Merry Christmas everyone

Alrighty so this week has been pretty exciting i guess you could say.... basically the only thing that we have done this week is what we call Operation CC. Which consists of the Christmas cards that we made for the entire ward, and cookies that we made to go with the Christmas card when we visit less actives! I will be sending the letter and Picture here this week, sorry that i've been slacking in that department. So this week we ate at Bro Okeys house.... he is part owner of the company called Cardel Homes, its the family business, and he let us sit in his Ferarrie FF so that was pretty sweet haha, he wants to take us to his company warehouse one p-day and let us see the other cars he has so thats neat! Then we also had the YSA christmas party, Even though I moved out of the YSA ward (I think I told you that haha) I was still invited to come and it was sooooo well put together! They re-inacted "how the grinch stole christmas" and Brody... the less active I taught  was the Grinch and man was he AWESOME! other than that, that was pretty much my week.

 

Brody and Elder Martin

Cool lamp according to Elder Martin.....LOL

Life Is Good

Alrighty then.... where do I even begin with this week well, Tuesday we had Zone training meeting, that went alright I suppose haha, when you get 26 missionaries together it can tend to get a little hectic. But the training was delivered nonetheless! Wednesday we were able to head downtown for some good contacting... I placed a Mandarin Book of Mormon in Chinese!!!! it was awesome haha then we had our mission Christmas activity! all of the zones in Calgary met and we ate pizza and then the secret.... We got to watch MEET THE MORMONS!!!! can I say WOW! what a spectacular film! very well promoted and put together! :) very touching stories. My favorite would probably have to be The candy Bomber, and then the coach, then missionary mom! Oh backtrack to Tuesday, a member in the ward took us to her friends house who is looking for god in their life, and we were able to comfort and teach them and pick them up as 2 new investigators! they are sweet, Leo and Juana! from Columbia. So on Thursday we went back to teach them more, we talked on the atonement and the Plan he has for us, also gave them both blessings! :) come Friday we had interviews with president and we delivered mail to the zone. It was a nice comforting interview and reassuring in my eyes, President is a very inspired man!

Saturday came, and we attended our Stake Presidents Father's Funeral, he was 93, and an amazing man, it was a wonderful service, he reminded me of the Candy Bomber in a way, he received the DFC award. or the Distinguished Flying Cross. he served as a bomber in WW2 for the English air force... he will be missed. we then helped set up for the ward Christmas party and then WENT to the ward Christmas party and Leo and Juana also came with their 2 kids who are about 14 and 12. Then sunday church came, and sundays are usually all the same, we did go Visit Leo and Juana, gave them a Christmas basket before they leave for Columbia for the Christmas season! they were in such happier spirits then they were on Thursday, Its amazing to see the lord play a role in the lives of others! So that was pretty much my week in a nutshell! it was a pretty great one! :)

Elder Smith and Elder Martin changing a light bulb

for the Sisteres

Elder Martin

Elder Smith and Martin's Christmas Picture

New Companion, and new Ward...... Canyon Creek

Alright onto this week! Transfers were INSANE!!!! For starters we have a new assistant and he has been out 8 months! no leadership experience except for training. President has gotten rid of the whole "ladder" leadership nonsense.... it is more in-tune with the lord now and he calls who the lord wants to in this mission as leaders..I'm excited! Elder Smith is an example of that also he went from Senior comp to Zone leader! pretty exciting! :) So Coming from the brethren Elders and Sisters no longer should be serving together in the same ward, so president moved me out of the YSA ward and replaced me with Sisters there, so there is 2 sets of sisters in the YSA ward, and I am now in the Canyon Creek Family ward! I was a little bummed and saddened by that, but its OK, the lord wants me here, I'm going to find out why and get to work! starting from scratch basically! :) should be fun!!!

Qing and I (recent convert)

Elder Campbell (my son) and his greenie Elder Reynolds (my grandson)!!!!

less active Alicia and the gang! Sister Harris and sister Hassan (Harris is home now) and Elder Baker!

Daniel, Elder Baker and I

December 2nd 2014

Alright soooo this week has been exciting.... training calls have come out and transfers are among us!!!! We helped someone moved on Tuesday..... went downtown on Wednesday and had a great time down there, was on exchanges with the assistant and that evening I found out that elder Campbell is training!!!!!!! I'm going to have a grandson in the mission! yaaaay! :) also Elder Baker is training... again! crazy so I'm getting a new companion on Thursday.... I wonder who it could be! Thursday we planned for out missionary FHE activity and put the finishing details on that then ate dinner at the Babcocks house, he Grew up in Murrieta! small world once again, on Friday we went to trainers training for Elder Baker and then went to eat lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings :) then went to the hospital to meet with a returning less active :) Saturday we baked cookies with Daniel our WML and then wrapped them up with a "he is the gift" attached to them, they were walnut oatmeal chocolate chip and butterscotch :) we then got the Zone together and went zone snow shoveling! :) Sunday went well.... good church  services and then went to the hospital to visit the less active again! :) 

 

Alright now for the fun! :) Last night we had a MTC for FHE (member training center) we put it on to help the ward get excited for missionary work, one room was Role Plays, another room was addressing missionary work fears and starting a personal mission plan and the grand finale was an obstacle course! The members were blindfolded and had to hold on to a rope that lead them who knows where and keep their egg we gave them from breaking..... and goal was to make it to the end without having a broken egg.... catch was that everyones egg was broken... but through the atonement of a loving savior we can still be put back together... and we gave them some chocolate :) it was SWEET! that pretty much wraps up the week! all in all was fun and now its going to get even more crazy!

Elder Baker and Elder Martin

Zonies

Zone Snow shoveling party

That's my kid

November 24th 2014

The Birthday week! Started off with a nice FHE with a wonderful family named the Moores... they were awesome. on Tuesday was when we really had P-day because of the move and what not on Monday, then Wednesday was Elder Edwards Birthday.... we went to Downtown Calgary... it weird when it gets dark so fast now! but then we drove down to Highriver to give elder Edwards some donuts! then back to Calgary for institute! it was a pretty good lesson, we were tracking the life of the saviors last week before the Crucifixion... Friday was his last day and that's where we were, very deep lesson.... then Thursday! started off in the morning with a Birthday call from the most awesome Ward Mission Leader ever, Daniel!!!! Then a nice singing from Elder Baker and then we Weekly planned some and collected all the numbers for the Zone for board updates! Then Elder Baker took me out to lunch, we went to chilis.... mmmm so good! I miss being able to go there just about once a week haha, Then I was asked to "talk" with Elder Halford while secretly Elder baker went out and got me 2 ties.... which I found on my bed later that night upon returning to the apartment haha, then we gave the sisters a blessing, and went to dinner with Daniel after that! it was Delicious... .as always, we mad home made pizza and had Tres Leche Cake! :) or 3 milk cake for those who don't know Spanish :P or I just suck at spelling ha ha..... Friday we went and got mail....  Saturday we went to visit a less active in the hospital... she was super happy to see us! we were also dropped by a less active man named Hamish who said it actually wasn't his time to start coming back.... sad, then we met with our Recent Convert Qing... hes happy as every and is awesome then Sunday we had some awesome church, starting out morning with the stake presidents council at 7 then ward council at 11 and church at 1.... that's our normal Sunday haha and now im here! Love ya! your Awesome! and thank you for the Birthday Wishes!


Dad.... Danny JUST emailed me! he says he is getting baptized Nov 30th! its so exciting!! this is what I told him..

DUDE!!!!! I would never forget about you man! you were my Goalie for life! as I tried to be your defender hahah.... ya my dad has informed me on what you have been up too and might I just say WOW! I cant exclaim how excited I am for you! The Restored Gospel has been the greatest blessing of my life, and my Mission has been the best thing for my life. Your a very Stalwart young man for taking these steps in your life, I can promise you, as scary as it may be,  that as you exercise your faith the lord will see that and he will bless you in every way possible for that! God will show you his way and how to get there. I promise you, from one friend to another you will never regret the steps you have made in your life. I will keep you in my prayers!

 

November 17th 2014 Service all day

Well today for p-day we helped someone move..... all day that is why I am not just getting on.... it was pretty good.... we had 18 missionaries there i'm exhausted, so i think i forgot to mention but Elder Campbell is in my zone!!! :) and he is a district leader! it has been so good to see him again and serve around him! :) i love that kid, he is doing awesome! So this week, we went on exchanges and I was down in high river for the day with Elder Edwards, his birthday is the 19th haha crazy... Great Elder, thoroughly enjoy serving around him, I was his zone leader in Airdrie when I was there last too, he goes home this transfer, this is the 7 week transfer so it ends on Dec 4th,  tell grandma she is awesome for sending the money! I love her mucho! how is she doing by the way? and poppy? ummm after the exchange we heard word that one of the Elders we live with is going home so that was sad... he did go home honorably though... so that left us with 1 missionary and he was transferred to brooks so our apartment is empty now.... which led to Elder Baker and I super deep cleaning it and it looks SOOOO nice now! im excited :)  While on exchanges we got to teach a lady named Pam, and it was probably the sweetest lesson ever, I was able to share many experiences that could relate to what she had to say and question and we asked her to pray about Joseph smith being a prophet and what we have to testify of is true, and she started praying in the middle of a lesson, kinda funny but super awesome at the same time! :) her husband just needs to stop being a drunk and support her! then we would be solid! Saturday we had a stake conference priesthood session and that was just super fun... being questioned and having to reply about missionary work because we are the zone leaders ha ha.... all good though, its getting the stake excited for missionary work! then Sundays session of stake conference was amazing! the choir was amazing and the speakers were just phenomenal, i don't remember me as a youth or our youth back home being able to give such great talks but man up here they slayed it! all in all great week.... sure not a WHOLE lot of teaching but it seems like every day is just a spiritual high! :) its nice!!! hope you have an amazing week! your the best love you! :) and sorry no new updates on pictures

November 10th 2014

Not quite sure what to email about this week.... I would say winter is officially back... its 5 with windchill -13..... We Found a new less active who is reaching out, his names Chad and he is awesome! he is way into sports and what not, he also has a sick lumberjack beard ha ha thought I should throw that in there, other than that we had MLC this Friday talked about how to Hold the mission accountable and Discussed the topic for teaching this month which is Doctrines of Christ and how we can more fully apply the atonement to become Truly Converted Missionaries... aside from all that that's pretty much my week... we had a cool Remembrance day themed sacrament meeting at church that was nice, and then we have been planning for Zone Training Meeting for tomorrow! should be Exciting! Hope your weeks went well! Love  ya!