Elder Manning is leaving...and Elder Tunney is moving in.

Hey, everyone!

My new companion is who I thought it was: Elder Tunney, from San Diego, California! I'm really excited to serve with him; we've served around each other before in Tule Springs and he was one our of District Leaders while I was in Lakes - a great guy that Elder Herlin and I knew we could really trust. He's probably going to the U when he gets home as well, so there's one more person I'll know around that area after the mission.

Elder Manning's bags are packed and ready to go. Last night we went to go see some of his converts in his first area, and that was a neat experience. His time is up and it's weird to be the one to "kill" him off. When you think about it, all of the mission-to-life analogies are pretty spot on. You're "born" (start your mission) to a "father" (your trainer) who teaches you everything you need to know, you gain more experience and learn how to act appropriately, you have a "son" (trainee) of your own, and at the end of your two years, you "die" (go home). What happens after you die? You're reunited with your loved ones! :) It all fits too well. Anyways, Manning dies today and it's been a trippy experience for him and for me. However, we've made this last week count.

 

As of right now, we have four investigators set for baptism in the coming weeks. Even better, all four of them were at church yesterday and stayed for all three hours! Amazing things are happening in this area right now, and it's moving faster than we can keep up with. We're teaching so much that it's getting hard to find time for all of the appointments - just tonight, I pick up Elder Tunney around 6:00, we go home and drop off his stuff, and we head to our first lesson of three for the night. It's humbling, seeing the change in work in the past six weeks; we're truly being blessed. I'm excited to see what happens for the next six weeks with Elder Tunney and I. 

I'm so excited for Christmas, I can hardly see straight. One of our members gave us some decorations for our tree, which means now we have to go out and get a tree! I'm looking forward to skyping and talking with you guys; Mothers Day honestly feels like it was last week. It's frightening how fast this is all going. Anyways, things are great and getting better every week. 

 

Love you so much!

Jesse  

'Tis the Season...

Hey guys!

So this is Elder Manning's last week, so we've got to make it a good one. It's always somewhat odd being around a missionary who's going home soon - it's always in the back of both of our minds. He's being a good example on how to use it to your advantage, however, and his fast-approaching plane ride is motivating him as opposed to slowing him down. It's putting an urgency into our missionary work, which I kind of like; I wish I could always work as if I was going home in a week.

 

But now to continue last weeks story with the woman who watched the DVD - we had a good lesson on Wednesday and she asked a lot of questions, a lot of really good and thoughtful questions. You could tell she really wanted to know the answers. We had our Mission Leadership Council on Wednesday at the Lakes Stake Center, so while we were down there we stopped at the only Deseret Book in town and picked up a couple copies of "Mormons: An Open Book" by Anthony Sweat. It's an awesome book answering all of the questions that most people want to know - questions about our beliefs, practices, history. The price was down from 20 bucks to 5, so I picked up several of them. We went by later that night and dropped off a copy with her, and ever since then, she hasn't stopped reading/learning, and we couldn't make her stop if we tried. We had a lesson on the Book of Mormon on Saturday night and she's been texting us about the stories and characters all weekend. She mentioned to us "If Nephi could forgive his brothers and the sons of Ishmael for trying to kill him, then I can forgive as well"; she then called someone she's been holding a grudge against for years and apologized, saying she forgave him and asked for his forgiveness. It's absolutely incredible to see the change the Spirit has wrought in this person after ONE WEEK of learning! She came with us to the First Presidency's Christmas devotional last night and really felt the spirit. It's been a great week because we've been able to witness, in a very real way, a "change of heart".

 

This is all so true, I can barely stand it. I've had several moments this week where I stop what I'm doing and just marvel at how perfect the Savior and His teachings are. I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that the fullness of the everlasting gospel has been restored to the Earth. I also know that this happened because we're loved, loved more than we can imagine.

 

By the time I email next week, I will have heard about who my new companion is and will have a better idea of my situation for the next couple of months. If it's who I think it is (who the AP's have hinted at), then it's going to be an awesome couple of months,

'tis the season and all that,

Jesse

Elders Dowdle and Manning

 

Thanksgiving was Great!!

It's December!

I'm so very ready for this Christmas season - I've been listening to Christmas music since June. It's crazy to think about what was going on this time last year. I was in Logandale, about a week away from coming down to Vegas for the first time. What's even more weird is thinking about what the holiday season will be like this time NEXT year...there's a lot that's uncertain, but one thing I'm sure of is that I'll be happy and with my family.

 

This has been a crazy full week! Thanksgiving was great; no, we didn't win the Turkey Bowl ( :( ) but we had a lot of fun regardless. We beat the first team, but the second team we played was Las Vegas zone (who made it to the finals) and we lost 6-5 in overtime. One of their zone leaders is a missionary I came out with who happens to be a BYU receiver, so I don't feel too bad about losing (or about throwing him a fat interception). We had a good time and ate a lot of food afterwards, so it was a successful Thanksgiving by all accounts.

 

As far as proselytizing goes, this was the first double digit lesson week this area has had for a loooooong time! We've been teaching a ton and it's been amazing. A couple of days this week, we had an appointment at every hour - being that busy is incredibly satisfying and exhausting. It feels great to collapse on your bed after a day of going from teaching appointment to teaching appointment.

 One woman in particular we had been trying to meet with for a couple of weeks. We texted her the day before to ask her if the lesson was still on, and she told us it would be a waste of our time because she doesn't believe in organized religion. We were bummed - she seemed so promising and so excited to learn. We texted and asked for one chance, but she didn't respond. We felt impressed to go by and leave a DVD a member burned for us called "Intro to Mormons", which talks about our origins, temples, service work, etc. Before we left it in the door, I wrote a little note saying that we were glad we had met her and her daughter, and that we know it's easy to be skeptical of organized religion, but that this particular religion was organized by God. We left the DVD and didn't think about it for the rest of the night. We woke up the next morning to a text from her saying "I watched your DVD and it's beautiful. Can we meet tonight?". It was an amazing confirmation of what the spirit had told us to do - we met with her and have another appointment this Wednesday.

 

This work is full of miracles and our lives can be full of miracles if we just pay attention to what the Spirit is trying to tell us. When we follow promptings, great things happen. I've seen that this week for sure.

Keep going strong and I'll see you in a couple weeks!

Jesse

What a great week!

Hey hey -

GREAT week. This week happened to be the most fruitful this area has had as far back as our records go! The potential I saw in this ward when I first got here is starting to rise to the surface and we ended up teaching all sorts of lessons and gaining several new investigators.

On Tuesday, we had a lesson with the couple that showed up to church the previous Sunday. In thirty minutes we taught the message of the Restoration and answered a lot of the nonmember girlfriends questions, and her last question was perfect: "How can I know this is true?". We taught about prayer and invited her to offer up the closing prayer and find out for herself. This time, we told her that after the prayer we weren't going to say anything until she feels she received an answer. She begins to pray and starts to cry when she asks if what we've taught is true. After the prayer we sit there for maybe a full minute while she quietly cries, and then she turns and looks at us and smiles. She said she doesn't have to worry about choosing a church anymore; she would get baptized. It was an amazing experience; we set her for the 14th of December, although it's probably going to be pushed to 2014 because her and her boyfriend have to get married first. They came to church again on Sunday and were warmly welcomed by the ward - they're on the right track.

Throughout the week, we also received two referrals from the Church and found several people to teach through street contacts and knocking doors. We taught a lot of people the first lesson and have a ton of return appointments this next week - things are really moving. I feel pretty strongly that things are moving along because we have faith in this area and in the ward. It's easier for the Lord to bless us when we respect the stewardship he's given us, whether that be a quorum, a family, or an area. When we make the best with what we've got, we find out we've got a lot more than we thought we had. I hope that made sense haha. I love this work and the miracles associated with it - it's humbling to be the warm body working in His stead.

Love you tons,
Jesse

 

p.s. when you see someone you don't recognize at church, go introduce yourself. Makes all the difference in the world.

Humbling week with lessons learned

Hey, guys!

This has been a pretty humbling week in a lot of different ways; it's neat to sit down at the computer and reflect upon the lessons the Lord has been teaching (or trying to teach) me throughout the week.

 

I mentioned a little about the area last week, about it's location/makeup. When I arrived on November 4th, there wasn't really anyone the missionaries had been teaching regularly, no one progressing. Our ward mission leader can't remember the last convert baptism in the ward; meanwhile, the ward a block to the west of us is baptizing and teaching like crazy. Elder Manning and I decided to work our hardest to find people to teach. Whether it's knocking doors, talking with everyone we see on the street, hitting up part-member family lists - we're down to do whatever it takes. Well, early in the week, we started to get excited; people were talking to us and some seemed interested - interested enough to set up appointments with us later in the week. Almost one by one, we'd set up an appointment, bring a member, and it'd be a no show. Every single contact punched out on us this week and we only got to teach three lessons. By the time Sunday rolled around, I was starting to get a little frustrated at the area, the ward, the people, and just about anyone and anything that gave me a wrong look (reminding me I was my father's son). Then, in the middle of our sunday school class, a member comes in and grabs us, telling us that there's a couple in the foyer that we should talk to. We get out there and it's an inactive member and his non-member girlfriend, showing up to church for the first time. He told us he's been thinking about coming back for the longest time and now it's time. The non-member girlfriend wanted to learn more, asked questions, asked us when WE can stop by (doesn't happen often (ever)) and we set up a time on Tuesday.

I share this experience because it reminded me of an eternal principle that I had forgotten for a short amount of time: when we do what the Lord asks, we'll be blessed. The blessings will almost never be how we expect or want them to be. I was expecting to talk to a golden contact on the street, or tract into a perfect family waiting for the truth. That didn't happen. Instead, the Lord saw Elder Manning and I express our faith and inspired a young man and his girlfriend to show up to church. I am so thoroughly convinced that them showing up is a direct blessing and outcome of our efforts spent finding people. The Lord is waiting to bless us - always - and we just have to give him a reason to do so.

I love you all and pray for you several times daily.
Jesse 

First Week in the Meadows

Hello from Meadows!

So, this area is much, much different from my last one. Last night we sat down to plan and were drowned out by the sound of a police chopper flying over our little complex. Apparently this is a normal occurrence. The area is actually pretty cool and there are a ton of humble people living within it's boundaries. I'm amazed at how many people are willing to converse with us as we walk around and contact; I can already tell that it's going to be a lot easier to find people to talk to. That's always the first obstacle - if we can talk to people, we can talk about restored truth and give the Spirit the opportunity to bear witness of it. If we can't say anything or bear testimony of anything, then the Spirit can't soften their hearts and let them know we're messengers of the truth. Upon entering the area, there weren't any people that were being taught or that were progressing, but since Monday we've had the opportunity to talk to a lot of people and set up some return appointments. This is a traditionally slow area, but I'm pretty confident that with a good attitude and work ethic, this place can be pretty dang fruitful. It's just a matter of time. I love being in new wards and getting to meet all of the members; there are so many stories and lessons to be learned in each ward. I'm looking forward to the time (and this time always comes - usually right before transfers) where I can name every person that walks through the doors on Sunday at church.

 

On top of learning a new area with a new companion, Elder Manning and I are preparing our "team" for the annual mission Turkey Bowl on Thanksgiving! It oughta be a fun one this year; we have 12 zones this year instead of nine last year, so they're doing the brackets a little differently. It'll be a flag football tournament and I'm excited and nervous about it, but it'll be fun, regardless. Last year I wore a santa hat as a declaration that I wasn't taking it seriously. This year, Elder Manning and I are thinking about wearing suitcoats from DI. We'll see. 

 

I keep thinking about a scripture in the Book of Mormon that talks about the fall of Adam and Eve and the state of mankind as we are today. It's in 2nd Nephi, chapter 2, verse 25: "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy". In an area like this, where the work can seem daunting and the teaching pool seems exhausted and barren, it's been important for US to remember that we are to have joy. We're supposed to be happy, and to find happiness in righteousness and in everything that we do. We all need to step back from the day-to-day junk sometimes and ask, "Am I happy?", and if the answer is no, reevaluate what you're doing. Everything is better when our attitude is positive.

 

Life is good and I'm happy. What more can I ask for? :)
Love you all very much,

Jesse

Transferred!!

Hey family!

Got the call on Saturday - I'm getting transferred to the Meadows Zone, and my new companion is Elder Manning! I'm bummed to leave Lakes and Elder Herlin...it's been a great six months here. Six months is the perfect time to stay in an area; I was in Tule Springs for six, six in The Lakes, and now I'm hoping for six more in Meadows. My ward will be the Meadows 1st ward and my boundaries are Jones on the west side, Decatur on the east side, Washington to the south, and Cheyenne to the north. It's a little bit different than the far west side I've been serving in so far, so I'm excited for the change and challenge. Elder Manning has a reputation as an overall stud and he only has one more transfer left, so it's going to be awesome to "kill" him off and learn everything I can from him.

Not too much more to report: next November, Larry is getting sealed in the Salt Lake temple; Sam will be going to the temple next June, so I'll be in Vegas for that. I love that these converts have their sights set on the temple. Last night, Elder Herlin and I took one of our investigators, Simon, to what's called the Zions Youth Symphony. It's a choir/orchestra comprised of LDS youth from Las Vegas and they were phenomenal. I found out last night that I'm not done playing the clarinet and being involved in performing; I'd miss it way too much.

Anyways, I have yet to pack (surprise surprise). I love you guys and will let you know about Meadows and Elder Manning next week!

Jesse