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Catania – Week 23

Ciao tutti!

I hope that everyone is doing well and you had a great week! This week flew by for us and we were super busy once again! We had some really special lessons with people this week and look forward to being able to teach some more lessons this week! One lesson that sticks out to me in particular was last Monday night we talked about recognizing answers from the Lord and seeing the Lord’s hand in all that we are doing. It was super cool and special to be able to discuss how we feel the spirit when the Lord is trying to speak to us. It is something that is very interesting since I feel personally it comes in different layers of levels. It is not always the same feeling. I am so very thankful though to practice the opportunity to feel the spirit more.

It definitely took some time for me to recognize how I felt it at times. I have learned so much in how he speaks to me and I realize that this will also be a life long feat to accomplish fully.

We learned a lot this week in the moments that we were able to have with all the other missionaries of the zone. We did a scambio in Messina Wednesday to Thursday and then in Reggio Calabria from Thursday to Friday. It was super fun and we were able to have a great time learning and doing missionary work with them. Some of the lessons that I learned that I loved was precisely on love towards others. I was able to observe the great love that Anziano Brandon has for everyone and that was something that I was super touched by in observing that with everyone that he interacts with especially his companion Anziano Moscon. It was something that shows his love for the Lord in the way that he treats others. I loved being able to work with Anziano Jackson in Reggio and seeing his intuitiveness and all the time he spends looking for small ways to improve and adjust so he can be the most effective missionary that he can be. We had a great week on the scambi and had to use some money to buy food while on the road, but we definitely ate well which was really nice hahaha. I love being able to spend time with the other missionaries and learn all that we can from one another, seeing and observing the different styles of work and how to things is great for all of us.

We had some other great lessons with some less actives at the end of the week that we are working with. It was super cool that we were able to see one of the less active families in church yesterday along with two of our investigators and one of their husbands who is a less active. It was super cool and a big miracle/blessing for us. I really enjoyed church this past Sunday and had the opportunity to bear my testimony there. I was super happy in being able to listen and feel the great spirit that we can always feel when people share their testimonies. I love how testimonies work and how they are so different, but yet so the same each time we bear it. I love that we can think of so many things that we want to share when in the process of bearing testimony. I love the fact that the spirit can just give us the words that we need to say each time whether for the benefit of others or ourselves. It is so special to be able to listen to and bear testimony. I know that as we bear testimony that is when we can gain a stronger testimony as well. I love this quote from President Boyd K. Packer.

“Oh, if I could teach you this one principle. A testimony is to be found in the bearing of it! Somewhere in your quest for spiritual knowledge, there is that ‘leap of faith,’ as the philosophers call it.

It is the moment when you have gone to the edge of the light and stepped into the darkness to discover that the way is lighted ahead for just a footstep or two. ‘The spirit of man,’ as the scripture says, indeed ‘is the candle of the Lord’ (Proverbs 20:27).

“It is one thing to receive a witness from what you have read or what another has said; and that is a necessary beginning. It is quite another to have the Spirit confirm to you in your bosom that what you have testified is true. Can you not see that it will be supplied as you share it? As you give that which you have, there is a replacement, with increase!”

I know that we can really come to find a great testimony as we bear witness of the things that we know and the things that the Holy Ghost has taught us and will yet teach us in those many moments. Our testimonies should be living and continuing to thrive with the nourishment that we give it by reading, praying, learning, having experiences, obeying gods commandments, etc., and simply also bearing that testimony and sharing it with others. I am grateful for my testimony and I hold it dear to my heart, and I hope to always make it thrive and grow consistently throughout my life. Hope you all have a great week and a wonderful time with everything that you have going on! Go Cubs!!

Love,

Anziano Garrett

Mission conference with Elder Russell M. Nelson, October, 2016, Rome, Italy

Mission conference with Elder Russell M. Nelson, October, 2016, Rome, Italy

Tràpani – Week 22

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…]

Tràpani – Week 21

Ei buondi!!

Hope that everyone is doing well. Sorry that my emails didn’t make it through last Monday. I resent them to everyone so hopefully they all got there and everyone was able to read them. President Waddoups did a good job of scaring the crap out of me too. I had just had my interview and Anziano Spencer and I were finishing up a sick night of finding in Palermo and I got a call from him and he says, “Well Elder you’re in trouble.” I was like oh crap, “What did I do?” He replies it, “It wasn’t what you did, it’s what you didn’t do.” My reply, “Uhhh…” Thoughts were running through my head. Did I miss someone to give a pass along card to or something like that?  He then explained that I didn’t email my family and everything which was really weird since I spent like 3 hours in the church emailing. We got it all figured out and I sent them off the next day while we were waiting for Zone Conference to start.

Last week went really well though! Monday night we had a really awesome lesson with this family and it went super well. We were talking about the plan of salvation and they really enjoyed it. We could feel the spirit super strong at the end as we bore our testimonies on the Book of Mormon and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that has been restored through Joseph Smith. Super awesome lesson and we are going back over there tonight to watch The Restoration film with them and then have dinner. We are excited and really hope that it goes well.

Tuesday we did a scambio with the Palermo B Anziani in our district, so Anziano Jensen and I came here while Anziano Spencer and Anziano Brandon were in Palermo. It went really well and was good to get to know Anziano Jensen some more because we didn’t get many chances to talk one on one in the MTC. We were able to have a pretty successful scambio together and I definitely took a lot of good lessons away from it. We were able to randomly meet so many people I knew on the street that I never really see at all. It was really weird, but we turned out to have a lot of really good conversations.  We finished up the scambio visiting some members and having lunch with them. We headed back to Palermo Wednesday so we could get there for interviews. Anziano Spencer and I teamed up again and went out for a night of finding that went really well and we were able to talk to some really awesome people. Hopefully the numbers will go places for the Anziani there. We stayed the night with the Anziani at the Palermo 1 house with all 4 of the anziani plus the assistants as well. It was fun, as always, to get to talk to everyone before heading to bed.

Zone conference was a lot of fun and we were able to really learn a lot from all our leaders. President Waddoups did two really good addestramentos. One on becoming a consecrated missionary, based around Tad R. Callister’s Becominng a Consecrated Missionary talk. It was super good and a really good reminder for me to make sure that I am putting my all on the altar of sacrifice for the Lord during my service over here. He then focused on the Book of Mormon and we have the challenge right now to read it in three months which is going really well. I am excited that we are all really trying to focus on Preach My Gospel and the Book of Mormon right now. The assistants, Anziano Flynn and Anziano Taranto (Toronto), gave an amazing addestramento about focusing on Preach My Gospel. Sorella Waddoups also had a really awesome activity that she did where we were able to share our thoughts on two missionaries, then the Book of Mormon, and finally the Savior. It was really awesome. Super fun zone conference for sure.

We did a lot of planning Friday night and then coordination meeting with our branch mission leader. Saturday we were able to have 4 lessons which was really awesome and they all went really well. The one with our new investigator from English course went really well and we were able to read Alma 32 together and it was awesome. We really look forward to seeing where he goes and how he progresses. He came to church too!! It was so awesome. I really love him a lot and really hope it all works out with him.

We went to Segesta again today, which was really fun,  and we were able to go with Anziano Palazzo, Anziano Trejo, two other members from Palermo 1 and then an investigator of theirs. It was super fun.

Something that I really enjoyed from my study this week was from this morning was 2 Nephi 9:39.

39 O, my beloved brethren, remember the awfulness in transgressing against that Holy God, and also the awfulness of yielding to the enticings of that cunning one. Remember, to be carnally-minded is death, and to be spiritually-minded is life eternal.

I really like the last sentence. It is so true that as we are spiritually minded it truly helps us make the best decisions in life and helps us avoid falling into temptation from the adversary. I really liked that a lot to just be spiritually minded which will help us get to where we want to go, our enteral home with our Heavenly Father.

I love you all very much and hope that you all have an amazing week and that you enjoy life in all ways possible. Talk to you soon!

Vi voglio bene,

Anziano Garrett

Sometimes sidewalk chalk drawings are used for finding on the street.

Sometimes sidewalk chalk drawings are used for finding on the street.

On the beach at Tràpani, Sicily

On the beach at Tràpani, Sicily

Segesta excursion, Feb 22, 2016

Segesta excursion, Feb 22, 2016

Zone conference fun, Palermo Zone, Feb. 2016

Zone conference fun, Palermo Zone, Feb. 2016

Palermo 1 District, Feb. 2016

Palermo 1 District, Feb. 2016

[Photos of zone conference from Sister Waddoups’ blog]

Palermo Zone, February, 2016

Palermo Zone, February, 2016

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups' blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups’ blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups' blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups’ blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups' blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups’ blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups' blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups’ blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups' blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups’ blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups' blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups’ blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups' blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups’ blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups' blog)

Palermo Zone Conference, Feb. 2016 (from Sis. Waddoups’ blog)