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Catania – Week 15
Transfer 13, Mission Week 80

September 12, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao tutti!

I hope that everyone is doing super well! We had another busy week and were able to do a lot this week as well. We had a good lesson Monday night with two of our investigators and a member and it went really well. We hope that they will be able to really get rooted in the Book of Mormon. We were able to have another good lesson with the girl that Anziano Goode and Anziano Berger baptized a couple of months ago. She is doing really well and has been in church almost every week since! I think yesterday was the first time I have seen her miss. We also were able to go and visit our part member family in Castel Di Judicha which went really well! They are so much fun to visit and we are really able to feel the spirit in abundance when we go over. That was a really interesting lesson because the daughter asked a pretty profound question on why she needs to believe in something in her life and why this religion would be the right one to pick and go with. We studied for a few days about it and felt that we were prepared to address the question going into the lesson. It started out really rough and it was just not going like we though it would. We weren’t on the same page teaching, but then it seemed that once we took a step back and approached it doing our best listening and trying to feel the spirit it went so much better. The spirit was really strong in the lesson and it ended up being a really cool experience.

This week Anziano LaPray and I were able to go on a scambio and be companions again for another day which was a lot of fun and just felt normal quite honestly hahaha. We were able to work on their part of the work and go to go and visit some people that will hopefully turn out to be some investigators here in the near future. We had a good time together and I always love seeing Anziano LaPray’s love for the scriptures and the gospel and how much he dedicates to studying the gospel and really applying it in his life. We of course had a good amount of time laughing and enjoying being back together too! Had some good stories to reminiscence on and talk about. Crazy to think we were together like a year ago at this transfer. The time just flies by.

We were granted the opportunity this week to travel down to Ragusa to grab the Anziani from there and then make our way to Gela so that we could do a baptismal interview for someone down there that will be being baptized this Friday. He has an amazing story and it was really nice to get down there and do all that for them. It was a long time in the car about 5 hours. I was really sore from sitting down that long, but maybe that was partly due to the fact that I did an ab workout the morning of that I haven’t done in like months hahaha. We got back and had a family home evening with a less active family at their house and we made pancakes with them and it was a blast. We had a good time and shared a good spiritual thought and everything! We then had another scambio here in Catania and it went really well! The Messina Anziani came down for it and I had the privilege of going on a scambio with Anziano Jacob who was in my group at the MTC so it was cool to get to know him better and we were able to work hard and learn a lot from each other. We had a great time for sure.

We then went again to our part members family’s house and shared another lesson with them and we watched the restoration video together. It went really well and it was good to be able to help them see more of Joseph Smith’s life and how we can learn not only about him and his experiences, but also learn from him in examples of faith, humility, courage, and love. It was a good lesson and went really well. They are such a special family and we are excited to see that the daughter is reading and they both are thinking when we are teaching and helping them understand the gospel. Yesterday in church I was able to give a talk and I was able to talk about observing the commandments. I am so grateful for the commandments and I really love that it is through obedience to them that we are able to receive all the blessings that Heavenly Father has for us. Just like loving parents give rules to their children it is only for protection and in their best interest so they are happy and can experience the most joy possible. Heavenly Father gives us to them so that we are happy and that we can make sure we are receiving all that we can. In the talk I used a quote from President Uchtdorf’s last General Conference talk that talks about obedience that I really love.

Obedience is the lifeblood of faith. It is by obedience that we gather light into our souls.

But sometimes I think we misunderstand obedience. We may see obedience as an end in itself, rather than a means to an end. Or we may pound the metaphorical hammer of obedience against the iron anvil of the commandments in an effort to shape those we love, through constant heating and repeated battering, into holier, heavenly matter.

No doubt about it, there are times when we need a stern call to repentance. Certainly, there are some who may be reached only in this manner.

But perhaps there is a different metaphor that can explain why we obey the commandments of God. Maybe obedience is not so much the process of bending, twisting, and pounding our souls into something we are not. Instead, it is the process by which we discover what we truly are made of.

We are created by the Almighty God. He is our Heavenly Father. We are literally His spirit children. We are made of supernal material most precious and highly refined, and thus we carry within ourselves the substance of divinity.

Here on earth, however, our thoughts and actions become encumbered with that which is corrupt, unholy, and impure. The dust and filth of the world stain our souls, making it difficult to recognize and remember our birthright and purpose.

But all this cannot change who we truly are. The fundamental divinity of our nature remains. And the moment we choose to incline our hearts to our beloved Savior and set foot upon the path of discipleship, something miraculous happens. The love of God fills our hearts, the light of truth fills our minds, we start to lose the desire to sin, and we do not want to walk any longer in darkness.

We come to see obedience not as a punishment but as a liberating path to our divine destiny. And gradually, the corruption, dust, and limitations of this earth begin to fall away. Eventually, the priceless, eternal spirit of the heavenly being within us is revealed, and a radiance of goodness becomes our nature.”

This is longer then I quoted in the talk, but thought that it added some more weighted value that I loved. I know that obedience is what pushes us down that path and it is how that we can really come to know who we truly are. I am thankful for that and am grateful for the love that he offers us through his commandments. I know that he loves us and he is only watching over his in all that we do.

We have a busy week ahead of us and we will be driving down to Palermo on Wednesday for a mission conference where we will be visited by President Kearon. I am really looking forward to it and the opportunity to feel such a rejuvenating spirit from all that we can learn and understand together. It will be really edifying and I hope to continue to prepare in any way that I can. It will be such a wonderful opportunity. Then Anziano Nielsen and I will be headed to Rome this Friday for a leadership conference. I am excited about that for sure! Will be cool to see Rome again, but it will be super cool to be with President Kearon again and hear from him on an even smaller scale. Thank you for all that you guys do! Hope that you guys have a great week!

Vi voglio bene!

Anziano Garrett

Filed Under: Assignments, Catania, Conferences, Exchanges, Missionary Work Tagged With: ,

Catania – Week 14
Transfer 13, Mission Week 79

September 5, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao Tutti!

I hope that everyone had a great week! This week flew by again and it seems like we are always having something to do and getting busier and busier. We were able to have some cool lessons this week and it went really well. We also had a scambio mixed in there with Ragusa where Anziano Clasby and Anziano Cox are serving. I went with Anziano Cox and he is one transfer younger than I am. We were able to do some good less active work and it was a really fun time to work with him and have the lessons that we had. He is really good at teaching directly and simply where he puts the ball in their court and leaves it up to them to decide if they want to do it or not. I really enjoyed seeing that simplicity with directness.

Another lesson that stuck out to me this week was from our part member family that we are visiting. The member is so amazing and ever since she found the church she has made a complete turn around in a ton of things. She is just coming back full strength and it is inspiring to see and witness. Her husband is very nice and their daughter, who is our age, is very inquisitive and they both ask great questions and desire to understand. They both kept their commitments to read and it was great to go and visit them again. We were able to start off our visit helping them with a little bit of service. We helped take off the outer shells of almonds and then throw them in a crate to allow the sun to dry them later. It was a very interesting service and was a ton of fun. We had great conversation with them and got to them a lot better and they kept asking questions and we were able to discuss the gospel a lot throughout that time too. They are wonderful people and have a special place in my heart. I really hope that we will really help answer their questions and that they will trust in the Lord and the plan that he has prepared for each one of us. I know that the plan is perfect and sometimes we may not understand every small detail of it or every answer to the questions we have but if we have faith and trust that is all it takes to feel the comfort, hope, and peace that plan brings into our lives.

We have had a great time being able to work with these members here and we are seeing our work starting to grow now and we really hope to see that continue as well. The members are awesome and are super supportive of the missionaries here. This week we will have many members out of town because they are taking their yearly trip up to the temple. I am super excited for all the youth and members that get to go up there. It will really be an amazing experience for them and a time always to remember. This verse from Isaiah 2 comes to my mind where he is prophesying of the temples in the latter days.

2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.

3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

I think that this is such a wonderful scripture and we see that the early saints did truly flow unto Zion where the temple was be constructed in the Salt Lake Valley. I think that is just so neat and that we see that now the Lord has blessed us with temples all over the world for people to go to and to perform the ordinances for the living and the dead. It is such an amazing work and we are truly blessed immensely with temples. The only place that we can go to be sealed in marriage with our families for not only this time on earth, but also for eternity. I love these excerpts from the talk given by Thomas S. Monson in April 2015:

“As I think of temples, my thoughts turn to the many blessings we receive therein. As we enter through the doors of the temple, we leave behind us the distractions and confusion of the world. Inside this sacred sanctuary, we find beauty and order. There is rest for our souls and a respite from the cares of our lives.”

“As we attend the temple, there can come to us a dimension of spirituality and a feeling of peace which will transcend any other feeling which could come into the human heart. We will grasp the true meaning of the words of the Savior when He said: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. … Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

“Such peace can permeate any heart–hearts that are troubled, hearts that are burdened down with grief, hearts that feel confusion, hearts that plead for help.”

“The blessings of the temple are priceless. One for which I am grateful every day of my life is that which my beloved wife, Frances, and I received as we knelt at a sacred altar and made covenants binding us together for all eternity. There is no blessing more precious to me than the peace and comfort I receive from the knowledge I have that she and I will be together again.”

“May our Heavenly Father bless us that we may have the spirit of temple worship, that we may be obedient to His commandments, and that we may follow carefully the steps of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”

I love the temple and am so very thankful for the steps that are clearly laid out for us to achieve that happiness in our lives personally as well as in our families. I am so very thankful for the blessings we receive as we go there and know that the sacrifices to build these great and wonderful houses of the Lord do not go unnoticed. The early saints knew that the sacrifices were worth it because the blessings that they would receive therein would be priceless. I know that His temples have been established in our day for our own benefit. I know that he lives and love us beyond comprehension.

I love you guys and hope that you have a wonderful week!

Con tanto amore!

Anziano Garrett

Preparing an American breakfast for a ward party in Catania

Preparing an American breakfast for a ward party in Catania

Catania at night

Catania at night

Catania at night

Catania at night

Catania District (Anziano LaPray is taking photo), August, 2016

Catania District (Anziano LaPray is taking photo), August, 2016

Eating gelato selfie with Anziano Nielsen

Eating gelato selfie with Anziano Nielsen

Filed Under: Assignments, Catania, Exchanges, Missionary Work, Taormina Tagged With: ,

Catania – Week 12
Transfer 13, Mission Week 77

August 22, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao tutti!!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful week! This week was really bust and we really enjoyed being able to do all that we needed to do. It was pretty hectic with everything that we had going on. Monday night we had transfer calls and I found out that I am staying here in Catania with Anziano Nielsen. We were super excited and I am happy to be working with him! We get along great and have a lot of similar interests and everything! We have been running every morning so that has been great these past two transfers. He ran cross country in high school so it has been great to be able to run and try to get back into shape. Anziano Berger got blown in training to Pozzouli and I was super excited when I heard the next day that Anziano LaPray would be training here in Catania! It was super awesome and we have been enjoying being in the same house! It will be odd because at the end of this transfer will hit a year mark when we first got together in Trapani as companions.

We had a really busy week! We had to take care of transfers and be sure that everyone got where they needed to go and were on time for all their travel arrangements. It was a lot of fun and this time around very easy to handle and take care of. We had Anziano Brandon who is Messina with us for a few days and then we had Anziano Dunn and Anziano Clasby as well. I went on scambio with Anziano Brandon and Anziano Clasby during those day periods and it was super cool to be able to learn from them and get to see how they work and talk about how much the mission has grown and how different it is from the time that we first stepped into the mission. It is changing and only for the better! It is really awesome.

We had some good lessons this week even though we weren’t able to fully focus on the work a couple of times! Something that was really special and awesome was the fact that we were able to go over to the less active that I talked about a couple weeks back that is from Mexico, but she hadn’t been able to find the church. Her husband and daughter are not members of the church and it was super special to be able to go to their house and meet with them. They are awesome! The spirit was really strong and abundant during the lesson and they all listened so closely with so much intent. It was super cool! They showed us around their house and farm since they have mandorla (almond) trees and olive trees. They are super open also to have our help when they need to pick the almonds and the olives later in the season! That will be a lot of fun to be able to help them out with that! The sister has really been doing her homework too! In the past month and a half or so she has read the Book of Mormon, The Pearl of Great Price, and is now reading the manuals of the modern day prophets! So cool how she wants to be as fully active as possible and wants to even get her patriarchal blessing and prepare for the temple!

She even this morning was telling me how she was telling her aunt that the thing that is missing in her life is God and that He can help to solve our problems! They are so special! She even made us homemade Mexican food the other day and we had bean tacos and potato tacos!  They were so good and she spoiled us for sure!

We have been really seeing the greatest improvements with our relationship with the ward and it has been so awesome! We have been improving all the relationships that we can and it is really helping with us being able to work with them! We are excited to see what the next 7 weeks will have for us and how much good we will be able to do.

We have a ward activity going on this Friday and we are doing an American breakfast for dinner! It is going to be super awesome and we are really excited to see what kind of turn out we will have. We have some good and simple activities planned and we really are pumped to see our members bring and invite their friends as well! Should be really sick. We have had a great time together thus far and are really looking forward to the business that we will have together.

I was studying in Helaman this past week and a verse really popped out to me.

Helaman 7:

17 O repent ye, repent ye! Why will ye die? Turn ye, turn ye unto the Lord your God. Why has he forsaken you?

I thought this was such a powerful and interesting work. We read in the bible dictionary that

“…repentance comes to mean a turning of the heart and will to God”

That is so cool to me that Nephi the prophet at this time is inviting them to turn unto God. I think that is so very interesting and really special because that is the only way to true and everlasting change.

It is only through the Savior that it is possibile and I am thankful for the opportunity to change and turn unto him for the help to change. He can shape and mold us into who we need to be. I am thankful for that and know that the Atonement is real and it is something that we need to be applying consistently in our lives. I love my Savior and Redeemer and am thankful for all that He went through for each and everyone of us on a personal scale.

Thank you guys for all that you guys are doing and all the love and support that you guys have been giving me in every moment of my mission! I love you and miss you all!

Love,

Taylor

Filed Under: Assignments, Catania, Exchanges, Missionary Work, Transfers Tagged With: ,

Catania – Week 10
Transfer 12, Mission Week 75

August 8, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao tutti!

Everything went really well this week and we were really busy with everything that we had going on! I had the opportunity to go on a scambio last Monday evening with the assistants and I went with Anziano Kelly and it went super well. We had our investigator show up and we gave him a church tour as we waited for the member to come to the lesson with us. It was a super spiritual lesson that went super well with the member that was able to come along with us. He has a really awesome conversion story on how he met the missionaries and was baptized within a week. It was really special to hear him share that story and it invited the spirit and helped our investigator feel really comfortable. He is really special and has a special heart that is willing and open to learn and grow. We hope that he will continue to progress and really find that conviction within himself. He asked really good questions on how can he have faith to pray and we were able to explain to him that simply offering a prayer is an act of faith as he shows that he is doing something to draw closer to the truth. Hope that all goes well with him! It was really awesome to to able to learn from other missionaries and I was able to learn a lot from Anziano Kelly. Anziano Albello and Anzino Toronto went finding in the park and were able to find a lot of people that were ready to listen to us and hopefully these appointments will stick through today.

We were able to have an awesome Zone Conference that was really uplifting and we were able to have a big discussion on the doctrine of repentance and change. It was super cool and I really look forward to continue to share scriptures on this doctrine with those meet to help them understand and feel what the Savior has done for them. I am thankful that we have the opportunity to be able to preach repentance to others in a different way than we may initially think that means. Repentance is change and simply by changing our nature through the Atonement we are repenting. We repent when we turn away from the things that distance us from God and initiate doing those things that do. I love this definition from the Bible Dictionary on repentance:

The Greek word of which this is the translation denotes a change of mind, a fresh view about God, about oneself, and about the world.

Since we are born into conditions of mortality, repentance comes to mean a turning of the heart and will to God, and a renunciation of sin to which we are naturally inclined. Without this there can be no progress in the things of the soul’s salvation, for all accountable persons are stained by sin and must be cleansed in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. Repentance is not optional for salvation; it is a commandment of God (D&C 18:9–22; 20:29; 133:16). The preaching of repentance by John the Baptist formed the preparation for the ministry of our Lord.

I think that is so cool that is simply change. Change that is only possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ though. It is something that is more than changing habits and behavior but truly changing our nature. I know that these changes are possible thanks to the reality and understanding that Christ suffered already for each one of us personally so that we may be clean from our sins and mistakes. I am thankful truly for that knowledge.

We were able to have a lot of great conversations with others this week and were able to invite others to meet with us, and we really hope that we can continue to make a difference in the lives of others as much as we can. I am thankful for the fact that God continues to offer the opportunity to others mercifully and lovingly to hear this message and find for themselves whether it be true or not. I know that there is nothing to lose in having missionaries over to do a little experiment you could say to see if what we share is true. It is a decision that absolutely changes lives for the better. I know that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ makes bad people good, and good people better.

We saw some other cool miracles searching for members that we haven’t seen at church for a while and were able to find 2 new investigators through knocking on one door and then were able to get a return appointment for the daughter of a former member that has passed away. We hope that we can continue to see success in searching all these people out!

There was a funeral that was held in the church this past week for a member that passed away and we are really hoping that the family will continue to do well and we were so happy that we were able to help out in any little way that we could with ushering people in and out. It was a privilege to be able to help the as they go through a sad moment in their life right now. I am thankful though for the reality of Heavenly Father’s perfect plan of salvation that truly lets us know that it isn’t over. There is no such thing as the end, because of him.

Just as it says in the Book of Mormon.

8 And now, behold, I will testify unto you of myself that these things are true. Behold, I say unto you, that I do know that Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him the transgressions of his people, and that he shall atone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken it.

9 For it is expedient that an atonement should be made; for according to the great plan of the Eternal God there must be an atonement made, or else all mankind must unavoidably perish; yea, all are hardened; yea, all are fallen and are lost, and must perish except it be through the atonement which it is expedient should be made.

10 For it is expedient that there should be a great and last sacrifice; yea, not a sacrifice of man, neither of beast, neither of any manner of fowl; for it shall not be a human sacrifice; but it must be an infinite and eternal sacrifice.

The Atonement is real and it was done out of pure love, or charity, for each and everyone of us. We can apply it everyday in our lives and know that it is thanks to this that we have the chance to live again.

That we can live with our family for eternity. I am so thankful for that knowledge.

We were able to also do a Geso yesterday in Centro that went really well! We did it on family history and it was super cool to be able to talk and share about why we do family history and the importance of knowing where we come from and the story of our family. I hope that others were touched by those conversations and will commence to call us to do free searches on their family lines. This week we have transfer calls! I don’t have a clue what is going to happen but I think that I am staying. It would be awesome to get to Napoli at some point before I finish up, but we will see what the Lord has in store for me! You all have a wonderful week!

Love,

Taylor

Catania Zone, August, 2016

Catania Zone, August, 2016

Catania Zone soccer, August, 2016 (photo courtesy of Anziano Blaise's blog)

Catania Zone soccer, August, 2016 (photo courtesy of Anziano Blaise’s blog)

Filed Under: Assignments, Catania, Exchanges, Missionary Work, Transfers Tagged With: , ,

Cosenza – Week 10
Transfer 10, Mission Week 64

May 23, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao tutti!

I hope that everyone is doing well! Sorry I am running short on time once again! Had a lot of people to shoot emails to this week!

This week went well and we were able to have a few lessons. We weren’t able to have all that we were planning on having with our investigators, but the ones that we did have went really well. We had such a fun lesson last Monday where one of our investigators brought a friend to the lesson and we did the restoration which went so well!!

It was cool to see Anziano Nessen and I just click together. It was a lot of fun to teach and we really hope that we will continue to help these two kids recognize the answer they will receive. They are super cool! We didn’t have a chance to do a lesson with our progressing investigator, but we had almost constant daily contact which was super cool that we were able to keep an eye on him and just keep him going.

When he called on Saturday he said to us see you tomorrow morning.  That was super cool!

We had a good scambio in Crotone this past week and I was able to work with Anzinao Martinez, which went super well! I was able to learn a lot from the amount of faith that he has and how that helps him in all the different parts of the work and his life. He is a convert from Uruguay and he is really cool. He is really funny too and it is so cool to just watch someone get so much awesome work done and then just at the same time be his fun self and joke around with everybody. He is a really excellent missionary and it was a pleasure to work with him.

Anziano Nessen was “born” [started his mission] in Crotone so we went and visited this family that he worked with when he was down there about a year ago and they let us in. We stopped the scambio temporarily since they had correlation meeting in the church. It was super fun to have a lesson with this family regarding the family and the powerful doctrine of eternal families. The spirit was so strong as we bore testimony and taught about the importance of family. I know that families can be together forever and it just doesn’t make sense to work all our lives on these relationships and building these beautiful families for it all to end when we die. I know that it is once of the most beautiful and pure doctrines that was resorted through the Prophet Joseph Smith.

I know too that is something that has to be done in order and that we can’t just expect it. It needs to be done as an ordinance with Priesthood power that has been restored on the earth again thanks to Heavenly messengers. I am so thankful for that. To know I will be able to live with my family forever as I work towards completing those necessary ordinances done in the temples of our God with that proper authority.

This week it was really good to see some really cool miracles and we really hope to see a lot this week as well. We have a few days to work hard here in Cosenza then we have to go to Mistretta in Sicilia to pick up the permesso for Anziano Nessen. We look forward to working hard and seeing all that we can get done. Hope you all have a lovely week and I love you all!

Love,

Anziano Garrett

[This is the trip to Mistretta from Cosenza to get Anziano Nessen’s permesso]

Filed Under: Assignments, Cosenza, Exchanges, Missionary Work Tagged With: , ,

Cosenza – Week 9
Transfer 10, Mission Week 63

May 16, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao Tutti!

This week went by super fast and it was super good as well! We had a nice scambio on Tuesday with Anziano Pingree and Anziano Pineau. It was a lot of fun and I was able to learn  a lot form Anziano Pingree in a lot of different areas of life and missionary work. It was super cool and a really great time well spent together. We had a miracle lesson where the guy was called through a past contact sheet and he said he would be down to meet. We tried to meet in a pizazz with his girlfriend but the dog was going to crazy so we went to a different one and he still went crazy! So we had to give the lesson standing up on a side street on the corner. Not the most ideal place for a lesson but it went really well and they really understood and wanted to learn more and know if it is true. He even offered the prayer at the end and then his girlfriend told him how he needed to fold his arms and close his eyes next time hahaha. It was awesome.

We had a really nice zone conference on Tuesday and we were able to hear from the Assistants, President, and Sorella Waddoups. It went super well and it was a Restoration themed training with a big focus on planning. There was really a special spirit there and we were able to really feel the spirit strong as testimonies were born and the spirit witnessed of the truthfulness of those testimonies. We look forward to taking those lessons away and rolling with them as we implement them in our work.

We saw a a lot of cool miracles this week and one was with our investigator that hasn’t been making much progress. We went into the lesson knowing we may have to drop him. The lesson went super well and he agreed to read for 10 minutes a day and come to church every day for the next 3 months. Was super sick!

I am out of town.  Love you all and will talk to you next week!

Anziano Garrett

 

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Taranto Zone Conference, May, 2016

Filed Under: Assignments, Conferences, Cosenza, Exchanges, Missionary Work Tagged With: , ,

Cosenza – Week 8
Transfer 10, Mission Week 62

May 9, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao tutti!

I hope that everyone had a great day and as well as a great Mother’s Day yesterday! Hope you are well! This week went well for us even though some things didn’t go as planned. We were able to see our investigators and it went really well with the lessons that we had with them. We are still looking to help them keep their commitments and realize that is the key for knowing for themselves whether the things that we are telling them are true or not.

This was our first full week together and it was a lot of fun.  Anziano Nessen is super funny and I am really enjoying working hard with him each day and we are excited to see what we will be able to do together this transfer. We have some great work going on right now and we just want to keep finding more and more and rely on the Lord to help us in all that we are here to do. We had some good lessons this week and I am just so thankful for the Book of Mormon in my life and how it really testifies of so many things. I am thankful for those in ancient times for keeping records and then for Mormon to bring to pass a work that was truly amazing and compile all the needed records to make the Book of Mormon. I am thankful for this scripture when Lehi teaches his son, Joseph, about Joseph of Egypt who prophesied of Joseph Smith and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. This scripture lays down one of the missions of this wonderful book.

12 Wherefore, the fruit of thy loins shall write; and the fruit of the loins of Judah shall write; and that which shall be written by the fruit of thy loins, and also that which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of Judah, shall grow together, unto the confounding of false doctrines and laying down of contentions, and establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the knowledge of their fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my covenants, saith the Lord.

I like how it states that it will confound false doctrine. Then if we go to another scripture in the Book of Mormon where Moroni explains that it is written to help us believe the things in the Bible.

8 Therefore repent, and be baptized in the name of Jesus, and lay hold upon the gospel of Christ, which shall be set before you, not only in this record but also in the record which shall come unto the Gentiles from the Jews, which record shall come from the Gentiles unto you.

9 For behold, this is written for the intent that ye may believe that; and if ye believe that ye will believe this also; and if ye believe this ye will know concerning your fathers, and also the marvelous works which were wrought by the power of God among them.

10 And ye will also know that ye are a remnant of the seed of Jacob; therefore ye are numbered among the people of the first covenant; and if it so be that ye believe in Christ, and are baptized, first with water, then with fire and with the Holy Ghost, following the example of our Savior, according to that which he hath commanded us, it shall be well with you in the day of judgment. Amen.

It does such an amazing job of showing us that the Book of Mormon is there to support the Bible. I know that is true and the more I study the more I can see this is so true. It will confound false doctrine and helps give us a single interpretation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Those that truly want to learn more of Christ simply have to pick up the Book of Mormon and read it. That is how you will know that anything the missionaries say is true. We never ask anyone to believe our words and just follow us blindly in what we practice in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We ask that they read and ask God for themselves to receive a testimony of truth and light. The Book of Mormon truly blesses our lives more than we can imagine.

We are working with some really cool people and they want to know if these things are true and we are enjoying being able to meet with them. We know that the Lord continues to prepare people to receive the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and we just want to continue to work to find those that are ready to accept our message.

The weather has been cold and rainy a lot of the days with the occasional really nice and beautiful day sprinkled in. I hope that will start to become the norm soon. This week we have zone conference so we will be leaving to go to Taranto tomorrow morning after studies and doing a scambio with them there before Wednesday and then continue that afterwards and finish up Wednesday after conference with a zone blitz. Should be a lot of fun and we look forward to helping all the missionaries in Taranto.

So I was able to talk to my family for the third time on my mission and it went really well! We had a good time talking to each other and catching up on just little things, but overall it just felt that I got to hang out with my family for a while. It was super funny and just time well spent together. Definitely miss them and so many others, but I am very happy to be here and doing this work. Can’t believe how fast the time has gone by here and how many amazing experiences that I have been blessed to be a part of. I know that this work is true and it is so worth being away from home for a short 2 years to help those over here in Italy receive blessings beyond imagination through Christ’s restored gospel. It is truly amazing.

Yesterday we had a special day for all moms everywhere and I am so thankful for my mom and all that she has done for me. As well as my grandmas and the love they show their kids as well as us grandkids. I am extremely thankful for them and all the love that they give us all that is truly undying and always there. Moms go through so much with us and are there every moment helping us along the way. I love this video that was made for Mother’s Day, but I would like to still invite you all to check it out. It is really special to think of the divine roll that mothers have! It was so nice to talk to my mom yesterday and I would encourage you all to get to know your moms and continue to grow that special relationship always.

https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2014-00-1440-it-was-mom-a-mothers-day-tribute-to-moms?category=topics/mothers&lang=eng&cid=HP_FR_6-5-2016_dMIS_fMLIB_xLIDyL1-A_

I hope that you all have a great week and thanks for all the support help and love that you send this way! I love you all and will talk to you guys soon!

Love,

Anziano Garrett

Filed Under: Assignments, Conferences, Cosenza, Exchanges, Holidays Tagged With: ,

Cosenza – Week 3
Transfer 9, Mission Week 57

April 4, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao Tutti!!!

Today we didn’t have much going on so we walked around down in centro and enjoyed the weather with some gelato too. We did get to go running this morning which we are planning on continuing to do all month. It was a nice 5.5 mile run, but we were in the middle of it and we heard these stray dogs start barking in the woods. They are common here and will sometimes hurt people. Never had any problems with them, but yeah we totally turned around and sprinted in the opposite direction hahaha. It was super funny and I am sure the look on my face was priceless.

This week went by super fast and we had a great time doing all that we could do this week. We had a lot on our plate this week, but it was really awesome and super fun. So we started off the week with the deep cleaning last Monday of course and then Tuesday morning we were planning on going to Taranto early so that we could do a scambio with Anziano Pingree and Anziano Pineu which ended up with us getting denied getting on the bus which was the first time according to Anziano Borner. The bus lines had no more spots free the rest of the whole day so we had to take a train and bus combo around mid day to get down there. We made it down and went to the church and were able to start the scambio. I was with Anziano Pineu who is in his second transfer and from Oklahoma. We were able to do a lesson together along with English course as well. It was really cool and went really well!

It was a good start to the scambio and I had fun working with him a lot. Got some pizza for dinner and headed back to the apartment. 4 missionaries live there and they have two greenies who are both awesome and they are super funny. Anziano Raimondi is from northern Italy and his companion is Anziano Haroldsen who is from California.

They are both super cool and are doing really well together. It was a lot of fun to be down there.

Wednesday we were able to have our specialized training and it went really well. We talked a lot about reaching new heights and it was really awesome to see that the addestramenti all flowed together. It was really cool. Sorella Valencia talked about the unity of companionship and the fact that we have to be one and work together in all that we do. We were able to really learn a lot from her and how we can work together to be more obedient and have our voices sound as one trump together. We talked about reaching new heights with self control, good attitude, and trusting in divine power. We based ours off a talk by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf called “On the Wings of Eagles.” It was super good and we were able to involve flying and the fact that we can truly meet these new heights with the spirit and the counsel that President Uchtdorf offers in this talk. Then President and Sorella Waddoups talked about finding new investigators. It all went super well and we really learned a lot and were able to come away with a lot of thing that we could do to improve and push the work. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Assignments, Companions, Conferences, Cosenza, Exchanges, Missionary Work Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Tràpani – Week 23
Transfer 8, Mission Week 53

March 7, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ehi tutti!

I hope that everyone had an awesome week and that you were able to find the time to do everything that you had to do.

This week went really well for Anziano Spencer and I and we were able to see a lot of cool things happen in our work. We really hope that we will continue to see awesome things as well.

This past Monday we had another good lesson with that family and we were able to watch the restoration video together and it went really well. We really think they understood at least the major differences between our church and theirs and we hope that they will continue to search out this for themselves. We really love them a lot and they are super awesome and we really just want to help them as much as we can, but it is up to them to act and keep the commitments that we leave to find out for themselves whether or not it is true. We had a good lesson after that with another family and it went well. It was kind of a crazy dinner with a lot of random things happening hahaha. It was short because we got done eating dinner so late, but they invited us to come over again Thursday night so we will see how it goes.

Tuesday after our DDM we started our scambio and Anziano Trejo and I were able to ride back to Trapani with the Wurdles who are a senior couple in Mistretta right now. They are super nice and they had to come down to do another apartment check so that went well and we were able to enjoy getting to know them better and chat with them the whole way down. They are super awesome. Anziano Trejo and I had a good night of finding, English course, and then we went over to visit a member’s home. It all went really well and I always enjoy learning everything that I can from all the other missionaries, since there are so many things that we can learn from everyone. Which is why I like so much that we have different people speak in church each and every week and never the same people each week. We can all just learn from everyone.

Wednesday we got two bidones and then we went to visit this member house for lunch but things got swapped around so they gave us food as they watched us eat because we had to get back to Palermo. She wasn’t going to allow us to leave without eating something so we sat their and ate a quick lunch before heading back up to Palermo to swap back.

The scambio went really well and I can just see how much Anziano Trejo cares about the members and the people he works with. He is also really good at being super bold with everyone he meets which is a super good quality that he has, that really helps him in so many different aspects of the work. I was really kind of having a rough day that day as well and we were on the bus home and I just was kind of down. I was really hoping as the bus filled up that I would get someone to sit next to me and on the last stop the last guy to get on sat down next to me. It was super awesome and was able to have a really good conversation with him that really helped me a lot. It went really well.  It is just unfortunate that he lives on one of the islands off the coast of Tràpani so seeing him is near impossible. Well I really wanted to get him a Book of Mormon so we exchanged numbers and said that we could possibly meet the next morning down near centro where he would be staying before going on a boat to his home. We finished off the night trying to find some less actives and trying to visit all of them if we can. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Assignments, Exchanges, Missionary Work, Trapani Tagged With: ,

Tràpani – Week 22
Transfer 8, Mission Week 52

February 29, 2016 By Leave a Comment

Ciao tutti!

Hope that everyone had a great week and that you were all able to accomplish the things that you needed to do! Our week went well for us.

Monday night we were able to go over to that family’s house and were able to have a nice meal together and then share a shorter spiritual thought than we had originally planned, but it went really well! They are super awesome and the mom was able to read in the Book of Mormon which we were really happy about. We hope that she will be able to continue in it and that we will be able to really get the girl to get started in it as well. We will be watching the Restoration film with them tonight so we are excited.

Tuesday we had our DDM, which went really well, and Anziano Brandon and I started our scambio and we stayed in Palermo. It went well, and we were able to do a good amount of finding for the night before English Course. It was really cool to see some small miracles while we were finding. One guy in particular stuck out to me. We were walking and we both made eye contact and I just think that he knew I was going to say something and I had a small feeling that he would stop, but also possibily go on. He stopped and watched the video that we were sharing and it went really well. Hopefully they will be able to see that guy soon. English course went well and then we were back to the house. The environment of a four man house is a lot different. It was really funny because Anziano Trejo is trying to eat better and put on more muscle and of course Anzinao Palazzo knows what he is talking about. He just has to ask every night what he can and can’t eat hahaha. Pasta was a big no no, but he couldn’t find anything else so he let temptation beset him and Anziano Palazzo wasn’t happy with him. His punishment was getting punched in the stomach for his ab workout the next day. It was really funny hahaha.

Wednesday started with a good workout and we were able to finish up our scambio with some more finding after doing some permesso stuff for Anzinano Brandon.  We headed back to Tràpani after Anziano Spencer and Anziano Jensen showed up. W finished up our night with some finding in Tràpani.

Thursday we started off with doing our program sheet to keep track of Book of Mormon reading for the members. I really hope they will undertake the challenge to read it within four months. We were really pumped for English Course because afterwards we were able to share the film Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration. It went really well and I think that the English Course students definitely enjoyed it and they were able to definitely learn more about the story and history of Joseph Smith. I am definitely thankful for all that he has done for us and all the sacrifices he made to keep doing the will of the Lord. I know that he is a prophet of the Lord and has done so much for us I love these scriptures in D&C 135. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Assignments, Exchanges, Missionary Work, Transfers, Trapani Tagged With: , , , ,
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