Dar Family,
Another week has come and gone here in the mission field, and this one went faster than most it seems like. I'm sure that trend will only continue and before I know it I'll be running out of time here in the field. We haven't had too much in the way of news here in Edinburg, but we do have a few stories to tell that I'll try to get down.
The first story is with Alex. She has been preparing for her baptism this Saturday and is doing very well. This past Wednesday was Ash Wednesday and when she showed up to school she was surprised to see so many of her friends going around with crosses on their foreheads. One of her friends during the day asked her, "Why don't you have a cross on your forehead? You're Catholic aren't you?" To which she replied, "Not no more. I'm getting baptized as a Mormon." Needless to say I had quite a smile on my face when she told me the story. Also this past Sunday she had her baptismal interview which went over very well. The Elder who conducted the interview was very impressed because Alex brought her goal of re-activating her inactive husband and getting him to the temple so they can be sealed as a family. She came to church by herself even when the rest of her part member family didn't come because they chose to sleep in during the change to daylight savings time.
Other than that the only great story from this week that I have is that we have been teaching this eight year old girl, Esmer. Her mother is a member, so really she is a child of record baptism, but her Mom wanted us to teach here since she hasn't had the chance to go to church much and learn about God. So, as we've been talking with Esmer she has managed to say some pretty funny things. For example, when explaining what commandments were, we told her they were like God's rules for us. Later in the lesson she told us that she enjoyed following Gods' "commandrules". But, I think her quote that takes the cake is just from yesterday. We were talking with Esmer about prayer and how we can ask God questions and receive answers. When we asked Esmer, "Have you ever asked a question of God when you were praying?," she replied, "I've asked Him how to get skinny." I pretty much lost it and just started laughing, and her Mom who was sitting next to her just followed suit. Oh the world we live in where eight year old girls are asking God how to get skinny!
We found a small hidden neighborhood in our area which is mysteriously populated with a lot of inactive members, so we plan to be working in there a lot during this week. We also found some new investigators in that area. If we get everyone in this three street neighborhood active and baptized we'll have a little Zion on our hands here, soon. I should have pictures and stories from Alex's baptism and confirmation for this next week, which should make for a bit longer letter.
I'm glad that Mel is continuing to do well, that Dot is still growing and I hope everything goes well for mom's trip to AZ. Strangely enough, my companion lives in Mesa as well. Maybe Mom could go visit his parents for a kick. Anyway, I hope that everyone continues to do well and has a great week! Oh, be sure to send me some notes from James' talk if you can. Thanks!
Love,
Elder Roland Wood
March 18, 2011
March 7, 2011, email post from Edinburg, TX
Dear family,
I'm glad to hear that James got home okay from Japan. I'm excited to read whatever notes people take during his talk next week. I wish I could hear him speak Japanese, but I figure it will be a while before I get to hear any of that. I'm sure Marsali is glad to have him home safe and sound. Also, I was happy to receive the news that Paul got into BYU Provo. He'll have a fun time there, I'm sure. He'll be in a great environment to start preparing for his mission.
This last week proved to be a refiner's fire, as far as the mission goes, having lost most of our investigators and only retaining one who continues to progress. She should be getting baptized on the 19th of March, and she seems ready and excited for that day. She missed church this last Sunday due to some extenuating circumstances, but she plans to be there next week, so she should be all ready by the 19th.
We spent most of this week out on some of the longer, more sparsely populated roads in our area, using our bikes a lot (maybe more than I would have liked). But the bikes do prove to be the most efficient way when the houses are a little bit spread out. We had a couple of days with no set appointments whatsoever, so were were able to spend a good chunk of time searching our area for those who are prepared. This past Saturday, we went out in the morning on our bikes and got caught in a pouring rain storm accompanied by lightning and hail. So, we finished the street we were contacting on, returned to our bikes and then started home. We got thoroughly soaked and upon arriving at our house parked the bikes in the garage and the storm ceased and blue skies appeared. It was my first time getting caught out in a storm on the bike, an experience I do not soon hope to repeat. But, all is well and I figure I will go through many more Texas storms.
I hope Mel continues to do well and that the baby does well since he will probably be coming along in these next few weeks. Be sure to tell James "hi" for me and give another congratulations to Paul. I hope everyone has a good week and that Mom has a good experience with her service expo and doesn't overstress too much =) .
Love,
Elder Wood
I'm glad to hear that James got home okay from Japan. I'm excited to read whatever notes people take during his talk next week. I wish I could hear him speak Japanese, but I figure it will be a while before I get to hear any of that. I'm sure Marsali is glad to have him home safe and sound. Also, I was happy to receive the news that Paul got into BYU Provo. He'll have a fun time there, I'm sure. He'll be in a great environment to start preparing for his mission.
This last week proved to be a refiner's fire, as far as the mission goes, having lost most of our investigators and only retaining one who continues to progress. She should be getting baptized on the 19th of March, and she seems ready and excited for that day. She missed church this last Sunday due to some extenuating circumstances, but she plans to be there next week, so she should be all ready by the 19th.
We spent most of this week out on some of the longer, more sparsely populated roads in our area, using our bikes a lot (maybe more than I would have liked). But the bikes do prove to be the most efficient way when the houses are a little bit spread out. We had a couple of days with no set appointments whatsoever, so were were able to spend a good chunk of time searching our area for those who are prepared. This past Saturday, we went out in the morning on our bikes and got caught in a pouring rain storm accompanied by lightning and hail. So, we finished the street we were contacting on, returned to our bikes and then started home. We got thoroughly soaked and upon arriving at our house parked the bikes in the garage and the storm ceased and blue skies appeared. It was my first time getting caught out in a storm on the bike, an experience I do not soon hope to repeat. But, all is well and I figure I will go through many more Texas storms.
I hope Mel continues to do well and that the baby does well since he will probably be coming along in these next few weeks. Be sure to tell James "hi" for me and give another congratulations to Paul. I hope everyone has a good week and that Mom has a good experience with her service expo and doesn't overstress too much =) .
Love,
Elder Wood
Feb, 28, 2011, email post from Edinburg
Dear Family,
I don't have too much time this week to write, but I'll try to get down what I can.
First, an apology to Dad over my tardiness contacting Gustavo Valadez. I will be calling my mission president today and discussing it with him. I'm sure that sometime soon I'll have the opportunity to meet with him and discuss whatever he wishes to talk about with me. He had better be certain I'm going to be sharing at least a part of the Gospel with him when we meet.
Again, another week has come and gone in Edinburg without too many changes. The new transfer cycle has started and my old companion, Elder Raynor is up here with me for a period of at least six more weeks. We haven't found anyone incredibly solid yet, but we have had a few experiences that I guess I could share. A few weeks back, we had been in a part of our area and we met a man named Louis. We talked with him for about an hour or so at his door because he was familiar with our church through a strong interest that he had in family history. He is a frequent user of the Family Search website, because of the wealth of records that it has and the wonderful quality it has of being free. So that is how he became acquainted with our church though he had never talked with the missionaries before. We talked with him for a good space of time about the mormon.org website which he had also heard of because of the ads on TV, many of which impressed him very much. So, we left him with a mormon.org card and an invitation to find out why we focus on genealogy so much by learning about temples and baptisms for the dead.
Yesterday, we were in his neighborhood again, so we figured we'd swing by and see how he was doing, and to follow up to see if he visited the website/read the pamphlet we left with him. He had read a bit of the pamphlet but hadn't visited too much of the website. So, instead of referring him back to the website, we just took it upon ourselves to explain why we did genealogy. After explaining to him about baptisms for the dead and the purpose of the spirit world, he looked at us and said probably my most favorite words I've ever head, "I've always had that question and you guys are the first ones that ever answered it." He is, however, very reluctant to jump into a church until he knows it very well. We left him with a Book of Mormon to read. He assured us that if we came back in a few weeks he will have read through it, marked it up and have little tabs coming out all of the sides. So we are planning to swing by him again towards the end of the transfer and check up on his studies and prayers. We spent a good hour and a half with him at his door answering the mountain of questions that he had and ended up by pointing him to studying the Book of Mormon and praying to receive an answer from God. it always excites me to find people that have questions who are willing to search and find answers.
Again, I'm excited to hear that Mel and the baby are doing well, and I hope that continues to be true. I hope Mom has success in preparing for her service fair, and I'm sure that all will go well. I hope everyone has a great week and that everything goes well! Oh, and give Paul a big "congratulations" for me on getting into BYU Provo. It's better than Hawaii!
Love,
Elder Wood
I don't have too much time this week to write, but I'll try to get down what I can.
First, an apology to Dad over my tardiness contacting Gustavo Valadez. I will be calling my mission president today and discussing it with him. I'm sure that sometime soon I'll have the opportunity to meet with him and discuss whatever he wishes to talk about with me. He had better be certain I'm going to be sharing at least a part of the Gospel with him when we meet.
Again, another week has come and gone in Edinburg without too many changes. The new transfer cycle has started and my old companion, Elder Raynor is up here with me for a period of at least six more weeks. We haven't found anyone incredibly solid yet, but we have had a few experiences that I guess I could share. A few weeks back, we had been in a part of our area and we met a man named Louis. We talked with him for about an hour or so at his door because he was familiar with our church through a strong interest that he had in family history. He is a frequent user of the Family Search website, because of the wealth of records that it has and the wonderful quality it has of being free. So that is how he became acquainted with our church though he had never talked with the missionaries before. We talked with him for a good space of time about the mormon.org website which he had also heard of because of the ads on TV, many of which impressed him very much. So, we left him with a mormon.org card and an invitation to find out why we focus on genealogy so much by learning about temples and baptisms for the dead.
Yesterday, we were in his neighborhood again, so we figured we'd swing by and see how he was doing, and to follow up to see if he visited the website/read the pamphlet we left with him. He had read a bit of the pamphlet but hadn't visited too much of the website. So, instead of referring him back to the website, we just took it upon ourselves to explain why we did genealogy. After explaining to him about baptisms for the dead and the purpose of the spirit world, he looked at us and said probably my most favorite words I've ever head, "I've always had that question and you guys are the first ones that ever answered it." He is, however, very reluctant to jump into a church until he knows it very well. We left him with a Book of Mormon to read. He assured us that if we came back in a few weeks he will have read through it, marked it up and have little tabs coming out all of the sides. So we are planning to swing by him again towards the end of the transfer and check up on his studies and prayers. We spent a good hour and a half with him at his door answering the mountain of questions that he had and ended up by pointing him to studying the Book of Mormon and praying to receive an answer from God. it always excites me to find people that have questions who are willing to search and find answers.
Again, I'm excited to hear that Mel and the baby are doing well, and I hope that continues to be true. I hope Mom has success in preparing for her service fair, and I'm sure that all will go well. I hope everyone has a great week and that everything goes well! Oh, and give Paul a big "congratulations" for me on getting into BYU Provo. It's better than Hawaii!
Love,
Elder Wood
February 28, 2011
Feb 21, 2011, email post from Edinburg, TX
Dear Family,
Well, to start off, I am greatly pleased by my newly given title and if possible would like it placed on all of the letters addressed to me. Elder Roland Wood, a mature, sober, manly warrior-servant of the Lord. Just kidding about that, but I might be writing that in the signatures to my journal entries now.
The news came in for transfers this past Saturday and I will be spending another six weeks here at least with Elder Arens. In fact, our entire zone, except for one Elder, is staying entirely the same. And, weirdly enough, the Elder that is leaving, is going to the place which I just came from. he's going to Donna and my previous companion, Elder Raynor, is coming up to be in Edinburg Central, the area beneath mine. Weird coincidences going on with the movement of Elders, but it's an inspired process, so I'm sure it's what needs to happen.
Not too much in the way of news happened this last week besides the transfers. We have been working hard all week to try and help our investigators continue to learn and progress in the gospel. So far we haven't had too much luck, except with one of our investigators, Alex. I believe that I wrote about her a little bit last week, as well as reporting on the experience that we had praying with her about Joseph Smith. The only news that has really changed with her is that she followed up on her commitment to read 3 Nephi 11 in the Book of Mormon and prayed about it. When discussing with her how she felt about the book, she told us she felt it was true, and that she understands that if the book is true, this is God's Church once again upon the earth. We have started to teach her the commandments and everything seems to be going well so far. she also came to Church this past Sunday and is on track to being baptized in the coming weeks.
One thing that I have been thinking about recently that maybe Mom could help me with would be getting my line of authority card/printout. We often talk to people about how the authority of the Priesthood is real and isn't some mystical power that someone just takes to themselves on their own. I think that it might be nice for me to be able to show an example to someone of exactly how this authority is passed down and how ultimately it comes from the hands of the Savior. The Spanish Elder's Quorum actually talked about getting these cards for the Priesthood members a few Sundays ago. Apparently it is something about needing a few specific dates and then going to the Bishop and asking him. It would be great If I could get a copy of my line of Priesthood authority.
I hope everyone is continuing to have a great week and that everything is going well. For all the new babies and babies on the way, I hope and pray that everyone can stay healthy and that the Lord continues to provide as He has been doing. Good luck to everyone this week in work and all other endeavors you have. Don't forget to pray!
Love,
Elder Wood
Well, to start off, I am greatly pleased by my newly given title and if possible would like it placed on all of the letters addressed to me. Elder Roland Wood, a mature, sober, manly warrior-servant of the Lord. Just kidding about that, but I might be writing that in the signatures to my journal entries now.
The news came in for transfers this past Saturday and I will be spending another six weeks here at least with Elder Arens. In fact, our entire zone, except for one Elder, is staying entirely the same. And, weirdly enough, the Elder that is leaving, is going to the place which I just came from. he's going to Donna and my previous companion, Elder Raynor, is coming up to be in Edinburg Central, the area beneath mine. Weird coincidences going on with the movement of Elders, but it's an inspired process, so I'm sure it's what needs to happen.
Not too much in the way of news happened this last week besides the transfers. We have been working hard all week to try and help our investigators continue to learn and progress in the gospel. So far we haven't had too much luck, except with one of our investigators, Alex. I believe that I wrote about her a little bit last week, as well as reporting on the experience that we had praying with her about Joseph Smith. The only news that has really changed with her is that she followed up on her commitment to read 3 Nephi 11 in the Book of Mormon and prayed about it. When discussing with her how she felt about the book, she told us she felt it was true, and that she understands that if the book is true, this is God's Church once again upon the earth. We have started to teach her the commandments and everything seems to be going well so far. she also came to Church this past Sunday and is on track to being baptized in the coming weeks.
One thing that I have been thinking about recently that maybe Mom could help me with would be getting my line of authority card/printout. We often talk to people about how the authority of the Priesthood is real and isn't some mystical power that someone just takes to themselves on their own. I think that it might be nice for me to be able to show an example to someone of exactly how this authority is passed down and how ultimately it comes from the hands of the Savior. The Spanish Elder's Quorum actually talked about getting these cards for the Priesthood members a few Sundays ago. Apparently it is something about needing a few specific dates and then going to the Bishop and asking him. It would be great If I could get a copy of my line of Priesthood authority.
I hope everyone is continuing to have a great week and that everything is going well. For all the new babies and babies on the way, I hope and pray that everyone can stay healthy and that the Lord continues to provide as He has been doing. Good luck to everyone this week in work and all other endeavors you have. Don't forget to pray!
Love,
Elder Wood
February 21, 2011
14 February, 2011, email from Edinburg, TX
Dear Family,
This week as been a great week here in South Texas! I'm still here in Edinburg North, but we will be finding out about transfers this Saturday. I think that most likely I will stay here in the far North of the valley, but my companion, Elder Arens is convinced that he's out this transfer. He has apparently never stayed with a companion more than one transfer, other than his trainer which he had for two. So, if history continues to repeat itself, I will have a new companion here in just a short time. We didn't have any baptisms this past week, but our three baptisms from a few weeks ago finally received the Holy Ghost after being delayed a week due to Stake Conference. All in all this past Sunday, seven people were confirmed in Sacrament meeting, which took up a good twenty five minutes of the meeting. It was a great site, nevertheless.
We are currently teaching a few families here. We are still continuing to teach the Cubriel family. They were unfortunately unable to make it to church because the mother was sick and the father was competing in a charity golf tournament for the nearby college. Other than that, we are also teaching the Castillo family, a Spanish speaking husband, wife, daughter and aunt, who are progressing well, but have a few fears about being baptized that we are trying to resolve.
The real shining light of the people that we are working with right now is the Carrion family. They are a part member family here where the mother and father are active, but they have an inactive son and non-member daughter-in-law that also live with them. Last night we had an amazing lesson with them. The prior time we had met, we discussed how that only through the priesthood, J.C. (the Carrion's son) and his wife, Alex, would be able to be together with their newborn son in the eternities. Last night, we discussed the restoration of that priesthood. A very powerful testimony was given by Alex's mother-in-law and the Spirit was strongly present. However, the real force of the Spirit came when we invited Alex to get down with us on our knees and to ask God if Joseph Smith was a prophet, if this was His church, and that the priesthood authority to seal was again on the earth.
She offered a very simple, sincere prayer and directly asked her questions to God. After she ended her prayer we spent a good two and a half minutes just kneeling and listening to the Spirit. When I opened my eyes and looked up to see how Alex was feeling, she had her head still bowed down and eyes closed, but her face was covered with a steady stream of flowing tears. We asked her what she believed was the answer to her prayers, and she said that she believed that God was telling her that this was His church, and that Joseph Smith was His prophet. We invited her to be baptized and start a path towards receiving the blessings that the Lord had for her and she accepted.
Right now, as long as she remembers how she felt, and her husband J.C. is willing to support her in coming to church, she should soon be prepared to be baptized.
I am eternally grateful for the fact that God is aware of all of us. God was not busy, preoccupied or apathetic when we kneeled down and sincerely asked if these things were true. To the contrary, I know that God had his gaze upon us, and that he sent the Spirit to Alex and to us in heavenly answer to our prayer. I, and hopefully no one else, will ever forget that God focuses on individuals. If one person is willing to get down and to ask with a sincere heart, having real intent, God will answer and help that person to know the truth of all things.
I am ecstatic over the news of JoAnn and Nathan. It's another evidence of the personal support and care that the Lord can give us. Another Wood cousin being added to the group is fantastic news. I'm sure that everything will go well and that the baby will be a small one with a very accommodating head size. I'm also grateful that the Lord continues to provide support to Mel as the baby continues to grow. The hand of the Lord is there and is working to support her, of that I have no doubt.
Well, I only have a few minutes left to write, and I haven't even had a chance to wish everyone a happy Valentine's day. I hope that everybody gets a chance to spend some time with their loved ones and think of how much they mean to you. The Gospel of Jesus Christ was made to bring people together, and to offer us the chance to be with the ones that we love forever in the presence of our Creator. So, I hope everyone has a great day and has the opportunity to express the love that they hold for others. As for me, you know that I love you all and greatly appreciate the support that you give. I hope that I can continue to work hard and to show my love for the Lord through the work of the ministry. I hope everyone has a great Valentine's day and also a fantastic week!
Con mucho carino,
Elder Wood
This week as been a great week here in South Texas! I'm still here in Edinburg North, but we will be finding out about transfers this Saturday. I think that most likely I will stay here in the far North of the valley, but my companion, Elder Arens is convinced that he's out this transfer. He has apparently never stayed with a companion more than one transfer, other than his trainer which he had for two. So, if history continues to repeat itself, I will have a new companion here in just a short time. We didn't have any baptisms this past week, but our three baptisms from a few weeks ago finally received the Holy Ghost after being delayed a week due to Stake Conference. All in all this past Sunday, seven people were confirmed in Sacrament meeting, which took up a good twenty five minutes of the meeting. It was a great site, nevertheless.
We are currently teaching a few families here. We are still continuing to teach the Cubriel family. They were unfortunately unable to make it to church because the mother was sick and the father was competing in a charity golf tournament for the nearby college. Other than that, we are also teaching the Castillo family, a Spanish speaking husband, wife, daughter and aunt, who are progressing well, but have a few fears about being baptized that we are trying to resolve.
The real shining light of the people that we are working with right now is the Carrion family. They are a part member family here where the mother and father are active, but they have an inactive son and non-member daughter-in-law that also live with them. Last night we had an amazing lesson with them. The prior time we had met, we discussed how that only through the priesthood, J.C. (the Carrion's son) and his wife, Alex, would be able to be together with their newborn son in the eternities. Last night, we discussed the restoration of that priesthood. A very powerful testimony was given by Alex's mother-in-law and the Spirit was strongly present. However, the real force of the Spirit came when we invited Alex to get down with us on our knees and to ask God if Joseph Smith was a prophet, if this was His church, and that the priesthood authority to seal was again on the earth.
She offered a very simple, sincere prayer and directly asked her questions to God. After she ended her prayer we spent a good two and a half minutes just kneeling and listening to the Spirit. When I opened my eyes and looked up to see how Alex was feeling, she had her head still bowed down and eyes closed, but her face was covered with a steady stream of flowing tears. We asked her what she believed was the answer to her prayers, and she said that she believed that God was telling her that this was His church, and that Joseph Smith was His prophet. We invited her to be baptized and start a path towards receiving the blessings that the Lord had for her and she accepted.
Right now, as long as she remembers how she felt, and her husband J.C. is willing to support her in coming to church, she should soon be prepared to be baptized.
I am eternally grateful for the fact that God is aware of all of us. God was not busy, preoccupied or apathetic when we kneeled down and sincerely asked if these things were true. To the contrary, I know that God had his gaze upon us, and that he sent the Spirit to Alex and to us in heavenly answer to our prayer. I, and hopefully no one else, will ever forget that God focuses on individuals. If one person is willing to get down and to ask with a sincere heart, having real intent, God will answer and help that person to know the truth of all things.
I am ecstatic over the news of JoAnn and Nathan. It's another evidence of the personal support and care that the Lord can give us. Another Wood cousin being added to the group is fantastic news. I'm sure that everything will go well and that the baby will be a small one with a very accommodating head size. I'm also grateful that the Lord continues to provide support to Mel as the baby continues to grow. The hand of the Lord is there and is working to support her, of that I have no doubt.
Well, I only have a few minutes left to write, and I haven't even had a chance to wish everyone a happy Valentine's day. I hope that everybody gets a chance to spend some time with their loved ones and think of how much they mean to you. The Gospel of Jesus Christ was made to bring people together, and to offer us the chance to be with the ones that we love forever in the presence of our Creator. So, I hope everyone has a great day and has the opportunity to express the love that they hold for others. As for me, you know that I love you all and greatly appreciate the support that you give. I hope that I can continue to work hard and to show my love for the Lord through the work of the ministry. I hope everyone has a great Valentine's day and also a fantastic week!
Con mucho carino,
Elder Wood
February 7, 2011, Post from Edinburg, TX
Dear Family,
Another week has come and gone here in the mission field. Although this last week wasn't too exciting, we did have a few instances that I guess are worth relating to the rest of you. The week started off pretty slow. We were just working to do our best to find some new investigators and to also re-establish contact with a few of the investigators that we had with baptismal dates, who had since dropped off. Not too many fruits came off of trying to find our old investigators, but we did have a bit of success finding new investigators. Out contacting in our area we ran into a man, Brother Cubriel, who we now have been teaching a fair amount. He is a former pro-golfer who is in his 40s or 50s. We've taught him twice so far and he seems to be progressing fairly well, but tonight will be the real test. Tonight is the first night that we are going to teach him together with his family, a wife and two daughters. We'll see how they accept the message we have to bring. I have high hopes for the family, and soon I'm sure they will be progressing well together.
This last Sunday was our Stake Conference meeting here in Texas, which was done as a broadcast from SLC to all of the stakes in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico. The speakers were Elder Jensen from the Seventy, Sister Dibs from the YW general presidency, Elder M. Russel Ballard and President Monson. All of the talks that they gave were great, but I think my favorites would go to Elder Ballard and President Monson. Elder Ballard spoke on the Gospel of Christ, which was a great talk and an even better opportunity to listen and to learn how an Apostle teaches it. As a missonary, I teach the Gospel of Christ at least ten or more times a week, so it was a great opportunity to learn from the way that Elder Ballard presents and teaches it. President Monson spoke on working with less active and inactive members and doing our part to come "to the rescue!" Most of the wards here in South Texas struggle with overwhelming numbers of less actives, which sometimes shakes the ward member's confidence in the converts that we bring in. President Monson's talk just got me thinking about what I could do as a missionary to make sure that my converts are solid in the Gospel and what I could do to help bring back some of the lost sheep.
Yesterday was kind of a rough day to work since the Super Bowl was on. For the stake conference sessions, there was one session in English at 10 and another session in Spanish at 1. Something I thought was funny was tht many of the Spanish members that don't speak English well (or not at all), showed up to the English session of conference because they wanted to be able to get back early and start preparing their Super Bowl parties. I guess the important part is that they came, but it was a funny coincidence that the English session was full and there were many fewer members in the Spanish session, though it is normally the other way around.
I'm glad that Sarah and Ben were able to get some help with baby Dot. I'm sure that they're already amazing parents. I hope Mel is continuing to do well and that the baby continues to grow and get stronger. I'm grateful for the letters I've received from everybody in the past couple of weeks and I'm doing what I can to get through and respond to them. Everyone should be getting their letters soon. Keep on working hard everyone and don't forget who we're serving as we keep the commandments and fulfill our callings.
Love,
Elder Wood
Another week has come and gone here in the mission field. Although this last week wasn't too exciting, we did have a few instances that I guess are worth relating to the rest of you. The week started off pretty slow. We were just working to do our best to find some new investigators and to also re-establish contact with a few of the investigators that we had with baptismal dates, who had since dropped off. Not too many fruits came off of trying to find our old investigators, but we did have a bit of success finding new investigators. Out contacting in our area we ran into a man, Brother Cubriel, who we now have been teaching a fair amount. He is a former pro-golfer who is in his 40s or 50s. We've taught him twice so far and he seems to be progressing fairly well, but tonight will be the real test. Tonight is the first night that we are going to teach him together with his family, a wife and two daughters. We'll see how they accept the message we have to bring. I have high hopes for the family, and soon I'm sure they will be progressing well together.
This last Sunday was our Stake Conference meeting here in Texas, which was done as a broadcast from SLC to all of the stakes in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico. The speakers were Elder Jensen from the Seventy, Sister Dibs from the YW general presidency, Elder M. Russel Ballard and President Monson. All of the talks that they gave were great, but I think my favorites would go to Elder Ballard and President Monson. Elder Ballard spoke on the Gospel of Christ, which was a great talk and an even better opportunity to listen and to learn how an Apostle teaches it. As a missonary, I teach the Gospel of Christ at least ten or more times a week, so it was a great opportunity to learn from the way that Elder Ballard presents and teaches it. President Monson spoke on working with less active and inactive members and doing our part to come "to the rescue!" Most of the wards here in South Texas struggle with overwhelming numbers of less actives, which sometimes shakes the ward member's confidence in the converts that we bring in. President Monson's talk just got me thinking about what I could do as a missionary to make sure that my converts are solid in the Gospel and what I could do to help bring back some of the lost sheep.
Yesterday was kind of a rough day to work since the Super Bowl was on. For the stake conference sessions, there was one session in English at 10 and another session in Spanish at 1. Something I thought was funny was tht many of the Spanish members that don't speak English well (or not at all), showed up to the English session of conference because they wanted to be able to get back early and start preparing their Super Bowl parties. I guess the important part is that they came, but it was a funny coincidence that the English session was full and there were many fewer members in the Spanish session, though it is normally the other way around.
I'm glad that Sarah and Ben were able to get some help with baby Dot. I'm sure that they're already amazing parents. I hope Mel is continuing to do well and that the baby continues to grow and get stronger. I'm grateful for the letters I've received from everybody in the past couple of weeks and I'm doing what I can to get through and respond to them. Everyone should be getting their letters soon. Keep on working hard everyone and don't forget who we're serving as we keep the commandments and fulfill our callings.
Love,
Elder Wood
February 7, 2011
Jan. 31, email from Edinburg, TX
Dear Family,
This past week turns out to be a great week for everyone! I was ecstatic to hear about the news of baby Dot, and that everything turned out all right. She will be another great addition to the family and the Wood/Chan clans. I'm grateful for the help and support that the Lord is currently putting into our family and for the many blessings we have received. In mission news, my companion and I had three baptisms, yesterday. Juana Maria, a fifty something year old woman, her daughter (Katy, 11) and her grand daughter (Yuliana, 8) were baptized. The zone leaders, who live in the same house that I do, also had two baptisms, making five people baptized. And, surprisingly enough, each person being baptized had selected a different person to baptize them, so we had ten people in white! Unfortunately, I forgot the cord for my camera today, but pictures will follow next week.
In news of the Texas McAllen mission, this last month was historic as well. With the effort put in by the missionaries here and the help of the Lord, 114 people were baptized in the month of January. This is the highest number of people being baptized in a single month in the history of the entire mission. (The next highest was just a few short of 100.) So, it was a great week for the mission and it puts us right on track for the goal that President Trayner set of 1200 baptisms for the year of 2011. This past Sunday was also a great day for our companionship when we had nine investigators attend church, another high so far for my mission. God has seen fit to bless us here in South Texas, and I hope that the other missionaries and I will be able to remain humble to continue inviting the hand of the Lord in our work.
Juana Maria and her family were an interesting group to teach, though we hadn't known them for too long a time. Juana Maria had been an investigator of Elder Arens and Elder Payne (the elder who was here before me). She had progressed very well up until the point that I got here. When I arrived we had a horrible time trying to get in contact wit her, and we could never find her home. We were starting to lose hope. However, we finally committed to one last try after about a week and a half of trying and we were able to catch her home. After talking a bit, we discovered that she still wanted to be baptized, but had just been working like crazy because her family is desperately poor. She had mostly been taught everything at that point, but then she introduced us to her daughter and grand daughter who we then started to teach. Luckily they had both been to church with her the past two times they went, so they were all able to be baptized on the same date.
Juana Maria's grandfather was a member of the church, and when she was little he would read parts of the Book of Mormon to her as she went to sleep. This was a big step in her conversion. She has a great testimony of the church and is committed to being a solid, consistent member and to paying her tithing to receive more of the Lord's help.
Teaching Katy and Yuliana was an interesting experience because we only had about a week to teach them all that they needed to know in order to be baptized. So basically, we had two big lessons that contained all that they needed to know and used all the pictures, hand signals and pneumonics we could to help them learn. Everything turned out fine and they were able to learn the history of the church and all the commandments. However, Yuliana did have a bit of a freak-out before her baptism. She is an eight year old girl who stresses over school a lot and always has to win at whatever she's doing. So, she felt like the baptismal interview was going to be like a test or exam and was terrified that she was going to fail. However, after some talking and reassuring, she had her interview and left with a smile.
The Lord has helped the Texas McAllen mission and my family greatly this week, and has seen fit to pour out blessings upon us. I'm grateful for the help that He has given and the opportunity that I have to be an instrument in His hands. I hope everyone continues to do well and keeps being prospered by the Lord. I know He lives and that He is doing everything He can to help and protect our family. Just remember to continue having faith and allow God to keep working miracles!
Love,
Elder Wood
This past week turns out to be a great week for everyone! I was ecstatic to hear about the news of baby Dot, and that everything turned out all right. She will be another great addition to the family and the Wood/Chan clans. I'm grateful for the help and support that the Lord is currently putting into our family and for the many blessings we have received. In mission news, my companion and I had three baptisms, yesterday. Juana Maria, a fifty something year old woman, her daughter (Katy, 11) and her grand daughter (Yuliana, 8) were baptized. The zone leaders, who live in the same house that I do, also had two baptisms, making five people baptized. And, surprisingly enough, each person being baptized had selected a different person to baptize them, so we had ten people in white! Unfortunately, I forgot the cord for my camera today, but pictures will follow next week.
In news of the Texas McAllen mission, this last month was historic as well. With the effort put in by the missionaries here and the help of the Lord, 114 people were baptized in the month of January. This is the highest number of people being baptized in a single month in the history of the entire mission. (The next highest was just a few short of 100.) So, it was a great week for the mission and it puts us right on track for the goal that President Trayner set of 1200 baptisms for the year of 2011. This past Sunday was also a great day for our companionship when we had nine investigators attend church, another high so far for my mission. God has seen fit to bless us here in South Texas, and I hope that the other missionaries and I will be able to remain humble to continue inviting the hand of the Lord in our work.
Juana Maria and her family were an interesting group to teach, though we hadn't known them for too long a time. Juana Maria had been an investigator of Elder Arens and Elder Payne (the elder who was here before me). She had progressed very well up until the point that I got here. When I arrived we had a horrible time trying to get in contact wit her, and we could never find her home. We were starting to lose hope. However, we finally committed to one last try after about a week and a half of trying and we were able to catch her home. After talking a bit, we discovered that she still wanted to be baptized, but had just been working like crazy because her family is desperately poor. She had mostly been taught everything at that point, but then she introduced us to her daughter and grand daughter who we then started to teach. Luckily they had both been to church with her the past two times they went, so they were all able to be baptized on the same date.
Juana Maria's grandfather was a member of the church, and when she was little he would read parts of the Book of Mormon to her as she went to sleep. This was a big step in her conversion. She has a great testimony of the church and is committed to being a solid, consistent member and to paying her tithing to receive more of the Lord's help.
Teaching Katy and Yuliana was an interesting experience because we only had about a week to teach them all that they needed to know in order to be baptized. So basically, we had two big lessons that contained all that they needed to know and used all the pictures, hand signals and pneumonics we could to help them learn. Everything turned out fine and they were able to learn the history of the church and all the commandments. However, Yuliana did have a bit of a freak-out before her baptism. She is an eight year old girl who stresses over school a lot and always has to win at whatever she's doing. So, she felt like the baptismal interview was going to be like a test or exam and was terrified that she was going to fail. However, after some talking and reassuring, she had her interview and left with a smile.
The Lord has helped the Texas McAllen mission and my family greatly this week, and has seen fit to pour out blessings upon us. I'm grateful for the help that He has given and the opportunity that I have to be an instrument in His hands. I hope everyone continues to do well and keeps being prospered by the Lord. I know He lives and that He is doing everything He can to help and protect our family. Just remember to continue having faith and allow God to keep working miracles!
Love,
Elder Wood
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