Pictures

Elder Deppe, from Germany. Craig describes him as "the funniest German I've ever met".
Elder Steinvourte, from Holland. Craig says that his English is "perfect". He is classics major in Europe, just like Craig so they "get along great". Craig says that the two of them "love to make fun of modern Greek" and they help each other out understanding the modern grammar as opposed to ancient grammar.
Elder Almundsun, from Norway. They decided to see how they would look with a "mega-part".

"Elder Steinvourte being himself"

No explanation required!!

Elder Heller, he is from Germany. Craig said that they were practicing to be ushers for the devotional that evening.
Elder Long, Craig says he has lived all over the world. His parents are Italian. Craig says he is the prankster of the group. He likes to put the alarm clock in the ceiling set for 2:00 am, "the Brits didn't appreciate that".
Elder Ence, Craig describes him as "one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet. He left the MTC already for Lithuania.

Elder Forbes from Norway. He and Craig have become great friends.

Elder Burgon and Elder Mansfield from England. Craig says they are "absolutely hilarious".

Elder Mansfield with his "game face".

Craig's companion Elder MePhee from Texas.

Elder Mansfield

Elder Heller, he is from Germany. Craig says that they have become pretty good friends.
Elder Carlberg from Sweden, Craig says he is a Swedish equivalent of a Navy Seal graduate.

Elder Mansfield being himself.

Elder Steinvourte, Elder Schmaal, and Craig. Craig writes that Elder Schmaal is absolutely hilarious, he doesn't speak much English but he still tries to talk 400 miles an hour.


We received a letter yesterday from Craig and he sent all of the pictures that he had taken of the other missionaries in the group going to Greece. It is great to see how much fun they have despite the hard work and long days they put in at the MTC. An instant reminder that they are still 19 year old young men after all.

San Francisco Was Great

We received an e-mail from Craig today. His trip to San Francisco went very well. He and his companion went with two older couples who will also be traveling to Greece. They were each interviewed briefly. It was Craig's first opportunity to speak Greek to a native. He felt that it went very well. The man who interviewed him also liked that he knew Ancient Greek. They ate fish and chips at Fisherman's Wharf and they walked along the wharf and watched the seals and seagulls.

Craig said it is so different being a missionary and walking along the street. He described that some people walked up to them and talked to them like they had known them forever and others acted like they were the devil incarnate. Interesting how we treat others especially when we don't know or understand. My prayer is that everyone my son will come in contact while on his mission will respect him and his faith. I know, however, that will not likely happen, and that breaks my heart. These missionaries are such awesome young men and women who just want to share something so good, so beautiful. Pray that those approached by Craig and missionaries around the world will open their hearts and their minds to God's word and His love, and that they will be kind to these young men and women. Craig's story also makes me examine myself and my reaction to others when approached by them. I will pray that I am more tolerant and open to their words. Perhaps they just have a job to do, maybe they are hungry and are asking for some spare change, or maybe it is a person that could change me and my life forever, just like the missionaries who first visited our home ultimately did for Craig. I promise to be more tolerant.

He's Doing Great

It was a great day because we actually received two different letters today from Craig. One envelope had letters for each of enclosed, and the other was a short update. His update was to let us know that he will be traveling on Wednesday, September 5 to San Francisco to the Greek Consulate. He and his companion are required to pick up their Visas in person so they will be taking a day trip there and returning in the evening. He said they are providing them with money for lunch also. He said it was a nice surprise that they will be permitted to go. I am sure it will be a nice little break from the hard work he has been putting in at the MTC.

I am amazed by all that he has been doing since arriving at the MTC. Early last week he had to give a 15 minute talk in Greek and on Saturday he and his companion had to give a 45 minute talk. They are no longer allowed to communicate in the classroom in anything but the Greek language. I cannot believe that after only three weeks he is already prepared for this, it just amazes me. Again, how great God is for giving him the knowledge and the confidence to meet these challenges head on, and loving every single minute of the experience!

Our family unfortunately had some difficult news to deliver to Craig last week. David's grandmother, Grandma Ho Ho as we all so lovingly called her, passed away. She was blessed with 93 years and she truly blessed all of us. Craig loved visiting her (she spent the last several months of her life at St. Andrew's Health Care in Batesville). When he was a senior at Oldenburg Academy he would visit her several times a week, and again visited often this summer while he was home. She too was very proud of the mission he was to serve and the two of them had many wonderful conversations. We called the MTC and they called Craig to the Mission President's office and delivered the news to him. He said that he was sad and it was difficult at first but he said that he knows without a doubt that Grandma is happy, well, and in good hands. He also said, "The Lord looks after all of his children and gives the same love back ten fold of what they showed in this life. And I know we all can agree that Grandma's love for us and the Lord was awesome. I know she is okay." What a comfort those words were for us and for his Grandma and Grandpa Meister to read. He is an amazing young man!

He has mentioned so many times that letters and cards from home mean so much to him. He said "It is so nice to get mail." The time all of you have taken to drop him a note or card mean so much to him and so much to us. Your prayers have been a tremendous comfort and have made this transition for him and for our family go very smoothly. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!!

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.