I've been known by many different names throughout my life. Courtney, Slug, C, Garbage Disposal, Captain Vistaun, and so forth. But right now I'm known by another name. Right now I'm known as Elder Bair. I'm a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints serving in the Amsterdam, Netherlands mission. I'm having a wonderful time her testifying & teaching about the Restored gospel of Jesus Christ. One of the things that I like to share with the members is how I received my testimony of the gospel. The last place I saw myself three years ago was on a mission. I'll tell you of a little earlier in my life. I was born of goodly parents on July 8, 1989. I had the opportunity to be born into the only true & living church on the earth. My grandfather Jim Hancey blessed me & gave me the name Courtney Allen Bair. I had an awesome childhood, growing up on the outskirts of Richmond, Utah. I was the first child of Lynn & Janet (& also the best behaving in my younger years.) I went to church with my mom for a while, until my younger sister Stacy Lyn was born. Then we didn't go as often. I didn't have problem with it. More time to play in the sandbox or help dad clean the sawdust up in the garage. Eight years of age came fast, & soon enough I was taught a little about the gospel by my uncles Blake & Robert & my cousin Josh. In the beginning of August 1997 I entered the waters of baptism, being baptized by uncle Blake. Shortly thereafter I was confirmed a member of the church & given the gift of the Holy Ghost. So there you have it, good to go right? Not quite. We only went to church every once in a while, & we never stayed for sacrament meeting. I never really paid much attention in class anyways, so I never learned much about the Church. Well, time continued on as it always does, & soon enough I was 12 years old & eligible for the Aaronic Priesthood. I guess I was active enough to receive it, because I did, but I still didn't know much. After a while i became deacons quorum president. Big steps huh? Well I eventually progressed & was ordained to the office of a teacher. It wasn't to long after that though that my testimony began to dwindle. I wasn't even sure I had much of a testimony. I had never seen anything bad from church, maybe a few people that I thought were strange, but that's all. But my 2 best friends didn't go to church, & neither did my parents. So when I was at the same age that Joseph Smith was when he saw God the Father & Jesus Christ, I began to fall away. And I remained that way for about three years. Then, my senior year in high school, something amazing happened, & it changed my life forever. I had wonderful friends that were always great examples to me. During my senior year, all of my best friends were active in the church, but that didn't really change anything in my life. I didn't see the importance of it. Sunday was a day for me to be lazy & sleep in. Well, as most people know, I was a lot like my father (I still am.) I was really shy & didn't to girls that much. (This is where the story gets interesting.) Luckily for me, there was a certain young woman who came into my life. She came to me & offered me a rope to climb out of my inactive hole with. She set the example for me. Jordan Erickson, known now as Sister Erickson, like my other best friends, was a very active church goer. It made me wonder why such a pretty, smart, funny, humble, & nice young woman would find a couch potato like me attractive. I would often ask myself, "What is so important about church? Why would the go?" I remember talking to my friend Dave Loosle about it, & asking him if I could go to church with him (He was in Jordan's ward.) So I went to church with them a few times, but not long after, we started going to a single student ward. Jordan & I had been dating for about 6 months at this time. (We were graduated.) Naturally at about this time, the other young men my age were preparing for & going on missions. My above mentioned uncles & cousins that had served missions, but I didn't know exactly what they did. The questions started flowing in my direction about a mission. Like I said earlier, a mission was the last thing that I had in mind. I told everyone, "Yeah, I don't think a mission is for me. I'm just gonna stay here & go to school." But there were two people that seemed to ask me that question over & over, no matter what I had told them previously. The first one, Grandma Norma. "A mission will make you a better husband & a better father," she would say. It would always make me upset, & I would still think to myself, "No, a mission isn't for me." The second person was my best friend Dave. He said something that really go me frustrated at his farewell luncheon. "Maybe before I get home you'll be on a mission Court." What was it with these people? No meant no, & they couldn't change my mind. Jordan & I talked about it a lot, & we both agreed that it wasn't for everyone. Well, then Dave left for the MTC, & he was the last of mine & Jord's friends to go. Well time went by & I kept going to church & learning more & more. I worked for a full year after graduating & then started going to USU, not knowing exactly what I would do with my life. Jordan was also going to school at USU at this time. We went out on real dates two or three nights a week, & when we weren't on "real dates," we were just hanging out with one another (we were both moved out at this time & lived about 4 minutes away from each other.) But then something else came up. Jordan's mother & grandmother had always encouraged her to marry a Return Missionary. Her mom always told her that she needed to go & date other people, not just me. Well, I was completely in love with her, & she with me, so the last thing we wanted to do was date other people. In one night around this time, I felt my world turn upside down. Jordan had set a time to go talk to her mom, to tell her that a mission wasn't for everyone, and that we didn't want to date anyone else. Well, she went & she talked to her. Meanwhile, I got a text in the middle of my math class saying, "meet me at the temple." "OK," I thought. So after math class, I ran to my car, & raced to the temple. I found Jordan sitting on a bench on the SW corner, crying. She looked at me and started crying even harder. So I asked her what happened. "I told her what we talked about, that a mission isn't for everyone, & that you were still a good person doing your best. Then she started talking back. I didn't really hear the words she was saying, but I felt the Spirit so strong. I felt it, & I can't deny it. I know that a mission is in my future. Whether that means my own personal future, or just my future husband or both, I don't know. But I can't deny what I felt." I was shocked. I had no idea what I should do. We talked for only a few more minutes & then I drove back down to my apartment and sat in my car. What she said basically meant we would eventually have to break up. But I loved her so much, & I didn't want that. I had never seen myself going on a mission. all of my friends had prepared themselves for years before they left. They know what they had to do. I had never read the whole Book of Mormon. I didn't know any doctrine, & I didn't have a desire to give up 2 years of my life either. Well, there was one person I could always call & he would always have the right answer. So I gave him a call, & just as I thought, he said the right words. "Courtney you're a stud. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. A mission is between your Heavenly Father & you, and if you truly know that it's not for you, then don't go. But if you were to go, you would make an awesome missionary." "Well How will I know for sure?" I asked. "Simple," said Rob, "Pray." It hit me that I had never prayed about it. I had never asked heavenly Father what he wanted from me. I had just made my own mind up that I wouldn't go. So I took the advice from Rob into action. I prayed about it that night... Nothing happened. I didn't feel any different. So I went to bed & decided to try again in the morning. I prayed, & waited, & listened. Still nothing came. Was that my answer? I ended up grabbing my triple combination that morning instead of fruit loops. And I read what is now my favorite scripture: Doctrine & Covenants 58: 2-4. It reads: "For verily I say unto you, blessed is he that keepeth my commandments, whether in life or in death; and he that is faithful in tribulation, the reward of the same is greater in the kingdom of heaven. Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of tour God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation. For after much tribulation come the blessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand." These words felt to me as though they were written only for me. I felt like Joseph Smith when he said, "Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart. I reflected on it again & again..." This was the answer that I was seeking, and I found it so fast because God had prepared me my whole life for that moment. I had been through stuff so that when my eyes read those words, I would be prepared to understand & follow them. So shortly after that time I started to save my money. I didn't know how long it would take, & I knew the Lord would provide a way if it was His will that I go. So I moved back home, & started working 2 jobs while finishing that semester of school. The lord did provide too. One day while working at Big J's, a member of my homeward & good friend drove through the drive-thru. He asked me what I was doing working back her, because I had already worked there & quit before. I told him about working 2 jobs to pay my car off & save money for a mission. "Cool", he said. "Good luck." Well a few weeks after, as I was backing out of my driveway Sunday morning, Pat Lewis drove by and pulled up next to me with his window rolled down. "I've been thinking about what you said the other day at Big J's. If money is the only thing that is stopping you from going, I'll pay for you. Get your papers filled out & turned in." I was shocked! He'd pay for me? That scripture came back to my mind, "Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God, concerning those things which shall come hereafter." God had a plan just for me. He has a work for me to do in this land. I've seen that in my past, & I'm seeing it here today. I have such a strong testimony of the ministering of angels. Angels are not always beings that live in heaven, but they are among us here on the earth. We all have opportunities to be angels for someone else. Thanks to those angels that helped me see my purpose in life, and the calling that God has for me. And a special thanks to the wonderful Sister Erickson. You've helped me more than you could ever know. I love you all.
Elder Courtney Bair
President Brubaker's had fun turning gingerbread men into handsome missionaries!
Sinterklaas had arrived in The Hague!
uses their skin to be black.
In this bag was candy for all the little children. So cute!!!
The Thanksgiving season is her. Naturally, during this time of year, we reflect on those things that we have that we are thankful for. In our last General Conference, our beloved prophet Thomas S Monson talked to us about being thankful, even for little things that we might not recognize all the time. He told a story of a family, who after many years of using lanterns to light their house, finally installed electricity and light bulbs. They were amazed at how much better they could see. They had always had a bounteous Thanksgiving dinner with a nice ole’ Turkey to eat. Well, a few years went by since they had their electricity put in, and once again, Turkey day had arrived. They had had a very bad year crop wise, with a lot of their crops being washed away. that year, their Thanksgiving dinner was a lot less than it had been in years before. The children weren’t really happy about it. No one was happy about it. They just sat around the table looking at their meager supply of food. then, the father decided to do something. He went and got the old lanterns that they had and lit them, and hung them where they use to go. then he shut the lights off. It was so dark that they could barely see. They wondered how they could have ever survived with such minimal light. They remembered to be thankful for what they had not sad for what they didn’t. My family and friends, I hope you can all remember this Thanksgiving season what you are thankful for. Think about all that you have, all of those things you think you could live without. One of my favorite hymns is number 163, in the Dutch hymnbook, “Teluwvele Zegeninge,” or, “Count your many blessings.” This hymn always helps remind me of what I have, and it also reminds me that it was God that gave it to me.
Missionaries from the Rotterdam and Antwerp zone enjoyed their last day immensely. Now comes the blessings of putting into action all they learned!
Elder Bair, Elder Brownell, Elder Alexander, and Elder Garrett enjoy a P-Day together at Kinder Dijk.
