Elder Burns is calling home tonight!

thank you so much for all you do you are so awesome you will be getting letters from me in a few days i sent them out this morning!!!
i wont be calling you till after ten tonight i dont even report to the travel office until 4:30 pm.  i love you lots ill call you tonight at about ten thirty 

More news from Elder Burns

To Dad:
The Spirit is amazing like none other.  Our lessons focus on missionary work specifically.  I am enjoying the scriptures.  I teach not through memorization but by the Spirit.  Nothing new about Australlia.  Well, I love ya lots.  I'm out of time.  You're awesome.  I love you so much.

To Mom:
St. John 10:16  "and other sheep have I which are not of this fold. Them also I must bring and they shall hear my voice and there should be one fold and one shepherd."  This is testifying in the bible of Joseph Smith as the shepherd.  The Book of mormon is the sheep that is not of this fold.  The fold is the bible.  This scripture is amazing.

D&C 42:12 "And again, the elders, priests and teachers of this church shall teach the principals of my gospel which are in the bible and in the Book of Mormon in which is the fullness of the gospel."  This is what I'm doing as an elder, as a missionary.  The Book of Mormon is the word of God.

Well, my mission companion :) He is so awesome.  5 Foot 3, 100 lbs and  and he is of Asian descent.  He is full of the spirit.  One of the coolest things about him is that he has a black belt in an ancient Chinese martial art so basically, he kicks my butt.

So we had our Tuesday night devotional which is the one that is the apostle devotional.  We got to have Jeffrey R. Holland speak to us.  Man is he powerful.  I think he will be the prophet one day.  He is amazing.

Well, I've g2g.  Love you lots.
your son

To Jared:
How are you doing?  I love you so much!  I love the MTC.  I am learning so much about how to teach the Gospel.  I'm so sorry to hear that all of your fish died.  Here are a bunch of the stars (picture hand-drawn stars here) that I am looking at now.  I just know that no matter what, we can both look up at the same night sky.

To Breanna:
The  MTC is a life-changing experience.  The Spirit is like none other on the entire Earth.  I miss you so much also, you are awesome.  Miss you so much.  Let me know how things are going at home.

To Crystal:
Crystal, you are so awesome!!!!  I love you so much you are always in my prayers.  I don't learn the accent until I am out in the mission field.  The MTC is amazing.  The Spirit is awesome.  My favorite part is the Spirit.  The food is awesome.  Just recently, I cut down my food intake because I was gaining weight.  Well, g2g.  Love you lots.

To Grambo:
Boy oh boy!!! The MTC is amazing there is no other place much like it in the world!!  I am enjoying everything about the MTC.  This last Tuesday we had an apostle come and speak to us.  It was Jeffrey R. Holland!! 

He is my favorite speaker.  He talked about missionary work.  He is so awesome.  I love you so much.  You are awesome.  You are always in my prayers.

To Sarah:
You are so awesome.  I am so happy to happy to have you as my sister.  You're such a great person.  I'm happy you got a fluffy purple dress it is awesome.  I haven't learned any new words.

Well I've g2g

Love,
Elder Burns

Zach's First Letter 09-15-09

Dear family,

This letter may be short due to the fact that I am so involved in the work.  The MTC is like no other place on earth.  The spirit here is unbelievable.  The food is amazing.  I am learning so much.
My first companion, Elder Da Rosa, he is a very small asian young man from South Carolina.  he is very quiet, but his spirit is so strong, he will be a great man among many.  I have learned to love him so much.  He has helped me to grow.  BTW, Elder Da Rosa weighs 95 lbs, so I am more than double his size which makes us a very awkward companionship but it is wonderful.  Well I'm going to get back to work.  I'm going to the referral center.

With Love,
Elder Burns

Zach Enters the MTC

Zach says to his mother..."I'm ready mom."

It was an interesting experience, going to the MTC to drop off our son.  It was quite as I expected, which I didn't expect at all.  I know they TOLD me it was going to be very quick - no time to say goodbye or anything.  I just didn't BELIEVE them.

A couple of missionaries came over to the car, took his suitcases out, I took a few pictures, then someone came over and distracted us for a minute and he was gone!  At least we'd had time to talk right before going there, and take him to lunch, and to Grandma Brown's house.  I even went to breakfast with him and his friends that morning.

Now, however, looking back on the day, I wish I'd taken a few minutes to talk with him privately.  To tell him how much I love him and I'm going to miss him.  I know he knows I love him, but I really needed to say the words and give him one last hug.  I wish he hadn't been taken away so quickly.

He's there, however, and studying and praying and learning.  In a couple more weeks, he'll be off to Sydney.  I know he is excited, and he's happy there.  We already received a couple of emails from him, though I'm not going to post them here.  It seems that despite being there for only a few days, he isn't missing us at all...he wants us to send him Cheetos.  CHEETOS!?!?  That's what he's thinking about in his first email to me? LOL

I heard a report from his grandparents that his companion is of Chinese descent.  Not only that, he is very short and skinny, and Elder Burns could lift him with one arm.  They also reported that Zach could say nothing negative about his companion, even when he was a distance away getting his food.  He commented that his companion is very knowledgeable in the gospel.  Good for him!

I will post letters and photos and other information here as I get it.