Setting Goals - Elder Jacob Avery

Written by Elder Jacob Avery, serving in the Peru Lima West Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaking Spanish.

Peru Lima West Missionaries - Avery and Estrada on the right

So it feels very weird. My companion has officially finished his 12 weeks of training. I can hardly believe that he's been on his mission for more than 3 months! It made me reflect a little bit about how time passes by so quickly, but also how ''efficient time usage'' is a key for productivity. We've been focused and working for 12 weeks and at the end of it, Elder Estrada is a ready, capable and intelligent missionary. This has happened in such a short time because we dedicated so much effort, energy and organization into that specific goal. If we think about how much we achieve personally every three months, we might see that we don't do that much or that we don't change ourselves as much as we could have. I believe that one of the hardest things we have to do in our lives is learn to use time effectively and efficiently.

In Preach my Gospel there's a quote from Elder Ballard (I believe) where he says that he's convinced if we don't master the skill of making and completing goals, we'll grow old and look back realizing that we fell very short of our real, full potential. I remember hating making goals with Dad every New Year, and even skipping out on it a few years. What a dumb thing that was to do! Preach My Gospel also says that our goals reflect the deepest desires of our heart. If we don't want to make goals, then that kind of shows that we have no desire or direction in our lives, or that our personal perspective of our existence is kind of pointless. I never got super motivated to make goals until my mission, but now I've seen how crucial they are to achieving things.

Going back to my companion. The Brethren have indicated that the goal to completely train and teach a new missionary is 12 weeks. With that in mind and diligent follow-up, we were able to do it! I just want to encourage those at home to find a desire to make goals and to learn how to keep them. Goals bring direction and greater purpose in life, and also satisfaction in ourselves and the Lord. He, of course, helps us complete all of our righteous goals.

Next week, the Z** family is going to be baptized. They're a family of seven who I've been teaching for several months. On Wednesday they're getting married and the following Saturday they're getting baptized. The oldest son has decided many times that he will not join his family, but we're still praying and hoping that he'll change his mind and listen to the missionary lessons. Being baptized is a huge, hard goal to accomplish. It required effort from us, the ward, and every member of their family. But because we made baptism a goal, and we have the temple as our next goal, everything fell into place. Families can be together forever, and I hope that this is always our biggest and most important goal.

What you have to understand is that being a missionary is super rewarding, but it is so much work! Not only are you working very hard all the time, but you're also supposed to do it in a Christ-like way, receive revelation (no pressure!), write to your converts, train your companion, learn Spanish, memorize scriptures, find people in the street and yah....let's just say that the missionary mantel is very heavy. I can't imagine how an Apostle feels!!

I was loved the package, which got here this week....even though I was bummed out that the majority of the contents cannot be opened until Christmas :P I love you though! I miss you guys and I'll have a bunch to tell you when I get back. There's a bunch to read in my journals too.

Oh, P.S., my camera is out of commission. I was super sad. I put in the new batteries you sent and was so happy for one day. I'm gonna take it to get fixed and if I can't I'll let you know :) I think I can though. It probably won't be very expensive either.

I love you guys! Have a great week! I'm very jealous that you get to enjoy the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons together, but you should all be jealous of our mild temperatures and sunshine here in Peru :)

Elder Jake Avery
Peru Lima West Mission

The Stone Cut Out of the Mountain Without Hands (November 10, 2014)

Official!  (December 2, 2014)

Just Another Way of Saying Opportunity - Elder Kolby Madsen

Written by Elder Kolby Madsen, serving in the Denmark Copenhagen Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaking Danish.

Mor (Mom),

Yes, I just got him about an hour ago (he's referring to his new companion, Elder Ogden). He is excited, and yes, he says that his dad works with Brother Anderson. Fun stuff! I will send a picture next week. We just got together. Don’t worry, I know the drill :)

The latest I can stay in Denmark is the 5th of May. No longer, unless the First Presidency would like to have me out longer, which I would love, but probably won’t happen, haha. I have not gotten my dead letter yet (the letter that says when he will be coming home). I think President is waiting for Maren (his sister) to get her call because I told him that was my only concern. I would like to see her before I go. When I find out about her mission call, I think he will send the letter. I don’t know. Everyone else in my group going home has already gotten their letters. So far, from what I've heard,  two are staying until May, the other five I have heard from are going home in March, so that leaves two spots for May and one for March. We will see. I think, in all honesty, it will be the 5th of May when I will be home...which is fine because when Maren comes here, I will just see her here in Denmark, haha! It works for me. You are right. The Lord’s will, will happen. It’s not the first time someone has gone without seeing their siblings in 3-4 years. It’s all good.

Light in the darkness!

Well the Jeppsons should have fun. That should be a great cruise. They will enjoy that, and Lindsey can use her mission language. I am way jealous of that because I can only use mine with like 6 million people in the world, and they all live here. She knows a language that a ton of people speak.   Anyway, good stuff.

This last transfer was so much fun. It was a crazy call to get from President last week. We all thought that if anyone left, it would have been me. Just because Elder Child only got here five weeks prior. But the Lord has other plans, and I am so happy with that.  I love Slagelse so much that I could stay here for the rest on my mission. It won’t happen, but man that would be great.

We have been having some great things happen.  We got in touch with some of our friends that we have not been able to meet with in a while. Unfortunately we had another funeral this week for our friend form Kalundborg.  She was only less active on paper because she had no possible way of getting to church. She just could not handle it physically. She is such an inspiration. She had a huge support system. There were so many people there to wish her off in a peaceful, meaningful way.  Her daughter gave an amazing talk about the spirit world and the plan of salvation. It was great. The Spirit was very strong.

Best family ever!

We had some really good stuff happen with our friends who have been recently baptized and are a little less active. We went and had a pizza party with them and saw Ephraim’s Rescue.  That movie is great. I really like it. We also had a good time meeting with the people that Elder Child wanted to say goodbye to.

It was great to see that everyone in our zone has been stepping up their work load, and things are happening. I know I say it every week, but it is true, the hastening is now.  It's so great to be a part of it, and it goes fast and keeps picking up speed.

Unfortunately S** could not come to church yesterday. He has been having anxiety problems. He has had that the whole time but ironically, after he gets baptized, it gets worse. Satan really knows what he is doing, but the Lord is better! Our patience and love will pay off. He promised to come next week and I feel like he means it.

We actually got to play soccer this week.  It was way fun. S** came. It's been a while since we played here because all the members have been busy.

We had a good time working KBH with the elders up there. I also got to see some of the members who I worked with while I was up there. It was so great to hear that one of the members, shortly after I left, decided to come to church every week and she has been doing that. It was neat to see she even recognized me form a year ago. She has a new light about her. It's amazing to see that happen in peopled. She has a goal to go to the temple in the near future, so that should be way good.

I also got to see Tr**.  I love him so much.  He was so happy to see me. We had a great lesson with him, and it was so much fun to talk to him. The best part was that the last time I saw him I could not really speak Danish, and this time the whole conversation was in Danish. It was crazy! He actually commented on it. It was great to hear (and see) that I have made some progress in my mission. The gift of tongues in real.  It may be frustrating at first, but it comes in the Lord's time, like always. He needs us for certain things at certain times. We just need to do our best to be ready to act when He calls, or when the opportunity presents itself.

"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-days Saints is just another way of saying opportunity,"  said Ephraim Hanks. Truth!

Med Kærlig Hilsen,

Elder Madsen

I May Have Done Some Flips and Stuff...I Don't Remember ;) (November 10, 2014)

Little Sister is Called to Serve  (November 24, 2014)

Hello, Zone Activities! - Elder Brian Burgess

Written by Elder Brian Burgess, serving in the Mexico Puebla North Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaking Spanish.

Wow, it's Monday...once again.

Tuesday we had interviews with President Christensen, then a meeting with the stake president and President Christensen at night.

Wednesday we had the district meeting and two lessons.

Thursday was weekly planning and one lesson.

Friday we had leadership council at the mission home (we ate spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread!) and a ward activity that night.

Saturday we did service by helping a sister sand some window frames to paint them again. I prepared a talk for sacrament meeting on Sunday, and then had a planning meeting with the other zone in the afternoon. After that we had coordination meeting for the ward mission's progress.

Sunday they didn't call me up to the stand, after planning a sweet talk.... their loss. Then we walked around our area, trying to get our heads back in place, after hardly working in our area throughout the entire week.

HAPPY NEWS! About 6 months ago the Area Presidency in Mexico made a rule saying we can't be in groups larger than four on Preparation Day. Friday, at the leadership council, President Christensen read us a letter from the Area Presidency saying that we can now get in large groups on Preparation Day at church meeting houses. Hello, zone activities and soccer again!! Best news I have heard in such a long time.

Elder Garridos birthday celebration!

Today is Elder Garridos birthday, so we invited some wards to come play with our ward. About 50 people were at the church today, and we played soccer and basketball all day. Only the sister missionaries from Alamos came over, but it was fun. We ate cake to celebrate Elder Garridos birthday.

After such a different week, I realized I need to take advantage of literally every second I have to teach a lesson or a gospel principle. Time runs like water and the week is over again. It's a busy time in my mission, but I love teaching and being able to help my investigators. Even if it's only about once a week...Life is still amazing!

I love you all!!!

BRIAN....... Elder Burgess

Hit by a Car, Broken Window, and a Good Game of Soccer  (November 10, 2014)

Read, Pray, Serve  (November 24, 2014)

Miracle of the week: Sister Christensen gave me a Fruit by the Foot as a reward for doing my language study. I went to open it, and amazingly found TWO Fruit by the Foot candies! INSIDE A SINGLE WRAPPER!! I took a picture, cried a little bit, and decided to share the experience with you all :)

God Be With You 'til We Meet Again - Sister Hannah Avery

Written by Sister Hannah Avery, serving in the Chile Vina del Mar Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaking Spanish.

Hermana Avery overlooking Vina del Mar, Chile

Hello family and friends!

I hope that you all had a great week! This week has been one of the hardest, yet sweetest, of the whole mission for me.

We started out the week normal. Teaching, contacting, etc. Super great. We got to Wednesday, which was R's 70th birthday (our investigator with a baptism scheduled for the 30th of November). She came home from having dialysis and felt horrible, so the little surprise party we had planned for her ended up not happening. We decided to have it Thursday afternoon.

Vina del Mar, Chile

Well, we woke up Thursday morning and went to visit G** (R's daughter, who also has a baptism scheduled) and she wasn't home. So, we called her and she said that she was in the hospital with R** because she had felt really sick all night. She said that she would call us with news, and let us know what we could do to help.

We waited all day long to hear from them. We ended up in N's house (a recent convert) and as we walked in the door, G** called us in tears and said, "Hermanas, I need you! Please, my mom is going to die tonight or tomorrow. There is nothing the doctors can do..." We were like, "whoa, what?!," and called our district leader to see if we were allowed to go to the hospital to see her. It was 9 p.m. and we have to be home by 9:30, so we were shocked that they gave us permission. We ran over there as quick as we could, saw R** in a hospital room packed with about 10 other people (in beds), and she looked awful. They were injecting morphine to help with the pain. I am not sure what she had, but she looked bad. We stayed there to try to held calm G**, and then we had to go home. We told her to call with any news at anytime during the night.

Friday afternoon, we were anxious and not able to find anyone to teach. We visited with J** (our convert) and got a call from G**, telling us that R** had just died 5 minutes earlier. We were in shock, cried, etc. It was crazy. Like, I had just seen her, taught her for the last 4 weeks getting her ready for baptism, and then she just died. Out of no where...

At first, I was angry. I thought, "This area is so hard to work in and we FINALLY had a baptism scheduled, and then she died?! How could this happen?!" I was really beating myself up, because I thought, "I didn't baptize her, and now she is in the spirit world waiting for her baptism to be done in the temple. How did we not get this done sooner?!" I was really upset. I had gotten attached to R**, and I loved to teach her. She understood everything perfectly, and was an angel. We had to yell when we taught her because she couldn't hear very well :) But she wanted to be baptized and understood everything we taught her. She clapped her hands for joy when we told her about Joseph Smith's first vision, and that we had a living prophet, Thomas S. Monson. She had tears come to her eyes and was so excited and happy when we taught her the plan of salvation and how she would see and could get to live with her dead husband again. She said she would do anything to be baptized like Christ was. She quit smoking and drinking tea and coffee on the spot..... I couldn't wrap my mind around how someone so wonderful and willing could be taken away so suddenly, especially before her baptism...

My area of Chorillos

I prayed. I prayed day and night, and told Heavenly Father how I felt. I told him that I was sorry for not finishing teaching her, and for not baptizing her. And then I felt that overwhelming peace that I love, the Holy Ghost, telling me that everything would be okay.... "My will is not always your will. Trust in me".... I told Heavenly Father at that moment that if I couldn't finish teaching her, to please pass her along to my sweet baby brother, Jonathan, to finish the work that I started so that she can be ready to recieve the covenants of the temple in a year. Since then, I know for a surety that R** is okay, in a much better place, and that she will be ready for baptism, just like we were working on before she died.

G** told us this week that she wants to be baptized no matter what, because it's what her mom wanted and what she needs to be able to enter the temple and do the baptism for her mom in a year. Blessings come from hard things! We don't always kow why, but the Lord does! We are doing better, and trusting more and more in the Lord everyday <3

Well guys, have a great week! I will talk to you all next week! I love you soooo much!

xoxoxoxo Hermana Avery

 15 Months (November 10, 2014)

Just Beccause God Loves You That Much  (November 24, 2014)

My dear family and friends, PLEASE read this book!

The Fourth Missionary - Elder Joshua Avery

Written by Elder Joshua Avery, training at the Provo Missionary Training Center (MTC) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In December he will travel to the Singapore Mission, speaking Mandarin Chinese.

Elder Avery and Elder Harmon

Hey!

Earlier this week my district got our Chinese name tags. I wanted to send a picture of it, but I forgot to bring my camera to the lab. I also have pictures of Max (Wimmer) and I, and him getting ready to leave for Singapore. I'm sure Sister Wimmer wants those, so I will do my best to get those to you next week. It's so cool that Max is in Sibu! Let me know how he likes it. 

So now for this week, it was awesome! I felt really good this week and my chest isn't hurting anymore. I only eat the salads, which is a drag...but at least it will keep my tummy from being sick. 

The night I was packing to leave for the MTC, I went through my mountains of papers I have held onto for years. In that stack I found a talk titled, "The Fourth Missionary," which Jake had mailed to me but I'd never read before. I felt prompted to bring it with me, and it is life changing! I'd say that has definitely been one of my biggest learning experiences this week. I'd tell you all about it, but you really just need to look it up yourself. 

Our Tuesday night devotional is being broadcasted to MTCs around the world. So I think that means a General Authority is coming. YEAH!!!! My companion and I are singing in the choir. The choir is singing a really cool arrangement of "Praise to the Man". It's the same arrangement they sang when David Archeletta sang with the MTC choir at General Conference.

I was released from being district leader yesterday. It was bitter sweet. Elder Harmon and I were called as Sacrament coordinators, which means we pick who blesses and passes. I am excited to say the sacrament prayer in Chinese!

So this week I broke two things...my watch and my oil vial. But no worries! We have an Asian elder in my district, so my watch is now good as new! He can fix anything! My oil vial could not be fixed though. The glass shattered everywhere...I think a piece of my heart shattered with it. Just kidding! But it was a bummer. I bought a new, more durable one at the bookstore today. Hopefully this one holds up.

I went to the MTC barbershop today. They have a vacuum that sucks up all the hair so it doesn't get on your suit. It's pretty cool, but I still only think I'll go on P-days.

Oh! and this week I was reading the bible dictionary and found some interesting things. Read what it says about the Dead Sea Scrolls, Apocrypha, Pseeudepigrapha, and the last paragraph of what is says about Enoch. I want to study more about these things when I get back, but those books are not in the missionary library :)

As far as things to send me, letters are my favorite. Packages are cool, but letters are the best. The hardest thing about the MTC is probably staying awake. Haha, some days during personal study time I'll look around the classroom and see that I am the only one awake. My favorite part about the MTC is the devotionals. They find the best speakers!!!

Love you all!

Feng Zhang Lao

Elder Joshua Avery
DEC15 SINGAPR
2007 N. 900 E. Unit 2
Provo, UT 84602

The Galloping Elder  (November 3, 2014)

Let God Do His Thing  (November 17, 2014)

Hit by a Car, a Broken Window, and a Good Game of Soccer - Elder Brian Burgess

Written by Elder Brian Burgess, serving in the Mexico Puebla North Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaking Spanish.

Hey y'all.....

So I had a great week... just a few funny stories...

So I was crossing the street with my companion the other day, and this car totally saw us crossing the street.... actually the car was parked.... but as soon as we got in front of the car he hit the gas.... wow... I was in front of my companion, so I pushed off the hood of the car and did a cool James Bond spin and all was good. My companion did the same. The guy slammed on the breaks, glared at us in shock (as if he hadn't seen us), and drove off.... We are totally fine and alive and, as of right now, we haven't seen the same guy since. haha! 

Another story... I bought a soccer ball... a very cool Wilson ball. My companion was teaching me some sweet moves and I broke part of the window to our apartment. I talked to the landlord and she said that there is a glass store that will fix it for 20 pesos.... like a little more than a dollar....I was pretty scared to call her. But all is well.

So after my practice session at home, we got together today to play soccer. Elder Mendoza and I verses Elder Hartvigsen and his new companion, Elder Garrido (he was also my companion for 3 months), and we had a sweet soccer battle... I have never played harder in my life... we won!! By two points. But we won! It was fun!

I love you all. I love this church! Some investigators didn't go to church this week, so their baptismal dates fell through. But this week we will be working hard with them. And I hope they progress.

Tomorrow we have interviews with President Christensen and a meeting in the night to talk about the monthly report with the stake president. Then Friday we have a leadership council at the mission home. I am excited for this week. And pray that my investigators start to progress more!

I love you all!

Elder Burgess

Hola, mis queridos! (November 3, 2014)

Hello, Zone Activities!  (November 17, 2014)

Elder Remund's First Baptism!

Written by Elder Dallin Remund, serving in the Virginia Chesapeake Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaking Spanish.

Elder Remund's first baptism

Hey y'all!

I'm going to try to keep things short because I know I go off on tangents. Let's keep it short and sweet. Oh boy, I'm already making this too long...

Anyways, we had the most amazing weekend!! I had my FIRST baptism in the mission field!! I've been out almost 18 months and I have finally been blessed to see one of my investigators enter into the covenant of baptism. JW was baptized this Saturday and confirmed yesterday. It is such an incredible experience to have seen J** come a very long way. He said, "You know how my baptism felt? You know when you are super sweaty and dirty and you've been working for hours and you go home and take a hot shower? That's what it felt like." He said he feels a lot of joy. Elder Cannon and I keep on talking about how awesome J** is. He's going to do great things. The next step is their sealing in a year! I'll be able to see that one!

We had a really big party with the branch. Dia de la Hispanidad. There was tons of food. I'll send lots

I'm doing great. Looking forward to finding some new investigators!! Also putting extra emphasis on fighting off the "natural man." Anything like extra sleep, spending money, and excessive food eating (that's a hard one to avoid in the Hispanos' homes) is getting booted. Keep me accountable on that one. I don't want the natural man to take over when I get home, so I'm going to put him off the best I

Hermana Garcia y Elder Remund

of pictures. It was amazing. If we could just get all the Latino members' friends who went to the party to come to church, we'd be a Spanish ward!
can!


I love y'all so much. Thanks for all the emails, letters, and packages. I got a lot this week. I'm even more grateful for the prayers. Thank you for praying for my investigators, too. I am certain the Lord has answered those prayers because I see miracles in the lives of these people every week.

Con tantisimo amor,

Elder Remund


Chilly November Days (November 3, 2014)

I'm Getting Transferred  (November 24, 2014)

Pupusa, empanadas, an amazing Panamanian soup, tamale, Belizean rice and beans, and a sope. Some of the best food I've eaten in a while. It was authentic Hispanic food from all over Central and South America. Heaven!!

Mexican rice, paella, carrot and cabbage slaw from Belize, gallo pinto from Costa Rica, taquito, and a flauta.

I May Have Done Some Flips and Stuff...I Can't Remember ;) Elder Kolby Madsen

Written by Elder Kolby Madsen, serving in the Denmark Copenhagen Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, speaking Danish.


Mor,

Dang that is crazy. I hope she gets it soon (he's talking about his sister, Maren, submitting her application for missionary service).  I was thinking about it. If she gets her call to Denmark and she leaves in March,  I could see her in Denmark. It would be great! Or she could just get her call for after May, and that would work too. Any way she is European bound,  I can feel it.

And yes, M** is still on track for baptism on the 29th.  She is looking forward to it.

I got your package right in time for Tuesday, which was the turkey bowl. It was so great. We had so much fun. The knee brace is perfect. It worked great. Thank you again. I also have to buy new pants today because I have worn through my other three pairs. I am satisfied though, because they lasted me eight months. So I will just get two more, they should last me to the end.

This week was great. I will start off with the bad news first. We can end with the best news. Bad news is that my companion, Elder Brycen Campbell Child, will be going to Frederiksberg, where I started.  He will be an assistant to the mission president. It stinks that I have not had a companion for longer than six weeks for the past five transfers. That's like 7 months, haha. I guess I am not good with people or something. Way sad though. I love Elder Child.

We had two members pass away this week. One of them the sister missionaries worked with, and the other the one we worked with. Way sad. The one we worked with was the most steadfast lady, and used to ride her bike to church every week. Almost 30 km every week. Then she started to get really sick and old, so she could not do that anymore. I think she stopped doing that when she was about 70. She was the same lady who, every time we would go visit her, she would ask who we are teaching and then ask when they are getting baptized. Then she would write down the dates and tell us if she can find a ride. She always wanted to talk about our work and about the ward, not about her pain or the fact that she said "no" to chemo therapy. We found out the last time we went to visit her that she refused chemo. She was in pretty bad shape. Then when we went up on Saturday, they told us she died on Tuesday. It was way sad, but there was a peaceful feeling. She was really fighting towards the end. We could see it in her eyes every time we visited. Her funeral will be next week. On the bright side, she is in a better place. She is without pain. Her faith was a defining characteristic and will be a very good force on the other side in bringing the lost back!

S** came to stake conference. It was great to see him there. He is really starting to do the things he knows he should, patience and love. He has been reading every day and it's looking up. He is going to be moving to southern Jylland in January, so that should be good. He will be without his girlfriend and will be going to a higher level of education. Way good.

We also had the opportunity to meet with some of our less active friends who came to stake conference as well. Such a  blessing.

Denmark Copenhagen Mission - Football

 We had our turkey bowl this week. It too was perfect. I love football. It's been awhile and my knee held up 100%. It's such a testimony builder for me because I remember when I was set apart as a full time missionary, I was promised that as I forgot myself and worked hard and did the Lord's work, focusing on the things that matter, that my knee would be back to 100%.  I have been taking it easy my whole mission, but I decided to try and do some of the things I used to, like jumping with both legs and maybe some flips and stuff.  I can’t remember.... ;) but I had no problems! ACL surgery six weeks before leaving on my mission, two days of physical therapy, and a mission full of walking and riding bikes. Priesthood is real. It is the Lord's power here on the earth. His love is eternal. I know it!

We also had a baby shower in the ward. We got to see the Plan of Salvation in one week. Our life on Earth is just a step on the path of happiness.

The last thing is that my new companion will be Elder Ogden from South Jordan, Utah. He has been in my district in Randers, and is one of my good buddies. It's going to be great! Elder Zalewski will be our district leader, down in Nykøbing.

Speaking in Zone Conference

We had our zone training this week. Everyone was so great. We followed up on our zone goal from last month. It really stretched us. We came super close, and it was great I stand up there and tell everyone of the great success we had. After all, we are the smallest zone and ended up, as a whole, teaching the most lessons this month. It was great to see. The faith of the missionaries in Denmark is rising. And the faith of the members in Denmark is rising. The hastening is now, and we can see it everyday. The time is now!

Med Kærlig Hilsen

Ældste Madsen

Deja Vu  (November 3, 2014)

Just Another Way of Saying Opportunity  (November 17, 2014)