Dear Family and Friends,
Another week of fun in the sun. Things are starting to heat up again. Great. Thanks to Matt Read for the dried Tecca Sauce, I’ve been using it like a dried herb on all sorts of stuff. It’s great! Thanks to Bishop and Jason for the Christmas cards. Jason, I heard that you have to live here for 6 months first if you wanna adopt, I’m assuming that’s what those business cards were trying to tell me. Let me know if there is some sort of secret code I’m missing.
This week the four of us elders gave talks in sacrament meeting. Yours truly spoke on the importance of members helping in the work. I even mentioned how San Diego is a pilot stake for this kind of thing. It was great. The other elders spoke on covenants, doing the will of God, and the importance of the priesthood. They all tied into missionary work, and it was interesting to see how our talks complimented one another.
As for the work itself, things are a little rough. Nobody wants to come to church. They all tell us yes, but then don´t come. It´s frustrating. In brighter news, we should have at least one baptism, the grandson of a member. Also, one investigator this week not only read the entire pamphlet we left her, but also took the time to fill out the additional study questions in the back. After we picked our jaws up off the floor she asked us about the Book of Mormon. So we gave her one. We don´t normally give those out until the second or third lesson because people here don´t commit to much. We test the waters with committing them to pray about the truth of the Church, Joseph Smith, and coming to church.
Hope all else is going well. I´m still here. Letters are still worth more to me than my weight in gold.
Love Elder Nichols.
P.S. Since I normally write in English, I wanted to take a little opportunity to remind you all that I am serving in a foreign language. If there is a Google translate button, hit it now.
Mis hermanos amados, yo quiero aprovechar este momento para dar mi sentamientos y testimonio de nuestro salvador, Jesucristo. El nos ama más que nosotros podemos entender, y quiere que vengamos a Él. Nuestro Padre Celestial lo mandó a la tierra para vencer la muerte y el pecado, para que todo puedan regresar y vida eterna. Jesucristo dirige esta iglesia personalmente. Sé que Él vive. Sé que José Smith fue escogido por nuestro salvador para restaurar la autoridad, y la verdad de todos cosas. Sé esto seguramente, sin duda. Alguna persona que quiere seguir Cristo verdaderamente vendrá a este conocimiento, no creencia, por medio de oración y un estudio del Libro de Mormón, lo que José Smith tradujo por el poder de Dios. Nadie puede quitar este conocimiento, porque es escrito en mi alma, y quema dentro mi corazón. Tengo seguridad para eternidad, y testificaré en qualquier momento o lugar que Jesús es el Cristo, y esta iglesia es su reino en la tierra hoy en día. En el sagrado nombre de Jesucristo, amén.
GOOGLE TRANSLATE:
My dear brothers, I want to take this moment to give my resettlement and testimony of our Savior, Jesus Christ. He loves us more than we can understand, and wants us to come to Him our Heavenly Father sent to earth to conquer death and sin, so that everyone can return and eternal life. Jesus Christ leads the church personally. I know He lives. I know that Joseph Smith was chosen by our Savior to restore the authority and truth of all things. I know this certainly, certainly. Someone who wants to follow Christ truly come to this knowledge, not faith, through prayer and study of the Book of Mormon, which Joseph Smith translated by the power of God. No one can take this knowledge, because it's written in my soul and my heart burns within. I have eternal security, and testify at any time or place that Jesus is the Christ and the church is his kingdom on earth today. In the sacred name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Friday, January 27, 2012
Service and Cienpie 1/9/12
Dear family and friends,
This week we had 3 service projects for investigators. During the first one we found a cienpie, or centipede about 8 inches long, 2 inches wide. The Haitian next door trapped it in a bottle and told us the venom makes great alcohol...
In other news, it´s really really hard to get people to come to church. I would say that it is the next biggest problem after getting people married.
One guy told us that having an eternal family didn´t interest him. That was sad. Maybe he was having marital problems.
I had a cool experience where the Holy Ghost gave me the answer to a question before the investigator even asked it. I was talking about the first vision and Exodus 33, verse 11 came into my mind. Then the guy said that man can´t see God or he will die. So I showed him the scripture that was given to me, about God talking to Moses face to face, as one man speaketh to another, and that solved his doubt. I´ve never had to use that scripture before and it´s not in my usual arsenal. It was definitely revelation, as were 3 other answers given to me in response to some other doubts. It was a cool lesson.
Another man name Jose Manuel doesn´t believe that God answers prayers, and refuses to come to church, because he says that the church doesn´t save us, Jesus did. His mom told us the exact same thing. Shows us the importance of teaching our children the truth. But anyways later he was talking about how God is a God of love and nobody teaches that. I told him pretty firmly that it´s interesting to me that he wants to believe in a God of love, but doesn´t believe that our loving Heavenly Father would listen and answer the prayers of his children in need. Or that he would send us Prophets to help us learn how to cope in a world with more spiritual and physical dangers than ever before. Or that he would personally establish and direct a church where we can be nourished by the word of God and find comfort and aid from other members of the congregation.
He didn´t have much to say after that. So we dropped him a Book of Mormon and he said he would read it. He loves to read, so maybe that will get through to him.
We had a 2 hour discussion with one lady, the spirit was pretty strong, and it wasn´t like a debate or anything. She was just really stubborn. She doesn´t believe we need prophets, because Jesus was the last prophet and fulfilled everything. We backed up all of our doctrine with scriptures, but she conveniently ignored the points that were against her belief. Although she was willing to read the Book of Mormon.
Wish me luck, 2 weeks of holidays and people that refuse to commit to anything really put a wrench in our timeline.
Love
Elder Nichols
This week we had 3 service projects for investigators. During the first one we found a cienpie, or centipede about 8 inches long, 2 inches wide. The Haitian next door trapped it in a bottle and told us the venom makes great alcohol...
In other news, it´s really really hard to get people to come to church. I would say that it is the next biggest problem after getting people married.
One guy told us that having an eternal family didn´t interest him. That was sad. Maybe he was having marital problems.
I had a cool experience where the Holy Ghost gave me the answer to a question before the investigator even asked it. I was talking about the first vision and Exodus 33, verse 11 came into my mind. Then the guy said that man can´t see God or he will die. So I showed him the scripture that was given to me, about God talking to Moses face to face, as one man speaketh to another, and that solved his doubt. I´ve never had to use that scripture before and it´s not in my usual arsenal. It was definitely revelation, as were 3 other answers given to me in response to some other doubts. It was a cool lesson.
Another man name Jose Manuel doesn´t believe that God answers prayers, and refuses to come to church, because he says that the church doesn´t save us, Jesus did. His mom told us the exact same thing. Shows us the importance of teaching our children the truth. But anyways later he was talking about how God is a God of love and nobody teaches that. I told him pretty firmly that it´s interesting to me that he wants to believe in a God of love, but doesn´t believe that our loving Heavenly Father would listen and answer the prayers of his children in need. Or that he would send us Prophets to help us learn how to cope in a world with more spiritual and physical dangers than ever before. Or that he would personally establish and direct a church where we can be nourished by the word of God and find comfort and aid from other members of the congregation.
He didn´t have much to say after that. So we dropped him a Book of Mormon and he said he would read it. He loves to read, so maybe that will get through to him.
We had a 2 hour discussion with one lady, the spirit was pretty strong, and it wasn´t like a debate or anything. She was just really stubborn. She doesn´t believe we need prophets, because Jesus was the last prophet and fulfilled everything. We backed up all of our doctrine with scriptures, but she conveniently ignored the points that were against her belief. Although she was willing to read the Book of Mormon.
Wish me luck, 2 weeks of holidays and people that refuse to commit to anything really put a wrench in our timeline.
Love
Elder Nichols
Happy New Year 1/2/2012
Dear Family and Friends,
Happy New Year! We had to be home a little early on the Eve, but we brought some other missionaries over and played Risk. It was great.
I got letters from Chula Vista, the Olivers, and Grandma Cherry, and I am sending responses.
The work has been pretty slow the last 2 weeks due to the holidays, so I’m excited to start off a new year. There is a lot of great advice in the Ensign that really hit home. We have really high goals and expectations of ourselves, and good plans on how to strengthen the members and investigators. I´ll let you all know how it goes. Remember that missionaries love letters and dearelder.com is free for my mission. hehe... hint... oh and don´t use the CCM address or the pouch mail address if you want to send handwritten letters. The Miami address is correct.
That´s all for now!
Elder Nichols
Happy New Year! We had to be home a little early on the Eve, but we brought some other missionaries over and played Risk. It was great.
I got letters from Chula Vista, the Olivers, and Grandma Cherry, and I am sending responses.
The work has been pretty slow the last 2 weeks due to the holidays, so I’m excited to start off a new year. There is a lot of great advice in the Ensign that really hit home. We have really high goals and expectations of ourselves, and good plans on how to strengthen the members and investigators. I´ll let you all know how it goes. Remember that missionaries love letters and dearelder.com is free for my mission. hehe... hint... oh and don´t use the CCM address or the pouch mail address if you want to send handwritten letters. The Miami address is correct.
That´s all for now!
Elder Nichols
Monday, December 26, 2011
Feliz Navidad. 12/26/11
Hello again,
This new card reader I bought works great, so I still have 15 minutes. I heard that some of you are calling my emails home ¨epistles¨. Hahaha. Not sure if it´s a good thing or a bad thing. Just wanted to say that I know there are many people outside the church, members I have never met, and all other types of people that do, can, or will read these letters. I am determined to be a witness of Christ always, in all ways. My call to be a missionary does not stop at the borders of this island, and will not end in July of 2013.
Something interesting that I read this week in the Book of Mormon is found in Moroni 7. I have read it before, but it now has more powerful meaning for me. Moroni is teaching us how to judge between good and evil in our lives. He counsels us to no confuse the two, mistaking that which is good for evil, and vice versa. We met a lady who told us that God does not answer prayers, because Satan is in the air spreading lies. I testify that God loves his children, and that Jesus commanded us to pray. He said he would send us the comforter to teach us and bring things to our remembrance in John 14, verse 26. We read in Galatians that the fruits of the spirit are love and peace. I give a firm witness that God is listening to our prayers, and will answer them through the power of the Holy Ghost, as long as we have real intent and faith in Jesus Christ. Moroni 7 explains repeatedly that everything that is good comes from God, and all that is evil comes from Satan. Satan will not testify to you of the divinity of Jesus Christ, tell you to pray, love one another, give service, or anything like it. When we do these things we strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ. That is exactly what Satan does not want. Remember that the Pharisees accused Jesus of using satanic power to cast out demons, to which Jesus responded ¨a house that is divided against itself cannot stand.¨ Furthermore, Moroni says ¨ For behold, a bitter fountain cannot bring forth good water; neither can a good fountain bring forth bitter water; wherefore, a man being a servant of the devil cannot follow Christ; and if he follow Christ he cannot be a servant of the devil.¨
You will know the servants of Christ by their words and deeds. The Holy Ghost will confirm it if you are seeking with a sincere heart.
Elder Nichols
This new card reader I bought works great, so I still have 15 minutes. I heard that some of you are calling my emails home ¨epistles¨. Hahaha. Not sure if it´s a good thing or a bad thing. Just wanted to say that I know there are many people outside the church, members I have never met, and all other types of people that do, can, or will read these letters. I am determined to be a witness of Christ always, in all ways. My call to be a missionary does not stop at the borders of this island, and will not end in July of 2013.
Something interesting that I read this week in the Book of Mormon is found in Moroni 7. I have read it before, but it now has more powerful meaning for me. Moroni is teaching us how to judge between good and evil in our lives. He counsels us to no confuse the two, mistaking that which is good for evil, and vice versa. We met a lady who told us that God does not answer prayers, because Satan is in the air spreading lies. I testify that God loves his children, and that Jesus commanded us to pray. He said he would send us the comforter to teach us and bring things to our remembrance in John 14, verse 26. We read in Galatians that the fruits of the spirit are love and peace. I give a firm witness that God is listening to our prayers, and will answer them through the power of the Holy Ghost, as long as we have real intent and faith in Jesus Christ. Moroni 7 explains repeatedly that everything that is good comes from God, and all that is evil comes from Satan. Satan will not testify to you of the divinity of Jesus Christ, tell you to pray, love one another, give service, or anything like it. When we do these things we strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ. That is exactly what Satan does not want. Remember that the Pharisees accused Jesus of using satanic power to cast out demons, to which Jesus responded ¨a house that is divided against itself cannot stand.¨ Furthermore, Moroni says ¨ For behold, a bitter fountain cannot bring forth good water; neither can a good fountain bring forth bitter water; wherefore, a man being a servant of the devil cannot follow Christ; and if he follow Christ he cannot be a servant of the devil.¨
You will know the servants of Christ by their words and deeds. The Holy Ghost will confirm it if you are seeking with a sincere heart.
Elder Nichols
Monday, December 19, 2011
Christmas, I think. 12/19/11
Dear friends and family,
Last Saturday we had a baptism! A couple and 2 kids from different families. I´ll show you the pictures next week because this shop doesn´t have a card reader. It was great. The couple showed up thirty minutes late. But they showed up! I had to baptize the wife 3 times because she kept popping her feet above the water. The third time my district leader told me to step on her feet. So I did. It was tricky, but worked like a charm.
We also had a service project. The mother of one of our investigators was telling us about how she wanted to paint her house, so we said we would do it. She didn´t believe us until we showed up the next morning with 4 other elders ready to work. Took 6 hours but we got it done. One of the other elders and I placed a Book of Mormon with one of her other daughters too. So now 2 of her daughters are investigators. Score one for God´s army.
I had another interesting experience. The boyfriend of one of our investigators never wants to talk to us. He is always ¨busy¨... But we caught him chilling in the street one day sitting in his plastic chair like they all love to do here. I´m still green and naive so I said let´s go convert him and be his friend. Needless to say it didn´t turn out the way I had planned. He immediately told us he didn´t want to talk to us or waste our time, said Joseph Smith was a crazy person, and, well.... A lot of other rude things too. To be honest I left in tears and we went home.
Then during our weekly planning meeting 2 days later I had revelation. This man saw us as representatives of Joseph Smith and the church he started. I don´t really blame him, because that´s normally the first message we tell people. The Restoration of the Gospel through Joseph Smith. So for those of you reading this blog that are investigating or something close, members who want to share the gospel with their friends, or anyone else, let me set the record straight.
I am a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ and the church that He is directing. My purpose is to invite you to follow him, help develop your faith in Him, invite you to make changes in your life in accordance to God´s will and standards, help you to make the sacred covenant or promise of baptism by one holding the authority, help you receive the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, and teach you how to endure to the end, standing as a witness of Christ and developing His attributes. Everything else that we preach is but an appendage to that goal.
I´m out of time, but its good to say that I have a stronger sense of purpose, and when I focused on it during my lessons, I saw and felt a huge difference.
Much love
Elder Nichols
Last Saturday we had a baptism! A couple and 2 kids from different families. I´ll show you the pictures next week because this shop doesn´t have a card reader. It was great. The couple showed up thirty minutes late. But they showed up! I had to baptize the wife 3 times because she kept popping her feet above the water. The third time my district leader told me to step on her feet. So I did. It was tricky, but worked like a charm.
We also had a service project. The mother of one of our investigators was telling us about how she wanted to paint her house, so we said we would do it. She didn´t believe us until we showed up the next morning with 4 other elders ready to work. Took 6 hours but we got it done. One of the other elders and I placed a Book of Mormon with one of her other daughters too. So now 2 of her daughters are investigators. Score one for God´s army.
I had another interesting experience. The boyfriend of one of our investigators never wants to talk to us. He is always ¨busy¨... But we caught him chilling in the street one day sitting in his plastic chair like they all love to do here. I´m still green and naive so I said let´s go convert him and be his friend. Needless to say it didn´t turn out the way I had planned. He immediately told us he didn´t want to talk to us or waste our time, said Joseph Smith was a crazy person, and, well.... A lot of other rude things too. To be honest I left in tears and we went home.
Then during our weekly planning meeting 2 days later I had revelation. This man saw us as representatives of Joseph Smith and the church he started. I don´t really blame him, because that´s normally the first message we tell people. The Restoration of the Gospel through Joseph Smith. So for those of you reading this blog that are investigating or something close, members who want to share the gospel with their friends, or anyone else, let me set the record straight.
I am a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ and the church that He is directing. My purpose is to invite you to follow him, help develop your faith in Him, invite you to make changes in your life in accordance to God´s will and standards, help you to make the sacred covenant or promise of baptism by one holding the authority, help you receive the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, and teach you how to endure to the end, standing as a witness of Christ and developing His attributes. Everything else that we preach is but an appendage to that goal.
I´m out of time, but its good to say that I have a stronger sense of purpose, and when I focused on it during my lessons, I saw and felt a huge difference.
Much love
Elder Nichols
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Long time, no see. 12/14/11
Dear friends and family,
Well it´s only been 5 days since my last update, we are now back to the original schedule. This week we mainly just tried to get people ready for their baptisms. We should have 5 this Saturday. Here are the details
Flor and Rafael are married. She loves to sing under the stage name la pluma sutil, which means the subtle feather. She... Is... Interesting... But her husband is super excited about the gospel, and one of the nicest people I have ever met.
Jesu angel is a 9 year old whose parents are members, he just never got baptized. Kinda just fell into our laps when we went to visit his family one day.
Allen is the son of a couple that is waiting on their papers to marry. Bishop said it was a good idea to baptize him, because they are having a lot of legal trouble with their papers.
Devid is a few years older than me, and was waiting to finish school to be baptized. The problem is we can’t get a hold of him to have his interview. Wish us luck with that.
Other than that, just another week in the field. Had a guy tell me he is a prophet and had a vision concerning the United States and that I need to deliver a message to Obama. He was serious. Drunk, crazy, and crazy drunk people all love to speak English to me.... Or at least try.
Oh and I don´t know if I told you all but I’m teaching an English class every Saturday at the church. Its nuts. I teach the intermediate class... Which is just about everybody, because nobody wants to join the kids class and admit they don´t know English.
Pasan buena,
Elder Nichols
Well it´s only been 5 days since my last update, we are now back to the original schedule. This week we mainly just tried to get people ready for their baptisms. We should have 5 this Saturday. Here are the details
Flor and Rafael are married. She loves to sing under the stage name la pluma sutil, which means the subtle feather. She... Is... Interesting... But her husband is super excited about the gospel, and one of the nicest people I have ever met.
Jesu angel is a 9 year old whose parents are members, he just never got baptized. Kinda just fell into our laps when we went to visit his family one day.
Allen is the son of a couple that is waiting on their papers to marry. Bishop said it was a good idea to baptize him, because they are having a lot of legal trouble with their papers.
Devid is a few years older than me, and was waiting to finish school to be baptized. The problem is we can’t get a hold of him to have his interview. Wish us luck with that.
Other than that, just another week in the field. Had a guy tell me he is a prophet and had a vision concerning the United States and that I need to deliver a message to Obama. He was serious. Drunk, crazy, and crazy drunk people all love to speak English to me.... Or at least try.
Oh and I don´t know if I told you all but I’m teaching an English class every Saturday at the church. Its nuts. I teach the intermediate class... Which is just about everybody, because nobody wants to join the kids class and admit they don´t know English.
Pasan buena,
Elder Nichols
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
It's about time. 12/7/11
Dear Family and Friends,
Hope all is well in... well... everywhere. Today we went to the Temple and had Pizza Hut afterward. It was great. That´s why i´m doing email on a wednesday, cuz the temple is closed on mondays. This week I forgot my cable, so still no pictures. sorry. But I´ve got some good ones I´m just dying to share.
Unfortunately this week we had to drop 4 people because they just won´t come to church. It literally breaks my heart. I hate giving up on people, because the Lord didn´t give up on me. The problem is that we just don´t have the time or energy to spend with people that don´t understand how important this is and don´t want to keep commitments. There is a difference between trying hard but coming up short, and just plain not wanting to act. It´s been tough to learn again and again that my purpose is to invite, and the powers of the priesthood can only be exercised through patience and long suffering. It´s hard because the people I listen to the spirit, pray, ponder, study, and fast the hardest for are the same ones that we had to drop. The ones that are closest to being baptized are the people that have just kind of fallen into our laps.
However, I refuse to let it get me down. I studied lately in chapter 9 of Mormon, which reminds us that God is a God of miracles today, yesterday, and forever, and that his servants will be recognized as doing the same. I was called of God through a prophet and set apart to do this work. These are his children. I was endowed with power in the temple. I was given the gift of the holy ghost and promised through the scriptures that he will guide my thoughts. I am not a casual or social missionary. I will be a sacred missionary. Miracles are not out of reach if I maintain my faith and obedience.
To close, I would like to repeat more or less what I shared with Rosana the last time I saw her. Unfortunately, she didn´t come to church this week either, so we will probably have to drop her too. She has had trouble deciding which church, this or her evangelical, is true. Our blunt discussion on authority didn´t seem to get through to her, but I later found out that she has yet to ask specifically in her prayers about this church. She just says that she prays every day. I said, more or less, the following...
¨Rosana, I´m very glad that you say your prayers every day, but this is not what we have been inviting you to do. We have been inviting you to ask your father, through prayer, specifically about this church. This is the most important question that you could ever ask him. Also, prayer is not just you talking on one end. He truly is listening on the other end. Prayer is a conversation with the Lord, which means that as you pray, you have to be listening for his response. This will come through your thoughts and feelings, by the power of the Holy Ghost. Think about it for a moment. Other pastors are confident enough in their own interpretation of the scriptures to try to convince you that they are right. But we are are saying to ask God. Would I tell you to ask God about this church if it was a lie? No. In fact, I can stand here as a witness and representative of the Lord Jesus Christ and promise you that if you ask the Father he is going to tell you that everything we are teaching is true. I can do this because I know, without doubt, that this Church is led by Jesus Christ himself, is the kingdom of God on the earth today, and is inviting you to be a part of it. It´s not a copy of his Church led by a group of men. It is the kingdom of God, and as your loving Father in Heaven, he will comform it to you if you just ask him in sincere prayer.¨
My time is up this week. Thanks for your letters and thoughts. If there is anyone reading this that is not a member of the Church, please, don´t ask your pastors, families, friends, neighbors, or even the Mormons themselves if this Church is true. Are you willing to put your salvation in the hands of fallible, imperfect men? I would hope not. Ask God. He is the source of all truth and light. He will not lie. He cannot lie. He does not want to lie. He wants you to be happy in this life and the next. Ask him the most important question of your life. Eternity hangs in the balance, and blessings are in store. I leave this with you, in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Hope all is well in... well... everywhere. Today we went to the Temple and had Pizza Hut afterward. It was great. That´s why i´m doing email on a wednesday, cuz the temple is closed on mondays. This week I forgot my cable, so still no pictures. sorry. But I´ve got some good ones I´m just dying to share.
Unfortunately this week we had to drop 4 people because they just won´t come to church. It literally breaks my heart. I hate giving up on people, because the Lord didn´t give up on me. The problem is that we just don´t have the time or energy to spend with people that don´t understand how important this is and don´t want to keep commitments. There is a difference between trying hard but coming up short, and just plain not wanting to act. It´s been tough to learn again and again that my purpose is to invite, and the powers of the priesthood can only be exercised through patience and long suffering. It´s hard because the people I listen to the spirit, pray, ponder, study, and fast the hardest for are the same ones that we had to drop. The ones that are closest to being baptized are the people that have just kind of fallen into our laps.
However, I refuse to let it get me down. I studied lately in chapter 9 of Mormon, which reminds us that God is a God of miracles today, yesterday, and forever, and that his servants will be recognized as doing the same. I was called of God through a prophet and set apart to do this work. These are his children. I was endowed with power in the temple. I was given the gift of the holy ghost and promised through the scriptures that he will guide my thoughts. I am not a casual or social missionary. I will be a sacred missionary. Miracles are not out of reach if I maintain my faith and obedience.
To close, I would like to repeat more or less what I shared with Rosana the last time I saw her. Unfortunately, she didn´t come to church this week either, so we will probably have to drop her too. She has had trouble deciding which church, this or her evangelical, is true. Our blunt discussion on authority didn´t seem to get through to her, but I later found out that she has yet to ask specifically in her prayers about this church. She just says that she prays every day. I said, more or less, the following...
¨Rosana, I´m very glad that you say your prayers every day, but this is not what we have been inviting you to do. We have been inviting you to ask your father, through prayer, specifically about this church. This is the most important question that you could ever ask him. Also, prayer is not just you talking on one end. He truly is listening on the other end. Prayer is a conversation with the Lord, which means that as you pray, you have to be listening for his response. This will come through your thoughts and feelings, by the power of the Holy Ghost. Think about it for a moment. Other pastors are confident enough in their own interpretation of the scriptures to try to convince you that they are right. But we are are saying to ask God. Would I tell you to ask God about this church if it was a lie? No. In fact, I can stand here as a witness and representative of the Lord Jesus Christ and promise you that if you ask the Father he is going to tell you that everything we are teaching is true. I can do this because I know, without doubt, that this Church is led by Jesus Christ himself, is the kingdom of God on the earth today, and is inviting you to be a part of it. It´s not a copy of his Church led by a group of men. It is the kingdom of God, and as your loving Father in Heaven, he will comform it to you if you just ask him in sincere prayer.¨
My time is up this week. Thanks for your letters and thoughts. If there is anyone reading this that is not a member of the Church, please, don´t ask your pastors, families, friends, neighbors, or even the Mormons themselves if this Church is true. Are you willing to put your salvation in the hands of fallible, imperfect men? I would hope not. Ask God. He is the source of all truth and light. He will not lie. He cannot lie. He does not want to lie. He wants you to be happy in this life and the next. Ask him the most important question of your life. Eternity hangs in the balance, and blessings are in store. I leave this with you, in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Plain and Precious Truths. 11/21/11
Dear Family and Friends,
Another week come and gone. My companion celebrated his one year anniversary, and I made him guacomole again. Today we played basketball of course but also we played bitilla which is like baseball with a stick and a giant bottle cap. It was ridiculous. This week we also had a cat burglar break in to the house. No literally.... a cat climbed up to our porch and then jumped in through an open window. I´ve got pics of its paw prints to prove it, but I forgot my camera at home this week.
Another Elder in my Ward, our ward has 2 areas, always says the funniest stuff. His name is Elder Allen. This week he said ¨Sometimes I wish Satan had a body so I could punch him in the face as hard as I could¨ and ¨I´m sure there are worse countries in the world, they just don´t send missionaries there¨.
The highlight of my week was that we finally got the conference issue of the liahona, and I was super excited to have my very own english copy. I am very confident in my priest leaders, and they speak the words of Christ. So when I read the liahona I feel like God himself is telling me about all the things I need to hear, including the answers to my prayers. It´s a great feeling.
In our district meeting I was asked a little before hand to speak for 5 or 10 minutes on the Restoration. Normally this should be in spanish, and we all just rely heavily on Preach my Gospel since four of the six of us are still training or just barely finished training last transfer. Anyways, as I was thinking about my tema, or theme, I didn´t feel like speaking spanish. Before you think I´m apostatizing, remember that my companion is the only native in our district, and is only one of two fluent spanish speakers. I didn´t feel like spitting out the same comfortable key phrases that I say to my investigators, because I knew my fellow missionaries wouldn´t get anything out of it. So I thought for a few minutes on how the restoration effects me as a missionary, and what I could say to help my fellow laborers.
I remembered a talk from conference that I had studied that morning by Elder Jeffrey R Holland, and just kind of went by the spirit I guess. I testified that one of the tactics of Satan is to bind our tongues. If we don´t speak up we can´t testify, or teach. We can´t perform miracles. We can´t invite people to come unto Christ, and without these invitations they can´t repent. The importance of our ability to speak up has been paramount ever since the Pre Existence. We have all heard about the War in Heaven, but have any of us stopped to think what that means? I don´t imagine a war of swords or hand grenades. I imagine a war of words. Those of us who chose to follow the Savior testified of his divinity and the perfect plan of our Father. I imagine a great debate in which we fought to maintain our agency and save our brothers and sisters who were enticed by the allure of Satan´s proposal. In fact, this was the war that STARTED in Heaven, but is being fought every day here on Earth.
Satan would have me think that I don´t know enough spanish to testify clearly. He wants me to feel embarassed or too ashamed to speak up. But this week I have learned that it is wisdom in my Heavenly Father that I have to preach in Spanish. Let´s be honest, I like English. It´s comfortable, and I can be fairly persuasive. But in Spanish I can´t worry about the connotation of my words or illustrating an elaborate speech. All I can do is testify of the plain and precious truths that have been so distorted and corrupted by philosophies of uninspired men. I know that God is my Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ is his Son, and that Joseph Smith was a prophet. The more I think about this simple testimony, the more I realize how complex and vibrant it really is. This clearly defines the nature of God as our father, and not some mysterious everywhere but nowhere being that only wants us to worship him. If he is our Father we can become like him. This testimony also destroys the theories of the trinity, or that revelation has ceased. It tells us that God has reached out in love once again to provide us with all that we need to return to him and find strength in a decaying world.
Open up your mouths. Stand up and stand out. Declare with vigor what you believe in. Remember that the God of Israel himself is directing this Church. Billions of Angels are watching intently, taking notes, and aiding us in our endeavors.
Love
Elder Nichols
Another week come and gone. My companion celebrated his one year anniversary, and I made him guacomole again. Today we played basketball of course but also we played bitilla which is like baseball with a stick and a giant bottle cap. It was ridiculous. This week we also had a cat burglar break in to the house. No literally.... a cat climbed up to our porch and then jumped in through an open window. I´ve got pics of its paw prints to prove it, but I forgot my camera at home this week.
Another Elder in my Ward, our ward has 2 areas, always says the funniest stuff. His name is Elder Allen. This week he said ¨Sometimes I wish Satan had a body so I could punch him in the face as hard as I could¨ and ¨I´m sure there are worse countries in the world, they just don´t send missionaries there¨.
The highlight of my week was that we finally got the conference issue of the liahona, and I was super excited to have my very own english copy. I am very confident in my priest leaders, and they speak the words of Christ. So when I read the liahona I feel like God himself is telling me about all the things I need to hear, including the answers to my prayers. It´s a great feeling.
In our district meeting I was asked a little before hand to speak for 5 or 10 minutes on the Restoration. Normally this should be in spanish, and we all just rely heavily on Preach my Gospel since four of the six of us are still training or just barely finished training last transfer. Anyways, as I was thinking about my tema, or theme, I didn´t feel like speaking spanish. Before you think I´m apostatizing, remember that my companion is the only native in our district, and is only one of two fluent spanish speakers. I didn´t feel like spitting out the same comfortable key phrases that I say to my investigators, because I knew my fellow missionaries wouldn´t get anything out of it. So I thought for a few minutes on how the restoration effects me as a missionary, and what I could say to help my fellow laborers.
I remembered a talk from conference that I had studied that morning by Elder Jeffrey R Holland, and just kind of went by the spirit I guess. I testified that one of the tactics of Satan is to bind our tongues. If we don´t speak up we can´t testify, or teach. We can´t perform miracles. We can´t invite people to come unto Christ, and without these invitations they can´t repent. The importance of our ability to speak up has been paramount ever since the Pre Existence. We have all heard about the War in Heaven, but have any of us stopped to think what that means? I don´t imagine a war of swords or hand grenades. I imagine a war of words. Those of us who chose to follow the Savior testified of his divinity and the perfect plan of our Father. I imagine a great debate in which we fought to maintain our agency and save our brothers and sisters who were enticed by the allure of Satan´s proposal. In fact, this was the war that STARTED in Heaven, but is being fought every day here on Earth.
Satan would have me think that I don´t know enough spanish to testify clearly. He wants me to feel embarassed or too ashamed to speak up. But this week I have learned that it is wisdom in my Heavenly Father that I have to preach in Spanish. Let´s be honest, I like English. It´s comfortable, and I can be fairly persuasive. But in Spanish I can´t worry about the connotation of my words or illustrating an elaborate speech. All I can do is testify of the plain and precious truths that have been so distorted and corrupted by philosophies of uninspired men. I know that God is my Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ is his Son, and that Joseph Smith was a prophet. The more I think about this simple testimony, the more I realize how complex and vibrant it really is. This clearly defines the nature of God as our father, and not some mysterious everywhere but nowhere being that only wants us to worship him. If he is our Father we can become like him. This testimony also destroys the theories of the trinity, or that revelation has ceased. It tells us that God has reached out in love once again to provide us with all that we need to return to him and find strength in a decaying world.
Open up your mouths. Stand up and stand out. Declare with vigor what you believe in. Remember that the God of Israel himself is directing this Church. Billions of Angels are watching intently, taking notes, and aiding us in our endeavors.
Love
Elder Nichols
Monday, November 14, 2011
A Sure Witness. 11/14/11
Dear Friends and Family,
Today was a much needed pday. We played basketball, and later a little bit of RISK. Then we went to the local supermarket for lunch, and I got a ¨Tres Leches¨ which always cheers me up. Don´t worry I had rice, beans, and fried chicken too. My companion told me jokingly in our inventory this week that I need to eat more food. What can I say? I like to eat, and there are no rules against it. I made Mac n Cheese last night with a little bit of queso dip, you know for like dipping chips, and it was delicious.
Still haven´t seen German. I guess that is a good thing. When we found him last time it was cuz he had nothing better to do than sit on his porch and drink and smoke. So it´s kind of a blessing that he is always busy i guess.
I studied a lot about how the Book of Mormon and Bible support one another. I made a little cheat sheet with the help of last month´s liahona. It contains major points of doctrine and references from the Book of Mormon and Bible. Out of the mouth of 2 or 3 witnesses shall the word be established right? Mormon himself says in chapter 7 verse 9 that the Book of Mormon was written to convince people of the Bible, and that those who believe the Bible will believe the Book of Mormon as well. 2nd Nephi chapter 29 is a lot of fun for anyone who says that ¨we already have a bible, and we need no more bible¨ The Lord basically says that the testimony of the book of mormon is meant to run together and join the testimony of the bible. He also says that since he is the Lord, he can talk to whoever he wants to, whether they be in asia, the americas, or the isles of the sea. The Lord remembers all of his children, and we should not complain when we recieve more of his word.
I´ve struggled a bit this week. I´m wondering what is the point of all this studying of the scriptures and testifying of the truth when the majority of the people I talk to don´t want to change and will interepret the scriptures according to whatever is convenient for them. I know I´m supposed to be out here, and the Lord needs me specifically in this place specifically. I just feel some days like i´m talking to deaf people. This lady told us how much she prays for guidance and help, believes we should have prophets, and a bunch of other stuff. My companion and I preached to her until we were blue in the face. I straight up told her that God hears her prayers and has sent us to her to help her grow and bring her family back to church, but it didn´t even phase her. She just wants to be right. Even when we explain everything clearly, even when we ask her a question she doesn´t know how to answer and she just changes the subject. It seems like everyone here is just comfortable with what they already believe because it´s safe and doesn´t require them to be accountable or grow. I don´t know... I guess it´s just one of those days. There has to be opposition in all things, yeah? I can´t appreciate my baptisms unless i get a few nutty people. I just wish that I could see that I´m actually helping someone, that someone is truly searching and willing. I know i´m serving the Lord, and I know I´ve served my companion a lot. I guess for now that is enough.
On a brighter note, I had a pretty awesome personal experience this week. My companion told me a really amazing personal story. It got me thinking, and I´ve never had anything quite to that extreme. It seems a little unfair, like in the scriptures when Laman and Lemuel see an angel and they are complete jerks. Why have I not had any powerful visions, dreams, angels or such things. Am I doing something wrong? Am I unworthy? But then, almost instantly, ¨Blessed are those who have not seen and still believe¨. I think this was said concerning thomas, I need to research it. Later I watched ¨The Testaments¨ this week with my companion, Eddileka, and her boyfriend Javier who is a member. It was pretty good, but in the moment after the movie, I just had this powerful feeling concerning the divinity and truth of the Savior´s existence. I´m running out of time, but its sufficient to say that I have a rock solid testimony that he lives, and nobody can take that from me.
Elder Nichols
Today was a much needed pday. We played basketball, and later a little bit of RISK. Then we went to the local supermarket for lunch, and I got a ¨Tres Leches¨ which always cheers me up. Don´t worry I had rice, beans, and fried chicken too. My companion told me jokingly in our inventory this week that I need to eat more food. What can I say? I like to eat, and there are no rules against it. I made Mac n Cheese last night with a little bit of queso dip, you know for like dipping chips, and it was delicious.
Still haven´t seen German. I guess that is a good thing. When we found him last time it was cuz he had nothing better to do than sit on his porch and drink and smoke. So it´s kind of a blessing that he is always busy i guess.
I studied a lot about how the Book of Mormon and Bible support one another. I made a little cheat sheet with the help of last month´s liahona. It contains major points of doctrine and references from the Book of Mormon and Bible. Out of the mouth of 2 or 3 witnesses shall the word be established right? Mormon himself says in chapter 7 verse 9 that the Book of Mormon was written to convince people of the Bible, and that those who believe the Bible will believe the Book of Mormon as well. 2nd Nephi chapter 29 is a lot of fun for anyone who says that ¨we already have a bible, and we need no more bible¨ The Lord basically says that the testimony of the book of mormon is meant to run together and join the testimony of the bible. He also says that since he is the Lord, he can talk to whoever he wants to, whether they be in asia, the americas, or the isles of the sea. The Lord remembers all of his children, and we should not complain when we recieve more of his word.
I´ve struggled a bit this week. I´m wondering what is the point of all this studying of the scriptures and testifying of the truth when the majority of the people I talk to don´t want to change and will interepret the scriptures according to whatever is convenient for them. I know I´m supposed to be out here, and the Lord needs me specifically in this place specifically. I just feel some days like i´m talking to deaf people. This lady told us how much she prays for guidance and help, believes we should have prophets, and a bunch of other stuff. My companion and I preached to her until we were blue in the face. I straight up told her that God hears her prayers and has sent us to her to help her grow and bring her family back to church, but it didn´t even phase her. She just wants to be right. Even when we explain everything clearly, even when we ask her a question she doesn´t know how to answer and she just changes the subject. It seems like everyone here is just comfortable with what they already believe because it´s safe and doesn´t require them to be accountable or grow. I don´t know... I guess it´s just one of those days. There has to be opposition in all things, yeah? I can´t appreciate my baptisms unless i get a few nutty people. I just wish that I could see that I´m actually helping someone, that someone is truly searching and willing. I know i´m serving the Lord, and I know I´ve served my companion a lot. I guess for now that is enough.
On a brighter note, I had a pretty awesome personal experience this week. My companion told me a really amazing personal story. It got me thinking, and I´ve never had anything quite to that extreme. It seems a little unfair, like in the scriptures when Laman and Lemuel see an angel and they are complete jerks. Why have I not had any powerful visions, dreams, angels or such things. Am I doing something wrong? Am I unworthy? But then, almost instantly, ¨Blessed are those who have not seen and still believe¨. I think this was said concerning thomas, I need to research it. Later I watched ¨The Testaments¨ this week with my companion, Eddileka, and her boyfriend Javier who is a member. It was pretty good, but in the moment after the movie, I just had this powerful feeling concerning the divinity and truth of the Savior´s existence. I´m running out of time, but its sufficient to say that I have a rock solid testimony that he lives, and nobody can take that from me.
Elder Nichols
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Bitter sweet. 11/8/11
Dear Family and Friends,
This week was crazy. The bishops dad died and so i went to my first dominican open casket funeral. On halloween. spooky eh? Also saw a crazy lady running through the street in her underwear throwing rocks at people right in front of our church. Today we played lots of basketball, or at least the dominican version, because they don´t like to take it out to the 3 line when possession changes. Transfers are this week too. I´m staying here with my companion, but another elder who has one more transfer than me is training! I´ve also had to remind a lot of people that i´m ELDER Nichols, and not just hermano, or brother nichols. I feel like Jack Sparrow reminding people of his title of Captain.
I´ve got to take back, or at least clarify, a statement I made last week. I said ¨dont tell me that you read the bible¨. Well this week we found our first Jew, who said that Jesus never existed. So.... yeah... please read the Bible. What I meant last week was that I don´t like when people say they don´t need us because they read the Bible. The real reason you don´t want to talk to us is that you are comfortable where you are at, afraid of change, or heard something false about the church. I´m sure there are more reasons than this, but these are the most common ones i´ve run into so far.
I´ve been bummed about people not keeping commitments. You are probably all thinking ¨welcome to the mission field¨ right? At the very least it´s teaching me patience, and I have a better understanding of how Heavenly Father feels when we break our promises to him or don´t do as well as we should. I just wish that I felt I was accomplishing more. Not just the baptismal number, but actually helping people understand. Helping people that are truly looking and willing to act. Almost all the people we are teaching seem to have the same bland, comfortable attitude, as if they are all spiritual zombies. I just wanna scream ¨WAKE UP!!! Don´t you realize how amazing and important this message is?¨
On the other hand it also depends on how we preach. I´ve seen a difference when we ask more questions and try to break out of some of our ¨safe¨ routines. I have to challenge myself to grow right?
So this week I had an interesting experience, and it´s the reason for the title ¨bitter sweet¨ I wanted to wait to share it, but this way you can appreciate my situation more since perhaps you will feel as i feel and learn as I learn. Our ward is split into 2 areas, each area has 2 missionaries, and each has a trainer. Well this week our trainers and leaders had a meeting with President Hernandez (btw eickbush is just an elderly missionary). So I went on exchanges with elder Allen, who was in my group at the MTC. We were scared to death and when we saw our bishop we jokingly said we could the look of terror and sadness in his eyes as he saw two greenies together.
But anyways it actually went pretty well. we contacted new people for 2 hours in my area, and had 3 lessons. The cool part was the third lesson. A guy was smoking on his porch and we said hello. He just looked at us kind of funny and then we said ¨we´re missionaries from the... ¨ and he got up before we could finish the sentence. He let us in apologized for the open container of alcohol, offered us juice, told us that he had friends in the church and left. Then he came back with an 8 year old photo of 2 missionaries holding his baby girl. Then he told us how he wanted to quit smoking and drinking for his family. He told us how his mind and heart were willing but his body was weak. He said how hard it was to quit, and he always feels like he has demons with him tempting him, and how its just easier to pick up the bottle. Now to be perfectly honest, he was probably a little drunk. But not so much that he couldn´t walk, and a greenie missionary could understand his spanish. He recognized us as his friends, as someone who cared, and could help. He begged us to visit him often and help him. And I believed him. I felt he was sincere and my heart went out to him. I had been wondering if anyone truly needed us, and now here was this man begging for our friendship and help.
So I gave him a Book of Mormon. I told him whenever he feels those demons he needs to pray, and pick up that sacred book, and that the temptations would leave. We testified that we were representatives of Jesus Christ, and would do our best to help him, but he needed to give it his all. We even gave him a priesthood blessing for comfort and strength. After the blessing we had the following conversation
I said ¨Alright now Germán, you have to throw this stuff away¨
¨I can´t I´m not ready. I´ll start tonight when you two come back¨
¨No Germán you have to start now. You can do it¨
¨No no no I can´t do it¨
¨Germán, do you have faith in Christ?¨
¨Yes¨
¨Do you truly want to leave this behind?¨
¨Yes¨
¨Germán... In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to throw this alcohol in the trash¨
When I said those words, I felt an electrifying power. It wasn´t just a 21 year old kid saying it. It was the Savior. and the Holy Ghost testified of it to me with that feeling. I felt like I was taming the raging seas. Like I could have moved a mountain. I felt like Nephi in front of his brothers while he was building his ship, or Abinidi in King Noah´s court. There was a tangible power in those words.
Germán looked at me with wide eyes, poured out the bottle, and threw it out the window without a word. as he did this i felt more joy, then i have ever felt in my life, and fought to hold back the tears. I told him to give me his cigarettes, which he did. I asked him if he had more and he promised me he had nothing else in the house. As we departed i reminded him he was able to do anything with the help of the savior, and promised we would return.
Sadly, I went back to his house 8 times in the next 4 days, but we always just barely miss him. I´ve prayed and fasted for him, and I have no idea how he is doing. But every time I wonder or doubt, I remember how I felt, and I trust that did what the Savior wanted.
Elder Nichols
This week was crazy. The bishops dad died and so i went to my first dominican open casket funeral. On halloween. spooky eh? Also saw a crazy lady running through the street in her underwear throwing rocks at people right in front of our church. Today we played lots of basketball, or at least the dominican version, because they don´t like to take it out to the 3 line when possession changes. Transfers are this week too. I´m staying here with my companion, but another elder who has one more transfer than me is training! I´ve also had to remind a lot of people that i´m ELDER Nichols, and not just hermano, or brother nichols. I feel like Jack Sparrow reminding people of his title of Captain.
I´ve got to take back, or at least clarify, a statement I made last week. I said ¨dont tell me that you read the bible¨. Well this week we found our first Jew, who said that Jesus never existed. So.... yeah... please read the Bible. What I meant last week was that I don´t like when people say they don´t need us because they read the Bible. The real reason you don´t want to talk to us is that you are comfortable where you are at, afraid of change, or heard something false about the church. I´m sure there are more reasons than this, but these are the most common ones i´ve run into so far.
I´ve been bummed about people not keeping commitments. You are probably all thinking ¨welcome to the mission field¨ right? At the very least it´s teaching me patience, and I have a better understanding of how Heavenly Father feels when we break our promises to him or don´t do as well as we should. I just wish that I felt I was accomplishing more. Not just the baptismal number, but actually helping people understand. Helping people that are truly looking and willing to act. Almost all the people we are teaching seem to have the same bland, comfortable attitude, as if they are all spiritual zombies. I just wanna scream ¨WAKE UP!!! Don´t you realize how amazing and important this message is?¨
On the other hand it also depends on how we preach. I´ve seen a difference when we ask more questions and try to break out of some of our ¨safe¨ routines. I have to challenge myself to grow right?
So this week I had an interesting experience, and it´s the reason for the title ¨bitter sweet¨ I wanted to wait to share it, but this way you can appreciate my situation more since perhaps you will feel as i feel and learn as I learn. Our ward is split into 2 areas, each area has 2 missionaries, and each has a trainer. Well this week our trainers and leaders had a meeting with President Hernandez (btw eickbush is just an elderly missionary). So I went on exchanges with elder Allen, who was in my group at the MTC. We were scared to death and when we saw our bishop we jokingly said we could the look of terror and sadness in his eyes as he saw two greenies together.
But anyways it actually went pretty well. we contacted new people for 2 hours in my area, and had 3 lessons. The cool part was the third lesson. A guy was smoking on his porch and we said hello. He just looked at us kind of funny and then we said ¨we´re missionaries from the... ¨ and he got up before we could finish the sentence. He let us in apologized for the open container of alcohol, offered us juice, told us that he had friends in the church and left. Then he came back with an 8 year old photo of 2 missionaries holding his baby girl. Then he told us how he wanted to quit smoking and drinking for his family. He told us how his mind and heart were willing but his body was weak. He said how hard it was to quit, and he always feels like he has demons with him tempting him, and how its just easier to pick up the bottle. Now to be perfectly honest, he was probably a little drunk. But not so much that he couldn´t walk, and a greenie missionary could understand his spanish. He recognized us as his friends, as someone who cared, and could help. He begged us to visit him often and help him. And I believed him. I felt he was sincere and my heart went out to him. I had been wondering if anyone truly needed us, and now here was this man begging for our friendship and help.
So I gave him a Book of Mormon. I told him whenever he feels those demons he needs to pray, and pick up that sacred book, and that the temptations would leave. We testified that we were representatives of Jesus Christ, and would do our best to help him, but he needed to give it his all. We even gave him a priesthood blessing for comfort and strength. After the blessing we had the following conversation
I said ¨Alright now Germán, you have to throw this stuff away¨
¨I can´t I´m not ready. I´ll start tonight when you two come back¨
¨No Germán you have to start now. You can do it¨
¨No no no I can´t do it¨
¨Germán, do you have faith in Christ?¨
¨Yes¨
¨Do you truly want to leave this behind?¨
¨Yes¨
¨Germán... In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to throw this alcohol in the trash¨
When I said those words, I felt an electrifying power. It wasn´t just a 21 year old kid saying it. It was the Savior. and the Holy Ghost testified of it to me with that feeling. I felt like I was taming the raging seas. Like I could have moved a mountain. I felt like Nephi in front of his brothers while he was building his ship, or Abinidi in King Noah´s court. There was a tangible power in those words.
Germán looked at me with wide eyes, poured out the bottle, and threw it out the window without a word. as he did this i felt more joy, then i have ever felt in my life, and fought to hold back the tears. I told him to give me his cigarettes, which he did. I asked him if he had more and he promised me he had nothing else in the house. As we departed i reminded him he was able to do anything with the help of the savior, and promised we would return.
Sadly, I went back to his house 8 times in the next 4 days, but we always just barely miss him. I´ve prayed and fasted for him, and I have no idea how he is doing. But every time I wonder or doubt, I remember how I felt, and I trust that did what the Savior wanted.
Elder Nichols
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