Well, this was a great week. We had
a ton of lessons. There is a member in our branch who recently had a death in
her family. She lost a son and a daughter six months ago and then lost a cousin
two weeks ago and then another one of her sons died last week. She was really
upset about all those deaths in her family. A friend of hers called us and
asked us to go visit her and also give her a blessing. The friend did warn us
though that she had thrown away her scriptures and anything that had to do with
the church in the trash and didn't want anything to do with the church. After
we heard that, we drove straight over. It was around 9 pm and before we went in
we said a prayer. When we visited with her she was a lot calmer and regretted
what she did. We talked for a little while and I read one of my favorite scriptures
to her. She really appreciated the scripture. We then gave her a blessing. A
great feeling of peace came into the home afterward. It was a great experience.
This Sunday we had a ton of people
at church. We had over 60 people. On average we get about 30 to 40 so we had a
lot. There were so many we had to bring more chairs into the classroom we were
in for Sunday School. A lot of the people that showed up were inactives that we
had been teaching. After church the Relief Society put together a “linger
longer” or a lunch after church. It was good we had a lot of food and it seemed
like the branch was able to get to know each other a little bit more and build
that friendship. It was great and so was the food.
It was a good week. Hope all is
well. Have a good day.
Elder Collins
Monday, November 17, 2014
Monday, November 10, 2014
Fort Wingate, New Mexico: Elder Collins Crazy Saturday
Well, this week started out slow. Butterfield
was sick all day Tuesday and half the day Wednesday, but we had a good week in
spite of that. Saturday was crazy. We did service all day. At 8 in the morning
we helped the branch members clean the church. At 9 we had to go help someone
chop wood and we were doing that for about 4 hours. After that we were helping
our branch president put insulation into a widow’s ceiling and underneath her
house and we were moving the whole time. At 4 we had to go home get cleaned up
and go to the church in Gallup to fill up the font as we had a baptism for two
people. It wasn't until 9 o’clock that I could actually sit down and relax. The
only problem was my mind was still going so I couldn't fall asleep until
midnight. But it was an awesome day. I have never felt so much charity for
others. Everything I did that day didn't help me in anyway other than how I
feel and the Navajo taco that was given to us for putting in insulation.
Anyway, the day was awesome and the week was great. It was a good week. I am
happy and can’t wait to see what happens this week. Hope you are all doing
well.
Elder Collins
Monday, November 3, 2014
Fort Wingate, New Mexico: Elder Collins
Got to make this quick. We had a
pretty slow week. Not too many people were home this week; it seemed like
everyone was out of town or something, but we worked hard. We spent a large
portion of our time knocking on doors. We have a few potentials so we will see
what happens. One of the guys we met said he wasn't a member, but he met Boyd K.
Packer at the Window Rock fair. He told him he needed to wise up and get
baptized. So that's pretty cool. This guy said he also worked on the
Albuquerque temple. Anyway, all is well. We’ve got a baptism this weekend so
that will be good. We are very excited for that. Our mission president
congratulated us for our hard work and the success we have been having. Last
week I saw a bunch of people in passing from my old areas, people I taught and
loved. I was able to see a man who adopted me as his grandfather. He wants me
to call him Chee which means grandfather. Pretty cool. All is well and loving
it out here. Hope all is well.
Elder Collins
Monday, September 30, 2013
Gallup, New Mexico: Elder Collins (Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick)
Hey everyone
I forgot to mention last week in my email something cool happened. It was in the morning and we were about to start our studies when we heared this little whimper outside our door. we open the door and we found this puppy. It was very cute and adorable we had a lot of fun feeding it and playing with it once it fell to sleep we resumed our studies. We were seaching for a home for it and the best person we could think of was our investigator justin (who by the way was our babtism this week) and he took it home with him we were so happy to find it a home.
This week was interesting...I dont know how to really describe it but here's what happened. We where outside talking to one of our newest investigators I think i have mentioned him in a past email his name is jymison, but right now he is our favorite investigators he is golden. Anyway we were just passing by and we stopped to talk with him for a few minutes and we got in a really good conversation with him. After talking to him for about 20 minutes he told us to turn around and look at something. Slightly confused we turned around and there was this guy that had a wooden fence pole it was about six feet long and probably 4 inches in diameter, and this pole has barbed wire wrapped around it and it was dragging on the ground. At first the guy was very calm I was hoping that he was just going to throw the pole away but i was wrong. he started screaming at us and saying some very vulgur words at us and about the church. And so a drunk angry man was wanting to kill us. Our investgator jymison had us calmly go up to his apartment with him and i locked the door behind us. We immediatly called the cops and they came and caught the guy. Anyway I feel like we are really supposed to help this guy because that usually doesnt happen ive talked to other missionaries and they have said nothing close to that has ever happened to them. I think satan doesnt want us to get to this guy. And now all i want to do is make him mad. I havent been discourage by what happened if anything it makes me want to go our more. Im doing good, Im loving it our here.
Now to something a little more happy we had a babtism for justin olvera he is a really nice guy the service was wonderful i am glad i could be abart of his life. we could really feel the spirit in that meeting. I am so happy for justin and megan next year they are going to be married in the temple and i think they want us to be there. so excited for the two of them they are great people.
Love you all thanks for the letters and the packages they mean so much to me. Keep writing me. If you need me ill be in gallup fending off people with large poles and barbed wire.
I forgot to mention last week in my email something cool happened. It was in the morning and we were about to start our studies when we heared this little whimper outside our door. we open the door and we found this puppy. It was very cute and adorable we had a lot of fun feeding it and playing with it once it fell to sleep we resumed our studies. We were seaching for a home for it and the best person we could think of was our investigator justin (who by the way was our babtism this week) and he took it home with him we were so happy to find it a home.
This week was interesting...I dont know how to really describe it but here's what happened. We where outside talking to one of our newest investigators I think i have mentioned him in a past email his name is jymison, but right now he is our favorite investigators he is golden. Anyway we were just passing by and we stopped to talk with him for a few minutes and we got in a really good conversation with him. After talking to him for about 20 minutes he told us to turn around and look at something. Slightly confused we turned around and there was this guy that had a wooden fence pole it was about six feet long and probably 4 inches in diameter, and this pole has barbed wire wrapped around it and it was dragging on the ground. At first the guy was very calm I was hoping that he was just going to throw the pole away but i was wrong. he started screaming at us and saying some very vulgur words at us and about the church. And so a drunk angry man was wanting to kill us. Our investgator jymison had us calmly go up to his apartment with him and i locked the door behind us. We immediatly called the cops and they came and caught the guy. Anyway I feel like we are really supposed to help this guy because that usually doesnt happen ive talked to other missionaries and they have said nothing close to that has ever happened to them. I think satan doesnt want us to get to this guy. And now all i want to do is make him mad. I havent been discourage by what happened if anything it makes me want to go our more. Im doing good, Im loving it our here.
Now to something a little more happy we had a babtism for justin olvera he is a really nice guy the service was wonderful i am glad i could be abart of his life. we could really feel the spirit in that meeting. I am so happy for justin and megan next year they are going to be married in the temple and i think they want us to be there. so excited for the two of them they are great people.
Love you all thanks for the letters and the packages they mean so much to me. Keep writing me. If you need me ill be in gallup fending off people with large poles and barbed wire.
Monday, September 23, 2013
Gallup, New Mexico: Elder Collins' Temple Trip
My letter this week is getting out later than usual we had a big temple trip today we drove all the way down to snowflake it took about 2 and a half hours we had to wake up at 5 to get ready for the session that started at 8. It was a wonderful experience as always the temple is beautiful. I came in with some questions and i recieved my answers what a blessing it is to be able to go to the temple. The nice thing is we will be able to go again in 6 months.
Overall this week was a really slow week, I went on my first exchange, I stayed in Lupton, Arizona for one day with my district leader. Lupton is right on the rez and let me tell ya the first person we talked to was flat drunk it was so funny, he talked to us for 2 hours. He was talking about Cain and Garbiel being in the book of mormon he said it was in alma 23: 4 but i couldnt find it. He also talked about how we werent doing our jobs. His reasoning behind this was that he went to Gallup and got drunk on the street and a cop picked him up because he was so intoxicated. He was so intoxicated he made it on the front cover of the local news paper i wish i kept it, and he blamed us for it because he didnt get a ride to church. yet there is someone there every week to pick him up but he is never there, and if he can get to gallup he can make it to church. Anyway that was my first experience out it the rez.
Exciting news we have a babtism this week, we are very excited for justin olvera he is a great guy. He say that he can already feel Satan trying to tempt him to not be batized this is going to be a rough week for him, his family doesnt agree with his dissision thats why he is going through a hard time but, he says he is not backing down nomatter what.
Thank you to all those who sent me a letter or a package they are very well apreciated, I love reading letters from home. Let me know how you are doing.
Overall this week was a really slow week, I went on my first exchange, I stayed in Lupton, Arizona for one day with my district leader. Lupton is right on the rez and let me tell ya the first person we talked to was flat drunk it was so funny, he talked to us for 2 hours. He was talking about Cain and Garbiel being in the book of mormon he said it was in alma 23: 4 but i couldnt find it. He also talked about how we werent doing our jobs. His reasoning behind this was that he went to Gallup and got drunk on the street and a cop picked him up because he was so intoxicated. He was so intoxicated he made it on the front cover of the local news paper i wish i kept it, and he blamed us for it because he didnt get a ride to church. yet there is someone there every week to pick him up but he is never there, and if he can get to gallup he can make it to church. Anyway that was my first experience out it the rez.
Exciting news we have a babtism this week, we are very excited for justin olvera he is a great guy. He say that he can already feel Satan trying to tempt him to not be batized this is going to be a rough week for him, his family doesnt agree with his dissision thats why he is going through a hard time but, he says he is not backing down nomatter what.
Thank you to all those who sent me a letter or a package they are very well apreciated, I love reading letters from home. Let me know how you are doing.
Monday, September 16, 2013
Gallup, New Mexico: Elder Collins' Ankle
Well good news my ankles ok, I can walk on it fine, it hurts a little bit but i got used to it. My foot is all purple and blue but it doesnt hurt to touch it. Anyway on to something more possitive.
Whats interesting about the difference between white people and in gallup and indians in gallup is that the indians are much more humble they are more willing to listen to what you have to say. where as the (although not very many gallups population is mostly indian) white people usually dont want to listen to you they dont want to listen to what you have to say. I think the reason is that the indians have had much harder lives growing up and they want something that will bring them comfort.
We met this one guy named Carlos this week his stepmother is a less active member but he is catholic. he stays at home with his one year old daughter and we told him about the restoration. I could feel the spirit so strongly in that room and he was focused on every word we said, half way through the lesson two guys outside started cussing at each other we could hear them because the door was open. They got into a small fight and that was the end of it. We went back to our lesson and when we finished we gave him a book of mormom.
We here out knocking doors one day and this guy was heading back to his apartment while we were talking to someone at there doorstep he paused and looked at us. After the people we were talking to told us they werent interested. The man behind us immediatly invited us in it was kind of strange but we accepted his offer. He asked us if we believed in christ and other questions like that. As we got talking to him he told us he had a really rough childhood. His parents hate him the only person that he has is his uncle. The guy has a drinking problem and uses it to get over his problems. His little boy was begging him to stop drinking. He wants to be a better person but he doesnt know how. He thinks he has done too many horrible things and thinks he cant be forgiven. He said he didnt even know why he let us in he says many missionaries have come but has never invited them in before. He says he has been praying for an answer for help and guidence and i think we are that answer to his prayer. i hope we are. I hope he will accept what we have to say.
Let me know how you are doing i love to read you emails.
Sincerely
Elder Collins
Whats interesting about the difference between white people and in gallup and indians in gallup is that the indians are much more humble they are more willing to listen to what you have to say. where as the (although not very many gallups population is mostly indian) white people usually dont want to listen to you they dont want to listen to what you have to say. I think the reason is that the indians have had much harder lives growing up and they want something that will bring them comfort.
We met this one guy named Carlos this week his stepmother is a less active member but he is catholic. he stays at home with his one year old daughter and we told him about the restoration. I could feel the spirit so strongly in that room and he was focused on every word we said, half way through the lesson two guys outside started cussing at each other we could hear them because the door was open. They got into a small fight and that was the end of it. We went back to our lesson and when we finished we gave him a book of mormom.
We here out knocking doors one day and this guy was heading back to his apartment while we were talking to someone at there doorstep he paused and looked at us. After the people we were talking to told us they werent interested. The man behind us immediatly invited us in it was kind of strange but we accepted his offer. He asked us if we believed in christ and other questions like that. As we got talking to him he told us he had a really rough childhood. His parents hate him the only person that he has is his uncle. The guy has a drinking problem and uses it to get over his problems. His little boy was begging him to stop drinking. He wants to be a better person but he doesnt know how. He thinks he has done too many horrible things and thinks he cant be forgiven. He said he didnt even know why he let us in he says many missionaries have come but has never invited them in before. He says he has been praying for an answer for help and guidence and i think we are that answer to his prayer. i hope we are. I hope he will accept what we have to say.
Let me know how you are doing i love to read you emails.
Sincerely
Elder Collins
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Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Gallup, New Mexico: Your Missionary
Dear Collins Family,
We are the Deckers, and we live in Gallup, NM. We just had your son and his companion, Elder Pincock, over for dinner this evening. We very much enjoyed having them in our home.
We are sure you must be pleased with the choices your son is making, and we are blessed to have him serving here in Gallup.
Doug and Barb Decker
We are the Deckers, and we live in Gallup, NM. We just had your son and his companion, Elder Pincock, over for dinner this evening. We very much enjoyed having them in our home.
We are sure you must be pleased with the choices your son is making, and we are blessed to have him serving here in Gallup.
Doug and Barb Decker
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