9-22-14
It sounds like a lot of great things are happening back home. That's awesome to hear that Vanessa was in the homecoming royalty. This week we saw a lot of great blessing and were able to get a lot of work done. I'm glad to hear that Dad is doing better, and hopefully, Sundays start going well for him. Sorry I have not been replying personally to your letters, but I have been just trying to write a nice, long letter to everyone that includes everything that happened in the past week. So far, it has saved me on time. The only downside is that I don't get any replies from anyone besides you. Haha. Elder Swallow is doing well and he definitely has a lot of support form friends and family. He has gotten about 1 to 2 packages a week so far with candy and whatever other goodies are in it. It's been nice because he doesn't eat a lot, so he splits it with me. I hope that you have a great week and I will talk to you soon.
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Loving Training and Miracles!
9-15-14
We had a pretty great week full of fun and interesting things. This last Monday we went up to the Sarasota area for a big Zone Development day where we played some games and sports and had some training to finish it off. On Tuesday, Elder Christensen went on exchanges with me in our area to work for the day. We didn't have any appointments planned, but we ended up getting six lessons and a new investigator.
The sisters in our ward had a baptism this week for a Phillipino lady that they have been teaching and they asked if I would give the talk on baptism. The program went well and when it came time for the baptism, they called Elder Swallow and I up to be the witnesses for it. As soon as she came up out of the water, she started chanting something in Phillipino, and it sounded like she was trying to speak in tongues, so we hurried and closed the curtains. I kind of expected that she would do that, but I guess that it was probably because of her previous religious background. Haha. She was confirmed on Sunday and we were invited to stand in on the confirmation.
That same day, during third hour, Hunter Mooney received the Aaronic priesthood and was ordained to the office of Priest. He had Elder Swallow do the ordination. Hunter is doing an amazing job at taking initiative to get himself to church and being active. Now his goal is to get to the temple to do baptisms.
The last big miracle that happened this weekend was back on Saturday after the baptism. We met with one of our investigators, Kevin, and talked to him about his upcoming baptism. He has been progressing so well and keeping every commitment that we leave him with. His original date was set for October 4th, but because he want to make sure that I am here for his baptism, he asked if we could move it up a week sooner to the 27th of this month. We didn't have any problems with it, so that is what we did. Now he will be getting baptized in two more weeks. I'm so excited for him!
Training is going great and I am really coming to love it! It has helped me grow a lot in regards to missionary work, and especially in my personal life and testimony of the Gospel. I love the work, and I love the Lord! I hope that you have a great week and I will hear from you soon!
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
We had a pretty great week full of fun and interesting things. This last Monday we went up to the Sarasota area for a big Zone Development day where we played some games and sports and had some training to finish it off. On Tuesday, Elder Christensen went on exchanges with me in our area to work for the day. We didn't have any appointments planned, but we ended up getting six lessons and a new investigator.
The sisters in our ward had a baptism this week for a Phillipino lady that they have been teaching and they asked if I would give the talk on baptism. The program went well and when it came time for the baptism, they called Elder Swallow and I up to be the witnesses for it. As soon as she came up out of the water, she started chanting something in Phillipino, and it sounded like she was trying to speak in tongues, so we hurried and closed the curtains. I kind of expected that she would do that, but I guess that it was probably because of her previous religious background. Haha. She was confirmed on Sunday and we were invited to stand in on the confirmation.
That same day, during third hour, Hunter Mooney received the Aaronic priesthood and was ordained to the office of Priest. He had Elder Swallow do the ordination. Hunter is doing an amazing job at taking initiative to get himself to church and being active. Now his goal is to get to the temple to do baptisms.
The last big miracle that happened this weekend was back on Saturday after the baptism. We met with one of our investigators, Kevin, and talked to him about his upcoming baptism. He has been progressing so well and keeping every commitment that we leave him with. His original date was set for October 4th, but because he want to make sure that I am here for his baptism, he asked if we could move it up a week sooner to the 27th of this month. We didn't have any problems with it, so that is what we did. Now he will be getting baptized in two more weeks. I'm so excited for him!
Training is going great and I am really coming to love it! It has helped me grow a lot in regards to missionary work, and especially in my personal life and testimony of the Gospel. I love the work, and I love the Lord! I hope that you have a great week and I will hear from you soon!
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
Metro Training
9-8-14
So, this last week was pretty steady for the most part, except for Monday and Tuesday. On Monday evening, we drove up to central Tampa for our Metro training experience. It is something that they do for all of the trainers and trainees to have some experience street contacting. We worked up there for part of Monday and all of Tuesday. We didn't get much done Monday because we had to take shelter at a nearby Presbyterian church for about 2 hours during a severe thunderstorm. After the storm stopped, there was about five or so fire trucks that drove past us to a site where lightning struck and caused some major damage very close to us. Tuesday felt extremely long because we were out from 10a.m.-9p.m. talking to people all day long. We got to go into the downtown area and see all of the massive buildings they have. It was pretty easy to pass out cards to people who were passing by us, but difficult to stop them and talk to them for even a minute or two. Everyone had somewhere to go and something to do it seemed like. It got pretty hot during the early to mid-afternoon, so we planned our route to what the next place could be where we could stop for water. Throughout our day, we met a lot of interesting individuals. Not too many who were interested about the Gospel, but did know a thing or two about the church. Something that was also going on there was the "Book of Mormon" play. So, whenever we would tell anyone who we were, they would just start talking to us about the play. It doesn't sound like a very accurate portrayal of the church or the Book. Oh well. Overall, it was a pretty fun experience. I feel bad for all of my friends who are in missions where all they do is walk all day, everyday. Haha. I'm sure they are us to it, though. I hope you have a great week and I will talk to you later.
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
I heard from Elder Swallow's mom. Here's what she said:
Elder Swallow (Logan) loves Austin! He says Austin is a great trainer and he learns new things everyday from him. He really respects him. He also said Austin is a super smart guy! Logan told us a funny story. He said they were in Tampa tracking and they were super hungry and there wasn't anywhere to eat. They looked at a GPS and saw a McDonalds, but it was two miles in the wrong direction. They were so hungry that they decided to walk to it anyway. When they got there, it was the Ronald McDonald House. Logan said he's pretty sure he cried. But, they walked back to where they came from and 2 hours later, they got food at a store. Logan said they sat down outside to eat and it started to pour down rain on them. He said it was pretty funny!
Austin is truly a blessing to Logan. We are so thankful for him being trained by such an obedient, hard working young man!
So, this last week was pretty steady for the most part, except for Monday and Tuesday. On Monday evening, we drove up to central Tampa for our Metro training experience. It is something that they do for all of the trainers and trainees to have some experience street contacting. We worked up there for part of Monday and all of Tuesday. We didn't get much done Monday because we had to take shelter at a nearby Presbyterian church for about 2 hours during a severe thunderstorm. After the storm stopped, there was about five or so fire trucks that drove past us to a site where lightning struck and caused some major damage very close to us. Tuesday felt extremely long because we were out from 10a.m.-9p.m. talking to people all day long. We got to go into the downtown area and see all of the massive buildings they have. It was pretty easy to pass out cards to people who were passing by us, but difficult to stop them and talk to them for even a minute or two. Everyone had somewhere to go and something to do it seemed like. It got pretty hot during the early to mid-afternoon, so we planned our route to what the next place could be where we could stop for water. Throughout our day, we met a lot of interesting individuals. Not too many who were interested about the Gospel, but did know a thing or two about the church. Something that was also going on there was the "Book of Mormon" play. So, whenever we would tell anyone who we were, they would just start talking to us about the play. It doesn't sound like a very accurate portrayal of the church or the Book. Oh well. Overall, it was a pretty fun experience. I feel bad for all of my friends who are in missions where all they do is walk all day, everyday. Haha. I'm sure they are us to it, though. I hope you have a great week and I will talk to you later.
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
I heard from Elder Swallow's mom. Here's what she said:
Elder Swallow (Logan) loves Austin! He says Austin is a great trainer and he learns new things everyday from him. He really respects him. He also said Austin is a super smart guy! Logan told us a funny story. He said they were in Tampa tracking and they were super hungry and there wasn't anywhere to eat. They looked at a GPS and saw a McDonalds, but it was two miles in the wrong direction. They were so hungry that they decided to walk to it anyway. When they got there, it was the Ronald McDonald House. Logan said he's pretty sure he cried. But, they walked back to where they came from and 2 hours later, they got food at a store. Logan said they sat down outside to eat and it started to pour down rain on them. He said it was pretty funny!
Austin is truly a blessing to Logan. We are so thankful for him being trained by such an obedient, hard working young man!
Sunday, September 7, 2014
Triple your Income in Life
9-1-14
That's great that you got to see the Ogden temple. This week started out slow for us and picked up pace by the end of the week. A whole lot of crazy things happened, though. This Wednesday one of our investigators passed away, and that was pretty sad. We went over to give him a blessing in the afternoon and he wasn't doing well at all. Later that evening we were notified that he had passed away. When I gave him the blessing, I didn't feel prompted to say anything about being healed, but just that he would be at peace until it was time for him to go, and I guess that it was pretty soon after that.
The next day we had a lesson with one of our other investigators and we set a tentative date for baptism on October 4th. He said that he would get baptized if he knows the church it true. He is keeping all of the commitments, so I'm sure that it won't be long until he gains a testimony that it is true. This evening we have to head up to Tampa to go do "metro training". We basically are going to spend the next two days walking around downtown Tampa talking to people so that Elder Swallow can get accustomed to street contacting. It should be hot and fun! I'll let you know how it goes next week.
Mom, you had mentioned Preach My Gospel. It has everything that we do as missionaries in it. It has the five lessons that we teach and other chapters to help us fulfill our purpose. Pretty much everything I know how to do as a missionary comes from P.M.G. I would definitely challenge you all to read a section or two every night and see how you can apply it because you all are suppose to be "missionaries" as well. Elder Clarke told us that if we want to triple our income in life, we need to become converts to chapter 8 of P.M.G.
Things are going well for us out here and we are staying busy and working hard. I hope that you all have a great week! Love ya!
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
*A side note: We had the wonderful opportunity to meet Elder Swallow's family while we were in Utah. They are an amazing family and we loved our visit with them. I think our sons will do well together and it was so fun to get to know more about Elder Swallow. We found out that he is 5'6", so almost a foot shorter. They also have a son serving in Germany right now. We had a lot in common with them and look forward to keeping in touch with them!
That's great that you got to see the Ogden temple. This week started out slow for us and picked up pace by the end of the week. A whole lot of crazy things happened, though. This Wednesday one of our investigators passed away, and that was pretty sad. We went over to give him a blessing in the afternoon and he wasn't doing well at all. Later that evening we were notified that he had passed away. When I gave him the blessing, I didn't feel prompted to say anything about being healed, but just that he would be at peace until it was time for him to go, and I guess that it was pretty soon after that.
The next day we had a lesson with one of our other investigators and we set a tentative date for baptism on October 4th. He said that he would get baptized if he knows the church it true. He is keeping all of the commitments, so I'm sure that it won't be long until he gains a testimony that it is true. This evening we have to head up to Tampa to go do "metro training". We basically are going to spend the next two days walking around downtown Tampa talking to people so that Elder Swallow can get accustomed to street contacting. It should be hot and fun! I'll let you know how it goes next week.
Mom, you had mentioned Preach My Gospel. It has everything that we do as missionaries in it. It has the five lessons that we teach and other chapters to help us fulfill our purpose. Pretty much everything I know how to do as a missionary comes from P.M.G. I would definitely challenge you all to read a section or two every night and see how you can apply it because you all are suppose to be "missionaries" as well. Elder Clarke told us that if we want to triple our income in life, we need to become converts to chapter 8 of P.M.G.
Things are going well for us out here and we are staying busy and working hard. I hope that you all have a great week! Love ya!
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
*A side note: We had the wonderful opportunity to meet Elder Swallow's family while we were in Utah. They are an amazing family and we loved our visit with them. I think our sons will do well together and it was so fun to get to know more about Elder Swallow. We found out that he is 5'6", so almost a foot shorter. They also have a son serving in Germany right now. We had a lot in common with them and look forward to keeping in touch with them!
 |
| The Swallow's and Whaley's |
It's a Boy!
8-25-14
My new companion is doing great! He is a humble elder and he has that greenie fire! Things are going well with training, but I have definitely been stressed out with it all. It's been a little exhausting trying to do everything, but it's getting better day by day as I involve Elder Swallow a little more and more. He is from Clinton, UT. He likes a variety of things, but something that is cool about him is that he speaks German pretty fluently. He took it all throughout high school.
Well, this week was crazy with all of the changes. Elder Lawless left Monday morning up to Tampa and got home Tuesday evening. I stayed with the Venice elders for all of Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday, they dropped me off in my area where I worked all day with one of the priests in the ward, then I went back to Venice for the night. I went up to Tampa on Thursday morning and picked up Elder Swallow and came back down and worked. We still managed to get in a good number of lessons with all of the time that I was gone for the week. I have felt somewhat lost and unprepared for the past few days, but so far I have been able to manage and keep everything moving. We had a pretty cool experience with street finding this Saturday right by the church. Elder Lawless and I hadn't done it in a while, but I decided to do it so that Elder Swallow could get some practice. We parked the car and we didn't even get out of the parking lot before we stopped someone who was riding through on their bike. We talked to him and set up a church tour for this next week. About one minute later, someone honked at us and flipped a u-turn to stop and talk to us. The lady was a young women's president who told us about one of her young women that had just moved to Port Charlotte. The girl's parents are not members and she wanted us to teach her and possibly her parents. This all happened within a hundred yards of the church. A few hours later, we took the same route of travel and ran into two more people right outside of the church parking lot and set up church tours with them. It was so cool to have all of that happen right off the bat for us. I guess those are some of the blessings of training! I hope that this week will go well for both you and me! Love you!
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
My new companion is doing great! He is a humble elder and he has that greenie fire! Things are going well with training, but I have definitely been stressed out with it all. It's been a little exhausting trying to do everything, but it's getting better day by day as I involve Elder Swallow a little more and more. He is from Clinton, UT. He likes a variety of things, but something that is cool about him is that he speaks German pretty fluently. He took it all throughout high school.
Well, this week was crazy with all of the changes. Elder Lawless left Monday morning up to Tampa and got home Tuesday evening. I stayed with the Venice elders for all of Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday, they dropped me off in my area where I worked all day with one of the priests in the ward, then I went back to Venice for the night. I went up to Tampa on Thursday morning and picked up Elder Swallow and came back down and worked. We still managed to get in a good number of lessons with all of the time that I was gone for the week. I have felt somewhat lost and unprepared for the past few days, but so far I have been able to manage and keep everything moving. We had a pretty cool experience with street finding this Saturday right by the church. Elder Lawless and I hadn't done it in a while, but I decided to do it so that Elder Swallow could get some practice. We parked the car and we didn't even get out of the parking lot before we stopped someone who was riding through on their bike. We talked to him and set up a church tour for this next week. About one minute later, someone honked at us and flipped a u-turn to stop and talk to us. The lady was a young women's president who told us about one of her young women that had just moved to Port Charlotte. The girl's parents are not members and she wanted us to teach her and possibly her parents. This all happened within a hundred yards of the church. A few hours later, we took the same route of travel and ran into two more people right outside of the church parking lot and set up church tours with them. It was so cool to have all of that happen right off the bat for us. I guess those are some of the blessings of training! I hope that this week will go well for both you and me! Love you!
Love,
Elder A. Whaley
 |
| Elder Whaley with his son, Elder Swallow |
 |
| Elder Whaley and Elder Swallow |
 |
| Elder Whaley and Elder Swallow |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)