La Navidad

This week was a pretty basic one. We are still trying our best to help Dariel enter into the waters of baptism. He has 12 straight attendances to church. He is changing so much and I know he will be baptized one day! 

I had a really cool experience on Thursday night. We went to the church for an activity and after I had the opportunity to do a Baptismal Interview for a 14 year old girl. She is so ready for baptism. The spirit was SO strong and it reminded me of how amazing this church is. I was having a rough day but that interview changed my perspective and turned the whole day around. 

Our mission Christmas activity is coming up next week, and it's so close to Christmas day! I am so excited!! Although being away from home for three holiday’s is difficult, I know that this is where I need to be. In the DR we don't get snow, but we do get rain ;) It has been raining A LOT these last few days and has been a little chilly so it has made the season feel a little more like home.

I really don't have much to say this week. I hope we can all remember Christ during this season and serve others. It’s a great opportunity for all of us to Light the World and to just serve. I love and miss you all! Keep up the good work everyone!

Elder Wilde 

Working 7 to 3, 3 to 11, 11 to 7

For those of you who know the songs of the GOAT Kenny Chesney will understand my title. Basically as the office Elders, we are constantly working. Even during P-days :) so fun. 

This week we had a lot of random things to do, but we were able to get it all done. Some of the things we had to get done included a trip to Mao yesterday. It was fun going out there and seeing some mission buddies. We needed to fix a few things in some houses and then we had to move some fridges and washing machines. It was a good day. That's kinda the day in the life of us, moving washers and fridges lol. 

One of the highlights this week came on Tuesday when we got to work in our area for an hour and a half. In that hour and a half we found 2 people who we are gonna return to tonight. They seem like very promising people. We walked by their house and then we had the feeling to go back and talk with them so we did and they were very accepting. They even set their own return date! We hope they can progress. 

As I've been in the office I have come to realize how much I love normal missionary work. As in teaching in an area daily, for the entire day. It’s a privilege that we get as missionaries to teach people the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. Yesterday when the news came out about Elder Patrick Kearon being ordained an Apostle I remember how incredible it is that Jesus Christ really does guide this church. I am so grateful for the modern day Prophets and Apostles. Listen to their advice. It will bless you forever. 

I love this Gospel. If I didn't I wouldn't sacrifice 2 years for it. I know Jesus Christ lives and loves every one of us. The Book of Mormon is an amazing book. It's unreal to me how much peace one can feel by just reading the words on its pages. I love you and miss you all! 

Elder Wilde 

Week Full of Everything!

Well this week was actually a lot crazier than normal. 

To start things off on Monday night we were at the mission home and President told us to go to Cienfuegos to check out one of the houses to see if it could fit 4 Elders. Now Cienfuegos is said to be the most dangerous area In our mission, so we were excited/nervous to pull up in a truck with clear windows at 9 o'clock at night lol. But we did and started calling the Elders. After about 6 calls and a few texts nobody would answer. So we waited until finally they pulled up in a car of a member and got out and proceeded to tell us that they had been robbed. This dude pulled up on a motorcycle and loaded a gun in front of them and pointed it at them and took their phone and keys to the house. It was a miracle we were there so that we could take them back to the office to find the spare keys and to get them a new phone. We hadn't planned to go there at all, but President Bretón wanted us to go that night and clearly it was a blessing that we did. 

Apart from that, we had to do 2 moves this week which were very tiring but we got them done. We were supposed to do 3 but one of the moves fell through. 

On Thursday I had a pretty rough day. I think I got food poisoning, so I was out the entire day. Friday Hermana Bretón made me go get my blood drawn to see if I had Dengue. Luckily I don’t, but I had to stay inside the whole day Friday to recover. It was unfortunate cause I wish I could have left the house. The plus side to staying inside all day, is that I was in the house with a buddy of mine named Elder Stapelman, who actually has Dengue. The plus side is that we had some fun conversations and got a lot of rest. 

If there is one thing I learned from staying inside for 2 days it's that I love and appreciate missionary work so much more. It really is a blessing to teach about our Savior Jesus Christ to all people we come in contact with. I would like to challenge all of you to share your testimony with someone at least once next week. A testimony is a very powerful thing that can change lives. 

One last thing I wanted to share this week is how amazing the priesthood is. Thursday night I was feeling super sick, so I asked my companion and one of the AP’s to give me a blessing. I truly felt the spirit so strong and know that priesthood power is real. 

Love and miss you all! 

Elder Wilde

Turkey Day!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! This week was a long one again but that's just how it is in the office haha. 

We did A LOT of driving this week. Trips to Nagua, San Francisco de Macoris, Puerto Plata x2, etc. While on the way to Nagua we had to stop and take 2 missionaries to the doctor to get their blood drawn to see if they have dengue. Our mission is in a Dengue crisis, so it would be awesome if you would all pray for the missionaries to be healthy! 

We had a few good lessons early in the week with our friend Oliver. He has a baptismal date for next Saturday, so we are trying to teach him as much as possible. Only problem is we have had 0 time since Tuesday to teach. But we know that we will find the time next week! 

The weather here is super super hot. I just sweat constantly lol. I am excited for the cold, even though it sounds crazy. 

As for spiritual experiences, I just want to share my love for our Savior. Anytime the mission has gotten hard, the very thought of Him has helped me. I love in the sacrament prayer how it says "Always remember Him". Do we always remember Him? I feel that sometimes when life gets hard we look towards the world to help us. For example, if Tony Finau wins the Masters I'll be so happy! If BYU makes March Madness I'll be so happy. Looking for worldly things in hopes of feeling happiness, when in reality we have the choice to remember our Savior always and feel joy anytime because of Him. I love Jesus Christ. I am grateful for Him. 

As the Holiday season comes around I always start to think of my family and how much I miss them. I hope you can all be grateful for family and the time you get to spend with them. It is truly a wonderful gift that God has given us. I am grateful for the Plan of Salvation as well. Families can be together forever. Love you all.

Elder Wilde 

Being a fan of Jesus

This week was a very busy week. But it had some big highlights!  

First off we put our friend Jackson on date. He is the one who speaks English and we met him 2 weeks ago. We have taught him only 2 times due to our calling in the office, but he is great! When I asked him what it meant to be baptized he said "It's like you are showing people you are a fan of Jesus." So we invited him to be a fan of Jesus and to be baptized on December 9th! Pray that he can come to church and be baptized. Also pray that we can find the time to teach him!:) 

A cool little thing that happened this week was transfers. A kid named Drake Terry, who went to my high school, arrived in our mission. When I saw him we just gave each other a big hug and it was awesome. He will be a great missionary. It was perfect timing for me to see him cause our day was so stressful and we were doing so many things but just seeing him was awesome. I love the mission. I love the Lord’s timing as well. 

I also received transfer news this week. I will be staying in the office for another transfer, and to spice things up President made me District Leader again. So that's gonna be fun cause its not like we are already sooo busy....lol. But I know the Lord has a plan and that everything will work out. 

As I learned of President M Russell Ballard’s passing I thought of how amazing the Plan of Salvation is. I am so grateful for a knowledge of the plan and to know that death isn't the end. It is an amazing gift of knowledge that we have as members of the Church of Jesus Christ.

I know Jesus Christ lives. I know that through Him we will all live again. I know that we have a living prophet to guide us in this wicked world. 

I love and miss everyone. I even miss working at the pharmacy lol but I know that this is where I need to be! 

Have a good week everyone! 

Elder Wilde

15

Another week has come and gone. This past week I hit 15 months on the mission. Time just keeps moving. 

We had a super super busy week with almost 0 time teaching in our area. We had to make trips to La Vega, San Francisco de Macoris, and Puerto Plata. All are 30 mins to an 1 1/2 hour drive from Santiago. Makes for some fun little talks with my companion. 

Last night we got to talk with one of the members named Lilibeth. She served a mission in Mexico but is a bit inactive. She is about 30 years old and one of the kindest people ever. We talked about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I love the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I don't think everyone understands just how special the Atonement really is. I love the verse in Alma chapter 7 that talks about how Jesus Christ suffered for our pains and sicknesses, and even our temptations. The fact that the suffering part of the Atonement includes our temptations is a miracle. We are temped daily but because Jesus Christ loves us we can be forgiven and strengthened through His Atonement. 

I'd be lying to you all if I said the mission has gotten easier as it has gone on. In fact it has gotten more and more challenging, but has also gotten more and more worth it. I love the study time I get everyday in the scriptures. I love the Dominican people who are so kind and even funny. I love the trials God has given me. The mission is incredible. It’s hard. But it is worth it! 

If you guys could pray for our friend Dariel that'd be great. He has been to church a solid 7 times in a row but says he doesn't have a testimony so he won't get baptized. Pray for his heart to soften and for him to develop a testimony so he can make the decision to be baptized. 

I love you all so much and miss everyone daily! Have a great week! 

Elder Wilde! 

English, English, English

Another week came and went. Time is an interesting concept. It's always the same, but sometimes feels slow and sometimes feels fast. The mission is a roller coaster, but I love it! 

This week was an interesting one. We had a lot of things to do and one of them was going back to one of my old areas in Nagua! It was super fun seeing the area again and remembering all the things that happened there. I was able to see one of the members named Verenice there and it was so weird cause it was so long ago when I was there. The reason we went there was to move the Elders out of their house and into the other house with the other elders. We also had a zoom meeting with the whole mission while we were there and President Bretón announced that July 1st 2024 the DR will have 4 missions. Which means our mission will split. I will have a whopping 3 weeks left in my mission when that happens, but it will be interesting to see. 

We have been trying really hard to teach more in our area this week. We have found a few new people and 2 of them speak english. Literally half of our teaching pool we teach in english haha. It is fun though. Last night we taught Jackson and John. They are two different people who don't live together but are both Haitian and english speakers. They need Jesus Christ. John expressed to us that if he didn't forget his keys in the house Thursday night he never would have met us, and that God put us in the right place at the right time. Jackson expressed to us that he wants a better relationship with Jesus even though he isn't a “gospel kinda guy." Last night confirmed to me that God prepares people for us to teach. I hope these 2 friends of ours can progress and be baptized. Please pray for Jackson and John. 

One thing I have been doing recently when I have "free" time is reading about temples. It is amazing how much peace it brings just reading about temples. It makes me sad that I didn't attend the temple more frequently when I was at home with so many temples at my disposal. It is for sure one of my goals to attend the temple at least once a week when I return home. 

I've been using the institute student manuals on the gospel library app during my studies of the scriptures and it is truly an amazing tool. I have learned and gained so much more from dedicating more time to actually studying. Not just reading. 

This week I read about Zeezrom and Alma and Amulek in the Book of Mormon. The conversion of Zeezrom is truly amazing. I think it is one underrated. Go read Alma chapter 10-15 to learn more about it!

I love this gospel and am so grateful for the next 8 1/2 months I have to preach it. Love you all! 

Elder Wilde