Back from Summer Hiatus

Ok, so Jayrad has been writing but I have not been putting it up here. I am recommitting to do better.

Here are some old letters:

6/1/10

tim,
i love you more than a fat kid loves cake! haha, man you really know
how to make me home sick. but its okay, im learning so much man.
this is probably the craziest ride ive ever been on in my life. a
mission is truly a roller coaster full of ups and downs, youre never
steady. this week has been a very humbling week where ive learned the
importance of diligence and obedience. man oh man, how every single
commandment is so important! ive learned that the reason why we are
obedient or rather we should be obedient is because we must show our
love to our father in heaven! if we truly love him, we will be
exactly obedient. im not the most obedient elder, but i try, and its
been something to learn from. you are my boi!!! so i dont know if
you hear or not, but the area that im in, or the ward, the johnsons
used to be in!! how crazy is that man!?!?! haha youve got to tell
them for me! small world eh? the ward is amazing though, i
absolutely love the area i am in, the people, and my companion. its
awesome. so next week, im getting in the water! oh man i cant wait!
so excited. we are baptizing this kid named stewart, hes 16 and is
excited about the gospel and being baptized. he is truly the elect.
his sister is also getting baptized which is pretty wild. i would
tell you the whole story but im short on time. bro i miss you like
crazy. i think about you everyday man! thank you for pushing me to
get out here. its way hard and some days i want to go home, but i
know that when i grind it out, it will be the biggest blessing in my
life.
so are you stoked or bummed about school? by the way i need to know
your favorite soccer team over here so i can get you a jersey! im so
jealous about you going to all these shows without me! i miss music
like crazy man, but im learning guitar and piano so its been pretty
sweet. well brotha from anotha motha, i miss you. the gospel is
true, i know it with all my heart and soul. joseph smith is truly a
prophet of god and saw god the father and his son jesus christ. this
is his work, and will keep going forth no matter what. im so greatful
to be a part of it. my joy is in doing my fathers will and his work.
theres no greater joy in this life than striving to live the gospel
and especially bring it to others. take care broham!


7/6/10

Hey Guys,
What a special week its been to be a missionary.  As a mission we were
so blessed to have Elder Kopischke of the seventy come and speak to us
at zone conference.  He is the area president for the Europe area and
he came on a mission tour and spoke to us on Thursday of last week and
it was absolutely amazing.  Besides the temple, it was one of the most
spiritual experiences Ive had in my life.  He came with no agenda
other than to answer questions and talk to us, except he did it by
implementing the spirit and teaching us to rely on him for personal
revelation.  He began by having us write down a question and then he
promised us by the end of the conference our question would be
answered directly or indirectly, and sure enough everybody's question
was answered.  It was amazing how many things I learned as a
missionary and as a person and how i can apply the things I learned to
my mission and to my life.  I was most impressed with how he used the
scriptures so much.  The scriptures truly have the answers to all of
our questions and are the gateway to receiving that personal witness
and revelation that we strive for each day.  What a blessing it is to
have them!  Ive never been so happy in my life, to be able to
strengthen my testimony each day and to be able to help others come
back to our heavenly father is truly a blessing that words cannot
describe.  The work in Burton has been slowing down a bit but nothing
Elder Duke and I can't change.  We've been working hard and I know the
Lord is going to bless us soon.  Elder Kopishcke also talked to us
about reminding ourselves everyday how we've seen the Lord's hand in
our lives that day.  On Sunday, I had one of the most precious
experiences that I've had on my mission.  My recent convert Stuart,
got up and bore his testimony about how he knows the church is true.
I couldn't keep the tears back knowing that I've been so blessed to
bring him into the gospel and to be a part of his life and be an
instrument in the Lord's hand in doing so.  These moments are why I
came out, why I am so grateful to be apart of this miraculous work.  I
wish I could tell you everything I've learned lately but there's just
so much to be said, it would take days to tell you. I hope all is
going well, I pray for you always.  I love ya so much, take care.


7/20/10

Oh man Tim!
It's so good to hear from you brotha! I MISS YOU GUYS!!!! It sounds
like you've been mad busy, but hey, you're getting somewhere with it
right?! Dog, I can't tell you how much I love being a missionary and
doing the lords work. It's one of the biggest blessings I have ever
received in my life. I love going out everyday and talking to people,
and making friends. Theres nothing like it, it truly is the best! So
the past 12 weeks or so have just flown by. I love the ward I am in
with all my heart, they are the best people ever! I don't know how
the Johnsons left there, haha. But they truly love the gospel, and
they love each other, and its made this experience one to savor. Last
month I baptized a 16 year old named Stuart. My first ever baptism.
It was one of the best moments on my mission. This kid is absolutely
amazing. Since I've been here, he has received the Aaronic
priesthood, been to the temple, and he just blessed the sacrament for
the first time on sunday. I know he is one of the reasons why I came
out here. I am so greatful to be out here man. Thank you for pushing
me. Literally words cannot express how full my joy is, and I still
have 18 or so months left. I've been out 6 months in a week!
WHAT!?!?! haha time is flying man. Before you know it, i'll be home,
with a wife, living next door to you, chilling all the time bro.
Plans have changed a little bit but not dramatically. Obviously my
priorities have changed. I still want to play hockey but whatever the
lord has in store for me is what I will be doing. I miss you loads
man. I don't think there's a day that goes by that I don't think and
pray for you and Amber, and Max. Give them my love. I love you boi.
Stay in touch. It's always so nice to open up my email on p-day and
see an email from you. Take Care broha!
ONE LOVE
- Elder Bussell

9/2/10

Hey everyone!
So this is just a quick big email cause I don't have much time and
there are people out there on the streets waiting to hear me speak to
them about the gospel! Haha, all is well though. I have been
transferred to a new area in Wales, yup I am going back to Wales, a
place called Newport, so I am no longer in the Hood (well I leave
tomorrow) We've been white washed meaning there are 2 new elders
coming in which is rare. It was a pretty tough six weeks but I
learned so much about myself and about the gospel and how amazing and
blessed we are as people and individuals with or without it. I am so
greatful to be out here and to be serving the Lord. I've said it
before and I'll say it again that I no longer believe that this work
that I am doing and that this Church of Jesus Christ is true... I KNOW
it is true, and that it is a living reality and I am so humbled and
greatful for that. I miss you all and I hope all is going well, I
haven't heard from some of you in a while and you know who you are :P
so please write me back!!! An Elder can get a little lonely without
some love here and there. This work, the experiences I am having are
so amazing, I wish you could be able to be here with me to be able to
experience the peace, joy and happiness that comes with it all. I
miss all of you very much. I am praying for you and day and night and
your in my thoughts constantly. LOVE YOUS!!!

--
ONE LOVE
- Elder Bussell


9/13/10

DUDE!
You are the man and I miss you like crazy! Thanks for that spiritual
thought man, I shared that with some other missionaries and man they
needed to hear that so bad. I've tried to keep that in perspective my
whole mission, to stay focused on the people and not the numbers and
it's been such a blessing and I've seen success from it because
Heavenly Father can trust you with his children, if you really truly
care about them and seek to have that Christlike Love. It's awesome
mate! So my last transfer was a little rough, we got hardly got
anything done in our area number wise, but it was a dead area that
hadn't seen a baptism in almost a year! We decided with the help of
our mission president to pray and study the scriptures and ponder
things pertaining to the gospel. Man let me to you what, I have never
felt so close to my Father in Heaven! It was like he was sitting
right next to me whispering in my ear the things that the area needed.
I received revelation that we needed to work with the Less-Actives of
the ward and with the members and strenghten their desires by having
them feast upon the words of christ and reading the Book of Mormon
daily. It was awesome. The scriptures have brought an entirely new
light to my life and the oppurtunity and blessing that we have to be
able to read them whenever we want is beyond me! We have the will of
God right in front of us!!! Everything we need is in Holy Writ! Ahhh
I love it so much Tim, and I am so greatful that I am out here. I
see myself growing everyday and becoming the man and servant that my
Heavenly Father wants me to become.

So I've got some sweet news. The new area that I am in, Newport, is
hosting the 2010 Ryder Cup! How sick is that?! So me and my
companion are going to go up to the course and do some work!!! Haha
maybe we will talk to Tiger and get him to get his life together
through the gospel! Haha! I'm glad things are going well for you
guys, school must be absolutely nuts!? How did softball end this
year? I really need you to let me know who your favorite soccer team
is over here! My address is on Facebook so use that one and make sure
you have enough postage and whatever you send says Great Britain. I
love you bro, you're my best friend and I'm so greatful for you and
your example. Take care brotha!

ONE LOVE
- Elder Bussell


thats it for now - I will post more as I get them. Everyone make sure to write him!!!