Week 16 - Christmas Greetings!

Merry Christmas family and friends!

This has been an amazing week and I can't wait for another one as we focus on our Savior, Jesus Christ. On Wednesday, my new companion flew in from the Missionary Training Center, and his name is... Elder Jones! He hails from Albuquerque, New Mexico, and he's a great missionary! He's a runner and loves to work on cars and trucks. He works hard and is just an all-around great guy. I'm super excited to spend the next 3 months with him!

 

Elder Jones at his finest....

 

My hair was getting a little shaggy, so Elder Jones whipped out his barber skills

 

Elder Jones and I are serving in Middleton, Idaho. It has a population of about 6 or 7 thousand, but it has 13 LDS wards (congregations) and is about to form it's 2nd stake. It's basically a mini Utah. Everyone here is so nice, and Elder Jones and I have felt super welcome even though we're basically just flying by the seat of our pants. We live in a super nice apartment downtown (at least super nice for missionary standards) and I feel so blessed to serve here. 

 

Since there are basically no trees here, watching the sunrise is a piece of cake!

 

With Christmas upon us, I've been trying to focus my studies and thoughts on the birth of our Savior. Although it isn't in the Bible, I've always liked the story of the Little Drummer Boy, probably because I used to drum way back when. The Little Drummer Boy didn't have anything to give the baby Jesus, so he played his best on his little drum. I think that we're the same way. We may not have any extravagant, grandiose gifts to give to the Savior, but we can give Him our best. So over the next week, think about what you can give Christ. You may not have gold, frankincense, or myrrh, but we can all play our drum for him. 

Merry Christmas,

Elder Doyle

Week 15 - New Face, New Place

Hello All!

There's so much to tell yet so little time, so I'll hit the main points: This week is transfers, and I've been assigned to leave Fruitland (*heart breaks*) and go to Middleton Idaho! I don't know much, but I'm excited to meet new people and be able to serve the Lord in a new area. I'll also be training a brand new missionary! He flies in tomorrow, and then we'll go to work! Hopefully I won't mess him up too much ;)

We just received confirmation that we'll be switching over to smartphones sometime in the next few weeks! I'm excited to see how switching from my old flip phone to a smartphone will be able to assist us in the work! I'll have to relearn how to text on a normal keyboard though... I had just gotten used to using the number pad haha. 

I took a ton of pictures this week to make up for the lack of pictures I've been sending lately, so those will tell you more about the week and the people I've been serving with. But just know that I know God is in control. I have loved Fruitland, and I'm totally nervous to train a new missionary in a new area, but I know that I have a Father in Heaven that has a plan for me. Even though I'm imperfect and will probably make a bunch of mistake in the near future, God knows me and what I need. I love Him.

Please keep participating in Light The World! December is almost half way over, and these service opportunities are truly changing the world. Keep Christ in Christmas my friends.

Love,

Elder Doyle

 

Memories from Fruitland:

 

I've gained a reputation as a Beefalo whisperer (cow and buffalo hybrid). I started making some weird mooing noises and they all started lumbering toward me.

Maddie was baptized this weekend, and she's truly an example to me of faith and diligence. This picture was taken at her baptism, less than two weeks after we first met her.

 

 

Emery is the happiest baby I've ever met! I couldn't get her to sit still for a solid picture though.

My boy Avery has a girlfriend named Bea. She's a barbie. And he's 4. But I still see hope for their relationship.

We had the chance to snag a picture with some of the Fruitland high schoolers before we headed out this morning. They're examples to me of not being afraid to open your mouth and share the light of Christ!

 

Week-14 The Goose is Getting Fat!

Hello my friends!

Anthony and his son Marcus were baptized this past weekend!

It's been another great week filled with many evidences of God's hand! I don't have a ton of time this week, so I want to quickly share some experiences relating to one of the people I've been blessed work with here. 

This past Sunday was fast and testimony meeting at church, which allows anyone from the congregation to come up and share their testimony (what they've come to know is true relating to God and his Gospel). The last person to come up and speak ended up speaking much past the usual time that the meeting ends. When they finished speaking, I expected the Brother conducting the meeting to stand and close things up. But instead, the bishop told him to stay sitting, and we all sat there in awkward silence, watching the clock tick away. I was confused, as I'm sure the rest of the congregation was. Then suddenly, one of our 15-year-old investigators stood up and walked up to the podium. She gave the most pure, beautiful testimony I've ever heard, and basically the entire congregation was bawling. When I asked the bishop afterward why he hadn't let the meeting end, he said he had no idea. All he knew was the Spirit had told him that there was still one more. That experience really strengthened my own testimony that as we follow the promptings that God sends our way, we'll see miracles. 

This week, please continue to make Light the World a priority. I've started to see it bless people's lives already and can't wait to see the blessings and miracles continue! I love and pray for you all! Thanks for your wonderful examples!

Happy Holidays,
Elder Doyle

Week 13 - Light the World!

Happy (almost) December!

It feels like summer was just yesterday, and now Christmas is almost upon us! Thanksgiving was a blast, and I stuffed myself wayyyyy too full, but I've been walking a lot, so hopefully I haven't gained too much weight. Things are going well here in Fruitland, Idaho! The weather has been kind of confused this week, going from record-high temperatures in the 70's to cold, windy, overcast days. Last year, this area got hit with "Snowmageddon," receiving tons of snow that ended up collapsing hundreds of buildings. People have been worried about another "once in a hundred year winter," so I'm pretty excited to see what the winter brings! 

The missionary work has been going super well here. This week we met tons of new people who are open to meeting with us again. Missionary work can get pretty depressing when hundreds of people in a row slam their doors in your face or walk to the other side of the street to avoid you. But friendly people who are open to talk with us are huge bright spots in my day! I love nice people!

With the Christmas season coming up, our church has released a Christmas service initiative called Light the World. For those of you who haven't heard of it, it's a way for all people of any denomination or faith to serve others and become more like the Savior. For each of the 25 days of Christmas, a new bible scripture and video is focused on, which gives you a new way to serve others or "light the world." The website explains it much better than I can, so to learn more, visit:

https://www.mormon.org/?cid=HP_FR_24-11-2017_dMIS_fMORG_xLIDyL1-A_ 

My weekly challenge is to participate in the Light the World initiative, starting Friday, and share it with others. You don't have to be a member of the LDS church to participate, and it's a great way to become more like Christ, the one that Christmas is all about. 

Praying for you always,

Elder Doyle

Week 12 - Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello Friends,

Well it's been two weeks since I last wrote, and a lot has happened, so hopefully I can do some of it justice! Honestly it's tough to think back to a couple weeks ago, but one thing that I definitely want to mention is the baptisms of Sammi and Ambri Hart-Norris! I've had the opportunity to know and teach these girls almost since I got here to Fruitland, and to see them take this major step in following Jesus Christ was a beautiful experience. The Spirit was super strong and you could see the happiness just bubbling out of them. Elder Bacon and I had planned on giving a short presentation at the baptism about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and it got a lot more stressful when we looked to the door and watched the mission president, his wife, and about 20 missionaries from Nampa walk in. But it all went well and I'm so happy that this family could come closer to each other and to the Lord.

The Meridian Temple was dedicated yesterday, along with the Cultural Celebration on Saturday. Both were beautiful experiences where the Spirit was strong. The Cultural Celebration was the closest thing to TV I've watched in quite awhile, so I think I was even more entertained by it than I would be normally. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf dedicated the temple yesterday, and he blessed it that it will be a light to this area. We've already seen that light in action as thousands went through the open house and felt the Spirit of the House of the Lord, and I'm excited to see it continue in the future!

With Thanksgiving coming up, my invitation to all of you this week is to get down on your knees and thank God for all that He does for you. You may not see a lot of great things in your life now, but as you begin to search for them, you'll see more and more. We've been teaching a man in his 30's who is a great example to me of this kind of gratitude. He grew up on the streets in a gang, and watched as some of his family and friends were killed. He spent time in prison, where he decided to turn his life around. When he was released from prison, he got a job and got married. Shortly thereafter, he received word that he had diabetes, and since then, that diabetes has caused him to go almost completely blind and lose his job. This guy has lived a seriously tough life, but he is the most grateful man I've ever met. His life and prayers are filled with gratitude to God. I've been honored to learn from him, and I hope that I can recognize God's blessings as well as this man does.

Praying for you always,

Elder Doyle

Week 10 - No Shave November... jk I'm on a mission

Howdy Y'all!

This has been another great week here in Fruitland, Idaho! We got a bit of snow yesterday, but not enough to really stick. Harvest is just about wrapped up, and the onions have all been stored away in their big sheds. Winter is coming.

This week is the last week of the Meridian Temple open house, which has been such a blessing to this area. I'm sad that we won't be able to go through tours with people anymore, but I'm excited to see the extended impact the temple has in bringing people closer to Christ. Before the temple was built, President Thomas S. Monson came to survey the site. He prophesied of 15 new stakes (large areas of congregations) being created because of the influence of this temple, and we've already seen that prophetic vision coming true. The area around the temple, which was previously just farmland, is now booming with more developments, restaurants, and stores than anywhere I've seen in this area. There's also a brand new Chick Fil A, which is yet another of the wonderful blessings brought about by the temple. :)

The Meridian Temple (view from the parking lot)

We continue to see God's help in our lives as we do our best to spread Christ's gospel. Something I've learned to appreciate even more this week is the value of Spirit-led planning. As Elder Bacon and I plan out our day every morning, we seek the assistance of the Holy Ghost in knowing what needs to be done. We end up seeing later in the day that we were guided to particular activities and times for a reason. Without the Spirit of the Holy Ghost, we would have never decided to go to those locations at those times. 

WEEKLY CHALLENGE: This one is more of a daily challenge, but it may take repetition over one or more weeks. Tonight, before you go to sleep, kneel down and pray. And in that prayer, ask God if He loves you. It may sound kind of weird, but it works. Take time to listen for the answer. It may not come right away, because God answers prayers differently for everyone. Repeat the process every night if you have to. But the answer will come. 

Love you all!

Elder Doyle

World Famous Ice Cream Potato

In addition to Annie the puppy, we now have two new friends that greet us when we come out the door every morning. Still don't have names for the two kittens yet.​

Week 9 - Happy Halloween!

This week has been absolutely fantastic! I'm slightly concerned that I've already hit the high point of my mission, because I can't imagine missionary work getting any better! I've seen miracles and felt the Spirit so strongly! First off, the Meridian Temple open house went into full swing this week. Last Monday, Elder Bacon and I were disappointed because we didn't think we'd be able to go with anyone to the temple this week. We prayed for opportunities, and God answered. Tuesday through Saturday, we found opportunities to visit the temple every day, each with a new investigator. Walking through the tour of the new temple, I felt and saw the beauty and sanctity of the temple, and saw it change the hearts of those we went through the tour with. Here's an example:

Tuesday: We meet a family outside after we leave an appointment. The daughters are interested in learning more about the church, but the mother is quite against it.

Wednesday: The parents "coincidentally" have errands to run right next to the temple, so we go through the open house with them. The Spirit is strong, and the mother really opens up.

Thursday: The mother sends us a text to ask if we're free that evening. She loved the temple so much that she wants to bring all of her children and show them. The children visit the temple, and "want to become Mormons."

Friday - Present: Mother texts us daily to invite us over and asks if there's a limit on the number of times families can visit the temple. They're going to attend the Trunk or Treat and we'll be teaching the family this week.

Seeing families become closer and happier this week has made me soooooo happy. I know the temple is the House of the Lord and it allows families to be together forever. I'm so grateful for the Meridian Temple and I'm excited to see it change lives.

Elder Doyle and Elder Bacon at the Meridian Temple open house

Here's one little story that totally blew my mind: I've been cutting my hands up whenever we do service projects cuz I don't have gloves. I could've gotten some at Walmart on P-day if I remembered, but I never did. Anyway, One morning after a wood-cutting service project, I just mentioned in my prayer that I needed gloves. That night, we walk into our room, and on each of our beds is a pair of gloves. We asked the people who we're staying with if they knew where the gloves came from. The wife said that she had thrown our clothes into the washing machine (cuz she's awesome and does our laundry) and there were no gloves. But a couple hours later, when she opened up the washer, two brand new pairs of gloves were sitting on top of the load. She has no idea how they got there. AHHH IT'S SO CRAZY! We're seeing little miracles like that all the time and it's blowing my mind. Exact obedience really does bring miracles. 

This weekend, Elder Gary E. Stevenson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visited for our stake conference. I learned so much from both him and the Spirit, and there were words said in the talks that were exactly what was needed by certain investigators that we had invited to attend. After the meeting, I was able to go up and thank both Elder Stevenson and the member of the Seventy that accompanied him for listening to the Spirit when preparing and giving their talks. They had literally changed the lives of some of our investigators. Elder Budge of the Seventy let me know that he had no idea what to say when he stood up to speak, and the Spirit had directed him to give that message. He didn't know why. That experience strengthened my testimony that these men are called by God, and God knows what His children need. 

Weekly Challenge: This week, focus on strengthening your relationship with your family. Spend time with each other, be kind to each other, and serve each other. God places us in families for a reason, so figure out one of the many reasons that you were placed in this specific family. 

Have A Great Week,

Elder Doyle