Fun pictures from the last few months

Letter from 1-10-12

Dear Mom, 

  Do you realize that my one year mark was last week?  Pretty crazy if you ask me, plus the possibility that this was my only Christmas on my mission if I want to go to school winter semester next year.  Crazy thinking that it's really been a year already and I'm now on the downhill slide.  I don't think about it much, but it's still a little bit scary.

  Elder Taumalolo and I are doing great.  I'm not quite fluent in Tongan yet, but we do say our prayers every night, or at least try to, in Tongan.  We're having a rough spot in finding people, but we know that the Lord has people prepared for us, we've just got to be doing our part and be obedient and diligent so we can find them.  Besides just running around and trying to catch people at home it's been a pretty uneventful week.  We had a mission president's fireside last Sunday though that I sang in.  I sang "Come thou Fount" in a group, and Elder Taumalolo and Elder Kioa accompanied us on the Ukulele.  It was way awesome, I wish I could've recorded it.\

  Well, there's not much more I can think of today.  I'm sorry to hear about the water heater.  Didn't that happen another time too?  Maybe my memory is failing me after all this time.  I hope everyone is safe and well.  Give everyone my love!

 

Love,

 

Elder Sean Wise

Letter from 1-3-12

Dear Mom,

  Lake Poway is AWESOME!  The actual lake isn't all that big, but the ward area sure is, and the members are just amazing!  We've been having dinners every night so I've had the opportunity to meet many of the ward members and get to know them.  They are so missionary minded and so kind to us, I really want to stay here for as long as I can.
  Lake Poway is part of the Poway stake, one of the largest in the mission actually.  The stake Presidency actually has a vision of being able to split the stake within the next year and a half to two years, so we're really excited to help that progress.  We've set a goal of seeing five people baptized before the end of the transfer, so please pray for us, we're trying our best.

  Elder Taumalolo is actually from New Zealand.  His parents are from Tonga, but he's lived in New Zealand most of his life.  He's actually trying to teach me some Tongan, so we're having fun with that.  He's a great guy though and a wonderful missionary.  He really wants to be obedient, so that's a major plus in this work.  He also has an amazing testimony and he loves the work.

     Well, that's pretty much it for this week.  We've been working with a lot of less actives in the ward and we're trying to add some part member families to our teaching pool.  I'll attach some pictures from New Years eve, and please don't ask about them, just take a look then "move along, move along".  Well, love ya'll and hope you know that!

 

 

Love,

 

Elder Wise

Letter from 12-21-11

Dear Mom,

  Thanks so much for your e-mail!  I know I've been bad at communicating, but I look forward to them every week.  The time has been going by fast.  This morning I dropped off an Elder at the airport to go home and I realized that that's what makes missionaries "trunky".  You get so old in the mission that no one else knows missionaries that you spent most of your mission around.  But, that's a part of life, all things end in time.

  Speaking of things ending with time, it's transfers! I actually found out this morning that I'm going to be transfered out of the San Diego 1st Ward.  Yes, it stinks that I'm going to be transfered right before Christmas, but I guess that's a testament to things needing to be on the Lord's time and not on ours.  The Lord just needs me to be serving somewhere else for a time, so I will happily go where He sends me.  Though it does get a little scary at times, I guess that's a part of coming to "Trust in the Lord in ALL things".  So, I don't know where I'll be for Christmas Day, but I promise I won't be calling till about 1:30 my time.  Who knows, I might have some news that Paul and Neijon got married and Baptized on Sunday!  Keep them in your prayers if you would please, we have faith to see a miracle.

  I'll be good and not open any packages I get till Christmas, but you know how I am with gifts, especially at Christmas time.  I have a ton of photos to send ya'll, but that'll have to wait till next week, because I forgot my camera today.  I love ya'll very much and I hope ya'll are keeping the "Spirit of Christ" in your lives!

 

Love,

 

Elder Sean Wise

Letter from 12-14-11

Dear Mother,

  Thanks so much for the e-mail.  It's almost time for another transfer to end, and we've been spending a lot of time with some of the Elders who are going home.  I was talking with one of them and we realized that that's what makes Elders trunky, when they realize that no one else in the mission remembers who older missionaries are.  I've made a ton of friends with them and I'm going to miss serving the Lord with them.  But, they've got another work calling them, so it's time to move on.

  Elder Dennison and I have been doing great.  We hope that we stay here for Christmas Day, but we're really learning that in the service of the Lord you go where and you go when HE wants.  I kind of think of Jonah for a little bit.  He didn't go to Ninevah when the Lord wanted him to go, so he had to learn that the Lord has things on His timetable and we need to learn to stick to it.  All I know though is that I'm going to miss dearly the members in the San Diego 1st ward.  They are awesome members and I've made friends with all of them.  In fact, we're going to the Temple today with a couple named Steadman.  Bro Steadman is our Ward Clerk and Sister Steadman is the ward Primary President, and they are just AMAZING!  I love them!  But, once again, I've got to listen when the Lord calls my name and be willing to respond promptly.

  I SO GUESSED THAT PRESIDENT CANNON WOULD BE CALLED TO THE STAKE PRESIDENCY!  The minute ya'll said you were moving and that Dad was going to be released I knew he was going to be it.  I love the Cannon's and President Cannon will be a wonderful second counselor to President Riding.  Thanks for letting me know that everything will be good with my records and everything.  I can't lie and say that I wasn't thinking about it at all, because I was, but thanks for assuaging my worry.  As far as calling goes for Christmas we have Sacrament meeting at 11 and I believe it's only going to be about an hour long, so I'll probably be calling about 1 my time or so.  I'll make a set up call first to make sure everything is ready, I won't be able to Skype this time though.  The Brethren have come out and said that Skype is to be used only for International missionaries, I say that I qualify, but I think that'd only be if Texas seceded from the nation.  So, I'll only be calling, you'll have to rely on pictures to "see" how I'm doing.

  I love everyone very much, and I hope that everyone really keeps the "Spirit of Christ" this Christmas season, because that's what it's all about.  The presents and traditions are nice, but it's really all about the gift our Father gave to us of his beloved Son.  I hope we keep him in our hearts always, not just at this time of year.

 

Love,

 

Elder Sean Wise

Letter from 12-7-11

Dear Mom,

  We're actually going to be going in the evening next Tuesday.  Probably around 5 our time.  We're going with some members from our ward so that's why we're going in the evening.  I'll still e-mail that morning, but I'll be proselyting in the morning in order to spend the evening in the Temple. 

  President Clayton didn't quite approve of us standing on a street corner and crying repentance to everyone like Dan Jones, but he did say that we could stand on a street corner and hand out pamphlets to people.  We were a little miffed that we couldn't be like Dan Jones, but I think handing out pamphlets will be hard enough.  I'll let you know how it goes.  We had Zone conference on Monday and that was quite the experience.  President Clayton has definitely been called of God to lead this mission at this time.  It's been amazing to see him take to his calling like a fish to water.  It's always a treat to sit and just learn from him.  I can't wait for ya'll to meet both President and Sister Clayton, they're such wonderful people.

  I'm happy to hear that everything is going great with the move to Arkansas.  It sounds like the Lord has a lot in store for both you and dad while there.  I look forward to seeing the new home.  Oh, and tell dad that I don't plan on bleaching my hair after my mission...I might grow a goatee just because I challenged Jon to see who could grow the best one when I'm done, but after that nothing else!
  This week has been pretty quiet actually.  We've hit a dry spot in finding people, but we're trying hard to do our part.  I know that the Lord has someone prepared to hear the Gospel, we've just got to go out and find them.  We're working also on being bold in declaring repentance to everyone.  The other night a man started talking to us on a bus and when we ended up getting off on the same spot he kept talking and really he was making a lot of nonsense about the Book of Mormon just being a historical record and took some other stuff in the Bible way out of context.  I wouldn't say I got fed up, but I decided that I had had enough of him slandering the Book of Mormon and I testified to him that it was true, that it is the word of God and that he hadn't done his part in being sufficiently humble enough to ask God and receive an answer.  A little harsh maybe, but it needed to be said, and I didn't have any qualms about saying it.  I hate being silent now, I'm tired of people just saying what they want.  It's just been gettting more and more on my nerves so to speak as I've been serving and I'm pretty much saying "enough is enough" now.  It's actually kinda cool.

  Well, that's pretty much our week.  We've been doing a TON of walking trying to find some Former Investigators that we can teach.  My shoes are losing their traction now.  I might also have to send my copy of the Book of Mormon home to be rebound soon if I can.  It's kinda starting to come apart at the hinges.  As far as Christmas gifts go, I've thought about it and I realized that I'm only in California so it might be best to just send me some American express Giftcards or giftcards to Kohls, Ross or any place that I can buy socks, possible a new pair of sunday shoes that I only wear on Sundays, and of course TIES!  I haven't become obssesed with ties, but I need some new ones to add a spark of "newness" to my collection, and to add some variety.  I'm also thinking about buying an Ukulele because I've been learning how to play it and I'm going to start learning how to play hymns on it as well.  I'm better at it than the Guitar...maybe that's because it only has two less strings?  Well, that's pretty much my Christmas "wish-list" if you want to call it that.  All those things are really just so that I can focus on bringing souls unto Christ this Christmas.  I really enjoyed the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional on Sunday, and I'm all fired up!  I hope ya'll are too!

 

 

Much Love,

 

Elder Sean Wise

Letter from 11-24-11

So...ya'll actually decided not to just lease the home and you're selling it? Well, I kind of prepared myself for that eventuality.  I can't help but see the Lord's hand in this, but to quote the Mormon Battalion video, "Sometimes faith is needed to make a decision.  Sometimes it's needed afterward."

  Well, this week has been pretty great.  We've been really trying to find new investigators, so in an effort to do that we spent yesterday morning going through the entire list of formers and seeing who we felt impressed to try and re-contact.  Needless to say out of a list of over 70 people, we narrowed it down to about 42.  We've had our work cut out for us recently.

  I've been spending a lot of time recently though really pondering on the Atonement, especially on how it relates to Missionary Work.  I actually ran across a talk given by Elder Holland entitled: Missionary Work and the Atonement...coincidence? I THINK NOT!  Since I've studied that talk it's really brought forward how that is really what we are doing.  When we ask what are the first things a non-member should do, it's not Baptism or any of the commitments from the first lesson in Preach My Gospel, it's to have Faith in Jesus Christ and Repent.  All of those commitments lead towards those two outcomes.  A scripture that's really been coming to mind recently too is in 2 Nephi 33:6-7.  This Scripture really sums up how I've been feeling recently and the things I'm trying to accomplish.  Who would've thought that Nephi was such a smart dude?  Or should I say "inspired"?

  I don't have much time this week, but know that I know that I'm serving the Lord and loving every minute of it.  I'm so thankful to be out here serving him and I pray that my service may be acceptable in His sight.  I love each and everyone of you, and know that I pray for ya'll daily.  I look forward to the day when I see each of ya'll again.  "May the good Lord bless and keep you".  I know the Savior lives, and I know His Atonement is real.  I know He loves each and everyone of us, and He wants to see us again.

 

 

Love,

 

Elder Sean Wise