The Time is Here

Dear family and friends,

This week was pretty good. I went on a couple of exchanges and we taught a few lessons. It's hard to believe that this is the last email I'll be writing to everyone. Next time I talk to my family it'll be in person at the airport. Crazy! It is absolutely insane that I have a mere 8 days left.   Only 5 of those days I'll be out proselyting the entire day. It's unreal. Anyway, this week I went in an exchange with Elders Chatfield and Jordan in their area while Elder Mann went with Elder Ojala to ours. That actually went fairly well. We went and visited this guy named Norvall who just moved in a few days before and is solid! His wife isn't a member, but she has been to church several times, has taken all the missionary lessons except one, and asked us when she could be baptized. It was awesome! Haha! I wish our area would have people like that move into the ward. It would be nice. We also had a lesson with a kid named Hunter. He's probably 20 or so, and is the only member in his family. He's a recent convert and is talking to his family about the gospel. Apparently they had the sister missionaries that cover his family over for dinner the same night we taught Hunter. He says he thinks that the rest of his family will get baptized within the next year or so. He loves the church so much!

The next day Elder Ojala and I got back together and we did a few things in preparation for me to go home. That was pretty good! Not much that was too exciting though. I did get my flight plans, so that was crazy. I'll be landing at Salt Lake International at 10:20. Elder Karlinsey and I have the exact same flight home, so it'll be fun to be with him on the way home! We'll be reunited with our families simultaneously! I don't know what the current plans for that day are, but I'm going to need some new garments and new clothes. I've gone up an entire shirt size and two pant sizes... So hopefully we can go clothes shopping mom and dad!

Now for a basic overview of the past two years. My mission has meant the world to me. It has been the hardest two years of my entire life.

I served in five areas with 8 companions. Four of those companions I was with for 4 1/2 months. My first area was in downtown Mesa in the Cornerstone ward. I got my trainer, Elder Parker who I actually went to lunch with this week! We did some good work there. We taught Francine at least twice a week and often three times. She loved the church, but her parents wouldn't let her be baptized. Finally, 20 months later they allowed it and Francine got baptized this June! It was amazing to go to her baptism with the Elder that replaced me in that area, Elder Karlinsey. I made a lot of friends in that area amongst the missionaries. There were a lot of funny experiences in that apartment with Elders Foulger and Anderson! We had our pet scorpion, Dwayne!  That thing was a lot of fun! Haha! Oh man, stories that people would hardly believe took place in #1197 of the Moorings!

Transfer news came and told it me I would be heading to the Meridian Ward in Apache Junction with Elder Bakaitis! Good ol' AJ! Land of homelessness, conspiracy theorists, meth heads, "bicyclists", cigarette smokers, and drag queens! I don't know that I've ever been in a place with such strange people! The "People of Walmart" video on YouTube, could literally have been filmed in its entirety in the Apache Junction Walmart. It was an amazing experience to be out there though. The people are hilarious to watch, although many of their lives are quite sad. This area is where I truly learned to have compassion for others. "And of some have compassion, making a difference." - Jude 1:22. I can't tell you how many people I met that I thought were lost causes from the beginning. As I served and loved those people that were struggling through life with their poverty and drug addictions I learned to feel a love I hadn't felt before. Elder Sweeten was my second companion in the Meridian Ward. He taught me how to have even more compassion. He was probably my favorite companion.

He was exactly who I needed at the time I was out there. I've never met a man so loving and charitable! Together we had 8 baptisms in the three transfers we were together! It was an amazing time out there full of success! Exactly what I needed at that time! Six months later transfer news came and I was told I'd be going to one of the furthest points of the mission, Globe, AZ!

Getting to the Apache zone was amazing. This was probably my favorite area and zone! No sisters allowed! We could do whatever we wanted, and we did! Haha! There are 12 Elders in the zone, so we called ourselves the quorum of the twelve Apaches. My companion was Elder Jencks who ties with Elder Sweeten for favorite companion award. He definitely is pretty nerdy, but he's a person who likes to have fun. We worked hard there! Probably harder than I've worked at any other point on my mission. We got there with a blank area book. We had one investigator to work with who wasn't really progressing. We found at least 10 investigators every month! It was amazing. Globe was a hard area because while we found lots of people, it took a long time for them to progress. We did baptize Destiny and Patricia while I was there, but I found out that several others we worked with were baptized in the following transfers. Elder Jencks and I were companions for three transfers and they flew by! It was fantastic!  Elder Jencks went home to Colorado and I got Elder Welch from Farmington, Utah! He actually lives in the stake bordering mine. It was fun to be with someone who had a lot of mutual friends. We had a great time together the first three weeks of our companionship, but then the hardest trial of my mission began. I got really sick. I began to get severe chronic headaches that would last for hours on end, subside for a few hours, and then come right back. We're talking 20 hours of headache every single day of the week. I got transferred at the end of that transfer with Elder Welch to Elder Murray in the Crescent, Hampton, and Patterson wards!

Elder Murray was one of the most patient companions I have had my entire mission. My headaches got worse than ever before right when I became his companion and I was sleeping a lot. This was his last transfer too, so I really felt bad. This is when all the medical testing began. I got a CT Scan, an MRI, an MRA, an EEG, went to the psychologist to make sure it was depression causing the headaches, had blood tests run for liver, kidney, thyroid, protein levels, and about 12 other things.  I tried several medications, went to a neurologist, and talked to dozens of other medical professionals only to learn that there was nothing visibly wrong. I finally went to a chiropractor about a month and a half ago and was told my back was completely messed up and that that was a possibility.  I am a medical mystery. I'm lucky the mission department allowed me to stay on my mission to the end. Elder Murray taught me more about compassion and empathy in those six weeks than I think I had learned about it my whole mission. That guy was amazing. He always was checking on me and making sure I was okay and feeling as well as I could feel.

I got Elder Edwards after that and I was still sick. We had a lot of good laughs together. I've never had a companion that I could play off of so well. And he could play off of me! It was a lot of fun. We honestly were probably one of the funniest companionships this mission has ever had. We had President Jenkins in stitches multiple times and Sister Jenkins rolling her eyes over and over again! It was an amazing time together! We would go around at the Easter pageant saying hi to people and other missionaries and we had made it a goal to make as many people as possible laugh. The apartment we were in was hilarious too!  We had Elders Shirley and Renel who were just hilarious to tease.  Elder Shirley was a total germaphobe which was a lot of fun to use to our advantage. We would do things like take videos of us sneezing on his pillow with his iPad so that when he saw it he would freak out and wash all of his bedding. And then there was Elder Renel, from France…  Holy smokes... He was an easy target. You could tell him anything and he would believe it. Hahaha! I mean anything! We once even convinced him that his girlfriend is ugly. She's beautiful by the way, just for the record. But seriously! We talked about it for an hour and eventually he said, and I quote! "Yah, I guess she is kind of ugly."  Hahaha oh man! I should probably feel bad about it, but I don't. He just was a lot of fun! That was a good apartment!

Transfer news came once again and I was going to be with Elder Ojala in the Red Mountain and Preston wards.  I have never been in such a dead area. We've been through all the lists twice now and have almost nothing going on. Finally a few weeks ago we picked up 7 new investigators, which was amazing! We've had a lot of fun together these last three transfers. We have a baptism his Saturday which is going to be amazing. I'll be able to say I've baptized someone in every area I've served in. I'm so glad that I've been able to serve in the areas I have. The wards here are amazing and the people are very nice. I'm sad to be leaving them. Not much has really happened here that's been all that exciting. We've had a few successes, but success in this area definitely isn't defined by the numbers. It's defined by your diligence. It's hard to remain diligent in an area like this, but I can honestly say that I've done my best.

I've given it my all.

My mission experience has been absolutely amazing. It's been a looooooooong two years, but I can hardly believe it's come to an end. I've learned so many things on my mission, both temporal and spiritual. I know how to be organized and how to clean without being told. I have learned how to be a self-starter. I've learned how to talk to people and have refined my wit, so now I can actually appear to be funny to people. I know how to braid a bull whip, use a lathe, do laminate flooring, paint walls, put together cabinets, replace a car bumper, make a knife, make earrings, and how to exercise and diet correctly. I've been able to learn patience in suffering, and perseverance in times of trial. My testimony has been strengthened one hundred fold! I know that Jesus is the Living Christ. I know he atoned for my sins. I know that through his atonement, I can be redeemed, strengthened, and healed. I know the Lord speaks to man through prophets in these latter days. "Surely the Lord God doeth nothing save it be through his servants the prophets." My testimony has been strengthened into a conversion. I am converted to Christ and His gospel. My mission is coming to a close, and I have to say bye to Mesa. I have grown to love this place. I've put my blood, a lot of sweat, and my tears into my mission. But this isn't the end of my missionary work. David O. McKay said every member a missionary! Nephi said, and I've recited nearly every day of my mission, "Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of him to declare his word among his people, that they might have ever lasting life." The Lord said to Nephi, and I certainly hope he would say to me, "Blessed art thou, Elder Mullins, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word which I have given unto thee, unto this people. And thou has not feared them, and hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will and to keep my commandments. And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless thee forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works." I share the departing words of Timothy. He said it better than I ever could. "For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith."

Love,

Elder Mullins

The following pictures are at the beginning of my mission and the end.  I've grown spiritually and physically.  The first one is of Elders Anderson, Foulgers, me, and Elder Parker.  

Elder Parker was my first companion

 The second one is of me, Elder Parker, and Elder Karlinsey at the end of my mission.