Skip to main content

Summary

For those of you who follow this blog via Facebook, you already know that I have returned from my mission. Albeit I'm home a year earlier than anticipated, my mission experience has been the best thing I could have ever done; Challenges and all. Now that I have more availability over the next few weeks (and have adjusted from jet lag) I would like to share my experience that it might provide some help and insight for those who have or know someone who may have experienced something similar.

The next few posts are just going to be a telling of my story as I remember it. I hope you enjoy.

-Uncommon, but no longer an Elder
Tim Ryan

Popular posts from this blog

First full week in AUS

Hello Everybody! So I have officially survived a full week in Australia! My Vietnamese is still pretty terrible. I mostly just sit quietly in lessons and smile. (like this ^_^) and nod. We work with a lot of University students from Vietnam. So retention can be difficult, but the members are super solid! We have some amazing members currently, and there is a lot of great things happening. I've heard that there was a super big announcement in the broadcast, but as of yet, I don't know what it is... I haven't seen it yet. I can't wait to find out though. I've seen a lot of opposition here, and ultimately every objection I've heard can be directly answered in the bible, supported by the Book of Mormon. But people have their agency and the right to find out for themselves. There is a huge difference between here and the Bronx. In the Bronx, people respected the missionaries and would keep their ill mannered thoughts to themselves. Here people speak them openly, even...
Read more

The happiest day so far this week! (9/16/13)

So this last week has been a week of overcoming, and I'm not ashamed to say that it hasn't been easy. I love my Heavenly Father, I love Jesus Christ, and I love the Holy Ghost. Without them, I would literally be nothing. I am not a perfect missionary, nor am I a perfect person, but I know through Christ's Atonement for us, I have received strength. Emails in the mission are always a plus. Letters are even better (but I don't expect people to waste money on postage).  At this time, I'd like to make a declaration of my faith. I don't really care if you don't agree, but it helps me to put it out there. I know that Jesus is the Christ; the anointed of God to come and cleanse us from our sins. I know that we have a loving Heavenly Father who knows us intimately, and we knew him before this life, and through a concerted effort, we can know him again. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I know it, I know it, I know it! I know that Joseph Smith was a...
Read more

What Should I Do?

...Continued from last post Things at this point were very good. I was excited about my job, I loved what I was doing and I really thought this was the path that I was meant to be on. I was having fun living down in Orange County, I was working a lot, and playing a lot as well. I had a pretty full social calendar with my friends from the YSA ward (ask your LDS friends what this means) and I volunteered with the Irvine Korean Cultural Festival. By no means was I just passing time, or waiting for life to begin; Life had already begun.  Around March of 2012, the rosy picture wasn't as rosy as I had originally perceived. Once again I began to feel unsatisfied in general. Ready to pack up at that point and try something different, I decided to pray. I wasn't fully committed to receiving an answer, but I prayed and was willing to listen. The answer that came wasn't really clear, but what I did know was that I needed to get out of debt and be qualified to go on a mission. ...
Read more