Mi Familia y Mi Amigos!
Hola! Como estas? Me llamo es Elder Woolley. Viva la Elk City!
Elder Phillips sprechens Espanol, so he'll say random stuff in Espanol and I'll be like, "What are you talking about?" The worst is district meetings or church because the other two Elders in the ward speak Espanol too, so the three of them speak it and I'm lost in the Espanol sauce. Espanol everywhere!
And in case you didn't know, Espanol is Espanol for "Spanish" ;)
This past week was full of grandeur and... reading. Elder Phillips had some mild bronchitis stuff going on, so we went to the doctor. An exam and two shots in the rear end later (don't tell him I told you that!) we left the doctor's office and got some medicine. Then, we rested. Mainly, he rested, and I read "Jesus the Christ." Actually, we both read "Jesus the Christ" a lot this past week. It's awesome! So anyway, we rested a lot and went out to work here and there, but mainly Elder Phillips slept so he could get over his stuff so we can be healthy and work! Yay!
We also listened to a lot of general conference talks that have given me new insights, especially President Monson's talk, "Charity Never Faileth." Elder Phillips and I talked about "real intent" early last week during a companion study. It hit me that, "why would God give me a gift if I don't have any real intent to use it?" Mainly, why would Heavenly Father bless me with charity if I don't even have any set plans on what I'll do with that increased capacity to love? Or why would God bless me with increased faith in Jesus Christ if I don't have any real plan to use that faith to bring about righteous things? Lesson: real intent=good!
That's all for this week. More fun stuff to come, I'm sure! Ok-a-la-ho-ma! Viva la Midwest!
Love,
Elder Woolley :)
PS This week I learned that a hillbilly that isn't "as bad/redneck" as a normal hillbilly is known as a "hill-williams" :)
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
Elk City, Ok-a-la-ho-ma!
Hello Family, Friends, and Felines! (I'm sure SOMEONE that reads this has a cat they're petting right now... maybe...)
I'm now in ELK CITY, OKLAHOMA!!! It's awesome!!! Talk about a place to "get away from it all!" It's a new area and our boundaries are huge! In total, our area (the whole area for 2 missionaries, me and Elder Phillips) is 2,500 square miles. It's really big. REALLY big. With a lot of small towns. And a lot of oil workers. Hooray for Haliburton!
So, you want to know who Elder Phillips is, right? Well, Elder Phillips is from Draper, UT. This is his third transfer and he speaks the espanol. In fact, our district has 6 missionaries (2 Sisters and 4 Elders). I'm the only Elder that DOESN'T speak the espanol. si. mucho bueno. Yo soy... frijoles. No bueno, eh? No bueno. So I don't "sprechen" the espanol very well. I'm picking up a little though. Fun stuff!
Oh yeah, Elder Phillips. His dad is a dentist and Elder Phillips used to play football in high school and he went to Alta High School and graduated in 2009. He is now the ultimate espanol-speaking missionary and we have many funny espanol moments. Si! Superbien!
So what's cool about this area? I'll tell you! First, there are a whole bunch of cows just down the road from us. We'll go running in the mornings (super bundled up in clothes) and the cows moo the whole time. So that's neat. Next, we have a truck :) A 2010 Chevy Silverado Colorado (silver). I love trucks. I'm not a big "truck guy" (i.e. 32 inch mud tires and a 12 inch lift don't do it for me) but I still love trucks :) So we have a truck and it's fun. Unfortunately, we don't have a lot of miles to waste (we have an allotment of miles per month that come from Church HQ) so we'll be riding our bikes mucho mucho!
The ward (that's really a size of a branch) is excited that we're here. They haven't had Elders in Elk City for 7 years or so. Our ward is REALLY spread out too. It probably covers around 5,000 square miles (maybe more). They're all really cool people though. Really down to earth and just REAL. I like real :)
We haven't had a lot of time to get out and work. We've done some tracting in a town called Burns Flat. Burns Flat has one stoplight. It's a pretty neat little town. The people there are really nice, so it's cool.
Anyway, no super spiritual experiences this week yet. We've been spending A LOT of time getting our apartment established and planning on what to do, where to go, and how to get the work started here, so more spiritual stories will come. OK here's a spiritual thought: the Book of Mormon is true! :)
Thanks for all of the letters and whatnot. I got the Christmas Box from the Donakeys the day of transfers. Thank you, Donakeys! :)
I love all of you! :)
Love,
Elder Woolley
I'm now in ELK CITY, OKLAHOMA!!! It's awesome!!! Talk about a place to "get away from it all!" It's a new area and our boundaries are huge! In total, our area (the whole area for 2 missionaries, me and Elder Phillips) is 2,500 square miles. It's really big. REALLY big. With a lot of small towns. And a lot of oil workers. Hooray for Haliburton!
So, you want to know who Elder Phillips is, right? Well, Elder Phillips is from Draper, UT. This is his third transfer and he speaks the espanol. In fact, our district has 6 missionaries (2 Sisters and 4 Elders). I'm the only Elder that DOESN'T speak the espanol. si. mucho bueno. Yo soy... frijoles. No bueno, eh? No bueno. So I don't "sprechen" the espanol very well. I'm picking up a little though. Fun stuff!
Oh yeah, Elder Phillips. His dad is a dentist and Elder Phillips used to play football in high school and he went to Alta High School and graduated in 2009. He is now the ultimate espanol-speaking missionary and we have many funny espanol moments. Si! Superbien!
So what's cool about this area? I'll tell you! First, there are a whole bunch of cows just down the road from us. We'll go running in the mornings (super bundled up in clothes) and the cows moo the whole time. So that's neat. Next, we have a truck :) A 2010 Chevy Silverado Colorado (silver). I love trucks. I'm not a big "truck guy" (i.e. 32 inch mud tires and a 12 inch lift don't do it for me) but I still love trucks :) So we have a truck and it's fun. Unfortunately, we don't have a lot of miles to waste (we have an allotment of miles per month that come from Church HQ) so we'll be riding our bikes mucho mucho!
The ward (that's really a size of a branch) is excited that we're here. They haven't had Elders in Elk City for 7 years or so. Our ward is REALLY spread out too. It probably covers around 5,000 square miles (maybe more). They're all really cool people though. Really down to earth and just REAL. I like real :)
We haven't had a lot of time to get out and work. We've done some tracting in a town called Burns Flat. Burns Flat has one stoplight. It's a pretty neat little town. The people there are really nice, so it's cool.
Anyway, no super spiritual experiences this week yet. We've been spending A LOT of time getting our apartment established and planning on what to do, where to go, and how to get the work started here, so more spiritual stories will come. OK here's a spiritual thought: the Book of Mormon is true! :)
Thanks for all of the letters and whatnot. I got the Christmas Box from the Donakeys the day of transfers. Thank you, Donakeys! :)
I love all of you! :)
Love,
Elder Woolley
Monday, January 3, 2011
Weekly Letter--03 JAN 2011 "6 Months Later... My First Transfer!"
HELLO EVERYONE! :)
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY LAUREN!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY REID!!!!
Transfers are this week and I'M GETTING TRANSFERED!!!!!! I have loved being in Lawton a lot, especially since there are a lot of military members here. I'm excited to go to a new area though! Oh yeah, I'm going to Elk City, OK. There's a branch about 30 miles away in Clinton, and we're opening Elk City, so it's gonna be a lot of fun! Elder Cook is going to Wichita Falls, TX! And my new companions name is Elder Phillips (I'll meet him on Wednesday).
So what did I do over the last week, you ask? Well, we worked. And then we also had puffy french toast! "What is puffy french toast?!" you ask? Well, I'll tell you! It is Bro. Stringham's specialty! It's white bread dipped/covered in pancake batter (instead of the eggs and stuff for normal french toast), and then it's FRIED!! MMMMMMmmmm..... so goooooood....... Elder Cook had 3 pieces! I could only handle 2. Oh yeah! Once it's fried and all that, then you put fruit topping on it, maybe a little honey, and, of course, WHIPPED CREAM! Life is always better with a little whipped cream. :)
I remember Elder Jackson and I eating some time ago. We didn't have a car then, so we biked everywhere. Well, we ate it, and then biked, and then died, basically. It's good but very heavy. But definitely tasty :) Anyway, try it out sometime!
Oh yeah, then the Stringhams also fed us pork and sauerkraut for a prosperous year!!! It's a PA tradition (Sister Stringhams parents were there, they're from PA).
I gotta go now. I love you!!! :)
Love,
Elder Woolley :)
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY LAUREN!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY REID!!!!
Transfers are this week and I'M GETTING TRANSFERED!!!!!! I have loved being in Lawton a lot, especially since there are a lot of military members here. I'm excited to go to a new area though! Oh yeah, I'm going to Elk City, OK. There's a branch about 30 miles away in Clinton, and we're opening Elk City, so it's gonna be a lot of fun! Elder Cook is going to Wichita Falls, TX! And my new companions name is Elder Phillips (I'll meet him on Wednesday).
So what did I do over the last week, you ask? Well, we worked. And then we also had puffy french toast! "What is puffy french toast?!" you ask? Well, I'll tell you! It is Bro. Stringham's specialty! It's white bread dipped/covered in pancake batter (instead of the eggs and stuff for normal french toast), and then it's FRIED!! MMMMMMmmmm..... so goooooood....... Elder Cook had 3 pieces! I could only handle 2. Oh yeah! Once it's fried and all that, then you put fruit topping on it, maybe a little honey, and, of course, WHIPPED CREAM! Life is always better with a little whipped cream. :)
I remember Elder Jackson and I eating some time ago. We didn't have a car then, so we biked everywhere. Well, we ate it, and then biked, and then died, basically. It's good but very heavy. But definitely tasty :) Anyway, try it out sometime!
Oh yeah, then the Stringhams also fed us pork and sauerkraut for a prosperous year!!! It's a PA tradition (Sister Stringhams parents were there, they're from PA).
I gotta go now. I love you!!! :)
Love,
Elder Woolley :)
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Weekly Letter--27 DEC 2010 "Elder Woolley: Rediscovered"
Hello Everyone!
I hope you had a merry Christmas! We did! The members here fed us a lot of food and pie and all sorts of good stuff! I enjoyed our phone call!
I'd like to call this letter, "Elder Woolley: Rediscovered" because I'm going to make it a discovery time. I'm going to list things that I like to do (or remember that I used to like to do) so that I can find out more about myself and my non-robotness. Here we go!
I like cheesecake. The texture and taste of it are SO GOOD!
I like green eggs and ham (and my name isn't even Sam I Am!). Actually, I've never had green eggs and ham. I hope the green eggs Sam I Am had weren't naturally green, but were green from food coloring. Or they could also be green from some crazy Seuss creature. Who knows?!
"I like to ride my bicycle, I like to ride my bike. I like to ride my bicycle, I like to ride it where I like." (Is quoting a Queen song missionary appropriate?) I really do like riding my bike. Mountain biking is a favorite hobby of mine.
I really love trail running too.
I like writing. It doesn't have to be anything in particular. I just like putting my thoughts on paper (or in .doc format) and writing away. I've tried to write creatively (lyrics, poems, stories and such). It works out okay sometimes. It's one of those things that takes a lot of practice to get good at.
I like people who are frank and to the point. I like to be openly honest and have open discussions with people, and I love it when people are openly honest with me. Sometimes I wish people would say, "Hey! You know what you're doing right there?! It really bugs me! Can you please not do that?" and then I would know what is going on. Or if I'm breaking some sort of rule, I wish people would point it out to me. It's like walking around with a huge chunk of lettuce in my teeth or something. "Hi! I look like a doofus but no one is letting me know that I look like one so I guess I'll keep walking around like this!"
Jumping to a random "like", I like Spongebob Squarepants. I used to own the first season on DVD and watch it A LOT. My sister gave my some mini-Spongebob ornaments. They're sweet. I like Spongebob because he's so innocent. He gets excited over the smallest of things. He's "as a little child", more or less. And he and Patrick Star say the dumbest things sometimes and it is VERY funny.
Like in the Spongebob Squarepants movie (I own it on DVD, waiting for the Blu-ray version!) Spongebob wants to be the manager of the new Krusty Krab location (named "Krusty Krab 2" and located right next to the original one). Spongebob wants to be the manager of the new location and says, "Cleanliness is next to managerialiness". Who says that?! Or later on in the movie, they get fake mustaches from the princess of the sea (King Neptune's daughter, I can't remember her name) but they think they're real mustaches (it's actually just two pieces of seaweed) and then they sing a song about it. Yeah. Spongebob is great.
I like doing yoga. I did it in 05-06 when I was going to UVSC. It helped me be very relaxed and centered and all of that good stuff.
My favorite color is Maroon. Actually, it may be Burgundy. Burgundy has a little more of a purple tint to it, and I like wearing clothes in that color (mainly as accents, like in ties or scarfs).
I like it when people don't use a lot of "fluff" in conversations and speaking and are to the point.
I like good music. Not The Beatles or The Foo Fighters or Owl City (although those are pretty good too). I like GOOD music, like a lot of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir stuff. I've become more and more mellow in my choices of music as time goes by. I like listening to good, mellow music that is edifying and helps clear my mind or sparks contemplation.
I like playing music. I've self-taught myself how to play the piano. I played percussion for 4 years in junior high and high school. I played the drum set for 7ish years (on and off for the last 3). I love playing percussion and I actually miss it a little. I like to tap my foot and drum my thumbs against the steering wheel as I drive.
Well, that's it for now. I hope you enjoyed a little look into the mind of Elder Woolley! Thanks for all of the Christmas wishes and gifts! I love you!
Love,
Elder Woolley
P.S. HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! :) And blow up something for me!!!!! :)
I hope you had a merry Christmas! We did! The members here fed us a lot of food and pie and all sorts of good stuff! I enjoyed our phone call!
I'd like to call this letter, "Elder Woolley: Rediscovered" because I'm going to make it a discovery time. I'm going to list things that I like to do (or remember that I used to like to do) so that I can find out more about myself and my non-robotness. Here we go!
I like cheesecake. The texture and taste of it are SO GOOD!
I like green eggs and ham (and my name isn't even Sam I Am!). Actually, I've never had green eggs and ham. I hope the green eggs Sam I Am had weren't naturally green, but were green from food coloring. Or they could also be green from some crazy Seuss creature. Who knows?!
"I like to ride my bicycle, I like to ride my bike. I like to ride my bicycle, I like to ride it where I like." (Is quoting a Queen song missionary appropriate?) I really do like riding my bike. Mountain biking is a favorite hobby of mine.
I really love trail running too.
I like writing. It doesn't have to be anything in particular. I just like putting my thoughts on paper (or in .doc format) and writing away. I've tried to write creatively (lyrics, poems, stories and such). It works out okay sometimes. It's one of those things that takes a lot of practice to get good at.
I like people who are frank and to the point. I like to be openly honest and have open discussions with people, and I love it when people are openly honest with me. Sometimes I wish people would say, "Hey! You know what you're doing right there?! It really bugs me! Can you please not do that?" and then I would know what is going on. Or if I'm breaking some sort of rule, I wish people would point it out to me. It's like walking around with a huge chunk of lettuce in my teeth or something. "Hi! I look like a doofus but no one is letting me know that I look like one so I guess I'll keep walking around like this!"
Jumping to a random "like", I like Spongebob Squarepants. I used to own the first season on DVD and watch it A LOT. My sister gave my some mini-Spongebob ornaments. They're sweet. I like Spongebob because he's so innocent. He gets excited over the smallest of things. He's "as a little child", more or less. And he and Patrick Star say the dumbest things sometimes and it is VERY funny.
Like in the Spongebob Squarepants movie (I own it on DVD, waiting for the Blu-ray version!) Spongebob wants to be the manager of the new Krusty Krab location (named "Krusty Krab 2" and located right next to the original one). Spongebob wants to be the manager of the new location and says, "Cleanliness is next to managerialiness". Who says that?! Or later on in the movie, they get fake mustaches from the princess of the sea (King Neptune's daughter, I can't remember her name) but they think they're real mustaches (it's actually just two pieces of seaweed) and then they sing a song about it. Yeah. Spongebob is great.
I like doing yoga. I did it in 05-06 when I was going to UVSC. It helped me be very relaxed and centered and all of that good stuff.
My favorite color is Maroon. Actually, it may be Burgundy. Burgundy has a little more of a purple tint to it, and I like wearing clothes in that color (mainly as accents, like in ties or scarfs).
I like it when people don't use a lot of "fluff" in conversations and speaking and are to the point.
I like good music. Not The Beatles or The Foo Fighters or Owl City (although those are pretty good too). I like GOOD music, like a lot of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir stuff. I've become more and more mellow in my choices of music as time goes by. I like listening to good, mellow music that is edifying and helps clear my mind or sparks contemplation.
I like playing music. I've self-taught myself how to play the piano. I played percussion for 4 years in junior high and high school. I played the drum set for 7ish years (on and off for the last 3). I love playing percussion and I actually miss it a little. I like to tap my foot and drum my thumbs against the steering wheel as I drive.
Well, that's it for now. I hope you enjoyed a little look into the mind of Elder Woolley! Thanks for all of the Christmas wishes and gifts! I love you!
Love,
Elder Woolley
P.S. HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! :) And blow up something for me!!!!! :)
Monday, December 20, 2010
Weekly Letter -- 20 DEC 2010 "Robot No More!"
Hello Family, Friends, and Everyone Else (You can be my friend too!),
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
This week was GREAT!! Lots of fun stuff happened, especially one story that I'll tell you (even if it is a little embarassing) :)
So here's what happened:
On Friday, I was on exchanges with Elder Smith. We went and taught an investigator of ours. As we started teaching, our investigator (Brother Norman) said, "That's pre-plot! I don't want you to tell me pre-plot stuff. Just flip through the book and read whatever it lands on!" I wasn't sure what to do since we had planned on teaching about prayer (what we thought he needed). I started flipping back and forth through the pages and Elder Smith started talking with him about prayer. Brother Norman thought it was nice, but persisted that we flip through and stop on a certain page. We complied and read a random verse. I don't remember what it was, but it was a good verse and it was sort of relevant.
After a while, we started to teach him the Restoration again (since he had mentioned that "It doesn't matter what church I go to. We'll all end up in the same place). As we did taught, he said, "That's pre-plot! See? You tell me about His Church and then they all die and the table breaks into a million pieces and people start taking pieces and making churches based off of those and then you keep going. Pre-plot. I don't like pre-plot. That's why I asked you to just open the book and read whatever it lands on."
Elder Smith and I weren't sure what to say. We sat in silence for what seemed to be an eternity, and then he said something that I will NEVER forget. He said something that has changed my whole attitude on missionary work. He said something that has filled me full of life.
He said, " You know, sometimes when you're sitting there and we're talking, I feel like I'm talking to a robot."
YES! A robot! I am SO GRATEFUL that he told me that!!! What would have happened if I had gone the next 18 months teaching like a robot?!
It makes me think back on when I sold pest control door to door in Tennessee. It was in the summer of 2006 and I was trying to do my best at it. One of the managers went out with me one day and we started going door to door. I wanted to know how to be better at sales.
He told me that what usually happens is that people work and work and do their best at sales but they're still giving a canned presentation. After a while, they get really frustrated and basically say, "Forget this stuff!" and then they speak like a normal human being and they're successful!
That's what happened to me, more-or-less. I came out of that lesson thinking, "Forget all this stuff! Forget every little missionary phrase I learned! Forget these analogies that have been passed down from missionary to missionary! A robot?! I'm not going to be a robot!" Then I went out and worked, put on a BIG smile, was bold and upfront, and just TALKED. It has been GREAT!!!!!!!!!!! People respond well, we teach to their needs (more so than before), and it's effective! God bless Americans for their frankness :)
So that's the major breakthrough of the week! Also, there isn't any snow here, in case you're wondering. It's going to be in the 60's and 50's most of this week. Maybe a storm on Christmas Eve or Day, but we'll see. Surprisingly mild winter in Oklahoma this year!
Thanks for all of your prayers and support and letters and love! I love each of you and I hope everything is going well! Smile a lot! :)
Love,
Elder Woolley :)
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
This week was GREAT!! Lots of fun stuff happened, especially one story that I'll tell you (even if it is a little embarassing) :)
So here's what happened:
On Friday, I was on exchanges with Elder Smith. We went and taught an investigator of ours. As we started teaching, our investigator (Brother Norman) said, "That's pre-plot! I don't want you to tell me pre-plot stuff. Just flip through the book and read whatever it lands on!" I wasn't sure what to do since we had planned on teaching about prayer (what we thought he needed). I started flipping back and forth through the pages and Elder Smith started talking with him about prayer. Brother Norman thought it was nice, but persisted that we flip through and stop on a certain page. We complied and read a random verse. I don't remember what it was, but it was a good verse and it was sort of relevant.
After a while, we started to teach him the Restoration again (since he had mentioned that "It doesn't matter what church I go to. We'll all end up in the same place). As we did taught, he said, "That's pre-plot! See? You tell me about His Church and then they all die and the table breaks into a million pieces and people start taking pieces and making churches based off of those and then you keep going. Pre-plot. I don't like pre-plot. That's why I asked you to just open the book and read whatever it lands on."
Elder Smith and I weren't sure what to say. We sat in silence for what seemed to be an eternity, and then he said something that I will NEVER forget. He said something that has changed my whole attitude on missionary work. He said something that has filled me full of life.
He said, " You know, sometimes when you're sitting there and we're talking, I feel like I'm talking to a robot."
YES! A robot! I am SO GRATEFUL that he told me that!!! What would have happened if I had gone the next 18 months teaching like a robot?!
It makes me think back on when I sold pest control door to door in Tennessee. It was in the summer of 2006 and I was trying to do my best at it. One of the managers went out with me one day and we started going door to door. I wanted to know how to be better at sales.
He told me that what usually happens is that people work and work and do their best at sales but they're still giving a canned presentation. After a while, they get really frustrated and basically say, "Forget this stuff!" and then they speak like a normal human being and they're successful!
That's what happened to me, more-or-less. I came out of that lesson thinking, "Forget all this stuff! Forget every little missionary phrase I learned! Forget these analogies that have been passed down from missionary to missionary! A robot?! I'm not going to be a robot!" Then I went out and worked, put on a BIG smile, was bold and upfront, and just TALKED. It has been GREAT!!!!!!!!!!! People respond well, we teach to their needs (more so than before), and it's effective! God bless Americans for their frankness :)
So that's the major breakthrough of the week! Also, there isn't any snow here, in case you're wondering. It's going to be in the 60's and 50's most of this week. Maybe a storm on Christmas Eve or Day, but we'll see. Surprisingly mild winter in Oklahoma this year!
Thanks for all of your prayers and support and letters and love! I love each of you and I hope everything is going well! Smile a lot! :)
Love,
Elder Woolley :)
Monday, December 13, 2010
Weekly Letter-- 13 DEC 2010
Hello Everyone!
Merry Christmas! (it's not for a couple weeks, but it's still fun to say :) This past week has been great! We had a trainers meeting on Tuesday and then had surgery on my nose on Wednesday (so I can breathe clearly) and then went on a couple exchanges! It was a fun week!
Everything is good with Elder Cook. He's from Centerville, UT. He's a testifying machine. He's a great missionary. And he likes to play soccer :)
We had a family home evening with a member family and their non-member friends on Saturday. It was so fun! We made peanut butter pies (which consist of crust and a mixture of cream cheese, powdered sugar, peanut butter, and whipped cream). They were very delicious. I love America :)
Lately, I've been thinking about the Doctrine of Christ and it's evil brother, the "Doctrine of the Devil." I was pondering about all of the churches around here. The thought came to mind, "He who is not for me is against me" (see 2 Nephi 10:16).
The Doctrine of Christ is faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism by the Priesthood authority, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. This is the way that each and every soul can find happiness and peace in this life and the life to come. This is the way and there is no other way.
The Doctrine of the Devil may seem similar, but it is so far off. The Doctrine of the Devil is everything that isn't the Doctrine of Christ.
The Father and the Son bear witness that "they that are not for me are against me" (2 Nephi 10:16).
Jesus Christ is the way that His doctrine works. Because of what He did (the Atonement), faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism by the Priesthood authority, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end actually have some weight. I know this is true. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and our Master.
Thank you for your love, support, letters, and prayers! I love each of you a lot and I hope everything is going well! I love you! :)
Love,
Elder Woolley
Merry Christmas! (it's not for a couple weeks, but it's still fun to say :) This past week has been great! We had a trainers meeting on Tuesday and then had surgery on my nose on Wednesday (so I can breathe clearly) and then went on a couple exchanges! It was a fun week!
Everything is good with Elder Cook. He's from Centerville, UT. He's a testifying machine. He's a great missionary. And he likes to play soccer :)
We had a family home evening with a member family and their non-member friends on Saturday. It was so fun! We made peanut butter pies (which consist of crust and a mixture of cream cheese, powdered sugar, peanut butter, and whipped cream). They were very delicious. I love America :)
Lately, I've been thinking about the Doctrine of Christ and it's evil brother, the "Doctrine of the Devil." I was pondering about all of the churches around here. The thought came to mind, "He who is not for me is against me" (see 2 Nephi 10:16).
The Doctrine of Christ is faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism by the Priesthood authority, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. This is the way that each and every soul can find happiness and peace in this life and the life to come. This is the way and there is no other way.
The Doctrine of the Devil may seem similar, but it is so far off. The Doctrine of the Devil is everything that isn't the Doctrine of Christ.
The Father and the Son bear witness that "they that are not for me are against me" (2 Nephi 10:16).
Jesus Christ is the way that His doctrine works. Because of what He did (the Atonement), faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism by the Priesthood authority, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end actually have some weight. I know this is true. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and our Master.
Thank you for your love, support, letters, and prayers! I love each of you a lot and I hope everything is going well! I love you! :)
Love,
Elder Woolley
Monday, December 6, 2010
Weekly Letter-- 06 Dec 2010
Hello Everyone!
We went to the temple on Thursday! It was perfect! I can't wait to go to the temple a lot when I'm back home! While at the temple and afterwards, I pondered on the covenants I made there. I finally am beginning to understand the significance of the temple...maybe... :P The Spirit bore witness of the significance of the covenants and I was suddenly much more awake to what I'm doing and ought to be doing with my life. Thank heavens for the temple!
It got pretty cold here a few days ago. The high was in the 40's, but Oklahoma wind is like no other wind I've felt in my life. It's very... brisk. :)We haven't had snow here yet, but I've heard it's supposed to snow this week sometime. I'll be in Lawton at least until 2011, so we'll see what the weather is like in the upcoming weeks!
We didn't get to watch the Christmas devotional because we were at an investigator's house and they had little children to look after and put to bed around when the devotional ended. That being said, we did have a GREAT lesson there! Everyone was engaged and it was a blast!
A few days ago, we were riding our bikes around and I saw a flock of birds. They were small, agile birds and there were about 50 of them. They were flying straight and then they suddenly dropped. Then they heavily pulled up, straightened themselves, and kept flying. I've been pondering on the scene for the last few days. I don't know the science behind why a group of birds behaves like that, but it seemed to me that there must have been a singular bird that made the command decision and said (or chirped), "Let's go this way now."
From that experience, I've thought about the influence a leader can have. Any deviation in the course and the rest of the group follows. Nephi was impressed by the Spirit to kill a man because he would have led a nation into unbelief. Ultimately, it is up to the individual to exercise their own agency and decide which way they want to go, but a leader can have a heavy influence on their thoughts and beliefs.
I have to go now. I love each off you and remember, God cares :)
Love,
Elder Woolley
We went to the temple on Thursday! It was perfect! I can't wait to go to the temple a lot when I'm back home! While at the temple and afterwards, I pondered on the covenants I made there. I finally am beginning to understand the significance of the temple...maybe... :P The Spirit bore witness of the significance of the covenants and I was suddenly much more awake to what I'm doing and ought to be doing with my life. Thank heavens for the temple!
It got pretty cold here a few days ago. The high was in the 40's, but Oklahoma wind is like no other wind I've felt in my life. It's very... brisk. :)We haven't had snow here yet, but I've heard it's supposed to snow this week sometime. I'll be in Lawton at least until 2011, so we'll see what the weather is like in the upcoming weeks!
We didn't get to watch the Christmas devotional because we were at an investigator's house and they had little children to look after and put to bed around when the devotional ended. That being said, we did have a GREAT lesson there! Everyone was engaged and it was a blast!
A few days ago, we were riding our bikes around and I saw a flock of birds. They were small, agile birds and there were about 50 of them. They were flying straight and then they suddenly dropped. Then they heavily pulled up, straightened themselves, and kept flying. I've been pondering on the scene for the last few days. I don't know the science behind why a group of birds behaves like that, but it seemed to me that there must have been a singular bird that made the command decision and said (or chirped), "Let's go this way now."
From that experience, I've thought about the influence a leader can have. Any deviation in the course and the rest of the group follows. Nephi was impressed by the Spirit to kill a man because he would have led a nation into unbelief. Ultimately, it is up to the individual to exercise their own agency and decide which way they want to go, but a leader can have a heavy influence on their thoughts and beliefs.
I have to go now. I love each off you and remember, God cares :)
Love,
Elder Woolley
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