E-mail received 03/28/2011

Yeah I still have to send pictures. I finally got around to sending a lot of other stuff last P-day but unfortunately none of it was to you guys. I'm definitely at least going to get two memory cards mailed off to you today so you should be excited for a good haul hopefully. There's a lot of stuff with Elder Summerhays and I in it so it'll be fun.

 

We're trying out a new library today but sessions only last 30 minutes so hopefully I can get everything in.

 

I'm definitely not disappointed that you guys won't pick me up in November. Plus if you were coming to go sightseeing there really isn't many sights to see and virtually no museums of any interest unless you want to go to New York. Sorry dad. I could show you some nice ghettos though.

 

That is kind of weird that I got a better scholarship than Katelyn because she got way better grades than I did but she'll probably be able to qualify for a lot more than I did. Also I didn't even apply for the scholarship that I got. It was just offered to me. I'm really kind of riding off of God's free handouts. Strange, but I'm definitely not complaining. I've actually been really thinking about school lately and what I really want to get into and I'm not really sure if I really want to go to the business route. I would make bukoo bucks and it would be easy to find work but of most of the chosen fields I don't know if I'd be able to enjoy work or have enough time with my family as I would like. I've really kind of been looking into the field of nutrition and physical therapy but unfortunately I can only research as far as talking to others in the ward who are already in that kind of stuff. I would really like to do something that brightens peoples moods and makes other people happy but that doesn't totally consume my life and still provides for a comfortable lifestyle. Maybe I'm dreaming a little too big but I've still got time to figure it out.

 

Tell everyone thank you for sending letters to me. There's been a few great and unexpected letters that I've gotten from some people and I really enjoy hearing from everyone. I'm sorry I'm pretty slow on the response but I'm doing my best to get to everyone. Thanks so much to everyone's love and support!

 

Katelyn and I definitely have to find a place together for college! We'll talk later about the dating thing...

 

Well this week was an exciting week. We worked a ton with the great members of the Jersey City English Ward! There were 11 members this week who volunteered their time and testimony and came out with us to teach! Their fellowship and love is so essential to this work and I don't know what we'd do without them. Elder Summerhays and I have been particularly striving to utilize the amazing Relief Society Sisters that we have in this ward and it's been a great success so far. It's a little harder to schedule so that we have another priesthood holder to be with us but it's all worth it because of the amazing love and sincerity the investigators feel from these incredible sisters. Don't ever underestimate the sisters! I hope you all can seek out a way to help in the missionary effort in your area this week so you can feel the joys that come from selfless service.

 

The coming of the new month means re-evaluation and also new goals to set. The monthly focus of the mission will be finding new investigators and really putting out the message of the restoration so that all can be comforted and blessed by it's true and uplifting message of salvation. At district leader council, the zone leaders and Elder Davies, the other district leader, and I, were excited to help the whole zone work in unity to help more of God's children come unto Christ. The new zone goal is going to be focused on meeting the needs of every investigator to help them be baptized and focusing evenly on every person who comes into our teaching pool. 

 

I've been focusing my studies lately on finishing a book called "Our Search for Happiness" by Elder M. Russell Ballard. It's an incredible book about our missionary message of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I've found many new insights and understanding about the principles that I teach. It's amazing the literature on the Doctrine of Christ that God has given us to help us gain a greater understanding of Him. 

 

I hope everyone is studying the scriptures and is finding the wonderful direction and guidance contained in them.

 

Have a great week!

 

-Elder Guinto

Slow week = Short E-mail - Received 03/21/2011

I figure that Cody Lasley's email will have to tide you down for this week. (; I just realized that you haven't seen any pictures of Elder Summerhays.

 

I'm amazed at Maleah's maturity. She seems much more focused than I ever was at her age. I was fairly unprincipled until I finally got things together right before I went on my mission but she seems to have incorporated those organizational qualities at a very young age. That will serve her well.

 

That's super exciting about Tyrie and Paige! I've never really seen Tyrie with kids before but i'm sure that they'll be programming computers by the time they can talk so he shouldn't have too much of a problem. He's got a brilliant mind and I feel confident that he can solve any problem, whether it be in math or in diapers he'll get along fine.

 

We've had somewhat of a lax week this week. We've been really working at finding new people and we just haven't been getting the success that we've wanted but we keep striving. I really believe that they're out there. Elder Summerhays and I feel like we're the most united that we've ever been and it seems that the Devil's working overtime to get us discouraged but it's not getting to us.

 

We've been working pretty well with our ward leaders and they've really been the key to making everything work. We're really excited for a few investigators who are really gaining some momentum.

 

Also another great highlight is one of the recent converts who got baptized a few weeks ago told us that he wants to start preparing to serve an honorable full time mission! I just about hit the roof for joy when I heard that! It's so exciting the work that's going on here, it's a labor of love and of joy.

 

-Elder Guinto

Letter to our Family - Received 3/14/2011

Dear Guinto family,

I just returned from a trip to the New York area for business. While I was there I took the opportunity to go to church in the Jersey City second ward. The elders quorum president of that ward was once in a teachers quorum where I was the advisor many years ago.  Blah, Blah, Blah. Here’s the part you might care about. I was able to meet your son and go on split’s with him the following Saturday! I was so impressed. We went to the first appointment. As you know most places you have to be buzzed in. So we were trying to get in and they weren’t answering the door. Just then a couple of nice little ladies walked up with a key and let us in. Not to miss a chance your son approached the lady and asked her if she was a religious person? She responded that she was and he asked her if she would like to hear their message of Christ. She said she would love it. He got her name and number and scheduled an appointment for this Wednesday. I know you pray for him and for his investigators. If you would please just add Beverly to that list specifically and especially for this Wednesday! Elder Guinto did such an amazing job getting her to commit to listen and she seemed truly golden to me.

So after their appointments ditched them in the morning I took them to lunch. I am preparing a talk on the power of the BOM for this Sunday so I asked your son and his companion Elder Summerhays specifically how the BOM has strengthened their lives. Elder Guinto told me that as he started to turn his life around and got with a group of good friends he started to read the BOM. He said the greatest blessing from the BOM was how it helped him draw closer to his father. He said his dad is a convert and he thinks that the BOM played a key roll in strengthening their relationship. I was deeply touched as he bore his testimony of the BOM.

I’m sure you feel very blessed to have such a good son and brother. He is setting a great example for his little sisters. Rest assured that your son is exactly where he needs to be. I’m from Utah and didn’t feel like I was in danger there at all. The NJ mission would be challenging but the rewards would be amazing as well. They had 7 confirmations the Sunday I was there!

I’ve attached a couple pic’s. They are standing in front of an investigators house and the other is their meeting house. I think they meet on the third floor somewhere. The meeting house is actually pretty nice. You have a great young man and you have obviously done a great job raising him.

Best regards,

Cody

E-mail received 03/14/2011

Pictures are on the way. I have a full card to send you with lots of pictures and things but I'm probably going to send it with a package of clothes and things.

 

It's still super weird hearing that Kylee's married and Jaron's about to go home in just another transfer. Time flies by soo fast! Although it's also kind of struck me that more people haven't gotten married in my time out here so far. The sisters who came out with me are going home at the end of this transfer, which will be very very strange to have them leave. It just seems like yesterday that I came out here!

 

That's exciting to hear that Jared is heading out on his mission! I see there's so much potential in him. He's always had big dreams and I believe he's got the tools to make many of them realities and serving the Lord is just going to help them be even more possible. I can see him being a great man when he comes off of his mission. Give him my best wishes.

 

This week's been pretty mellow. I had to go to a leadership conference for a good portion of the week in Morristown and my companion did most of the work in the area this week. We've really been making adjustments on working with the great ward with three sets of elders instead of two. Elder Summerhays and I think we're going to really start using the sisters of the ward because they've got so much potential to help us out but none of the elders really want to work it out to use them. We talked with the Relief Society President and she's really going to start rallying the sisters to go out on team ups with us so that we can get some great fellowship to the sisters we're teaching. Go Relief Society Sisters!!

 

We had a great miracle when a less-active member decided, out of the blue, to be the most active member. She just had an epiphany that she needed to get her act together and now is a gospel sharing machine! She started having Book of Mormon study with her friends after school and is just doing awesome work with the youth! It's amazing what a young woman can do when she puts her mind to it. Obedience is truly a choice that she's decided to make.

 

Other than that there's not much to report. The weather is getting progressively better and both Elder Summerhays and I are looking forward to the Spring. It should be exciting! Everyone keep reading those scriptures. We've really seen how spiritual progress really thrives or dies on how committed our minds are to study the words of Christ!

 

-Elder Guinto

E-mail received 03/07/2011

Hmmm, I guess I'll just have to room with Katelyn then. Then I'll really be able to make sure that she doesn't date anyone. Yes, I think that would be quite nice.

I'm not too worried about it. Everything will work out as it should, it usually always does.

That's exciting that Maleah keeps excelling in music. I think she would really benefit from private lessons. I remember my lessons with Sister Lueck, (I think that's spelled right.) I didn't take as much advantage of them as I could have but I definitely improved a lot. I think there's a lot of opportunities that you guys gave me that I didn't take seriously and I regret. I use to have greater resolve to improve in the future. Just make sure that it's something that Maleah wants to do and will invest herself fully in. That way it's not just putting unnecessary pressure on her and wasting everyone's time and money.

It's still just such an odd feeling that everything will be different when I go home. A missionary from the ward just returned home and yesterday spoke to the young men. It was interesting because there were almost ten boys there and 8 of them were converts within the last year. He had to take a moment to get to know the young men in his own ward! It's amazing what can change in two years. It feels so fast but looking at how much has changed it must have been a while. But there's comfort in knowing that it's all been worthwhile.

Elder Davies, one of the spanish missionaries who live with us, and I were talking this morning about some of the changes that we've made throughout our missions. We reflected on how our concept of the work has changed drastically throughout our mission. At the beginning of our missions we both definitely measured our success by numbers and comparison. We wanted to be the greatest missionaries that ever served here in New Jersey and we knew that by working hard and pushing right we could be better than everyone else and get a lot of baptisms. The more we worked though and the more we got to know the Savior and assimilate the true spirit of the Gospel, we realized what missionary work is all about. It's not about how good we are but how good we're helping others to become. One thing that I've really learned about while I've served and developed charity for those that I serve has been that true love is not about us. We may want it to be about us but laboring with such an intention will never bring us the satisfaction we desire. The more that we've let go of trying to look good to the leaders, the more that we do less to gratify ourselves, the less that we lift up ourselves the more we free ourselves to do what the Savior would have us do. I've found that when my focus is on others I am lifted up farther than I ever would be if I focused on myself. I know that the more concerned with my own well being the lonelier a world I create for myself. 

Elder Summerhays and I celebrated the confirmation of 3 new converts to the church. It was a really spiritual meeting and they've truly been like no other converts to the church that I've ever seen. They have true and sincere desires to serve in the church. They know what it's done for them and the second after the priesthood hands were removed from their heads they were telling us about people they wanted us to teach and trying to schedule days when they wanted to come out with us. They're really converted to the gospel and you can see it in their eyes. Their hearts are truly changed.  

We've been doing a great deal of finding because we've baptized all the people we were teaching and we're going to be seeing a lot of miracles in the upcoming week. I hope you all have a great week. And remember to read the scriptures!

-Elder Guinto

E-mail received 02/28/2011

Must be the signs of the times with all this crazy cold weather in Washington. I can't remember it ever really getting like that. I always tell people here about how wonderfully mild the weather always is in Washington but apparently it hasn't been so lately.

 

That's awesome that Katelyn got accepted! Although I really think there was little doubt that she would. Now that your talking about housing that raises a question. So, Pres. Bahr, in his last interview with me, talked with me a lot about preparing to go home. Probably one of the weirdest conversations ever, but he talked a lot about making sure I was prepared to go to school. One thing we might want to start thinking about is where I'm going to live while I'm at school at BYU. A few thoughts had crossed my mind since I've been out here that I might ask the Vellas if I could live with them but with Kelly not being there I don't know if that situation may or may not have changed. Another thought was living with Grandma but there may already be too many people there. I kind of don't want to have to hassle with living on campus but if that's the only option I'm willing to do whatever. Just a thought though that it may be something we might invest some time looking in to. It's also weird to think that I'll get home and Katelyn's ahead of me in school!

 

The baptismal service yesterday was amazing. There were a ton of people there. 7 people were baptized and they all wanted different people to baptize so there were 14 people in white yesterday. The picture of it is quite spectacular. There was one baptism, the one that I performed that was particularly interesting though. We've been working with this guy, who's a total champion, whose rather large in stature. Anyway, long story short he was too tall and too large to bend all the way back and get all the way under the water. We eventually had him sit down in the water and just lay down and sit back up to do the baptism! (After the 9th time trying it!) It was intense but he was a fighter through the whole ordeal. He's really going to go on to do great things in the church. He's got such a great spirit and a powerful heart.

 

We are still teaching the scary guy and his family. We're actually meeting him this Saturday. We actually visited him last week and he had colored contacts in his eyes that were bright bright red! It was pretty freaky because he looked super satanic but he talks like a soft hearted father. We're excited to see where he goes.

 

Transfers are this week but thankfully Elder Summerhays and I are staying together here in Jersey City. My fifth transfer in the area! I also got assigned to serve as the district leader for what I think will be the Jersey City/Bayonne district, but I'm not quite sure yet. I'm a little sad that I only got one transfer as a regular missionary. Truth be told I was loving not having a ton of responsibilities, but I'm really excited to serve as a district leader again.

 

I think what I like most about being a district leader and also just a missionary in general is it's so personal. I should tell you that on Saturday I sat three feet away from, shook hands with, and had a great question and answer period with Elder David A. Bednar. He visited the mission, also with Elder Whitney L. Clayton of the Presidency of the Seventy. One of the things that he taught was enabling those we teach to be independent and to learn to receive revelation. We've been viciously seeking to implement what he taught us and it's really turning us into great teachers. We're really getting to know our investigators and as a district leader I'll really get to know our district on a personal level and be able to help each other to improve. It's really an exciting opportunity.

 

It's going to be a great week. Elder Summerhays and I are excited to find that next person who the Lord has prepared to receive his Gospel and to be tools in His hands. Have a great week and keep reading those scriptures! They really are the keys to great treasures of hope.

 

-Elder Guinto

E-mail received 02/22/2011

Is Mike living in Utah again? That would be a big step. That's really good that he has a good job though. Being a mechanic will really get him going and associating with industrious people will help him to set some good goals. That's really good and I'm happy for him.

I hope Maleah starts feeling better. I can't believe you finally broke down and got her a cell phone. That's a new development. Just one word of advice for Maleah about cell phones: Don't get sucked in to the degrading and life destroying world of texting. Too much of the world is turning to cyber communication, bearing the message of "Fast" and "Convenient." The more that society turns to such impassioned and fickle communication, the more the world as a whole will lose it's literacy and tact to deal with the finer things of this world. Families who email when it's time for dinner and text each other across the table are growing more and more common in American society and greater enlarge the dangerous gap between the wisdom of the experienced and the growth of the rising generation. When you call someone it's not only faster and easier but it helps you develop a relationship with those with whom you are talking. When you text someone, a five minute conversation turns into two hours of interrupted and unfocused time spent in idle frustration as you constantly wait for the exchange of meaningless memos passed through today's "State of the Art." Be careful with it. The most cherished and loving relationships you will have will be ones you foster face to face.

It's Katelyn's birthday today! Happy birthday! I remembered when I was sitting in district meeting and I wrote down the date. It's so crazy that she's 18! She's old now! I'm glad everything seemed to go well with her birthday party.

This has been one exciting week here in Jersey City. We definitely had the best week that I've had my entire time in this area. Elder Summerhays and I were just really on the ball with planning this week and everything worked out so that we accomplished great things.

We've really been pouring a lot of our efforts in finding and in preparing our candidates for baptism. Two in particular are getting ready for baptism this Sunday, with a hopefully an added extra if we work hard enough at it. It's amazing how much they've sacrificed personally to be able to get to this point. One investigator left his job so that he can be able to go to church every Sunday! We were kind of blown away that he actually did it but when we met with him yesterday he talked to us about it. He said that he struggled to make the decision but when he finally made it there was no regret. He said that he knew that God would provide for him if he just put a little faith in him and that he could not afford, above everything else, to sacrifice the blessings that God would give to him and his family. Now that's faith in action!

Another just knew that it was true from the very beginning and has just accepted that this is the new life that God wants for him. We met him just a week and a half ago and he's come to church twice and is getting baptized this Sunday! I think finding him has really just been a testament that the Lord does His own work and that we are but tools in His hands.

We really don't do as much as people or even other missionaries think we do. This is God's work and not ours and we're given an opportunity to assist in this work. I see a lot of missionaries that are extremely occupied with being a "Successful Missionary" when that's really not the aim that God wants us to aim for. We should seek rather to do what the Lord asks of us, to be a servant. To do all that we can to serve others and serve in the way that the Lord has asked us to do it. Preach My Gospel says that without the Spirit we cannot succeed in this work regardless of our talent or ability. The more and more I serve the more I realize that I have little to contribute and that if I get so caught up in things I do I'll miss the miracles that God does.

We're really excited for this upcoming week and really anxious to see whether Elder Summerhays and I stay together for the transfer. We've really been having a good time together and I really enjoy serving with him. He's a bright eyed missionary with a lot of enthusiasm and a ton of heart.

I hope that you guys have a great week and I hope that all the time issues seem to work out with careful planning and hard work!

-Elder Guinto