Heeeeeeey-o!

 

This week was definitely an adventure - lots of things going on! We're still working a lot with Hermano Diaz so that he will be prepared for baptism within a couple of weeks. He still has some things to change, but he can make it!

 

Okay, so in answer to your questions: I was thinking about leaving the bike here in the mission office. It is still in good condition, so if there is someone who doesn't have a bike, that would probably help out a lot! But what would be the procedure to mail the bike, if things change? Would you be able to mail that to me, so if I need to, I can figure it out? But as of right now, I'd be leaving it here in the mission office.

 

The medical appointments all went well! It was interesting saying all the goodbyes - I've already been seeing the doctors there for about a year and a half!

 

I just got your e-mail, and I think that would be great! And I'll be able to call you while Elder Riley is doing his conference call (He's almost at his year mark - he came out with Elder Burbank), and then we can still have time do do work! I think I have the cell phone number for RJ Christensen, in whose house we'll be communicating from, but they gave us their e-mails as well, so you might want to e-mail them and find out what time we'll be there (as well as the phone number to call to), so everything can be coordinated just right.

 

Yesterday, we talked to quite a few interesting people, with quite a few interesting experiences. We decided to stop by an old investigator's house and knock on the door. But when we got there, the iron gate was closed, locked, and had a steel cable around it, keeping it closed. The doorbell was inside of the gate, but out of reach. So, we found a broom and tried to push the doorbell. No go. So Elder Riley found a curtain rod, and we realized that it was a little longer than the broom. I streeeeetched to touch the doorbell, and while I was stretching, heard a car pull up behind us. I quickly put the curtain rod down and we walked over to them. The first thing we said to them was, "It's really hard to ring your doorbell..." They got a good laugh out of it, and we might be going back later on in the week. It's been a few years since they have been taught, so hopefully things go well from that.

 

We also had a pretty awesome Zone Conference this past Wednesday. At first, Elder Riley and I were going on Thursday. But the Assistants called us to see if we would be able to go on Wednesday to play the piano (Elder Riley is basically a professional piano player), and so we went Wednesday, with the rest of our zone stil going on Thursday. At first, I was a little disheartened, but things turned out well. While we were there, I saw all of my past companions who are still serving! And our whole MTC district that came here to Houston! At the end, the four of us, Elder Rice, Elder Bean, Elder Henrie, and I all had the chance to bear our testimonies. There were other people as well who went up and shared their testimonies, but it was really cool that all four of us were able to be in the same meeing and share our testimonies.

 

We learned that the Church is now producing pass-along cards with a QR-code printed on back - the one you take a picture of, and it sends you to the website for the Church. President also talked about how they're working on producing QR-codes for the mormon.org profiles we have, so that will be even cooler! It's been really awesome to see just how the Church keeps up with things, and makes good use of the technology that is out there to preach the gospel. In the MTC, one of the speakers made mention of how the internet was likely created specifically for the purpose of sharing the gospel. Pretty cool!

Sounds like you've had a pertty interesting week, too! Sorry I can't write more about it - it sounds like Grandma is in for a lot of work, though!

 

I love you! A infinidad, y mas alla!

Con mucho amor,

Elder Devin Collins

April 23, 2012 Buenas tardes! It sounds like even with all the meetings, that it was a pretty interesting week! And it's good to see that you're feeling better! It's definitely not better to be under the weather! How were the meetings and the dance? Hi Kristin! How are you doing? And Kaytlin, how is everything going with preparations for the summer? How are things looking for college coming up soon, Justin? Things here have definitely been interesting. It rained pretty good this past week for a day (I think it was Friday), and then the day after was just perfect weather! I guess we're in that week (or maybe less) of perfect weather in Texas before things get really hot and humid. Summer will be here before we know it! So, one BIG adventure: We went to the temple on Thursday!!! It was an AMAZING experience! And at the end, as we were getting ready to go, President Saylin invited us all in to one of the sealing rooms. He talked a little bit about the importance of what happens in the sealing room, and how really everything we teach points there. It was a moment of pure peace, and we had the chance to look into the mirrors. It was really cool! Everything we teach does point to the temple, and through the temple, we can become prepared to live again in the presence of our Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and our families, forever! How great the importance to make [the gospel] known unto the children of men! That was a super awesome highlight of the week - going to the temple - and really was a unique experience. This week, we'll be having our zone conference. Because Elder Riley needs to play the piano, though, we're going on Wednesday instead of Thursday with our zone. But we might have the possibility of seeing a lot of Elders from the past - Elder Duran, Elder Lyman, Elder Tau'kiahau, and more! We'll see how things go! Tomorrow, we'll have planning - up until about 4:30, if all goes well. We have a Family Home Evening scheduled for tonight at 7:30 with Hermano Diaz and his children, and we're going to be at the home of the Salazar family. It's been a while since we've been there! We're also planning on having a district lunch at a place called Mexico's Deli, and so next week I might be able to send a few pictures from that, if I can take a few good ones. I'll see about sending a few pictures out this week, and hopefully they'll make it through! Let's see, what else has gone on this week...I went on exchanges with Elder Howell - He came here to Houston 8 West with me for a day, and Elder Riley went to Houston 4 North for a day. It was a pretty good day! We were very blessed to find 1 new person to teach, and were finally able to sit down and teach someone (Maria R.) who we had been trying to teach for a few weeks. We called her "Maria de los Postres" because the first time we met her, she offered us a seat in her garage and gave us cake; aka: a 'postre,' or dessert. Just some of the fun things that go on. It is a really interesting experience to be a missionary in the best mission in the world!

It definitely is an experience to be serving out here, and I'm so grateful for the patience of the Lord in working with me. I know I have a lot to improve and work on, so it's comforting to know I can repent and improve. I can't change the past, but "the future is as bright as [our] faith." I can't remember who said that, but it's ver helpful. Thank you for all your love and support! I wish I could write more - about all the cool and interesting experiences out here, but I guess I'll just need to write faster next time! Los amo, a infinidad, y mas alla! Con MUCHO amor, Elder Devin Collins

Week 100!!! - A Ward "Rodeo" Party

** Just FYI - Michelle realized that she accidently doubled one of the weeks awhile ago, so Devin is actually at 100 weeks!

Monday, April 16, 2012

Why, hello there!

Good to hear from you! I'm glad the letter made it through! And thank you VERY MUCH for getting that letter sent off to Brother Thompson - It means a lot, what he did! And the Elder who is in the front had to press a lot of buttons on the cameras, so he had to run and slide into the picture. I guess it was break dancing, in a way, huh?

The appointment went well today! They're going to get my lab results in order, and then have them sent over to you - for all the testing and all the appointments I've been through. I guess we'll see how things go! But they have your e-mail address, Mom, and the house address, so things should get there soon. I have a prescription for more medication, which I shouldn't need to refill until later (you know, THAT later...), but I think I should be able to work through that with you later on.

Well, this week has been an interesting one! It's raining right now pretty good, but we've been blessed with very mild weather up until today. We've been working on talking to as many people as we can, and still working on getting to know one another. It seems like that part usually goes in ups and downs, at least with me. Just being around someone 24/7, you get to know their good traits, and also get frustrated sometimes, but as long as things get worked out, that's just part of life! I guess the rough patches just make the smooth ones that much better!

We've been working with someone named Claudia for some time, and she always says that she needs to come to Church, and she knows she needs to come to Church, but something always seems to come up, and she never does. The last couple weeks, she has been sick, and so I guess that's been something that's pretty hard to avoid. So we're working towards this coming Sunday, so that she and her family will ALL be able to come to Church.

Hermano Diaz (He's not a member, but he's been to Church a few times already) is doing fairly well, though he's still having some struggles - some BIG struggles - with his wife's side of the family. He doesn't know anyone, really, here in the States, and he has to work to maintain 3 boys - Joseph is 8, Angelo is 6, and Jacob is 3 - all by himself. Plus, with the economy, his business isn't doing well, and he's having some struggles with his house. But it has been really neat to see the Gospel working in his life. It's been a huge blessing for me (I think I've said this before, but it's still very true) to see how the Gospel fits just perfectly into Hermano Diaz's life, like it was specifically designed for the trials he is going through, and can help answer the great questions of the soul.

This past Saturday, we also had our ward party - A rodeo, of sorts! It started really late (8:00), even though it was supposed to start at 7. There were a lot of kids running around there! Hermano Diaz brought his kids, as well as another investigator, Madaleiny, who brought her four kids. The food was excellent! There were chips, and a bunch of different types of salsa and beans. The Sister Missionaries even made some cornbread to eat with it! At the end, the people who were still there learned the boot-scootin' boogie, and it seems like they had a lot of fun with that! Not your traditional dance, but still looked fun anyway!

Yesterday was a pretty good day at Church! There were a lot of people who came, and the attendance is slowly (but surely!) rising. We're at about 90-100 people on average each week. But there are so many people who are less-active! In Ward Council, Bishop Rovira talked about how the Stake is going to be coming on Sunday to do some "visitas", and so it looks like they're focusing on the Rescue and going to work on bringing some of those families back to activity.

Thank you so much for the update! It looks like Prom was a blast, and that the piano recital was excellent! Now looks like it is an exciting time! Well, I guess minus the finals coming up and all that preparation, but in terms of family and activities, an excellent time!

I hope I've been able to sum up the week well enough. I need to ask Elder Riley if he knows the Merrills. I think I asked him right as he came in, but I don't remember the answer. I'm getting kind of short on time, so I'll have to ask him for next week's e-mail.

I love y'all SO MUCH!! Have a fantastic week!
Con MUCHO amor, a infinidad, y mas alla!

Elder Devin Collins

Week 98 - Last Transfer - Elder Riley

Monday, April 9, 2012

Buenos dias!

Good to hear from y'all! It sounds like the week was pretty good! Eso me hace muy feliz! And it sounds like this weekend is going to be a good weekend as well! I definitely need to see some pictures from everything that goes on this weekend!
This has been a pretty busy week, and it sounds like the week coming up will be busy as well! We're scheduled to have a missionary activity on Saturday for the ward, so we're working on inviting people to that. It's going to be a cowboy night! I can't remember what the spiritual aspect is going to be, but it should be a really fun activity!

My new companion is Elder Riley, from Pacen, Utah! He's been here for 7 transfers, and has been in...6 areas. He's moved around a lot! He was in Elder Burbank's MTC district, and so they both came in at the same time. His ability to speak Spanish is AMAZING! He's definitely been working on it a lot!

This transfer, I'm no longer the District Leader. Elder Drake, who has been serving in Houston 4, is the District Leader now. It's going to be good to go to District Meetings and see how hings change, and what the Lord is prepared to teach us for this next week coming up. We definitely need to help our investigators attend Church a lot better, and I believe that is what it will be about, but it will be good to see the new revelation that we can receive from the new trainings.

Elder Duran's MTC companion, Elder Howell, is serving with Elder Drake in Houston 4. Elder Sheridan went to an English area - Silverlake. Actually, I think Elder Black was down there during the beginning of his mission! Hopefully, it will be a really good experience for him down there!

Oh, and Elder Riley said that he has a friend who is serving in the Roseville Mission. His name is Elder Kober. Does that ring a bell? It's just always interesting to see the connections that people have throughout the world, and throughout different missions. There have been a fair few people who meet each other in the field (as missionaries) and have the connection of a friend, or a family, and then they can pass the time away talking about those fun experiences.

Elder Riley has a great love for the Latino people and culture. It's been really interesting to learn so much about Guatamala, El Salvador, Mexico, Colombia, and all sorts of other places with the questions he asks. It's been cool to see the depth that there is, and what traditions or foods or stories are part of the culture. He's also been teaching me a lot of different 'dichos,' or sayings. Es una buena honda!
Oh, do you know which temples were announced to be built at Conference? We weren't there in time to catch it. Any more in California? How is everyone doing down there?
I'm trying to think of what else has been happening here...It's really interesting, because I think you get just a really, really, REALLY small slice of what is going on here. There's so much, but it really is just something you have to experience firsthand to really get to know it. There are so many tender mercies of the Lord that He just places in our path, and us, being imperfect, probably forget the majority of them. But there are some that we can remember, that are so vivid and amazing that they can be recorded, and later you can go back and feel the same emotion that you felt when you experienced it. It's just AMAZING, what the Lord does! And one thing I'm so grateful for is the fact that He has helped me to recognize even just a few more of the things that he does in my life to lead, guide, and bless us. I hope that makes sense - kind of hard to express. "Come and see!"
Well, I should get going. Thank you so much for your e-mail, and yes, the Easter package! And don't worry, I won't eat them all at once...they won't fit into my mouth all at once. But I'm sure Elder Riley will enjoy splitting them with me!

Los amo, a infinidad, y mas alla!
Con MUCHO amor,
Elder Devin Collins

Week 97 - Conference, Transfers, and 6 Baptisms

Monday, April 2, 2012

Hoooooooooola!
Buenos dias, de la ciudad bonita de Houston!

First item of business: I'm staying here! But unfortunately, Elder Duran will be leaving. It will be very interesting to see where he goes! I'll have to tell you about it in next week's e-mail, because by then, my companion will be different. It's been a very AWESOME experience to serve with Elder Duran! He has a great desire for the work, and get's along well with those around him. He's also been a great example to me of being quick to forgive. I know I need to work on that a lot! It seems like with Conference come many new things which we need to improve - or the confirmation from the Spirit of the things we already knew we needed to improve, but now seem more urgent. I'm definitely grateful for Elder Duran's example of hard work, dedication, and always being willing to do what is required of him by the Lord. Obedience is the first law of anything, so if we want to obtain the blessings from heaven, we first need to be obedient to the laws of heaven!

Unfortunately, I didn't do any fooling this time. I completely forgot! Conference really wrapped us up and kept us really focused on that. We had the HUGE blessing of finding someone named Jose Ricardo this past week. He's been going through a rough time, but he still came to conference on Saturday. In fact, because we didn't have a way to get down there, he even gave us a ride! It would have been at least an hour's ride for us to get there, so that was a great blessing. He said he was able to find the peace he was looking for. And guess what? He came back again the next day! In total, he came to three sessions of General Conference, and it looks like it really touched him. There was a lunch after the first session of conference on Sunday (This time, broadcast to our building), so he and two of his children stayed for that. It was just realy amazing to me to see the gospel at work. Sometimes, we talk to so many people who, at that time, aren't ready for the gospel (from what we can tell). It's easy in those times to get down and ask questions. But seeing the Atonement of Jesus Christ working in Ricardo's life, to strengthen and support him, reaffirmed in my heart the great blessing that the gospel - and through the gospel, the Atonement of Christ - really is in our lives.

Before I forget, Arbor Cove sounds great! And yes, the 6-man apartment is just fine! And if you do send a little Easter something, I think it would be fine to send here to our apartment. They put a note in our mailbox, if I'm not mistaken, and then we take the note to the office to pick up the package, if it's too big to fit inside our mailbox. Since I'll be staying here (as far as I know), it would also be perfect for Brother Hemstalk to send the letter to our apartment address as well.

It sounds like the week went really well! I'm glad Kaytlin received the card, and I hope that her birthday went well, and that the party will be AWESOME!! Way to go, Kristin, on the band award! That's so cool, what you're doing! Keep up the great work, everyone! How are you doing with your Japanese class, Justin? Are you still taking it this semester? How is everyone doing with the end of school getting closer?

Oh, and about the bike, I'm thinking about just donating it to the mission. There will probably be someone who can use it (or I guess it might be something Justin could use one day - Still thinking about serving a mission, Justin? What do you think? The bike is still in pretty good condition - Just a little oil here and there, a couple of screws tightened up, and alli esta!). I guess either way could work. I just want to make sure someone can use it, so I'll probably leave it here. Or if you have a suggestion, PLEASE let me know, just so I can get things sorted out. And for the doctor's release - Is that something I can just write up and have them sign, or does it need to be typed? If it needs to be typed, is that something you might be able to do? Still learning about how everything like this works! The appointment is for the 16th of April at 8:20 in the morning - fasting, for whatever tests they need to do.

So, what can I say in these last 5 minutes that I have? This past week, there was an AWESOME miracle! There was a family that the sisters from the other ward in our district had been working with towards baptism. They had decided that they wouldn't be baptized so far, just with some things that hapened, but that they would set a date. This past week, they had experience after experience that prepared them, and they told the sisters that they wanted to be baptized! It was only going to be four of them, instead of all five, but at the last minute, their oldest son said he wanted to be baptized! So he had his interview, passed, and just a little less than a half-hour later, was baptized! In total, there were 6 people who entered into the gate here this past weekend. It was AWESOME! I know that the Lord prepares people to receive His gospel. But what are we doing to prepare ourselves to find them? I loved how Elder Anderson talked about "What would Jesus do?", and that we should be concerned with "What would Jesus think of me?"

He'll help us to find those people that we need to find! We just have to be ready to find them!

I love you! A infinidad, y mas alla!!
Con mucho amor, Elder Devin Collins

Week 96 - It's Been a Great Week!

Monday, March 26, 2012

Aloha!

I did hear about the almost-Hawaii-job. Sorry it didn't quite work out! At least Dad is enjoying the job he's at right now, so that's good! And there is a lot of family in Oroville, so that's good!

Who was Elder Oliver's friend? Of course I know him!! We spent 7 months in the same district in Kemah!! He was (and still is) one of the funnest, funniest, happiest, most excited missionaries I have ever served around! Some of the most fun times I have had in the mission were with Elder Oliver! Oh, man, that's AWESOME!!! It's definitely a small world! I'm just speechless, I don't know what to say! Do you know how Elder Oliver is doing?

Sorry, I don't have too much time right now. The computers aren't doing too great, and they're running a little slow.

This definitely has been a great week! I do feel like I've given a lot more this week then in the past. But now, starting a new week, I feel like I'm not paying as much attention to the Spirit, and that I'm not letting the Lord work through me as much. I'm letting myself get in the way. Something I definitely need to work on. But we have been able to see a lot more success with the members! It's been really fun to have them come out and teach with us. Things just feel better, and it's been great to have that member help right beside us. That way, people already have a friend in the Church, and it makes it even just a little easier to come to Church that next Sunday!

It sounds like this week will be really full! Make sure to tell Kaytlin that I wish her a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! And that I say "Hi" to Justin, Kaytlin, Kristin, and to you and Dad!!

Umm, in terms of the 'Business' aspect: I'm not sure what Somerset is like - I've heard mixed things about it. But about all the other complexes, they sound good! I got the scholarship application, but to tell the truth, I'm completely lost on where to start or what to write! Is my goal one of the things that I've done? Is it a separate esay? Do I need to write one essay for each of the 3 essay prompts, or are those just for me to check over? Talking to Dad, I have a little bit clearer idea, but I'm still really lost. I'll just do the best that I can, and hopefully it works out!

Here, we're going into our last week of the transfer. Next Monday, we'll find out if we're being transfered or not, and that coming Wednesday will be the transfers. There's been a whole lot more going on here in Houston 8! It's been cool to see the progression, and slowly but surely, the ward is growing!

Well, I've got to get going. I hope the week goes well! And it sounds like Kaytlin will be very busy, with birthday plans and the Band concert! Sounds like EVERYONE is going to be really busy!

I love you all SO MUCH! Sorry this is so short! Hopefully, I'll be able to get a letter out or something for this week. Today, we'll be having our district activity, and we'll be having a BBQ! Hope that all goes well!!

I love you...A infinidad, y mas alla!!

Con MUCHO amor,
Elder Devin Collins