Stranger?

It's been seventeen months now in the mission field and I can still say that receiving mail still feels like Christmas.  Snail mail is the bee's knees in my book!  Today I received a letter from my "adopted" grandpa.  He is one of my best friends and the story of how we became such good friends is one of the greatest stories ever told, by me that is.

By now all of you are well aware that I worked at a swimming pool prior to coming on my mission.  Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning from 9:00-1:00 I was in the pool teaching swimming lessons.  While swimming lessons were going on there were a few water aerobics classes, lap swimmers, and people getting in their pool exercises.  It's like seventh heaven there!

Every day I was there to teach swim lessons there was a man that would come and do one of the water aerobic classes.  Because I am a talker and like to say "hello" to everyone and their dog, I started to talk to this elderly man that was attending water aerobics fairly regularly.  First thing I noticed was his German accent.  We talked about his days growing up in Germany, what it was like to be a member of the church there during that time, and he told me all about himself.  Each bit of information intrigued me to no end because my grandpa Nestman is from Germany. 

Awkward Turtle

This is probably the most overdue blog post in the history of overdueness.  But, the wait has been well worth it.  Trust me!

Swimming!

Boom!  That in and of itself could be my blog post.  Just that one word carries so much emotion and meaning to me.  Swimming isn't just a hobby, it is my life!  This sport changed me more than I could ever possibly try to explain, but I'm going to try to do just that here.

Once upon a time Sister Nestman was shy.  Not just shy, but mortified at the idea of talking to anyone I didn't know.  Which posed a major dilemma each time my family would move and I would have to make new friends.  Thank goodness there were some great outgoing people in my childhood, or I would have had no friends!  It took a lot for someone to get to know me and crack my shell.

Expressed in Photo's

<Phew!>  Packing and unloading is such work!  This weekend I had the sad yet happy news I was leaving Eureka to go down to Santa Rosa.  I have loved being in Eureka.  It is a part of who I am now.  Also, it was hard to hear the news that I would be leaving my companion.  But, it was the Lord's will.  On the happy side of things, Santa Rosa is a place I have wanted to serve for a while.  Right in the heart of our mission here in California.  Another exciting thing was to learn that my new companion would be Sister Kahrs.  She is someone that I have wanted to serve with for a while and I am finally getting to serve with her now. 

I'm a Helper

I've said it once, and I'm gonna say it again and again: I LOVE SERVICE!!!

Nice hat right?  It is the official "blackberry picking" hat.  The other day my companion and I helped someone in the area pick some blackberries in her yard.  In all actuality, I think she helped us more than we helped her.  My stomach has never been happier!  Once the blackberries were picked, my companion and I reaped the reward of a wonderful blackberry cobbler (mmmmm).

Okay, I promise there is a good reason I am wearing the wig and water aerobics belt.  1) Before the mission I practically lived in a pool, so it was my way of "pretending" I was there.  2) It's a wig.  You're supposed to wear them on your head.  What other option was there really?  These two items were found while cleaning out a members home.  We were moving boxes around and helping to organize things a bit.  My muscles got a good workout with all the lifting.

Now this service, is what it's all about.  This is a woman we have been teaching and sharing the gospel with.  We, as missionaries, get to go out and share the message of the gospel with others.  No matter who you are, where you're from, or what you've done in your life, the Gospel and it's teachings will bless you.  What I've noticed as I have been doing this, not only are others blessed, but I have been blessed.  This has been the general theme for all the service that I have rendered on my mission.

"1And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."

I know that as we serve others, God blesses us.  We are helping His children, our brothers and sisters.  Not only is this what He expects of us, but it is how we draw nearer to Him. 
What have you done to help someone this week?

One of the 7

You know, sometimes people just don't take a hint.  They do the same thing over and over again and never learn.  Albert Einstein defines stupidity as "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."  (A little forewarning, the next statement I am about to make may sound a bit strange and insane coming from a missionary, but it will make sense by the end.)  As I have been reading the Book of Mormon again, it has been made blatantly clear that the Nephites just didn't get it.

The Nephites fall into the same cycle over and over again.  Pride.

"1Behold, the pride of this nation, or the people of the Nephites, hath proven their destruction..."  By the end of the Book of Mormon, we see the complete destruction of the Nephite people, save it be the lone Prophet Moroni.  Their destruction was because of their pride.  All through the Bible and the Book of Mormon we can see a standard cycle: the people are obedient to the Lord; the Lord blesses them; the people begin to be prideful; they start to forget the Lord; wickedness sinks into their hearts; and then, it's time for a little humbling.

"2And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them."

We all need a little humbling from time to time.  Humility is a Christlike attribute.  Something each of us need to strive to attain.  Sadly the Nephites, and each of us, kinda forgot this.  We do this little dance/circle over and over and over again.  Obedience, blessings, pride, smack-down time by the Lord.  Ideally, all of us would just be humble all the time.  But, none of us are perfect (yet). 

Recently, I too was like the Nephites.  I needed some humbling.  As you may have noticed, my blog seems somewhat bare and picture free.  Well, in an effort to be more obedient to the Lord and all His commandments, I have gone through and deleted any and all pictures that were not taken by myself or someone I have permission to have them from.  At first, I was heartbroken that I had to get rid of all these pictures.  But the more I thought about it, the more I realized how prideful I was being.  So what if my blog would look a little plainer.  It's not the pictures that make or break the message I am here to deliver.  I was called to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored Gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end.  That is my purpose.  It's not to have the "prettiest" blog.

So here I stand (or sit I suppose), having been sufficiently humbled by the Lord.  Will it stop here?  Goodness no!  But I look forward to the humbling and the chance to draw ever nearer to my Savior and our loving Father in Heaven.

What Lies Ahead

Sometimes I wish I could just shut of my brain.  Turn it to "sleep mode" like so many of our electronic devices and not have to worry about a thing for a time.  But, much to my dismay, I haven't discovered how to do that yet.  A couple nights ago I was stuck lying awake with my brain spinning in about a hundred different directions.  The source of the chaos, a lovely little letter in the mail which contained this....

What Smells?

At the end of the day, there's nothing like going home and feeling like you have given it your all.  However, this can be ruined if you go home to a home smelling like skunk.

Gross right?!  That's how we felt.  Whether you were inside the home, ten feet in front of it, or holding your breath, you couldn't miss the stench this skunk left behind.  We instantly searched for a Lysol can or air spray of some sort, but our search was in vain.  There was no magical air freshener.  As you can imagine, getting to sleep was a little harder than usual....

While I was lying there in bed thinking (and hoping the smell would go away), I thought about judgement day.  When we are there standing before our Father in Heaven to be judged, what will it be like?  What will He say to me?  Will I be ready?  What if I'm not?  Deep thoughts for someone living in a gully that smells of skunk.  But, the skunk smell was key to these thoughts.

The more I thought about it the more I thought how each of our sins ups the stench we place upon ourselves.  The scriptures teach us that "1no unclean thing can inherit the kingdom of heaven; therefore, how can ye be saved, except ye inherit the kingdom of heaven? Therefore, ye cannot be saved in your sins."  But, I'm not clean.  I'm imperfect.  How can I be clean and ready to face my creator?  That my dear friends, is what repentance is for.

Repentance gives us that ray of light.  The promise of a brighter tomorrow.  We are able to turn away from our sins, imperfections, flaws, and shortcomings and be made whole.  The stench of sin can be wiped clean!  Clean slate ready and prepared to meet our loving, kind, all powerful, and ever merciful, Father in Heaven.  I know this is true.  I have felt the relief and peace that comes from repentance.  Try it.  Not that I'm sayin' that anyone out there smells like a skunk, but we can all become a little better.

How have you changed for the better?

My Morning Smile

Every Monday, in the Santa Rosa Mission, we have what's called Pday (or preparation day).  We are to do our cleaning, shopping, letter writing, emailing, and laundry all on this day.  This particular morning, Sister Orrock and I went next door to use the washing machine, as we usually do, and discovered something a tad out of the ordinary. 

Not the everyday sight right?  The two kids popped up and said "you're ruining it!"  Of course, we had no idea what we were ruining at the time.  But, these two aren't afraid to fill you in.  Apparently they had discovered a mouse under the sink.  I didn't check the validity of this claim, but they seemed to have everything ready.  They set up a trap to catch the alleged mouse. 

It began under the sink.  A trail of rice crispies was carefully placed from the sink over to the handy dandy empty peanut butter jar. 

Once inside the jar, the lid would be put on and the mouse would be caught!  Victory = Children! But, there was one tiny little problem, one of the members of the extermination crew had a major lack of focus.  Each time he saw us he would get up and say "hey, I I I wanna show you someting!" 

As one would guess, the sister became frustrated and unhappy about the lack of focus her brother had.  I chuckled about the whole scene for a while before it dawned on me, I bet Heavenly Father feels the same way about me!  He has this great plan that leads to eternal happiness, but I get distracted.  Things that I think, at the time, are better than His plan.  Foolish right?  Silly as it may seem, it's true.  We are all human!  We don't see the whole picture, only Heavenly Father does.

Thank goodness Heavenly Father is patient, loving, and unchanging.  This sister didn't give up on her brother.  She kept reminding him of their plan and what they had to do for it to work.  Though we may veer from God's plan at times, He is always there to help us get back on track.  He helps us regain focus and see the joyous outcome of sticking to His plan, which is eternal life. 

How has Heavenly Father helped keep you focused amongst all the distractions in life?

Superawesomefantastic Day!

Yesterday was an awesome day.  Today, via pictures, I wanted to share with you why it was such a great day.  Who doesn't like to hear about good days?  I know I do!  So, I am going to be a little prideful and tell you all about my incredible day!

Saturday, August 6th began bright and early.  No, I don't have a picture of me waking up (that's on a previous post).  We woke up extra early because it was our temple trip day.  One of the cool things about serving in Eureka is that we get to go to the Medford Oregon temple.  The not-so-cool thing, it's a four hour drive. 

Avatar: Firebending

Next up is Firebending!  (By special request of Elder Trey Williams.)  The bending style of Fire Nation. 

Firbending is the ability to control and create fire.  No reliance on outside sources of their element to bend, they can create fire using their internal heat source.  But, they can also control flames already existing.  Fire is the element of power; firebending represents energy and life.  This style is very intense, quick, and the most aggressive of all the bending arts.  Simple, direct, and powerful.

To be a successful Firbender, one must have self-restraint (or self-control), breath control, and "inner-fire" (inner-drive).  Firebending isn't merely a matter of directing the element, more controlling the element.  When mastered, this style is not only powerful, but beautiful, comforting, and creative.

What I love love love is the "inner-fire" that a Firbender has to have.  Without that inner-drive they become weak.  There are sooo many times where I find myself leaving things half done or just not done as well as they could be simply because I had no drive to do it.  On the flip side of things, when my "inner-fire" is a-glowin', you can't stop me.  I will do whatever it takes to get the job done or to become the best.

Each of us has great potential.  It's the truth.  Our potential is infinite.  Heavenly Father has given us the chance to become like Him.  Seriously!  How incredible is that?!  But, we have to have the drive to get there.  We need the drive to be obedient to God's commandments.  Drive to learn more about His church.  Drive to be Christlike people.  In essence, we need "inner-fire" to ever even dream of becoming more than what we currently are.  So, become like a Firebender.  Dig deep and build up that "inner-fire!"

Hey Wait....Where'd They Go?

Everyone in my family has played soccer at one point or another growing up.  Usually it is the first sport my parents sign us up for.  This may be because my dad is obsessed with soccer (seriously though, he watches it on the Spanish channel (he doesn't speak Spanish....)), but also because it's just plain awesome.  When my family moved from California to Utah, one of the things my parents made sure to do was to sign us up for soccer.

Game day.  You know what that means; put on the uniform, socks, shin guards, cleats, hair up, war paint, and game face.  Okay, no war paint, but the rest is true.  We loaded into the stereotypical soccer mom van and headed out.  On the way there it was the pep talk: "remember what you practiced this week."  "Doesn't matter whether you win or lose, as long as you have fun."  And all the good parent pre-game talks.  There was an addition to the regular talk.  This was "now, your soccer coach will be taking you home.  So be sure you remind him." 



I'd like to say I remember the game, but I don't.  Cut me a break, I was eight.  But, I think it went well.  After the game we high fived the other team before getting the long awaited treats!  For better treat enjoyment, we had to eat them while playing on the playground equipment.  Every child knows this.  What treat doesn't taste better as your hands touch all the play equipment? 

From the Mouth of Teenagers

Who is Heavenly Father (God)?  What is He?  How do you know if He is real or not?  These questions have troubled many great minds and the simple ones (such as mine).  Obviously, I know what my own answers would be to these questions and could write a novel about them.  But, to shake things up a tad, I asked the youth (ages 12-18) from home to answer them for me.
First question, who and what is Heavenly Father?

Ahhh! A Bird!

Back when I was in high school (sounds like something my grandpa would say....anyways) I had a special....incident occur.  Picture your usual Mormon high school friend's birthday party.  Cake, balloons, silly games, and all sorts of immature things.  After we had our cake the friend decided he would show us all his bird.  He brought the bird out and a few of us decided to hold it.  Big mistake!

Words of Wisdom from Elder Chase Jackson (departing missionary)



Elder Jackson & Elder Ram



As a young 19 year old boy, I set out on what was to become the greatest experience of my life. I entered the mission field not knowing before hand what lied ahead in my journey.  Many grand experiences were found that came with a lot of hard work and pain. If I was to know before hand all these experiences would take place, I could honestly look back and say with excitement and joy, "BRING IT ON!" I would do this all because of one man who changed the world.

Joy in Sorrow

Three years ago I was able to experience one of the hardest and greatest moments of my life.  So many torn emotions running through me. 

February 2008 I was up in the frozen tundra of the north (aka, Rexburg Idaho).  For those that don't know much about BYU-Idaho, just know that it's extremely windy and cold (okay, it's frigid).  One Friday, after a swim meet, I went to check my cell phone and found that I had missed a barrage of phone calls.  They were all from home.

Be Persistent

"Gee, Brain. What are we going to do tonight?  The same thing we do every night, Pinky. Try to take over the world."  Day after day, week after week, these 2 little rodents kept at it.  One day the world would be under Brain's control.  If there was an award for being persistent, it would go to these 2.

Being persistent is something I have either a) really gotten and beaten to a pulp or b) non-existent (or asked just once).  Certain things were easier to be persistent about, like asking my mom if I could go hang out with a friend or when dinner was.  Just ask my mom, being persistent wasn't an issue.  But, when it comes to asking our Heavenly Father, I was lacking. 

I was in the habit of asking maybe once or twice for something, but not much past that.  God loves us.  If you have gotten anything from reading my blogs, I hope it is that simple truth.  Because He loves us, He wants to hear from us.  He wants to know the desires of our hearts.  He wants us to ask Him for things.  The infamous James 1:5 says it all.  "1If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."  If we have a questions or lack "wisdom," we can ask God and He will give us the answer.  No question is a dumb question to Him.



Now, back to being persistent.  How does this apply to prayer?  It is essential!  Okay, in my mind, if someone only asks for something once, I'm not as inclined to think it is important to them.  It's like a phone call.  If someone calls me only once, and doesn't leave a message, I tend to not call them back.  But, if they leave a message, I probably will.  If you call a million times, leave messages, text me, and call from other phone's, I'll definitely call you back!  At that point you are either dying or have something extremely important to say or ask.  It is the same with God.

We have to continue to ask and pray for things.  He will answer in His own time and in His own way, but He will answer.  So, "are you pondering what I'm pondering?"  Be persistent and be ready for the answer, whatever it may be.

I Love Nature!

If you are familiar with missionaries at all, you know pday (preparation day) is the day we get to do the "normal-ish" things.  We do our usual studies and then clean, do laundry, shopping, email our families, and clean our car.  If we accomplish all of that and still have time left, we can do some recreational activities.  Usually this is either sports, hiking, site seeing, or (for the wimps ;p) a nap.  This week my companion and I decided to go to Sequoia park.

Our adventures began with the playground and then off to the woods.  I kid you not, if an Ewok jumped out at me, it would not have been a surprise.  Or a giant T-Rex.  Of course we had to pull out our light sabers and have a battle, but I digress.  The trees were amazing!  The pure beauty of the nature around us was astounding!  I haven't seen anything like it on my mission.  We are blessed.

Seeing this gorgeous scene made me think about all of the other wonderful things we get to enjoy on this earth.  "1...yea, and all things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator."  There is so much beauty around us that our loving Father in Heaven has given to us for our benefit.  To allow us to be happy and enjoy our time here upon the earth.  These things not only are for our enjoyment, but they help us to recognize that He is there.  He is the almighty, all powerful God.  I am so grateful for all the beauty He has given us and for Him. 

And the Sorting Hat sends you....

We all know I am a nerd.  This much has been established.  I embrace it.  Being the nerd that I am, undoubtedly I love love love Harry Potter.  What nerd doesn't?  Well, a few months before my mission my friend and I came up with the greatest Gospel-Harry Potter analogy ever!  Here it comes.

Double take

The last few weeks there have been 2 verses in the Book of Mormon that keep running through my head.  They are in 3 Nephi 11, which is an amazing chapter!  It is when Christ first comes to the Americas and begins to teach them about His doctrine.  Verses 37 and 38 are the ones that I keep coming back to.

 37 And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and become as a little child, and be baptized in my name, or ye can in nowise receive these things.

 38 And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child, or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.

Notice anything?  They are almost identical.  Very few differences.  But, the differences are what have been calling to me.  Let's focus on verse 37 for a minute.  We are to "become as a little child" before we are baptized.  We need to be humble and submit ourselves to the Lord.  Then, in verse 38, we are told to "become as a little child" after baptism.  Be humble and continue to do what the Lord asks of us.  Humble before and after.  Interesting....

Humility is being grateful to the Lord and knowing that we always need Him.  It is an knowing and accepting that our talents and abilities are gifts from God.  Really, what isn't a gift or blessing from Him.  Look around.  Everything on this earth was given to us by our loving Father in Heaven.  It is our responsibility to recognize this and give a little credit where it belongs (or a lot).  I love how Ammon puts it in Alma 26:

Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever....  Therefore, let us glory, yea, we will glory in the Lord; yea, we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever. Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long-suffering towards the children of men? Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel

I am nothing, but in the Lord can be made great.  By putting the Lord and His will first I allow Him to step in and make me into something better.  Humility is not a sign of weakness, it is a sign that we know where true power comes from.

To close, I'd like to share some of the lyrics from a hymn.  "Be thou humble in thy weakness, and the Lord thy God shall lead thee, Shall lead thee by the hand and give thee answer to thy prayers.  Be thou humble in thy pleading, and the Lord thy God shall bless thee, shall bless thee with a sweet and calm assurance that he cares."

Unavoidable Danger

You know those times where you see something coming and there is nothing you can do to stop it?  When you are literally stuck in a corner with no way out.  Well, you're not alone.  There was one experience in my own life a few years ago.

It was a hot summer day and it was time to head to work.  Being the pool junkie that I was, you can only guess where it was I was working; the pool.  Usually I would drive our little Toyota Corolla to work.  It was basically my car.  But, on this occasion, I found the car missing.  The curse of younger brothers!  Yeah, he borrowed my car thus leaving me the giant mammoth to drive (aka our Suburban).  The Suburban wasn't really that bad to drive.  It was just incredibly hot.  No AC=death in the summer time.  Slightly annoyed, I left for work.