We got the most amazing letter from Tanner today. I am so thankful that Osagie's baptism went well. It sounds like he had a great day.
February 28th 2017 
Happy last day of February everyone!
Hello my dear family! I enjoyed your emails SO MUCH! I loved everything you wrote and it was so fun to hear that you all had a great week! I have missed you all a ton! It was also so much fun to see all the cool pictures you took of the game! I love seeing all your pictures! Also, thank you so much Mom for the daily quote! It was so much fun to wake up and see that you had emailed! I have truly felt so many prayers from you all every single day and I know you are right here with me! Your emails and pictures make me feel right at home! I love hearing from everyone individually! It is crazy that you have gotten so much snow! I thought you may be in the clear and wouldn't get much more snow!
What a amazing week from the Bronx! I have SO many exciting things to tell you and I have learned so much this last week and I have absolutely love this area! It is so cool to be serving in such an amazing place! ...But I still miss Utah so much! This week has been really awesome and I can't wait to tell you everything and I hope I can remember all the cool events that have taken place! I really love emailing you all and hearing about how your week went! P-Day is such a fun day! The weather over here has been incredible! 60+ degrees all week with a light breeze and bright blue skies! It has been so nice to go out and find people to teach with such beautiful weather! Sounds like Nibley has been getting a lot of snow! First of all....Congrats to Ridgeline!!! That is so exciting that a brand new high school can pull out a State Championship W!! I am so glad that you got to go and see such an exciting game! When Abby told me in last week's email that Ridgeline was going to play at Utah State, I was really excited for you to go! That is so incredible! Also, I can't thank you enough for the amazing package! Right before you sent it, I was wishing I packed some sweat pants and more lounge clothes! All the clothes have been awesome! Everyone in my apartment really likes my SD card adapter! It has been really handy!
What a incredible week! It was really weird not emailing you yesterday! It felt like P-Day even though it was a regular day! Poor Elder Bradley! He forgot to tell his family that P-Day was on Tuesday instead of Monday! He had his family emailing him all day trying to get him to respond and send his weekly email! This week we have had a ton of exciting things happen! We found out on Tuesday of last week that Elder Gong was holding a last minute fireside for us in Manhattan on Sunday!!! So I couldn't tell you in my last email that I would be in Manhattan on Sunday! We also found out on Tuesday that we get to go to the Temple today!! We were all so excited! So we were wondering since we can only go to Manhattan once per transfer if this would count for our Manhattan day but we ask President Smith and he said that we could go to Manhattan another time since we wouldn't be able to do much! So we will be going to the Temple today and then the 9/11 museum and memorial next week! It is funny how I told you last week we would go! It is going to be such a cool experience!
Tuesday was such a great day! We woke up at about 6:00 to go to zone conferences which we were all really excited for! I always love hearing from President Smith and his wife! So we got up and got ready to head out the door by 7:00. We headed out and caught the bus right before it was driving away and drove to the Kingsbridge Church! This church is right on a street corner by a tunnel which is very different from what we are used to! It's pretty interesting! If you want to check it out, the address is: 211 E Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10468. As we were driving I couldn't help but think how cool the area is! I still don't think it's hit me yet that I'm actually in New York! This church is out of our zone so it was really nice to see some different parts on the Bronx! We were the first ones there so we started setting up tables and chairs for everyone! I couldn't wait to meet all the missionaries! Then everyone started to show up and finish helping with setting things up! I asked the assistants to the President if Elder Burt was going to be there and they told me that he was serving in the city and wouldn't be at this zone conference, I was really looking forward to meeting him but I met so many other awesome missionaries! But when I do see him I will be sure tell him Hi from the Saunders! They started out by taking lots of pictures as we showed up so I'm hoping you got to see me on the blog! After pictures, we had a really good breakfast that was put together by Brother and Sister Larsen who help put these conferences together. They are really nice and love getting to know each and every one of us! We had yogurt with granola and orange juice. After breakfast President Smith and his Wife got there and greeted us all! I have loved President Smith and his wife! They are always so personable and always make us feel welcome! The meeting was awesome! In all, there were about 70 missionaries that came to this meeting! Over a third of the mission! They started off by doing some role play and have us practice teaching by the spirit. Then after that, President Smith spoke to us and talked about always having the Spirit to be with us and using the Spirit not only in our teaching but using the Spirit to find those that have been prepared to be taught! We all learned a ton from this conference! We learned that there are so many people out there that need to hear our message but we just have to find those that will accept it! So by doing that we need to talk to as many people as we can and use out time wisely! I have had the best trainer! We always talk to people on the subways and busses and give them a quick rundown of the Restoration and usually hand them a Book of Mormon! I always get so excited to share the message of the Gospel because I know how much this Gospel has blessed all of our lives and so it is really exciting to share it with someone who has never heard about it! I truly know how much this Gospel has blessed our lives and I know that it can bless others as well!
This week has been really awesome because we have been preparing for Osagie's baptism! It has been really fun to plan and get everything ready for such an awesome guy! We have gotten to know him really well! The first couple of times we went over and taught him we thought he was a single guy. But we found out that he moved here from Nigeria just a couple of months ago! He left his wife and 3 really young kids back in Nigeria to start a better life for him and his family. It is really expensive to live here in New York so only he came out while his family stayed in Nigeria. So he has been missing his family so much! He still hasn't been able to find a job but we are hoping that Brother Dankquah (the member in our ward that talked with him about a job) can get him a job! He is such a humble guy and never complains about not having a job or missing his family! He has loved learning about all the lessons and has applied them into his life already! He hasn't had any problems with any of the commandments and was very willing to pay Tithing, keep the Word of Wisdom, etc. My companion told me that he has NEVER had anyone who loves hearing about the Gospel as much as Osagie! He told us the other day that all he can think about is his baptism! He couldn't wait for it! In one of our lessons we were talking about temples and we showed him a picture of the Salt Lake Temple and his eyes lit up! He couldn't believe how amazing it was! He asked us when he could go there! He was amazed that we both live in Utah and we had both seen the Salt Lake Temple in person! It was really cool to see him get so excited!
On Tuesday, my companion and I went over to the church and started making Osagie's baptism program! I took a picture of it so you can see the final product! We had a lot of fun putting it together and making it look nice! After that we went to our main area where we spend most of our time is called Co-op City! I took some pictures of the huge building of just apartments! It is a fun place to go and it is really pretty over there! It takes us about 45 minutes to get there by bus. We went all over the place and looked in our area book for anybody that would be interested in hearing about our church or would need some help with anything! It was really fun to go around and look for anyone that was in need of anything! Our main areas are Co-op City (Which is still the Bronx, it is just a small complex of apartment buildings), Gun Hill Road, Boston Road, and Burke Avenue in case you want to look them up on Google Maps!
Wednesday was awesome! We got to go over to the church and play a really fun game that my district came up with! Brandon and Parker would especially love it! It is called Gator ball! We woke up at 5:00 am and headed over to the church. We got there at about 6:00 and started playing with two other sets of Elders from our district! Gator ball is really fun! The gym at our church is carpeted because they use one half as the chapel and the other half as the gym! So we set up two metal chairs at the two ends of the gym. We split into two teams and start just like a soccer game and we try to kick or throw the ball and touch the chair. But if the ball gets kicked into the air then you can catch it and start running like football and try to score by throwing it at the chair! So we had so much fun playing that for about a hour then we headed back home to get ready for the day! I love that game a lot! After we studied, and planned out the day we had our weekly district meeting at the church! We had a lot of fun talking about the progress Osagie was making! After that we went over to Osagie's apartment and taught him the Word of Wisdom and prophets! He loved seeing Thomas S. Monson's picture! He told us that he really wants to meet him some day!
Thursday was a great day as well! Every Thursday we have our weekly Planning. We plan out and set up appointment with everyone that we will be teaching that week! So we call everyone and see when would be a good time to come over and then add them to our area book schedule on our tablets! I have loved having my tablet so much! It takes about 3 hours to schedule everything out and make sure we are staying busy during the week! After that we went over to the Church and got a baptismal jumpsuit for Osagie and dropped it off at his house! He was getting more and more anxious to get baptized! I found out something interesting that I didn't know that missionaries did before I came out here. But they teach us to do this in the MTC! At the end of the very first lesson that we teach investigators, we invite them to be baptized and set a baptismal date! I was meaning to ask Dad this a while ago but I'm not sure if it has changed since you served? So it sets a goal right off the bat and let's them know that our goal is to help them become more like Jesus Christ and be baptized! After we visited Osagie, we went and tried to find some new investigators! We talked to a TON of people and tried to help them with whatever they needed! One couple was out washing their car because it was such a nice day and we offered to help but they said: "We don't want you to get your nice clothes dirty!" We ended up setting up a lesson in a few weeks! So it just goes to show that talking with as many people as you can really helps!
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday were the BEST days so far!!!! They were amazing! My companion and I were on cloud 9 all day!
Friday we got everything finalized for Osagie's baptism! He has wanted to get baptized ever since we taught him the second lesson! He told us that he knew it was the right thing for him to do and it was going to bless his life so much! We woke up again at 5:00 and went to the church for another awesome game of Gator ball! The zone leaders even brought their new investigator to play as well. We had a ton of fun! It is always nice to run around for a little while! After Gator ball we headed back home and got ready for the day. We were so excited for Saturday because of the baptism! My companion kept telling me: "Baptism number 1 for Elder Lindberg!" It is so amazing to watch the progress in the people we teach! After that we went and knocked on some doors around Co-op City! Now some really exciting news! About a week ago we met a really nice man from Ghana named Kojo Owusu. He was busy when we first met him but he told us to come back in about a week. So we handed him a Book of Mormon and a card with our phone number! My companion and I both had the prompting to knock on his door and see how he was doing! He answered and told us to come in! We sat down and started to talk with him! His wife, Sophie, was in the other room taking care of their newborn baby. Kojo told us that he had been reading the Book of Mormon and was wanting us to come over and teach him more! We taught him the Restoration and he loved it! Since I am the trainee, I am in charge of taking the lead in the Restoration lesson and extending baptism invitations! My companion and I taught him the Restoration and I invited him to be baptized on March 25th and he accepted! How cool is that!? We were thrilled that he wants to learn more and get baptized! We are going to try to teach his wife as well because she was very interested in hearing what we had to say but she was busy with their newborn. It has been amazing to have investigators that love having us over and a desire to learn more!
Saturday (Osagie's baptism!) On Saturday, my companion and I woke up and headed to the church at about 9:30 to start filling up the font. We got there and started filling up the font and then we folded programs, set up chairs, and vacuumed. We wanted everything to be perfect! My companion told me that I was really lucky and blessed to have a baptism this early in my mission! I couldn't agree more! After the font filled we had people start showing up at about 12:30 and the baptism started at 1:00. Osagie was so excited to get baptized! We found out a while ago that his sister is actually a member and referred him to missionaries once she found out he was coming to New York. So she had explained the blessings that this Gospel brings! The baptism was amazing! Everything was smooth sailing! We had two great talks given by the other companionship in our apartment. It was an amazing day! I am a little sad that we don't get to see Osagie very often anymore now that he has been baptized! He is a great guy!
Sunday was an incredible day! We woke up and got ready for the day! I was ecstatic to go to Manhattan! Our church starts at 11:00 so we left at about 10:00 to get there in enough time to set up chairs. I completely forgot to mention this in my previous emails but we actually have Gospel Principles class first and then Elders quorum and then Sacrament Meeting! Pretty different right? At 3:00 our time, I always think of you going to church! I also think of you when school and work starts! So at 10:00, I will think: "Dad is headed to work!" And at 11:00 I think about Mom, Abby, Brandon, and Parker all heading off to school! In Sacrament meeting we got to confirm Osagie! He invited my companion and I, the two Elders in our apartment, and the Bishop to stand in on the circle. I forgot to tell you that our bishop is actually from Logan and graduated from good old Utah State! How cool is that? He is an awesome guy and I got to talk to him for a little bit! I said that is is nice to talk to an Aggie! It is such a small world! After we confirmed Osagie, we headed back to the apartment for a quick 20 minute dinner and then we sprinted to the train! I couldn't believe that I was actually going to Manhattan! Another thing that I forgot to mention about our area is that Fordham University is just down the street from where we live! A couple of years ago, Fordham actually made it to the NCAA Tournament. The train ride to Manhattan is amazing! It goes right underneath central park! The subways here are really packed with tons of people! When we got off the subway we were underground so I couldn't see anything but when we walked up through a tunnel....New York, New York, started playing in my head! I thought we were just going to a nearby church in Manhattan....but we got to go to the chapel in the Temple!! We walked up out of the tunnel and there was the Temple! Right in the middle of these huge skyscrapers! We were in a bit of a hurry so I only got to take one picture right before going into the Temple! My companion served in this area his last transfer. So he knew the city like the back of his hand! He pointed over a big tall building and said: "That's Trump Tower!" It was amazing! The Temple is a couple miles away from downtown New York so I couldn't see the Empire State building or the Statue of Liberty but it was still amazing to see the Temple right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of New York life! I was trying to soak it in as much as I could but my companion told me that we would enjoy it more on P-Day! I hope you got to see the blog and all the pictures they took! I bet you were confused when you saw them because you thought I wouldn't go to Manhattan until today! Such an amazing experience! We started the meeting by reading Elder Gong's conference talk that he gave last April! I recognized him and his talk. Then he walked in and greeted us all! It was so cool to have not only a member of the Seventy in the room...but a member of the presidency of the Seventy! It is amazing to see him on T.V for Conference and then see him in person! He shook all of our hands and asked us where we were from. Then we got into our districts and as I was looking around the room at all the missionaries, guess who I saw!!.......ELDER BURT! I finally saw Elder Burt for the first time! I had to wait until they gathered us up for the picture to talk with him. I went up behind him and said: "Elder Burt!" He obviously had no idea who I was but after I explained that his aunt and uncle are our awesome home teachers he knew exactly who I was! He said that he got an email a while ago from Sister Saunders to watch out for me. I was so glad to meet him! He is so nice and he told me to tell you to say Hi to the Saunders from the both of us! After that, we went into the chapel and had our fireside. It was so good! He talked about the importance of the Sabbath day and how we can always remember Jesus Christ. After the devotional, they rushed Elder Gong out of the room and he came out wearing a "NYNYN" apron and said: "Who's ready for ice cream!" It was fun to have a member of the Seventy Presidency serve us all ice cream! President Smith and his wife also served ice cream. I was really lucky to be at the back of the line so I could get a quick picture with Elder Gong and President Smith together! I totally recognized him from conference and now I was standing right next to him! In all....it was such an amazing day!
So on Monday we got to spend even more time with Elder Gong! We woke up, got ready for the day and headed over to the Kingsbridge Church. This meeting with Elder Gong was only for the Bronx missionaries so it was a little more hands on and interactive with Elder Gong and his wife! They started by having President and Sister Smith come to the front of the gym and had all the missionaries say one adjective that describes them. I said that they were very humble and at the end President and Sister Smith said that all these words described us all! It was a fun activity to hear all the adjectives that describe them! Then, Sister Gong spoke for about an hour on how we can teach more effectively using Preach my Gospel. She made it really interesting and used personal experiences from her mission in Japan. She did a great job! Then, Elder Gong concluded the meeting by speaking to us about how to be a more effective missionary in the way we act. He had everyone in the room share a cool experience they have had so far and my companion and I shared Osagie's story! It was really amazing to spend two days with a general authority!
I wish I could talk forever but we are getting ready to leave for Manhattan and go through the Temple! Our temple session starts at 12:30 so I will let you know how it goes as soon as I get back to our apartment! I want you to know how much I love and appreciate all of your love and support! I have felt so many prayers! I hope you all have an incredible week! I have prayed for you all as well! You are the best! Good luck with school and work this week everyone! I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!
Love always!
~Elder Lindberg
Tanner also sent this email today. He had a wonderful day in Manhattan at the temple.
Hello everyone! What a great P-Day so far!! We just got back from going through the Temple! It was amazing! Our session started at 12:30 and went until 2:30! It was so cool to think I was actually in Manhattan at the Temple! We had our entire district there and then some of the senior missionaries as well! It was an incredible experience! I wanted to stay for a lot longer and take more pictures but they said that if we stayed any longer then it would have to count for our 1 Manhattan day that we get per transfer, so we headed back home. So, we will be able to go to the 9/11 museum and memorial next P-Day!....I hope! Manhattan is such an amazing place! I got to see Trump Tower again and Broadway! We actually got to walk down Broadway for a little bit! It was such an amazing time! Hope you are all having a great day! Love you all so much!
Love Always!
~Elder Lindberg
Hello everyone! What a great P-Day so far!! We just got back from going through the Temple! It was amazing! Our session started at 12:30 and went until 2:30! It was so cool to think I was actually in Manhattan at the Temple! We had our entire district there and then some of the senior missionaries as well! It was an incredible experience! I wanted to stay for a lot longer and take more pictures but they said that if we stayed any longer then it would have to count for our 1 Manhattan day that we get per transfer, so we headed back home. So, we will be able to go to the 9/11 museum and memorial next P-Day!....I hope! Manhattan is such an amazing place! I got to see Trump Tower again and Broadway! We actually got to walk down Broadway for a little bit! It was such an amazing time! Hope you are all having a great day! Love you all so much!
Love Always!
~Elder Lindberg
