傳教士的生活

Hello everyone!!! Elder Nelson and I have seen many miracles and the Lord continues to bless us everyday. I am excited to continue to work hard and to help more Chinese people Come Unto Christ. I have 2 cousins coming out soon to the mission field. I am so excited for Michael and Joseph. They are gonna be awesome missionaries and are gonna love this work. Go teach it boys!

Our district is doing well and it is so great to be able to serve. I gave a training this week on The doctrine of Christ. It went pretty well!  Our English Class still continues to grow. That is a great blessing. It is a really great finding tool for us. I teach the more basic English and Elder Nelson teaches the more Advanced English. It is enticing to people when we offer different levels and it has been working!!! 

We met this week with Brother and Sister Meaders, a couple living in the Eastvale Ward. They both are converts and are really cool! We shared with them a new Ward Mission Plan that we are implementing soon. It was an awesome visit!!! We've done several visits this week with more members in the Eastvale Ward. It is so helpful when members share the Gospel. We visited with the Deng Family and Tina and Tony. They all are so awesome and have a strong desire to help us further the missionary work here!!!

We went to Gun's house to have another lesson with Guns, Anna and Bao Jie Mei! Sadly, Anna was putting their kids to bed and Grace was asleep so we just taught Guns and Bao Jie Mei. We taught a lot about the importance and power of the Book of Mormon. It was a really great lesson and the Spirit was strong!

Friday afternoon we had another lesson with Jerry. Jerry has a lot of faith and a strong desire to learn about Jesus Christ. We are really really excited for him! We also had the opportunity to go and give Shanon a Priesthood blessing this week. She hasn't been feeling well recently and so we went over to give her a blessing. We also met her husband who was visiting from China. It was a really really powerful experience. More on that later!!!!!!!!!!! 

Saturday was another pretty good day!!! That morning, we had another Weekly Blitz. Elder Phipps and I went out together. It was Elder Phipps's last Weekly Blitz on his mission because he is going home tomorrow! We talked to a lot of people and were able to get 2 referrals for the Eastvale English Elders. Working to the end!!! That afternoon, Shanon texted us, and said that she felt much better. It was such a miracle. The Priesthood is real and I am so grateful for this amazing blessing of the Priesthood of God that the Lord gives. We spent much of Saturday evening out seeking with faith and talked to a lot of Chinese people. I love them so much.

Sunday was also another awesome day!!! We had 3 investigators that attended church. Bao Jie Mei, Jerry and Ada all attended church!!! This past Sunday was the special Chinese Sacrament Meeting that we do as a group once-a-month. It was awesome and I felt the Spirit really strong! Sunday night we had a lesson with Zhao Di Xiong and his wife Susan, our 2 new investigators that we found this past week! Zhao Di Xiong is actually a former investigator that Elder Crowther and I taught. We talked to him again in the park a couple of nights ago with his wife, and set up a time to meet with them! We taught them a little bit about the Restoration. It was a great lesson! Susan said the closing prayer and I felt the Spirit really strong.

I am so grateful for the opportunity that I have to represent our Savior, Jesus Christ. I am so excited to continue to work hard and to help more of my Chinese brothers and sisters to truly Come Unto Christ. Love you all have a great week!

Elder Willes

ANOTHER AMAZING WEEK IS IN THE BOOKS

"We continue to see the Lord's hand in our work every single day and I am so so so grateful 

to be able to have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent the Savior, Jesus Christ. 

I love Him and I am grateful for his atoning sacrifice for each one of us."

Another amazing week here in the CRM is in the books!!! I love this work and I love the Chinese people here!! Christine Xiong was baptized!!! It is always a special day to see someone enter into a sacred covenant with their Heavenly Father. It is definitely the highlight of any missionary's week to watch faith in Jesus Christ that grows in someone you love.

Elder Willes and Christine Xiong

Our investigators are just awesome. Last Tuesday afternoon we had the opportunity to go to Shanon's and have another lesson with her. We followed up on her commitments and taught her about the Word of Wisdom. Shanon has agreed to live the WofW for one week. She likes to drink tea. Tea is really part of the Chinese culture so please pray for her, that she through living the commandments, can know of the truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It was a great lesson and she is super awesome! Guns and his wife Anna came to church and Guns came in a white shirt and tie too!!! It was awesome. Also, we texted Hank (who was recently baptized) and he said that he is going to help with their Ward Trek!!! How cool is that? I love that guy. We are also trying to get Evangel to the temple in the next couple of weeks.

We had an exchange this week with the Eastvale English Elders. Elder Porazzo (Elder Gulbranson's new trainee), came to be with me in our area. We had a great day together! That afternoon we had an amazing lesson with Bao Jie Mei!!! We taught her about the Plan of Salvation and the spirit was really strong. Bao Jie Mei really has a strong desire to learn and we are excited for her to continue to progress and Come Unto Christ. That night, we had another awesome English Class. We had a ton of people there too! After our class we had a lesson with Zoe, one of our new investigators. Zoe has been coming to English Class for awhile. It was a great lesson and Zoe was really happy! 

Thursday morning we had our first interviews with President Hammon. I love that guy. He is so awesome. You can feel of his love that he has for the missionaries all of the time. It was super awesome!  

Friday was another great day too! That night, we had another awesome English Class. We had a lot of new Chinese people come. After our class I taught Wang Di Xiong and his wife, Song Jie Mei (who we found through our English Class). Literally while I was teaching them, in the same room, Elder Nelson was teaching Michael! We had a lot of lessons that night. Isn't that the best problem to have?! Immediately after teaching Wang Di Xiong and Song Jie Mei I then sat down with Li Di Xiong and taught Jacky! A busy and awesome night.

Saturday morning we had our Weekly Blitz for some other missionaries in our Zone. Elder Williams (one of my Zone Leaders) and I went out again together. We found one awesome referral!!! He mentioned to us that his Grandpa passed away three weeks ago and also he had a 12 year old daughter that had passed away. It was so sad for him but also so powerful as we talked about the Plan of Salvation in his garage. His name is Javier. Please pray for him! It was such an amazing experience and one that I will never forget. I love that through the Gospel of Jesus Christ we are able to be with those we love forever. That is a gift of hope that just simply cannot be replaced with anything else. 

This week we were able to attend the best Ward Party ever. Our Chinese Ward Activity is one I've gone to before. Everyone brings stuff they don't want and everyone exchanges items. It's like a giant White Elephant Ward Party. Sunny, Vivian, and Sunny's 11 year old daughter, Isabella all came too! It was fun and a good opportunity to invite some of our investigators to attend as well! 

We had another lesson with Guns and his wife Anna, Bao Jie Mei, and her daughter Grace. It was so so so cool! We taught them all the Plan of Salvation. During the lesson, Guns told us that ever since we have been coming by it has planted a seed in Anna and given her an increased desire to follow the Savior, Jesus Christ. Elder Nelson and I were looking at each other like holy cow!!!!!! We had the biggest smiles on our faces. Guns and his wife Anna are on date for baptism for August 20th!!!! Keep praying for them.

Sunday was so awesome. Christine was BAPTIZED!!!! It was a special day and I will never forget it. Brother Miao and Brother Jiang spoke at her baptism. Brother Xiong, Christine's dad, baptized her. I felt the Spirit so strongly and it was a really special day for me. I hope and pray that the entire Xiong Family will continue to learn and grow in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Elder Crowther, Elder Willes, Christine, Brother Xiong and Elder Nelson

This week has been amazing. We continue to see the Lord's hand in our work every single day and I am so so so grateful to be able to have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent the Savior, Jesus Christ. I love Him and I am grateful for his atoning sacrifice for each one of us, so that we can repent and truly develop a personal relationship with Him. Love you all have a great week!

Elder Willes 

8 INVESTIGATORS AT CHURCH

Hello everyone! :) This week has been another amazing week here in the CRM!!! We had 8 investigators attend church AND we picked up 5 new investigators this week!!! To top it off, Christine Xiong had her baptismal interview on Sunday and was found WORTHY to be baptized!!!!!! Christine will be baptized this coming Sunday. She is awesome and super excited for her baptism and we are so excited for her! 

We taught Michael Li this week, a new investigator. We contacted Michael a long time ago and he wasn't super interested at the time, but we planted some seeds baby. Michael called us recently asking for help translating a document. So of course we helped him with that and also taught him the first couple of points about the restoration of the Gospel. It was a great lesson and he even said the closing prayer. We also continue to teach Shannon and shared with her Alma 32 this week to help her faith grow stronger. The spirit was really strong during that lesson. I love teaching the Gospel and love when you see that someone is feeling the spirit and learning.

We met our new Mission President this week, President Hammon! President Hammon is such a great guy. I love him. You could tell from the second he walked into the room that he loved all of us missionaries. He introduced himself and also shared a lot of cool "spiritual things" with us. I can tell he is going to be a great blessing to our mission and that I will learn a lot from him. I am excited to serve around him.

On Thursday morning we went down to Lake Elsinore to have a recent-convert lesson with Evangel and Blair!!! It was awesome. I feel so blessed to have met and taught these 2 great ladies. We are also teaching Ada, one of our new investigators. She is a member referral from Sister Yu. Ada is super great. Please pray for her and her family to accept the Gospel! We taught Michael Xu this week. He is doing well and still keeping all of the commitments that we have extended to him. He is so awesome! On Saturday, we went to Hemet (which is quite a long ways away from us), to have another lesson with Cher. We taught her the Plan of Salvation. It is a long distance, well over an hour, for her to come to church. So please pray for her to receive the help she needs so she can come to church and progress. We also taught Steven and Jerry. They are awesome. 

Elder Willes and Elder Nelson (thanks to Kenzie for the best themed packages ever)

This week we did some service at the Jensen Alvarado Ranch. I always enjoy the time when we give service. Also, our English Class is booming and we are so grateful. We usually have around 15 people coming now!! It has grown so much. On Saturday morning we had another weekly blitz for the Jurupa Elders. It was so fun. Elder Williams (one of the Zone Leaders) and I found some referrals for them! 

Sunday was super amazing! This past Sunday, I had the opportunity of giving a talk in Sacrament Meeting about missionary work. We had 8 investigators come to church which was awesome! Sunday night, we had an AMAZING lesson with a new family that we found, Guns, and his wife Anna. We met Guns at Orchard Park awhile ago. We taught Guns and Anna along with Sister Bao and her daughter Grace. It was an amazing lesson. Please pray for all of them so that they can Come Unto Christ.

This week has been amazing. I am so excited to continue to work hard and help people Come to Know the Savior. Love you all and know that I am praying for you so you can all have the best week ever!

Elder Willes

6 IS OUR LUCKY NUMBER

Hello everyone! :) Ah, I love this work! This week has been another amazing one here in the California, Riverside Mission. We have seen a lot of miracles this past week, and we are excited to continue to work hard. This past week, we were able to find 6 new investigators, as well as having 6 investigators at church! It was amazing. 6 is our lucky number!

We have been so busy this week and I love it! We had a lesson with Bao Jie Mei on Tuesday. Sister Bao has been coming to our English class recently, and has become interested in learning about the Gospel. She told Elder Nelson she wants to be missionary one day! We taught her about the Restoration, and it was a great lesson where was spirit was strong. We are really excited for her! That same afternoon, we had another lesson with Shanon! We followed up on her commitments, and also taught her the importance of making the Gospel your #1 priority. When we show Heavenly Father how important the Gospel of Jesus Christ is to us, we can expect to receive answers to our prayers and a great feeling of peace and joy. It was a really great lesson!

We also had another awesome lesson with Christine this week. We taught her more about the plan of salvation, and she loved it! Christine is so smart, and she is so ready for baptism. We are really excited for her, and to see her progress is super amazing! Her new baptismal date is July 16th. Wednesday night, we also had an awesome English class. Our English classes have been so great lately! We are getting around 10+ people every time. We have worked really hard to build this wonderful tool and the Lord is really blessing us. That night after class, we had the opportunity to visit Ding Di Xiong, one of the less-active members in the Eastvale Ward. It was awesome and I am always reminded that the Lord is mindful of each one of us wherever we are. We taught Ding Di Xiong about the importance of the Sacrament. That guy is super awesome and we are going to do our best to help him come back to church!

Thursday morning I had the opportunity to attend the District Leader Meeting for all of the DLs in the mission. Right before the meeting started, President Mullen called Elder Ly and I out to talk to us, and asked us both to give 7 minute trainings -  pretty much on the spot! I gave a training on receiving revelation through church attendance. It was an awesome experience, and my message went well! 

This week we also had another lesson with Vivian who is in Riverside. Vivian is progressing and is praying everyday! She also brought her friend, Sunny Sun, and her 10 year-old daughter Isabella to the lesson. We picked them up as new investigators and taught them a couple of points about the Restoration. It was a great lesson! We had the opportunity to teach Michael Xu again. We followed up on his commitments, and also taught the Word of Wisdom, and the Law of Chastity. He agreed to obey these commandments and we changed his baptismal date to July 23rd. Please pray for him! 

Saturday morning we had a lesson with Sadie, and her mom. They have attended our English class before. Sadie used to live in England, so when she speaks English, she has a British accent! It is funny and a little unexpected. We taught them about the Restoration of the Gospel and it was a pretty good lesson! Please keep them in your prayers. Sadie is having a baby soon and they are leaving to go back to China soon.

Sunday was so awesome. That morning, we went and visited Winter! She is doing pretty good. We invited her to pray everyday, and she agreed! After that, we raced to church, which was amazing! We had 6 investigators come to church! Shanon, Michael, Christine, Steven, Jerry, and Jacky all came to church!!! It was amazing to be there and worship together with each of them. What a special experience. When we got to the church we quickly setup for translation, I started translating (it is an English service) and Elder Nelson was coordinating with and helping all of our investigators get in and settled. That afternoon, we drove to Hemet which is a pretty long drive, to visit Cher and Wendy again! We finished teaching them about the Restoration! Vicky Vu, their friend, who also works at the restaurant China Garden, also sat in on the lesson, and is interested too! It was awesome, and we have seen so many miracles from this past week. Overall, it was an amazing day!

President Hammon is our new Mission President. I haven't met him yet but we have a meeting tomorrow where I will. I am super excited! He seems like an awesome guy. Elder Nelson and I are doing well. We are often tired and hungry and always hot, but I am grateful I get to serve with him and love him lots. We know Elder Crowther is out there doing awesome stuff.

This week has been amazing. I am so excited to continue to labor in the Lord's vineyard, and to help the Chinese people Come Unto Christ. I hope that's what you are all trying to do too. Love you all have a great week!

Elder Willes