22 February 2010

Thanks for the emails. The week was a tough one. We worked really hard.

So, with the new email, I got all the emails you sent today, so what you’re doing is working. I know less about it all than you do because I have 30 minutes on this thing every week and I’m not going to waste it figuring out how it works when I could be writing something.

So, something cool that happened this week is I made French toast with homemade maple syrup. I didn’t even know I knew how to make all those things, but I had what I needed and it worked. And I really enjoyed it all. It reminded me of home and how good Steven and Michelle have it.

So, one thing I was wondering is what were some of my brothers’ favorite scriptural thoughts to share during the mission. I told you guys some of my favorite ones last week, and just wanted to know some of yours.

And I have a question for my brothers that served already. One thing I’d like to better in my life right now is to have more meaningful prayers. What did you guys do during your missions to have meaningful prayers? It’s hard to find quality time at night with planning and calling the district and everything. I’d like some suggestions, but we’ll see what happens between now and next week.

So Mom asked how my studies have been. I haven’t written anything I’ve been studying in a while. So I’ve been looking in the scriptures for answers to my problems. The problem here is like what the sisters in Valrico are facing – no one lets us in, they don’t progress, and they don’t come to church. So, here’s the answers the scriptures gave me.

Helaman 10:2-5. Nephi faced the same problems. He worked hard and the Lord gave him the sealing power. I was likening the scriptures to me, so . . . I might have just got the sealing powers. . . . The next scripture I found was D&C 117:13. It says our sacrifice is more important to the Lord than our increase. I learned that what I can do to increase the church in any manner is not as important to the Lord as my sacrifice. And in 1 Samuel 15:22 the Lord says that obedience is more important than sacrifice. And we’re being obedient.

So, basically, we don’t see visible success, but that doesn’t matter, because we’re happy. We’re way tired but we always finish the day happy. It’s cool. As soon as the Lord wants us to baptize a ton we’ll be ready for him.

Okay, that’s all the things I planned on telling you. I feel like I wasn’t too focused this time because the other elders are talking behind me. I’m trying to listen to them and write at the same time. It’s kind of tough.

But I love you all. Thanks for the emails. Steven, I love how you dominate Spanish, you crack me up. Michelle, stay beautiful and try teaching Steven to swing dance. It will help both of you. That way Steven doesn’t have to dance with the other girls.

And I think that’s it for now. We’re going to go to McDonald’s now and celebrate Pday.

Love Elder Whitaker

Pouch Mail

Someone just asked about sending letters to Jeff through the Church's pouch mail system, so I thought I'd post the link to the instructions. Here it is. Pouch mail doesn't accept anything in an envelope, so either a postcard or a three-fold letter would be acceptable.

Here are the instructions for making a three-fold letter:

• Lay a single-sheet letter down with the writing facing you.
• Fold the top of the letter about one-third of the way down, and crease.
• Fold the bottom of the letter to the top of the first fold, and crease.
• Use two pieces of tape or two sticker tabs on the top to secure it, not more than one inch from each side, but do not seal the ends.
• Do not include any other item in the letter such as printed pictures, currency or medication, etc.
• In the top left corner, write the return address.
• Affix a first-class stamp in the top right corner
• In the middle of the sheet, write:

Elder Jeffrey Bryan Whitaker
Uruguay Montevideo Mission
P.O. Box 30150
Salt Lake City, Ut 84130-0150

Be sure to let me know if you have any questions! Have a great day :)

15 February 2010

So, thanks for all the emails. I got a ton this week. But wow, it sounds like everyone is doing well. Thanks Mom and Dad for your testimonies. Of everyone’s those were the two I recalled best.

So, Steven, good job being smart. I’m jealous of the love you have developed for learning. You could’ve helped Dave and I in Physics last year. Good luck choosing classes next year, because it seems you’ve already taken all of them. I would recommend weightlifting and English 4.

So for week’s our house has had a bag of fruit-flavored marshmallows. This week I made rice crispy treats with cornflakes. It was good, a nice change from alfajores. Good thing Mom taught me how to do that. We also celebrated Valentine’s Day by buying a cake. We bought the “African Premium” cake. It was so good. I miss Mom’s desserts.

So Mom you mentioned D&C 84:88. I love that scripture. I share it often. My scriptural thought involving that scripture is I read it and talk about angels around us. I always show the family picture I have around our fireplace from 2007. I testify that those are the primary angels around us that are supposed to sustain us. And that my angels sustain me.

Brad said he had a goal of memorizing Alma 34. I love Alma 34:3. It changed my mission and it was a very, very specific answer to a prayer and problem I had. It helped me develop the testimony that the Book of Mormon answers all our questions and problems.

Oh, and in my studies this week, I read a really interesting marriage talk I would recommend to everyone who is married or might be married one day. And appropriately yesterday was Valentine’s Day and this might have been the year where that actually meant something to more than half of us. It’s a talk by Elder Holland called “How do I love thee?” He gave it February 15, 2000 at a BYU visit.

And my companion and I are going great. The work is the Lord’s and that’s why we don’t have the visible “success” I wish we could have. But after 3 weeks together and over 630 contacts, we had someone in church yesterday. A member invited him and he came. That’s what we were working on and the Lord gave us a miracle. This week we’ll be working on setting baptismal dates. Ask me about the miracles next week.

Sorry this is so long, I hope it’s interesting enough. I love you all. Thanks for your examples. I’ll try to make a list of a reason I love each of you specifically and you’ll get it eventually.

Love, Elder Whitaker

8 February 2010

Hey everybody,

Today I got an email from Elizabeth. That was cool. I’m looking forward to having a new sister when I get back to America. It will be cool having a relative that has never been mean to me again. I remember when Megan was never mean to me, but then she did something mean and couldn’t be in that club anymore. Elizabeth, enjoy the “Never Offending Jeff Club” while you can.

So, what happened this past week? It was kind of discouraging, because of the six people we wanted to see at church, zero came. And it’s hard to visit all of them because the fixed schedule isn’t an invention that’s big in Uruguay. So that’s kind of what we’re praying for now, a family with a fixed schedule and time and desires to listen to the missionaries. But we know we’ll be blessed because we’re being really obedient, and we’re really trying. One thing that I’ve been happy with these past two weeks with Elder Stilwell is we’re really going the extra mile in our daily contacts. President has asked for 140 weekly, and these last two weeks we’ve broken 200. Yeah!!!!!!

So like three times Mom has asked how long Elder Stilwell has been on the mission and I forget to tell her. He has five months, two in Argentina and three here. He was in Durazno for his first area just like me. And this is his second area just like me. This is his third transfer here and it’s my sixth.

So the other day I was thinking about testimonies and I realized I don’t know how all my siblings got their testimonies, and I don’t really recall how Mom and Dad got theirs either. I would really like a letter where everyone tells me how they got their testimony.

I got my testimony of the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith one night when I was 12 years old. I was reading the scriptures each night to complete Duty to God requirements and I was writing in my journal for Duty to God. Earlier that day I went to a Duty to God fireside. This one night I was reading in 2nd Nephi and I wanted to pray. I got an answer I couldn’t deny, and then I wrote about it in my journal. I forgot that happened for about 5 years, then one day reading my journal I remembered. I know the Book of Mormon is true because the prophets and church leaders instituted the Duty to God program.

I’m sure Elizabeth didn’t know that about me and I’m sure others didn’t know either or forgot. Now you know. I’m so grateful to be able to help others get their own testimonies.

Oh, and Brad, IF you get married before I get back, the “Never Offending Jeff Club” can have two members. Just remember that the Spirit will indicate what you should do.

I love you all, besos, hehehe, o sea, jajajaja
Elder Whitaker

1 February 2010

Thanks for all the emails. I love hearing from you all.

Dad and Brad had questions about being a district leader. Here are the answers. My district has 10 elders. 4 of us live in the same house, which means I only have to call 3 houses every night. The zone leaders live with me and are part of the district. My companion is just a junior companion, but I’ve learned that being the companion of a district leader means you’re a stud. I love my companion. He’s from Provo. It’s weird that Brad or Dave could visit his family in like 10 minutes if they wanted to. He lives by the temple close to that park with the huge bowl where people go sledding. Cool, eh?

So the sad news is that Raquel couldn’t go to church this week. But she’ll come next week. This week we found her 19-year-old son who plays the guitar in a Mexican mariachi band. Cool. He can also play Mario really well. Steven would be excited. It means a lot to me that you are praying for her. It will probably mean a lot to her.

And I have an amazing miracle for you all about how the Spirit speaks to us. Last night I was talking to one of the zone leaders (Elder Bulloch, who has a brother studying CM at BYU, fyi Dave) and I was telling him what I thought we needed to be working on this change. I said unity in the zone and praying specifically for others and the work in their area. They made a zone plan for the change and that was the first plan. My next idea was that we need to make plans each week and remember them. We have plans at district meeting to make us better, but we never think about the plans during the week. And my third idea was obedience because we love the Lord. Those 3 ideas were the 3 things they had already made as the plans for the zone. I don’t know if I explained myself well, but it was really interesting.

And yeah, we get along really well with the three new elders here. I’m way excited. I can tell you next week about how the Lord is answering your prayers.

And I know it’s been a while since I told you all that I know God lives. Jesus Christ is our Savior. Joseph Smith is the prophet of the restoration. The Book of Mormon is True. And President Monson is our prophet today.

I love you all.
Elder Whitaker