My Sister Married In the Portland Temple

What is up Familia!!! So obviously today is Cinco De Mayo on a Monday, clearly a Sobczak Family day. So this last week has been a pretty good one.

As you could tell I did not call for the wedding, I did not get  a call from President to call so I did not. Sorry I talked about it all on the tape and that should be sent today and you should have that this week sometime. I did however wear Ayris ties all weekend.
The Blue Nordstrom fat tie I had before I left on Friday, the Gray Striped Skinny from Kohl's Saturday and the Paisley Skinny on Sunday. So thanks for the ties, had enough to get through the weekend feeling like I was there kind of.  I am a fan of Temple Marriage!

I have kind of redone how I do my studies so I have redove into Preach my Gospel which has been such an awesome experience. I have been studying the Christlike Attributes and Bearing Testimony sections and they have brought a whole new life into the studies I have had.
I realized that my other one was to big and I was not using it as much I should so I started clean, over, new. So that has been nice. I am going to send my old one home and you can go through it and see some of the studies and notes that I have made through the last 16 months of my mission.

Our Ward Mission Leader is being pretty controlling with what he wants us to do and doesn't quite understand that he cannot make rules for us on where we can and cannot go. So it is going to be interesting to see what happens these next couple weeks leading up to the summer. Other than that working with the ward has been going great. We haven't really found any new investigators but you know that whole "Faith to Endure" thing is being implied. Obviously there are things to learn and understand that I have not yet, maybe wont until I am out of the situation.

I get to call HOME on Mothers Day!

So for calling this weekend, we do not have a dinner signed up for Sunday...So we are going to be working on finding a dinner/someone to let us come over to call home. We are going to try around 4:00 or 5:00. I will probably call Sunday Morning and let you know the final details so you are not left hanging. So stay tuned and I will let you know for sure Sunday morning when we are exactly doing it all.

Other than that, not to much to report on. Oh could you possibly send me that Gray suit I sent home a couple of months ago? with both pairs of pants? I didn't need it but now I just have one 2 pant suit that I am wearing way to much and don't want it to get worn out really quick. If you send it there is a place I can take it to to get tailored and all of that, just would like having another suit with four pairs of suit pants instead of just 2 pairs of suit pants. Let me know if you can or cannot.

I love you all so much. glad to hear the weekend went well and everything is going good. Keep up the awesome work, again it is all much appreciated, you have no idea. I love you all and thank you all for everything you do. Time is moving quickly, so quickly, weird to think of all the things that have happened this past year. Keep up all the awesome work, excited to hear all to future stories and excited to talk in person this weekend. Love you so much and thank you again for all you do, love you so much!!!:)

Training, Indexing and Transfers

Well well well...

Another week in the books lets start off with some interesting news from this last week:

I am getting transferred...Yes after 4 weeks of Foothill Ranch Ward I am being moved again. So you know thats fun, going on my fourth area in less than seven months who knows what lies ahead...

I got a Trainers call. Yes I will be Co-Training (So a trio) a brand new missionary or maybe 2 brand new missionaries. So that will be fun, hopefully means I will get to stay in my next area for at least two transfers. 

Oh yeah, got my District Leader cal also! So along with training a brand new missionary I will be leading a district of missionaries...So that should be a fun thing to do. 

So thats all the big news but from my end other than that the week has been going as usual.  I have come to love "Indexing" so mom be happy. There is a senior missionary in our ward who lives here and is an expert at Genealogy. SO once a week we go over and do indexing on Family Search and it is SO MUCH FUN. Love getting to feel a part of helping people find their family, where they come from and what they did. So I will for sure keep up with that during my mission and after. 

At dinner last night I found out some interesting information. So remember how BYU-I did not have a Tech Theater degree and that was one reason i did not want to go there. Well starting in the fall of next year they are introducing a BA in Theatre Arts with a bunch of different emphasis and Tech is one of the emphasis with about 20 classes to go along with it. They revamped their whole department and the whole staff from what I heard I am super excited about the degree. So this is why you never make solid plans before the mission. It all changes anyway. 

Got kicked out of a apartment complex. People really have no idea what the word "Soliciting"  means and when I try to educate them on the definition they get irritated and tell us to leave. Also telling me I cannot visit members of my congregation is irritating as well. So I have decided I am going to study their "No Trespassing" signs and know them better than they do so they cant do anything. I don't like not being able to go places because of a sign.

The ward is super sad to see me go and I am sad to be leaving. It is only four weeks since the last time I packed my bags but it has flown by. Got connected to the ward and my WML Brother Andre told me that the ward improved a lot while I was here and I really helped a lot. He said that I will be good wherever I go so I shall hopefully live up to that. I really really love this ward!

Question posed this morning by a guy we had breakfast with...

Is the Gospel about improving the quality of your life, or is it about being saved by Jesus Christ. I think they are one in the same but he thought the Gospel is only about being saved.

Also note to self: I LEARNED HOW TO SAY SOBCZAK IN POLISH!  and the guy that taught me KNOWS ELDER PETROWSKI WHO SERVED IN POLAND!!!   so this is what he said the name is pronounced So ( like "So What") B (B as in Boat) and Chak (Like "Chalk" Without the "L")

I love you all hope all is going well!

Stay classy. Love you all :)

-- 

"Fourth Floor Last Door"

Elder Amric Zane Sobczak

California, Carlsbad, USA

January 2013-June 2013

California, Irvine, USA

July 2013-December 2014

Don't Worry I am Here...

Do not worry Amric is here...

Yesterday was Lincolns birthday so instead of just celebrating it on PRESIDENTS day California likes to split up the birthdays and Lincoln, Washington and all other presidents get their own day to be celebrated. Yes it is ridiculous i know :)

So, this week has been a tough but a good one at the same time. I wrote this in a letter I sent home at sometime but I loose track and can't remember when or even if i really did haha!   Life is tough out here. You get ready and arrive our here thinking you know all you need to know because everyone at home tells you "oh you're going to be great", "you'll be awesome",  "you know so much" and so on and so forth! It makes you "Puffed Up" So to speak. When you get out here and you realize you can't get by with the basics anymore. You have to gain a deeper understanding of the gospel not for your investigators, they are fine with the basics, but the depth is for you. When you come to a deeper understanding you know how everything connects so you can explain to the people you are teaching in a simple bold statement. When you give them that statement and they understand it - well, it makes the 2 or 3 hours of studying that one topic worth it haha...

When I get home you guys will not even know who I am!  One reason will be because I have completely changed my view on studying. I never knew how important it was or really how to "Study." I have a study journal with all my notes, scriptures, analogies, insights etc...are also connected into each principle of Preach My Gospel. My PMG is very colorful and I have not even gotten close to finshing my studies...dont think I will until maybe the plane ride on the way home hahaha....  I know now why the Missionary must be converted when they come out here or that they must become converted while they are out here before they can ever imagine of truly expecting to convert other people. 

Another way I have learned a little more is teaching seminary...The seminary teacher for the Dana Point/ San Juan Capistrano Wards is in the Dana Point ward and is busy with work because he does something with surgeries. So we have taught seminary probably 5 or 6 times in the four and a half weeks I have been in the mission field. I can feel for the kids because just a year ago i was in their shoes...6 in the morning some old person telling you something you already think you know asking why must i be here..   It helps understanding that and having compassion for them being able to relate to their "feelings"  because it helps me at least know how to teach ...  Mom I dont know how you did it for 17 years...Its so intense...

The people here in this area are awesome. The members are great and they love to take care of us. 

The days are pretty much the same everyday. I Wake up at 620 go run for half an hour get ready, study, seek people out or study, then eat repeat eat teach members/investigators return home plan, sleep repeat hahaha!

 I am having a positive attitude about it all so I am getting better.  :) Yesterday on P-Day we went "thrifting". I hit three second hand stores big lots marshals and ross. I bought three ties (of the skinny variety) and a pair of vans which where a steal. We then ate at staks which is  a pancake place here in Dana Point. So good we will eat there when we return to visit. 

So thats my week really..sorry theres not much more but not a lot of crazy spiritual experiences are happening too.

Question to ponder: If there is oposition in all things even for those who have seen Jesus Christ in this dispensation, if they have seen perfection and light in the flesh (Christ) who else have they seen????

example: Adam and Ever Garden of Eden, JSH 1:15-16, "My soul was racked with torment,"  just a question i am throwing out there for people to think about. 

You'll be proud to know that I do know how to shop, buy, pay for and cook food for myself!  I cook lunch for myself everyday.  I'm learning to eat food out of my comfort zone like this week I had homemade tomato stew!  My comp put a half a head of lettuce down the garbage disposal so that was fun clogged it up bad.  Water and ground up lettuce everywhere, disgusting!

My comps are awesome one from Colorado one from Sandy I believe. We went to 5guys the other night after Stake Conference, that was nice.  We are teaching people and the members of the ward are AWESOME and VERY HELPFUL, I'll write about them in a letter.  Happy Birthday to Pax and Olaf, Hi to everyone, hugs and all that - REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE, CHURCHING IS TRUE!

Grab the Tissue!

 Well, well well....My how fast this past week has gone. It doesnt seem like its been 7 days since I last checked in. This has been a good week but it has been hard at the same time. 

We are teaching the "word" to the people of Dana Point and some are accepting of it...

   Im slowly but surely becoming a better teacher to the investigators and to the members. This family that we are teaching moving closer and closer to baptism as a family. Keli told us that if we ever needed a place to stop in to eat, say hello, or just talk her house was always opened  to us. She has her own business. She said after we are done with our missions to come back and she would teach us the basics of surfing. She's a total surfer chick.

   Well, we are part time bikes and I dont know if you have read anything about Orange County but the hills here are AWFUL. Really makes me appreciate having a car on the days we have it. I am becoming better at bike riding though and I can feel my legs toning up since we run for thirty minutes up and down hills everyday and we ride bikes every other day. Our mission area is huge.

Sunday we had a cool experience with a member family. We show up after stake conference to have lunch and this girl and guy are there...Assuming they are members we ask if they go to singles ward they laugh at the question say they should and that they are engaged. Cool cool all normal...well midway into lunch we start talking about how kids these days dont know the 'WHY' and that is what leads them to drink and smoke because they dont truly understand why they arent supposed to. At this point, the girl who was there says "Actually, I'm not a Mormon and I want to know why I cant have the occassional drink cause I dont think it is bad."  We were caught off guard because we thought she was a member. Turns out shes a non member renting a room from the family and she got engaged to a less active member of the church...
Well we answered her question helped her know how to talk to friends about her thoughts and then she asked "Why do you guys think you need a prophet?" We answered back with a question! We can come back and have more discussions with you. Long story short we got her number and picked up a new investigator. Pretty awesome how that happened.

My first Sunday in the ward I sang in the Ward Choir...Stake conference adult session I sang in the choir!  At our Zone Training meeting I was called to lead the music!  Some lady in another ward in our building said she wanted me and Elder Armstrong to sing a duet in her ward!  I think the Lord might be trying to send me a message that I need to pick up singing again!. Starting to get my singing voice back.  It is like the LORD taught if given a talent and it's not used - You'll have it taken away!

Thank you all so much for your letters. They are really inspiring and make the week better. There is talk my mission will reach the 250 missionaries by the end of the year...if that happens they will split the mission into two. So who knows I could  serve in 2 missions while i am gone for 2 years!  So keep that in mind.

I have the family picture on my desk and it keeps me going everyday. Im writing in my journal so that i will always remember these times. In my prayers I always - no matter where I am  ask - "Help us to always remember who we represent and who we are" (Grab the tissue box mom!). Ill send you more in a letter

I love you all so much. I have been out for six weeks already I know weird to think.

 Keep on Keeping on...Again I love you all so much

--

"Fourth Floor Last Door"

"That's What's Up"

Elder Amric Zane Sobczak

California, Carlsbad, USA

greatest experience of my life....

So today is day like 16 out in the mission field, not like im counting or anything. So far the days have felt like an eternity but the weeks have flown by. I love it here in the MTC but there is something about living behind a "Fence" that doesn't strike my fancy, for sure never want to go to prison haha.

A quick update on the week other than the obvious ringer of the week;

• We got our travel itinerary for next week
• With that flight information I will be leaving Tuesday morning
• Mom that day I got the Chips and Queso was a great day...The whole day I had been in a funk because it was a monday and I realized I had not any Tacos in like 4 weeks!!! So the whole day my whole district had to hear me whine about not having tacos and how badly I wanted them...So when I opened up the box I was SO HAPPY!!! It completely made my day. I opened it up and enjoyed and it was the best thing i had in a long time. 
• Im getting better at 4-square, but for sure not living up to Austins skill...All the people that are good right now are the ones going to Norway,Sweden,Denmark, and Italy  ...So the people that have been here for 8 or 9 weeks! I am keeping up with them though and they give me props for doing it. Every sport at gym time has its own family that has its own connection So its pretty neat to make friends with people I have known for about 10 days.

And now for the awesome story...

     So, last Tuesday,....We all knew the MTC Mission Presidency was getting released and we knew that a General Authority had to set apart the new mission president ... so we knew something was going down...The devotional started at 7 at night and at 6 there was a line out of the building we were standing in... When they finally let us, We all rush in to the gym which has now been turned into a conference center - just like every talk and get seats about 10 yards to the right of the pulpit.  I was right there to see whoever was going to speak. 

And then it happened...at 6:55 Elder Jeffrey R. Holland walks into the building and everybody stands up as soon as they see him. It was a crazy spiritual experince because I could just feel his presence. His talk was awesome!!! 

He talked about the second coming, and that it started in the spring of 1820 in Palmyra New York (when Joseph Smith restored the Church of Jesus Christ), He said that this is the dispensation that will see Christ and hand his church over 

to him...

Yeah how intense is that?   I had never thought of it that way before.

 He talked about how there is no better time to be on a mission than January 2013 and to be a part of all the changes the church is making. 

He said Preach My Gospel took 8 years to write and that it was started when President Hinckley said in a meeting, "There is something wrong with the missionary program." Elder Holland said "Thats something thats scary to hear when you are the head of the missionary program." HAHA!

He told us "If you come home and become an inactive returned missionary, you wouldnt want to meet me in a dark ally, I'm a little unstable about this issue." HAHA!!! It was pretty funny...He said in his "Holland Voice" "I command you to come home with at least one convert and that convert is YOU!!!" He said "You can't expect the investigators you to teach to believe the things you are saying or keep the commandments you are telling them to keep if your self dont follow them or believe what you are saying." 

You have to be obedient and teach His gospel THEN you will have the Spirit to teach. He was joking around saying how he wanted to "revoke free agency" then said he felt like he was going to get struck with lighting and asked if the podium was grounded? hahaha! 

At the end he gave a dedicatory prayer for 3 newly renovated building on the MTC Campus...The Anston Pratt, Matthew Cowley, and Dan Jones buildings. The first two are residence halls and the Dan Jones one is a Class building...my class building so that was awesome. If you can find the prayer I would highly recommend reading it. 

Hearing Elder Holland was one of the coolest experiences of my life. I know he said lots more but I forgot my notebook in the classroom and cannot go in there in P-Day Clothes.

Parents I love you and thanks for everything. 
I would recommend not sending letters or packages unless you know for sure they will get to me by Monday (DearElder) for example, letters written today will et to me tomorrow and then ... well wait til you get a california address to write, but then please...keep writing!
I will be sending a letter on Monday to the Parents which will have my MTC memory card on it so those pictures will go up by the end of next week. 
I will send an email or letter next week as soon as I can so you guys have my new address in California. 

Be safe I love you all...Have a blast of a week and Be safe.

"Fourth Floor Last Door"

"That's What's Up"

Elder Amric Zane Sobczak

California, Carlsbad, USA