Fort Mac Chapter 14

to Family, Garrett, me, My, Regan Wow this week was great, but slow. Everyone was gone for Christmas, but it was Christmas!! It was awesome to be able to Skype home. :) Well let me tell you about my week.  Monday It was p-day. We emailed, did laundry, and then shopped. We tracted a bit and then had supper at Rusnell's. It was great. We then just tried by some potentials.  Tuesday We did studies and had lunch. We then had a lesson with Grandma Jean. We read through 3 Nephi 27 with her. We then went and saw Bud and Dan. We then tracted in a new part of downtown and found 5 potentials. It was great. We had supper with Lord's and then tried some potentials.  Wednesday Well we got together with the other elders and had a district Christmas party. It was fun. We then tried the people that we tracted into. We then went to the Roys. We had supper at Aulenbach's we then went to Fitzner's for a bit.  Thursday CHRISTMAS!! We got up and went to Fitzner's for breakfast and to open presents. Thanks to everyone. :) We then went to the Catholic church. They put on a Christmas meal for some of the homeless and poor families. We went and helped set up and decorate for that. We then came back to the Fitzner's and Skyped. :) We had lunch and played some games and ate supper. We then ran and visited with Olsen's for a bit. We then picked everything up from Fitzner's and went home. :) Friday We did Weekly Planning and then had lunch. We went to do mormon.org time, but the library was closed. we then just tried potentials. It was really too cold to tract. We then had supper at Olsen's and then went to Jackson's. They gave us each Little Missionary Quote book and a True to the Faith book. It was cool. Saturday We did studies and had lunch. We then tried by potentials. We were supposed to have a lesson with some people that Elder Barber and I tracted into, but they weren't home. We did mormon.org time and then tried some other people. We drove out and had supper with the Kidd's. Helped them a bit and then drove back. We then stopped by Simpson's. One of the boys was the only one to really talk. Bro and Sis Simpson were out to dinner and two of them were downstairs. He really opened up to us about why he doesn't come to church. It was great.  Sunday We had church then coordination. We then went home for some lunch. We were suppossed to have a lesson with Jeff. We go and knock on the door and their dog runs out. We spend a few minutes trying to lure the dog back. The whole time the dog is just playing. We finally help get him back inside and it was her mother was watching their kid while they went out somewhere. We then tried some potentials. We had supper with Beaulnes. We drove to Gregoire to try Bro Rich, but he wasn't home. We stopped at the church and made some calls. We then went over to Diggles and had a lesson with them. So amazing. :) Well that was my week. With the holidays it's been slow, but it's going to pick back up soon. :)   Love, Elder Colin O'Neill

Fort Mac Chapter 13

Wow. So a lot has happened in just a short week. I've got a new companion. His name is Elder Merica. Yes it's said just how you think America without the A. :) He gets it all the time. :) He is great. He is so ready for the mission and I get to be his first companion. :) I also found out some news as I was updating our numbers. Our mission has been approved for Facebook proselyting. We can't start using it until we get some training early next year, but it's going to be coming soon. :) That will be interesting how it works. Well now to start my week. Monday P-day and transfer calls. Elder Barber went to Grande Prairie. We mostly just ran around to say goodbyes all night. Had a really good conversation with Diggle's. The Spirit was soooooooo strong there. Very powerful for all of us.  Tuesday Elder Barber packed and we cleaned the apartment a little. We went to Fitzner's for lunch and then drove to Edmonton. We went shopping a bit. Stopped at Cabela's on the north end. It's really quite small, but the animals were impressive. We then went and saw Cody! I haven't seen him since I left Londonderry back in April. We then stayed at the Zone Leader's place in Clareview. Wednesday I had the new trainer's meeting. Training Elder Merica! We had Transfer meeting and then lunch. We then had Christmas Conference. It was AMAZING! There were a couple of elders that would read some scriptures about the Christmas story and then there would be a musical number. It was good. We then got a surprise....We got to watch Meet the Mormons. :) It was incredible. After all of that we did the usual running around, moving stuff from cars and picking up mail along with extra christmas gifts from President and Sister Manion. After all of that we had to hurry and take off. We went to do some quick shopping. Elder Merica needed some boots. we then had to drive up to Fort Mac that night. :P  Thursday Well we had District Meeting. We then went back and did 12 week. We get an extra hour of companionship study everyday except Monday and Friday. we then went and tried some potentials. We tried to see Bud and Dan, but they were busy. We went tracting and so I did the first couple of doors to give an example. I tell him ok the next door is yours. His first door he knocks on lets us in. :) It's the Svenson's...members. we talked with them for a minute and then kept going. We then stopped by the Fitzners to introduce Elder Merica. We had supper with Mackay's and then went to see the Roy's.  Friday We had Weekly Planning and then we started to have lunch and Bobby D texted us. We went and had lunch with Bobby D and talked with him. We then went tracting. We had supper at the Pickett's. We then had a lesson with Prince and Esther. It went a little better than the last lesson. I don't feel like they know what we do. We then went to Simpson's and had a good visit with them.  Saturday We did studies and then had to pick up another extension cord for the car. We pinched the other and it finally broke. Bro Fitzner invited us over for a dutch oven lunch. Mountain Dew Chicken. We then made sugar cookies to take to some of the investigators and less-actives. :) It was really good for some of them. :) We had supper at Sis Kidd's and right before we got there we were told that the whole family was there. It was great. :) We then went and visited with the LA Olsen's. It was a great lesson. We asked Sis Olsen what keeps her back from coming to church and she just opened up with us. It was a great lesson. Really gave us some good insight.  Sunday We had church. Gospel Principles was interesting. The Seventh-day Adventist Pastor came. He had heard from the other elders investigator that they lesson would be about the Lord's day and about the sabbath. He didn't say much, but was sure intrigued. We then went back and had lunch and finished studies. We then tracted a little bit and then had supper with Galenzoski's. :) We then went over to Olsen's to introduce Elder Merica. The Spirig's were also there. We had a good visit and shared a Christmas message.  Overall this week was a bit slow. Most people have left for the Christmas and the holidays. The work is a little slow and we were gone for a couple of days. It will get better.  Excited for Christmas. If you haven't seen it yet, watch the He is the Gift video. It is amazing! Share it with everyone. #ShareTheGift Merry Christmas!!

Frot Mac Chapter 12

Wow this week was crazy. Talk about anxiety. It was transfer calls today. We honestly couldn't figure out what was going on. It seemed like everything was possible. We didn't know what was going to happen. This morning was the worst part. The anticipation of if the phone is going to ring. The call didn't come until 9:15. It was eating at us. Well Elder Barber is going to be leaving for Grande Prairie. I don't know who my new companion is going to be, because he isn't in the mission field yet. :)........Do you get it?.............I'M TRAINING! It's going to be fun. :) Well now for my week.

Monday

Well we had Pday. Emailed, while we did laundry we played sequence with Sis Fitzner. That was fun. :) We hurried and shopped and then went and saw Bud and Dan for a bit. We then had a lesson with Prince. He is the Afrane's friend. He has so many questions. It was an interesting lesson. 

Tuesday

Well the other elders had to take their car into the shop and so we picked them up and went to the church and did studies. We had lunch and then we went to Grandma Jean's. It was a really good lesson and helped her understand the importance of the Book of Mormon. We then went with Bro Fitzner to see Bud and Dan. Bro Fitzner kept Bud distracted so we could teach Dan. It was a really good lesson. :) We had supper at Montoya's and then we went to the LA Olsen. 

Wednesday

We did some finding the Gregoire. It was really warm so it felt great. :) We found some great potentials. We went and did mormon.org time. We then had lunch. While we were at lunch we got a phone call from Grandma Jean. She had read some article about polygamy and Joseph Smith having 40 wives. We are going back on Friday to help her understand. We then did some finding. We had supper with Bro Crane and Bro Norton. It was new. It was a Jigg's Dinner. Newfoundland specialty. It was pretty good. We then went to the Doonanco's. 

Thursday

We had District Meeting. We then had lunch at a Donair place. It was one of the best Donaires that I've had. We then changed and went out to the Kidd's. We then came back changed and went and had supper with the Simpson's. Surf and Turf. So good. We then had a lesson with Diana. They are doing soo well. 

Friday

We had Weekly Planning and Lunch. We then went and met with Grandma Jean with Bro Fitzner. We think she is at peace with it now. We then had some potentials that fell through, so we did some finding. We had supper on our own. We then went to Jackson's. We then visited with the Roy's.

Saturday

We started the day off by doing some finding downtown. It went actually really well. We talked to a lot of people and got some great potentials from it. :) We then had lunch. We went to stop by Bud and Dan again, but it was the hospital Christmas Party. We tried a few people and then came back. We then met Bro Turner at Mucho Burrito for supper. We then went to LA Olsen's again. Really good visit with them. 

Sunday

Well we had Ward Council then Church. We had a lot of people come. The whole Simpson Family came as well as Diana and her kids. We then had coordination. We ran home and had lunch and did a little studies. We then had supper with Stewarts and Diggles. It was a farewell party for Elder Barber. Early christmas presents though. :) We then met up with the other elders. Elder Barber and Hentunen went out to Anzac for some goodbyes. Meanwhile Elder Kriesel and I went with the YSA and Bishop to do a living Christmas Card to some of the LA YSA. It was pretty fun. Went and sang two songs, Elder Kreisel shared a quick scripture and then we gave them some cookies. It was fun.

Well that was my week. I'm getting ready for a couple weeks of crazy. :) Merry Christmas!

Love, 

Elder Colin O'Neill

Fort Mac Chapter 11

Wow this week was crazy. A lot happened. It was all pretty good too. :) Monday We went and met with Zack that morning. He is a recent convert less active. :P He is searching for the truth that he has already found. Don't really know how he was baptized. Shared the He is the Gift video and a video about the Plan of Salvation. It went well. We then had P-day. We went out to Spirig's for supper. We were trying to visit some other people, but no one was going to be around. It was good because we talked for a while about what a great influence the Spirig's are, and all of the work they are doing. They are incredible. We then stopped at a store in Anzac and officially finished Christmas shopping. :) Tuesday Well we had a lesson with Nahia. We went in with the mindset of a do or die lesson. We ended up having a great lesson with her. We showed the 20 min restoration video and talked about prophets. She is reading and praying everyday, she doesn't have a problem with Joseph Smith. The only hang up she really has about the whole thing is that she doesn't know that Thomas Monson is a prophet, simply because she has heard him or read about his life. That is just how she works. We told her to look up some conference talks and we are going to direct her to the biography of him. It was a great lesson. We then had lunch and then went to Grandma Jean. It was another great lesson. We talked about the Book of Mormon and read the Ezekiel scripture. We ended up printing out some of the Book of Mormon from online so it was a bigger font so she could read it. It was great. :) We then went on exchanges. I was with Elder Kreisel in his area. I got to drive again for the exchange. California isn't driving in Canadian winter. We tried by some people and tracted. We had supper at Christine's with the other elders. It was alright. We then went and visited with Bro Wood. He is an incredible man. He is another he would be active, but works.  Wednesday Well we did the morning stuff. We also had 12 week since Elder Kreisel isn't quite finished with that. We then stopped by an investigator who wasn't home. We tracted for a bit. the only two doors that answered didn't speak english. :P We then went and did a Christmas questionnaire to a lady that we tracted into. She wasn't interested, but she is friends with a member who had already shown her the He is the Gift video. :) We then exchanged back at the Library and did mormon.org time. We then tried by some potentials. We had supper with McAteer's. It was fun. Sis McAteer knows Sis George from Innisfail. That was cool. We then went to the Roys and shared the He is the Gift video and had a good discussion with them. :) Thursday We had District Meeting. We ended a little early so we could help the Tagg's put up some decorations for the Ward Christmas Party. We then had lunch at Quizno's. We then went out to the Kidd's. Had a good time out there. We had supper with Landrum's. Cafe Rio Burritos. :D We then went on splits. I went with Nate to Diana's. It was a great lesson. She was giving answers to our questions. It was great.  Friday We had Weekly Planning. We then had lunch. We stopped by Grandma Jean to make sure she could come to the Christmas Party. She had already read what we had given her once and was going to reread it to make sure she understood. I also helped her find the videos we left her with on her computer. Go tech skills. :)  We then traveled up Tower Rd and found out that there are no houses up there. Recreation access road. we then stopped by Fitzners to talk about some things with Bro Fitzner. We then stopped by Bud to invite and arrange so he could come to the Christmas Party, but we couldn't find him. He got a new wheelchair and is off. :) We then went and helped the Olsen's set up tables and chairs. We more or less just made sure there were tables and chairs since after we left they rearranged everything. :) We had supper at O'Bray's. It was a bit crazy. So many people coming and going.  Saturday Well we had a lesson with Jeff that fell through. We then tried some people. We had a lesson with Gabriel. We tracted into him a couple of weeks ago. He is great. He is from Venezuela. He already recognizes that we fill in the holes that are in the Catholic church. He is awesome. We just aren't going to be able to meet with him until the new year. Pretty common with a lot of people around here. We then tried a lot of potentials and tracted. We helped Sis Olsen peel some potatoes for the party. Then helped Jannelle move some stuff around. We ran home for something and then went to Gregoire for a bit. We then went to the Christmas Party early. Well I was going to give someone a call and I realized that I didn't have the phone. I was freaking out. It wasn't in the car. Thought about it hard and we ran back to the apartment. I left it on the desk when we came back. I was freaking out. Went back to the church for the Ward Christmas Party. It was incredible. We had a lot of non-members and less-actives come. :D Grandma Jean, Prince, Diana's kids came with their Dad, Bro Kidd, Cahoons, and Peacocks. Along with some others. It was a great night. Super busy for us.  Sunday Well it was Fast Sunday so no ward council. We had Church, it was great. :) We then had coordination. We changed and and then went tracting. We tracted into this really nice couple. We talked with them for about an hour at the door. We then went to Fitzners for supper and watched the Christmas Devotional with them. It was great. We then went and met with Simpons. At the end Bro Simpson told us for an early Christmas present since Elder Barber is leaving that Him and the Boys are going to be a church next week! It was a shock, but awesome. :) Well my week was pretty eventful. Got a lot of working going. Almost everyone we talk to is going to be gone until January. I can't even imagine what that is going to be like. :) Love, Elder Colin O'Neill

Fort Mac Chapter 10

Wow so there really isn't much to write this week, since I emailed on Wednesday last week. See what I can do. :)

Wednesday

Well we woke up in the mission home. President Manion came down and make us all pancakes. It was awesome. We then packed up everything and left. We stopped by a few last places and then drove up to Fort Mac. It didn't seem like a long drive at all. I guess I did sleep for about an hour. It felt great. We then came back and dropped off our stuff and then came and emailed. After emails we went to Bevans for supper. We were pretty late leaving the library and we were also following the other guys and ended up turning on the wrong road. Confusing. After supper we just went and filled up the car. 

Thursday

well we left and went out to the Kidd's in the morning. We are going to try and help bro Kidd stop smoking before Elder Barber leaves. He is such a strong man and we know that he can do it. :) We then drove back and changed. We tried by some potentials. We then went to Fitzner's for Thanksgiving dinner. :) Yep we still get thanksgiving up here. :) After that we went and visited with the Doonanco's. A bit jealous. They just got back from Mexico and are pretty tan. :)

Friday

Well We had weekly planning, then lunch. We did mormon.org time so we could check out the christmas.mormon.org page. It is incredible watch and share the video. #ShareTheGift . We then went and visited with Bud for a bit. We then were late to our supper at Johnston's. The traffic was terrible and we had the wrong address at the other end of Timberlea. It was a trip. We then tried some more potentials after supper. 

Saturday

Well our lessons in the morning fell through so we were tracting and trying some potentials. We then had lunch and went over and helped the Roys for a bit. They are building a skating rink in their backyard. It's going to be awesome. :) We then change and tried a few people. We then went out and tried to talk to people at the Santa Parade. It was cold. Fort McMurray has some weird ideas. Let's have a parade at the end of November when it's -30 outside. :) Sounds like an awesome idea. :) Jk. It was pretty successful. We went around with a Christmas questionnaire. It was actually pretty successful. We then went home and had some hot chocolate, before we went to the Simpsons. 

Sunday

Well we had church, then coordination. There was a baptism for one of the Padilla's that we stayed for. We got to talk with their friends that came. Great food after. We then went tracting and tried potentials. We had supper with the Harpers and then did some more potentials. 

It wasn't an overly exciting week, but we also weren't around much. :) Next week will be a lot better. :)

 

Love,

Elder O'Neill