An RC Cola and a Moon Pie!!

Hey Y'all!

What a crazy week! Many things have happened.  It has been a very busy time, full of teaching, finding, religious revenge, a funeral, meetings, smartphones and yes an RC Cola and a Moon Pie.

Brothers and Sisters..... you might think you've figured out life, you might even think you are successful in life....but I can tell you....you are not until you've had an RC Cola and a Moon Pie.  I thought I had tried pretty much everything that the south had to offer.  I have had shrimp n grits, frog legs, gator tail (good), low county boil, boiled okra (nasty), good and bad fried chicken (either way, no thanks), boiled peanuts, fried steak, pecan pie, fish fry, black eyed peas and collard greens (New Years tradition) and many more things.....EXCEPT for an RC Cola and a Moon Pie.   So...after a long day of biking and teaching in a little Ol' town called Broxten, GA, I just had to try this tasty treat.  Let me tell you guys.... it was quite the delicious treat!  I encourage you to try these two things together.  I promise you that you will not be disappointed and will have a great day!

Now enough of talking about the good fixins of the south.   I want to share a little bit about my favorite gospel subject....  The Plan of Salvation...also known as the Plan of Happiness.   

The Plan of Salvation tells us where we came from, what our purpose here in this life is, and where we are going.   Not everyone knows about this plan.   I have met so many people that don't understand what happens to us when we die.   Our loving, merciful God doesn't want us to be confused.  He wants us to understand his plan for us...to not fear or wonder what will happen.  God has clearly told us this through his prophets.  (Amos 3:7)

In the Bible, in 1 Corinthians 15, the Apostle Paul talks with plainness about what happens after death.   In the Book of Mormon, the Prophet Alma teaches us that after we die there is a place called the Spirit World, where those who have not had the opportunity to hear the gospel can be taught.  They will have a chance to to accept the fullness of the gospel and be received into a state of never-ending happiness.

 I don't know about you, but I want that never ending happiness!!!

I am grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who has given us clear principles and doctrines that we can abide by to find happiness.   This is made possible through the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ. 
2 Nephi 31:21
And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God.  And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end.  Amen.

Those who already know about this plan, I encourage you to study it again and don't every take it for granted.  Those who know little of God's Plan of Salvation, I encourage you to learn about it and pray about it.   Ask God, in sincere prayer, if it is true and how it can benefit your life. 
I know it's true!  As missionaries we teach this every day and sometimes every hour!  You might think it would get boring, but I can tell you it does NOT.  

Here's another one of my favorite hymns
The Spirit of God

Chorus

Short and Sweet.....

Hey guys! 

Happy March!!!  March is a wonderful month!   My 20th birthday, my 1 year point in my mission, my  amazing dad's birthday, my brother's birthday and my Aunt Paige and Uncle Todd's birthday!

Well, a transfer has come and gone.   I have left the sweet state of South Carolina.  I will miss so many wonderful people in North Augusta.   I have learned so much from many of the people that I met there and hope to remember their kind words of wisdom. 

I am, as they say, back to my roots.  Back to an area close to where I began my mission, Douglas, Georgia.   Let me tell you ladies and gentlemen, there is no place on earth quite like the great state of Georgia.  I am grateful to continue the work here!   Thank you all for your continued prayers! 

Sorry this is so short!  Since today was transfer day, we don't have much computer time.  Have an amazing week!

Love
Elder McGee

 A few pictures of some of my favorite people and pups of North Augusta and then of my new companion Elder Green!

Prayer

Oh, how praying rests the weary!
Prayer will change the night to day.
So, when life gets dark and dreary,
Don't forget to pray.

Did You Think to Pray?
Hymn #140


Hey y'all!  Happy February!
I hope all is well with everyone!
I have not made a blog post in quite some time.....mostly out of laziness and the lack of motivation to think and use words.  As a missionary, we do have to think and use words ALL the time and sometimes we even have to sound educated and use big words!  Haha!   All jokes aside, serving a mission is really amazing!   I have seen so many blessings from trusting the Lord and working hard. 

Originally, I wanted to talk about goal setting and all that cool stuff people talk about in the beginning of the new year, but I thought I should focus on the small and simple things that we can do to make our year truly successful.  One of those small and simple things we can do is to pray.  I love prayer.....mostly because of the peace I feel when I pray.   Do you ever get stressed, irritated or even angry and it seems like no one around you understands how you feel?  On occasion, I have felt that way, and rather than becoming impatient, I try my best to say a simple prayer in my heart that everything will be okay.   And you know what?  It always seems to work out just fine. 

So, what is prayer?  How do we pray?  Why do we pray?  

Prayer is one of the most important gifts we have received from our Heavenly Father.  It allows us to communicate with Him through a 2 way communication process.   We can talk to Him and if we listen, we will receive answers.   We pray by addressing Him by name, and then we counsel with Him, thank Him for our many blessings, address concerns that we have and ask for guidance.  Then we close our prayers in the name of Jesus Christ. 
4th Nephi 1:12 says
"And they did not walk any more after the performances and ordinances of the law of Moses; but they did walk after the commandments which they had received from their Lord and their God, continuing in fasting and prayer, and in meeting together oft, both to pray and to hear the word of the Lord."

As the hymn above states.... praying absolutely does rest the weary.  I want to challenge the 3 whole people that read this (haha)..... to pray every single day for 1 week.... 1 sincere prayer every day for a week.  Note any impressions or feelings that you have as you pray and how it changes your day.  Then send me an email and tell me all about it!

In other news,  we had transfers a few weeks ago and I have a new companion.   We have made new goals and are excited to reach them!   We have a pretty big teaching pool here in North Augusta.  There are so many great people here!   The members of the church here in North Augusta are eager to do missionary work and that is awesome!   I am so grateful to be here!

I will try to do better at posting more often.... again thinking and using words is tough for me. 
I hope everyone is happy!  If you are not....change it! 

Love you all
Elder Miras McGee

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Y'all !

 I can't believe Christmas is here already!  It is one of my favorite holidays!
Can I tell you why I love Christmas?

1.  I love Christmas music.  It gets me in the Christmas spirit and it just makes me happy.  My all time favorite Christmas song is White Christmas by Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters.

2. I love the lights!  Christmas lights are warm, bright and colorful.  They change the mood and make the setting 10 times better!  They also make me happy!

3.  I love Christmas movies!  I don't know why I enjoy watching other people enjoy Christmas, but I do!  My favorite Christmas movie is Polar Express and watching it makes me happy.

4.  Of course I love gifts!  :)  Christmas is the season of giving and the season of receiving.   Who doesn't love making someones day by giving them a gift?  It's a little late in the game, but I encourage anyone reading this to follow the #LightTheWorld initiative.   There is nothing better than bringing a little light into the lives of others.

5.  Food!  Does that even need an explanation?  :)

6.  Family!  Spending time with family is the best!  Nothing is better than enjoying the holidays with family and I love my family!   I might not say it a lot, but it's true.... I love my family.

7.  The only way to truly celebrate Christmas is by remembering our Savior, Jesus Christ.  Without a doubt, my testimony of the Savior has been strengthened while serving a mission.  I have been studying His life and His birth.  I have been reading "Jesus the Christ" by James E. Talmage.  What an amazing book with an amazing message of Christ's mission.   As I read the scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon, I can feel my Savior's love and guidance.

Here's some wonderful scriptures about Christ........

2 Nephi 25:23-26

23 For we labor diligently to write, to ^apersuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by ^bgrace that we are saved, after all we can ^cdo.

24 And, notwithstanding we believe in Christ, we ^akeep the law of Moses, and look forward with steadfastness unto Christ, until the law shall be fulfilled.

25 For, for this end was the ^alaw given; wherefore the law hath become ^bdead unto us, and we are made alive in Christ because of our faith; yet we keep the law because of the commandments.

26 And we ^atalk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we ^bprophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our ^cchildren may know to what source they may look for a ^dremission of their sins.

 We had a baptism a couple of week ago!  A wonderful woman named Henrietta!  We are so happy for her!  It's always amazing to see the light of Christ change someone's life!

 Here's another of my favorite Christmas Hymns.....  "Once in Royal David's City"

Merry Christmas everyone!   I love and miss you all!  

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Hey Ya'll!   Happy Thanksgiving!  Time is flying by so fast.  I guess thats the way it works being an LDS missionary.   The days seem long and the months seem short and somehow that makes sense.  haha   I am so happy to be able to celebrate Thanksgiving.  It's not only a day to fellowship with family members, friends and acquaintances, but also a day that we can stop for just a moment and give thanks for all that we have.   And we have much to be thankful for!  Living a life of thanksgiving daily can be hard sometimes.  Luckily, we have a day specifically dedicated to give thanks.  I was also thinking of another day we should be thankful for.  A day we can pause and look back over our week.  A day that we can remember who is most important to give thanks to.   Of course, the day I am talking about is the Sabbath Day.   The most important day in our week.  That's the day we attend church and think about the atonement of Jesus Christ.   A day we give thanks to our Heavenly Father for all that we have.  Just as we share Thanksgiving Day with our loved ones, we should also want to share the Sabbath with others. 
I will always remember Sabbath days growing up.   We would go to church, partake of the sacrament and learn the gospel.   Then we would come home, have a great family dinner, and laugh and love and remember the Savior.  If we treated everyday like Thanksgiving, I would say all would be perfect.  I try to be thankful everyday..... Here are just a few of the things I am thankful for. 

- I am thankful to know the unconditional love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have for me.
- I am thankful to know that even though I am imperfect, the atonement of Jesus Christ is there so that I can repent of my mistakes.
- I am thankful for parents who taught me right from wrong.  Parents who love me unconditionally and support me and encourage me to do good.
- I am thankful for a brother and a sister who have been amazing examples in my life.
- I am thankful for friends, teachers, and many others who without their help, I most likely wouldn't be on a mission today.
- I am thankful to be on a mission, serving the Lord in this part of the vineyard.
- I am thankful for the people that God allows me to teach.   They are an inspiration and example in my life.
- I am thankful for the members of the North Augusta Ward, who make me feel at home and last but not least............
- I am thankful for the newly opened CHIPOTLE! 

I am thankful for so much more, but those are just a few of the most important. 

I hope you all enjoy your Thanksgiving!  Do something fun and remember life is short...live life in the slow land.....witness all the beautiful things in front of you. 

Here is a hymn that I love right now
Hymn 92  For the Beauty of the Earth.

Baptisms and Chipotle

Hey Friends!
Happy November!  It's the start of my favorite season....Fall and Winter!   I really thought I disliked the cold weather, but being in the south makes me appreciate it a lot more. 
October was a great month!  We were able to hear from a general authority during our annual Mission Conference.   It was very exciting and we learned so much. 
Our Mission President came baring tidings of great joy..... we will be getting smart phones in our mission!   This will make our work a lot easier.   We will have better access to those who are ready to hear the gospel.
I am so grateful and excited for many reasons..... One reason is we have 2 people on date for baptism!  One of our investigators is a sweet older lady named Henrietta.  As we've been teaching her, we have learned her favorite saying.... "I'm slow.... I'ma get it"  And I can tell you she is surely getting it!  She has been reading and is already in 2 Nephi 12.   She is excited to keep learning and looking forward to her baptism.  The second reason I am excited is because in 2 days, on Nov 9, the new Chipotle opens!  It will be a wondrous day for the people of North Augusta!!

Sorry this is so short.  
Love you all
Elder McGee

Transfers, Conference and Las Vegas

Hey Friends and Family!
Happy October!   This is one of my favorite months of the year!  As many of you know, I was transferred a couple of weeks ago.   My new area is North Augusta, South Carolina.  I am enjoying it so far, and getting to know lots of new people.   I will miss many friends from Baxley, and hope to keep in touch in the future.   One exciting thing about North Augusta is they are building a Chipotle and a Chick-fil-A!   I hope they are open for business before I leave!  Haha   I am excited to be here and to continue to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This past weekend was wonderful because of General Conference!   All of the talks were great!  One of my favorites was by Bonnie L Oscarson,  The Needs Before Us.   She gave a wonderful talk on how to serve others.   She spoke of the recent devastation around the world and how we mourn and want to help those affected by tragedies.   It is so important that we try to help during these major disasters   It is also just as important that we look around us and help those closest to us....our family, friends, neighbors, and communities.   The Savior said "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it"  (Luke 9:24)   President Monson spoke about this scripture and explained that "unless we lose ourselves in service to others, there is little purpose to our own lives.  Those who live only for themselves eventually shrivel up and figuratively lose their lives, while those who lose themselves in service to others grow and flourish - and in effect save their lives"   We need to love and serve others.... near and far.   Jesus taught the multitudes, but he also taught people individually....one on one.   He did this because of the pure love He has for each one of us...individually.   We need to strive to have that same love for those around us.   John 13:34-35  says " A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.   By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another" 

I was heartbroken to hear about the shootings in Las Vegas.   My heart goes out to the victims and their loved ones.   No one can truly understand what makes someone perform such cruel vicious acts.  As a 19 year old, there isn't much that I can say that would be beneficial.  What I do know is that the brightness of hope will ALWAYS win.   No matter what political view you have, or what religious view you have,  the light of Jesus Christ is stronger than any darkness we face in this life.    I am reminded of the hymn   Lead Kindly, Light.     The Savior can lead us out of darkness ALWAYS. 
Have a great week!  Love you all!