Monday, November 23, 2015

Week 16 November 23, 2015

Area:  Green Bay, Wisconsin

Companion:  Elder Alldredge

Date:  November 23, 2015

Hello everyone,
  So this week was pretty good nothing to crazy like last weeks -sorry I probably wont have another story like that- but anyways what happened this week haha oh man this guy drove up next to me and my companion and was like are you guys J-dubs and I was like no we are Missionaries for the church... and ya he was like oh I hear if I ask you guys for money you have to give it to me and I was like ya sorry that's not true he then went on and was like if I ripped a page out of the bible and rolled my weed in it what would you do? I was like what would I do? and then I said "nothing" and I think he was waiting for me to start like chastising him or something cause he didn't know what to say and then he just drove away while saying smoke weed everyday. So kids there is a lesson to never do drugs because then you have to ask Mormon missionaries for money cause you think they have to give you money because you don't have the money to buy your drugs or probably even food. So ya that was pretty eventful. Um well next week I will be able to tell if you all if I am being transferred or if I stay and if I get a new companion and what not so that is exciting! I really hope I stay we have so many cool investigators we have this one group of kids who we found playing soccer and so we played with them and they liked me cause I was pretty good so we have been teaching a lot of the kids and they are super cool and they like me a lot so I don't think I should leave cause they like talking to me about soccer and stuff like that. The only down side is they always ask be to play them in FIFA and man I wish I could but I cant haha its ok though! We are having a hard time getting these soccer kids to church so one of these times I want to say I will play you but if I beat you, you have to come to church! But that's against mission rules so don't worry I wont do it. Anyways stuff about our other investigators is we got 7 people to church 7! It may not seem like it but let me put it into perspective there are about 70 people that go to the church on Sunday and seven of those were our investigators that is one tenth of the branch so that tight! This one investigator named H(Ector) he loves me also not sure why but he does I guess but he was giving us a ride and he was like "let me get your door William" "Now let me shut your door William" Hahah was so confused how he new my first name but My comp told him! 

Well now on to a spiritual note so something very spiritual happened to me this week so I am kind of embarrassed to say this but I had never read the Book of Mormon cover to cover I have read all the books in the Book of Mormon but never from the beginning to the end so I decided to do it now cover to cover, and I finished it this Saturday and wow reading Moroni's words in verses 10:3-5 was amazing I starting crying cause of the feeling I had that is was true holy cow in that moment I knew it was true and so I got on my knees and just prayed my little heart out giving thanks that I now know the Book of Mormon was true. I invite anyone who has yet read the whole Book of Mormon cover to cover to read it. Even if you don't get everything out of while reading it this first time it doesn't matter just read and read till you are done and then just pray. The only way to know if it is true is to pray and ask and to read it! Now I can teach and testify more powerfully that the Book of Mormon is True! I love you all hope you have a great week!

Love Elder DeSantis

sorry I forgot my camera so no photos this week!

Week 15 November 16, 2015

Area:  Green Bay, Wisconsin

Companion:  Elder Alldredge

Date:  November 16, 2015

Hey everyone!
 Well this week was good something HUGE happened but I will talk about that in a little bit. Things in Greenbay are still going we aren't having the best success right now but it is coming. Man I have heard a lot of big news though like the bombing in Paris and the thing the Churched released about children with homosexual parents and baptism. I will hit on that too a little later. I have a pretty funny story that happened this week during church, they asked a 17 year old kid to say the closing prayer in sacrament and so he is the only priest in the Branch so he says the sacrament prayer every week. He gets up to say the closing prayer and starts saying the sacrament prayer and he soon realizes what he is doing and is like "oh crap" then he tries to start again and he somehow kept saying the sacrament payer him being super embarrassed just mumbled and said "en el nombre de jesucristo amen" wow all the misisonaries look at each other and just start laughing man that was super funny.

  Well on to the topic of Baptism for kids with Homosexual parents, if you are struggling with this wondering if it is true or not and if the church should be doing this lets take a step back for a second. We know this had to have come from some big revelation given to the Prophet Thomas S. Monson and if you have ever watched conference and thought man what this guy is saying is true and from God then you have a testimony that prophets are called by God and receive divine revelation. Also if you believe at all that the Book of Mormon is true then you will know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that God has called another prophet. So before you think the church isn't true our you have anything that you are doubting look back and you will see why you believed in it in the first place. I know that what Thomas S. Monson says is from God and although it made be hard at sometimes to believe everything just pray and ask your Heavenly Father if it is right and you will receive your answer I promise!

  Now on to my spiritual/miracle message so let me give you a little back ground on this investigator we have she is super cool her name is Nora Maria and her moms name is Nora and they are very sweet people and love us. We met Nora Maria because she needed help translating and so they called us and so we went and helped she needed to set up an appointment for surgery cause she has Cancer in her throat so we helped her do all that and then asked if we could come bay and teach her she said yes. Well anyways we have been teaching them for awhile now and we had a feeling to ask Nora if she wanted a Priesthood blessing -we explained what it is and everything- she said yes. Well in this blessing my companion said "you will be healed from your cancer" i was taken back from this but felt the spirit super super strong! Then we left and a few weeks pass till this Wednesday and we come over for our weekly appointment and I just knew instantly something happened they were just smiling so big. We ask them how they are and they say very good and we ask why and everything and she begins to say "At my appointment we did a screening on my throat so we could look at the cancer again and schedule surgery but when they went to look for it the cancer was gone" well when I heard this man the spirit just came over me so strong. I sat there not knowing what to say at all and I just started to cry and when I started to cry they started to cry and man in that moment I felt so on top of the world like this priesthood is real and that it is the same priesthood that Jesus Christ had when we healed the sick. I am so grateful for this priesthood I hold and for the power it has if we have the faith! I love this Gospel and I know it is true but i do not know it is true just from this experience I know it is true cause every time I pray I have this feeling of love and every time I read I feel that is it true! I am so grateful for this experience I had I will never forget it. Thank you so much for all your prayers and emails I hope you guys enjoy this wonderful miracle I shared with you!

Love Elder DeSantis

Week 14, November 9, 2015

Area:  Green Bay, Wisconsin

Companion:  Elder Alldredge

Date:  November 9, 2015

Hi Everyone!
 Well sorry I am going to be short this week I don't have much time someone needs a piano moved so we are going to help them! Gotta love service haha well ya this week was good not too much happened but something that happened last night is what I want to talk about. So last night we were in a lesson with a recent convert and his mom and things just starting going South we were talking then all of a sudden his mom starts yelling at her son and telling him how awful he is and then the dad starts yelling and man it was just a mess and so me and Elder Alldredge calmed them all down and told them pretty much that it isn't anyones fault but your own. They are only look at what someone else can change instead of seeing the wrong in themselves. I just want to let you guys know how important it is to let your family know how much you love and appreciate everything they do. I was very lucky to have amazing parents who showed nothing but love to me! I have learned a lot what not to do in my family while being on my mission! I love you all! Cant wait to write next week!

Love Elder DeSantis

Week 13, November 2, 2015

Area:  Green Bay, Wisconsin

Companion:  Elder Alldredge

Date:  November 2, 2015

Whats up everyone!
  Well this week was full of ups and downs. We had some investigators who were suppose to be getting baptized this week and next week both fall through one because they didn't want to anymore which is super sad cause the old man was so cool and he has no family he talks to so when we would come over he would just talk and talk and i loved it, even though I didn't understand all of it. A story that was cool that he told was he lived in the mountains of Utah for a year how cool is that just somewhere in the mountains. But sadly he doesn't want to be baptized right now, the other had some other issues with things in Mexico we need to fix out but she still really wants to be baptized! Then we found some super cool families! One from Panama they are freaking awesome and then another family that told us we are Angles and that every time they have been going through rough times God has sent guys like us to them and so this time we are going help them make a change! Well ya things are super good here I am loving the Mission life more and more and me and my Comp have grown closer and closer which makes things so much more fun! Spanish is coming along I should probably try and speak it more with my Comp but I just like having good conversion and I cant do that in Spanish well I guess I will start trying! Halloween was actually way fun here in the field we had a super fun Party for our Branch and oh man do i have a story for you all! So we play basketball everything Thursday with Elders and some Investigators and so they wanted to set up the tables the night before for the party on friday. I asked Sister Ramirez who was in charge of it to tell her not to put the tables up cause we will do it after basketball and she was like no you wont I trusted other Elders to do that and they didn't put up the tables so no you cant play I guess. But she loves me and let us do that so anyways we put them up after Basketball. The next day I get a call from Sister Ramirez and I answer all Happy thinking nothing is wrong and oh man having a Hispanic made at you is so scary haha she was like "ELDER WHERE ARE THE CHAIRS" then i sat there on the phone silent thinking to my self "She only said tables" but to scared to say that she then goes on " ARE THEY SUPPOSED TO SIT ON THE GROUND" man I was terrified well long story short I went to ward talked to her Apologized and don't worry she forgave me so all is well! Well my spiritual message is sitting at home in my study journal! But next week be prepared to be blown away by my studied of the the Light of Christ soo cool! I love you all stay close with the lord and everything will be OK! 

Love Elder DeSantis