Week 47 - A Few Pics From the Week

Pday hike up to goose falls! McCall, Idaho is gorgeous!

Elder Nicholas' last district meeting! (he's the one to the right of me)

There's a burger joint in Baker City that sells half gallon milkshakes, and every missionary that comes in has to see how fast they can eat it! Only two of us could finish it without throwing up, and I ended up getting the 4th fastest time ever! Felt awful though for the next 24 hours...

Turns out my great aunt lives in my area! It was so great to visit with a relative!

Week 46 - Sorry Smoky the Bear, I Tried!

Walmart is never more fun than while you're on a mission

Howdy Partners,

It's been another hot one here in Idaho folks! I can't remember the last time it stayed under 100 degrees during the day! And all this heat has caused a lot of fires to spring up in the area, burning a few of our members' houses and lands. It also has shut down a bunch of roads, so we've been stuck in Weiser without being able to drive to the other towns we cover.

In other news, one of my companions, Elder Nicholas, is heading home this Saturday. He's served a great mission and I've been blessed to be his companion for these few weeks. Elder Washburn and I might be getting another companion on the day Elder Nicholas leaves, so trio life isn't over! 

The work in Weiser is going great. Zoe, who accepted the invitation to be baptized last week, is doing great! The ward is doing a great job of taking her in and making her feel welcome. It can be kind of intimidating to show up to a new church with a whole bunch of new people, but a little bit of love can make a huge difference. We also had the Szary family come to church for the first time, which was awesome! 

Big news: One of the members that fed us dinner made homemade donuts. They were pretty dang good. So the three of us decided that we could try making some back at our place. After much practice, deliberation, and trial and error, we have perfected the donuts. We've now made them three days in a row, which is definitely not healthy, but it's worth it. But don't worry, we watched a lot of videos about overcoming addictions this week. We're gonna be okay. 

I hope your mouth is watering

Thanks for the thoughts and prayers! Please pray for those fighting and dealing with the fires in this area! God bless!

Sincerely,

Elder Doyle

Elder Washburn and his big mouth always get us into trouble haha

We gave a training at zone conference this week on how to fulfill your calling as a royal messenger!

Week 45 - Happy Early Pioneer Day!

Howdy folks!

It's interesting to see my life, and my mission in particular, kind of go in phases. In some areas I've served, I focus a lot on visiting and strengthening members of the church. In others, we focus a lot on helping the other missionaries. Here in Weiser, we're doing the good old nitty gritty missionary work! We walk the streets and talk to everybody and it feels good! We did some walking last night and met a bunch of new people! And we only got sworn at once! Elders Nicholas and Washburn are great companions, and I can tell this is going to end up being one of my favorite areas in my mission. 

In district meeting and throughout the week, we've talked a lot about the roles and gifts of the Holy Ghost, or Holy Spirit. It's so important that God has a way to speak to our hearts and minds, and I testify that if we listen to those thoughts and feelings, we'll be happier. We'll be more successful. And we'll be more of what God wants us to be. I've also really enjoyed studying the Holy Ghost's role as a sanctifier, and would invite anybody to do some studying on that subject as well. 

Sorry this email is short! Love you all!

Sincerely,

Elder Doyle

Blessed to serve with such awesome guys!

This is my new ride! Haha jk! But I'm totally taking him up on his offer to go dune bugging in it after my mission! 

Week 44 - It's already been over a week??

Well folks, time is flying by here in Weiser! It feels like I just got here yesterday but it's already been over a week! I'm so blessed to be serving here though! A little bit about the area: I cover about 10 little farm towns which all attend one of 5 different wards (or congregations). It takes over two hours to drive from one end of my area to the other, and most of it is just hills and hills of dead grass. I sure do miss trees. But it's beautiful in it's own way! The people here are so humble, and since the towns are so small, everyone in the town knows everybody else! We drive a truck (which I am enjoying very much). His name is Tyrone and he is currently very dirty from all the gravel roads we drive on.

My companions, Elders Nicholas and Washburn, are awesome! They're from Arizona and New Mexico respectively, and they're great missionaries! 

 

Selfies happen often when you're in the car for hours and hours everyday

 

There's a lot of potential in this area and I'm excited to be here. It always blows me away to see what miracles can happen when you humble yourself and do what God wants you to do. That goes for missionaries as well as all you normal people haha! God can make some amazing things happen when you realize that His plans are better than yours. Just last night, we were heading back to the church when both Elder Washburn and I had an address pop into our heads. Although we never found the address we were looking for, we met a ton of new people while searching! And we would have never found them if we had gone to the church! Thanks for all the prayers, but don't forget to pray for opportunities to share what you know with others!

Love ya,

Elder Doyle

 

 

Crazy wildfire right outside Weiser!

Week 43 - "Carl Wheeeeezer" (Jimmy Neutron reference)

Well folks, I'm on the move again!

This morning I was transferred to Weiser Idaho, a small town close to the Oregon border. I now cover 5 wards in 3 towns (Weiser, Cambridge, and Council), which makes it one of the largest areas in the mission. And I've upgraded from Monica the minivan to a new truck! I'm going to miss the Meridian/Eagle area I've been serving in for the last 4 and a half months so much. The people there are family. But I know that Weiser is where I need to be now, and I'm excited to serve and learn from the people here!

Something I've been thinking about lately is why some of the best people go through some of the hardest things. I've been able to make and teach some of my best friends while here on my mission. They have amazing testimonies and exude Christlike love. But they're put through so much! I've also thought about why missionary work isn't a piece of cake. We're doing the Lord's will and teaching the truth, right? So why aren't people just lining up to talk to the missionaries? I listened to an old talk from Elder Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and I loved what he said. I can't quote it exactly, but he narrows his answer to questions like mine down to this: Salvation was never a cheap experience. When we wonder why we or loved ones are going through difficult trials, we have to remember that the one perfect Person, the only one deserving of a trial-free life, went through the greatest agony and pain of us all. So when you go through trials, or when you wonder why missionary work isn't easy, realize that you're standing shoulder to shoulder with the greatest life this world has ever seen. 

Thank you for your prayers! I testify that God is real and that he loves us!

Sincerely,

Elder Doyle

 

The best YSA Ward ever! Right after a hard fought softball game

 

 

Families like the Foutz's make transferring so hard!

The three amigos! (codenames: Buckwheat, Lonestar, and Delilah)

Week 42 - Ordinances are the BEST!

Happy Early 4th of July everyone!

It's been a superb week and I surprisingly took quite a few pictures, so I'll use them to help lay the week out for you. 

Picture 1

Since Rebekah was baptized last weekend, she's now able to do baptisms in the temple! And we were able to go with her on Tuesday! The Spirit in the temple is always amazing and I love being there with the people I love.

 

 

 

 

Picture 2

Ashley was baptized! That girl's faith blows my mind and I'm so proud of her for all she's done to get to this point. Her confirmation was Sunday and holy guacamole, she was beaming!

 

 

 

Picture 3

The mission committee! I don't know if I've mentioned this group before, but we meet once a week to discuss solutions to problems our mission faces. I love these people.

 

 

Thanks for your prayers and birthday wishes this past week. I love you all and I love the Lord!

Sincerely, 

Elder Doyle

Week 41 - We Went To The Dark Side (outside the mission boundaries!!!)

Happy Monday!

Holy guacamole friends it has been one of the best weekends ever!!! The rest of the week was good, but the last 3 days have been AWESOME! Okay so on Friday I got special permission from President Sorensen to get a ride up to Idaho City to sing at our stake's youth conference. 

Selfie time in Idaho city!

First off, that youth conference looked so legit! They did full scale battles between Nephites and Lamanites, built ancient cities, and recreated the Tree of Life. Super cool. 

Coolest youth conference ever!

Plus I love the youth here! There some of my favorite people. I sang at the devotional, which was okay. But the drive and scenery were possibly my favorite part!

Beautiful scenery from the Boise mission

On Saturday, I got to baptize one of my best friends, Rebekah! She's been through so much, and it was such a blessing to be a part of such an important moment in her life.

The squad (Reid, Rebekah, Me, and Zach)

Rebekah and her missionaries at the baptism!

And after the baptism, it just got better and better. Rebekah has a hard time sleeping. She's been through a lot and she rarely gets more than a couple hours of sleep a night. But on Saturday night, after she was baptized, Rebekah slept for 9 hours straight. No waking up in the middle of the night. No nightmares. For the first time she can remember. I testify of the reality of miracles, and that God blesses us when we follow His commandments. And to top it all off, she got confirmed yesterday and received the gift of the Holy Ghost! I can't explain how happy these things make me!

Love you all and thanks for your prayers!

Sincerely,

Elder Doyle