Week 60:

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Week 59: New School Year

Hey everyone!

I hope you all are doing well! With the new school year starting, that makes me realize how fast time goes, but oh well I guess!

My week has been pretty fun, although a lot of people are still out of town. We are currently working with a couple different families who are progressing very well! One of these families is set for baptism on September 19th. It is really exciting to teach them because they really just want to learn more. They've seen how the gospel has made their friends happy, and they are prepared. They are lower-income, and the parents have had a rough past. But their family really is what has brought them to this point in learning about the Gospel!

Another good thing to come out of this week has been our recent zone conference. It was such a spiritual experience to learn from President and Sister Ahlander. We talked a lot about increasing our faith and hope. 

 

One really funny thing is how many Neal A. Maxwell quotes that they use in their training's, especially since Elder Maxwell is Sister Ahlander's dad. We were encouraged by the APs to shout "Hurrah for Israel!" as loud as we could during their training. At the end of the zone conference, we sang "Spirit of God". The spirit during that hymn was so powerful that I felt like it noticeably shook the room! It was amazing!

It also rained last week! For the first time in like 2 months! I love it when it rains here, but there's just not enough of it. We even had a rainbow! It was fun! 

Hope to hear from y'all! Have a safe and fun week!

 

Elder Jones

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Week 58: Pressing Forward!

Hey everyone!

I hope everyone is getting excited for fall. Things in Vegas aren't quite like they are in Kansas City. There aren't really any leaves here to change colors, or very many trees for that matter, but I guess that is forgivable :)

Over the first year of my mission, I really feel like I didn't change much. The crazy thing is that I have felt like I have changed more in the last month of my mission than in the entire year before. Although i know that I have been changing the entire time, I haven't really started to notice it till recently. And I can really attribute that to the improvements that I have made in my studies. It all really comes down to asking specific questions. The best feeling is when I feel like I come away from studies refreshed with a sense of what I need to
do. Study habits truly do make a difference!

This week overall was a little bit slow. With it being the end of the summer, a lot of people have been out of town. That includes our investigators. And so it was a little bit tough, but I feel like God has been really teaching me some patience.

I also love the opportunity to serve the members of my district. I think the biggest reason that I am in this area is for my district members. I have been in the right position at the right time to be able to offer them the help that they need.

I hope y'all have a great week! Any missionary experiences that any of you would like to share with me? I'd love to hear from any of you!

Love,

Elder Jones

Week 57: 13 Months and Counting!

Hey everyone!

I hope you all have been having a great week! I miss all of you, and I'm grateful to know each of you!

I had a really great week! We are still teaching many of the families that I've talked about in the last few weeks, but I was a little slow because everyone is gone right at the tail-end of summer. The reason everybody leaves is because it is so flipping hot here in the desert, so pretty much no one stays here unless they need to ;)

We had some pretty cool finding experiences, though. There are two  new missionaries in my district. The cool thing about being a district leader in a district with brand new missionaries is that you get to take part in training them. I was able to go on exchanges with one of the new elders Elder Bird on Friday. We went and talked with a fellow whose wife has Lupus and cancer. He seemed a little angry with God at first, as if He wasn't helping him and his wife. We were able to testify about the Atonement and how that helps us overcome challenges. We prayed with him, and after the prayer he admitted that he has prayed before and that God has answered his prayers. The neat thing was we didn't even get a return appointment. We were just able to help him remember God's influence in his life.

We took the sacrament to a shut in in one of our wards. I don't know why, but no one has been taking him the sacrament for the past year. He can't get out of bed to make it to church. It irked me a little bit that no one thought to bring it to him. He was so grateful that we came by and did that for him. I was really happy to do that service for someone.

The thing I have been thinking about a lot this week is charity. What is the motivation behind the service we give? We start with our faith, and our end destination is our hopes, and so charity is the thing that bridges the gap. If we can develop charity, God promises us all that he has and is. Hopefully, that is something I'm gaining on my mission.

Have a great week everyone! Love you lots! Keep in touch!
 

Elder Jones

Week 56: Pioneer Day and Other Stuff

Hey everyone!

We had some interesting miracles happen this past week. We have seen some major progress from our investigator families that we have found. The family that  our bishop referred us to came to our Pioneer Day celebration, came to church and then loved it! They are all super excited to join in the Gospel and it is really fun to see! The funniest thing is that the 7 year old daughter gives elder Sutton and me hugs everything we walk in the door. It is kind of adorable, even though we have explained that she shouldn't do that.  They also have a 4 year old daughter that almost seems kind of like Shirley temple.

Pioneer Day was funny. They had a pie tasting contest to which none of the judges showed up. So to compensate, they asked the missionaries to taste test all thirty pies. I thought it would be fun, but after a while, they all tasted the same, and I didn't feel too good. Not Bueno.

Other than that, we are doing great and having tons and bucket loads of fun! I am really happy with my mission to this point. I feel like I am really making a difference in my life and the lives of those around me. I feel almost like the sons of mosiah in that I am becoming more and more selfless. Time is going by way fast too. I only have 11 months left to do this. It makes me sad, but  oh well.

We had a lesson today with a guy who joined one of the off-shoots of the church. He had a lot of questions about baptism for the dead, polygamy, the resurrection, and many other deep topics. In his church they use the Book of Mormon, but the reason why you this particular church was started was because a guy who joined Sidney Rigdon and his followers broke off from Sidney Rigdon and started his own church. This makes this particular church an off-shoot of an off-shoot, which
I thought was pretty interesting. We are going to teach him the missionary lessons and see how we can reconcile his beliefs with the doctrines of Christ's gospel. Teaching him will be a neat experience.

One thing that I would encourage all of you to do is to try to go out with the missionaries as much as possible. Sometimes as members, we don't always know how to do missionary work, but going out with the Elders or Sisters as much as you can will at least help you get excited about the work. If you all share in the little miracles that we see on a regular basis, and then ask God how you can see those kinds of miracles in your own work, He will most definitely help you to fulfill our responsibilities to take the Gospel to the whole world.

Elder Sutton and I are staying in the area for another transfer, and our zone is shrinking from 2 districts to 1. I will still be district leader here. Elder Sutton and I are also being given a new ward to work in, so that should be fun.

Hope y'all are doing well! Make sure to write if you can and let me know how you're doing,

Have a great week!
 

Elder Jones

Week 55: Last Week of the Transfer! Lots and Lots of Miracles to Report for the Week!

July 20, 2015

Hey everyone!

My bad for not writing last week! Things got crazy and I ended up not having time to email. I suppose that is a good problem for a missionary to have!

I have lots and lots of miracles to report for the week.

First miracle - On Wednesday, we ended up teaching 5 lessons. In addition to that, I got permission from my zone leaders to swing by my ward mission leader from my first area to make some pizzas. He helped us to make a bunch of pizzas and then just go deliver them to the people we are currently teaching. We delivered 7 pizzas in 30 minutes and went back to his place. When we got there, he gave us 7 more to deliver! Our investigators loved seeing us running around with a bag of pizza boxes and wearing aprons. We even street contacted a little bit with them. It was such a fun and funny proselyting activity.

Another miracle - our bishop referred us to a family of 8 who wants to join the church! They are definitely elect. They accepted the invitation to be baptized and are keeping all the commitments we have given them. They stayed up till 1 am reading the BoM as family. They
also are willing to completely change their lifestyles upon being baptized. They are so awesome and I am super pumped to teach them. They are set to be baptized on September 19th.


Next miracle - we had the baptism of two kids we have been teaching over the past 6 weeks. The mom is a less active and the dad a nonmember. They were so fun to teach and seeing them get baptized made it all worth it. I am also confident that they will stay active because they have a good mom.

Last miracle - I went tracting while on splits with my elders quorum president last night. We knocked on the door of a guy we have met before. We showed him a video, and asked if we could come back. He was
a little reluctant, but he agreed! It has only been a few weeks since we last met im so I'm wondering what changed. We will find out thish Wednesday at the appointment!

I feel so blessed to be a part of such a fruitful area. With the end of the transfer coming up, I'm nervous to see what will happen. Hopefully Elder Sutton and I will stay together for the next transfer, but it is whatever the Lord wants. 

It is his work, after all!

Elder Jones

Week 54: Great time in Tule Springs!

July 6, 2015

Hey everyone!

I hope y'all had a great Independence Day! I also hope you took some time to be grateful for the freedoms we enjoy living in this country of ours. The men and women who have sacrificed so much on our behalf probably deserve a little more than just fireworks 😜

All in all, I am having a great time in Tule Springs! There are so many good people, and also people who are willing to hear the Gospel. Sure, Heavenly Father blesses us when we are obedient, but it definitely helps when the people are humble. We have found 11 new investigators  in the past 3 weeks! All of them are good people, and although many of them aren't looking to join the church (yet) they are still letting the Spirit affect their lives without them realizing it.

My week was really good. We have two kids set for baptism next week. They are super funny. Their dad bought them the new batman video game and they were all but rubbing it in my face. These kids are super smart as well! They retain almost everything we teach them as well as what they are reading in the Book of Mormon. The little girl was telling us all about the Jaredites and Alma Jr. and his three sons. Elder sutton and I were in shock. Their mom is a less active, and their dad is a nonmember, although he sits in on the lessons and is currently considering baptism as well. They are such a good family!

We found 5 new investigators this week. One we found yesterday while tracting. The first door we knocked, the lady who answered the door said that her husband might want to talk to us. He came out and he proceeded to tell us that he didn't like the Book of Mormon very much because of its discrepancies. But it wasn't exactly a bible bash. It was more of an intellectual debate (my specialty) using scriptures. At the end of the conversation, he somehow agreed to a return appointment so that we could bring him a Book of Mormon. I am pretty excited to go back.

We are seeing miracles. Heavenly Father is truly blessing us! And it's not because we are amazing people or missionaries, but it is because we are willing. Remember that!

Hope you all have a great week! If you have time, send me an email or a letter. I would love to hear from you!

Love,

Elder Jones