December 19, 2011

December 19, 2011 - Week 4 of Transfer 16

I loved your emails this past week! Returning home is coming quick, before I know it this transfer will be over. It is an extremely weird feeling and the only way to explain it is as a "jacked up" feeling, excuse my language. I have definitely changed and when I come home I will remain changed. Obviously I can't take the great principles I've learned on my mission and import them into my life at home but I will apply them and keep them. I do not want to get caught up in the world, that is such a temptation for me (worldly things). I was given a ride to and from Sister Isom's baptism from Luke Hendrick's, someone I have become great friends with on my mission (a mentor for me). He is a solid return missionary and we talked alot about personal standards and such, it helped. Today we are having lunch with Toni Bertolino who is in town and I will see what advice he has. Enough of this conversation!

This week has been full of miracles, each week in this area is getting better and better. We are hoping to set mission records in January for the number of baptisms in one month. You may think all we care about is baptisms but we make sure they are converted to the Lord and stress the importance of repentance and enduring to the end. For example check out this sweet story. That story of the family I shared with you a couple weeks back (one about bringing the whole family to church and daughter sharing testimony), well their son got baptized yesterday! The father was ordained to the office of a Priest in the Aaronic Priesthood yesterday and was able to baptize his son... as he did it tears were brought to his eyes. This past week we met with the parents and invited them to pay a full tithe, yesterday they payed tithing. Their less active daughter as become strong in the Gospel and even invited her non-member friend to church. We will be teaching her friend in their home for the first time this Wednesday, we teach when we find and find when we teach. The family is committed and on their way to the temple.

We spoke in one of our wards yesterday and it was by far the most intense talk I have given. Elder Mayo was asked to speak for 6 mins and myself 8 mins but as I came to me there was still 25 minutes left in the meeting. A member of the Bishopric whispered to me just take as much time as you can... I took exactly 25 minutes and finished five minutes after the hour. I spoke on necessity of faith, hope and charity for exaltation.

Let me list off some of the good news from this past week. We went from 3 investigators to 8 investigators scheduled with baptismal dates and found six new investigators this past week. This Christmas season peoples hearts are turning to the Savior, its great! We have completely shocked one of our wards by bringing an entire family to church. A family they have been trying to work with for 20 years and have never got past the front door, the mom was anti-mormon. Well their son (19 yrs old) is now preparing for baptism on Januray 14th and hopefully a mission after. On sunday the father expressed that their other son who is 13 wants to prepare for baptism as well. The mom is our favorite though, she reminds me of you mom. She is a hoot.

Time is running short and I must go! I can share with you all the details you want in one week as we talk on the phone. What time works best for you? We have church from 9am-2pm so we are thinking 4pm or 7pm would be good for some chatting. Whatever time works best for you will be good for me. I will tell you all about Sister Isom's baptism on the phone, it was a way good baptism. I love that family. I can't wait till we come back and visit all these people I have come so close to.

Love you, love you.

Elder Pizzey.

December 12, 2011

December 12, 2011 - Week 3 of Transfer 16

Yikes another week and I feel like I can't remember a thing. If you thought my last email was lacking detail then wait for this one, I don't have much to share. But don't get me wrong it was a great week. It probably doesn't help that I haven't eaten lunch yet so I am not in much of an email mood. I received Lee Atwood's wedding invitation today... that is insane. I am so excited for him and I can't wait to send Elder Mayo one of those haha! Please send a little thank you note to Jason and Kams for there unreal Birthday/Christmas present and Lindsay for the excellent package she sent me recently. That Christmas phone call is coming up real quick, then before we know it February 22nd. It is such a weird thought, this just seems like life and I feel like it will never change but I guess it does?

 

I believe I forgot to mention something from last week. We had a mission conference last Saturday December 4th where Elder Christoffersen (Quorum of the 12) and Elder Hallstrom (Presidency of the Seventy) visited our mission and spoke to us for two hours. While everyone was seated waiting for him to arrive President Miller came and grabbed Elder Mayo and I so we could be the ones to great him at the front doors of the mission office. That was quite the experience. We waited for him outside then once he arrived we greeted him at his car and walked him to the chapel, it was tight. So many general authorities we meet!

 

Currently we are living in the basement of one of our ward mission leaders and they are excellent people. We have a bedroom for our stuff, do our studies on a ping pong table and share the kitchen upstairs. At first this housing situation was only to be temporary but it has lasted for more than a year. Just yesterday one of our high councilmen found a new home for us and we hear it is quite the place. We will be moving next Monday and I will inform you of the places status since it seems your so interested in where I sleep!

Whenever you meet someone who knows your family you get a weird chill down your spine, well that happened on Sunday. A brother from the high council and his wife spoke in one of our wards and this sister just kept starting at me. The Bishop, who loves us, welcomed us to the ward as he conducted the meeting and once this lady heard my last name she kept staring like she knew me! Her last name is currently Heninger and has a maiden name of King I believe? I gave her your phone number and said call my pops. She knows Doreen (nana) quite well and her daughter was best friends with Tara. I think, it was weird. The airport is going to be messed up.

The adjustment from being an assistant to a trainer has been excellent! At first it was a little different because you feel so lonely. As an assistant you report to President at least each night and are constantly at their home, work on this or that. You feel like you have a father and mother on the mission and as a trainer I feel like a foster kid or something! He still calls and ask that I call him whenever I got a miracle to share with him, in fact today he called. Last Saturday when I saw Sister Miller she put on a poughty face and came and gave me a hug. I love the Millers, they have greatly impacted my life. What else about the transition? Studies are 10x more enjoyable! They are never interpreted and you actually get to have them everyday no matter what. Currently I have been doing the "Book of Mormon Challenge" with Elder Mayo since all new missionaries are invited to do it. I am only doing the challenge of reading it in three months, I thought it would be nice to read it one more time before I come home. I love studying the scriptures. As a trainer all that stress is taken off and you can just focus! The things that are being taught to me are unreal! Each day I just realize how much I have to learn.

Ever since August the missionary department instituted a new schedule and curriculum for trainers and their new missionaries. For the first 12 weeks of a new missionary he has one hour of personal study (normal) and two hours of companionship study (change) and the trainers responsibility has been magnified. This new curriculum stress the fundamentals of Preach My Gospel and doctrines that the missionaries teach to their investigators. With the outlined training schedule that is given an obedient, yet new trainer and his new missionary can become some of the greatest Preach My Gospel missionaries in matter of 12 weeks. It has been a challenge yet much fun unfolding the scriptures and preach my gospel to Elder Mayo. I am really trying to awaken in him desire to hunger and thirst after the Word of God. Some how Elder England instilled within me this desire to learn and study for myself and I hope I can do the same for Elder Mayo.

Our area is doing well and there has been steady improvement since last week. Next Sunday we will be speaking and having a baptism. Darrius Dempsey a young boy will be getting baptized, we found them day one in this area and have been working on re-activating the entire family and so far its so good. In former areas of mine other investigators I have been deeply involved teaching will be getting baptized as well this coming weekend, including Sister Isom! I don't know if you remember them? Tell Daniel England about this one. We found the family tracting and she would never submit and accept a baptism date yet she has attend church every Sunday since began teaching the family (almost two years ago). Justin and Emily were baptized when Elder England and I were together and now the mother will be taking that next step completing the family as she is baptized this coming Saturday. I have stayed in contact with this family throughout my mission and its a miracle to see this happen. I am excited to attend. I hope your week goes well and I look forward to next weeks email. I really do love them.

Love your son, Elder Pizzey.

December 5, 2011

December 5, 2011 - Week 2 of Transfer 16

It has been a pleasure serving as an assistant for seven months. I love President and Sister Miller and I feel like I just left home again! It gets lonely out here! But things are great and we are about to baptize many people. I thank the Lord every night for this opportunity to train... I have never felt so motivated to work hard and be exactly obedient.

First the area. I lied last week! President Miller changed were I was going Monday night. I have been called to serve in the Draper Crescent View and Draper River View Stakes. I was sent there to whitewash the area and train a brand new missionary. Elder Mayo is my new missionary. He is from Rochester New York which is right by Palmira New York! He is 19 years old and is ready to go. We came into this area and had the baptism of the previous Elders ONLY investigator! That was nice but we were left with nothing, and the area book was junk. We have been working hard since day one and completely redid the area books. I tell you the area is prime pickins right now, I have never seen such success in a short amount of time. You can tell there has been very little trust with the previous Elders but that is quickly changing. We found four new investigators this past week and we are looking at least four new investigators this next week. A few of them have the possibility of being baptized in December but its looking like January is where the fruit of our labours will show. We have had miracles day after day this past week. We have been praying for families and we are currently working with four families and at the end of this next week it should be SEVEN families! I don't understand how the Elders were teaching ONE PERSON when we came into the area... Its confusing.

Sunday was successful. We were able to share our testimony in every single ward, afterwards the leadership is all over us asking us to do this and that. In one ward the Bishop saw us sitting with an entire less-active family (with unbaptized children) that they have never been able to get past the front door. As we knocked on that very same door she cracked it open and explained with a "closed" attitude that she wasn't interested. While she was speaking I lifted my foot and put it into the crack of the door said interrupting her, "it is cold, let us come in and talk with you" and we walked right into that house and taught a lesson. We taught a lesson with the entire family the very next day and taught the Restoration and focused on preparing to enter the temple as a family. As I mentioned above, they were at church and we sat with them. We shared our testimonies and challenged their 16 year old daughter to share with the ward what she shared with us at the lesson about her family. She walked up to the very front and bore a powerful yet simple testimony of her desire to be sealed to her parents. The Bishop was in shock! We scheduled an appointment for the parents to meet with the Bishop after church. After three hours of church the children waited outside as the parents met with the Bishop. Next we will help them fill out a tithing slip as they attend church once again. THAT'S NOT ALL. As the Bishop came to thank us for the work at the end of church we had more great news to share with him, "Bishop did you know a non-member family attend your ward today? We scheduled an appointment with them this Wednesday can you come with us" In the process of talking with everyone after sacrament meeting we found once again another family who had just moved from Taylorsville and thought they would try attending church. The Bishop loves us. He asked us to speak on the 18th of December in the middle of their Christmas ward choir presentation.

That is just ONE story! This letter is already to long but this is just a taste of the miracles we are experiencing daily. Elder Mayo is excellent and has come to the mission far more prepared than myself. He is very comfortable talking with people and likes to talk! I am focusing on helping him gain a love for the scriptures and become a Preach My Gospel missionary. He will be great. I have 11 weeks to help him become converted unto the Lord and prepare him to become a trainer if called upon. It is so hard to take everything I have learned and unfold it to him but I am learning. I love it out here. I love my past companions especially my trainer. Recently I have been so blessed to have Elder Atwood, Elder Bertolino and Elder Speigner as companions! All three have taught me so much and changed me life. With all I am giving it doesn't come close to what the Lord has given me, I am in dept unto him and will give my life in his service. I miss you and love you! Have a great week.

Love Elder Pizzey.