Crestview 2 Daphne

Man, this week has been such a good one! I just feel like I have been being spiritually fed soooo much recently from my studies and just being out and about, it is so amazing!! So this week I spent most of it down in Geneva on 2 exchanges with the district leader and his companion.  We had some pretty cool things happen! We were able to find someone that they had taught ages ago but he ended up going to jail in Panama City; he just got back. Super long story short, our appointments fell through, so we decided to walk down the street and found him walking out of his house. We got talking with him, and he really really wants to get back into church and creating a relationship with God and he wants to get baptized, it was so crazy!!!! Sometimes people need a little humbling so that they can experience God's love and light more fully into their lives.

Elder Blamires got sick on Friday, so I basically just sat around, slept,watched spiritual videos, studied the scriptures and wrote in my journal, it was pretty cool. Recently I have absolutely 100% loved reading the scriptures, they are soooo amazing! Every time I pick them up, I feel as if they are speaking right to me and helping me understand the gospel and the Savior even more. I have also been doing the Doctrine and Covenants challenge, where I read a section every night before I go to bed so that I can finish it by the end of my mission, I wish I would've done it sooner!!! The Doctrine and Covenants is a PERFECT tool for missionaries to understand their purpose and how God loves all of his children and desires them to have the blessings of the gospel as well, I have an increased desire to serve and share every time I read, I love it!

 The highlight of the week was that Elder Delamare and I were able to get permission to go to Bobby's baptism over in Daphne. On Saturday, Elder Blamires and I drove over to Crestview to pick up the other elders so we could carpool over. While in Crestview, we were able to go to my favorite restaurant, Pounders, with one of my favorite families from the mission (the Corbins), it was so awesome!!! We then drove over to Daphne for the actual baptism, and it was incredible! Bobby has been taught for 4 years but couldn't get baptized cause he wasn't 18 and didn't have permission from him parents. Last week was his 18th birthday. We got there and there were a bunch of missionaries that had taught him, and soooo many members too; literally the entire chapel was filled because so many people love Bobby and wanted to support him. What a wonderful experience it was to be there for Bobby, he really has embraced the gospel so well, and I know that he is going to do great things in his life, what a pleasure it was to be a part of teaching him!

Thanks for everything y'all!! 

Elder Schipaanboord

 

 

 

 

Scriputer Study

so first off, do y'all remember jack from daphne? well get this, i was chatting with elder abbott and he told me that jack got baptized on saturday! even though i wasn't able to be there it is still really cool to know that he made the next step in his spiritual progression, and receive a remission of his sins! i love that man so much!

this week was a pretty spiritually packed one. i have started to really focus on my scripture study so that i can learn as much as i can about this wonderful gospel so that i can testify with more power and conviction. so in my studies this week i was watching one of the bible videos, the one of the savior healing the blind man, and just before he does he says something that struck me, he said "I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." it was an epiphany for me. it made me realize that my  mission isnt going to last forever, but while i am here i need to do all that i can and serve as many people as i can, but it also made me realize that i don't just have to be a missionary here in the south, but its a lifetime calling, something that i should always be doing no matter where i am at. 

i also have been reading out of the doctrine and covenants and something that i saw in sections 11,12&14 god says the same thing to 3 separate people, he says "Behold, I am God; give heed to my word, which is quick and powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of both joints and marrow; therefore give heed unto my word" he then goes on to explain what his word is, and it is all about missionary work and that the field is white and already to harvest. there are those all around us that are ready to learn about this gospel, and it is something that they need, but they are kept from the truth because they know not where to find it, so we must reach out and share it with all those around us! there are so many return missionaries that are magnifying their callings and doing everything that they are supposed to, but still feel like they don't have the spirit as strongly as they did on their mission, well i was reading "the power of everyday missionaries" and the author says the reason is because they aren't reaching out and sharing the gospel anymore. the reason we feel the spirit so much as a missionary is because we are doing our best to "bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man", gods purpose, therefore he blesses us with strength and power beyond our own.

so as for teaching this week, we got a referral from salt lake and started teaching this family (mainly just the dad) and by our second visit (2 days apart) he had read all the way to helaman!! it was so crazy!! he has LOTS of questions, most of which go back to the old testament, but he has a desire to learn, its awesome! something elder blamires said after the lesson is that its so cool how in 2 years or less we have been able to learn the gospel and teachings of Christ so well that we can go "one on one" with preachers and people who have been studying 10x as long as we have, and help them come even closer to Christ. since being out here i have realized how weak i am, but also how with god how strong i can be. he really does, if we come to him, make weak things become strong.

we also started teaching a members grandkids who are living with them for a little bit, and they have come to love us so much, its awesome! the member told us that one of the kids says that he feels so good around us and he always wants us around, but doesn't know why, so she explained the spirit to him, it was so cool! i love how people can recognize the spirit even when they are so young! it is really sad though that they haven't been raised in the church and don't know a whole lot (their mom is less active), and it made me so thankful to have had parents who taught be about the restoration of the gospel and how i can learn of it myself. this gospel has changed my life, and i just want others to have the same experience as well! "freely ye have receive, freely ye shall give"

i love you all, thank you for everything and always remember you've got to be odd to be #1

 

 

 

Next Vocal Point

On Thursday we were able to go to Tallahassee for a Half Mission Conference with Elder Juan Uceda of the 70 and his wife. While there we were extremely spiritually uplifted and learned a lot about charity and how the only way that we can teach with the spirit and help people feel of the Savior's love is if we ourselves have charity for them.  we also learned about being humble and willing to change.  I would say that humility is the most important Christlike attribute (I know most people would say charity), because if we are prideful and not humble, we will not have a desire to improve or develop any Christlike attribute.  Humility isn't thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.  Halfway through the conference, I was able to participate in singing "Brightly Beams our Father's Mercy" with my district.  We practiced so much and felt that we had it down pretty solid where the Spirit would come in very strongly, and then when we performed we remembered that we are a 9 elder district with ZERO sisters, who's idea was that??!!  It was honestly terrible and so embarassing!  When the music started, we started singing super late, half the people were off key, someone sang the wrong words, and because of that everyone was laughing at us, it was sooo bad!!!  Thankfully the General Authority and his wife are very experienced and was able to bring the Spirit back to the room as they taught.

 We got a phone call from a member of the ward and asked us if we could give her mom a blessing cause she is super old and is in really bad health right now, so we went over and gave her a blessing.  This lady was very near death, with lots of pain and her family members were very sad, it was hard for me to be a part of.  But  as we were there I became super grateful that I was on a mission while my grandpa passed away.  This made me realize how hard it would've been if I was there by his and my family's side like I would've liked to have been,  but because I was out serving the Lord and his children it made his passing much easier, because I was turning outwards rather than inward.  There are so many times when I wish things would happen the way that I want them to but it doesn't happen and I get frustrated, until I look back and realize that God's plan was so much better than mine.  Something that has been on my mind a lot lately is the question "Do you believe God, or do you just believe in God?" I think there are many of us who believe in God and that he is there, but there are only a handful that take God at his word and act upon it, because they know that his promises are sure and that his plan is perfect. It takes a lot of experimenting and faith, but how much better do you think our lives would be if we could simply change the statement "I believe in God" to "I believe God."  How much of the Spirit do you think would be in your life, how much closer would you and your family be, how much happier would you be, how much more successful would you be, and how much more prepared for the next life would you be? the thing that i have seen work the most is an attitude of "why not try this out and see if it actually works." As you act, you will always see blessings, "because the Lord is bound when you do what he says, but when you do not what he says, ye have no promise " (D&C 82:10).   I put following spiritual promptings to the test this week and because of it, I made myself look like an idiot at two restaurants, because I got up and talked with one of the workers, well it was worth it! In both instances the people didn't like their church and want to start going to a new one. Even though both the people live outside our area, it was still really neet to see how true God's promises are!

Thank y'all for all that you do, all you say, and all that you say you do, and always remember that you've got to be odd to be number 1!

Love you guys, hope you have a great week!

Elder Schipaanboord

 

 

Transfered

well transfers happened this week, so i had to say good bye to a lot of great people that i was able to teach in daphne. its crazy how in just knowing people for a short amount of time you can come to love them so much! everyone always said that the best thing of the mission is the people, and it is so true!! i love the people here sooo much!!

living in enterprise is pretty sweet! its a decent sized city, but the main thing that is here is ft ruck army base! i love military areas so much!! the only thing i dont like about military wards is how often people move in and out... this sunday for testimony meeting it was basically a farewell tour for 3 families... i didnt feel spiritually uplifted at all.. if you want to feel the spirit in your life, just speak, read, or learn about the savior!

 for this last week we have just been getting settled in and getting me acquainted with the area. we got out and worked a ton, but had zero success, it was so crazy!! we tried like 20 potentials and like 1 of them opened the door hahahaa! its alright thought, cause me and elder blamires get along so well and have been having a good time! the only down side is that its starting to get super hot and humid, and all the stupid bugs are coming out! honestly, if it werent for the bugs i wouldnt mind living down here.

this week my studies were based on prayer and how i can have a better relationship with my father in heaven, so i went through the bible dictionary and read all the scriptures in it about prayer, and learned a lot! a few things that i really liked was that in the old testament prayer was generally preceded with a sacrifice of some sort, it also talks about how those who prayed went to a special place where they could be alone and kneel. i think that it is so important that if we want to receive direction from the lord we show him that we are willing to prepare to receive an answer. i also really like how when people in the scriptures pray they have a conversation with god, it isnt just a "thank the for...." and "please bless...." but they would glorify god, bare their testimony, recognize that they are nothing but all things are from god, and then they would ask for help. so after studying about this i put it to the test, and i have definitely recognized a difference in my communication with god. i feel that i am much more in tune with the spirit and i can actually feel and recognize answers coming.

thank yall for everything that yall have done for me!!

love you lots!

elder schipaanboord