This week we had our District conference. President had us go through the white handbook and write down all of our disobedience issues. then he interviewed us and talked about it with him. Mine was good. Nothing big. but the little things are the more important things. and i am still striving to change them. I am grateful for what i was taught as a child. I do not even have a disposition to do evil or to break rules. It just makes sense to be obedient. I started to organize a little bit at the church and it freaked president buckley out. he was looking all over for things. it was pretty entertaining as all encounters with him are.
we ended the week with hardley any contacts and hours of finding time but had 8 new investigators and taught 6 member lessons with 8 members. THAT IS AWESOME. I was told that since i left last time the number of member lessons went way down. and now we are getting achieving it again. I am so grateful for how much i have grown and how much fear i am losing to call people and set appointments or invite them to come out with us. As we do it blessings come. for example my companion said that last night was the first night that he has had a family home evening at a members house where they invite investigators. IT was GREAT! and we had a really good tasting juice of Carrot and beet!
as i have said i am keeping track of my finances and as well in my daily planner i am keeping much beter track of what we do and it allows me to make a better accounting at the end of the week and i have everything recorded. It feels great. So in my interview i shared it with president martineau. He then after my interview asked me to show the other missionaries in the conference.
It feels like things are just coming together here at the last quarter of my mission. I am learning and applying things that i never did before. Much more organized and honestly i am really loving being a missionary!
In my journal for the first year or so i wrote every day. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY! i didn't always mean it. but i wrote it to try to help me love it more. and little mental training i guess. so i have noticed that through these last few months i have no longer written it. But you can tell in the way i write that there is a great love for what i am doing. I truly love this work i know God lives and loves us. i am eternally grateful for the fmaily he has given me. What a tremendous blessing.
i tried to send some letters to people this last time. But i apologize for those that read this and have not recieved a letter. It has kind of slipped down my list of important things to do. I am grateful for your support.
Siempre les agradecere por todo lo que me han hecho. Tanto las cosas fisicas o monetarias como las cosas espirituales.
My companion calls me crazy all the time. i dont think you should expect much of a change in maturity. =) i still love life and the Joy in my heart has not been extinguished.
April 19, 2010
So this week was another good one. We dont have hardly anytime president buckly is taking us desert golfing today. =) fun stuff. But yeah this week we planned for an english class and also a scripture study class. I am very excited for both and it should be a great finding activity. So this week we had a man try to break into our car. We walked down the street to go visit someone and when we were walking back we saw him there pulling on the handles and trying to push the windows down and a bunch of dumb stuff. When he saw us getting close he went back to his car next to ours. I stood behind his car so he couldn't back out and asked him what he was doing and he said "i thought it was my car" So we aren't going to be parking there anymore. but then that night we heard that the elders in curacao also got there car broken into the same evening. The landlord of their apartment heard the dog barking more than normal. So he went out and saw two guys. They had stripped all the wires and everything and were starting it when he walked up they ran off leaving everything but completely tore up the car.
I am tired of theives. DONT TAKE STUFF THATS NOT YOURS!!! what dont people get about that. Man thats 6 bikes stolen and 2 tall gas cylinders one house broken into and almost a car stolen all on the same year on the same island. I like being here in aruba much better.
This week in church we had a good lesson on the commandments. This is a nice branch i really do love them. There were only 19 there this week though. So were still on the job. but we found some really good people this week. I am excited for them. Each one seemed to really have a great amount of interest in the book of mormon. Well see
Thanks for the picture sorry these computers are too slow for me to send pictures. i will send some soon.
I am tired of theives. DONT TAKE STUFF THATS NOT YOURS!!! what dont people get about that. Man thats 6 bikes stolen and 2 tall gas cylinders one house broken into and almost a car stolen all on the same year on the same island. I like being here in aruba much better.
This week in church we had a good lesson on the commandments. This is a nice branch i really do love them. There were only 19 there this week though. So were still on the job. but we found some really good people this week. I am excited for them. Each one seemed to really have a great amount of interest in the book of mormon. Well see
Thanks for the picture sorry these computers are too slow for me to send pictures. i will send some soon.
April 12, 2010
SO yeah my branch president was sitting right next to me when he made that call. He threatened to call you so i gave him your number. He is a psychologist and we are at his "resort" doing email. His resort is a room he has added onto his house. Today is my companions birthday so he's going to feed us today. Then we are going to go exploring. WOohoo! This week is was great. My companion is great we get along well and i am really enjoying working with him. Its much easier when both missionaries are in it together. i dont know. But This week we acheived our goal. It feels great to get to work with these members again. some times i am kind of duanted that i will be here for the rest of my mission but at the same time i really have a strong desire to help them reach 50 members for a chapel here in san nicolas. I really have such a strong desire to do it president! I hope 4 transfers is enough. That would be such a great way to end my mission. I plan to keep working with members like we have and work with Hno Torrealba the branch mission leader to achieve it. This week we wanted to take a member out each day and we did it! Woohoo. I really want all members here that are active coming to church to be active in our work then as well we will be helping them be finders. I was thinking about it and there are many people that have children or have other family members that it would be so easy to have almost double of what we have right now. I'm excited to work here. We are working hard.
President Buckley is a big joker. You really can't ever take him seriously.
We went back to Jenny and she told us about what she felt when she first heard about the story of Joseph Smith and she told us she felt a big warm feeling and knew without a doubt that he had saw what he said he did. After asking her that we read with her from joseph smith history. She loved it. and mentioned she wanted to read more. She hadn't done what we left with her. But she was just so excited. Reginel was cooking on the grill and when he saw us arrive he sent a kid to go buy some more meat. BUT we had just started our fast. I felt bad but it was a great appointment. Great to be able to talk to them again. We had family home evening with the Elliot family last night. It was great. Long time since i've had a good family home evening. and He's a chef of a popular tourist restaurant...so good food. But yeah just a good week of work. Next week i will have a song for Josh! =) my companion and i are making it up for him starting his mission.
Well i dont know what else to say but I love you!
President Buckley is a big joker. You really can't ever take him seriously.
We went back to Jenny and she told us about what she felt when she first heard about the story of Joseph Smith and she told us she felt a big warm feeling and knew without a doubt that he had saw what he said he did. After asking her that we read with her from joseph smith history. She loved it. and mentioned she wanted to read more. She hadn't done what we left with her. But she was just so excited. Reginel was cooking on the grill and when he saw us arrive he sent a kid to go buy some more meat. BUT we had just started our fast. I felt bad but it was a great appointment. Great to be able to talk to them again. We had family home evening with the Elliot family last night. It was great. Long time since i've had a good family home evening. and He's a chef of a popular tourist restaurant...so good food. But yeah just a good week of work. Next week i will have a song for Josh! =) my companion and i are making it up for him starting his mission.
Well i dont know what else to say but I love you!
April 5, 2010
Well, This week was great! Elder Zenger my companion is a great missionary He was at BYU-I the year in between josh and i. I loved listening to general conference. General conference here in San Nicolas. This year we got Internet and a flat screen plasma TV so that we could watch it. We had 33 people come on sunday morning. More than we have ever had attending at conference from our little branch. Coming back to this area there is a senior couple named the pietz they have done a great job helping the members recieve training both leadership and just learning how to be members of the church. They are great at helping members. much better than i can do. Senior couples are so needed. They really are. Right now the sister we have running the money and finances of the mission makes alot of mistakes. Sometimes we don't get our money rent or other things. Other times we randomly get a thousand dollars or several hundred because she made a mistake. Making it pretty fun.
This transfer we really want to work with members. We are trying to go out with at least one member each day. for now. and then want to get it back to how elder fierro and i were doing with every active member out with us. This little branch has a lot of potential. It really does. I am excited to be here. although i am trying to get creative. I remember a lot of people and they remember me. Yesterday i went toking in an area that i had recently done the last time i was here. There was an old man who told me he was waiting to die. we saw him again. and this time he was in a wheelchair. I walked up and said "your still alive... God must have something for you" for the first time in the many times i have spoken with this man i saw him smile. we didn't set an appointment with him but i plan to pass by there a few more times. This is going to be interesting finding new people In my last two transfers here i toked almost all of it and i can't even imagine 5 more months here. It will be a fun adventure. I know there were many doors without anyone answering. Just as Nephi the first two times they couldn't get the plates. It started yesterday. well this whole week actually. My companion took me to visit his investigators. i smiled the whole way because they were almost all people i had spoken to before. But the yesterday we went back to Jenny. I sent many emails about jenny and i believe even a few pictures. She hadn;t been taught for about 6 months. she told us yesterday that she wants to learn more and then wants to get baptized. We also went and taught Johan. another man i was teaching here that got baptized after i left. We are starting to teach his daughter who is 9. We have an appointment with them tonight! My brother starts his mission in 3 weeks. Crazy! i hope i have been a good example for him.
Serving a mission has been the greatest thing i have done in my life. It is two years jammed packed with learning. I don't know if it is possible to learn so much about life and the gospel anywhere else at this time in my life. What a tremendous blessing. Before the mission i heard a return missionary say. "The mission's not for everyone" I think that is quite an uneducated comment. Seeing how much it has changed my life and how much i have learned about others and helped others companions included. the mission is one of the greatest things anyone could ever do. I am striving to finish my mission on a great high. I want this area to be on fire. I loved elder Rasbands talk mentioning how many areas are chosen by thinking of where the missionary will finish his mission. The lord has sent me here. i know it. I will strive to fulfill what he wants me to do.
I Love You!
This transfer we really want to work with members. We are trying to go out with at least one member each day. for now. and then want to get it back to how elder fierro and i were doing with every active member out with us. This little branch has a lot of potential. It really does. I am excited to be here. although i am trying to get creative. I remember a lot of people and they remember me. Yesterday i went toking in an area that i had recently done the last time i was here. There was an old man who told me he was waiting to die. we saw him again. and this time he was in a wheelchair. I walked up and said "your still alive... God must have something for you" for the first time in the many times i have spoken with this man i saw him smile. we didn't set an appointment with him but i plan to pass by there a few more times. This is going to be interesting finding new people In my last two transfers here i toked almost all of it and i can't even imagine 5 more months here. It will be a fun adventure. I know there were many doors without anyone answering. Just as Nephi the first two times they couldn't get the plates. It started yesterday. well this whole week actually. My companion took me to visit his investigators. i smiled the whole way because they were almost all people i had spoken to before. But the yesterday we went back to Jenny. I sent many emails about jenny and i believe even a few pictures. She hadn;t been taught for about 6 months. she told us yesterday that she wants to learn more and then wants to get baptized. We also went and taught Johan. another man i was teaching here that got baptized after i left. We are starting to teach his daughter who is 9. We have an appointment with them tonight! My brother starts his mission in 3 weeks. Crazy! i hope i have been a good example for him.
Serving a mission has been the greatest thing i have done in my life. It is two years jammed packed with learning. I don't know if it is possible to learn so much about life and the gospel anywhere else at this time in my life. What a tremendous blessing. Before the mission i heard a return missionary say. "The mission's not for everyone" I think that is quite an uneducated comment. Seeing how much it has changed my life and how much i have learned about others and helped others companions included. the mission is one of the greatest things anyone could ever do. I am striving to finish my mission on a great high. I want this area to be on fire. I loved elder Rasbands talk mentioning how many areas are chosen by thinking of where the missionary will finish his mission. The lord has sent me here. i know it. I will strive to fulfill what he wants me to do.
I Love You!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)