Thrust in dat' sickle! 3-9-15

Thanks for the pictures! It’s still snowing and junk over there? geez, I’m sorry guys, I feel really bad that I’m chill’n in tropical SoCal right now. We are actually going to the Flower Fields today in Carlsbad for our district activity because they are all in bloom. Thanks for the quotes, I liked the one about gaining confidence by doing the things you are afraid to do. It’s so true. You will never grow unless you step outside of your comfort zone and adventure. Just like going on a mission, I would be so far behind on a lot of things if I never decided to just take a leap of faith and go. It was hard, and definitely scary, but the skills I’ve learned and the blessings I’ve seen from it are immeasurable. I did get your envelope! Thank you so much! I actually used the gift card today! It helped out a lot. I could actually use some of those capsule things for allergies. I’ve been sneezing my head off lately because the pollen is so bad here. Spring came early this year I guess.

We’ve been pretty busy this week. I was able to conduct a few more exchanges with some members of the district. I was able to go with one of my zone leaders Elder Cordery and Elder Major who has only been on his mission for about 4 weeks now. Both are studs. E Cordery is very good out finding out what you need help with or what you’re really struggling with and helping you overcome them. On our exchange E. Cordery was talking to a Hispanic guy on the street and setting up a lesson with him, he was originally in Spanish ward before he became a ZL, and we heard someone scream "ELDERS!!!" and then saw a blue car drive by with a man hanging out the window with a gallon of water. Well he attempted to cool us off I guess, but it was a failed attempt, it came about 2 feet shy of hitting us. haha. Elder Major is basically pre trained, he is a boss. We had a lot of good conversations about missionary work, and all the sports I missed out on the past 2 years, haha.

We were able to meet with Omega this week. He is a character for sure. we knocked on the screen door, which you can’t really see much through, and we heard him say, " WHO'S THAT ON MY DOOR STEP!?" he let us in and come to find out he had a pump action shot gun pointed right at us and we had no idea.. Thank goodness he has experience with guns and it wasn’t loaded, but still, it was super sketchy. He is a little too comfortable with his weapons. He then showed us his 45 pistol with hollow point bullets and we continued to talk about guns and how to kill people for the next 30 minutes before the lesson. haha, (nervous laugh..) He didn’t show up to church again, which sucks, but we will get him next week.

Big news, do you remember praying for an investigator named Blake in my last area in Palomar YSA? He was baptized on Saturday!!!!! I was able to go back and speak at his baptism, it was so cool. All his family was there and I was able to see all my old buddies from the YSA, it was great reunion, and there were so many missionaries there. It has been amazing to see the hand of God work in his life. I remember teaching him from day one back in July of last year, all the way up until now. He has grown so much. He has a grand adventure ahead of him. Its small moments like that, being a part of Blake's life and being able to know I was able to help him change the rest of his life for the better makes it all worth it. This is what it’s all about.

Something that my mission President said in one of his recent emails to me was very profound. He said "What we do removes sorrow from the face of the earth (Alma 29:2)." I’m so grateful that this is my full time job right now. I love the work, I’m so glad that I was in the right places at the right time that led me to where I am right now. What a blessing. Sometimes I feel like I don’t deserve half the things the Lord has blessed me with, He has given me so much and continues to give freely each and every day.

I love you all so much,

-Elder Daniel

                                       

-Ha, who would of thought this would be me two years ago?​

Morning run to the San Luis Rey Mission! 

- E. Cordery!

 -Blake's Baptism!!!!!!!!!!!

 

-Were tight with "Fred the Pirate"

-Chill skater kids in our complex, Jaravi and Juan. I give em' some tips from time to time

                                                           -At the Oceanside Library today

 

 

 

Still truckn in Oside... 3-2-15

Oh man, I miss the snow. I wouldn’t mind it right about now.. I’m saying this as I am two minutes away from the coast. I will probably eat my words when I get back and start saying I miss SoCal.. I bet the kids are pretty stoked they get to play in it and sleep in for the whole week pretty much. Everything shuts down when they get a few inches.

This week we were able to meet with Omega, Anaid, and Myra. We had awesome lessons with all of them, the only thing is not one of them came to church this week, so we are going to have to push all their dates back. Sometimes I feel like I’m a babysitter or an elementary school teacher. Were constantly, persistently, working with these guys and committing them to do very simple things, but they just don’t do it. And then you have to start all over again and make things very clear and simple so they can understand what you’re asking them to do and so they remember.

I’ve learned so much over the past few months since I was called to be a district leader. Most of my mission I dreaded the day that I would ever be called into leadership, you know me and my personality. I never thought that I would be called, but I was sorely proven wrong. It’s a testimony builder to me that Heavenly Father truly qualifies and sustains who he calls, even if they are weak. There is a scripture in DC 133:59 that states this principle very clearly.

"And by the weak things of the earth the Lord shall thrash the nations by the power of his Spirit." I’m doing things I never fathomed or thought I could ever do or ever would do. It is absolutely amazing to me what the Lord can do if you put you trust in Him and heed the call when He needs you to act.

Love you all,

-Elder Daniel

Cool plaza at the Oceanside Library

​- Repp'n Bama in SoCal

-Exchanges with E. Burandt (4th week in the mission field)

Changes and stuff.. 2-23-15

What?! Rich went to the San Diego Temple!!! That’s awesome I was just there a few weeks ago! It is hands down my all-time favorite temple, no other temple compares. It’s the most beautiful place on the face of the planet.

He should’ve come to the mission office in Vista and said what’s up to President Kendrick or something! haha. That’s so awesome.

Fun fact, the library that we are at today in Oceanside has a view of the Pacific Ocean down the street! Rad!

So this week we had a few changes. A missionary unfortunately went home early last week and so that caused a ripple effect in the mission. About 5 different companionship's were affected by this change and five emergency transfers had to happen. The elders living with elder Brighurst and I got a call Friday morning telling to pack their stuff and be at the mission office at 10 o'clock the next morning. They were both transferred to Temecula. So just like that the Oceanside 2nd Ward was condensed down to only 2 missionaries, Elder Bringhurst and I. It’s been pretty hectic because we cover the whole ward now and we are having to meet everyone that they were working with that we haven’t met before. Kind of crazy, it sucks because it halts the progression of those that they were working with to a degree, but that happens a lot in missionary work and you just have to work with what you got.

To answer your question about my comp. I won’t say anything negative about him I will only dwell on the positive. Although, I will say that he has had a very rough past and he has a pretty lousy family situation going on right now. The way that he copes with things could be better, but we are helping each other to be better, we learn from one another daily. This is the first time on my mission that I have really had to give correction and instruction to another missionary. I thought about it the other day and had an epiphany. Me being with Elder Bringhurst is preparing me and teaching me things that I will use for the rest of my life. I’ll be a father one day, and I’m going to need to know how to lead my family in righteousness, not just watch carelessly as they continue to make wrong choices. It’s very humbling and amazing when passages from your patriarchal blessing start to make sense and come to life. I’ve seen that many times on my mission. District leading has also helped me to know how to multitask effectively while you have an extra load on your back, haha.

We taught Omega again this week. He is so prepared and ready to receive the gospel it’s ridiculous! haha. All we have to do is get him to church and start introducing him to the ward. We taught Anaid on Saturday. She is very eager to learn more and to be baptized, the only thing is that she is dead set on having her dad baptize her. The only problem with that is that he lives in Utah, was recently baptized himself and doesn’t have the Priesthood yet. So we will continue to troubleshoot. We met with Myra on Wednesday. Her only concerns are coming to church and her family. She is in her early twenties, has two sons, and is currently going through a custody battle with her ex-boyfriend. So she is busy and stressed a lot. We’re trying to help her as much as we can. We picked up a new investigator last week too, his name is Gilbert, he is a middle aged Hispanic man who is Catholic but willing to learn more.

You guys are probably already doing it, but can I ask you to pray for the people that we are working with? As well as for me and my companion, especially Elder Bringhurst. That would help out a lot.

My current zone leader and one of my previous companions told all of us in the zone a quote that is from a picture hanging up back in his ranch in Wyoming. It says “When the going gets tough, the tough get going”. Times are tough, but you can’t move mountains sitting on your backside feeling sorry for yourself. Sometimes you can’t control your circumstances or the trials that will come into your life, all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.

I love you all more than anything

-Elder Daniel

                                                               E. Bringhurst and I

Tre Flips and cats stuck in trees 2-17-15

I got all your pics from Mardi Gras, looks like ya’ll had a blast! I hope you didn’t have to earn any of them the old fashion way. Ant? haha. I remember doing that huge remodel down in Mobile and going to Mardi Gras, it was a ton of fun.

Funny that you mention that because I actually already have a few boxes of stuff packaged up that I’ve been meaning to send home, just haven’t had the money (I’m trying not to think of home too much, haha). Missionaries actually have people pick their stuff up all the time from the mission office. If he's flying it would probably weigh him down a bit though.

This week was wonderful!!!

First off I got a new comp. His name is Elder Brighurst, he hails from Buffalo, New York. There was actually a glitch on the church's directory online so we were able to see all are new comps last pday, haha. When I found out that I was getting him I was kind of scared because I have heard a lot of things about him. But every time I enter into a new companionship I promise myself to love them no matter what, regardless of what I know and have heard. Surprisingly we get along great, were best buds! We have had similar pasts, we have similar family situations, we relate very well, and have the same interests. He is probably one of the funniest kids I’ve ever met. We are always laughing and having a good time. He reminds me of Gage Kemerer a lot.

We had another guy try to tell us and a few other elders about "Nephylum" children while we were at McDonald’s last pday. He was this skinny black guy who must’ve been from South Africa or something. It was pretty hilarious. I felt bad because I couldn’t help but start laughing as he was explaining to us all this crazy stuff in a way that was super funny to me, I don’t know why. I laugh at the most mundane things. hahaha

I was able to go to our Mission Leadership conference last Thursday where all the District, Zone, and Sister Training Leaders in the mission met together to discuss the needs of the mission and which directions we want to take. I had heard a lot of bad things about it, but it was actually very spiritually uplifting and edifying. I was also able to see a lot of familiar faces and previous companions. S. Lemon is a Sister Training Leader, E. Fitzpatrick and Moolenbeek are District Leaders now and E. Mather, (MTC comp), is now one of the Assistants. All the elders we came out with from the MTC were there, we are all zone and district leaders now which is pretty cool, (were not "piles" after all!!! haha)

So we have a skate park in our area, (FINALLY), no I’m not excited that I get to look at it all the time. I’m able to use it a missionary tool. If were in that part of our area I make it a point to stop by the park and talk to any skaters who are there. It’s pretty funny because they usually laugh at us as we walk by, but I can’t resist showing them that I’m one of them, and that I used to be in their exact same shoes 2 years ago, when they start to make fun of us. Last week there was a big crew of kids up there and I was able to show them a 360 flip. It was pretty cool, they were all like "OOOHH SHOOOT!!" haha. They always say what’s up when we pass by now. I haven’t been able to get any of them to take the lessons yet, but I’m working on them. There are new kids up there all the time.

E. Bringhurst and I were walking down the street his first night in the area and we heard a cat meowing but couldn’t figure out where it was coming from. We looked up and saw a cat stuck all the way at the top. E. Bringhurst has a thing for cats, so he had to save it. We tried everything we could to get it out, he tried throwing his bag at it to scare it out but it didn’t work. We even knocked on the guy’s door that the tree was in, but a Hispanic guy answered the door and said, "I no like gatos". So we eventually had to leave the cat, Bringhurst was pretty bummed, but we tried. It was a pretty random experience, haha. Imagine two Mormon missionaries throwing there book satchels into a tree.

Yesterday we taught a super cool guy named Omega. He is a former investigator. He is black and had a super awesome beard. But that is not the only thing that makes him cool. He is a former Green Beret, Special Forces in the Army, former undercover police officer, and he is a Mason. Also the business that he is a part of right now allows him to meet some pretty famous people, he showed us a picture of him chill’n with Kanye West. haha. This guy has tons of stories and is super funny. He also knows a ton about the church already. He said that had a very profound experience with the spirit when the missionaries knocked on his door a few years ago, he was just lost in the area book and we were the first missionaries to stop back by. We were able to set a date with him for the first weekend in March! He is a stud. We are super stoked for this guy.

I’ve been doing a study on what the ingredients are that produce diligence and consecration in missionary work. The core of it all is conversion. true conversion to the gospel, especially the Atonement, will lead to a strong desire to share that testimony and what we know with others, that desire will allow us to act and lead to diligence. And from diligence to consecration. You can apply this principal to any aspect of our lives. Just figure out where the core is and fix the core. Then everything else will fall into place.

I love you all,

-Elder Daniel

"Nephilyn Children".. 2-9-15

I've decided I'm going to start titling my emails again according to whatever crazy stuff happened during the week.

Congrats on your job! I will have to get lunch there when I get back. ADELINE THATS SO AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Holy crap!!! haha, I'm so excited for you!!! study it often, you will discover and understand new things as time progresses and as you live righteously. It will help you especially in times of need and when you need direction in your life. Nate Dawg is the stake young mens prez what?! Thats awesome! I cant wait till I get back so I can meet the punks who try to date my little sisters, haha.

So Elder Waechtler is getting transferred on Tuesday so that means I will have a new companion in a few days, I'll fill ya in next week! I used to be excited to go to transfer meetings, but now I just get a melancholy feeling just thinking about them. So many of the people Ive served around are leaving for home on Tuesday, and thats how it will be up until the meeting that I leave.. Its getting real, its seriously scary. Im in denial that my time is coming soon. I try not to think about it.

So last week we contacted this guy in a big green coat, he mustve been crazy because it was like 80 degrees outside and he was wearing that thing, and we talked to him for about 30 minutes, long enough for the other elders we live with to run into us and join us in our discussion in the street. He wasnt really making any sense, he kept jumping back and forth about strange stories and teachings in the Old Testament, when we left we still didnt really understand the point he was trying to make with us. Anyway the thing that he told us that was really funny/ odd to listen to was about the "Nephilyn children". Theyre like hybrid angel-human babies that are super human, but theyre all extinct now.. Im not making this up its legit! Its in the Bible! hahaha, I actually tried to look for what he wsa talking about and I couldnt find it. Gotta love crazy homeless street contacts!!

This week we helped a guy move and put in a total of 10 service hours.. It was one of those moves where nothing is packed, they dont know whats happening at all in their life, they dont know what they want they want to do with all their crap let alone move it, and they expect you to do EVERYTHING for them.. needless to say it was pretty stressful. Somehow we got er' done, only by the grace of Heavenly Father, haha. I dont think I have ever moved so much crap in my life until I came out on my mission. Not even when I was working for Dispatch with Ralph and the Jamaicans on Redstone Arsenal.. im serious! haha.

The other night we were sitting on a rock waiting for a ride. There was a palm tree that kind of hid us from view of anyone walking our direction on the side walk. And this old lady on a tricycle comes riding our direction. She was riding pretty slow because she was in the process of lighting a cigarette when Elder Waechtler say in an excited voice "how ya doin tonight!", She about fell off her bike and said in an irritated old smoker lady voice "geez, you scarred the crap out of me!!!" I dont know why, but it was hilarious!

That same night we were walking and a big black liftes truck came tearing down the street in a pretty ghetto part of our area in Oceanside. He yelled at us "HEY YOU MORMONS!!!" I expected to get a mouthful of unpleasent words, but to my surprise he said "WHY DONT YOU DO ME A FAVOR AND GO..   HAVE A GOOD NIGHT!!!" It was pretty funny. I think the spirit mustve got to him or someting, (DC 33:8), haha.

So there was ahomecoming talk this Sunday by the kid I wsa talking about a few weeks ago who got back from his mission in Rome, Italy. The main point of his talk was about how by small and simple things are great things brought to pass. (Alma 37:6). He also quoted Gandalf from the first Hobbit Movie. Which is one of the same quotes I have hanging on my wall over my desk. It says "Some believe it is only great power that can hold evil in check, but that is not what I have found. I found it is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay... small acts of kindness and love." Could not have said it better myself. It is truly the little things that we do that will make the greatest difference in other's lives. Also we need not be afraid of being weak or feeling inadequate, the Lord is on our side and will truly lift us up upon eagles wings and make weak things strong, alI we have to do is trust him completely, and hold nothing back.

I love you all,

 

-E. Daniel
                    Yup, that is a genuine Bama license plate in Oceanside California.

Doing what we do best!

 

Oceanside District

 

Lunch with Candy Baugh​. Our "mission grandma" I freaking love this woman.