Chapter Five: The 21st Epistle of Anziano Stewart to the Sicilians

HELLOOOO!!!!

First, I'm sorry that this is late, we've had a crazy day.  The ward planned ward council for our p-day at 15.00 and we also had a lunch outside of Messina, and now finally we are able to start our p-day.  Whew!

I'm glad that you all are well.  That is great about Mattie’s calling (ward organist)! When I left I would have never guessed that she could have done that.  Let me know how it goes!  And Brynn is called to the Arizona Tempe?!?!? No way! That is so cool!  Tell her congrats for me.  

I'm sorry about the snow, that's too bad, hopefully it starts to clear up sometime soon.   That's good news about the taxes (we’re almost ready to file) but not so good about the password for FAFSA.... I don't know what to tell you, I don’t remember any of the passwords that I used before... you'll probably just have to reset it.... =/

This week flew by, but it's useless that I say that because it’s always like that.  We are doing a lot of work and things are going well.  We are working on building up the work because in a couple weeks a couple of sisters are arriving!!!!  The ward is way excited!  It should be a really good thing for the work here.

I'm doing really well.  My comp is great, in lessons we teach great together!  We wake up every morning an extra 30 minutes to run/workout; we get along really well.  We are also going to have the bikes this week!!!! Thank goodness! They will really help with the work.  

Well I’m sorry that this week is kind of a short letter today was crazy and we don’t have any time!  but everything is great things are wonderful and i love Messina! I love you and i love being a missionary! 

I'll continue to pray for you. See you next week! =)

P.S. Moroni 10:32 - deny all ungodliness.  Then we can "put on the divine nature" 2 Peter 1:3-8

Have a great week!!

--

"Look inside yourself, you're more than what you've become.  Remember who you are."  The Lion King 

Anziano Stewart

Chapter Five: The 20th Epistle of Anziano Stewart to the Sicilians

Buon St. Valentino e President’s day!!

Wow, what a week.  Well, the best thing that happened was the great conference we had with Elder Richards from the Europe Area Presidency.  It was crazy!  He started talking at 08:30 and he stopped at 13:00, no breaks, no pauses, just straight talking.  It was actually really, really cool.  

The thing that impressed me the most was his knowledge of the scriptures.  He got up there and in every other sentence he was either quoting scripture or he was telling us to turn to one.  He talked about how we need to work on our effectiveness in teaching, and finding.  We must teach pure truth and we need to be clear.  It was really a great conference.

Thanks also for the package, I'm not sure what I’m going to do with all this junk food but I’ll find something to do! Ha-ha. By the way, it all came safely and nothing was broken. 

Well, our week is off to a really good start and were hoping for an even stronger finish.  I hope that you are all still doing great!  You have to excuse me for not sending pictures for months.... but my cable broke and I still haven't been able to find a new one.... but ill keep looking. 

I love you all!!!

Cheeeeeeeaaaaooooowwwwww!!!!!

--

"Look inside yourself, you're more than what you've become.  Remember who you are."  The Lion King 

Anziano Stewart

Chapter Five: The 19th Epistle of Anziano Stewart to the Sicilians

"Where fear is faith has no power." -Joseph Smith

 

Ok what a week! First, I’m here with my new companion, Anziano Cremonesi.  He's da bomb! Ha-ha-ha.  No he’s a really cool guy.  We're actually very similar in how we act and things that we like.  He eats really healthy!!!! He likes to run, and even wakes up 30 minutes early to have more time to run!!!!!!!!  And we're both really levelheaded.  He's also 24!  

To tell the truth it's really nice to have an added level of maturity in our work.  I hope that we'll be together for at least 2 transfers but I think that it will just be one because then they will put 2 more missionaries in the city and we will have to teach them the city.

Well this week went pretty well.  We've been trying for a couple weeks to fix a baptismal date or 2 or 3 or 4or 5 and finally our efforts have paid off, or at least are starting to pay off.  Yesterday we set a date with Lloyd.  We've been asking almost everyone we see to accept a date or preparing them to accept one because without that goal, you have no objective, nowhere to shoot for.  So finally our efforts are having some kind of effect.  It makes me think about something that I studied this past week.  

I was thinking about that quote that says "our greatest fear is not that we are weak, but that we are powerful beyond measure."  And it really is true.  Just like Pres. Uchtdorf says, we have the seeds of godhood in us.  For example, we are able to love like Christ did but maybe we are just too selfish and we don't want to find out just how much we can love those around us.  Then I started thinking about how we can overcome this fear of our true potential and the quote from the lectures on faith came to mind where Joseph Smith said, "Where fear is faith has no power."  So what we have to do is overcome our fear and once we do that our faith will begin to take effect and we'll be able to reach our full potential.  

In 1 John 4:18 it says that perfect love casteth out fear.  There is no fear in love.  If we love God, our neighbor, and ourselves we won't fear.    I feel like this is what we've had to do to start getting these baptismal dates and also it's what we've had to help our investigators do in order to help them have the faith to accept a date.  We've had to love them and help them love themselves.

We have our mission tour this Friday with Anziano Kent F. Richards.  It should be a very wonderful experience.  You might not believe it but we're going to sleep in a hotel!!! Livin the sweet life! Ha-ha I'll let you know how it goes.

Thank you all so much for all that you have done and are doing to help me in every way.  You are the best!!!! I love you so much!  Abby, don't skip class on Friday!!!!  And let me know right away where you're going!

Luke 16:10 He that is ^faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.

Have a great week.  I love you. Ciao!

--

"Look inside yourself, you're more than what you've become.  Remember who you are."  The Lion King 

Anziano Stewart

Chapter Five: The 18th Epistle of Anziano Stewart to the Sicilians

4th transfer in Messina, 3rd Italian companion, 2nd transfer as zone leader in the number 1 mission in the world!!!!!!!!!

Alrighty!!!! Goooooood Morning!!!

I hope you are all doing well.  From you letters it seems like things are pretty good.  Mom, just to let you know I haven't gotten the package yet and I won't have it until February the 15th.  Ha-ha, don't worry, it's all worked out.  But yes, let's hope that the salsa didn't break... =/ (I'm soooo excited that you sent salsa!!!)

That's great about Abby's call, make sure that you send me an email with pictures!! I can't wait to find out where she's going.  But I did have a question.... about the whole 7 continents thing.... does that mean that someone is serving in Antarctica????  Because that would be way cool!!! But if I remember right the only people that are there are scientists and they only stay for like 2-3 month periods...  Ha-ha, no that's way cool though.  

GOOOO ESPAÑA!!!!!!

J!!!!!!! thanks for the letter! I'm so glad that this week you learned what our intestines do, that is very important to know!!!! I can't stop saying that I love you either!!!! We’ll just have to keep saying it forever =P

Maren, that's too bad that you didn't like Stake Conference  mom said that it was really great!  Has your best friend moved in to the house next door yet??  That way you can enjoy your snow days with her!!

I'm glad that Meg is doing well.  Tell them hello for me.  I can't imagine Forrest with a beard.  Do you have any news on Mikey? How’s he doing?

The work here is going really well.  First mom pointed out that I forgot to tell you Andrea's name.  He's the guy who was inactive for almost a year and now is a fully active tithe payer.  What a sweet story!!!!!  This week he also helped us with a lesson with someone who is having a lot of trouble with getting the faith to pay the tithing.  About the family that was baptized in December, they are doing really well.  They are continuing to see wonderful blessings.  We were hoping to have them go to the Swiss temple in April with the ward so that they could do baptisms but they are going to go visit the Sri Lanka so they are going to miss it, but they really want to go.

Now about transfers....mom is dying!!!!  

I'm......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................staying in Messina but my Companion is going to a L'aquila, a city east of Roma.  And my new companion is going to be Anziano Cremonese from Brianza (close to Milano).  I'm still a zone leader, which will actually be pretty cool because this transfer, rather than having a zone conference, we're having a mission tour from Anziano Richards of the European area presidency. And before the actually meeting, he wants to meet with the zone leaders and talk with them.  It should be pretty interesting...... 

This week I ate an entire stuffed squid.  It was actually VERY good.  

I actually had a lot of really interesting things that I found/studied this week but I forgot my notes at home.... =(  however, I do remember one thing.  It’s about the yoke.  Christ says that we need to take upon us his yoke because it is light and easy to carry.  Well I learned something very interesting about how a yoke works.  It isn't just something that the ox has that attaches it to a cart or wagon.  It’s actually a device that allows it to pull incredible amounts of weight.  We’re talking like up to 15 times it's own weight!  This fact makes the meaning of what Christ invites us to do much more profound.  He says if you apply this gospel you'll be able to do things that you've never imagined. You'll be able to bear things that otherwise would have seemed impossible; you'll be able to become something that before you only dreamed about.

Well that's all the time that I have for today.  I love you all and can't wait to hear from you next week.  Abby, make sure you have someone take pictures!!!!!! And tell me as soon as you find out!!!!!!!!!!!   

Ciao!

Oh and dad, I'm still looking for those driving gloves.

--

"Look inside yourself, you're more than what you've become.  Remember who you are."  The Lion King 

Anziano Stewart