January 13, 2014

This week for the work was very well I must say. We have a small teaching pool of 4 female and a male! But 2 are working towards a date and 1 came to church! Her name is Najay, but we call her Lucky! She’s 17 and reads well. We left her with the introduction to the Book of Mormon and she wouldn't let us come back till she finished it! During the lesson she is just thirsty for truth! And we ended up reading the testimony of the prophet! She is just tearing it up and is good friends with a less active who is starting to come back out!! That is kind of our focus right now. We have enough Priesthood brethren for a stake in Kingston, but they are all less active so we are trying to bring back like crazy, having many family home evenings throughout the week, and priesthood visits!! We had 5 back at church the last 2 weeks and we are looking forward to another 5 this next week which is successful auto family, the Johnson's! Sweet family.. we read Alma 7 with them this week and just about every verse someone would stop and talk about something. The spirit was just super strong and opened up a lot of hard hearts, especially the father’s, as there was a family fight the night before! Also working with a less active named Sis. Edwards who is living with another member. We got to read D&C 121 with her and I guess the testimony I have received this week is the scriptures in teaching. If we get an environment for the spirit to testify on things they need to do better, it comes to them out of the scriptures! She realized she needed to be a better mom and example! Great! So many great things happening out here! This work is hard on most every day but really, really rewarding. Can’t deny it. We have also been working with the less active Copeland family and 5 other people in that family who aren't members.. really being receptive.. as long as we really love these people no matter who, we have something they need that is urgent. We can’t force it on them, but build their trust to hug it right into them, to the point they know there is something more. It’s working so far and the response is thrilling!! Ashawni is the only male we are working with, but he is friends with the Pearts. Solid fellowship and he hungers after the knowledge of scriptures, respectful great kid! Just gotta get him to church!! But along with the urgent analogy, Pres brown shared that in church this week. this will show you a bit about hard hearts in the country. Elder Martin got hit by a car this week and had to have a 5 hour brain surgery. but is doing great for the hit. But that was in Linstead and he needed to get to Kingston for the operation. President Brown rode in the ambulance and the whole 50 minute ride the driver was on his horn. He had the sirens on, but until he was on their bumper people didn't move and sometimes people still didn't move out of the way.. even for an emergency vehicle!! Shocking, right!!! Long story short, he compared it to the gospel and missionary work. This is the fulness of times, He is at the door! Sometimes we are all too casual about spreading the gospel, but its urgent! It’s an emergency! People need our services and instead we are clogging up traffic and not doing our job. It’s the little things.. all you got to do is invite them to church or to hear your missionaries.. it’s easy, they are your friends. Will you save your friends? 

Crazy to think ‘bout what he said. When you look at it we don't have time to be missionaries part day. No one does. We got to be ready at all times to give every man answer for the reason of the faith in us! If we serve, we forget about our problems! Burdens become lighter and we become stronger. The time is now. Just like the prophets have said, you just invite ONE person, then they do and we start a wave! It’s easy. The members are doing it here and it’s getting exciting! Just cuz some areas are more established doesn't mean their work is cut out for them. Elder Strickland(a great fellow missionary) told me this week of a story in Haiti where a member of the Quorum of the 12 went to establish another Stake and asked what they have. They said they had 5 stakes and ready for another. The General Authority said from my looks at it looks like you have 5 misSTAKES to me. took them all apart and made back into districts. They are Stakes again fortunately, but just really showed me how we must keep moving forward. This is not a life to rest in. This is Our Test! This is the race! We cant dog it! I have a lot to do, lots to make up for, but we must do it together! It’s 2014! It’s going to be a great year, we're going to get a lot done! We will do our best! I love you all! Thanks for your support to me and the prayers. I know I would be doomed without them. Man! The gospel makes you happy if you apply it! Nuff love!

Elder Wilkerson

January 6, 2014

Speed bump sign

Rare money in the bank

Elder Carter and Elder Wilkerson

Good Day! Up town life is amazing! I really love it and we aren’t in too much of the super busy side of town! We have some ghetto parts and some really nice areas! But the people are awesome and working with Elder Carter is so great. We get along so well and getting a lot of good things done. Elder Carter is from Pleasant Grove and has been out about 14 months. He is taller than me which is weird but cool! We live in a cute, tiny apartment. It’s probably 12x30FT. Walk in and there is a kitchen and our study, look left a bathroom and our little BEDroom.. but I love it! Easy to keep clean and I think helps with companionship unity. But we did just get a washer, have a microwave and such, but NO Hot water!!! And I have been told the coldest water on the island. Most of the people in Kingston do very well. Way expensive to live here. And it’s a mix of people, lots of Chinese, some natives, but many from Canada and a handful of white people.  I’m almost getting comfortable with seeing them again :) The roads are better in areas but overall much better. I still had to replace a tube this Sunday and getting the bike tuned today so we will see how long it last!!! But definitely have to watch out for the traffic!! But the branch is amazing! 6 elders in this branch and 6 in the other and then 4 down in Boulevard area! We played soccer this morning together so that's cool! A very well established branch though. They really want a Stake and really pumped about the missionary work! We have three FHEs during the week that members take their friends to so we can get them as investigators and it’s been going great. One of the families is the Pearts (the family of the kid I got to train til he went to Dominican Republic!) We didn’t have any teaching pool when I got here, but we have 3 investigators right now. None came to church, but they have great potential and we are seeing a family tonight! One of our big focuses is getting the less actives back! We had 5 back from our area alone this week! I also had some inspiration for a lesson this week!! Oreos! There is 3 ways to find out if they are good cookies 1) could eat them- or try them out/ go to church 2) read the ingredients- read your scriptures 3) or ask someone if they are good- such as praying! So the oreos are the gospel!! and 3 ways to find out it’s good. Thought it was cool so bought a big thing of oreo packs! :) 

Well New Year’s was good.. just trying to remember what we did! I know that we went in early. We had to be inside at 8! I think we cooked together, cleaned house and went to bed early! Woo woo! But not a whole lot to report on this week! It is great being in this clean town and going to Mega Mart for more food options! It’s similar to a Costco! Not much cheaper, but more variety and good deals on bulk! By the way, CONTACT solution is $1800. or like 20 US. per bottle. I’m super pumped for this next week! I feel like I’m really a missionary again. Not real shore what had happened. I know my prayers kinda got weak and maybe got area dead! But the work is going solid here and just excited for another great week and to build up the teaching pool and make a Stake or whatever the Lord requires!!! This is 2014! Let’s work hard. I know as we use our talents the stronger they get and the more the Lord will trust us! (D&C 60:2-4). Well, I love you all! Have a happy 2014! Attitude is altitude! Make it a good year! 

Elder Wilkerson

December 30, 2013

We had transfers and I’m heading to Constant Springs Branch working in the uptown area and I hear it’s stoosh. Living in a two man apartment with Elder Carter. Very excited to be out of this rainy, mosquito infested swamp and going to a crazy packed city where I have 80% better chance being hit off my bicycle, fixing it more and possibly dying. :) but it should be good. I get to work around the assistants to the president, and President Brown and Elder Bateman (my mtc comp) is my Zone Leader! It is going to be much fun and hopefully give me an extra push to get more pumped about the work!! Hope you all have a crazy fun week with the New Years. I  have no idea how it will be down here.. there are party signs everywhere, so it will probably be a little wild! This past week was good though, we met with a ton of members and just really getting them pumped to do a better job and build them up for their missionary duties and it’s really showed this past week with 8 new at church brought by members and a little finding of our own! Elder Cornish came last week and I think his push was good for them as well saying the gospel is ready to be harvested in Jamaica! Go forth and spread it! So the branch is doing great.. hard to leave this wonderful branch. We also spoke on Sunday. All four missionaries. I spoke on charity and love, Elder Hunt on church and blessings of attendance, Elder Wignal on word of wisdom -  really pounding agency to choose when it comes down to Pepsi (big debate world wide, but super crazy in Jamaica, some proclaiming and enforcing the higher law like have to talk to the branch pres if drank a pepsi) cleared up well! And Elder England talked on the atonement! Great church day and the rest of the classes were awesome and packed full!! This week was rough for teaching investigators due to our bikes mashing up! Elder England bent his rim while we were out in Belmont.. borrowed a rim so we wouldn’t have to walk the 19 km. but we went like 200 yards and my derailer caught in my spokes and ripped off! so took it off and instead of walking to Sav, Elder England towed me to Sav only taking an additional 15 minutes cuz my comp is a tank and a boss cyclist!! Love that guy! So we get our bikes back today. Gotta love bikes :) But nothing too super awesome to share this week. We’re meeting with all the young men tonight at their request to know how they can do their part in missionary work! So awesome, the work of salvation is going forward! Love you all -  have a wonderful new year!

Elder Wilkerson

Christmas season dinner.

December 23, 2013

Sorry I'm so late posting this week.  We got to skype with Sterling on Christmas and it was wonderful.  He looked and sounded great!

Christmas Party!

Hey! Man, I don’t even know what to say! This last week was a drag and this one probably will be as well! But it was still a good learning week!  The christmas devotional wasn’t good on our end either! That was on Saturday. We just endured it and then had a branch tour afterwards that was really good! We had about 50 people show up. 45 members and 4 investigators! Really lame but glad there wasn’t more than that due to the bad connection! But as for Spanish Town where it was held, they had a great show! 780 people! Which is great cuz that’s where the first stake will be so I guess it’s only fair. Start in one location then grow the church out! Ha! Friday we had a branch Christmas dinner that we helped with and friday  night activities as well! That was great to have some investigators go to! Our teaching pool has gotten very small.. Ricardo is are only progressing.. and on date for the 12th of January and the Williams are now on date for the 5th. That’s about it, and on top of that of course no one wants to visit us this time of year! Teaching appointments are scarce.. and on top of it all Thursday just threw a loop in everything.. we were playing cards after planning and of course when you play cards a lot of pride comes to the table, but some name calling broke out and long story short an elder got punched and I just sat there cuz I really didn’t think it would happen.. but since that happened and I didn’t step up to the plate to stop it.. I’m not a good leader.. so we have a new district leader. Took a lot of stress of my back, but at the same time I feel super bad that I lost mission president’s trust, the Lord’s and Elder’s in the house even though we are all cool now! It was a hard week and really good soul searching week. I got a lot of pride to swallow but even though that experience was terrible you learn from it and move on. No missionary is perfect but gosh I guess I have gotten too relaxed and need to turn the heat back on. But especially around this Christmas season is a great time to focus on Christlike attributes and set goals for the new year! I also read 2 nephi 28 this week and got rebuked for pride as well! So I have some things to work on but I have learned to accept challenges cuz we always grow from them and don’t let it or Satan play with your attitude, just smile and look up! But as I was reading over chapter 6 in preach my gospel, it said Christlike attributes are GIFTS so hopefully I can regain some trust and receive some Christmas presents cuz it doesn’t just bless us, those gifts are to bless those around us!! Happy holidays!!

Elder WIlkerson

December 16, 2013

This week really was so much better! To help us focus cuz both of us have kinda been having off weeks due to Christmas and other things, we had spiritual meals to keep are spirits rolling while we had meal times. We listened to John Bytheway. We went through like 10 of his albums this week! But it was so uplifting and I think really showed in our teaching!  We found a few new families to work with this week. Found them through taking paths the spirit put us on! Some of the experiences were quite different. One we found at a power tool shop. Had a thought to go see if he rented tools. What a dumb thought! We went back anyways and he doesn’t rent tools.. but super interested in the gospel and a non member sister was there and joined in and we answered a few of her questions as well! Cool! The other we found is named Maxine. Maxine #3, haha! But we were all out of plans everything had fallen through.. soo had a feeling to go down this lane. We got to the end and was like man.. wasn’t expecting that.. was expecting to find someone.. but at the end there was a house with the gate open and 3 giant dogs ran out to eat us!! And Maxine came out and called them off and we set up a return appointment! Ha! She is sweet though and has a huge family yard we are going to be working with! This next week is crammed for teaching time! So many meetings! Tuesday we have a meeting and our Christmas party as missionaries. Wednesday district meeting, Friday branch Christmas dinner and Elder Cornish broadcast to watch, Saturday the devotional and then Sunday of course! Whoa, gettin crazy and to be honest I am so stressed and just want the Christmas season to be over. There is no snow, few Christmas lights and so hott anyways! Doesn’t feel like Christmas, but hey, only one more hot Christmas after this! It’s interesting that all the missionaries in Sav are having their first missionary Christmas! So that’s sweet!  I am scared for the devotional, but definitely the link will be sent to your email and just remember we are 2 hours different time from you! But this week was lots better as a whole, learned much from the scriptures and new oppurtunities! Love you all!

Elder Wilkerson

Here is the link that we were sent to watch their devotional on Saturday at 11:30 am Utah time.  I sure hope it works!!

http://webcast.lds.org/174211-724150

December 9, 2013

This week to be honest was really slow and I feel like spiritually dead.. probably not even close to that, but this week was just out of the ordinary and different! Monday we had an awesome FHE with a Rc/la Stephanie Smith, on scriptures and played scripture Charades! Very good and picked up some of her friends as new investigators, but she still didn’t come to church this week.. disappointing!  Tuesday we had a great day of visiting recent converts and less actives.. we got 5 new less active names to work with since we activated 3 of the other 5 names! Very cool to work with them. New challenges and concerns, but new opportunities to learn and grow!! Wednesday we had another wonderful district meeting. I love those, I learn so much!! We talked about chapter 5 in PMG and just hammered on the Book of Mormon and using it more when we teach. Do our best to use it in every single lesson!! Finished off that day with a few more lessons then cleaned up and taxied to Montego Bay and sat around KFC for 3 hours waiting for the zone leaders to pick us up so they could drive us into Kingston Thursday to see the doctor. We woke up at like 4:30 so we could arrive in Kingston on time for their MLC meeting and we sat around at the mission home for 4 hours waiting for a ride to the mission office. Finally get to the mission office and wait there like another 2 hours wondering what to do with ourselves. Then went out with the office Elders to lunch and then to the doctor. Waited at the doctor for 2 hours and talked to a super prepared lady! ( I think she was the only reason we had to go to Kingston) but the doctor finally looked at my arm and said it was going down and that it sounded like my bike wreck did the same thing he would have done! Poked it with a needle!! So $5000 later and we are off for a 45 min split then wait at the office Elder’s house til Assistants can pick us up! We stayed there then woke up again at 4 so they could take us to the bus station where we took a $2400/ ticket bus to Sav. Huge bus that could probably fit 80 people with a/c, tv, and the whole bit straight to Sav. and only 5 people were aboard! 5.5 hours later got home and had weekly planning then prepare for Friday night activities which is going super well and helping bring out and get our name out there and open teaching opportunities!! Saturday we had a big service project at the Williams(Shereca’s Family) and then more less active work! A lot of our teaching pool is families, but can only meet on Sunday which is hard to squeeze them all in!! Also another elder from our district went home Saturday, sad but glad they are fixing themselves! So much stronger that way! Sunday we had a great lesson at church on obeying the laws of the land and just cuz you have money doesn’t mean you should get away with breaking the laws! (which is how the system works in Jamaica -  so corrupt! but whateva, can’t talk bout that!) And also a great lesson in gospel doctrine on tithing.. and Priesthood on Joe Smith and a little testimony meeting on him and the Book of Mormon -  very cool! Something I learned this week while reading some books is that Joe Smith translated the Book of Mormon in 3 months with only 3 years of education and little help.. while the Bible on the other hand was translated by 54 scholars and it took them 4 years to do so!! Fraud book? I think not!!  The facts don’t prove anything, but they shore are fun to learn about!! Sis Drummin from England fed us on Sunday a delicious meal and hopefully we can start teaching her daughter Barbara soon! Great little family!! Met with a few other members that night and tried to set up for the Christmas devotional, but it still didn’t work. Gotta get everything running for the 21st or we will be in trouble. They are going to send you guys the link that day as well a few minutes before it starts so you can watch it as well if you desire! Well this week was rough, but I’m still alive! We just had a lesson like 30 minutes ago! It was crazy how convinced some were and the other was like maybe I’ll try again in 5 years! I hope we can meet her again before that!! But I love you all and I hope you are enjoying the cold while I enjoy the sun!

Lots of burning and chopping and killed my first chicken and skinned it.. but didnt get any pics sorry.

Cookin some curry chicken and rice!

Service project at the williams yard.

Dinner at Sis Drummins.

Much love and have a fantastic week!

Elder Wilkerson

December 2, 2013

We have been working on our home a lot to get it to the point of being super clean and feeling comfortable with the Savior coming there! Our house is suppose to be like a temple especially cuz we can’t go to one for two years!! So it’s been really great. It really does change the way you feel and the amount of spirit and revelation can come into the house!! This week was a rough one for me. I think I sometimes am trying to consecrate myself too much and push myself to the point where I just quit or my attitude is gone down hill fast. Change is something that takes time, but I am just trying to make the best of it while I am in this spiritual realm and set up a wonderful lifestyle for myself so I can never fall back! No one wants to do that! But trials are grrreat, I’m learning a ton!! Monday we got to meet with Steve again and we talked a lot about attitude and just thinking positively always! He is praying about a date to get baptized and we’re going to see him tomorrow! Tuesday saw the Williams family again they are now on date for the 15th of December and we might have to push it back again if we can’t get them to church more! Wednesday I had my bike wreck. I was just riding with a flash light in hand, but still couldn’t see the 1st pot hole. I hit it and my handle bars twisted and not the wheel, then hit a second more deep pot hole like 6 inches deep and tacoed my tire and threw me off!! Hit my left elbow but not bad at all! A rosta was there by and came out and jumped on my rim and bent it back to a somewhat rideable position cuz still had a 40 min bike ride on a functioning bike. Nuff fun! Thursday we took my bike to the shop and went home and cleaned the windows and straightened the house out a bit cuz all of our area you need a bike for!! Friday we had Friday night activity! It’s getting big, like once again another 100+ people there! Also got a branch mission leader on Friday! It’s the 1st counselor in the Branch Presidency right now! So guess it’s time to hasten the work! Saturday we went to visit a member that moved in two weeks ago from Linstead, moved up to Bath Mountain. It’s a 2 hour bike ride up hill and about 20 minutes back down!! Very fun down... rough to the top. I will have to get some sweet pics next time we are up there! Also saw a few other less active Priesthood holders we have been working with since I got to Sav.  Sunday was awesome! 3 investigators at church from the Edwards family! 3 less actives back. All priesthood and the ones we were working with! Great to see the labors bring fruit!! It is harvest time in Jamaica!! Sugar cane!! Starts today!! Biked to Belmont today to see Bro Edwards family.. another exactly 1 hour rough bike ride, lots of hills but all down hill back home!! The family is doing awesome and also had a cottage meeting there and taught 8 of Brother Edwards family members. Huge family yard! Much potential. Very cool. Had dinner there and headed home. The teaching was scarce this week, but we still got a lot accomplished looking at the good we did! Lots of behind the scene work has to start happening but there is no time to slow down either! Been a lot of fun, but definitely hard work as well and sometimes frustrating! But it’s coming along. This week we estimated about 155 miles put on the bikes! And no punctures!! Great! Love you guys! I can’t believe Christmas is right around the corner with no snow!!! But the music and lights and sales and parties are still here, haha! Nuff love! Hope you all have a wonderful week!!

Elder Wilkerson