Hey there!
We are having a very interesting week here. We have a great investigator
here named Anna. She came to church, and loved it. She was glued to the speaker
in sacrament mtg. The miracle...it was actually a high councilman speaking! It was really great, and I am excited. She said she wants to get
baptized the 11th of November, so we are very excited for that. Just keep her in
your prayers!
The other missionaries in our district had a couple problems at their apartment this past week, and it was pretty disgusting. I lived there
for a night on exchanges with them, and while we were planning, I saw 7
DIFFERENT mice run across the living room, and three living in the couch. It was
pretty crazy, and the place was about to fall over, so they moved in with us.
Our apartment is pretty nice. It's 2 bdrm, and there is almost enough room to
fit us four in there comfortably...almost.
The mission is great, and we
are finding some really great people. I got to speak to a couple of young men on
Sunday about how to prepare for a mission, and I kind of surprised myself. They
asked what I think would most prepare them to serve a mission, and I answered
"people skills and reading your scriptures." For the most part, everything else
was pretty well taken care of in the MTC. I do wish I could've been better at
just simply speaking to people on the street when I came out. I was reading my
journal, and that was pretty hard for me at first. I'm sure the other kids would
do great at it if they could learn how to do it in dutch!
I love it
out here, the people are great, we have a few really solid people, and we are
looking forward to a great next few weeks! Winter is coming up here, and they
are famous! It makes for great tracting when it's 10 below zero, with freezing
rain and 45mph winds! It's pretty crazy here in the winter, not many of the
Puerto Rican people even stay in town for winters. I love the mission here
though, and I'm excited for this next week! I love you
guys!
Love,
Elder Wallentine
Monday, October 29, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Hey all,
It sounds like things are going pretty well there in Belgium. It's pretty hard here, but what you said is right. God is just working on us, and when all is said and done, we will be better off in the end. We worked our tails off this past week, and lost everything on Saturday. No one came to church, and it seems we have to start over. But, it will all work out.
I'm learning a lot about patience, above all else right now. It's been a long time since I've had a baptism, and it's getting progressively harder not to get discouraged. I am glad though, that I'm learning this lesson right now. Things are going pretty crazy for both of us it sounds, BUT...it's all going to work out; because that's what's good!
The Ghanian people are some of the greatest people in the world, aren't they? I would give anything right now to work again in an African area. They've been through a lot, them and the Liberians. It's pretty incredible to hear some of their stories.
I love you guys, and it's great to hear that all is going well, even if it doesn't seem to be the case right now. Keep up the good work, you're all great! Thanks again for all your support, it means the world to me!
I love you guys!
Elder Wallentine
It sounds like things are going pretty well there in Belgium. It's pretty hard here, but what you said is right. God is just working on us, and when all is said and done, we will be better off in the end. We worked our tails off this past week, and lost everything on Saturday. No one came to church, and it seems we have to start over. But, it will all work out.
I'm learning a lot about patience, above all else right now. It's been a long time since I've had a baptism, and it's getting progressively harder not to get discouraged. I am glad though, that I'm learning this lesson right now. Things are going pretty crazy for both of us it sounds, BUT...it's all going to work out; because that's what's good!
The Ghanian people are some of the greatest people in the world, aren't they? I would give anything right now to work again in an African area. They've been through a lot, them and the Liberians. It's pretty incredible to hear some of their stories.
I love you guys, and it's great to hear that all is going well, even if it doesn't seem to be the case right now. Keep up the good work, you're all great! Thanks again for all your support, it means the world to me!
I love you guys!
Elder Wallentine
Monday, October 15, 2007
Hey guys! (I mean, uhh...dutchmen)
It sounds like things are going very well there, and I want to assure that conditions there it sounds like are not too different from a lot of them here. I've been so blessed with apartments so far on my mission. I went on exchanges to another part of north Philly, and we saw 9 different mice and a full size rat run across the combined living room/kitchen. It was pretty nuts, it's definitely different from Idaho, so I'm sure there's a shock factor in moving to Belgium.
I love the mission! This has been a very hard week. It's been a long time since I've been blessed with a baptism, and I couldn't seem to figure it out. Finally, after days of asking for an answer, I got it. It would be fine. Then, on Sunday, we got an incredible woman at church, with her 9 year old granddaughter. I'm so excited for them. She had visited the church for a year earlier in 2005, so she's already familiar. And when we asked her if she ever got baptized, there's nothing like hearing her reply, "unfortunately, no." I'm so stoked about her, just keep on praying for us and the people here. I like N Philly a lot more than west, it's a lot less stressful, but there is still a lot of work to do, (especiamente con mi espanol.)
I love the mission, I'm so excited for this next week, it's going to be a lot of fun. We did a service project the other day, and it was a lot of fun. We did landscape restoration at a local park, so it was right up my alley. It was a good time.
I love this gospel, and we have seen so many miracles it's too incredible to even get started to tell you everything. One interesting thing though, is the concept of opposition. I never quite understood it until this week. There are a lot of rumors around these parts about the church anger African-american people, in one way or another, and many never miss an opportunity to bash on the church. It's nbd though, we don't pay much attention. But I noticed one thing; when I was at home, sure, I knew it was all true, but there was really no opposition. no anti people, no real opposition. But the real testimony, the real conviction, begins I'm realizing, when someone on the street looks you in the eye, and tells you "you've been mislead.", or "You need to do your research."
and I can tell them, "I HAVE! and GOD told me that it's true! Who's been giving you your research?"
It's so interesting to see what happens in their heads, it's pretty funny. I know it's true, and the work of God will never stop. I've said it once, and a guy on the street actually told us this week too, that the church must be true, if it wasn't, us 19 year old kids on the front lines would have messed it up already. I know it's all true, and the blessings are real! I love you guys, thanks for all of your support!
Love,
Elder Wallentine
PS-Pigeon tastes a lot like chicken, I found out this week. It's not bad, but kind of gummy. Tastes good in Chinese food though. I don't know why they try to tell us it's chicken, even I can tell the difference.
It sounds like things are going very well there, and I want to assure that conditions there it sounds like are not too different from a lot of them here. I've been so blessed with apartments so far on my mission. I went on exchanges to another part of north Philly, and we saw 9 different mice and a full size rat run across the combined living room/kitchen. It was pretty nuts, it's definitely different from Idaho, so I'm sure there's a shock factor in moving to Belgium.
I love the mission! This has been a very hard week. It's been a long time since I've been blessed with a baptism, and I couldn't seem to figure it out. Finally, after days of asking for an answer, I got it. It would be fine. Then, on Sunday, we got an incredible woman at church, with her 9 year old granddaughter. I'm so excited for them. She had visited the church for a year earlier in 2005, so she's already familiar. And when we asked her if she ever got baptized, there's nothing like hearing her reply, "unfortunately, no." I'm so stoked about her, just keep on praying for us and the people here. I like N Philly a lot more than west, it's a lot less stressful, but there is still a lot of work to do, (especiamente con mi espanol.)
I love the mission, I'm so excited for this next week, it's going to be a lot of fun. We did a service project the other day, and it was a lot of fun. We did landscape restoration at a local park, so it was right up my alley. It was a good time.
I love this gospel, and we have seen so many miracles it's too incredible to even get started to tell you everything. One interesting thing though, is the concept of opposition. I never quite understood it until this week. There are a lot of rumors around these parts about the church anger African-american people, in one way or another, and many never miss an opportunity to bash on the church. It's nbd though, we don't pay much attention. But I noticed one thing; when I was at home, sure, I knew it was all true, but there was really no opposition. no anti people, no real opposition. But the real testimony, the real conviction, begins I'm realizing, when someone on the street looks you in the eye, and tells you "you've been mislead.", or "You need to do your research."
and I can tell them, "I HAVE! and GOD told me that it's true! Who's been giving you your research?"
It's so interesting to see what happens in their heads, it's pretty funny. I know it's true, and the work of God will never stop. I've said it once, and a guy on the street actually told us this week too, that the church must be true, if it wasn't, us 19 year old kids on the front lines would have messed it up already. I know it's all true, and the blessings are real! I love you guys, thanks for all of your support!
Love,
Elder Wallentine
PS-Pigeon tastes a lot like chicken, I found out this week. It's not bad, but kind of gummy. Tastes good in Chinese food though. I don't know why they try to tell us it's chicken, even I can tell the difference.
Monday, October 8, 2007
Dear everyone,
Wow, it sounds like a pretty crazy trip you guys are having. I'm so glad everything is going well, and I know that god is sustaining you through all of it. As the people here say, "God is good, all the time!" It's just a catchphrase all the baptists use. That and the "Baptized, sanctified, filled with the Holy-Ghost, speaking in tongues and singing in Technicolor." (Except we usually get that one right before they tell us "I've known Jesus a lot longer than you have, leave me alone" [slam of door].
It's pretty funny here, but there are so many people that are prepared in so many ways. I love the mission, even though it has been a little scary at times. I'm in a different area now in North Philly, so don't worry, but when I was in West Philly, some stuff was really going down. A car got bombed three houses down from our apartment on Market Street last week, and there was a police shootout a little down the road. If you want to check out the area on GoogleEarth, the address was 5713 market st, Philadelphia, PA. We definitely get the "Philly Experience" here. Normally, I'd be terrified, but the spirit of God is really something. With all that happening around us, we are promised safety and security, as are our families, I'm finding out in the D&C. It's really true, it's incredible how calm we can stay when people living around all this stuff are having such a time coping with it.
I'm in North Philly right now, but I feel like I'm serving in Puerto Rico. Mi espanol es...non-existent, but I'm learning slowly and surely. We are finding some really great people, I'm very excited. My new companion is really cool, he speaks fluent Spanish, and is trying to teach me. It's great, but all I can say is "hi, we are the missionaries from the church." and then smile, and wait for my companion to butt in. It's going to get better.
My favorite talk was in Saturday Evening session, where Elder Holland ROCKED THE CHRISTIAN WORLD. He bluntly spoke out against false doctrine, (i.e. trinity, the unembodied God, etc.) It was pretty cool, check it out when you can. Elder Nelson gave a sweet talk on the Book of Mormon, but to get the full effect, you have to watch that one on the net. I don't think I've ever seen an apostle read straight from the BOM in a talk, it was raw Power! Conference was great this time, I loved it!
I love the field, it's great! It's so hard to believe that I have been out 8 months yesterday! 1/3 of the way done. I think I almost got sick when I saw that. It goes by so fast. I know that this work is the truth. They've started to allow us to use the Testaments in teaching, and thus far, it's solidified every person that sees it. I love it, and I know that this is definitely the work of God. Thank you so much for all of your letters, it's so great to hear that you are doing well! I love you all!
Love,
Elder Wallentine
Wow, it sounds like a pretty crazy trip you guys are having. I'm so glad everything is going well, and I know that god is sustaining you through all of it. As the people here say, "God is good, all the time!" It's just a catchphrase all the baptists use. That and the "Baptized, sanctified, filled with the Holy-Ghost, speaking in tongues and singing in Technicolor." (Except we usually get that one right before they tell us "I've known Jesus a lot longer than you have, leave me alone" [slam of door].
It's pretty funny here, but there are so many people that are prepared in so many ways. I love the mission, even though it has been a little scary at times. I'm in a different area now in North Philly, so don't worry, but when I was in West Philly, some stuff was really going down. A car got bombed three houses down from our apartment on Market Street last week, and there was a police shootout a little down the road. If you want to check out the area on GoogleEarth, the address was 5713 market st, Philadelphia, PA. We definitely get the "Philly Experience" here. Normally, I'd be terrified, but the spirit of God is really something. With all that happening around us, we are promised safety and security, as are our families, I'm finding out in the D&C. It's really true, it's incredible how calm we can stay when people living around all this stuff are having such a time coping with it.
I'm in North Philly right now, but I feel like I'm serving in Puerto Rico. Mi espanol es...non-existent, but I'm learning slowly and surely. We are finding some really great people, I'm very excited. My new companion is really cool, he speaks fluent Spanish, and is trying to teach me. It's great, but all I can say is "hi, we are the missionaries from the church." and then smile, and wait for my companion to butt in. It's going to get better.
My favorite talk was in Saturday Evening session, where Elder Holland ROCKED THE CHRISTIAN WORLD. He bluntly spoke out against false doctrine, (i.e. trinity, the unembodied God, etc.) It was pretty cool, check it out when you can. Elder Nelson gave a sweet talk on the Book of Mormon, but to get the full effect, you have to watch that one on the net. I don't think I've ever seen an apostle read straight from the BOM in a talk, it was raw Power! Conference was great this time, I loved it!
I love the field, it's great! It's so hard to believe that I have been out 8 months yesterday! 1/3 of the way done. I think I almost got sick when I saw that. It goes by so fast. I know that this work is the truth. They've started to allow us to use the Testaments in teaching, and thus far, it's solidified every person that sees it. I love it, and I know that this is definitely the work of God. Thank you so much for all of your letters, it's so great to hear that you are doing well! I love you all!
Love,
Elder Wallentine
Monday, October 1, 2007
Hey guys,
Pretty much, the last week has been a circus around here, too. You said I could tell you the stories after they happened, right? It's interesting, because the neighborhoods are a little dangerous lately, but we are calm through the whole thing. I just realized that if I were a tourist, I'd be terrified to walk in some of the places we go. But with the badge on, the mantle of a missionary is definitely one of divine protection. This past week, a car got bombed two doors down, and it was pretty crazy. It was pretty burned up when we walked by it on our way to get our groceries. The spirit of God is something that causes a great deal of comfort to come over you, even in some of the most distressing times. I know it's very real, and I've come to rely on it so much, I don't know how I'd get along without it.
Transfer calls came in, and I will be moving to North Philadelphia again. But there's a catch; God must want to see how I do learning Spanish. I'll be serving in the North Philadelphia Spanish branch, so that will be a change of pace. I don't get to learn the language first at all, so I'll be thrown into it headfirst, and I guess I'll have to learn pretty quick!
My companion will have been out for a while, so I'm pretty excited for all that I can learn from him.
I hope everything is okay in Belgium, sounds like it was a trip trying to get settled in. Did you get all your luggage and stuff yet? Just wondering. I have some pretty cool pictures here.
I just want to thank you all for your support and your help. It's been so great to hear from you, and just so you know, I got the letters and everything. Thanks a lot for sending them! I know this church is true, and we are working with some very cool people here. Just keep us in your prayers, and pray that the Spanish clicks fast. We'll see how that goes.
I love you guys, you're all great, thanks so much for all you do! Keep me posted on how everything goes with the big move! Don't stress out either, I know it will all work out! It always does!
Love,
Elder Wallentine
Pretty much, the last week has been a circus around here, too. You said I could tell you the stories after they happened, right? It's interesting, because the neighborhoods are a little dangerous lately, but we are calm through the whole thing. I just realized that if I were a tourist, I'd be terrified to walk in some of the places we go. But with the badge on, the mantle of a missionary is definitely one of divine protection. This past week, a car got bombed two doors down, and it was pretty crazy. It was pretty burned up when we walked by it on our way to get our groceries. The spirit of God is something that causes a great deal of comfort to come over you, even in some of the most distressing times. I know it's very real, and I've come to rely on it so much, I don't know how I'd get along without it.
Transfer calls came in, and I will be moving to North Philadelphia again. But there's a catch; God must want to see how I do learning Spanish. I'll be serving in the North Philadelphia Spanish branch, so that will be a change of pace. I don't get to learn the language first at all, so I'll be thrown into it headfirst, and I guess I'll have to learn pretty quick!
My companion will have been out for a while, so I'm pretty excited for all that I can learn from him.
I hope everything is okay in Belgium, sounds like it was a trip trying to get settled in. Did you get all your luggage and stuff yet? Just wondering. I have some pretty cool pictures here.
I just want to thank you all for your support and your help. It's been so great to hear from you, and just so you know, I got the letters and everything. Thanks a lot for sending them! I know this church is true, and we are working with some very cool people here. Just keep us in your prayers, and pray that the Spanish clicks fast. We'll see how that goes.
I love you guys, you're all great, thanks so much for all you do! Keep me posted on how everything goes with the big move! Don't stress out either, I know it will all work out! It always does!
Love,
Elder Wallentine
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)