christmas day 2012

We skyped with Michael this morning.  He's happy, loves what he's doing, and has a cute little English accent.

week 76

Oh My Christmas Eve!!!

It's soooo crazy it doesn't even feel like Christmas.  I don't know why but it was like this last year as well.  Maybe it just because the mission makes it weird.  I get to skype you TOMORROW!!!  I'm soo excited lol it's been forever but at the same time it seems like just yesterday it was Mothers' Day and I was skyping you!  Crazy weird.

I have packages from everyone.  I love you all so much for all that you do for me.  Also tell your seminary class thank you for the cards they mean alot!

Can't wait to see you tomorrow!

week 75

My companion is from Tooele, which is the next valley west of Salt Lake. its about 30 minutes west.  Elder QB has been out about 7 months now.  He has one older sister.  He wants to work hard and be better. sometimes he can be too hard on himself and expects perfection which isnt good in missionary work because we make 1 mistake every minute hahaha.   

He seems very humble and willing to work.   He is a cool lad. We have things in common. We both want to work hard and we just seem to get a long quite well, so I'm excited to see what we can accomplish this transfer!

 

ahhh yes the baptism!  She is soooo happy and excited to be a member! She is loving it.  The ward has really fellowshipped her quite well and she has made some good friends in the YSA and older friends in the ward.  She will do really well and I'm not worried. 

We had a stressfull Saturday hahaha because the font takes 2 1/2 hours to fill up and we couldn't get the master keys we had to unlock the font or the boiler so we couldnt fill the font so elder QB jumped into the font from the front lol and opened it from the inside hahaha. 1 down but we still could not get into the boiler so we had to call bishop and he was struggling a bit as well, but we finally got it all up and running about 12 for the scheduled baptism at 1lol so we bumped the baptism to 1:30 and the font had approx. 1 foot of water maybe a bit more lol. So she comes into the font and sits down hahaha and is baptised that way. But hey it happened so that's the important bit. 

I had the opportunity to baptise her!  i was soo happy and excited for her!

Bro. Howard, gave her the holy ghost.  It was all soo good!

 

The 21st will be a blast! There are some carolers mostly at night in town.  But the whole mission will be caroling in one huge group.  160-70 missionaries caroling together in harmony..hopefully haha

I'm excited!  The party is in the Harborne chapel which is where it was last year because the chapel is bigger there than the mission home.  It will be from 10 in the morning til 6 at night hahaha AWESOME!!!

  

We saw this sweet car! We spoke to the guy and he bought it from a film company in Hollywood lol no big deal it's still decked out with lights, sirens, police scanner, the whole works hahaha and he just drives around in it lol.

LEGEND!

week 74

I am safe and healthy and happy :)  I'm staying in Lufbra!  Elder Gomez got transfered to Wales, Blackwood.

My new companion is Elder Quackenbush, from Utah.  He has been out about 7 1/2 months.  he is the man and actually just came from Wales!  LOL it's the legendary Lufbra, Wales connection. Everybody that comes to Lufbra always comes from Wales and everyone that leaves Lufbra always goes to Wales hahaha. 

So yes, Elder Quackenbush seems like a good kid, I'm excited to be working with him and to be able to see success this transfer!

He is 19, has one older sister, and this is his 4th area hahaha he has gotten moved around. 

He was only in Wales 1 transfer and he was in an area by Cardiff. 

He seems like a kool kat!  I'm excited to work with him. 

This week has felt like its been ages!!!  and its only Thursday.  It's just so weird.  I have been so incredibly tired this week it's insane!  

Christmas is going to be crazy fun this year.  I'm not exactly sure the plan for Christmas.  We will be skyping, I'm just not sure, when or where.  but yes! only 12 days!!!  Can you believe this is my second Christmas out!  It's crazy! 

So at transfers President was talking about the Christmas party!  It's next Friday, the 21st and its gonna be sweet.  After the party we are all going to go to the bull ring and do some Christmas caroling!  It's gonna be such a fun day!!  I'm so excited I can't wait! 

Everything with Donnella (our investigator) is good for the 15th. She is excited but kinda sad that Elder G left, but she is still ready!  We actually see her tonight.  It will be good, I'm excited!

Sorry this email is soo late!  We'll email again Monday and I'll send pictures!

week 73

Things have been absolutely bonkers and I've been crazy busy trying to get everything done and I'm absolutely
shattered!  We put up our tree and lights and we have a cozy little living room and we have an open fire place!  So it's nice at night :) 

Transfer dodge night is next Monday and transfers are Wednesday the 12th of December!  It's crazy because I think I'm getting a new companion but I have NO idea whatsoever what is happening!  So we are planning on working suuuuppppeeeerrrr hard this week to end with a bang and to keep our minds busy.  So we have a super packed planned week.  It should be good!

The investigator is still excited and ready to be baptised the 15th of December.  She is so ready and prepared by the Lord.  I have been able to see that I have done absolutely nothing at all, and the hand of the Lord has taught and testified to her and that's how she knows its true.  She prayed, fasted and she is 100% commited to it!  It's soo awesome!  We really are excited for her.  We do have some other investigators that are really good. A couple are struggling but we are helping them to work through it.  We really are seeing that hand of the Lord working in this area and we are merely just assisting in the work.  It is amazing to see the blessings of the Lord, and I think I appreciate the hard times because I learnt so much and really came closer to my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  Now after the hard work and trials we are being blessed by the Lord allowing us to teach and bring someone into the gospel. 

This week I have learnt about attitude and the atonement. 

   it is attitude

   not aptitude

   that determines our altitude in life

So I  think of this and then think of the atonement.  Only our attitude toward the atonement, no matter what our skill or ability is, can help us reach the celestial kingdom.

For example:  if you go into a class and you come in 15 minutes early and get all ready and then pull you notes out and study old notes. then when the teacher comes in you are taking notes and asking questions, you get alot out of the class.

 OR

the your roll into class 10 minutes late with your music blasting and you slop into your seat and slouch back and text, don't take notes and just turn the music down low enough that the teacher cant hear it but you can. you dont get anything out of this class, why even go?

So we can apply it to the atonement, we can study about it, pray to ask the Lord questions about it,  ask our church leaders about it and practice using it in our lives and really take it in.

OR

we can barely ever use it or use it because we are told were supposed to but we don't know anything about so we don't use it correctly therefore it doesn't work and we get nothing out of it.

It all comes down to our attitude toward the Saviour and his atoning sacrifice.  If we have a positive I WANT to use it attitude, and think I'm going to get as much out of it as possible, and know that only the atonement can save me, and we dont rely on out aptittude but our attitude of faith then we will guarentee our altitude to be the celestial kingdom.  So that is what I learned this week.

I'm so grateful that I came on a mission becasue it has changed my life and if i had never had gone I KNOW I would have regreted it because I'm here and I love it and am learning so many lessons and one of them is what i shared in fast and testimony meeting yesterday.

"Every blessing we recieve comes from obedience."- Joseph Smith.  I'm so grateful for all that I have been blessed with!