading and guiding us today. It just doesn't make sense to me that God would call Prophets and Apostles in the times before, during, and a little after Christ and not call Prophets and Apostles when we needed them the most. The world is the worst it's ever seen and oh how we need men called of God to be mouthpieces for Him and to direct us and gives us the safety and security that we need. The Heavens really are opened and God really is still there. A man came up to me a few days ago and asked me "how can you possibly believe in miracles?" and I told him "how can you possibly not? just look around and tell me you don't see any miracles"......

"Be still, and know that I am God." - Psalms 46:10

If we just take a few and be still we will truly know the reality of God and all the tender mercies that we have in our lives....

As you all being my tender mercies I am grateful to have your love and your support! I love you all and pray for the best to ya! Have a good week!!!

Much love,

Elder Ryan Lawter

Hows it goin!?

These pictures are from basketball in the ghetto last pday!

"Chris Farley catchin some rays..haha doesnt he look like Chris Farley! He's freakin hilarious too..."

"Swatted again!!! The kid in the gray shot it and I just smacked the crap outta it...not in my house...."

***


Another day another dollar here...things are going pretty

well actually! It just seems to be clicking right now. Everything seems to

be clicking so I'm hoping to keep this momentum up and finish this rat race

off strong! Just not a lot of time. President Donaldson was telling us a

story that's kind of similar. He was telling us that he was in a meeting

before his mission with Elder Ballard and they obviously were talking about

missionary work and something that Elder Ballard said that always stood out to

him was that he told them that "We need to give our ultimate best because we

just don't have that much time." Then he said that the same night or the

next night one of the two that his grandson was killed in a motorcycle

accident if I can remember right.... The time really is short and we don't

know how many days we have left...we have no control over that, but what we

do have control over is what we do with those days that are given to us. In

the words of a wise sense from Kung Fu Panda " Yesterday is history,

tomorrow is a mystery, but the present is a gift...that's why it's called a

present." Christ himself said that 'I must work the work of my Father while

it is still day...because the night cometh where no man can work." It's

something that I think we take for granted everyday is the time that we've

been given. And if we better realize those blessings and opportunities that

cross our path it would be a lot harder to let our days just slip away.

Sometimes we have days that we wish never would've come....Sometimes our

days are filled with more things than we can carry...But always that day

will end and a new day will come but it's through the trial of our faith

that our faith will grow and with our faith growing will come a better

realization that our days that we have are blessings and it's in those days

that we will receive many more. Have an awesome week and we'll talk to ya

next week!

Love,

E.L.

Let it snow, let it snow...NO!!!

Ryan and his BFF Elder Little

San Diego Temple

Cute widdle chubby bunnies

Hey Snowbirds!

Sounds like you all need a vacation to somewhere sunny.... sorry I can't help you there...don't really know where to point you... How's everybody been doing!? Things here really couldn't get any better but I know that they are so that's a good feelin! I just can't believe all the miracles that are goin down here Bonita....We've got people with dates to be baptized, people coming to church, new miracle investigators, all of our members are inviting their friends and that's been the real drive of all these miracles here.... probably 3/4 of the solid people that we're teaching right now are member referrals so that just goes to show you how crucial it is for everyone to work in the kingdom.... there's no way that we could do any of this without each other and things are just exploding now because we've put in that long term vision of the work and have been working with these members ever since I've got here...so can I take credit for any of this??? No but how blessed I am from Heavenly Father to be a part of it! When I got here things were...well actually they weren't ha nothing was going on but the miracles that God has been placing here is just unimaginable! How I love the work of the Lord!

We've actually this past week have had 3 members of the 70 come through here that I've met that's 4% of em! Only 96% more to go at least in the 1st quorum but Elder David Evans, Elder Lance Wickman, and Elder Robert Oaks came here and I had once again the BLESSING to here from 3 Special Witnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ and how sweet it is to hear in person the words of men called of God. I just got the warmest feeling when I was listening a testimony that these men really are inspired just as the Prophets, the apostles, and the quorum of the 70 of old as when Christ was on the earth. The Gospel has truly be restored in its fullness and that's the message that we have to share is that it is here and it is ready to bless peoples live if they will just listen. Christ said many times during his mortal ministry "If any man have ears to hear, let him hear." Pretty much meaning you better pay attention dummy because this is important! ha But that's whom we seek out the people that will "Harden not their hearts," all just listen it's really not that hard to do but people are so wrapped up in themselves and in the things of the world that they do not have "ears to hear." It's my pray that we all open not only our ears to hear but as well our hearts to feel and only when that happens is when the Spirit of the Lord will testify of the divine reality of this gospel. "Ask and it shall be given you;seek and ye shall find;knock and it shall be opened unto you." It's the invitation to us all and how blessed we will be if we accept it!

Much love,

Elder Ryan Lawter

Howdy Ho!

Who the heck knows

Hello!

How's everyone doing? Sounds like the weather has got the best of ya! Well

it's getting the best of me here to! Sunburns kinda hurt sometimes! But

things are going really good here! Picked up a new companion last week! His

name is Elder Linnemeyer and he's from...wait for it.... San Antonio!!! And

guess who his favorite basketball team is!!! BOO-YAH!!!! Da Spurs!!!! So you

could say it was love at first sight! It's been going pretty good with us we

get along really good! I've been a pretty fortunate companion wise on my

mission so he falls right in with most of them... Things are going pretty

good here I think that we're going to go play basketball right now so I've

got to make this thing a little short because I'm being rushed to get off!

But other than that there's not really a whole lot of news going on just

same old same old. Last week was kind of a tough week but that means that

this week is just going to be that much better so I hope for the same to all

of you. have a good week and take care of yourselves and know I love you

all!!!

in the word of Bob... One love,

Elder Lawter

This kid just got his call to Chile! 

He went to a Taco Shop that was based on Nacho Libre! Ryan's dream come true... 

Playing Wiffeball at Petco Park! 

The mom loved Ryan's goofy...I mean stylish glasses!

Buenas!!

Como estan ustedes!
So I just got off the phone with the zone leaders and it looks like I'm
going to be staying here another transfer!!! I'm soooo stoked for that!!!
Unfortunately my compo is leaving but things are doin way sick here! Last
week was another just boss week added 4 more investigators had some peeps at
church people are getting closer and closer to baptism, Enrique (remember
the guy that I was talking about last week?) he's planning on getting
baptized in the middle of next month but the crummy thing is that he's
moving back to Mexico next month because there's a preacher he said that
trying to steal his property and take his stuff in his other house
in Mexico...So he's planning on moving back but...we're planning a getting
him baptized and transferring his records to the ward boundaries where he
will be moving to ha...God always provides a way and always provides safety
for the soul. Things are just happening and I hope I finish my mission
here...maybe a little bit of butt kissing and convincing and that dream
might come true but it's all in His hands so if I do GREAT and if I don't
then it is what it is. Speaking of the Lord's timing I was reading President
Uchtdorf's recent talk call "Of Things That Matter Most." Just like all of
President Uchtdorf's talks they stick out to me but this part stuck out to
me the most he said, "One of the characteristics of modern life seems to be
that we are moving at an ever-increasing rate, regardless of turbulence or
obstacles. Let’s be honest; it’s rather easy to be busy. We all can think up
a list of tasks that will overwhelm our schedules. Some might even think
that their self-worth depends on the length of their to-do list. They flood
the open spaces in their time with lists of meetings and minutia—even during
times of stress and fatigue. Because they unnecessarily complicate their
lives, they often feel increased frustration, diminished joy, and too little
sense of meaning in their lives. It is said that any virtue when taken to an
extreme can become a vice. Over scheduling our days would certainly qualify
for this. There comes a point where milestones can become millstones and
ambitions, albatrosses around our necks. The wise understand and apply the
lessons of tree rings and air turbulence. They resist the temptation to get
caught up in the frantic rush of everyday life. They follow the advice
“There is more to life than increasing its speed.”  *In short, they focus on
the things that matter most." *
So what is it that truly matters most to us? If we let that question really
sink in and think about it.... it's evident it's; our family, it's our
faith, it's those loves of our lives that we literally couldn't live
without. So why is it sometimes that those things and those precious people
that we love so much take a back seat to other things which are of less
importance if indeed these things truly matter the most to us. If things
that bother us the most don't involve the things that matter to us the most
then they really don't matter. It's the things of eternal that we're
seaching for and the people in our lives that we're going there with. It's
all about the love folks and "that's all I have to say about that."
One Love y'all talk to ya next week,
Love,
Elder Ryan Lawter

Howdy hey y'all!

So once again here we are another week.... Last week was a really good week for Elder Harper and myself we saw a lot of people that pretty much fell of the face of the earth on us and we added 6 new investigators and for our area that's huge! I'm pretty sure that's the most we've added in a week since I've been here. So things are startin to happen.... It's been a long time since this areas been up and runnin and I just hope that I don't get transferred next week just as soon as it does but if I do it's nothin new...the story of my mission but I guess it's all in the Lord's plans and time maybe I'm just suppose to find em' and get em' goin...either way if it's the Lord's plan I'm down...can't really argue with Him right? But there is one story that actually happened yesterday that really struck me... Last week we got in contact with a man named Enrique (Iglesias...haha I wish) but yesterday was actually the 1st sit down lesson that we've had with him and there has been just a hand full of times that I've felt the spirit that strong like I did in our lesson with Enrique. Enrique kind of is your stereotypical Mexican he works a cleaning job, lives in an apartment with 3 other Mexican dudes, he's just everything Mexicany (new word I just made up) goin for him. That's what you see on the outside and to be honest that's all I really saw of the Mexican culture before my mission... A person exactly like Enrique was the 1st thing that always popped into my head when I thought of a Mexican before my mission but just like everyone... everyone has their own story to tell and a heart inside that's the same as everyone elses no matter the look on the outside. But the more we got to know this man the sadder and sadder it got. We learned that his wife left him with his 2 kids just some random day he knows where they are and he told us that that's pretty much the only reason why he works is to send his paycheck to his kids to support them.... he told us a bunch of other sad things but the saddest to me was that he's at the point right now that he questions if God even exists anymore... He told us that he had a teacher for 5 years that told him pretty much everyday and tried to prove to him that there was no God and chasing after vain hopes that He really exists is pointless and a waste of time. It's weird because 99.999999999% of the people that I've taught on my mission have a die-hard belief in God and His son Jesus Christ and to teach someone who questions that isn't really the easiest thing. So the more we talk I asked him so what do you want to believe? and he paused for a second....started to tear up and said I want to believe. and he told us that that's why he let us in...he said I've been lost for too long now...and now's the time to get on the path and be a believer. There are no coincidences he said and that if there is a God I know that he sent you two to me. So we started to talk more and I was shaking as I was baring just pure testimony to him of the reality and deity of God our Eternal Father and His plan for us to come back home to him because the Spirit was sooo strong and testifying right to me. To have different beliefs in religion is one thing but to not believe in God that's one of the saddest things anyone has ever told. How grateful we should be to have a testimony of our Father in Heaven and His Son Jesus Christ and that they live! Mormon, Catholic, Baptist, Methodist whatever religion people believe it the greatest testimony that we all have and all share is of our Father in Heaven. So with Enrique we introduced him to the Book of Mormon explaining to him that it is a sacred and divine scripture that testifies that Jesus is the Christ and God is the Father of us all and that he would draw near to them by diligently studying and praying and he told us that he believes that this is the way...he told us that he's never read a book in his life before but that this he will read and pay so close attention to, to gain a sure testimony of these things. "Oh sweet the joy this sentence gives...I know that my Redeemer lives." It's my pray that all His children may come unto Him and know and by praying directly to him, go to Church, and studying the scriptures we may know!

Love you all have a great week!!!! Talk at ya next week!!

Much love!

Elder Ryan Lawter

Happy 2011!

Happy New Years!!!!

What a good year it's gonna be this year! It just seems like yesterday we were just stepping into 2010 but here we go 2011...everyone have their new years resolutions and goals that they're working towards this year...I know that I've got mine!!!! So for new years eve we didn't do much. We were suppose to be in by night fall then we suppose to weekly plan that night and what weekly planning is, is we sit down for maybe 2-3 hours and discuss in our companionship what we need to get done, accomplished, planning for our investigators in what we feel inspired to teach them from their needs and things like that...so it definitely wasn't something that we wanted to be doing on new years eve but we got it done popped open some champagne and called it a night....just kidding bout the champagne part...I'll probably get in trouble from that one if President looks at my blog which I know these emails go up on...but yeah we were party animals this year plan then in bed by 10:30 whoopie!!!! But 2010's been a fun year definitely been a year of a lot of up's and for sure a lot of downs but I think I've come out of them stronger and with more experience from them...You definitely learn a lot from trials and struggles and looking back they've all been worth it so looking forward let's make the best of this year and not waste a minute that the Lord's given us cuz it's a minute that we'll never get back and before you know it the months over then the year....

Take care everyone love you soo much and have a good week!!!

Love,

Elder Lawter

"2011! We are party animals..right after this picture, we went to bed."

"I don't know what the heck Vivian's mom was doing, haha" 

After an old missionary's wedding in San Diego (Todd Ulrich) 

"My big white friend..."

"...and my two little brown friends...santa's little elves" 

"This was on the Quintero's on Christmas. We played pictionary! It was solid..." 

"At the MCRD...we don't work there anymore since the time changed for the new year."

"President Bennett at the MCRD...he has like a billion war stories, they're pretty sick..."

"The Griffith's from Missouri...they love me...Missouri lovin"

"An english member that HOOKS...US..UP!!! Her names Chanhom...shes from Laotia...and she's pretty much da bomb! She's the one who we ate the ducks with.."

Dinner at the Munoz's