The work has gone forward much better this week. We continue to learn how to better share the message. This week we went on a couple of exchanges with leaders and had a great time. We set up a lot of appointments. You would be surprised at how many appointments fall through each week. I went on an exchange to Chorley this week, while Elder Carter stayed in Burnley. Chorley is where the Temple is, even though it is called the Preston temple. They just created a 3rd Chorley ward on Sunday. There are so many members there, it is quite fun. We were able to meet many of them on our exchange there.
Our investigator named D**** came to church. He has a baptismal date for the 28th and had to come to church on Sunday to keep that date. P****** didn't come to church, so we have had to tell him that we can't teach him anymore. He has been taught for so long, and he has grown a bit, but this time of not teaching him will help him grow more.
When I was in Chorley, Elder Carter and Elder T. Davies(Crazy, huh? Another Elder Davies, even with a T) found someone here, taught them the first lesson, and Elder T. Davies committed them to Baptism for the 21st of March right then and there. They have a lot of things to overcome, but it is still really cool.
We have been focusing this week on improving our Study. Preach My Gospel gives us so many tips in Chapter 2 on having a better study. We usually don't think they would be that amazing, and then we try them out, and they work. I love how that happens.
We have been visiting with a less-active named J**** W********. She has gone through Cancer and cancer remissions a couple of times. She really gets sad about it, and we have been visiting her over the last week to help her out. She is a great lady. She loves the scriptures and has a close relationship with her heavenly Father. She goes in tomorrow to have another scan for her cancer.
The members here are great. They help us out a lot and feed us a lot. One of the members daughters lives in Provo, going to BYU. She is a freshman, so I was wondering if Taylor had ever seen her. Her name is Nadine Burgan. Sister Burgan truly is a saint. They might be moving to Utah this year. That would help her
I love the pure prophecies in the Book of Mormon, and the pure understanding of the Plan of Salvation. If people would just read it, they could see. I was reading in 2 Nephi 26 today. I can usually only remember todays study right off the top of my head. Nephi sees a lot of the Apostasy and the coming forth of his words. I love verse 23-end. It describes a lot about the nature of God. So kind and loving to all His children.
I love all of you and really appreciate your prayers and your e-mails. I hope all of you are doing well.
Love you all,
Elder Davies
Current Mission Address
Mission Office Address
England Manchester Mission
Springwood, Ste G5
Booths Park, Knutsford, WA168QZ
ENGLAND
Connah's Quay
WALES
England Manchester Mission
Springwood, Ste G5
Booths Park, Knutsford, WA168QZ
ENGLAND
Current Physical Address
2 Golftyn DriveConnah's Quay
WALES
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Saturday, February 14, 2009
February 11, 2009
I wasn't able to climb Pendle Hill last week. There was an Elder who is afraid of heights, and was only able to get a hundred steps up. Someone had to stay with him, because we can't be on our own as missionaries, so I stayed behind. Elder Carter got some good pictures at the top. I hope you enjoy them!
It continues to be cold and a bit snowy here. A month or two, and I will be out of the English cold. Yes!! We stay pretty warm though if we bundle up. Nothing to worry about.
The work this week proved to be interesting again. We have had some trouble getting investigators to keep commitments, and to get potential investigators to keep appoinyments. It blows my mind that no one wants to listen. It all comes down to them just not understanding. I wish I could explain it in the way that I know it. They are not having a fair chance to say yes or no.
There is a family that just started to come to our ward. They were going to a ward just outside of this ward, and are now coming to ours. It is cool, because they are kind of in a far out area, so we get to see them sometimes. We saw them this week. One of the ladies is a part-member family. The husband isn't interested yet, but we were able to meet him. He is such a nice guy. He would be a great member.
We have started a stop-smoking workshop with one of our investigators named P******. It is a seven day thing that guarantees they will be able to give it up, if they follow the steps. It is pretty cool. There is a lot to do in the 15 steps, some of them can seem silly, but it works. He has been doing alright for the first two days. I hope he can make the changes. Neither him or D**** were at Chruch on Sunday. We are not supposed to teach people if they don't keep the commitments we leave with them. Many of our investigators are not keeping them.
I can't think of any great finding situations that happened, just a principle. It is easier to keep the commandments than not to. We just feel so much better. That is why they were given. In John 15:9-15 we learn the relationship between love and the commandments. It is so true, so true. Especially v.13, when he tells us that he tells us these things that we can have a fuller joy. That is my scripture thought for the week.
We got to play football today for a Zone Activity. We have such a great zone, and some great zone leaders. That is one of my happies for the week. Another one is the beautiful countryside of England. There is so much to see, and so little opportunities to see it. My third happy is my family. I am continually amazed at how great you all are. Thank you so much for your love and support.
I love you all, 'til next week. T'rah
Elder Davies
It continues to be cold and a bit snowy here. A month or two, and I will be out of the English cold. Yes!! We stay pretty warm though if we bundle up. Nothing to worry about.
The work this week proved to be interesting again. We have had some trouble getting investigators to keep commitments, and to get potential investigators to keep appoinyments. It blows my mind that no one wants to listen. It all comes down to them just not understanding. I wish I could explain it in the way that I know it. They are not having a fair chance to say yes or no.
There is a family that just started to come to our ward. They were going to a ward just outside of this ward, and are now coming to ours. It is cool, because they are kind of in a far out area, so we get to see them sometimes. We saw them this week. One of the ladies is a part-member family. The husband isn't interested yet, but we were able to meet him. He is such a nice guy. He would be a great member.
We have started a stop-smoking workshop with one of our investigators named P******. It is a seven day thing that guarantees they will be able to give it up, if they follow the steps. It is pretty cool. There is a lot to do in the 15 steps, some of them can seem silly, but it works. He has been doing alright for the first two days. I hope he can make the changes. Neither him or D**** were at Chruch on Sunday. We are not supposed to teach people if they don't keep the commitments we leave with them. Many of our investigators are not keeping them.
I can't think of any great finding situations that happened, just a principle. It is easier to keep the commandments than not to. We just feel so much better. That is why they were given. In John 15:9-15 we learn the relationship between love and the commandments. It is so true, so true. Especially v.13, when he tells us that he tells us these things that we can have a fuller joy. That is my scripture thought for the week.
We got to play football today for a Zone Activity. We have such a great zone, and some great zone leaders. That is one of my happies for the week. Another one is the beautiful countryside of England. There is so much to see, and so little opportunities to see it. My third happy is my family. I am continually amazed at how great you all are. Thank you so much for your love and support.
I love you all, 'til next week. T'rah
Elder Davies
February 4, 2009
We have had a good week. A lot more street pounding than usual, but that is good for us. Not as many outstanding experiences, but still a great week. We are going to climb Pendle Hill right now, and have to meet the other Elders really soon, so this will be a bit shorter. I will also be sending some pictures next week of the hike and some other fun moments we have had over the last couple of weeks. I sent a package last week, and I hope you got that, complete with my first memoroy card, so you can get some good pictures from my mission. I have a couple of questions.
We haven't had any new investigators lately, but we have been planting some seeds, and strengthening personal testimony. I love all of you. Please keep praying for us, and allowing the Lord to direct you in your lives. It is the secret to happiness! I love you all and look forward to hearing from you next week!
Loves,
Elder Davies
We haven't had any new investigators lately, but we have been planting some seeds, and strengthening personal testimony. I love all of you. Please keep praying for us, and allowing the Lord to direct you in your lives. It is the secret to happiness! I love you all and look forward to hearing from you next week!
Loves,
Elder Davies
January 28, 2009
We are buried and engaged in the work here in England, and the Lord has blessed us greatly. We can make a lot of mistakes throughout the day, but each time we exercise even the smallest amount of faith, we receive the Lord's blessings. I have never had a week like this one where something unusual has happened almost every day. I will recap it for you.
Friday: We taught the L******'s(M****** and C********). They hadn't really been progressing much lately, and we taught a lesson that we knew C******** would struggle with. She doesn't have a firm testimony of the Prophet Joseph and we were going to teach her about the Word of Wisdom, which she struggles with. She committed to start making the change and cutting down. We don't know how much she has done yet, but she was surprisingly positive about it.
After that we went down to a lesson with a Bosnian lady named H*****. We had never talked to her. The other Elders had found her, and she lived in our area, so we were hoping that she was still planning on the lesson. When we got there she was asleep. Her son woke her up and she came down to talk to us. She told us that she had fallen asleep around 5, because she was not feeling well, and asked us why we were calling at such an early hour. We told her that it was 7:00. She said she needed to get her son to school at 7:30 and she had to reschedule. We asked if he had night school. She seemed confused, so we deducted that she thought it was morning!! I wanted to tell her that there was no way I would be coming to her house at 7:00 in the morning. She came to realize that it was evening and she hadn't actually slept all night. She still told us that she had to reschedule. Elder Carter and I had a good laugh!
Saturday: We went tracting in a small area a bit outside of the main area on a road called Alma Avenue. It is actually quite a popular name in England. We tracted into a mom and dad that had 4 girls. The mom's name was T******. She was an incredible lady. She has never been a part of a religion, but she is so close to God and understands her connection with him so well. Everything she was saying completely agreed with everything we taught. They are very impressive people. She didn't seem too excited at our message, because she isn't looking for anything, but we got into a door! We are going to try to see her again, but I can hardly explain how cool everything was that she was saying. So positive and uplifting.
Sunday: Z*** and P*** fed us. I don't think the chicken was quite done, because it seemed like i was tearing it off the bone. And the blood pockets didn't help. I only took one bit, and that was enough. I was worried that I would get Salmonella and my Tuesday morning experience almost confirmed my worry. However, I was okay. We were not sure at the reason why Z*** and P*** kept inviting us over, because they weren't coming to church or making any progress. We stated our purpose in coming, and got a good response. P*** told us that he would do everything if he received an answer to his prayer that the Book of Mormon was true. That was really nice.
Later that night we were about to go in, and saw a young girl walking on the street. Usually we don't talk to younger people, but this conversation went really well. She was happy to receive a Book of Mormon and we are going to try to contact her this weekend. It was just cool to see how we could have gone in a couple minutes early, but because we were doing what is right, Heavenly Father blessed us.
Monday: P****** received a spiritual experience while reading 1 Nephi 8 in the lesson. He suddenly had a strong desire to read the Book of Mormon and he felt something go through his body. He wondered what it was. We explained that he had a confirmation of the truth. It was great to watch that happen.
Tuesday: We were tracting in an area that is kind of far away. A man who is a brother of a member in Utah picked us up at the bus stop and gave us a lift. He has heard a lot about the church, and isn't interested, but I don't believe that it was coincidence that we were there when we were. It could have gone so many different ways.
There are more, and the ones I explained aren't even clear enough. It is so hard to explain all of it and explain it in such a way to make it completely make sense. I just want you to know that it was great!
I was going to send some pictures, but I forgot to bring the cable to my camera. I will have to send some next week, and describe my companion in a better way. Sorry, but I have to get going.
I love you all and thank you for the love and support you lend me. Maybe I will be able to send a letter with everything else that wasn't in here!
Elder Davies
Friday: We taught the L******'s(M****** and C********). They hadn't really been progressing much lately, and we taught a lesson that we knew C******** would struggle with. She doesn't have a firm testimony of the Prophet Joseph and we were going to teach her about the Word of Wisdom, which she struggles with. She committed to start making the change and cutting down. We don't know how much she has done yet, but she was surprisingly positive about it.
After that we went down to a lesson with a Bosnian lady named H*****. We had never talked to her. The other Elders had found her, and she lived in our area, so we were hoping that she was still planning on the lesson. When we got there she was asleep. Her son woke her up and she came down to talk to us. She told us that she had fallen asleep around 5, because she was not feeling well, and asked us why we were calling at such an early hour. We told her that it was 7:00. She said she needed to get her son to school at 7:30 and she had to reschedule. We asked if he had night school. She seemed confused, so we deducted that she thought it was morning!! I wanted to tell her that there was no way I would be coming to her house at 7:00 in the morning. She came to realize that it was evening and she hadn't actually slept all night. She still told us that she had to reschedule. Elder Carter and I had a good laugh!
Saturday: We went tracting in a small area a bit outside of the main area on a road called Alma Avenue. It is actually quite a popular name in England. We tracted into a mom and dad that had 4 girls. The mom's name was T******. She was an incredible lady. She has never been a part of a religion, but she is so close to God and understands her connection with him so well. Everything she was saying completely agreed with everything we taught. They are very impressive people. She didn't seem too excited at our message, because she isn't looking for anything, but we got into a door! We are going to try to see her again, but I can hardly explain how cool everything was that she was saying. So positive and uplifting.
Sunday: Z*** and P*** fed us. I don't think the chicken was quite done, because it seemed like i was tearing it off the bone. And the blood pockets didn't help. I only took one bit, and that was enough. I was worried that I would get Salmonella and my Tuesday morning experience almost confirmed my worry. However, I was okay. We were not sure at the reason why Z*** and P*** kept inviting us over, because they weren't coming to church or making any progress. We stated our purpose in coming, and got a good response. P*** told us that he would do everything if he received an answer to his prayer that the Book of Mormon was true. That was really nice.
Later that night we were about to go in, and saw a young girl walking on the street. Usually we don't talk to younger people, but this conversation went really well. She was happy to receive a Book of Mormon and we are going to try to contact her this weekend. It was just cool to see how we could have gone in a couple minutes early, but because we were doing what is right, Heavenly Father blessed us.
Monday: P****** received a spiritual experience while reading 1 Nephi 8 in the lesson. He suddenly had a strong desire to read the Book of Mormon and he felt something go through his body. He wondered what it was. We explained that he had a confirmation of the truth. It was great to watch that happen.
Tuesday: We were tracting in an area that is kind of far away. A man who is a brother of a member in Utah picked us up at the bus stop and gave us a lift. He has heard a lot about the church, and isn't interested, but I don't believe that it was coincidence that we were there when we were. It could have gone so many different ways.
There are more, and the ones I explained aren't even clear enough. It is so hard to explain all of it and explain it in such a way to make it completely make sense. I just want you to know that it was great!
I was going to send some pictures, but I forgot to bring the cable to my camera. I will have to send some next week, and describe my companion in a better way. Sorry, but I have to get going.
I love you all and thank you for the love and support you lend me. Maybe I will be able to send a letter with everything else that wasn't in here!
Elder Davies
January 21, 2009
This will be short. There was a transfer today. I stayed up in Colne/Nelson(Burnley North) and Elder Rawlings went to Blackpool. Elder Carter came to serve with me here. He is from Utah. He has been out for about a year, and he is very smart. I will try to send pictures.
I love the fruit of obedience. The Spirit heightens all of our faculties. It helps us to look outside of ourselves. We are able to have a greater impact on the lives of others. The Lord is able to direct is ALL things. There are so many inexpressible blessings that come. And with sin, the opposite is true. It all comes done to inviting the Spirit, or driving away the spirit.
We have focused on helping the investigators to progress, and some have not. We don't have many to start with, but a lady that we talked to on the street, but haven't taught yet, came to church on Sunday. She loved it! Her name is H****. She is originally from Zimbabwe. I love those people. We are supposed to teach her for the first time tomorrow, but she was also taught by Elders over a year ago.
We have not been having much success in people keeping their appointments. That is, of course, a focus for us - getting new investigators.
I love all of you, and wish that I had time to give a better e-mail.
This week has been very cold and snowy. The countryside is beautiful. I will send pictures, because I actually took some.
Love,
Elder Davies
A package should be on the way
I love the fruit of obedience. The Spirit heightens all of our faculties. It helps us to look outside of ourselves. We are able to have a greater impact on the lives of others. The Lord is able to direct is ALL things. There are so many inexpressible blessings that come. And with sin, the opposite is true. It all comes done to inviting the Spirit, or driving away the spirit.
We have focused on helping the investigators to progress, and some have not. We don't have many to start with, but a lady that we talked to on the street, but haven't taught yet, came to church on Sunday. She loved it! Her name is H****. She is originally from Zimbabwe. I love those people. We are supposed to teach her for the first time tomorrow, but she was also taught by Elders over a year ago.
We have not been having much success in people keeping their appointments. That is, of course, a focus for us - getting new investigators.
I love all of you, and wish that I had time to give a better e-mail.
This week has been very cold and snowy. The countryside is beautiful. I will send pictures, because I actually took some.
Love,
Elder Davies
A package should be on the way
January 14, 2009
Please know how much I love you. The gospel truly makes us happy. There is nothing we have to wonder about. We can have the assurance that we have the Lord on our side. If we can exercise small amounts of faith, we will see miracles happen.
During the last couple of days I have felt really good. I have had many wonderful feelings that I wanted to share with you, but I can't remember all of them. It was all about the gospel and the magic of it all. The Church is so true! So even though I can't remember it all, just know how much I love you and am grateful for you.
On Monday of this week we saw some miracles. We have been trying to be more diligent in our finding efforts, and also being very bold in helping our investigators progress. On Monday we went on an exchange with the Zone Leaders, and we had a great day. We were able to schedule 11 appointments with people on the streets in just a few hours of talking to people on the street. I had a great time trying to get to know each person I talked to. With each one I got a good conversation from, I was able to get their name. I like it that way better. Instead of saying I got a 6 today or I got a 10 today, I was able to say, today I talked to . . . then I could list off their names. These are real people, with real problems, and God loves them as much as he loves us. We met some wonderful people, and I hope to tell you more about them when the lessons go through in the next 5 days. I know that more things like this can happen, if we just exercise a little more faith.
We have wonderful opportunities here. This ward is great, and the Stake is really focused on missionary work. Of course, we run into difficulties, especially when we need a man to attend a lesson with a single woman(which we teach a lot of), but it has been great. We have transfers next Wednesday, and Elder Rawlings is pretty certain that he is leaving. I think he knows things I don't. I really liked serving with him, but I also like meeting new missionaries and growing from their strengths. I really learned how to love people more from Elder Rawlings. He really loved our investigators.
Nothing has really changed with our investigators. We need to push them faster. Just trying to help them understand the gospel. Hopefully I will be able to update you better next week after we teach a lot of new people, and commit some people to BAPTISM. After all, that is why I am here!
I love you all. Please give each other a big hug from me. Look to help someone each day. Remind those little ones that I still live.
Elder Davies
During the last couple of days I have felt really good. I have had many wonderful feelings that I wanted to share with you, but I can't remember all of them. It was all about the gospel and the magic of it all. The Church is so true! So even though I can't remember it all, just know how much I love you and am grateful for you.
On Monday of this week we saw some miracles. We have been trying to be more diligent in our finding efforts, and also being very bold in helping our investigators progress. On Monday we went on an exchange with the Zone Leaders, and we had a great day. We were able to schedule 11 appointments with people on the streets in just a few hours of talking to people on the street. I had a great time trying to get to know each person I talked to. With each one I got a good conversation from, I was able to get their name. I like it that way better. Instead of saying I got a 6 today or I got a 10 today, I was able to say, today I talked to . . . then I could list off their names. These are real people, with real problems, and God loves them as much as he loves us. We met some wonderful people, and I hope to tell you more about them when the lessons go through in the next 5 days. I know that more things like this can happen, if we just exercise a little more faith.
We have wonderful opportunities here. This ward is great, and the Stake is really focused on missionary work. Of course, we run into difficulties, especially when we need a man to attend a lesson with a single woman(which we teach a lot of), but it has been great. We have transfers next Wednesday, and Elder Rawlings is pretty certain that he is leaving. I think he knows things I don't. I really liked serving with him, but I also like meeting new missionaries and growing from their strengths. I really learned how to love people more from Elder Rawlings. He really loved our investigators.
Nothing has really changed with our investigators. We need to push them faster. Just trying to help them understand the gospel. Hopefully I will be able to update you better next week after we teach a lot of new people, and commit some people to BAPTISM. After all, that is why I am here!
I love you all. Please give each other a big hug from me. Look to help someone each day. Remind those little ones that I still live.
Elder Davies
January 7, 2009
Hello to All,
First off, I love you all. Thank you for being so good to me. Christmas was great. Maybe some of you don't know exactly what Santa brought me in his bright red bag(all with a matching scripture), so I will fill you in a bit:
Ear Muffs: Stylish and used FREQUENTLY
Beef Jerky: I can hardly describe my joy.
Shoes: they fit AND they look nice
Peanut M&M's: You cannot find these in England, though with all the chocolate, they aren't really missed. I do love them, though.
Scarf: Also used frequently
Jelly Belly's: Also another rare commodity in England, and greatly loved.
Ties: Brown and blue seem to be in fashion lately. Very nice!
Joseph Smith CD's: I love the Prophet Joseph!
... And much much more.
Thank you to all those who contributed
Another present received that many may have not seen was a book of pictures of the Liljenquist Family. This is a prize and treasure. I love it and view it often.
Of course the greatest present was to talk to each one of you!
It sounds like everyone and everything is still staying busy in Utah. I don't know how everyone keeps up with it all. You will have to let me know of all of the great movies that you saw when I get back.
During the holidays, we visited many people, and were able to spend more time at their house and do some things that we don't get to do during the rest of the year. That was fun for the time, but I don't know if I would really enjoy it often.
I haven't heard much from Elder Weidmann in Liverpool, but I saw him at Zone Conferences, and he looked great. He is a great missionary, so I am sure he is going just fine. Elder Rawlings and I continue to become better friends. We are pretty different, but have the most important similarities. We are both missionaries, and we both love the gospel. I don't see us staying together next transfer, usually just because Elder Rawlings moves around a lot, but I am not sure what is going to happen. Anything can happen.
Last P-day and this P-day we went to this amazing store where there are nice suits on sale. You get a really good sale if you can match up trousers with a jacket, but they do have some matches that are fairly cheap. They are really nice, and much cheaper than home. Today I bought some double cuffed shirts that I might send home. If they were white, I would use them, but they are quite a variety of colors. If I send them home, I imagine that they will be worn, but I couldn't really expect much different. I also bought two suits, that I will not be using on my mission. I will bring them home. Thank you Grandpa for Christmas money!
Funny story(kind of): Yesterday I left the iron on all day. No worries, nothing happened. But it is a scary thought.
Our investigators aren't progressing very quickly right now. We need to get some solid new ones, but the work has been slow. I would go into detail with each of them, but I have to go.
Quick spiritual thought: I was reading 2 Nephi 4, which is always a good chapter, and I was touched by a couple of verses. Nephi exclaims that he has been very blessed by the Lord, with great knowledge and many visions. He then wonders how he could then yield to sin, after having that great knowledge. I wonder that often, but I am comforted by Nephi's other scriptures. He knows his weaknesses, which are probably very small, and calls on the Lord to deliver him from temptations and the devil. I really like Nephi's humility and acknowledgement of his need to improve. I then love his dependance on the Lord. May we all pray like Nephi to overcome our individual weaknesses.
Thank you for loving me despite my weaknesses.
I love you and pray for you,
Elder Davies
First off, I love you all. Thank you for being so good to me. Christmas was great. Maybe some of you don't know exactly what Santa brought me in his bright red bag(all with a matching scripture), so I will fill you in a bit:
Ear Muffs: Stylish and used FREQUENTLY
Beef Jerky: I can hardly describe my joy.
Shoes: they fit AND they look nice
Peanut M&M's: You cannot find these in England, though with all the chocolate, they aren't really missed. I do love them, though.
Scarf: Also used frequently
Jelly Belly's: Also another rare commodity in England, and greatly loved.
Ties: Brown and blue seem to be in fashion lately. Very nice!
Joseph Smith CD's: I love the Prophet Joseph!
... And much much more.
Thank you to all those who contributed
Another present received that many may have not seen was a book of pictures of the Liljenquist Family. This is a prize and treasure. I love it and view it often.
Of course the greatest present was to talk to each one of you!
It sounds like everyone and everything is still staying busy in Utah. I don't know how everyone keeps up with it all. You will have to let me know of all of the great movies that you saw when I get back.
During the holidays, we visited many people, and were able to spend more time at their house and do some things that we don't get to do during the rest of the year. That was fun for the time, but I don't know if I would really enjoy it often.
I haven't heard much from Elder Weidmann in Liverpool, but I saw him at Zone Conferences, and he looked great. He is a great missionary, so I am sure he is going just fine. Elder Rawlings and I continue to become better friends. We are pretty different, but have the most important similarities. We are both missionaries, and we both love the gospel. I don't see us staying together next transfer, usually just because Elder Rawlings moves around a lot, but I am not sure what is going to happen. Anything can happen.
Last P-day and this P-day we went to this amazing store where there are nice suits on sale. You get a really good sale if you can match up trousers with a jacket, but they do have some matches that are fairly cheap. They are really nice, and much cheaper than home. Today I bought some double cuffed shirts that I might send home. If they were white, I would use them, but they are quite a variety of colors. If I send them home, I imagine that they will be worn, but I couldn't really expect much different. I also bought two suits, that I will not be using on my mission. I will bring them home. Thank you Grandpa for Christmas money!
Funny story(kind of): Yesterday I left the iron on all day. No worries, nothing happened. But it is a scary thought.
Our investigators aren't progressing very quickly right now. We need to get some solid new ones, but the work has been slow. I would go into detail with each of them, but I have to go.
Quick spiritual thought: I was reading 2 Nephi 4, which is always a good chapter, and I was touched by a couple of verses. Nephi exclaims that he has been very blessed by the Lord, with great knowledge and many visions. He then wonders how he could then yield to sin, after having that great knowledge. I wonder that often, but I am comforted by Nephi's other scriptures. He knows his weaknesses, which are probably very small, and calls on the Lord to deliver him from temptations and the devil. I really like Nephi's humility and acknowledgement of his need to improve. I then love his dependance on the Lord. May we all pray like Nephi to overcome our individual weaknesses.
Thank you for loving me despite my weaknesses.
I love you and pray for you,
Elder Davies
December 30, 2008
Happy Holidays! I am writing today(Tuesday) because the libraries are closed tomorrow, so that means a couple of things: Some of you have not written, not knowing that I was going to write a day early. Also, we are trying to write as quickly as is reasonable because it is not a preparation day. Sorry for any problems that causes. Blame the Lancashire libraries :).
First off, it was wonderful to speak to EACH of you. I am a lucky brother, son, grandson, uncle, and whatever else I am. I love the Christmas spirit our family carries. From what I hear you had a wonderful Christmas season with all of the regular festivities.
We didn't get to talk much, so I will tell you all about what I did for Christmas. First, on Christmas Eve we sang Carols in the Burnley Town Centre with six other Elders. That was one of my highlights, blaring out my testimony of the true meaning of Christmas. People get a little unfocused. Then we went to eat with the Moore's, a family in the ward. We were only there for a bit, and then had to shoot off to the Pickups'. This family has quite a nice house, and it reminded me of being back home with actual space to live and stretch. They fed us a wonderful meal, and we went back to the other Elders' flat and slept over. Christmas morning was the time we opened our presents, and boy was I opening presents for a long time. From around here we got some of the traditional things, like socks, scarves, chocolate, and more chocolate. I will probably be sending home some chocolate, which I am sure you will all love. I am sorry, but English chocolate beats American chocolate in every category. However, from home, I received a big Santa bag. I wrote down all of the presents I received, but I forgot that I was writing e-mails today, so I left it back at the flat. However, everything was wonderful!! The ties are very nice, the shoes are great, even the books that I will be reading when I come back. I enjoyed it all. I think if I had to pick out my two favorite gifts, I would say, 1)The letters and 2)The Liljenquist's book of pictures. Original!!
After opening presents, we went to the Leeds' for Dinner, and that is where I called you from. Then we went to H**** R**'s. He is an older less active man, but he is starting to come back. I love H****. After that, we went to the Hewitsons, and played some games with them. On Boxing Day we got to watch Narnia with some Investigators. That was really cool. We were also allowed to play the Wii at a members home. All of these things were sanctioned!!! Missionaries have it so easy.
Well, this week was quite different with some of the breaks, and the upcoming one will be also with New Years, but everything will be back to normal after that. We got to see the new Joseph Movie at the Zone Conference. That was my second time seeing it and I loved it. I have a great love for the gospel. I love the Prophets, past and present. I love my Saviour, and the wonderful changes He makes in people's lives. I love all of you. Please pray for these people, and the missionary efforts around the world. Sorry this is shorter than usual. I have never been a great writer, but hopefully this did something in helping you see how spoiled missionaries are at Christmas time.
Love from England,
Elder Davies
First off, it was wonderful to speak to EACH of you. I am a lucky brother, son, grandson, uncle, and whatever else I am. I love the Christmas spirit our family carries. From what I hear you had a wonderful Christmas season with all of the regular festivities.
We didn't get to talk much, so I will tell you all about what I did for Christmas. First, on Christmas Eve we sang Carols in the Burnley Town Centre with six other Elders. That was one of my highlights, blaring out my testimony of the true meaning of Christmas. People get a little unfocused. Then we went to eat with the Moore's, a family in the ward. We were only there for a bit, and then had to shoot off to the Pickups'. This family has quite a nice house, and it reminded me of being back home with actual space to live and stretch. They fed us a wonderful meal, and we went back to the other Elders' flat and slept over. Christmas morning was the time we opened our presents, and boy was I opening presents for a long time. From around here we got some of the traditional things, like socks, scarves, chocolate, and more chocolate. I will probably be sending home some chocolate, which I am sure you will all love. I am sorry, but English chocolate beats American chocolate in every category. However, from home, I received a big Santa bag. I wrote down all of the presents I received, but I forgot that I was writing e-mails today, so I left it back at the flat. However, everything was wonderful!! The ties are very nice, the shoes are great, even the books that I will be reading when I come back. I enjoyed it all. I think if I had to pick out my two favorite gifts, I would say, 1)The letters and 2)The Liljenquist's book of pictures. Original!!
After opening presents, we went to the Leeds' for Dinner, and that is where I called you from. Then we went to H**** R**'s. He is an older less active man, but he is starting to come back. I love H****. After that, we went to the Hewitsons, and played some games with them. On Boxing Day we got to watch Narnia with some Investigators. That was really cool. We were also allowed to play the Wii at a members home. All of these things were sanctioned!!! Missionaries have it so easy.
Well, this week was quite different with some of the breaks, and the upcoming one will be also with New Years, but everything will be back to normal after that. We got to see the new Joseph Movie at the Zone Conference. That was my second time seeing it and I loved it. I have a great love for the gospel. I love the Prophets, past and present. I love my Saviour, and the wonderful changes He makes in people's lives. I love all of you. Please pray for these people, and the missionary efforts around the world. Sorry this is shorter than usual. I have never been a great writer, but hopefully this did something in helping you see how spoiled missionaries are at Christmas time.
Love from England,
Elder Davies
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