New Sector!

Hey Yáll!!!!

So happy to hear from you all! It sounds like a blast soaking up the sun, enjoying the summer! Please enjoy all of it for me....I'm trying to type as fast as possible to warm up my fingers! It´s so dang cold here! My new sector is a lot more down south. I love it though! My comp Elder Stevenson is so awesome and I love being a zone leader with him. A lot more responsibility but I love learning more and more.

I apologize for not being able to write to everyone personally. With more responsibilities there is more to do during this short hour of writing. I figure one big email to everyone fixes the problem.

This week was so fun! First off....CHILE WON!!!!!! The American cup was on Sunday and it was so crazy here. We obviously couldn’t watch it but we got to take advantage of it in the work of salvation! We had the idea to go to the plaza during the pregame where everyone gathered to watch the game on the big screen. We pulled in a big white board with words that said, "Tell Us Who Wins!!" We did a huge game to see who would win the Cup. They had to come and put their names, number, who would win, final points, and who would make the goals....people loved it!!! There were about 60 names on this sheet at the end of the nights and now we have about 60 people to pass by for. 2 people won the game and now we have to go and cook them a huge BBQ from the states! It’s going to be so awesome! 

This week in my studies I really focused on the way we can better understand our purpose here on earth. We are teaching a lot of people here who really don't understand why they are here or where they are going. It is sad to see but drives us even more to share this message with everyone. We had a super awesome lesson with one of our investigators a couple days ago. Her name is Julia and she had a daughter named Paloma who is listening as well. She had so many questions about why we are here and what she needs to do in life. She has grown up Catholic and she doesn’t really study the bible a lot. So we used a lot of scriptures and visuals to help her understand. We came to a point where she had a question about the spirit. She said that she was not doing too well in her life, in her job, life at home, and other aspects of life. But right when the missionaries came over she started to change a few things. She said she started to feel a weird change in her mind and in her heart and she didn't know what it was, only that it was changing everything for the good in her life and the lives of her family. We testified like CRAZY about the influence of the spirit and that this was the path she needed to follow! We went to pray at the end and she was so happy after praying to her Father in Heaven!! It made my whole week!

I testify that these things are true. These experiences are real and they are without doubt from a loving Heavenly Father. I love you all and hope all goes well this week!!

Love,

Elder Callister

New Location....New Assignment

Hey y'all!! 

I sure hope that you all had an amazing week!!

This week was pretty awesome for us here in Victoria! It was the last week of Cambios (Transfers) and we found some miracle families! My companion Elder Rodrigues finished his training with me and he is a machine! 

This morning we got our Cambios (transfers). They are closing our sector here in Victoria and my companion and I are both leaving to other zones. My comp is going to Mulchen in Los Angeles South and I will be going to Pitrufquen in Nueva Tolten as a zone leader. It's going to be so crazy and the best part is that my comp is going to be my last zone leader here in Victoria! His name is Elder Stevenson and he is such a boss! I know that this cambio will be a huge learning opportunity for me and I am so excited to continue growing in my knowledge and love for my Savior here in the mission.

This week I had been trying to finish the Book of Mormon in Spanish. I am almost done and I will definitely finish it today. I started at the beginning of the mission and I was doing pretty good, then at about 7 months they told us to start off as a mission....that was fun. But I loved starting over again. I definitely understood more and I could appreciate more of what I was reading. I just want to testify to you all that I know that the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ. Together with the Bible, it is the word of God and creates the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I have received so many blessings from reading this book and it has blessed my life in ways that I cannot describe. I invite all to read the Book of Mormon. If you have not read it, read it with faith and ask God if it is true. If you have read it, read it again. It is the word of God and it is here to lead and guide us in our paths.

I love you all and hope you have a great week!

Love Elder Callister

Pics from the Mission

New Area

 

 

 

 

 

Hey Y'all!!!

Please forgive me for not writing in forever! A lot of craziness has happened lately! 

First of all, I have been changed to the city Victoria. I am still in the same zone and with the same companion, Elder Rodrigues, but just in a different sector. The first few weeks were pretty difficult. We had to reopen the sector because it had been closed for 6 weeks. We both had no idea what to expect, had no clue who anyone was and we had to start everything from scratch. We both got super sick during these few weeks and had trial after trial after trial. It was CRAZY! But if I can say anything it is that with trials come miracles. We finished the first few weeks with, a baptism and a revival of the sector. It was so amazing and we have grown in ways that we cannot even describe! It was possible and could only ever be possible through Our Savior Jesus Christ. We have grown closer to Him through this work and we are continuing to grow closer and closer every day. Life is so good especially when you put the will of the Lord in first place before everything else. I know and have a strong testimony that God will not ever leave your side as long as we are living the commandments and doing everything we can to show him that we love Him.

I love you all so very much and I pray for all of you to continue strong in you paths. Thank you all for you love and support and for always showing your examples to those around you. I love this work; I know it's the work of the Lord and that it will bless all those who trust in the Lord. Have a great week!!!

Love,

Elder Callister

 

Elder Callister is beautiful?? :)

Hola amigos!

This week has been probably the craziest of the mission!

To start off,

I was called as a district leader and started right off the bat with the new curriculum and training. I will be giving a capacitation this week with Elder Haynes, (my father in the mission) who is now living with me. We are just one big happy family in Traiguen!
I received a brand new companion (my kid). His name is Elder Rodrigues. He is from Brazil. He barely speaks English....so I am learning Portuguese. This will be fun :)

We had general conference this weekend and it was incredible to listen to the prophets and apostles with such a different mindset. I had many questions in my mind and all of them were answered through the talks. 

We had so many great experiences this week with following the spirit in the streets. I would like to testify that through obedience and loving heart, the spirit will speak to you through thoughts and feelings and will guide you through all that you do in life. 

We had just finished conference and we went running to a house of a member to a Family Home Evening and visit with their family members who are not members. They ended up not being there so we went running to another house that we had for a backup plan. We were walking down the sidewalk talking about what we had learned in conference. Right as we were talking about President Monson and his simple, yet beautiful testimony, we passed a little old lady who looked at us with the most beautiful smile. We took about 2 steps past her and immediately we stopped, looked at each other, and returned. The spirit began to work with in us as we talked to her. I could feel inspired questions and thoughts in my mind and began to ask them to her. She just looked at us and kept expressing that she could see a light in the both of us, that we were angels sent to here, and that we looked so beautiful. Now, I look at myself in the mirror every day and I can tell you that beautiful would not be an adjective in my vocabulary to express my looks...but I know and I can tell you that she did feel the presence of the spirit and she recognized that we were servants and representatives of Jesus Christ. I just wanted to give her the biggest hug in the world. We ended up setting a time to come back and visit where we will be able to talk and teach. The Spirit is real; it has saved my life and it is the only way that we can understand and know real truth. I am so grateful for the spirit in my life and I hope that you all will take what was said in this last weekend and use it to bring the spirit in your life as well.

I love you all and hope that your week is amazing and full of the spirit!

Love,

Elder Callister

 

Gratitude

Hey y'all! 

So I have a lot of changes to tell you all from what happened this week! We just got a call from the office and everything is changing here in the zone, I am training again, my trainer is coming to my sector to finish the training of my "hijo" in the mission and everyone who trained last cambio is basically changing companions. I don´t know why this is happening but I feel that our mission president has something amazing in store for the mission! 

This last week was crazy busy and full of opposition but so amazing! We had so many investigators that kept falling in our plans and we could not get in contact with anyone. Despite this roadblock, we worked our tails off; it was hard, I am super beat, but we finished out with the baptism of Emilio! This kid is the bomb! I love him so much. His attitude is always positive and he is always searching for more opportunities to apply what he is learning. I just want to testify that through our faith and diligence anything can be overcome and we can help others to come closer to our Father in Heaven.

I would like to make a quick invite too; the new video on lds.org is so beautiful about following the example of Christ. I invite you all to look it up and remember your Savior in this beautiful time of the year!

I love you all and know that you are all faithful servants of the Lord. Keep up the great work and I hope you all have an amazing week!

Love Elder Callister

Happy Easter!

Hey y'all!

Thank you all for the awesome letters! I am so glad to hear that you all are doing great! I will keep praying for you all to keep going strong in this work!

This week was pretty crazy and full of revelation. Over these past few weeks I have been focused on a careful study of the topic gratitude. Now first off I would like to say that the ability to show and apply this attribute of gratitude is a lot easier said and studied than done. We all have a natural man with in ourselves. This natural man likes to complain and show ingratitude in a very subtle way. Every day I find moments when I need to react positively to something and show my gratitude but my natural self would not do it right off the bat. That is when the devil likes to take control. He likes to show that you can’t do it. That you are not good enough, just because you are an imperfect person. Now through numerous occasions here on the mission I have found how an awareness of this imperfect state we live in can either build or bind. As we see our faults and weaknesses we begin to count and take note of all the blessings and talents we lack. We begin comparing ourselves to others, focusing on the negative, and before you know it we have unconsciously dug ourselves a deep hole of self-doubt and self-pity. We are bound with destructive cords and for a moment we may feel hopeless, and full of doubts that create simple convictions of inadequacy to the joys and blessing of life. Well I testify that these thoughts are full of deceptive lies. And awareness of this state we are in should not defeat ones state of mind, rather encourage, uplift, and drive one’s self to become better every day. 

Our imperfection signifies that we cannot progress in this mortal life unless given the means whereby that we may overcome our faults. I testify that through a gracious, loving Heavenly Father, we have been provided a way through His Son, Jesus Christ. Through the humble sacrifice of our loving Savior the heavy pains of guilt and sin can be lifted off of our hearts and minds. Through this sacrifice, the mortal death has been overcome and through our choices we make here on earth, we can overcome the spiritual death as well. The Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ has literally created a spiritual bridge from us to our Heavenly Father. As many of us on this bridge have already found out, the path to our Heavenly Father is not an easy task. There will be trials. There will be hardship. There will be many challenges and roadblocks that will try to knock us down. And if we do fall, which we will, we must confide in the Lord Jesus Christ, that though sincere repentance and a true and everlasting change of heart, we will get back up and endure till the end.

I testify that there is no greater blessing than the ability to humble yourself unto the Lord in sincere repentance, and receive an indescribable joy, happiness, and assurance of his love for you and the rest of His children. 

In the Book of Mormon, we see many examples of the effects True Repentance produces. I love the account of the Sons of Mosiah. After spending much time in rebellious acts to destroy the church of God, these prideful young men were humbled by the visitation of an angel of the Lord. Over the following days and after much prayer and fasting, sincere repentance was applied and the pure love of Christ filled their souls, enough to the point to where they could not even bear the thought of anyone not receiving the blessings of this eternal joy and happiness. (Mosiah 27&28). Later as we read more of the ministry of these men among the Lamanites, we see that this exceeding joy did not only carry them into the mission field, but continued to grow as they shared a divine testimony of the love and grace of God. This Joy must be sought out on a daily basis. Our souls must be continuously nourished and replenished that there might be room in our hearts for this Joy to grow within us, even to the point where we literally cannot express in thought, nor word the immense happiness that is working within us. 

17 "Now the joy of Ammon was so great that he was full; yea, he was swallowed up in the joy of his God, even to the exhausting of his strength; and he fell again to the earth.

18 "And now was not this exceeding joy? Behold, this is the joy which none receiveth save it be the truly penitent and humble seeker of happiness.

REPENTANCE PRODUCES HAPPINESS.

There is no other way to feel the divine love of God. He has provided the means, His doctrine, that through Faith in Jesus Christ, Repentance, Baptism under His authority, Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and an endurance to the end we might be guided along this spiritual bridge to our Father in Heaven.

 The conductor of this path is none other than the Son of God Himself. He Suffered, He died, and now He lives once again so that we might have a second chance and live again.  I relate to my opening topic of gratitude, I express my gratitude for my Savior. I express my gratitude for His sacrifice for me so that I might have a second chance. I express my love and gratitude for my family and for their love for me. For my Father in Heaven who has given them to me and for the blessing I receive from having them in my life. 

Of all the things I could be grateful for, the greatest of all would be the ability to apply the Atonement in my life on a daily basis. To partake of the Sacrament every week and direct my focus and attention on my Savior. Everything I ha is because of Him. Everything I enjoy is because of Him. Everything I am is because of Him. As we continuously clean ourselves of sin then we are aware of the things around us. All the blessings we enjoy, all the happiness and Love we feel from others around us. And at that point we will be able to see and show our gratitude in an incredible way to our Father in Heaven.

I testify that as we continue to live our lives in Gratitude, with our Eyes, Hearts, and Arms open to the people around us, especially to our Heavenly Father, we will diligently and more effectively find this happiness. 

And after we have reached that point, what greater joy will it be to invite and help others obtain this blessing as well.

I love each and every one of you all and I would like to express my gratitude to you all once again. Because of your examples to me I am out here serving the Lord, and I would not want to be anywhere else. I love you all and hope you have a great week. 

With much gratitude and love,

Elder Callister