10.24.11

This weeks biggest news is that we changed a tire in the middle of the pouring rain. It was probably the fastest that anyone has ever changed a tire, we could be a nascar pit crew. Yesterday I gave a talk, I'm getting transferred to Jamaica to be a zone leader in Ocho Rios, I leave in a couple of weeks. I'm pretty excited about it. My new companion will be Elder Mackey, I have met him before, he is a pretty cool guy. We have Carlton's Baptism on Thursday, Jack is going to baptize him. Its going to be really cool. Carlton Bore his testimony twice in church yesterday. He is going to be a stud member. The journey for Carlton has been very easy, I'm very grateful that Heavenly Father has blessed me to be able to have one more baptism before I leave this island. I have been really grateful for the opportunity to serve here. It has caused me to grow so much, I have learned things here that I will never forget. I have met some of the coolest people here and have had some really good examples for me of what the future can hold. The branch here has become like my family and I am going to miss all of them. The branch leadership here is awesome and really love their callings and magnify them greatly. Serving here has made me excited to get a church calling in the future and to rock it like a hurricane. Speaking of hurricane it has been raining here for the whole week and still is this week. It makes the weather cooler but it gets old pretty fast. I was lectured on the sabbath day being Saturday for like an hour this week, I hate Saturdays. So that is the story so far morning glory. Christmas is only 2 months away, that is crazy, the second year really does fly by. Elder Mccready thinks that my flavored tootsie rolls are ghetto candy, I think he's crazy. We had some tourists that hailed us down on the street take us to lunch and dinner. Lunch was fresh sushi and dinner was steak at the nicest steak house on the island. It was awesome. They were from Georgia and were really cool. the moleberrys. Until next week everybody, right now I'm going to play some mud football in the hurricane force wind and rain YEAH!!!!!!!!

10.17.11

Smith Cove Beach

An engraved plaque at Smith Cove Beach

Sister Dela Cruz from the Phillipines


It was a good week this week. The family we were teaching became un-interested so that was a bummer. But things are looking up and we have some solid investigators. Friday night was a really cool night, President Johnson took us and an investigator to Calypso Grill, it was a lot of fun. We were eating out on the dock and it was night time and a HUGE yellow moon was rising over the ocean, it was beautiful. President Johnson really is a huge inspiration for me, the guy is a spiritual giant. I have been here on the Cayman Islands for about 6 months and I have to say that it has caused me to grow and learn and progress so much in my life, its really crazy. The people that are here in the branch are amazing. I have learned so many lessons and have had a lot of great examples from so many of the people here. We have at times struggled with solid people to teach and we have done everything we could think of to find people, and we prayed tons, and even though it was the hardest times, it is when we had the most growth and when the branch family here let us lean on them for support.

Hebrews 12:11 " Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievious: nevertheless afterward it yeildeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness"

At the end of the day it really is all about service to others. Mosiah 5:13 "For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?"

We are really building momentum and the future is looking really good. I'm pretty stoked about what we are accomplishing. I love you all.

10.10.11

Had a good week this week with a lot of ups and downs. Yesterday was an awesome fast and testimony Sunday, we had a lot of good testimonies. The family that we have been teaching came to church along with 2 of our other investigators. They seemed to really enjoy it. The family has had a lot of ups and downs, we see them and have a really powerful lesson with them, then they want to take a week to think about everything. This family needs the gospel would be perfect for it, they just need to have some faith in themselves. President Hendricks and Sister Hendricks and the 2 assistants came to zone conference here on Friday. That was really awesome. Its a cool way to have zone conference because its just us and them and we pull out a table and all sit at it. It was a really good meeting, it really was inspiring. President Hendricks is awesome, I love him. While they were here we went to lunch at prime with Brother Workman--founder of the Canadian Football League-- and his wife. We have been teaching his wife and it really has been coming a long good, she got back from Miami and beat her cancer again so that was amazing. The lunch was good and it was a good little meeting we had. Zone conference was awesome, so much of it was on the importance of obedience, it really is everything.

10.03.11

Well to start off Conference was super good. There were some really good talks, pretty much all of them actually. And priesthood was powerful. Definitely glad that I was on a mission for that one... haha. Conference as a missionary is one of the best days of your mission with out question. But I'm sure that all conferences are this good, I just never really listened to them before. I kinda feel like I missed out all those years before. D. Todd's talk was awesome, Richard Scott's and all the priesthood talks were great. It was an exclamation point on the week, the family that we are teaching right now is doing awesome. They came to the first session of Sunday conference and they really loved it. Shirley-the mom- is awesome. She is such a good mom to her kids. It has been a great blessing to teach this family. They really have enjoyed reading from the Book of Mormon. After going through those couple of weeks of not really having anybody solid to teach, it really teaches you to cherish the people that you get. All of our efforts are devoted to this family. I think that we had to pass through the refiners fire to get ready for this family. We got caught in some pretty heavy down pours this week and we have had to run about 50 yards each time to the car. It was pretty funny, you cant help but laugh when running through the rain in huge puddles because there is no drainage system here. So that was pretty much the week.

09.19.11 Continued...

More pics...these go with the 9.19.11 post

09.26.11

This week was an awesome week. We worked really hard and did a lot of stuff. We really had a spiritual week and set some good goals and looked at stuff that we can improve on and I think we did a good job. Monday, we went to a place called Rum Point. Its a beach that is on the North side of the Island and there is only one road to take to get there and it goes all the way around the island. So it was a cool drive and the beach was really nice, it looked a lot like a Lake Tahoe beach. There were some hammocks set up and stuff so it was nice to relax. Tuesday we had a good day, knocked a lot of doors and found some decent people. in the evening we saw Angie and had a good follow up lesson with her, she is a really good recent convert and is doing well. Then we went and saw a less active and had an awesome lesson with her, it was really powerful, I hope that she comes back, she is super smart and would really help the branch. Wednesday, we had our district meeting and that was good, then we went to the hospital and there weren't too many customers there. Also our phone broke, so we lost a lot of our numbers and that has been really frustrating. We knocked some doors and made 2 return appointments, for Thursday... remember that.... Later in the day we were knocking a different place and we met a really cool family, had a good first lesson with them. I'm really excited to teach them, I think they are going to be good. We saw Vinny, the new vet student here and recent convert from Seattle, had a really good lesson with him, we are working with him now to get the priesthood so that will be cool. President Ashby came teaching with us that night and it was cool, Prez. Ashby is awesome, really a funny guy. We saw Luraine another recent convert with him and had a good visit and we also saw some old investigators, Helen and Peter, and it went well, I think we are going to teach them again, I think they are ready to start coming to church again. It was a good day. Thursday morning, we had an opportunity to give blessings to a mother and a daughter, Elder Mccready fasted for it and it was a very powerful experience. So remember those 2 appointments we made on Wednesday for Thursday....well it turns out that we god hoodwinked pretty bad, those people didn't even live at those houses, so yeah that was really awesome. That night we saw Adonza and her daughter was sick. I really felt as we were standing there talking to her that we should offer to give her a blessing, we said good bye and I told E. Mccready what I thought we should do and he said maybe lets pray about it so we did in the car and I felt that we should and he did too. So we did and it was an awesome blessing. We called the next day and she was feeling completely better. It was really cool. Friday, we went to a restaurant called Abacus and tried to use the gift certificates that brother Workman got us- 25 bucks each. Well we both ordered lobster Ravioli and it sucked...only like 9 ravioli came in a tiny bowel. So we tried to pay using both certificates but we could only use one at a time so that was lame. It was funny because I told Mccready to read all the print to see if there were any catches before we went in...haha. That night we went to the wedding of Michael Pachino and his wife. Michael is a member from the states, he is a film director and producer for international films. It was really cool, then we went to dinner with president Johnson and the Airharts and the Pachino's to an Italian place, I got Ravioli again and it was a lot better. After dinner we got to hear a world class harp player who has played in Carnegie Hall. It was awesome. Prez. Johnson is the man, he is the most happy and generous guy. Saturday we were up and down everywhere inviting people to the branch bowling party which was awesome. Sunday was way good and the spirit was super strong. It really was a good week. A lot of awesome experiences. There has been a lot of violence here, 5 people shot and killed in 7 days, gang wars in west bay. We go there every other day, pretty crazy. I'm also really stoked for conference.

Love you guys