Quick note to peeps

I'm not feeling well today so I don't have the energy to write a lot.

I'm doing amazing. This past week was really busy for me. We had zone training on Thursday, went to Port Alfred afterwards for exchanges. It was great though the time out of our area didn't help much. We are having a lot of success right now because of a recent convert telling all his friends about the Church. 6 people in our teaching pool are from him! Great things are coming to pass!

It's been really wet lately. My socks are always wet because of the holes in my shoes. I don't mind though.

Have a great week!

LOVE YOU ALL!

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theELDERNAYLOR

The best of me.....

Wow has this week been great!

We have been working as hard as we can to keep the work going here. Things are really starting to turn up for us. On thursday we went down to Grahamstown to do exchanges with the elders down there...that was fun. Grahamstown is such a great little city. We were there thursday night, friday, and then drove back saturday. I didn't sleep well those two nights so I was extremely tired Saturday night. When we got back to east london on saturday we didn't even have three seconds to breath, we had to get right back to work in our area. At one point I found myself hiking along a trail of mud to visit this lady that lives way out yonder in our area that has been coming to church on her own lately. My shoes were and still are covered in mud and this was just after I had washed my trousers. And she wasn't home. When we met up with the other Elders later, one looked at my muddy bottom half and said "Elder Naylor, you are sure dying strong aren't you?" I hope to think I am.

Yesterday At Church was a powerful day. We had a total of 12 investigators at Church! It was wonderful. most of these people that came are mainly because of Baxolele. He is really on fire! He has such a great desire to share this message with people and you can truly see how the gospel is changing his life. During our lesson yesterday with him, he was telling us about his coworker that he has been talking to about the Church and how she is getting interested and I was smiling ear from ear as I listened to the ways he has been going about teaching her. LOVELY!

Days are quick, I'm happy and enjoying things right now. Hope everyone has a great week!

LOVE YOU ALL!!

PS the picture is of me in front of the Church of Chris. Whose church is it? Chris's. haha. 3 Nephi 27:8

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theELDERNAYLOR

Happiness is a Blessing

The Subject to this email comes from a recent convert here, Baxolele. He was talking to us the other day about how now that he is a member, he is trying to notice the blessings from living the standards that he has been taught. He said that he expected blessings to come in material things at first but just the other day he did something that just brought him pure happiness. He took that as a blessing from Heavenly Father. It made me really think....what blessings do I miss out on because I'm looking for the wrong things? In the past two years I have gained nothing on the terms of material things or money, I haven't moved up in class, nor in status. My entire life is on hold right now as I do this service. In fact, my family has sacrificed more for me to be out here than they probably have received. So what have I been blessed with? These past two years have brought me a greater sense of who I am, who my Heavenly Father is, and the role that the Savior Jesus Christ plays in my life. I have been blessed with hardships, really bad days, and moments where I thought I was nothing. I have been blessed to learn what it means to have humility. To have patience. To realize that when you are running the best you can through life and you trip and fall that the only thing to do is to brush yourself off and keep going. I have been blessed to understand the importance of the family, the role that Heavenly Father designed it for and truly what the words "I love you" really mean. I have been blessed with a greater understanding of the Gospel and the Scriptures. I have been blessed to see people change their entire lives just to be a part of this Gospel. I have seen that in my own life, I have yet to really sacrifice anything. I have been blessed with an understanding that I don't have much to complain about in life. I have been given so much. Heavenly Father loves me so much. I have enjoyed the time I have spent in the Gospel these past few years and I hope that many years will still be ahead, full of ups and downs. Blessings shouldn't be looked at things that make life easier but make life more meaningful and worth it.

As for this past week, things didn't go quite as Elder Giles and I had planned. We had full days Tuesday and Wednesday but on Tuesday our car was getting serviced and was in the shop most the day which hurt our appointments, Wednesday everything just seemed to fall through. Thankfully Thursday was an incredible day. We went on splits with the ward and managed to get a lot of work done. Powerful day. We managed to get six people at Church again and this coming week seems to be shaping up to be a great week. We are heading to Grahamstown this Thursday for exchanges which I'm excited for because I love working with the Elders of my zone. 

I hope that everyone had an amazing week and that this coming week will be better.

I love you all! 

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theELDERNAYLOR

Miracles!

I don't have much to say this week but one thing: the hand of the Lord is in this work.

Lately we have been struggling a bit to get people to teach and things just hasn't been working how we wanted them to. So we have been praying a whole lot more than we usually do, taking the matter to the Lord and he has been listening. Yesterday we had 6 people come to church, a high for us.  Most of them were brought by Baxolele and tow others just came on their own. They all loved church and they all have some real promise. We made appointments with them all and by the time that the day ended yesterday, our whole week is pretty much booked. We are going to be very busy. I can't wait. We don't know how it happened, it just did. Truly the Lord is helping us as we have humbled ourselves and really involved him in the work. Can't wait to see what happens.

We were able to do some service at an old age home on tuesday and we had loads of fun. Most of the old people we worked with aren't mentally there anymore but you can see that it makes them happy when we are there. We snag them hymns and even danced for them and with them. It was the best service I have done on mission. Service isn't just cutting lawns! 

Sorry this is short, but know that I'm happy and things are doing well. 

Things are going to be awesome.

Peace Out. 

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theELDERNAYLOR

Transfer 17

Today is the first day of my 17th transfer which is really crazy to think about. Time has gone by so fast and I can't believe that I will be done so soon. i'm not ready to finish and  i definitely don't want to!
This week has been a crazy one! Elder Giles and I have hardly been just us two these last couple weeks with having exchanges and the APs staying with us. We had leadership training on thursday and it was such a great spiritual boost! I love learning things and discussing the Gospel! Thursday night right after the training we drove down to Port Alfred to interview a family for baptism. I love interviewing people and hear these new converts bear testimonies! Right after the interviews we drove straight onto Grahamstown in which we had exchanges with the Elders there. I went with Elder Balmforth for the day, my old comp, it was great! I love that little city, such a historical place! We came back Saturday morning but stopped by port Alfred again to drop some things off to the elders there and we had breakfast on the river front....it was awesome!

I love working with other missionaries..I learn so much from them. Being a Zone Leader is such a great experience.  It keeps me very busy but the rewards are so great.

Sorry this is short but that is my update for the week!

See you guys soon!

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theELDERNAYLOR

I got the news today, but it wasn't news to me!

Hello everyone, sorry for not writing an update last week...things have been a little wack but I'm all good and things are fine.

This week has been a great week for me for the most part, I've really seen the hand of the Lord in my work and that sure does make me happy.  On Friday we had Zone conference and it turned out really well. It was a combined conference with three zones: Queenstown, East London, and Mdantsane. I didn't have much part of it but I did do some things. I gave a talk about how 'it's all the same work' whether you are working with Less actives, recent converts, or investigators...all of them are heavenly father's children and he loves them and wants them to have the best. Elder Giles and I gave a report of the East London zone and blew people away. We used the Pokemon theme song and changed the lyrics to fit more of what was going on in the zone....we sang our little hearts out and had people pretty much on the floor laughing. it was awesome....I enjoyed it a lot.  During zone conference, the mthatha elders gave me a letter from Grace that basically changed my entire mood for the week. It was the best letter I have ever received from anyone while on mission. She thanked me for talking to her that day back in December and helping her out so much. She told me how she ahs finished the Book of Mormon and that she even gave a talk at Church a few weeks ago. She quoted a scripture in the Book of mormon that is officially my favorite now: Ether 12:4. It's a beautiful verse and I was surprised to not see it marked in my scriptures! The letter really made me realize that I am engaged in the work of the Lord and that he leads me to those who are ready to hear the gospel. 

In other days, Elder Giles and I had a first lesson with a family named the Browns, a wonderful young father led family. They had made us dinner and everything when we came and we had a lovely discussion about families and the role of the gospel in the family unit. I really pray that they will progress and accept this gospel, it will change their lives.

Oh...winter is officially here...boy has it been cold these past few days. Luckily our flat stays warm and we have yet to turn on a heater. I have no idea what I am going to do when I come back to utah and have to deal with a real winter haha.

This coming week for me is going to be probably the busiest weeks I've seen in a long time. We are fully booked from now till wednesday and then on thursday we have a training in the morning and then we are driving to Port Alfred(2 hrs away) right after that to do some interviews and THEN we are driving to Grahamstown for exchanges before we will get back on saturday. WHEW. Our week is pretty much gone! But I sure do love it because it keeps my mind focused on the things that are important.

I LOVE THIS GOSPEL. Why? Because it never changes...it will always be the same. When the world throws you curveballs and hits you hard...when life just doesn't go the way you wanted...you can always rely on God and His works. I love him. I love this Church and I love all of his children. I'm so happy to be serving them!

Have a great week everyone!

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theELDERNAYLOR

Hello.

I don't have much to really say. It has only been four days since my last update.

Elder Giles and I are really trying our hardest to work with less actives and strengthen the ward that way.  It has been kind of hard because these less actives are hard to get a hold of, but we won't give up! On Friday we went to an awesome district meeting about keeping our recent converts active in the gospel, the district leader did an awesome job. That is one of my favorite things about being a Zone leader, is going to all the different districts and working with the elders. It's an awesome calling.

Baxolele is just doing awesome, this guy is going to really help the church here. We went to teach him about the priesthood on thursday but when we asked him about it he had already read everything about it and pretty much taught us!!!! It was grand!

Things are well. This Church is true. I sure love this work. I wish my mind could stay focused and I could type all of my adventures to you...good thing that I keep a journal!!!! I see great miracles and things that are beyond my comprehension.

I love you!!

 

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theELDERNAYLOR