BUONISSIMO GIORNISSIMO!
Happy 27th of August everyone! (No, it's not a Holiday in Italy either, I just thought a congratulations was in order :) )
So this week has been really wonderful. Like every week as a missionary! We have been working hard to get people in Church, and saw some great success this week!
-We had an awesome experience in english class just Yesterday! So there are 2 Young girls from Santo Domingo that come each week, and we usually try to slip in gospel words and phrases to try to start a conversation, and Yesterday my companion (who is just so blunt and hilarious...Albanians...) just pulls out a Book of Mormon and slams it on the table in front of us. They asked us what in the world that was, and we had a wonderful conversation for about 10 minutes! We left them with the Book of Mormon to read, and they were excited about reading another testament of Jesus Christ!
--So I bought an "American" pizza the other day. Cheese, hot dogs, and french fries. Those are the toppings on an "American" pizza. I told one of the members the other day that we don't eat that kind of pizza in America and he just looked so...betrayed. Just total shock. It was so funny!
--This week we had a wonderful experience, in church! Not counting us 2 missionaries, there were 11 people in church...6 members, and 5 investigators! 2 were brought by a less-active woman in our ward, Sorella Nympha. She is great! The best part of it was that since the two main priesthood holders in the ward, Fratello Mazzina and Georgio, were out of the country with their wives, I was teaching the Gospel Principles lesson, and Anziano Mati gave a talk. I taught about baptism and invited all who were present to pray and ask Heavenly Father if the things that were taught are true, and then Anziano Mati gave a talk on missionary work and the joy and peace that comes from living and sharing the gospel. It was really powerful! It was such a blessing!
--I had the chance this last week to put my lawn mowing skills back to the test...So, backround story. We were invited by the boss of the returned missionary in our ward to come over and "help him with some gardening at his restaurant". so we think, yeah okay, he probably wants to plant some flowers or something near his restaurant, this will be great! We arrive, and he has 2 push lawn mowers out and a wheelbarrow, a pickaxe, and a shovel, and we are just like "what in the world...oh no." Long story short like 3 hours later we were finished mowing this huge, untamed field that hasn't been cut since the flood of Noah, and digging up and moving boulders from the field to the side of the building. It was a good time! But hey, his wife was really intrested in who were were, and had some really good questions! Missionaries love questions! When we gave her a Book of Mormon she sat in the corner and read it while they fed us lunch...for free! So it wasn't a bad deal!
Scambio: I had a wonderful scambio; returning to lecco in the same companionship I was in before was such a blessing!
Miracle: Our miracle for this week happened while I was on a companionship exchange in Lecco. I called the Anziani there ahead of time to see if the could schedule some lessons with the new convert/less active young boys, Marvin and Osvaldo, that I had taught while I was here and were baptized after I left. They were able to schedule an appointment with Marvin, after not being able to meet with him for over 2 months. We met in the Church, and had a wonderful lesson. Right off the bat, he opened up about how things started getting really difficult for him after his baptism, with a lot of committments on his time (he works 2 jobs), and some troubles in the family. And on top of that, he works in Bergamo on the weekends and so isn't able to come to Church here in Lecco. We talked with him and bore testimony about how living the gospel has changed our lives, and shared personal experiences of the blessings and peace and happiness that it has brought into our lives. The spirit was so strong; even tangible. He committed to read the scriptures each day, even if only for 1 or 2 minutes, and expressed to us that he has been thinking about going to Church in Bergamo on Sundays where he works, but he just didn't know how to find it. We solved that problem, and he committed to go to Church there this Sunday! He is a great kid, with a sincere desire to follow Christ. It was a blessing to meet with him again!
Ever since I gave a talk in Church a few weeks ago about the importance of prayer, I have really been trying to improve the quality of my prayers. It is such a blessing and privilege to be able to pray. I have been having some wonderful experiences, and truly know that our Heavenly Father knows us so personally, listens to us, and is willing to help us with anything. Anything that is important to us is important to him (Alma 34:17-27). As they say, "A man never stands taller than when he is on his knees."
I love you all and thank you for all you do and are! I remember you always in my prayers!
Love,
Anziano Wilson
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
AUGUST 20, 2014
Well, this week I don't have like any time to do email, so this is probably going to have to be short. Anziano Smith is going home today!! And his train is in an hour and he still needs to pack... :/ Missionaries...
But anyways, this week has been GREAT!! Morbegno is so strange...but so great! It is literally a huge, 10,000 member family here! Everyone knows each other and actually says hello to each other. We have been working hard to become a part of the family, and if you ask me, the missionaries here have been doing some great work, because everyone loves us here. Basically every person in town is either a potential investigator, current investigator, or a past investigator...needless to say, we get so much free stuff! We passed by a fruit shop the other day (one of the expensive ones that missionaries never go to), and the lady that works there was just like "Wait!! Wait one second! *goes to the back and comes out with a huuuge bag of fruit* Here ya go!" It was awesome...and super yummy!
Let's see, the highlight of this past week was definitely when we DID A CONCERT IN A CATHOLIC CHURCH....not a big deal. More on that later though, in the miracle of the week!
-We have been doing a lot of service lately, that is a big thing that the missionaries do around here, and this past week we painted a room in one of the members' houses. She is a recent returned missionary from England, named Cinzia, and neither of her parents are members of the church. She is super awesome, and it was great to go over there and get to know them while serving them. ...by the time we finished we had paint allll over ourselves! By the way, my companions volunteered me to paint the ceiling...so that was fun. I was covered in paint. And then we taught someone a lesson in those same clothes! He was like "why are you so dirty?" and then we started a conversation about how missionaries do service and everything! It was great!
-So August 15th is a huge holiday here in Italy...everyone is off work and travels and parties and everything....and the day for the missionaries to set baptismal dates!! At least for us! We met with one of our Brasilian investigators, well, the only one we have, named Beto, and he is super great! He had read Alma 32 about faith and highlighted a ton of scriptures and asked us so many great questions. He is so sincere and just wants to learn and increase his faith! We invited him to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized on the 14th of September...and he accepted! He is awesome, and we are expecting great things from him!
-I gave a talk this Sunday on prayer. I mentioned how in a house with a billion kids, prayer is one of the best (if not only) times we can feel peace in our house :) The Italians laughed and were just so shocked as to why anyone would have more than 3 children.
-Cinzia's boss wants us to come over in a few days to do some gardening work at his restaurant...and then he wants to feed us lunch! So that's a deal! His wife started asking us questions too about who we are and what we do and everything...now she has a Book of Mormon and a lot of questions! She started asking us all these questions and we were finally just like "here, this Book has the answers! And we will meet later in the week to talk about it!" She was excited about it...so that was awesome!
Miracle: This week's miracle was AMAZING! I mean, how many people can say they sung hymns in a catholic church in Italy? So basically, we have been trying to organize something like that for a while, with no success, and finally we told one of our investigators about it...and she just called the Arch Priest of Morbegno and arranged a meeting! So we set it up! It was awesome! Anziano Smith has been playing the piano/organ since he was 6, and so he played all sorts of famous classical songs, and we mixed it with some hymns as well. I sang "The Spirit of God (Italian)" "Nearer My God To Thee (English)" And "I Am A Child Of God (Italian)", accompanied by the organ. It was an incredible experience. And don't worry mom, we had one of our investigators record them on her iphone, so I will get those from her and bring them home for the fam :) But we had a great turn out, like 30 or 40 people, and we found 4 new investigators! Not to mention there were some less active members that showed up, and really felt the Spirit. it was really a special experience for all of us!
Well, I apologize in advance for the short email and that I can't respond to anyone this week. Know that I love you all and remember you in my prayers! We are working hard and the mission is the greatest thing in the world! I wouldn't trade it for anything! Thank you for your prayers and support, I have the best family and friends in the world!
Love,
Anziano Wilson
But anyways, this week has been GREAT!! Morbegno is so strange...but so great! It is literally a huge, 10,000 member family here! Everyone knows each other and actually says hello to each other. We have been working hard to become a part of the family, and if you ask me, the missionaries here have been doing some great work, because everyone loves us here. Basically every person in town is either a potential investigator, current investigator, or a past investigator...needless to say, we get so much free stuff! We passed by a fruit shop the other day (one of the expensive ones that missionaries never go to), and the lady that works there was just like "Wait!! Wait one second! *goes to the back and comes out with a huuuge bag of fruit* Here ya go!" It was awesome...and super yummy!
Let's see, the highlight of this past week was definitely when we DID A CONCERT IN A CATHOLIC CHURCH....not a big deal. More on that later though, in the miracle of the week!
-We have been doing a lot of service lately, that is a big thing that the missionaries do around here, and this past week we painted a room in one of the members' houses. She is a recent returned missionary from England, named Cinzia, and neither of her parents are members of the church. She is super awesome, and it was great to go over there and get to know them while serving them. ...by the time we finished we had paint allll over ourselves! By the way, my companions volunteered me to paint the ceiling...so that was fun. I was covered in paint. And then we taught someone a lesson in those same clothes! He was like "why are you so dirty?" and then we started a conversation about how missionaries do service and everything! It was great!
-So August 15th is a huge holiday here in Italy...everyone is off work and travels and parties and everything....and the day for the missionaries to set baptismal dates!! At least for us! We met with one of our Brasilian investigators, well, the only one we have, named Beto, and he is super great! He had read Alma 32 about faith and highlighted a ton of scriptures and asked us so many great questions. He is so sincere and just wants to learn and increase his faith! We invited him to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized on the 14th of September...and he accepted! He is awesome, and we are expecting great things from him!
-I gave a talk this Sunday on prayer. I mentioned how in a house with a billion kids, prayer is one of the best (if not only) times we can feel peace in our house :) The Italians laughed and were just so shocked as to why anyone would have more than 3 children.
-Cinzia's boss wants us to come over in a few days to do some gardening work at his restaurant...and then he wants to feed us lunch! So that's a deal! His wife started asking us questions too about who we are and what we do and everything...now she has a Book of Mormon and a lot of questions! She started asking us all these questions and we were finally just like "here, this Book has the answers! And we will meet later in the week to talk about it!" She was excited about it...so that was awesome!
Miracle: This week's miracle was AMAZING! I mean, how many people can say they sung hymns in a catholic church in Italy? So basically, we have been trying to organize something like that for a while, with no success, and finally we told one of our investigators about it...and she just called the Arch Priest of Morbegno and arranged a meeting! So we set it up! It was awesome! Anziano Smith has been playing the piano/organ since he was 6, and so he played all sorts of famous classical songs, and we mixed it with some hymns as well. I sang "The Spirit of God (Italian)" "Nearer My God To Thee (English)" And "I Am A Child Of God (Italian)", accompanied by the organ. It was an incredible experience. And don't worry mom, we had one of our investigators record them on her iphone, so I will get those from her and bring them home for the fam :) But we had a great turn out, like 30 or 40 people, and we found 4 new investigators! Not to mention there were some less active members that showed up, and really felt the Spirit. it was really a special experience for all of us!
Well, I apologize in advance for the short email and that I can't respond to anyone this week. Know that I love you all and remember you in my prayers! We are working hard and the mission is the greatest thing in the world! I wouldn't trade it for anything! Thank you for your prayers and support, I have the best family and friends in the world!
Love,
Anziano Wilson
Friday, August 15, 2014
AUGUST 13, 2014
Buona rainy rainy giorno everyone!! So, summer is over,
haha. We have been in the middle of a rainstorm for over a
week...all the Italians are so angry about it. But hey, at least i
don't have holes in the bottoms of my shoes...oh wait.. (Don't
worry mom, I have another pair, I'm switching them. :) )
So this week has been pretty great! Super different, but still
great! So the missionary work here in Morbegno is a lot
different. Since it was just recently opened a few months
ago, noone has any idea who we are as missionaries, except
for the 2 or 3 bar owners that were placed in the path of the
first missionaries here. That is such a miracle to me. We
have so many connections here.
place in town here, so I am using one of the computers at the
hotel where we hold church...like their only computer, where
they keep all the files and everything!
missionaries....it is a family that owns the hotel, and they all
speak English, and just love talking to us Americans! All of
them have been investigators at one point or another, but just
aren't super interested...for the moment :) People here are so
nice! It is a small little town, but everyone is super close.
One of the bars that we know is right next to the station, and
I have no idea how the missionaries got so close with the
owners, but the just love the missionaries too! We can eat
whatever we want there for free, and they have posters of our
pass-along cards and english class fliers on their bullitin
(sp?) board, and everyone that goes to the bar often knows
who we are and everything. So most of our finding work is
trying to do service for anyone and everyone,(which we do a
lot of!...we recently went to someone's house and screwed a
fan into the ceiling...the huge fans that aren't supposed to be
even 2 feet off the ground, let alone suspended from the
ceiling!) Needless to say, that was a project...it's a good thing
there are 3 of us! And teaching english class. We have two
classes a week, one in Morbegno and one in Sondrio. The
first few weeks here, there were something like 70 people
that would show up to English class each week!
So that's another thing! I am in a threesome of
missionaries! My companions are Elder Mati, who is from
Albania (enough said there) and speaks Italian perfectly (he
corrects the native speakers), and Elder Smith, who is going
home in a week because he is finished with his mission! So
that's why we are in 3...just for 2 weeks until he leaves. But it
is great! I love it! Anziano Mati is hilarious...the typical crazy
Albanian (he calls himself that all the time) and so is Anziano
Smith, so we are always just cracking jokes to each other...it
is so fun! In fact, yesterday for English class in Sondrio, we
told jokes for like 30 minutes...the Italians LOVE the little kid
jokes. Some of the favorites were "what is a cow's favorite
place to go on a Friday night...to the MOOOOOvies!!"
*hahahaha* and their favorite of all "why was 6 afraid of 7?
Because 7 ate 9!" *laugh laugh laugh* It was hilarious! The
jokes were all new to them, and they were just dying
laughing.
So back to this bar next to the station. That is the place
where we go to find new investigators! It is a family that
owns the bar, and everytime someone new comes in it is
hilarious, because Italians are so blunt. They will just be like
"Mario! Come talk to the Mormons, you have a drinking
problem!" ...And then they do! it is hilarious!
Miracle: We had an awesome miracle this week! My first day
here, we were doing some door to door finding, (which is
awesome by the way in small towns, because they actually
open up the door and at least see your faces, rather than just
speaking over the microphone thing "noone is home!"), and
we were invited in!!! (trust me, that's a miracle in of itself!)
The man, Luigi, was super nice and after we shared the
message of the Restoration he was left in wonder, and told
us he had never heard anything like this before. It was really
special! He is going on vacation with his wife and children
for a few weeks (like all the Italians do in August...since
everyone is off of work for 3 weeks), but he invited us to
come back, told us that his wife was very religious, and that
he would love for us to share the message again with her and
his family! What a special blessing! Anziano Mati told me it
was the first time he has ever gotten into a house in the 5
months he has been here in Morbegno.
Well, that's about it for this week; I am getting used to how
missionary work is done in a town with 0 members, and a
couple in some cities a half hour away. It is a great
experience, and I am excited because we have a lot of
promising investigators and potentials. A lady from
Hondurus, Georgina, is planning on being baptized on the
31st, so pray for that!
Thank you all so much for your love and support, I am
thankful for all you do and are! Have a wonderful week!
Love,
Anziano Wilson
haha. We have been in the middle of a rainstorm for over a
week...all the Italians are so angry about it. But hey, at least i
don't have holes in the bottoms of my shoes...oh wait.. (Don't
worry mom, I have another pair, I'm switching them. :) )
So this week has been pretty great! Super different, but still
great! So the missionary work here in Morbegno is a lot
different. Since it was just recently opened a few months
ago, noone has any idea who we are as missionaries, except
for the 2 or 3 bar owners that were placed in the path of the
first missionaries here. That is such a miracle to me. We
have so many connections here.
place in town here, so I am using one of the computers at the
hotel where we hold church...like their only computer, where
they keep all the files and everything!
missionaries....it is a family that owns the hotel, and they all
speak English, and just love talking to us Americans! All of
them have been investigators at one point or another, but just
aren't super interested...for the moment :) People here are so
nice! It is a small little town, but everyone is super close.
One of the bars that we know is right next to the station, and
I have no idea how the missionaries got so close with the
owners, but the just love the missionaries too! We can eat
whatever we want there for free, and they have posters of our
pass-along cards and english class fliers on their bullitin
(sp?) board, and everyone that goes to the bar often knows
who we are and everything. So most of our finding work is
trying to do service for anyone and everyone,(which we do a
lot of!...we recently went to someone's house and screwed a
fan into the ceiling...the huge fans that aren't supposed to be
even 2 feet off the ground, let alone suspended from the
ceiling!) Needless to say, that was a project...it's a good thing
there are 3 of us! And teaching english class. We have two
classes a week, one in Morbegno and one in Sondrio. The
first few weeks here, there were something like 70 people
that would show up to English class each week!
So that's another thing! I am in a threesome of
missionaries! My companions are Elder Mati, who is from
Albania (enough said there) and speaks Italian perfectly (he
corrects the native speakers), and Elder Smith, who is going
home in a week because he is finished with his mission! So
that's why we are in 3...just for 2 weeks until he leaves. But it
is great! I love it! Anziano Mati is hilarious...the typical crazy
Albanian (he calls himself that all the time) and so is Anziano
Smith, so we are always just cracking jokes to each other...it
is so fun! In fact, yesterday for English class in Sondrio, we
told jokes for like 30 minutes...the Italians LOVE the little kid
jokes. Some of the favorites were "what is a cow's favorite
place to go on a Friday night...to the MOOOOOvies!!"
*hahahaha* and their favorite of all "why was 6 afraid of 7?
Because 7 ate 9!" *laugh laugh laugh* It was hilarious! The
jokes were all new to them, and they were just dying
laughing.
So back to this bar next to the station. That is the place
where we go to find new investigators! It is a family that
owns the bar, and everytime someone new comes in it is
hilarious, because Italians are so blunt. They will just be like
"Mario! Come talk to the Mormons, you have a drinking
problem!" ...And then they do! it is hilarious!
Miracle: We had an awesome miracle this week! My first day
here, we were doing some door to door finding, (which is
awesome by the way in small towns, because they actually
open up the door and at least see your faces, rather than just
speaking over the microphone thing "noone is home!"), and
we were invited in!!! (trust me, that's a miracle in of itself!)
The man, Luigi, was super nice and after we shared the
message of the Restoration he was left in wonder, and told
us he had never heard anything like this before. It was really
special! He is going on vacation with his wife and children
for a few weeks (like all the Italians do in August...since
everyone is off of work for 3 weeks), but he invited us to
come back, told us that his wife was very religious, and that
he would love for us to share the message again with her and
his family! What a special blessing! Anziano Mati told me it
was the first time he has ever gotten into a house in the 5
months he has been here in Morbegno.
Well, that's about it for this week; I am getting used to how
missionary work is done in a town with 0 members, and a
couple in some cities a half hour away. It is a great
experience, and I am excited because we have a lot of
promising investigators and potentials. A lady from
Hondurus, Georgina, is planning on being baptized on the
31st, so pray for that!
Thank you all so much for your love and support, I am
thankful for all you do and are! Have a wonderful week!
Love,
Anziano Wilson
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
AUGUST 6, 2014
Buona tutto!!
So first item of business, I am being transferred!! To
Morbegno! I am super sad to leave Rimini and all of the
AMAZING members here that have been so kind and
wonderful to me...but I am excited to go to Morbegno
because.....it's only 20 minutes from Lecco!!!! And there is
actually not even a church there (they hold church each week
in a rented out room in a hotel, for the 7 people that are
there), and so once a month I get to go to church in Lecco!!!
And see all the members and new converts that I taught that
have been baptized since December!!! I am so excited!! My
companion was like "wow. That never happens.
Missionaries never go back close to where the served." So I
consider myself lucky! I don't know much about the place,
other than that it was being just barely opened in December
while I was in Lecco...and so they literally didn't have any
contacts or members or anything there...noone even knew
what the church was. So I am excited to see how it has
grown, and to do my part to be an instrument in the Lord's
hand to grow the tiny branch! I am excited to give a talk
every week in church, too! :P
Rimini has been so wonderful. I made sure and took
pictures with the members, and to write encouragement
letters to all of the investigators we are teaching. Silvio is
going to be baptized the 22nd...he is so solid. I am excited
for him. And Cristian accepted a new baptismal date for the
29th!! He is back on track thanks to an awesome lesson with
Fratello Canuti on Tuesday!
- We found an awesome nigerian rock star this week, named
Devon. He is so legit. He loves learning about religion, and
as soon as he found out we are "mormons" he had so many
questions for us. He has concerts all the time though, so it is
tough to meet him. But I expect great things from him! We
gave him a Book of Mormon and encouraged him to read and
pray about it and he was like "you know what...i will do that!
Because I am curious! I will do that!" It was awesome.
- We found and called this random guy in the phone named
Nitian, the other day, and he didn't answer. That's all. Just
kidding! He called us back at like 11:30 at night, woke us
both up. and so I pick up the phone, talk with him, and set up
a lesson to meet the next day at 4:00. I put the phone down,
and just am like "Welll....you know you're good when...! Night
anziano." But so, we meet him the next day and he was SO
solid! He is like 23 years old, it turns out he knows half the
members in the ward, has been to church twice, and works
with one of the coolest members every day! He already has a
Book of Mormon, and at the end of the lesson was like "well, I
had never touched it until now, but I promise that I will read it
now!" We are expecting great things from him!
Well, that was kind of short, but I have a long miracle story
for you all, so here we go!
Miracle: This week we had many miracles! But the one I
would like to share this week is a different kind of miracle. A
few days ago we were teaching, for the last time, a Romanian
man named Florin, and I had a special experience. We spoke
for at least 45 minutes about his life, the tragedies and huge
changes he has made in his life to find God and turn his life
around. (He has been to prison multiple times for robbery
and drugs and basically anything you could imagine).Florin
is like a brother to me by now, we first met him like 6 months
ago, and he has been a great guy, with great faith.
he was kicked out of the home he has been living in for one
year and a half, for basically no reason at all except for that
the owner didn't want him living there anymore. Florin is a
great man, and he has been such an example to me, in word
and in deed. As he shared with us that as he was being
kicked out he told the Carabinieri "God bless you. God bless
you." they began to make fun of him. But he shared with us
that he has chosen to turn his life around, and is never going
back. That God has saved his life. That touched me. But he
told us how angry he was. How God had left him alone, and
he doesn't know why. How he has been praying for help, for
God to place someone in his way, to show him the light. He
is VERY, and I mean VERY 7th day adventist...and he won't
even pray about anything that isn't explicitly written in the
Bible. For that reason, we haven't been meeting with him for
about 3 months, but we always see him around, and talk for a
minute or so. And here's where we get to the real "miracle"
part. Seeing that it was the last time I will probably see him
ever again in this life, I wanted so dearly to share with him
what means most to me...the gospel. I testified to him with
all my heart that the Book of Mormon will bring him peace
and hope, as it has to me all of my life. That this gospel is an
answer to his many prayers. That God had placed us in his
path, because He loves him, and wants what's best for him.
That we, as representatives of our Savior Jesus Christ, could
help him. And then I challenged him to pray, and ask God.
Just ask. If the things we are saying are true....and he said
no. He isn't even willing to give it a chance. He said that God
would show him when the time was right, and that he was
too much of a sinner to receive an answer anyway. And then
he rode away on his bike. We stood there for about 30
seconds, while he rode away, wondering what had just
happened. And then I sat down on the bench right there in
the park and tears just came flowing out of my eyes. I sat
there and just cried, for 15 minutes. Cried and prayed that
Florin would find the truth, somehow, someway. It hurt. It
hurt me deep in my soul. He was searching for what was
right in front of him...and he just chose to walk away. And
there was nothing I could do about it. I don't know why it
meant so much to me, we get our testimonies rejected 100
times a day, but for some reason it did. And then I realized
something (and here was the real miracle for me). I realized
that our Savior felt that way-that deep pain and sorrow-for
each one of us. Every single one of us. He loves us so much,
that it pains him to the very soul when he sees us stray from
the path. When he sees us suffer. I can't even imagine what
He went through, how it must have felt. But I feel like now I
understand so much more, a tiny tiny piece, a token, of how
he felt. For me. For Florin. For every person that ever lived. I
can't even imagine it. But I am so thankful for his love. As I
sat there in silence, the words of a favorite hymn came to
mind. "I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me,
confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me. I tremble
to know that for me he was crucified, that for me, a sinner, he
suffered, he bled and died. Oh, it is wonderful that he should
care for me enough to die for me! Oh, it is wonderful,
wonderful to me!"
Everything in Rimini has been wonderful. We have been
seeing some wonderful miracles, and have found some very
promising potentials (also referrals from members!) They are
great people. I am excited to go and serve in Morbegno, I
know that that is where the Lord needs me. I love you all very
much, and am thankful for the love and support and prayers
that you give me. I hope you all have a wonderful week, I am
praying for you too!
Love,
Anziano Wilson
So first item of business, I am being transferred!! To
Morbegno! I am super sad to leave Rimini and all of the
AMAZING members here that have been so kind and
wonderful to me...but I am excited to go to Morbegno
because.....it's only 20 minutes from Lecco!!!! And there is
actually not even a church there (they hold church each week
in a rented out room in a hotel, for the 7 people that are
there), and so once a month I get to go to church in Lecco!!!
And see all the members and new converts that I taught that
have been baptized since December!!! I am so excited!! My
companion was like "wow. That never happens.
Missionaries never go back close to where the served." So I
consider myself lucky! I don't know much about the place,
other than that it was being just barely opened in December
while I was in Lecco...and so they literally didn't have any
contacts or members or anything there...noone even knew
what the church was. So I am excited to see how it has
grown, and to do my part to be an instrument in the Lord's
hand to grow the tiny branch! I am excited to give a talk
every week in church, too! :P
Rimini has been so wonderful. I made sure and took
pictures with the members, and to write encouragement
letters to all of the investigators we are teaching. Silvio is
going to be baptized the 22nd...he is so solid. I am excited
for him. And Cristian accepted a new baptismal date for the
29th!! He is back on track thanks to an awesome lesson with
Fratello Canuti on Tuesday!
- We found an awesome nigerian rock star this week, named
Devon. He is so legit. He loves learning about religion, and
as soon as he found out we are "mormons" he had so many
questions for us. He has concerts all the time though, so it is
tough to meet him. But I expect great things from him! We
gave him a Book of Mormon and encouraged him to read and
pray about it and he was like "you know what...i will do that!
Because I am curious! I will do that!" It was awesome.
- We found and called this random guy in the phone named
Nitian, the other day, and he didn't answer. That's all. Just
kidding! He called us back at like 11:30 at night, woke us
both up. and so I pick up the phone, talk with him, and set up
a lesson to meet the next day at 4:00. I put the phone down,
and just am like "Welll....you know you're good when...! Night
anziano." But so, we meet him the next day and he was SO
solid! He is like 23 years old, it turns out he knows half the
members in the ward, has been to church twice, and works
with one of the coolest members every day! He already has a
Book of Mormon, and at the end of the lesson was like "well, I
had never touched it until now, but I promise that I will read it
now!" We are expecting great things from him!
Well, that was kind of short, but I have a long miracle story
for you all, so here we go!
Miracle: This week we had many miracles! But the one I
would like to share this week is a different kind of miracle. A
few days ago we were teaching, for the last time, a Romanian
man named Florin, and I had a special experience. We spoke
for at least 45 minutes about his life, the tragedies and huge
changes he has made in his life to find God and turn his life
around. (He has been to prison multiple times for robbery
and drugs and basically anything you could imagine).Florin
is like a brother to me by now, we first met him like 6 months
ago, and he has been a great guy, with great faith.
he was kicked out of the home he has been living in for one
year and a half, for basically no reason at all except for that
the owner didn't want him living there anymore. Florin is a
great man, and he has been such an example to me, in word
and in deed. As he shared with us that as he was being
kicked out he told the Carabinieri "God bless you. God bless
you." they began to make fun of him. But he shared with us
that he has chosen to turn his life around, and is never going
back. That God has saved his life. That touched me. But he
told us how angry he was. How God had left him alone, and
he doesn't know why. How he has been praying for help, for
God to place someone in his way, to show him the light. He
is VERY, and I mean VERY 7th day adventist...and he won't
even pray about anything that isn't explicitly written in the
Bible. For that reason, we haven't been meeting with him for
about 3 months, but we always see him around, and talk for a
minute or so. And here's where we get to the real "miracle"
part. Seeing that it was the last time I will probably see him
ever again in this life, I wanted so dearly to share with him
what means most to me...the gospel. I testified to him with
all my heart that the Book of Mormon will bring him peace
and hope, as it has to me all of my life. That this gospel is an
answer to his many prayers. That God had placed us in his
path, because He loves him, and wants what's best for him.
That we, as representatives of our Savior Jesus Christ, could
help him. And then I challenged him to pray, and ask God.
Just ask. If the things we are saying are true....and he said
no. He isn't even willing to give it a chance. He said that God
would show him when the time was right, and that he was
too much of a sinner to receive an answer anyway. And then
he rode away on his bike. We stood there for about 30
seconds, while he rode away, wondering what had just
happened. And then I sat down on the bench right there in
the park and tears just came flowing out of my eyes. I sat
there and just cried, for 15 minutes. Cried and prayed that
Florin would find the truth, somehow, someway. It hurt. It
hurt me deep in my soul. He was searching for what was
right in front of him...and he just chose to walk away. And
there was nothing I could do about it. I don't know why it
meant so much to me, we get our testimonies rejected 100
times a day, but for some reason it did. And then I realized
something (and here was the real miracle for me). I realized
that our Savior felt that way-that deep pain and sorrow-for
each one of us. Every single one of us. He loves us so much,
that it pains him to the very soul when he sees us stray from
the path. When he sees us suffer. I can't even imagine what
He went through, how it must have felt. But I feel like now I
understand so much more, a tiny tiny piece, a token, of how
he felt. For me. For Florin. For every person that ever lived. I
can't even imagine it. But I am so thankful for his love. As I
sat there in silence, the words of a favorite hymn came to
mind. "I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me,
confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me. I tremble
to know that for me he was crucified, that for me, a sinner, he
suffered, he bled and died. Oh, it is wonderful that he should
care for me enough to die for me! Oh, it is wonderful,
wonderful to me!"
Everything in Rimini has been wonderful. We have been
seeing some wonderful miracles, and have found some very
promising potentials (also referrals from members!) They are
great people. I am excited to go and serve in Morbegno, I
know that that is where the Lord needs me. I love you all very
much, and am thankful for the love and support and prayers
that you give me. I hope you all have a wonderful week, I am
praying for you too!
Love,
Anziano Wilson
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
JULY 30, 2014
I. Am. Soaked. So soaked. We were on our way riding our
bikes to the church like "oh, it's started to rain. Well, it's been
sprinkling on and off all day, we should be fine *5 minutes
later* Total downpour!! It is like a hurricane out there! So wet
socks and all here I am writing home to my family! :)
This week has been GREAT! So full of miracles! I wish I had
time to write them all! But we have been working hard and
have found so many people opening up to the gospel, and
more than anything, the fact that families are forever. We use
our new "My Family" booklets all the time! I put pictures of
my family on the front and hold it up and just walk up to
people and say "Hello! Families are forever! What do you
think about that!?" and they usually put their hand up like "get
away from me" (like always), but then are like "wait, what?
you have like a million brothers and sisters...who are you
guys?" and we start to talk! It is the greatest! These books
are an inspired finding tool!
-We also saw a big group of breakdancers the other day in
the middle of centro putting on a show, with a huge crowd
around them and everything...they came from Brescia where
there is a huge dance studio, and they were GOOD! Not going
to lie, we stopped and watched them for a minute or so...but
then we went away and started talking to more people!
-I was reading in the Book of Galatians the other day for part
of personal study (because one of our investigators is
obsessed with Paul, and throws out scripture after scripture
about him, so i figured I would learn myself up on his
writings), and I came across a scripture that, even though
was already marked, I felt like I had never read before. It was
chapter 2 verse 20, which says "I am crucified with Christ:
nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the
life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of
God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." That really hit
me for some reason. and the life which I now live in the flesh
I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave
himself for me. That is powerful! We live our lives by faith.
Faith in the Son of God who loves us; loves us so much that
he gave himself, his life, for us. The gospel is amazing!
-We were meeting with one of our African members, Sunny,
the other day, and he received a phone call from his girlfriend
in Nigeria, and he was talking in his native tongue and
everything, and then all of a sudden sighs and is like "she
wants to talk to you." We were all just like..."uh oh. what
could this be for." So she starts off, and the first sentence
that comes out is "Please, Please! You must help me!" and
we are like "oh no! What is going on!?" and then she follows it
up with "You must take Sunny to church! All he does is work,
work, work! You must bring him to the church! Even if you
must tie him up and take him...you must do it! *sunny laughs
in the background*. Get the rope!!" It was hilarious!
-We had an awesome experience on a visit to a less-active
ladie's house this week! We went with President Caramia
(who is just amazing.. I feel like I am in the room with a
member of the Twelve every time he speaks about the
gospel), to this super nice woman's home, as part of his
home-teaching. We talked a bit about life, President Caramia
talked about how he used to work in a Hebrew hotel as a chef
for 2 years, and how he had to do the most flabbergasting
stuff (which was pretty hilarious), and then talked about the
First Presidency message in the liahona. It was a really
powerful experience, and at the end she asked me to offer the
prayer, and I found myself praying for her to build up the
courage and faith to come to church, despite the weaknesses
she feels she has, and to partake of the sacarament. As we
finished, she was in tears. It was a great experience!
-It has been raining all week! And we had one of our
umbrellas stollen. Two men, one umbrella...better yet, one
man, one Samoan. So three men....doesn't work the best. We
are buying a new umbrella, very soon. That's all I am going
to say about that.
-We went over to a young man's house today for P-day, and
he taught us how to make some awesome tomato sauce
pasta stuff. (he is a chef..) It was gooooood! And then he
was like "now we will make a milkshake...american style! (he
knows a bunch of american recipies, and loves to cook
them. His little sister was like "Whole milk...in the ice
cream??? What kind of savages are you!?" haha!
Miracle: This week has been absolutely full of miracles!!
Wow, what a great week! But one of the greatest miracles
was that Silvio is still progressing so well! This past week we
met with him 3 times, always with Presidente Caramia, and
he came to church! He accepted to follow the Word of
Wisdom, Law of Chastity, 10 commandments, and the Law of
Tithing this week! President Caramia was so excited after our
last lesson last night. "Tithing was the last hard thing! Now
it's all downhill on to the baptism!" Silvio is so sincere and SO
prepared! He has accepted everything right away, without
even a second's hesitation. A lot of that is thanks to the help
of President Caramia in teaching the lessons (he teaches
so...masterfully! Ever word he says is so powerful!); he has
been a great help in clarifying everything. It was especially
cool when he said to Silvio, about the use of tithing funds,
"...there are no paid leaders in the church, which is a lot
different than the other churches, for example the Catholic
church (I love how in the lessons he always calls out the
other religions, because he used to be a really active Catholic
and know a ton about it all), but in our church, I am a leader,
and I pay tithing, too!" It totally just clicked for Silvio, and the
entire time he had a huge smile on his face! He is
progressing so well, and we are working to get his family
involved as well!
All in Rimini is wonderful! Things are really happening here; it
is a great, rainy place! Thank you all for your support and
prayers, I love you all and always remember you! Thank you
for your prayers for our investigators as well, pray for Silvio!
He is preparing to be baptized the 22nd and is SO excited
about it! Well, it is massively thunderstorming outside, so if
this is the last email, I love you all! (just kidding, I probably
shouldn't joke about that...Sorry mom, love you!) :)
Love,
Anziano Wilson
bikes to the church like "oh, it's started to rain. Well, it's been
sprinkling on and off all day, we should be fine *5 minutes
later* Total downpour!! It is like a hurricane out there! So wet
socks and all here I am writing home to my family! :)
This week has been GREAT! So full of miracles! I wish I had
time to write them all! But we have been working hard and
have found so many people opening up to the gospel, and
more than anything, the fact that families are forever. We use
our new "My Family" booklets all the time! I put pictures of
my family on the front and hold it up and just walk up to
people and say "Hello! Families are forever! What do you
think about that!?" and they usually put their hand up like "get
away from me" (like always), but then are like "wait, what?
you have like a million brothers and sisters...who are you
guys?" and we start to talk! It is the greatest! These books
are an inspired finding tool!
-We also saw a big group of breakdancers the other day in
the middle of centro putting on a show, with a huge crowd
around them and everything...they came from Brescia where
there is a huge dance studio, and they were GOOD! Not going
to lie, we stopped and watched them for a minute or so...but
then we went away and started talking to more people!
-I was reading in the Book of Galatians the other day for part
of personal study (because one of our investigators is
obsessed with Paul, and throws out scripture after scripture
about him, so i figured I would learn myself up on his
writings), and I came across a scripture that, even though
was already marked, I felt like I had never read before. It was
chapter 2 verse 20, which says "I am crucified with Christ:
nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the
life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of
God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." That really hit
me for some reason. and the life which I now live in the flesh
I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave
himself for me. That is powerful! We live our lives by faith.
Faith in the Son of God who loves us; loves us so much that
he gave himself, his life, for us. The gospel is amazing!
-We were meeting with one of our African members, Sunny,
the other day, and he received a phone call from his girlfriend
in Nigeria, and he was talking in his native tongue and
everything, and then all of a sudden sighs and is like "she
wants to talk to you." We were all just like..."uh oh. what
could this be for." So she starts off, and the first sentence
that comes out is "Please, Please! You must help me!" and
we are like "oh no! What is going on!?" and then she follows it
up with "You must take Sunny to church! All he does is work,
work, work! You must bring him to the church! Even if you
must tie him up and take him...you must do it! *sunny laughs
in the background*. Get the rope!!" It was hilarious!
-We had an awesome experience on a visit to a less-active
ladie's house this week! We went with President Caramia
(who is just amazing.. I feel like I am in the room with a
member of the Twelve every time he speaks about the
gospel), to this super nice woman's home, as part of his
home-teaching. We talked a bit about life, President Caramia
talked about how he used to work in a Hebrew hotel as a chef
for 2 years, and how he had to do the most flabbergasting
stuff (which was pretty hilarious), and then talked about the
First Presidency message in the liahona. It was a really
powerful experience, and at the end she asked me to offer the
prayer, and I found myself praying for her to build up the
courage and faith to come to church, despite the weaknesses
she feels she has, and to partake of the sacarament. As we
finished, she was in tears. It was a great experience!
-It has been raining all week! And we had one of our
umbrellas stollen. Two men, one umbrella...better yet, one
man, one Samoan. So three men....doesn't work the best. We
are buying a new umbrella, very soon. That's all I am going
to say about that.
-We went over to a young man's house today for P-day, and
he taught us how to make some awesome tomato sauce
pasta stuff. (he is a chef..) It was gooooood! And then he
was like "now we will make a milkshake...american style! (he
knows a bunch of american recipies, and loves to cook
them. His little sister was like "Whole milk...in the ice
cream??? What kind of savages are you!?" haha!
Miracle: This week has been absolutely full of miracles!!
Wow, what a great week! But one of the greatest miracles
was that Silvio is still progressing so well! This past week we
met with him 3 times, always with Presidente Caramia, and
he came to church! He accepted to follow the Word of
Wisdom, Law of Chastity, 10 commandments, and the Law of
Tithing this week! President Caramia was so excited after our
last lesson last night. "Tithing was the last hard thing! Now
it's all downhill on to the baptism!" Silvio is so sincere and SO
prepared! He has accepted everything right away, without
even a second's hesitation. A lot of that is thanks to the help
of President Caramia in teaching the lessons (he teaches
so...masterfully! Ever word he says is so powerful!); he has
been a great help in clarifying everything. It was especially
cool when he said to Silvio, about the use of tithing funds,
"...there are no paid leaders in the church, which is a lot
different than the other churches, for example the Catholic
church (I love how in the lessons he always calls out the
other religions, because he used to be a really active Catholic
and know a ton about it all), but in our church, I am a leader,
and I pay tithing, too!" It totally just clicked for Silvio, and the
entire time he had a huge smile on his face! He is
progressing so well, and we are working to get his family
involved as well!
All in Rimini is wonderful! Things are really happening here; it
is a great, rainy place! Thank you all for your support and
prayers, I love you all and always remember you! Thank you
for your prayers for our investigators as well, pray for Silvio!
He is preparing to be baptized the 22nd and is SO excited
about it! Well, it is massively thunderstorming outside, so if
this is the last email, I love you all! (just kidding, I probably
shouldn't joke about that...Sorry mom, love you!) :)
Love,
Anziano Wilson
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