April 8, 2013

Dear Family,

This week I am being transferred to Red Rock stake in the Hill Point Ward! My new companion is Elder Pierre-Louis! I'm really sad to leave this area but I'm excited for new experiences and a new area! I will miss all of the people in the San Miguel and North Star YSA wards! I will surely be back to visit in 14 months! 

So this week we had a great zone conference! Also, we got to see one of our investigators that was out of town and we will hopefully get her with a date for baptism! Then I will come back and visit.  

Oh so fun story!! we were knocking doors and the first house we knock on said 'we are Born Again, Go Away!'... so we knocked the rest of the street and on the way back we knocked on this door across from the 'born again' house and the daughter of the lady that answered the door said, 'get those Jehovah's witnesses to come and rake our yard and we will convert' so Elder Golden and I went over and Elder Golden said 'ya we will rake your yard! and you don't have to convert either' so we started raking and they didn't have the guts to say that they were joking so... after finishing their yard we became great friends with them. They also offered us a job in southern California so we said we would think about it after our missions haha... so it was great to take a situation that could have just been a dumb remark and turn it into a great experience where we can hopefully be able to teach the Gospel to them one day. 

We were also able to teach Abel and talk about baptism and joining the church. His whole family is Catholic so he says it would be hard to change... but he also said that if he feels the spirit confirm to him the truth of the church, it really doesn't matter what his family thinks! we told him to write down questions and watch conference and see them get answered! I am so grateful we are able to have a prophet and apostles that we can trust! and be able to tell people that their questions will be answered, if they search deep down in their soul! 

We also found out that Miranda, our recently baptized member in the ysa ward, watched conference and she took notes!!! she has always had the best questions and I cant wait to see what questions she wrote down and see how they were answered! 

Sorry this email is so boring but there weren't too many intense spiritual experiences... but thanks to everyone in the San Miguel and North Star ysa wards!!! love ya! 

And thanks for the support family!

Love,

Elder John 

April 1, 2013

Dear Family,

This week I have been able to see the blessings of putting your trust in the Lord and then being able to reap the rewards of that trust.  We have had a good week and we were hoping to get two families to come to church this Sunday. We did everything we could do! We called them the morning of and they said they were all set to come to church. But then the moment of truth came! Church started and nobody showed up! It was very difficult and frustrating to have to see how people just have their own choice! We want everyone to succeed but, in the end, it is up to them.
The BEST news we have received this week is that Melinda Bulmer, the investigator who called President Black to have us stay together, is getting baptized on the 20th of April! She got back in town on Saturday so we were able to see her yesterday. She was really bumbed when she found out that one of us is probably going to be transferred next week but she seemed to accept it now, and she realized that it was a blessing that we were both still together by the time she got back in town. But she was really excited to be baptized and she was able to have some great experiences while she was out of town. I have found that if someone is ready and willing the Lord will let everything possible happen to have them progress. We were stressing about the possibility of her falling away while she was gone but she told us of one experience that made her feel even more like she needs to be baptized. she said that a woman came up to her and asked her if she was LDS and she said no but I have been thinking about joining. why do you ask? then the woman said that it was because of the way she talked about her family and her attitude about life that made her wonder. I am thankful that people act on their spiritual impressions!
We were also able to get a new investigator this last week! Its a part member family and the dad, the member, wants the son to take the lessons. and we found out that these people had been taught by the previously missionaries.. but because they never made a teaching record we have been looking for them for 3 transfers and have finally found them! So we are grateful to be able to find him and teach him!
This week has been great and I look forward to what the next transfer brings! (btw elder golden and I are going to be split up and we will find out who will be staying this saturday)
I love you all and am thankful for the support that each of you have given to me and to the missionary effort!

Love,

Elder John

Keep the Faith 2 Tim 4:7

 

p.s. Leadership and Trainer calls come on Tuesday so I hope I get a call to train so I can be with Elder Gonzales from Pueblo, CO!

March 25, 2013

This week has been great! We were able to have the baptism of Miranda Springer on Saturday and it was amazing! It was very low stress and everything went well! Miranda's parents who are non-members came and they seemed to really enjoy it! They also came to her confirmation and the spirit seemed to really touch them! Hopefully something can come from that!
This last weeks district meeting was the most spiritual district meeting I've ever been in! We discussed the Atonement and the need for an atonement and then we watched the bible videos on lds.org.  We watched the one that takes place in the garden of Gethsemane. it was really touching and seemed to show the mortal side of Jesus. We then watched Missionary work and the Atonement.  We were all crying by the end and we all shared; 'because of the Atonement I can...' statements. It was very spiritual! Then after district meeting we went to a less actives house.  The wife has been in a lot of pain with her back and her daughter has made some horrible decisions and has gone off the deep end. they have been struggling with the daughter for years. So we talked about how Christ loves her and then we showed them the 'mountains to climb' mormon message, narrated by President Eyring.  It was so spiritual because this families life has been so hard and this video actually had an effect on them! I was crying so much and they were too! wow! Its been such a spiritual week!
One of our investigators, Deanna... the one who wants to start her own church has been difficult these last few weeks. but this last week was great! She asked us, 'so do you guys want me to be mormon' and we explained that we would like her to be baptized and talked more about that... and now she is actually progressing! She is having some trouble with the apostasy but hopefully we can work that out!
We were able to finally go and see Kui Kelly. He's a less active that was diagnosed with cancer so we havent been able  to see him for a while. He has been going through radiation and we were finally able to meet with him. We showed him Mountains to Climb and he said it was the most spiritual thing he had ever seen!

Ok so the worst thing about this week: At the baptism for Miranda we were waiting for the meeting to start (waiting for the Bishop haha) and then Elder Golden says "Is that Sister Mcdonald" then it clicked in my head that April was not getting baptized today... now let me give you some history ("no, it is too much, let me sum up"- Princess Bride) anyway... April was going to be baptized the same day as Miranda... and april was going to the employment center where all of the senior sisters work... and they got really close to her. so we told them about aprils baptism like a month ago... well after april was not able to be baptized because she would be out of town I fogot to call sister mcdonald and tell her. So I have to face this sweet little old lady on a motorized cart (not really on a cart but you know what I mean) and tell her that april is not being baptized today! I will never forget the face that she gave me. she grabbed her chest and fell backward a few inches against the wall... and I said 'I am so sorry its totally my fault' to which she said 'yes it was your fault' I was like... oh my gosh!!! I'm sorry Lady!! lol but then after talking for a while I finally softened her up (I think it was because of my tie and my suit) haha jk. but ya it was terrible!

Well sorry to end on a bad note but we just need to get used to disappointment lol (another princess bride quote) well love you all!!

Love,

Elder John

March 18, 2013

This week was great! We were able to get 3 new investigators and help less actives finally get to church! A few weeks ago we taught a Hispanic family; Abel, Aldo, and Abel jr. This week his wife walked in as we were finishing up the lesson and we were inviting them to church. We asked the wife if she would be willing to give the kids a ride to church because Abel had to work. She said that she was the one originally that wanted to become a member of the Church but her husband did not allow it because of everything going on in his work and the sports he wanted to do. Her history is amazing! When she was in the military she had to have a 'buddy' that she went everywhere with, because the females had to be in pairs. So she would go to church with her LDS buddy. she said that at first she would just sleep through the service but after a while she would sit through it and she really loved it! So she is so happy that her husband wants to pursue this! They were supposed to come to church but her father was in the hospital. I consider that to be a good excuse. But we are so excited to be able to stat teaching the whole family! And the members that we brought with us this last time are great and they have really clicked with the family!

One major bummer this week was that our investigator, Raul who was set with a date for baptism on the 13th of April, is now not meeting with us anymore. He said that his parents don't want him to be meeting with us and they don't want us to call his house. So he said he would continue meeting with us after he got a car. and since he doesn't have a job that is going to be in the far distant future. Despite us giving him options and promising him blessings he did not want to nurture the seed that was planted. It was ironic because we just read Alma 32 and discussed the principle of nurturing the seed right before he told us this. now it turns out that his ground is barren. not because the seed wasn't a good, true seed. but because his ground is barren.

This week has been a great one filled with trials... the trials are becoming less and less about me and myself... and more about peoples choices... sometimes no matter what I do I cant choose for them and can't make them choose eternal life!

we were supposed to have a bunch of people at church this last week but non of them showed! a new investigator that we got on friday was supposed to come. her name is Ashlee and we knocked on her door and did an Easter message approach. she let us in and we shared a message about Easter and then got the conversation toward different aspects of the gospel. she then asked how are mormons different so we were finally able to explain!! she was excited and sounded interested... but one draw back was that her mom is a prophet at their church and ashlee believes that she can tell the future and crap... so a kinda stinks... but we will see!

Love you all!

Love,

Elder John

pictures: Robert Pike: leaving on a mission this Wednesday

John Bulmer: Investigator we helped rake leave for

March 11, 2013

Dear Family

This week was great! our investigators are still doing well and are excited for baptism! I was really bummed though because one of them, when their fellow-shipper went to pick them up, said that they had family in town and that they were not going to come to church. So our next lesson will be about revelation through church attendance! Hurray! 

A week or so ago we decided to walk that day instead of driving our car, just in our local area, and we bumped into this guy, Raul. He is 34 and lives with his parents. He was kinda unsure about letting us in because his parents are catholic and they won't welcome us. so we stood outside and talked. This last Thursday we happened to be in the area and we bumped into him again. This time we shred the message of the Restoration and when we first were talking with him he seemed really sad and he said that he felt sick. but after talking with him and sharing the first vision with him, he said that he felt warm inside and that he had goosebumps! We talked about baptism and that after he is baptized he can have that feeling with him always! Isn't it amazing that people don't know they can feel this way all of the time!!! Well we committed him to baptism and then we set up a time for a member to pick him up to have a lesson in a member home on Saturday. So Saturday came and we watched the Restoration video. After discussing prophets and the priesthood we committed him to be baptized on the 13th of April!!! Legit! He is one of those souls who are ready and who needs the Gospel! He talked about sins in his past and we told him that all of those feelings of guilt will be gone if he turns to the Savior and he does the things that we ask him to. Not because we want him to but because the Savior wants him to. 

Also!!! we found an awesome Mexican family! We went trackting a few weeks ago and this guy names Juan answered the door and said that he would want to meet with us. then we stop by and this lady says "we speake no englis... I'm sorry' and it wasnt very convincing because the 'im sorry' part sounded very american. the next time we stop by a kid named Aldo answered the door and told us to come back... then the next time we come back and the dad, Abel answered the door (ps I refer to him as cain when we are planning haha) but he said to come back... and when we came back this time he said come on in! and he had his son there and his nephew too! the son said that he couldnt remember this scripture he learned in his christian school and the dad said 'ask them, they know everything' (ask the missionaries they can help! you're so right elder nelson!!) so we talked for a while and shared finding faith in christ with them and they were so excited and so we have the perfect members to be fellowshippers for them! We are going to have a lesson this next week! So happy!!!

Well... things are going great here! WE have a baptism on the 23rd of March and on the 13th of April! Miranda is getting interviewed tonight so hopefully all goes well!!!

Thanks for the support!!! 

Love, 

Elder John 

March 4, 2013

This week was amazing!!! So both of our investigators that are set with a date are doing really well! The ward is so excited and we cant wait to get them baptized! The baptism will be on the 23rd of March at 6:00pm at the Alexander and Ferrel building.
We were able to get 2 new investigators this week as well! one of them is a 10 year old girl that we found from a less active member, who also wants to start coming back to church. Our other new investigator we found in the most amazing way! We went to visit one of our investigators who wasnt home. since we were in the appartment complex we decided to visit a few less actives in the area.  well we knock on this ladies door and this black guy answers the door and says 'Gods here! come on in'. so we come in and he was a little drunk but the girl that was there was legit! she said that they were just talking about God and that this was an answer to her prayers, she just moved in with her friends that day and if she hadent have been there she wouldnt have met us. we sat down and as we did the guy was like, oh lets move some of this pot out of the way. so that really brought the spirit lol. Well we started off with a prayer and by that time she was crying.  We taught the first lesson, up to the apostacy, and then we talked about some of her concerns about God giving her direction. We were BOLD! the Boldest I've ever been on my mission, probably. We told her that this church will give her direction and that this experience is an answer to her prayers.  We then commited her to baptism and she said, "of course!". So we are super excited and cant wait to teach her again! we have a lesson with her tonight so hopefully it goes through!
This has been a great week!
Thanks for all of your support and for everything you do!!!

Love you all!

Elder John

1 TIM 1:12

February 25, 2013

Dear Family,

This week was great! we were able to have a lesson with our new investigator, April. And guess what!!! She's set with a date for baptism! 23rd of March! We taught her the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the importance of baptism, on saturday... and we had stake conference on sunday and guess what Elder Ballard talked about?? the Gospel of Jesus Christ!  So that was pretty great!

Well transfers are this week and Elder Golden and I are gonig to be staying together for another 6 weeks! so we have some more chances to baptize that investigator that our president told us to lol. I think it will go well! We both will hopefully be able to continue to work together well and be able to continue to be patient haha.

Well we've had a pretty fun week! We went tracting for a few hours this last friday and we found some cool people that might actually want us to stop by sometime again!!! that never happens! I think I may have told you but in case I havent... We found an investigator off of tracting! This guy, after we told him about lessons and stuff like that, said 'you know I think my wife and I ... Will' so they werent home the last time we went over there but we have their number and we hope everything pans out!

Well we have an appointment with Miranda, our other investigator that is set for March 23rd for baptism so hopefully that will go well!!!

Sorry its so short this week but we've got souls to save lol

Love you all and thanks for your letters and support!

Love,

Elder John

2 Tim 4:7 - Keep the Faith, Lose the doubt

explanation of pictures:

Elder Lee pulling out my ingrown hairs

Me with a sickle ready to harvest

Us after running outside

The one of the poker chips I like to call "Tithing: is it really that difficult to pay in Vegas?"

February 19, 2013

Dear Family,

Wow! this week and this last transfer have flown by!!! this is the last week of the transfer! This transfer has also only been 5 weeks long instead of the regular 6 weeks, becuase of the new missionaries coming in... so I will come home a week earlier than I was going to previously. So I wont even be 21 when I return!!!

Anyway... We have had some crazy experiences this last week! so Wednesday we went to this less active guys house and decided to visit him before going to lunch... and we came in and he said that his day wasnt going very well so we asked him why and he broke down and said that some things had been happening.  I am very thankful that we went to his house instead of going to lunch!

So ya pretty crazystuff! Sunday we were able to have a lot of people at church!!! we got 3 less active people to come to church and we got Miranda Springer, our investogator who is set with a date, to come! She said that she was having the worst week ever and then when we went to sacrament meeting she said that it was soooo worth it to come to church! We had a high council member speak and he said 'I dont want to come to churhc either but we need to make the decision to come because it will bless us'. great things for our less actives to hear!

We picked up a new investigator from the sister missionaries this week! her name is April and she has already commited to baptism and she is legit! We just finished teaching her the Plan of Salvation and she is so excited for it! She will be coming to our Stake Conference this week so that will be great!

Thank you so much for your support and letters!

I love you all!

Love,

Elder John

2 Timothy 4:7- Keep the Faith, Lose the doubt

Pictures:

the Highland Hills Zone!!!

Me hugging the biggest cactus I've ever seen!!!

February 11, 2013

Dear Family,

So I guess everybody has heard about Jon coming to the Best in the WEST!!! Thats so cool! I hope I get to be companions with him!!! all of the LVW will be under water haha. well thats pretty cool! I got that news while I was sick on saturday when Elder Golden and Elder Lee were at dinner, we went on exchanges, and they were at the Mechams house so she got on facebook and found out that Jon was going to my mission!

Well since it was a short week not much has gone on since wednesday.  We were able to get a few new investigators... one of them is a part member family and the husband hasnt taken the lessons since he was 20 and they are in their 70s so he said he would try out the new way of the lessons so ya!

the bulmers, our investigators that are kinda close to baptism are out of town for 6 weeks so thats a bummer!!! but hopefully we will stay in this area and be able to baptize them!

well sunday rolls around finally! (saturday I was sick) so then we were able to teach Donna, one of our new investigators from last week... and then we went to dinner with the Edgels. Well After dinner we take Jayden Edgel out will us and we go over to some less active members n the ward and had a good spiritual experience with Finding Faith in Christ... usually we just watch it and talk about it a bit but this time we answered a lot of their questions and talked about it a lot so its pretty cool! After that we see a car on the side of the road and turns out that she is out of gas... so we push her a half mile down the road and when we finally get there she tells us to wait there... and she goes in and gets 20 dollar bills for each of us... after we refuse she says 'well i have to give you something' so we said here is what you can do for us... I pull out a copy of the Book of Mormon that I placed on the trunk of her cdar while we pushed it.. and she said she would read it! I like to think of it as ammon teaching king lamoni.... 'thus he was caught with guile'... haha so she kinda felt that she owed us one so I think she will read and give us a call!!

Well sorry its kinda been a boring week but things are going well in the Las Vegas West Mission!!!

Love,

Elder John

Keep the Faith!

February 6, 2013

Dear Family,
This past week has been great! So tuesday we were able to go over to this
less active ladies house and she was not doing well. we have been meeting
with her for a while and been able to gain her trust. she has been trying
to stop smoking and so we asked if she was done. she said she bought
cigarettes so we asked her if we could take them. so we did! then she said
"since you took them you do the blessing" (referring to me, we give her
blessings all the time) so I gave her a blessing. This last friday we met
with a less active lady who has a non member husband and she knows she
needs to come to church but she doesnt feel the urge to change certain
things, even though she knows they are wrong. So I said "well if you give
up one hour then you will take the sacrament and fell the spirit again,
then you will get the urge to stop the other things'. Then she said "I had
a home teacher when I lived in Belgium as a young girl and my parents were
very less active and they smoke and drank and he said those same words and
my parents sacrificed that hour to go to church and then they went to eh
temple and got fully active in the church. so its funny that you say that,
maybe I will'. That was awesome!!!
This last week we also clipped horses hooves! to help out a less active
family that needs to come to church! I have pictures! it was really fun!
This last Sunday was fast and testimony meeting and President and sister
black were supposed to come to church but they went to our other ward.
Well John and Melinda Bulmer went because we promised them we would be
'speaking'. So after church they texted and said "can elders baptize into
the lds" so we said yes. which is ironic because we fasted for baptisms!
well it turns out that she had a great experience during a surgery she had
last week and felt that God was with her! so Hopefully they will be able to
get baptized soon! the only problem is that they want both elder Golden and
I to baptize them. haha.
Well this last Tuesday we had zone meeting and it was great! we talked
about bearing testimony frequently. so our apointment with the bulmers
cancelled for 2:00 so we were pretty bumbed. We went to see Beverly (a
potential investigator who we go try to see every tuesday and she is never
there) and as we are waling to her house we decide to go help some people
with a u-haul trailer across the street. As we are walking we see a wallet
on the ground so we get ahold of the owner of the wallet and while we were
waiting to meet up with him at his house we talked to the people with the
u-haul. His name is David from San Jose, moved here a year ago. he
accepted to come to church and to read the book of mormon. So we walked
down to the wallet guys house and he was so grateful and tried to give us
money but we said no, we just wanted to help. As we talked with him we
found out that he knew Mormons and lds people worked for him previously.
well he said we ould come meet with him and he couldnt remember his number
so we went into his house. we talked for a while and he is so proud of his
family and his children. he talke dbaout his wife who died a year ago and
he gets really emotional when he talkes about any of his family members. So
we told him that families are forever and he said "I'm here alone. that
doesnt seem like forever. I keep thinking my wife is going to walk through
that door any day, but she is gone" So we explained that even after death
we can be with them. We then gave him 'together forever' ( a cheesy movie
that we have been challenged to pass out by our zone leaders) and its
awesome that we have that challenge because it was able to help him and
otherwise we wouldnt of had it with us but I feel that that challenge was
given for us to be able to help this guy. Its cool to see how everything
works out cause we knew that Beverly, the place we were originally going to
see, wasnt going to meet with us, but there was a reason to go see her and
there was also a reason for the zone leaders to issue that challenge with
the 'together forever' dvds.
Well today we were able to go to the temple!!! awesome!
Thanks so much from your support and your love!
I love you all!
Love,
Elder John