An Answered Prayer

After watching General Conference as a family,  Austin's mother offered a silent prayer on behalf of our son, asking for some small confirmation of his well-being.  Roughly thirty minutes later, we received the following email:

"I just talked to Austin yesterday, so I figured I would just give yous a little bit of an update. 

5 weeks ago, he went out with Elder Joseph (a marshallese elder). ....he (Elder Joseph) came in this transfer and none other than Elder Koleni went out to be companions with Elder Johnson. They both seem really happy and like they are getting along well... He sent 4 letters with Elder Joseph so you should hopefully be hearing from him soon. Plus there is a mission tour in November so you should be hearing from him then too. 

They have had one baptism and now have 3 other people that have baptismal dates which is really exciting. They are really stepping up and showing their mettle. He has spent some of his time coming up with marshallese puns that had my laughing pretty hard. He is doing great and said he is losing every bit of fat on his body so when he comes back it's just going to be muscle. And I guess they are working with their land lord/member of the church there and they are taking people to church in a vehicle that the church is paying for. So that is progress that I didn't think was going to come for a couple more months, but he is way ahead of the game out there. 

I know he is where he is needed. I don't think anyone else on this mission could be doing what he is doing right now.

Hope you are doing well, stay safe. 

Elder House"

Thank you, Elder House, for listening to the still, small voice and answering a mother's prayer.

Going silent.

Friends,

Over a year ago, while reading the blogs of other missionaries, I was confused over the large gaps of time where there were no photos, letters, or updates.  I figured that the missionaries (or their families) were too busy to attend the blog or perhaps the spotty Marshallese internet couldn't handle the browsers.  In all of this, I was wrong.  It is due to the remote locations that many of these missionaries serve.  On August 20, 2017, Austin was transferred to the outer island of Ailinglaplap.  Due to the remoteness of the location, the lack of internet and the lack of anything other than a small solar panel which powers the single lamp in their home, we haven't heard from him since.

Missionary work requires a lot of sacrifice and faith.  This has certainly been one of those times.  We appreciate your concern and prayers on his behalf.

-Shawn and Shannon Johnson

Mother's Day 2017

Mother's Day Skype

Click on the above link (in orange) to view the video of Elder Johnson speaking Marshallese to his family on Mother's Day 2017.

Picture Time!

I will never complain of laundry at home again!

Ajeltake

On the road again....

Nice man purse, Elder.

The joy of watching souls come unto Christ.

Elder Johnson and Elder Kendrick

Cinnamon rolls...Island Style!

Volleyball is my new favorite sport!

Elder Miva husking coconuts

Yes, that is a cooked dog.

Yes, the dog is dinner.....gulp....

Ajeltake 

The tan is making me look like an Oompa Loompa, right?

Elder Peterson and Elder Johnson

26 March 2017: Pow! Right in the Face...

Mom,

What a week! Not a ton happened but it is all goods because just as I have a chill week you have a freaking hectic and busy week! Crazy how it just seems to work out.

So the sisters had an emergency transfer this week. Drama! That is the good side about the mission and the bad side. you see everyone every P day but we are so close that there is just considerable amount of drama every week!

But it is all good, because we got to keep the Fijian sister and she has cooked for us like three times this week. I love it. Curry and all that stuff it is the best.

The down side to keeping the Fijian sister is what happened on monday. We were just having a good time at our family home evening but I was teasing her a little bit and she said that she was gonna slap me. I was like no you arent you are totally not. She reached across the table and slapped my face as hard as she possible could and I had a handprint on my face the whole night. dont anger an islander...

Goodsell madness. She is the living breathing terror and still keeping our packages hostage. Elder Scott went to the office on Friday because he has been having headaches and his parents sent him a package with some glasses in it and Goodsell told him that she would cut into his package and give him the glasses only and he would have to wait to get the rest of it on pday.... like 14 days then she is gone! #Hallelujah #GodAnswersPrayers

The last thing was we got to take a trip to Ajeltake on Friday to see the baptism that was there! It was really nice to see Bernie and Elder Hansen again. This really old guy was baptizing the couple and it was his first time and he was so nervous and you could tell. He kept his eyes closed the whole time! Even while dunking. I will have to show you with body language but each of the dunkings was so odd and you would tell they thought it was funny..

Glad you had a busy week mom! It hasn't been a totally eventful week but the work moves on! Randy will be baptized this saturday so I will take some photos!

Love ya!

Elder J

19 March 2017: An Original Poem

DO YOU FORGET THE SAVIOR?

The alarm sounds in the morning

its time to wake and rise

a voice says "hey, why don't you stay?"

As you start to close your eyes

Do you forget the Savior?

In a moment of weak defense

Satan did appear, but with no fear,

The Lord said "Get thee hence"

When you and your companion

Aren't off to a good start

Each word just grows closer to blows

There's hate inside your heart

Do you forget the Savior?

Us, the 'fruit of His loins'?

Remember the Son, 'cause he still loved the one

who sold Him for thirty coins

When times in your area

Are as hard as they can be

With every door; the failure's more

Your lessons down to three

Do you forget the Savior?

A man who had no blunders

With every part, He gave His heart

Yet his disciples got all the numbers

When your success is getting dim

As your finding His lost sheep

Do you just use this poor excuse

To quit and get more sleep?

Do you forget the Savior?

I wonder if you can...

'Cause with his Hand, when his words were banned

He served His fellow man

When you are being scolded

By a man who lies ahead

With a sullen frown, do you look around

at the next house with pure dread

Do you forget the Savior?

When for lying He was blamed

With every scold, He grew more bold

The Master, unashamed

Do you go to a lesson 

And the family isn't there?

And though they live, you won't forgive

And their salvation, you don't care

Do you forget the Savior?

Who was tortured by the Jews

Looked at the crowd, and said aloud

"They know not what they do"

When there's a rule that's hard

to follow every day,

You've tried every way, yet start to stray

You begin to disobey

Do you forget the Savior?

Who chose to stay than run

When through the more, our sins He bore

Yet said "Thy will be done"

Are days just getting weary

As you walk the same old streets

As you go home, you've only grown

in blisters on your feet?

Do you forget the Savior?

Who suffered for you and me?

And caked in dirt, I'm sure it hurt

on the road to Calvary

When you feel like you're wasting time

You think you can't progress

You know you've sinned, the guilt comes in

You know you've shirked your best

Do you forget the Savior?

And the strait road that he paved

Our sins He bore, bled from every pore

So that we may be saved

As you leave the mission 

You've packed your last backpack

The ticket's bought, but in your thoughts

You're wanting to come back

Do you forget the Savior?

Whose mission bought all sin

Do you think He may, be counting the day

'Til He comes back again?

When you head back home

You've paid the two-year price

You've so much grown, and have certainly known

about Him; Jesus Christ

Please don't forget the Savior

In your future, still unknown

'Cause like this time, think in your mind

How much He wants you home

Jesus Lives. Let His love be shown in you and through you to others

Elder Johnson

19 March 2017: A Horrible Experience...

Mom,

Lets get straight into the week! What a week it has been! I made a killer poem that I will be sending in the group email. It took me 40 minutes to create. It was nice to rhyme again. 

So I love the fact that when we go to Less-Actives houses they act so different when they are around us. They try and hide EVERTHING when they see us coming at them. This one less active hid beetle-nut so bad and we were just like "bro we caught you" but apparently his wife is the reason he doesn't come to church. yeah... okay.

We are teaching this Baba whose whole family are members and his daughter actually just got off of a mission. They pray for him every day but he has been taking lessons with the missionaries going on four years now. Well, we are still working with him and hopefully we can get him close to baptism. The funny story is he has a one year old grandchild who is the most adorable kid ever. She loves the missionaries and knows all of our names. She was misbehaving during a lesson and the grandma was taking her away and she just turns around and says the Marshallese F-Word to her. We all dies laughing haha we were like who taught her. Funny times

So this week I had an interview with the Mission President because he just got back and he wanted to interview all of the missionaries. He is making me apply to BYU Provo soooooo... sorry dad. He said it is good that I apply now and ask questions later.. so if you could send my high school transcript that would be lovely!

Also at the Baba's house he made us Sashumi (raw fish) and I love it. Tell Cam and Lex not to complain about Salmon again haha. Honestly I would love to make yous some marshallese food but all we need is tuna and rice hahahah...

Another spiritual story is we picked up this golden investigator who is 14 and we just started teaching with him this week. He told us in the first lesson that he wanted to serve a mission when he is 16. I told him that he would have to wait until he is 18 to serve but in my mind I thought it was because he just wants to travel to another place. I asked him why he wanted to serve a mission and he said "to learn more about the bible and Jesus taught people when he was 12 so I think I should do the same thing. I was blown away. He will also be getting baptized on the 1st of April.

So Saturday we did service all day for a family in Rita. I husked a coconut with my teeth (will never do again but only did it to say I did) and our reward for our service was the family shot their dog to eat it. But they used a gun that is used to kill chickens. So the dog was whimpering and started to run away. There were a lot of kids there and so they took rocks in all of their hands and went dog hunting haha. What happened next is something I will never forget in my life. As the kids turn the corner as they are chasing a weak bloodied dog, around the corner amongst the kids carrying two huge stones is my Samoan companion, with wild eyes and a smile from ear to ear as he looks at me and shouts "MANE" (marshallese for KILL IT). I have never been so scared and yet so hysterically laughing at the same time my whole life. 

Well, the dog eventually died and we saw them gut it and cook it. Elder Miva ate the liver raw. It was a disgusting time. But the sad news is that it took ALL day to cook so we weren't even able to eat it.. I was a little bummed but it was all fun times. It was really sad to see a dog suffer the way it did.

So Sunday was one of the most exhausting days of the mission. I translated for a senior couple for sacrament, then was asked on the fly to prepare a sunday school lesson and teach it. Then I translated Elders Quorum... geez i was so drained by the end of sacrament haha...

Answer the questions:

I am great! I am surprised about how much I love my new area. The bishop is highly missionary oriented and he feeds us all the time. I did at the beginning of this transfer pick up the suitcase. So now I have more than 4 ties. :)Right now we have 8 solid investigators. It is crazy to think that we have more success in this half mile than I ever did in Ajeltake.  So all of the schedule now is our choice, and President Larkin doens;t decide for us. The members love feeding us! Actually this week we had 2 dinners in one night!

Good luck in your more schooling (does that make sense??) and work hard I know you are the smartest in the class!'

I hope the movie list is big haha but i am glad B&B didn't bomb...

love ya mom

Elder J

12 March 2017: A Huge Letter

Hey Ma!

What a crazy week! Lets start with the stories:

So our house is about a 10 minute walk from our area... it is on the second floor of a small town diner. There really aren't any perks to the house, because there is one bed and three of us (I get the floor :) and the toilet is broken so you have to bucket flush:). But it is the ONLY house in the whole mission with a small patch of carpet. The exhilarating feeling was tremendous as we all took our flip flops off and felt that carpet, as rough and as small as it is (not very thick) I believe I almost have tears in my eyes. Over carpet. Yeah its been a while haha. buttttt the down side to this week was just one day the water shut off for no reason. It was the worst! Found out that our house does that sometimes. So we went almost 3 days with no shower and we were suffering! haha an outer island in Majuro haha. but anyway we decided on the second day that we would try to go to the Rita Elders house and shower there (about a 30 minute walk) and when we got there the power went out! We went out of our house at 9am and the power went out at 9:20 and didn't come back on until 5! We were miserable but it was nice to chat with the Rita Elders for a little bit, Elder Namak from Vanuatu who is almost done with his mission and Elder Miva from Papua New Guinea and just got here last week! I will talk about Miva later in my email that guy is a stud.

Also we have a bit of a roach problem in our house. They only come out at night though which is good. I am the designated roach hunter. I right now have killed about 14. and the smallest one was about 1.5 inches! They are disgustingly huge here but you gotta torture them by putting them in the toilet and making them suffer for existing :). 

So Elder Peterson is a huge example to me. He is the most obedient and kind person I have known and reminds me of Cullen so much and he worked in Uliga for almost 7 months! Part of Jenrok was open to Uliga Elders because there used to be no elders there. Peterson worked so hard but never saw any reward for his efforts. But the true builder was one of his investigators we picked up named Randy. He lives in our area and no Elders have visited him since Elder Peterson. Since that time, he changed his work schedule so he can go to church and stopped smoking and got married. Elder Peterson's example was huge on this guy. Needless to say all we had to do was check up on him and he will be baptised on the 1st of April! It is great to see some success finally even in a small area.

So the sport of Volleyball has really grown on me. Like REALLY. I love playing it especially with all the Polys because they are pros. I know how to spike the ball now (which is A LOT harder than it looks) but I love playing it is super fun and I hope to play it when I get back. Also the Marshallese kids taught me how to handstand so I can do that now too! The kids here love my name because when they want to get someones attention they say "AH" after calling their name! So mine is Elder JohnsonAH, which when they say it it sounds like John Cena so I am Elder John Cena. The kids love it and they laugh so I am popular among the children haha.

The Area of Jenrok is like taking all the houses in Ajeltake and smashing them together in a half mile radius. There are a LOT of people in such a small area. The good thing is no hostile dogs so I am unafraid when we go out. I love this area and it will take some time to get used to it but at least we are busy. I usually take 15 minutes to do a lesson but I have been pushing myself and with the witnesses of three mouths it takes about 45 minutes to do a lesson. The Bishop is such a great bishop and is so focused on missionary work he is the best. The wife takes a little getting used to and I was warned about that coming in so I decided to strike a convo with her. 1 hour later she invited us to stay for dinner. Needless to say, it was a great time haha.

So Elder Miva. He is a freakin stud. He is a funny guy. He is also FREAKING TALENTED. He has one of those talents where he sits on a piano and if you start humming or singing a song he can play it PERFECTLY. We had fun with that on Saturday as we were cleaning up the church for sunday. Also he is a pancake flipping champion. That man flips the pancakes. I guess my only culinary talent is making toast, given that a toaster is provided haha.

So this weeks learning came from one day we had as we went out to work. We had all these lessons planned and it looked like a busy day, but one by one each lesson fell through. WE were getting discouraged when we got a text from the sisters and they asked us to come to this old ladys house and give her a blessing. So we did and the spirit was so strong there. I gave my first marshallese blessing. It was really nice. Then as we were exiting, Koleni said "That was why we had to get out today. To bless that one lady" The Spirit testified that this was true and I testify that it is true. God's will is not always our own but he will always send answers and help to ONE of his children.

We also had an activity with the ward on Friday night where we went to the chapel and watched 17 miracles and danced. I was asked to explain the movie 17 miracles. I stood up and said "We are about to watch the movie 17 miracles. and just like the title says, we are gonna see 17 miracles" i figured that explained the plot haha.

So my comps: Elder Scott is from Brigham City and is a ginger. He is dubbed "Red Hot Scott" because when he loses his temper, NO ONE is safe haha. He loves ultimate frisbee and eating food. He is my brother and will be attending BYU when he gets home

Elder Koleni is from SAAAAAMOA. he is huge and can easily kill us. He loves his sleep and food. mostly Tuna.

Answering Questions:

I am busy,  I am healthy, I am happy. My Blistered feet have healed up a lot and no issues yet. I haven't really gotten sick on my mission so I say I am blessed. So Elder Hansen's COUSIN is married to Chris Redfern. That is probably why he is unknown to them because I don't know much haha.

I am glad work is well. A lot of marshallese are missing teeth and it is very hard for me not to stare. 

I sure do love ya mom

Elder JohnCEna

05 March 2017: The Power of Women

After having a lesson about the power of the "Daughters of God" on Sunday I want to express my gratitude to all the women and powerful daughters of god in my life. Each and every one of you is special to me and I thank you for your examples and your love. Especially a shoutout to the powerhouse of the family, my Mom. She is such a big inspiration to me on Christlike love and service to others. She also makes a mean chocolate sauce! Also a shoutout to my sister for showing me her love and for her example of standing up for others at school and being a true example to me of "the believers". As well to all my aunts, and grandparents. You all are incredible people. I love you all and thank you for your prayers and your love.

Elder Johnson

05 March 2017: Transfers!

Hey Mom!

I am happy and healthy! Transfers came on Wednesday and I did pray for a change and it looks like I received it. I am moving to Jenrok to be with my brother Elder Scott and Elder Koleni! I am excited to work there even though the area is not even a half a mile long! it is crazy! But I am excited and ready to get to work! I am glad the letter came! It brought me so much joy to write about the culture! I love this culture even though sometimes it can be frustrating. So some stories for this week that I thought were pretty cool:

So Thursday I was studying and felt something crawling by my legs. I reached down to grab it and felt a sharp pain in my arm. I looked and saw a black thing and immediately threw it away! Turns out it was a scorpion... I got a nice dime sized wound for a few days but it is all healed! It was a freaky story and the scorpion has been killed and i took a picture of the sting at its worst so yous can see it. 

I drove stickshift this week! The AP's have a truck now that is gorgeous and it is stick but only me and Elder Mahanga know how to drive stick so the AP's let me drop off some bikes in Laura. It was weird to now try to teach the AP's how to drive stick. I saw their frustrations as they kept killing it and it reminded me of when dad taught me haha. now they are pros so I guess i successfully taught some people how to drive stick!

Yesterday we were slightly depressed to find out that our Golden INvestigator in Ajeltake is moving to Indiana abruptly. It was super sad especially after such a great lesson with him. He will be missed. But that was a sad way to close out work in Ajeltake. 

Some weird comp stories: So Elder Hansen's middle name is Bennion, which is his mom's maiden name. He was telling me about his close cousins and how one of them has the last name Redfern. I paused and was like WHAT THE HECK! Remember Chris Redfern? Son of Toni and Poncho? LUKE HANSEN IS COUSINS WITH THEM!! Small world indeed!

Another one is with Elder Peterson. Elder Peterson's Dads name is Troy. He has a brother named Shawn. and one sister named JENNIFER! My mind was straight up blown haha. CRAZY WORLD

The last story is we stayed for a youth activity and i was asked to be on the bball team. I didnt' have sneakers with me so I went barefoot. AWFUL IDEA. I have 4 beautiful big blisters on my feet now and geez oh man they hurt.

I am sorry to hear about all this sad news. But I guess we see the blessings of missionary work.. I love you mom and miss you so much. My quote comes from a really wise quoter named 'Anonymous' :)

Don't be fooled by the calendar. Time is relative and you get what you put into. Some people do a weeks worth of work in a year and others do a years worth in a week.

Love Always,

Elder J

26 February 2017: Love the Gospel

Mom,

Hello! This week was a little better than the last but still kind of dragged. We should hear about transfers soon so we are excited about that! I am really gonna miss Hansen. He was a great companion. But who knows we may just stay together everything has been a little blurry since the president has been gone. So Sis. Larkin is still being checked out in hawaii and has asked for our prayers. So pres Larkin lost his passport so now he is in Australia because he got kicked out of wherever he was at. We did splits again this week so I was able to work with Elder Kendrick again for 24 hours. We were both so happy. Kinda like a father going to see his son again. And that is exactly what it was. Believe it or not, I am gaining weight! I am amlost 180 pounds! Dreams can come true!

Too many times I have recounted the blessing of being born into this gospel. Especially after studying election. Such a powerful concept. I have been studying the BOM every day and I wanted to do the most hardcore study I have ever done. To prove it I am only in Alma 5!! Haha but I am learning so much! I love this gospel!

Sorry to hear about the washer. As I have learned, no machine can be as thorough as hands ;). This mission has really taught me how to work as well as to stop complaining. Holy cow a bunch of humbling experiences!

Thank you for the new package, for the everyday love and support. Your prayers are truly felt as I am out here trying to bear a "pure testimony" (Alma 4:19)

LOVE ALWAYS

Elder Johnson

19 February 2017: Letter to Dad and Mom

Hey Dad,

This week was eye-opening. I have visited every house in my area with little to no success. This is the hardest part of this mission. We are on a tiny island with people who have seen and heard us for the last 40 years and some days it just feels like we baptized all those who are really ready and now we deal with people who are ignorant and don't want to listen to us. We have 2 investigators and 1 less active at the moment. It can get really discouraging at times but this is apparently the hardest area on Majuro. As you see in mom's email, I gave a really nice long talk in Sacrament meeting. I don't remember most of it but I know that the spirit was there and that the gift of tongues was given to me at that moment. I will hear about transfers and I hope that the news won't make me go insane. It can get pretty tough! But I agree with the Monday motivation and I will continue to work hard. This transfer has been trying mentally for me but it's gods will and he knows what he is doing! 

Not a day goes by where I think of the runs. I am severely out of shape. I do think my arms and chest have gotten stonger but my cardio is killed. I ran 10 laps around the chapel and almost died. I need to start the burpee grind again I guess. I am really grateful that I chose to run those races. In a time where our relationship was on the ropes, this thing brought immense change and I am forever grateful for it. 

I love you so much dad. I sent some letters so you should be getting them this week!

Elder Johnson

Hey Mom,

Yeah, I do realize that my emails recently have just been answering questions. I guess it is just because weeks in Ajeltake there is not much to report. This is the hardest area I have been in. As of the end of this week I can say that I have visited EVERY SINGLE HOUSE in my area and we only have 2 investigators and 1 less active who are willing to study. IT has been a real let down and the motivation is low but we still get out and ask for service (which still hasn't happen). One thing that happened this week was the 1st counselor of the ward came over to our house on Tuesday and said that the Goodsell's volunteered us to give the talks in sacrament meeting. I was super nervous knowing that just me, Elder Peterson, and Elder Hansen were gonna take up all the time in sacrament meeting. I prayed for some guidance and for the gift of tongues as I was preparing my talk on Agency and Repentance and how they work together. Elder Hansen went first and took a good 12 minute chunk as did Elder Peterson. Then it was my turn with 20 mins left in sacrament meeting. I only took a few notes and didn't write a script and I think I did rather well. I took 25 minutes! In Marshallese! God hears our prayers and answers us and gives us "the words we need at the exact time we need it" (DandC something). Also I went on a split with Elder Thiel. This was the first time I have worked with someone from my intake besides Elder Sheffield in the 3rd week of my mission. We worked nonstop from 10-8. No success. But it was fun to be with him because we dived into deep doctrine and it was intense. I love deep doctrine. 

I think that I will find out transfers this Wednesday and if not the Wednesday after then it will be on Thursday. I will let ya know if I am moving! So this one sister has the Moana soundtrack and I love the music. "You're Welcome" is my favorite followed by the "awe awe" song which is in Samoan and Tufaluan so Koleni translates for us! I am more than excited to read and see my life book! I know how long it took you so that makes the value priceless. 

Thank you for sending the package. I forgot to tell you but in the 2nd month my mission belt broke. The screws were messed up and poorly put on. Peterson had the EXACT SAME kind and color and it did the same thing. Apparently that is the bad kind haha. I am really not looking forward to the cold weather haha! I love that our Elders Quorum in Ajeltake is studying about Hinckley too. We just learned how happy and optimistic he was. Truly an inspiration, like you!

Miss you mom and love you more than anything!

Elder Johnson

05 February 2017 : 6 Months Out

Mom!

Hey! Lets answer those questions. Yes! 6 months down! And today marks one month since I landed on ALAP! Some days I feel like time is just dragging but other times it just flies. Crazy how time works. Honestly I look at a mission where all people do is countdown the day til they leave and then when they day comes they don't feel ready to leave haha. I am doing great and feeling great and gaining weight! 165 lbs now! The language is great I am still trying hard to understand because their accents are really hard to understand because they slur everything.. And I can have easy conversations with people and sometimes not think about what to say in English first. I am in 2 Nephi in the Marshallese BOM because Hinckley said that if you read the BOM in your mission language you will be fluent by the time you finish. I haven't heard of anyone on this mission finishing the BOM so I look to be the first. I am not spending money because I have no need to! Most people buy like Pop Tarts and Cereal (which is 10 bucks here) when they refuse to see that Chicken, fish, and rice are dirt cheap. We get those instead so we always have an emergency fund when I need it. Hey, at least I know I can survive in college, right?

I LOVE Elder Hansen! He is hilarious and fun to work with! I love joking around with him. We are riding bikes now as we have lost car privileges. It is funny a lot of people talk about how much they don't get along with my companions but I seem to get along with them just fine. The gift of Charity is real. I am trying to be more Christlike and one way is to stop roasting people. I have definately learned to keep my mouth shut and do service in silence. It has helped me grow as a person.

I did get your letter and I have responded to it. I will be mailing it out soon. Thank you for sending that. There are a lot of cultural things i would put in those blanks but i loved how you said "before the mission" haha. Brown 10.5 jandals should be stellar, if not get 11s. Youre the best! I am so happy that yous enjoyed wintergreen! I have always wanted to go there without the mud and the barbed wire (though I do most certainly prefer that :)

That is crazy about the immigrants. I need to stop being so judgemental. The first thing I look at in a person is their oral hygiene. Truly a mommas boy I guess haha. But don't worry ya boy has been brushing and flossing everynight. I also love these Hinckley quotes. I really am trying to cop one of the new books to read for personal study. Congrats to Sean Allred! Kendrick has a friend there right now. He is totally gonna love it! How is Sean? I miss that kid. If you have any more questions please ask:)

Love ya tons

Elder Johnson 

29 January 2017

Hey Mom!

So eventful morning sorry for the delay, we got in a car accident. Nothing major but we do have to get a new car. Haha my mission is so unique, huh? I am fine and no injuries on me. I am doing great I love Ajeltake. It is really slow but I have learned to enjoy it. I love Elder Hansen. He is a pro at cooking and I have gained 10 lbs already! He makes a lot of homemade pizza and cinnamon rolls! Yeah I do hope I can go back to ALAP or have someone use them if they open it back up again, but we will see. Thank you for the quote! I love them! I also got your package and your letter so THANKS SO MUCH! 

Love ya. 

Elder Johnson

Ailinglaplap is just a memory

We received an email from Elder Johnson letting us know that due to Elder Kendrick's illness and the small population of Ailinglaplap, President Larkin has decided to pull the missionaries from that atoll.

Ailinglaplap

Mom Dad and Fam!

I am alive! The internet is back on, and it is slower than ever! What
a time to have the internet off. Some details:

Went to ALAP for 8 days, told the AP's and President the life there,
lets just say they pulled us off because of it but I should be
returning soon.

I now work in Ajeltake until next transfer at least with my brother,
Elder Hansen

So much to say and so little time! Shoot all the questions you've got!

Elder Austin Johnson

Here are some pics of ALAP

LDS meeting house and missionary house.

LDS Meeting House (11 members)

Road to Church

The Ailinglaplap Marriott...not.

The master bedroom.

An Elder and his water bottle. (Kendrick)

An Elder and his machete.

Sunset from Ailinglaplap.

Kendrick and Johnson

"I said goodbye to one of the best missionaries ever.  He helped me so much in the mission.  His name is Elder  Hartvigsen. He is my adopted mission dad."

Christmas and other Photos

Mission Christmas Party

First Christmas package from home!

Never shy of the camera.

Opening packages from home!

Marshall Islands Majuro Mission

Hanging out at the mission office

Two missionaries about to return home.

Zone Conference