To the Field

Elder Cottle has left the State of Utah for 2 years.  We received a call from him while he was waiting at the Airport.  It was so great to hear his voice and talk to him for a few minutes. We won't hear his voice for 6 months 21 days....but who is counting :D  He said the last few weeks have gone by so fast he can hardly believe it.   He doesn't even feel like the same person and is so focused on his responsibilities as a Missionary that he has forgotten stuff he used to know, mainly the words to his favorite Country songs!  LOL!!! He's sure they'll come back to him in 2 years :D   There were a lot of missionaries traveling with him to the Washington Everett Mission.  They touched down at the SeaTac airport at 9:28 am June 4th. : D : P  God Speed Elder.  You will be an amazing Missionary. We Love you

28 May 2013 Letter

Hey :) did you get my letter? I wrote you a letter the first day that I was in the MTC like I was told to. But so much has happened since then. I don’t even feel like the same person. Wow that curb thing was fast LOL. I hugged and said goodbye and none of it felt real until I woke up Thursday morning LOL. I’m doing great. The schedule was a bit of an adjustment but you know me I can get along fine. I just did my laundry and you wouldn't believe how many Elders were doing it for the first time. I thought that my companion knew what he was doing but come to find out he was doing 1 load at a time so I finished and he still has an hour left. His name is Elder McBeth and he is from the San Diego area. We get along great but we are nothing really alike. I come from a do it yourself like Dad background were we hunt, fish, work outside, lift weights, and make sure you have calluses. He comes from somewhere very different. He likes to sing I don’t. I like to lift weights he doesn’t. I do my push-ups and sit-ups at night he doesn’t. But that’s alright because one thing that we all have in common is the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have been teaching a few "investigators" and we both have different ideas of what should be said and it’s a little frustrating sometimes.  I’m trying to make the best of it. I’m really trying to set an example for other Elders as well. Elder Mcbeth and I were called as Zone leaders after being in the MTC for only 1 Day. It’s quite the stressful calling. Tomorrow we have another district coming into our zone that we are responsible for helping. This district is made up of 4 Elders and 8 sisters. Can you believe that? This week the MTC has 6000 missionaries and tomorrow it will have 8000. They are in the process of opening another MTC campus in Provo down the street a little ways. They have been moving "long term" Elders there LOL. There are Elders that have been here for 6 weeks and I will leave before them LOL. My district has 6 Elders and 6 sisters. The MTC will be 51% Sisters tomorrow. Kinda crazy right? It’s caused a really weird dynamic. We had to talk about how to have spiritual experiences with the sisters without "confusing the spirit with love" LOL. It’s really crazy. There is a lot expected of us Elders.

I’m like running out of time here. There is so much to say and no time to say it. Oh did I say that my Pday is on Tuesday. Oh and that this is my one and only Pday in the MTC and I won’t be having another one until the Monday after I’m in Washington which is 13 days from now. I will send you a letter letting you know all of my travel information this week because I don’t have all of the info with me right now.

I focus every day on how to fulfill my purpose which is to bring others unto Christ by helping them receive his gospel through faith in the lord Jesus Christ, Repentance, Baptism for emersion for the remission of sins, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end. I’ve learned to preach nothing but faith and repentance. It’s that simple and most missionaries try to make it complicated. You help them experience faith by bringing the spirit with you to discussions (not lessons I don’t like the word lessons). Then you teach them how to have their own faith by preaching repentance. Repentance is to have a mighty change of heart and we demonstrate this through our outward actions. So when we invite others to pray, read the scriptures, and attend church, we are really inviting them to repent. And as they make and keep commitments they have a mighty change of heart and they have repented. Then they will get baptized and receive the Holy Ghost and endure to the end. That’s how we help others come unto Christ. Heavenly Father won’t take away our agency but he will accept it in the form of obedience. Obedience is key to have the spirit. That means be quiet at 10:15 and turn the lights off at 10:30. I have recognized how different my days are when I’m exactly obedient in how I use my time and by following a missionaries schedule exactly. We have a bit of a problem on our floor with people being loud after silent time and not going to bed at lights out. Mostly people in my zone and the district president says it needs to stop. That’s kinda a heavy weight on my shoulders cuz I’m not normally the guy to tell others what to do but idk how else to make it stop rather then tell them to stop.

I’m really enjoying my time as a missionary and I’m trying to be the best missionary that I can be I got to go to the Temple today and that was fantastic. I don’t get to go again next week because I’ll be flying out early in the morning on Tuesday but I’ll be able to go twice while I’m in Washington. I love my companion Elder Mcbeth even though we don’t all ways agree. My goal as a missionary is to think about how I can invite others to come unto Christ every day and do my best to help them. My personal goals as a missionary is to develop Christ like attributes, to do pushups and sit-ups every night, and to write in my journal every day. I’m trying to be as much like Christ as I can even though I'm not perfect.

I love all of you and look forward to hearing from you. Thanks mom for the package. The salt and vinegar chips were just what I need. . I love you mom thanks for everything that you have done for me. Thanks dad for teaching me how to work hard even when I’m tired. And thank you sisters for teaching me patience ;) and for being so cute. I love you all and pray for you every night.

-Elder Cottle the second

23 May 2013 Letter

Yesterday I was instructed to write home sometime during my first day.  Its 12:15 pm and my first 24 hours will be up in 30 minutes, so I’m cutting it close.  It’s actually personal study time right not but I was to write home and I’m doing my very best to do exactly what I’m supposed to.  I already feel like a failure at being obedient because last night I didn’t get to sleep until 11:00 and this morning I woke up to the sound of my companion and roommates getting ready at 6:40. So, I have a lot of work to do because it was actually recommended to wake up at 5:45 a.m.

Anyways, my companions name is Elder McBeth.  He is just fantastic.  You would not believe how productive I have become.  Elder McBeth is sitting across the table from me in one of the study areas in my classroom building.  Just before we started to write I said Elder McBeth, as I looked at my watch, it’s only been 23 hours and look how much we have done.  Don’t worry mom, I took a picture with him.  Also I saw Matt Anderson and Sister Shaunessy (Kassy’s sister).  I also saw a kid from my ward at USU.

Anyways about the curb.  Before I even knew what I was doing they had me in a room putting a name tag on me.  It was my name, Christ’s name and the name of the Church on it.  So when I wear it I am responsible to make a good name of mine, act like Jesus would act and preach the gospel.  I miss everyone of you but I am moving so fast I don’t have time to be homesick.  I didn’t even unpack yet.  One more thing about being a good representative of Jesus Christ is being good, does not mean not being bad.  I have to stay busy and I am very busy.

Don’t be too sad about me being gone, its okay.  “I’ll be back” LOL.  But the amount of work I will get done in two years is more than you can believe.  My mind is going 1,000,000 x 10¹⁰ times as fast as my body and it’s frustrating at times.  That’s why my hand writing is so bad right now. 

 You know how we say God’s time isn’t the same as our time?  Well God gets the best of both worlds.  It seems short but the amount of work He gets done in that short amount of time is amazing.  And He is letting me experience this for the next two years and I am more excited now than I have ever been.  

I have an investigator and his name is Victor.  It’s for practice only so don’t go telling everyone, but it is real.  It’s amazing the inspiration and revelation I can receive.  It’s not that God is telling me everything but it’s more like he has opened my mind and I can see everything much better.  It’s almost like my eyesight is better as well.  I just understand things.  Well I have to go.  I love you all and pray for you.

Love, Elder Cottle the 2nd

Goodbye Elder Cottle

Goodbye to our Dear Elder. Our love and prayers go with you.  You are an amazing son, brother and friend.  You are going to be an amazing missionary.  Go Forth and Serve, We'll see you in 2 years :)

Missionary: (noun) Someone who leaves their family for a short while so that others can be with their families forever. 

Elder Cottle entered the Mission Training Center May 22, 2013

Mission Farwell

Thanks to everyone who came to listen to me talk. It meant so much to me to feel everyone's support

USU Friends Andrew(scanson), Ben and Sean

Four Cottle Cousin Missionaries

Elder Trevan Cottle, Washington Everett - May 22, 2013

Sister Erin Baker - Orlando Florida  - June 5, 2013

Elder Logan Cottle - Tokyo, Japan - June 5, 2013

Elder Braden Cottle serving in Wellington New Zealand - Nov 15 2011

 Elder Trevan Cottle with Kaiden Baird - Drumming Buddy

Great Friends

 Andrew(Scanson), Elder Cottle, Sean, Ben and Jessie

3 generations - Elder Cottle

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Restoration of the Gospel - Elder Trevan Cottle May 19, 2013 

Good afternoon everybody. It feels good to be in my home ward today to speak to you.  As much fun as it is to be in my student ward up at school it's feels good to be at home and I like it and I'm excited to be able to talk to you guys today.  

I would like to start by sharing with everybody something that I've been thinking about lately.  It seems to me that knowledge is a lot harder to gain than it is to loose.  I was thinking this a few weeks ago during finals week.  When I was trying to remember all of the material that I had learned over the whole year and it took a lot of work to remember all of the stuff I had learned.  But I honestly don't recall trying to forget any of it, I was trying to remember the whole time.  It just gets buried in everything else I'm  trying to remember everything else I do during the day and it takes work to make it resurface.  In school the way I've learned things is by experimenting or solving problems.  The way I remember is by writing it down and trying to review it often.  Obviously I didn't review enough because of all of the cramming I had to do at the end of the semester, trying to re-learn all of the material.  Well I think spiritual knowledge is roughly the same, but unlike worldly knowledge we gain spiritual knowledge by acting with faith  on something that the prophet has taught us.  Once we have learned something we can remember it by writing it in a journal and if necessary refer back to it later.  

Now think about this.  What if we were trying to take a course and not only was there no teacher but there was only one textbook in the whole class and we had to rely on our classmates telling us what was inside this textbook.  How would you feel?  I know I'd feel pretty lost.  I wouldn't know what to do, I'd probably just stop showing up to class.  Well, this is what happened after the death of Jesus Christ.  The priesthood authority was taken from the earth and man was left to interpret the scriptures on his own without divine inspiration.  Without a prophet there to help man review and interpret the scriptures, man quickly and easily forgot the truth and generation after generation inherited a state of apostacy.  And they felt lost, but Heavenly Father Loves us and he doesn't want us to feel lost or confused.  

 If the plan of salvation was like a lacrosse game, then Heavenly Father would be like my dad cheering me on in the stands every time I dodged a defender or progressed on the field towards eternal life.  He's not idly sitting down eating his food and drinking his drink (my dad does that too but he cheers me on).  Heavenly Father wants us to pray to him and ask him for help,  but we need to have enough faith to do so first.  Brothers and Sisters, faith is the action that brings revelation to pass  and after we have acted in faith and revelation has come to pass we increase in knowledge and testimony.

So when the circumstances were right, Heavenly Father revealed his gospel again on the earth to a 14 year old boy who wanted to know which of all the churches were true.  I know we hear it a lot .....but after reading James 1:5... I will read it to you, it says "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."  After reading that scripture Joseph Smith was touched,  and.... luckily for us he had enough faith to act on the revelation that he read.  In preparing for this talk I read Joseph Smith History over and over again.  And a few times I was tempted to read it all to you guys because of the way I felt when I was reading it. But I figured that wouldn't be fair.....but I want to share some of it with you.  Verses 14 through 17 and it says, "So, in accordance with this, my determination to ask of God, I retired to the woods to make the attempt. It was on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty. It was the first time in my life that I had made such an attempt, for amidst all my anxieties I had never as yet made the attempt to pray vocally.  After I had retired to the place where I had previously designed to go, having looked around me, and finding myself alone, I kneeled down and began to offer up the desires of my heart to God. I had scarcely done so, when immediately I was seized upon by some power which entirely overcame me, and had such an astonishing influence over me as to bind my tongue so that I could not speak. Thick darkness gathered around me, and it seemed to me for a time as if I were doomed to sudden destruction. But, exerting all my powers to call upon God to deliver me out of the power of this enemy which had seized upon me, and at the very moment when I was ready to sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction—not to an imaginary ruin, but to the power of some actual being from the unseen world, who had such marvelous power as I had never before felt in any being—just at this moment of great alarm, I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.

 It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!"

There are few things that I can say I know, but I know that Joseph Smith saw God the Father and his son Jesus Christ that day and I know that he was told not to join any of the churches because none of them were true.  And I know that Joseph Smith was called to be a prophet like Adam and Abraham, Noah and Moses.  To be a living prophet and restore, lead and guide the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Christ's restored church upon the earth today.  I invite and challenge everyone of you to read Joseph Smith History and to write in your journal as you are reading how you feel while you read it and then read what you wrote when you are done. And pray and ask God if it's not true. I DARE you to do that. 

After the appearance of Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ, John the Baptist appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdry conferring the Aaronic Priesthood on them which gave them the authority to baptize.  Then Peter, James and John, three of Christ's original apostles appeared and conferred the Melechezidik Priesthood on Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdry.  This restored the same authority given to Christ's apostles acciently.  With the Authority of the Priesthood, Joseph Smith was instructed to organize the Church of Jesus Christ on the earth and through him Jesus Christ called 12 apostles. 

Brothers and Sisters I know that the authority of the Priesthood has been restored to the earth.  I know that Jesus Christ gave it to His apostles, who gave it to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdry.  And through that line I can trace where I got it.  And each one of you priesthood holders out there can do the same.  Think about that and tell me it's not amazing, because it is.  

Heavenly Father in his infinite wisdom knew that doubt, disbelief and mis-information would immediately follow the prophet as he told people about the first vision,  He had prepared an ancient record   of His followers in America called the Book of Mormon, which was preserved souly for our learning and benefit, to be a companion to the Bible containing the fullness of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ.  Yes, this means 531 pages that will change your life forever.

I was thinking the other day about how blessed we are.  I was driving up our street in our neighborhood, the homes that we live in and the clothes that we wear, the shoes that we get to wear and the food that we eat, and everything else that we've been blessed with and I think, "Have I been taking this for granted my whole life?" But then I thought, "Have I been taking the Book of Mormon for granted my whole life?"  We work hard for all or our earthly possessions, but think about how much work it took so each one of us could own a copy of the Book of Mormon.  

My brother Josh gave me this bracelet, right here, a few years ago and , it took him some thought and some money to give it to me, and some time....and I've worn it almost every day since.  I think it's cool but it reminds me of him, you know.  But, if I can put this on every single day and remember my brother Josh, yes I love him....can I not read the scriptures every day and remember my brother Jesus and what He's done for me.  I think about all the time, money, blood an sweat it took for this book.  I read the stories inside and see just how much time it took them to write all of this, and I think....I can't even write in my journal every day.  I try to but...hopefully I will do better on my mission, I better.  Then I think about Joseph Smith and giving his life for the book, for the Christ's gospel, His restored gospel on the earth today.  And about all of the early Saints, who walked across America all the way to Utah to have the freedom to live the religion that they believed, and I think I need to be doing better. 

I know that we've all heard Moroni's promise in Moroni 10:3-5.  It's a pretty good revelation so I'd like to read it to you.  It says,"Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts. And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things".  That's an amazing promise, and I challenge all of you, exercise your faith on that revelation.  Pray and ask God if it's true.  I feel like we owe it to our ancestors.  All of that work that they went through to give us this book, to at least try and find out if it's true.

In closing I would like to just bear my testimony about the Prophet Joseph Smith.  I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet.  I know that he saw God the Father and his son Jesus Christ in that grove and I know that he restored Christ's true church on the earth today, and translated the Book of Mormon so each of us could know the truth.  I know the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ, a companion to the Bible.  And I know  that no man can draw closer to God by reading any other book, except this book.  I know that Heavenly Father has a plan for each one of us.  I know that life didn't begin at birth and that it doesn't end at death.  We lived with our Father in Heaven before this life and He gave us an opportunity to come to earth and to have a body and to gain a testimony and to learn and grow and to be tested.  And I know that if we follow His commandments on earth that we can all return to live with Him again, with our families, with the people we love.  One of my good friends from school, he used to say, 'Don't mess with the plan or the plan will mess with you."  I thought it was pretty funny, but luckily if we do mess with the plan, if we do mess it up, which we all do...and I know I have... we have Jesus Christ's Atonement.  we can pray and ask for forgiveness and we will receive forgiveness. I am thankful for that.  I know that we can live with our families forever.  I look across and I see a lot of my family members here and I am excited to spend forever with you.  I know that Thomas S, Monson is the  living prophet today,  on earth.  And I know that it's a commandment to serve a mission and that's why I'm doing it but not only that, but because I feel a responsibility to tell other people about what I know.  Because I don't know what it would feel like to not know that I could be with my family forever.  To think that after this life I just would never see them again, I would just turn into nothing....it doesn't even work in my head .  I need to tell other people about this amazing plan that God has for us.  I would like to just thank all of my friends that helped me get to this point, because I would have never made it here without them.  And I see all of you guys out there and I appreciate that you came to support me.  I would like to thank this ward family that I have had, since I was just a little boy I've been here and there's so many of you out there that have taught my Sunday School classes, my Deacon's quorum class, my teacher's quorum class and my Priest's Quorum Class.  I'm thankful for all that you have done, above and beyond, and you will never know just how much it affected my life.  Thank you for that.  I would just like to thank my mom for everything she does for me.  I love her so much. I  definitely would never be going on my mission without my mom, dad helped to, but thanks mom. I love you.

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Elder Cottle's Mission Farewell

 Sunday May 19th at 1pm  
Mt Mahogany 8th Ward

Mission Call

Dear Elder Cottle:
You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  You are assigned to labor in the Washington Everett Mission.  It is anticipated that you will serve for a period of 24 months.

You should report to the Provo Missionary Training Center on Wednesday, May 22, 2013.  You will prepare to preach the gospel in the English Language.  Your assignment may be modified according to the needs of the mission president.

You have been recommended as one worthy to represent the Lord as a minister of the restored gospel.  You will be an official representative of the Church.  as such you will be expected to maintain the highest standards of conduct and appearance by keeping the commandments, living the mission rules and following the counsel of your mission president.  As you devote your time and attention to serving the Lord, leaving behind all other personal affairs, the Lord will bless you with increased knowledge and testimony of the Restoration and of the truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Your purpose will be to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy ghost and enduring to the end.  As you serve with all your heart, might and strength, the Lord will lead you to those who are prepared to be baptized. 

The Lord will reward you for the goodness of your life.  Greater blessings and more happiness than you have yet experienced await you as you humbly and prayerfully serve the Lord in this labor of love among His children.  We place our confidence in you and pray that the Lord will help you become an effective missionary.

Sincerely Thomas S. Monson
President