November 30, 2015

Dear Mom and family!

So first speed round...

W's about twenty one but yes, he looks super young!

I can’t wait to dunk it either hahahahahaha!! We are on week 3 of 15 hahaha so it’ll be fun!

Transfers are this week but we are both staying and getting another guy, ELDER W!!! He’s incredible!! Elder G goes home midway through this transfer so they have us tri-panning ‘till then!   Thanksgiving was awesome! (Not like the cabin but still great) When everyone asked me what I was grateful for I might have teared up/ started laughing when I was talking about you guys! haha  Lots of great food though! They smoked their turkey and it was sooo good! She also asked for any requests so I may have said pumpkin cheese cake and that may have been my favorite!! hahahaha I found out I’m still not the biggest stuffing fan! Lol 

Sounds like you guys had a great week! Man and you all look so good!! Seriously I have the best-looking fam out there! You’re all beautiful! Those family pictures look way good! And some made me laugh pretty hard in this library! hahaha

I’m so glad that the cabin was great and we are still having dance parties! I love you guys so much!! This week was amazing! We are still searching for investigators and it’s the funnest thing ever. One night it was like 10 degrees and super windy and I couldn’t feel really anything... but I was thinking... what would stop me from sharing this gospel? Nothing!! This gospel is the most amazing thing ever! And I will do whatever it takes to share it! It doesn’t matter how awkward or how cold it is! Jesus Christ would want me to share it! 

I hope you guys have a great week and know how much I care and love for each and everyone of you! Seriously the best family anyone could ask for! What is it now-- 3 more weeks till skyping?? Man I got to look my best!! hahahaha

Love Elder Oliver

November 23, 2015

Dear Mom and familia!

 Man I’m sorry you aren’t feeling well Mom... that cannot be fun! You will definitely be in my prayers! I hope you get better soon because it is no fun being sick! As well as Chels, I hope she gets better too!   Thanks exciting about Cassie and the girls dance! Carlee is just beautiful no matter what she does and I’m so stoked for Cami! I hope it’s good for her to have a few friends too!  Just wait ‘till High School and see what happens ;) haha

But Mom I know exactly what you mean, I have been feeling the same way! My favorite scriptures about that are Alma 7:11-12 they're pretty incredible!  I hope you guys all have an amazing Thanksgiving and know how much I love and am grateful for each one of you! I seriously have the best family in the world! hahaha and a little secret (I actually like mashed potatoes now!!)hahahahaha

So this week was amazing! Seriously just a roller coaster! hahaha  So first random things--It’s getting so cold here! Just icing over and super foggy now hahaha  and it  also gets dark at 4:30!! hahaha  I forgot to tell you but we drive a pickup so that makes it a lot better. There has been some crazy fast wind too, so it’s totally different. So we have been going on exchanges with every companion  in the zone and its been nuts! hahaha  Our zone is huuuuuuge-- its like 3 hours across... from Ephrata to Yakima is closer than Ephrata to the top of our zone... it's nuts. Elder T (our roommate) has this jump program that we are doing that the pros use and his college football team used and apparently it guarantees 6 inches on your vertical!!  So I’ll send a video of me dunking it! hahahahahahahaha  They call me the flying tomatoe!! hahaha  Also somehow throughout the zone people have been asking for hair cuts so last p-day I cut two Elders and this p-day I’m cutting two more.  They call me the barber too hahaha!! I’ll send a pic.

Ok so now on a way more spiritual note, we saw so many miracles this week! So on Tuesday we get a text from the Moses Lake zone leaders  saying that one of my old investigators W is getting baptized and he wants me to baptize him!!!! So that was pretty incredible!  We went down on Saturday and it was so amazing! It was also awesome to see some of the Moses Lake fam again hahaha  I love that place! So I also learned a lot of cool things about the scriptures this week too that have applied in my life! I love the scriptures. So the first one is that I learned about some Jewish tradition. So when a king eats all the servants have to wait until he is done.  When he shows that he is done he wipes his face,  crumbles the napkin and sets it on the plate.   If  he is going to come back he folds it and sets it on the plate. When Mary was at the tomb of Jesus Christ,  His robes were folded symbolizing that the king would return. I know that Jesus Christ lives and that He loves each one of us so much! I feel His love for me and the people we meet every day and I can’t tell you how good that feels. I am out here as a missionary sacrificing for Him because I love Him. Not for anything else but just  my love and appreciation for my Savior. We will never be profitable servants, but that's ok-- He's not looking for us to be profitable because He has already given us everything.   He does expect us to love Him and to do things out of that love. Another super cool thing that I realized this week is how incredible our family motto is, "We work until the work is done". That applies to our life so well-- not just the dishes! We do the Lord's work until the work is done. You guys were so inspired and it took me till now to realize it! We work in this life until this life’s work is done and then we are on to the next! I love this gospel so much! It is everything and everyone needs it!

This week was a little more difficult. The family that we were teaching said that they are having some problems and they can’t meet with us.  So we went by (of course) and we could just see the struggle in their eyes.  That’s what was hard... they are so cool and this gospel will bless them so much, it’s just in the Lord's time! But He has continued to bless us abundantly!! The work here is amazing and we continue to find incredible people that are just put in our path. I love everyday of it!

You guys are incredible! I miss you a ton but I love it out here so much! This mission has had such a huge impact on my life alone, I’m so grateful to just be out serving everyday!

I love you guys so much and hope you have an amazing day and an amazing Thanksgiving!

Love Elder Oliver

November 16, 2015

Dear Mom and family! 

I’m glad it was just a normal crazy week for you guys!! hahaha I swear our family is one of the busiest hahaha but it's incredible!  I’m glad you sent that pic! I love Christmas!! hahaha 

So this week was incredible! And yes I know exactly how those Elders feel! Sadly we had that same thing happen to us yesterday but it’s ok because that just means this next week will be that much better!   It’s funny you asked about the food this week-- hahaha I’ll get to it! 

So this week was a spiritual powerhouse!! We had interviews with our President and they were so incredible! I love President and Sister L! They are seriously the best most loving people ever! They are just incredible and help me out so much! President really helps me to notice the enabling power of the atonement in my life! So I love him so much for that! Then after that we went to the Temple! Such an amazing experience, I looooove the temple! I received so many answers to my prayers, and I know what the next step is for me in my spiritual progression! The Temple really is the house of God and it's where we are the closest to Him! Everyone needs to get to the temple!  Probably the best news is—I don’t know if you remember Kathy P? (The first lady I taught)  Well she is going through the Temple on the 23rd of December and I can probably go with her!! I’m so excited for her!!

Ok so now for the food! So after the Temple,  the member who took us-- took us to a Sushi place and ordered a bunch of stuff.  Straight raw fish... hahaha!  Ahh man it was weird!!! I had eel and squid and every type of fish-- it was crazy!! Some of it was good but some of it was straight nasty!  But hey-- I ate them with a smile and said thanks! I was so proud of myself! hahaha

Anyways i love you guys and miss you a ton!  I hope you have an amazing week and please keep me posted! You’re all incredible! This church and gospel are incredible! 

Love Elder Oliver 

ps Yes-- I’m speaking a ton of Spanish! Heavenly Father is helping me a ton! 

November 9, 2015

Dear Mom and family, 

So as for my favorite part of the mission, I could be here all day because I love every part! hahaha  A few things that have been my favorite are 1) Being able to use the enabling power of the atonement to change. I have changed so much and I have seen so many people change through the power of the atonement. The atonement doesn't help us to adapt, it helps us to change our nature, everything about us! Our deepest desires, our hearts, our thoughts, and  our personality! I love my Savior and how through Him I can see people how He see's them. 2) I have really loved learning about the gospel and watching the light come into people as they begin to understand the doctrine and apply it in their life. That’s where the true knowledge of the gospel comes in, it’s in the application! I have so many other things and not enough time!! hahahaha  Ask me when we are skyping and I will give you the whole answer hahaha sorry!! I wish i could type faster!! hahaha 

So as for your week!   You guys are incredible! I started playing Christmas music of course the day after Halloween and the roommates weren't too stoked about it! hahaha But hey, I just like remembering the birth of my Savior sooner. Truth is-- Elder Krogue and I might of had Christmas days when we were together! hahahaha   Your week sounds awesome! Mom I wish I was there for that lesson-- that sounds incredible!  It’s great to hear everyone is killing it though! Carlee winning regional, that’s what I’m talking about!! hahaha 

My week was NUTS!! hahaha Just thing after thing happened and now I’m here emailing you guys hahaha!  So on Wednesday in the afternoon, our car broke down so we had to drive it to Wenatchee to the dealership and blitz the zone leaders area there. We then slept on the floor because we had mlc on Thursday (a meeting with all zone leaders and sister leaders) so we drove down to Yakima hoping that the car would be done.  Well, turns out the car wasn’t finished so we had to spend another night on the floor and then finally got to drive home! We then had a meeting in Coulee Dam which is an hour away.  Then we drove back because we had to  interview some baptismal candidates for another ward.  The next day we had another meeting way off in Coulee with the whole zone this time and it took awhile.  We came back and there was a crash on our way to dinner so we had to stay there for awhile and witness/translate for the cop! hahaha  Then it was Sunday... it was crazy!! hahaha  The best part is--not going to lie,  I was a little frustrated because I really wanted to proselyte and things but I was praying and it was weird-- I just really felt like it was all ok. It was all out of my control and God knows what He is doing! I realized that everyday on the mission God has a special plan for and if we listen to the spirit we will have an incredible day! 

I love the mission so much guys and everyday out here is the best day ever! I love serving my Savior and wearing his name on my chest! This gospel is true and everything about it is pure and simple and peaceful! I love you guys so much and miss you a ton! 

Love Elder Oliver

November 2, 2015

Dear Mom and family!

So real quick to answer those first questions! Ephrata is completely different than Moses Lake right down to the members... hahaha it’s crazy but really fun and a good experience in learning how to work with all types of people! I love it up here. Our little Spanish group of 5 members got combined this week with the English ward so we'll see how that goes! I”ll be getting to do translation again! Elder G is from Utah and he's got about 6 weeks left hahaha little less than 6 months. But he works super hard and doesn’t let it get to him so that is super good! We call it getting trunky! hahahaha  So this week has been amazing! The Lord has been putting people in our path left and right and  it’s been incredible! We found a new family last night and a few potentials throughout the week--so we were pretty stoked! Halloween was awesome we went in early because of the trick or treaters but we didn’t get any. We were a little sad, but the Elders we live with are super fun so it was still a good time! Hey-- Thank you so much for that package! I loved it!  All the candy was perfect and those m&ms were bomb! hahaha But seriously-- I appreciated it so much!

I love you guys so much and sounds like you had an awesome week! With Halloween and everything sounds like things are about to get cray-cray hahaha!!  Seriously, Mom, you couldn’t be more right. Discouragment is probably one of the devils best tools for members of the church. I can feel it all the time out here.  It just depends on if we dwell on it or not! I study a lot about virtue and the power behind it and it's so incredible. It really is self-mastery.  The atonement is such a big part in everything we do, everything we are. I love my Savior Jesus Christ and what He has done and continues to do for me!

So this week has been filled with miracles ever since the beginning! Every companionship  in the zone is seeing miracles and it’s so awesome to see. The spirit is just lighter and everyone is changing. It’s amazing! We were counseling together,  Elder G and I, and the Lord showed us this awesome idea and vision for the zone! We are calling it “A Night in White” and it’s a stake wide baptismal service!!! Every companionship is going to baptize on November 28th and everyone is going to wear white ties or  dresses.   It’s going to be amazing and I can’t wait to see the change that happens here! We are just seeing so many miracles in our area! We met the V family who are incredible! We were standing at their door and it was kinda sounding like they didn’t really want to talk to us but I was praying super hard in my heart and then out of no where he said "entonces quieren pasar por un momento?" and we went in and taught the restoration.  The spirit was so strong! Sometimes I wonder why I ever doubt... the Lord provides every single time!!hahaha  It’s amazing and now they are on date for the 28th!! We’re so stoked!!

Man I love and miss you guys so much!! You’re seriously the best family in the world! Everyday I realize that and thank my Heavenly Father for that!

Love you guys so much

Elder Oliver