A New Letter Today

I was very excited to get home this evening and find another letter from Craig in the mailbox. I don't even get upset about the bills that arrive on these days!!

He continues to sound very pumped up about his experiences at the MTC. His days sound very full. He said they leave their rooms around 7AM and don't return until 9:30PM. They have classes that generally last about 4 hours with 1 hour meal breaks in between. Thursdays are preparation or "P" days. Once he is in the mission field his "P" day will likely be Monday, but the days vary in the MTC because there are so many young men and women in one location. "P" days are used for writing letters, doing laundry, etc. He can also go to the Temple on "P" days as well (the Temple in Provo is right across the street from the MTC). The Temple is a very spiritual and uplifting place for LDS members to go with only certain ordinances being performed there. You must be worthy to go to the Temple as well. He always describes his experiences there as "amazing". I can only imagine how special those visits are for him.

He said that his understanding has blossomed beyond anything he could have ever imagined or expected. He said "I can only imagine what the next two years have to offer". That makes my heart glow. What a truly wonderful experience this will be not only for him, but for our entire family.

He said that despite their cultural differences, he and the other 13 young men who are traveling to Greece together get along great. He has had many opportunities to help with translation of lessons from English to German for some of his classmates.
It was great to hear from him as I know you all can imagine. The toughest part of the two years is not being able to pick up the phone and call him or not seeing his name show up on my cell phone when it rings. However, the gifts and joy he is receiving certainly outweigh any difficulties we may experience along the way.

Will update when we hear from him again. Thanks for reading!!
Love to all!

Our First Letter from Craig

We are so excited. We received our first letter from Craig today. He sounds GREAT!!! He describes the MTC as "amazing". He said the Spirit that is there is just indescribable. His companion is Elder McPhee. He is from Texas and went to BYU last year also. He really likes him. They are the only 2 Americans in their district of 14 missionaries who will be going to Greece. The others are from Germany, Norway, Sweden, England, and Holland. He is very excited because he has been able to use his German quite a bit. One of the young men from Holland was also a Classics major like Craig. Isn't it just amazing how God sees that everything is JUST RIGHT!!

He encouraged us to pray if we have concerns or things are difficult while he is gone. He is so right when he says the the Holy Spirit is "THE COMFORTER". I knew in my heart (as much as I miss him) that he was just smiling from ear to ear and that his life as a missionary will be more than he could ever imagine, and I know that it was the Holy Spirit who gave me that comfort.

He is able to receive e-mail on Thursdays and he will have about 1/2 hour to read and respond to them. I was unsure of what e-mail address to use because I wasn't sure his missionary account was set up yet, so guess what, I e-mailed my note to all three of his accounts (I know he will laugh hysterically when he sees what his goofy mom did !!). His accounts are: rcmeisty@hotmail.com, rcmeisty@byu.net, and rcmeisty@myldsmail.net, so take you pick.

Thank you all again for all of the prayers and kind words you have sent our way since Craig left. You have no idea how much it means to us to have so many people praying for Craig.

Will update more when the next letter arrives.
God Bless!

Pictures from our visit to Utah & Craig's first day

We truly enjoyed our two days in Utah before taking Craig to the MTC.
Craig and Renee being silly!!

Craig and Renee at lunch before going to the MTC.

A mother gets the honor of being the first to place the name tag on her missionary.

Craig's name tag: Elder Meister The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

Craig with Mom and Dad

Well yesterday was the day. We dropped Craig off at the Missionary Training Center (MTC) in Provo, Utah to begin his two year mission. It was a beautiful day, bright and blue skies and an emotional day as well for all of us. Certainly one of the proudest moments of our lives as parents. We feel honored that we can share Craig with the world, as he shares his love for the Lord and for our Saviour Jesus Christ. We know that the power of his testimony will change the lives of many of the people that he has an opportunity to share it with while in the mission field. The changes may be in baptizing new members into the LDS faith, introducing someone to the saving power of Jesus Christ, or by strengthening someone's existing faith and bringing him or her even closer to God. All which are successes for a missionary.
Craig will be in the MTC for two months before leaving for Greece on October 17th. He would love to hear from all of his family and friends. His address while at the MTC is:

Elder Randall Craig Meister
MTC Mailbox #142
GRE-ATH 1017
2005 N. 900 East
Provo, Utah 84604-1793

I will post further updates as we write and get additional information from him. We thank you for your continued thoughts and prayers.