Pictures from November 11, 2013

The Sheboygan Elders, November 2013

Transfer Day!

Sweet!  A TIE fighter...in a field...

20 degrees in Rhinelander, its balmy!

Rhinelander's legendary Hodag

November 11, 2013

Hello Everyone and Happy Veterans Day!  Thank you to all those who have served and are serving today!  It means so much to me to be able to live in a free country where the Gospel of Jesus Christ could be restored and I have the right to go forth and preach it. So thank you so much!  

I have transferred to the north woods of Wisconsin in Rhinelander, our area is huge! It would take us three hours to go from the west end of our area to the east end.  The ward in the area is smaller but the saints here are so diligent and faithful! Some members have to drive 72 miles just to get to church every Sunday.  Their temple is in a different state 4 Hours away.  They have such a desire to share the Book of Mormon with their friends!  I hope we all can have the same dedication to share the blessings of the gospel with our friends and families.  

So Rhinelander is cold, about a 20 degree difference from my last area, it is usually in the 20's but i've been able to stay warm and i haven't even whipped out my thermals and wool socks. I am excited to see 6 feet of snow, I haven't seen that since my sophomore year where it snowed 3 feet over night and then another foot while I was snowboarding.  My new companion and I don't have much to work with as far as investigators go so we will have to find our own. We have been tracting for about 3-4 hours each day to try and find those who are interested.  So far it is hard to find people home but we will keep at it.  

This week I want to talk about prayer and the amazing gift that it is!  We have a direct comunication to the ultimate source of power and comfort in existence. Our Father in Heaven is always there for us.  We can turn to Him any time and he will strengthen us. I have really felt that this past week, I'm in a new area, its cold, there aren't many people interested in the gospel, and I don't want to knock on doors.  But I have prayed for strength and desire and I testify that when we have faith that God can change us He does.  I found that I didn't notice the cold, that I was excited to talk to new people.  I know that that is not me, my attitude was changed and I was strengthened by the Lord through His Atonement. I am so grateful for the prayers of everyone, my family and friends and those all over the world, I can feel that love and power from everyone. I don't know how I could do it with out prayer.  Alma taught us to "let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually" alma 34;27 We can't do it without prayer!  

Have an amazing week everyone! Get ready for thanksgiving! I love you all!

Elder Ward

Sheboygan Ward "Trunk or Treat"

Sheboygan District, October 2013

November 4, 2013 Update

I'm Leaving Sheboygan! I'm very sad and excited at the same time. I have loved my time here!  The people are so amazing in the ward.  The families are always so kind and have us over for dinner all the time! We have a dinner appointment nearly 5/7 nights a week.

So I found out this past Saturday that I was leaving but I didn't know where.  Then Last night (Sunday) the mission president called my companion and I.  I'm going to Rhinelander Wisconsin, I have a huge area and my new companion and I get a truck. It is in the northern area of the state and I will get dumped on as far as snow is concerned. But I am excited! I miss snow. It hasn't been too cold this past week but now with day light savings time it is dark at 5:30, which makes it hard to go out and tract because it feels a lot later than it is and people get mad when you knock or ring their doorbells when they are trying to put kids to bed.  

Oh well. This week was pretty good! We had dinner every night with a member family and for Halloween we couldn't be outside after 5oclock so we were invited to a members house to carve pumpkins! It was a blast they have a huge family and it was a lot of fun.  

This week was a little sad because we had so many awesome lessons set up but the majority of them fell through.  But those lessons we did have were also amazing so I can't complain.  

I will share one of my favorite scriptures that I read this week in Alma 26:12  Ammon is rejoicing because of all the success that he and his brethren have had so much success teaching the lamanites.  One of his brothers Aaron said v10 "Ammon, I fear that thy joy doth carry thee away unto boasting"  and verse 12 is Ammons reply, "Yea, I know that i am nothing, as to my strength I am weak: therfore I will not boast of myself, but i will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things"  I love this because I know that the things that are happening are not because of me and the words I say.  I know that God has made all of this possible and places people in my path that are seeking this gospel.  I know that I weak, but I also know that I can do anything that God asks of me through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. 

I hope everyone had an amazing week!  I love hearing from everyone!  

But since i'm moving appartments please make sure to address everything to the mission office this is IMPORTANT!!!!! I don't want to lose any letters so please send them to 7111 W. Edgerton Ave. Ste. 100 Greenfield WI 53220.

Love Elder Ward

October 21st update

Hey everyone!  

I have had a great week!  It is pretty chilly in the morning and evenings, I have had to break out the coat a few times.  It rained pretty hard the other day and we are out of miles for the month with our car so we got to walk, which is alright.  It is so pretty here in Wisconsin, so many trees, so many colors!  Since there are no mountains you can see the sky in all directions and its pretty cool. 

This week was good, we talked to many new people and saw a lot of miracles.  Here's one, so my companion and I are pretty much out of miles so we were walking to a referrals house to set up an appointment, they were there and we set up a lesson for this week! We were walking back on a busy road but we felt we wouldn't really see anyone so we walked a few blocks in and headed up through the neighborhoods.  We started talking to this guy who was edging his lawn.  He has been so prepared by the Lord, He is married, lives the word of wisdom, he is looking for a new church, he has BYU tv and loves the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  We asked if we could tell him a little bit more about the church and he gladly set up a time for tomorrow.  At times I get down because I feel like no one wants to learn and no one keeps commitments, but I have learned that when I focus on the little blessings that God has given me I realize all the help and success that He gives me.  And I have all the more desire to serve him and do his will. 

My spiritual thought is one of my favorite scriptures for my mission but also for everyone on this earth.  It's in Moroni 9:6 And it talks about how we all have a duty while we are on this earth, we are commanded to labor diligently so that we may conquer the enemy of all righteousness.  I really love this verse because it reminds me that when we are righteous we exercise power over satan.  When we are diligent then we do the things that please God. satan has no power over us, only the power that we give him over us.  So my challenge for everyone is to cast off those things that we do that give power to satan in little ways.  What ever it is when you rid yourself of it you grow closer to God and then he will bless you all the more fully.  

I will end with a quote that I love that helps me remember diligence to the Lord " Consecration is the only surrender which is also a victory"  Neil A Maxwell 

When we dedicate ourselves to God we show Him our love for Him

I Love you all! Have an amazing week!

Elder Ward

October 14, 2013

Hello everyone! I hope you have all had an awesome week!  This week for me was pretty amazing.  We had the chance to meet with the Mission President this past Friday, President Cutler.  He is such an inspired man! Every time we have a meeting and he gives a lesson he blows my mind and the Holy Ghost is so powerful!    The interview was great, we talked about the work we are doing the people we are seeing and then he offered very specific counsel for a few individuals.  My question for him was how we can better feel the Holy Ghost in our lives his answer was through humility.  He talked about how God gives us hardships to break down our pride so we can rely on him, when we do this we rely constantly on the Holy Ghost. I learned that we must constantly pray to our Father in Heaven and when we do He will bless us with everything we need to succeed.

The past few weeks we have been very busy running around trying to talk to all of the people that have been on our lists, at times it is frustrating and hard when we spend so much time trying to talk to these people but no one is home/ they aren't interested/ try back again. At times it felt like it was time wasted, but we have seen so many blessings from diligently working.  A member's mother who is not a member of the church whos name is M has been coming to church and has set up a time to have dinner with us at her daughters house so she can learn more.  Another man is excited about reading the Book of Mormon and is at home all day long.  Two other members have a friend who feels that she isn't satisfied with her church and wants to be more committed.  I am so excited to see them grow in faith. 

I was reading in Alma 2 and how the people were in a horrible battle with the lamanites and amlicites.  But despite their hardships and fear, they remembered the Lord and prayed to be strengthened. The Lord heard their prayers and answered them and granted them strength to defend themselves and their families and their homes.  The faith of these people is such and example to me. They prayed for strength to change their conditions, they didn't pray for their  condition to change.  When we pray for strength, we put our trust in the Lord and continue to do our part and God strengthens us.   I take great comfort in knowing that I don't need to be a perfect teacher or be able to do everything perfectly on my own. I know that I have an all powerful God who will strengthen me to do His will.

Have and amazing week everyone! And may we all be blessed with the strength to do whatever it is we need to accomplish in our lives this week.

Love, Elder Ward

Weekly Update October 7, 2013

Another great week in Sheboygan Wisconsin.  The leaves are beginning to change!  For three days this week it was extreemly foggy.  The air was full of rain but it stormed on and off.  But if you walked outside the water you touched in the air would just collect on you.  There were some great lightning storms and we got to break out our rain coats and umbrellas.  We have continued to attempt to stop by a long list of people that the other missionaries have given us and as usual about half of the people aren't home, the other half are but half of them aren't interested.  The final quarter of them are split up into people that we have lessons with and people who aren't home when we have lessons set up.  So that is hard to see so little of the people we plan on teaching actually being taught but those we do manage to teach actually want to learn.  This week we get to go to early morning semminary and talk about the Book of Mormon.  Their semminary starts at 5:45 in the morning which means we have to get up at 4:45, but I'm pumped! I miss seminary! 

We do have quite a few people we are meeting with who have a sincere desire to learn, one is the Bishop's neighbor who we have seen before but he and his wife have been on a two week trip visiting family so we have a lesson set up with them.  The Bishop is coming along with us so that is already going to be an amazing experience! Another woman has always believed in God but doesn't understand why good people die before their time.  It will be an amazing lesson to share with her the Plan of Salvation and the peace, comfort, and knowledge that it brings.  With the other people who we have been teaching, they are still as busy as ever, which is so sad to see because we can tell that they want and need the gospel in their lives but can't find time for it. 

Conference was amazing, this has been the first time that I have watched all five sessions without missing one, falling asleep, ect.  It was so powerful. The variety of things taught along with the simple doctrine threaded throughout each speakers comments was backed by a powerful spirit testifying of the truthfulness of their words.  I can't even begin to decide which one was my favorite. But a quote that I loved was by Elder Dube' "Never look back! Look forward to what we still have to do."  Looking back can lead to complacency and then we can slip into a state of false confidence. But if we are focusing our attention on our weaknesses and what we can improve then we can be strengthened by Christ's Atonement.  President Monson Quoted Christ " I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee."  and how strong trees are the ones who endure strong winds.  It reminded me of the lyrics of a song by a band I listened to before my mission, It goes, " I always knew I'd never reach perfection, and if I did then I wasn't trying hard enough, because there is always something more to reach for."  In this life we can't be perfect.  There is always something we will fail at.  But Jesus Christ will not fail us, and when we turn to him and humble ourselves by living the doctrine that we know to be true, then we are built and strengthened.  

Have an amazing week everyone.  I know that Jesus Christ is always there waiting, we simply need to turn to Him.

      ~Love Elder Ward