This is the Place!!

Hey Mom!

Jonny and new companion Elder Dumont

This place is awesome! I'm so excited to be serving in the Currituck Branch! This branch absolutely LOVES missionaries. And I love the people here already so it's gonna be great! I'm gonna miss Poquoson so much, but I'm really excited to be here. 

Mother's day is coming up and I'm really excited! What time is your church? My church meets from 10 to 1 here, so that's 7-10 for you guys. We need to set up what time we're going to do that call! What time would you want to do it? I'll find out where we're going to do it over here, but I'm pretty sure we're going to Skype! Maybe even Face time but I dont' know yet.

The branch on Sunday was a lot of fun. We meet at 10 in the morning, in an old baptist church haha! It was converted to look like an LDS church on the inside, but the outside is just this old brick building. I have some pictures of the outside of it! THe chapel is really small, and then we split it up with curtains to make the classrooms. We probably had about 50 or so people there on Sunday. It was so fun! They had me bear my testimony right after the sacrament, and I guess Brother Huggins tried to record it... haha! So many members in this branch are just the best! I talked to a member of the branch named Brother Etheridge, and he asked if I was related to someone named Zach Collier... crazy right? Apparently they're on the same facebook group titled "Book of Mormon Archaeology". Tell Zach I met someone he kinda knows haha!

Our area is HUGE geographically! We cover all of the Currituck Peninusla and part of the Camden peninsula. Our area goes all the way down to the bridge to the Outer Banks, so that's pretty cool! We never really get a chance to go down there because we don't have enough miles... Our miles are pretty low so we've had to be pretty good planners to use those effectively. It would probably take us about 50 minutes to drive from the southern end to the northern end of our area!

My companion Elder Dumont and I get along really well already! He's from Riverton, Utah. I know... another Utah companion haha! He's the district leader here, and it's his last transfer so I'll be "Killing" him hahaha! It'll be weird! Our district is the two of us here in Currituck, and then there are English and Spanish Elders over on Nag's Head! I got to go to Nag's Head on Friday for a District Meeting! We drove through Kitty Hawk and that was so cool. I'll get to go to Nag's Head on exchanges pretty soon so I'm excited about that.

We live in a trailer... haha it's pretty cool. It's something I've never thought I'd do! But it's actually pretty nice! There are two full bathrooms so we each get one, and we don't have to worry about neighbors above us or next to us! WE do have to get water delivered to us though... OUr tap water is pretty gross. But other than that it's great! 

It sounds like you guys had a lot of fun this week! Good luck at State! You'll do awesome. And I hope that Grandma and Grandpa are still happy. I love them so much, and I pray for them all the time. I think that a gratitude journal is a great idea for her!

And yes I did get my bike fixed! It was a LOT cheaper this time so that was good! Hopefully it will last me longer than the other one did.

That's about all that's new with me this week. New area, new companion, and I'm so excited. There's so much good to be done here in this area, I just know it. I just have to serve with all my heart, might, mind, and strength and exercise that faith. My ponderizing scripture for the week is Ether 15:34 (I just finished Ether today) "Now the last words which are written by Ether are these: Whether the Lord will that I be translated, or that I suffer the will of the Lord in the flesh, it mattereth not, if it so be that I am saved in the kingdom of God. Amen." I really liked this verse today, because I know that no matter what happens on my mission, no matter how many baptisms I see, all that really matters is that I worked my hardest and make it to the kingdom of God. I haven't been able to see anyone I've taught get baptized yet, but I'm glad that I know that I have worked hard so far and I will continue to work hard! I just want to continue to get better as I'm out here. I love being on a mission!

Thanks for everything you do for me Mom! I love you so much and I'll talk to you next week. And over Skype in a couple weeks!!!!

Love you so much.

Your son,

Elder Collier

Transfers Strike Again!

Hey Mom!!

Sammy and Avery look like they had  a great time at prom! Those pictures are fantastic! Dad does such a great job! 

This week was great! I had such a good time this week. We had a ward talent show, so that's where I sang Never Be the Same! It was such a fun activity. Our investigator Matt actually drove us there and back, it was so fun! And Sister Moon is the greatest! She's feeding us on Tuesday and she asked what I wanted! 

I did find out that I got transferred though... I'm going to miss Poquoson so much! I have met so many great people here in this ward! I got a few pictures to send home with people. I have learned so much from my time here in Poquoson, and I hope I can leave an impact on the ward members here! 

Elders from Jonny's District

Family from his ward

Investigator Matt

Another family from Poquoson

Another family... their son just got his call to Mexico

The next 3 pics are ward families

Okey from Nigeria

I'm getting transferred to the Currituck branch in North Carolina! I'm going to be in the same district as the Nag's Head missionaries and I think I have a slice of the outer banks in my area! I'm really excited. My new address is going to be 141 Little Joe's Lane, Barco, North Carolina 27917. We live in a trailer park! No joke! I'm not gonna lie, I'm pretty excited. My new companion's name is Elder Dumont, and he is on his last transfer in the mission! So that will be pretty cool as well. I'm nervous, but really excited for the change. I'm also just fairly excited to get a new companion... so that'll be nice!

That is so cool that Reed got baptized this week. I know that he has made the right decision, and I'm so excited for him! and that's also really cool that Zach got to baptize him! 

I cannot believe Morgan is married already... tell her I said congratulations! 

Other than transfers, not a lot happened this week! Our investigator Matt is doing as great as always. He still hasn't set a date, but we've got him thinking about one! He mentioned June, so it's getting close! I love that guy. He comes to church every week, and is living all the commandments and reading the book of Mormon. He's doing everything he needs to! Ah well, he'll get there eventually and I'll be so happy when that day comes! Matt came to a baptism on Saturday and he really enjoyed it. I think that he's going to set a date sooner rather than later. I'm just sad I'm going to miss it... I've been working with him my entire time in Poquoson!

We went on two exchanges this week! I was with my district leader on Tuesday, and I was able to learn a lot from him! Part of the reason I'm excited to go to a new area is that I can meet a lot of new people. (I have NEVER been like this in my life! haha!) I honestly can say that I want to talk to new people though! That's already one of the ways that the mission has changed me! I absolutely love being out here. 

Not much else to talk about this week... Okey went back to Africa... But he said he's going email me when he can! And our BIshop is going to make sure the mission president over there knows that he's there! Other than that it's just been another great week.

My ponderizing scripture is going to be 1 Nephi 1:3 "And I know that the record which I make is ture; and I make it with mine own hand; and I make it according to my knowledge." I just love how Nephi opens up the Book of Mormon essentially with his testimony of it! He actually wrote this record, and he knows that it is true. And I know that this book is true as well! I have read it and prayed about it, and I know it's true. And because of that, I just want to let everyone know! 

It sounds like you are doing great Mom! Let Grandma know I wished her a happy birthday! I'll get her a card as soon as I can. 

I love you so much Mom! I I know the church is true! I'll talk to you soon!

Love,

Elder Collier

Another Week as a Missionary!

Hey Mom!

It's been a pretty good week this week. It's funny to see the amount of emails and letters you get go down the longer you are out in the field... haha! But I'm glad to hear from you guys. It sounds like you had a lot of fun over Spring Break! I wish we could go to Hawaii some time too.. haha. My companion the other day was telling me how EVERY SINGLE Christmas his family goes to Hawaii. Who does that? haha. There's so many other fun things to do like the National Parks! Ah well haha. 

I can't believe Sammy is going to Prom... crazy. They sound like they are going to have fun! And Elder Lee is married? What? THat's so weird!!

I haven't been able to get my bike fixed just cause I haven't had a lot of time but I'm going to take it in today! Hopefully they can fix it for free, cause it shouldn't have broken that fast! I'll see what they can do. I've got a bike right now that some members are loaning me! But I do like my bike a lot better. I'll let you know what happens!

I may need a few more long sleeve white shirts... I've gotten a few stains on 2 of them from pens and bike grease. You do a lot more on your mission in a white shirt and tie than you would do at any other point in your life haha! 

We have not been able to teach that family again... but the son said that his dad was reading the Book of Mormon! Their dad left on another trip though. He took the Book of Mormon with him which is a good sign! But they do not really want to meet with us without him. We'll still keep checking up on them though and see what happens! 

Our investigator Okey from Nigeria leaves this week and it's super sad! Our Bishop is going to contact the mission president over there and make sure that they don't miss him. He's so solid! I'm so excited for him. He really wants to get baptized and loves the church and has a strong testimony of Jesus Christ. I have been able to feel the Spirit so strong in those lessons! We have one more lesson with him, so hopefully I can get a picture of him to send home. He's going to go and convert his whole family! I'm so excited to see where that goes. The gospel is so true. 

Thursday was a long day... I got some sort of stomach bug and it was awful. I got it all out of my system, but all day Thursday I was in bed or throwing up. It reminded my of December my senior year when I was sick! It definitely wasn't that bad though which was nice. I feel perfectly fine now though. It was so weird! I may have also been dehydrated, so I've been drinking a lot of gatorade. 

I don't have much to talk about this week, but I love being out here. I feel that I have truly become converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and I just want to share it with others because it is so important! My ponderizing scripture for this week is 2 Nephi 2:8 "Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save ti be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise." We have learned about the Atonement and Resurrection and it is just so important that we go out and share it with others! I love that I can do this every day. I'm excited to make the Gospel a part of my life more and more every day, especially from the changes I see in others. 

I love you Mom! I'm so grateful to hear from you every week. The church is so true. 

Love you so much,

Elder Collier

Isn't Conference Great??

Missionaries are the only people I know that put Peeps in the microwave
 to watch them explode!

Hey Mom! 

General Conference was so great!! I absolutely love watching it. There's something even more special about watching it as a missionary. I just feel like I have a totally different perspective. I was able to learn a lot from these sessions! We watched conference at 4 different members homes! We were at the Camarena's saturday morning, (although it starts at 12 here so it's not really "morning" haha) Then the Tackett's saturday afternoon, then the stake center for Priesthood Session, then the Johnson's for Sunday morning, and the Rigtrup's for Sunday afternoon! It was really cool to watch it with all of them, and I'm so thankful that they allowed us to come over! There is definitely something to be said about watching conference in a church building, but I also love being around the members! And that's really cool that you made him a cake for his birthday! Missionaries love that stuff! 

It's so hard to pick a favorite talk! I really liked all those talks. Paul V. Johnson's hit me pretty hard!
One of my favorite ones was Elder Mervyn B. Arnold's! He talked about "going to the rescue" and never quitting. He was the Seventy that came to our mission in November, and then our stake conference in January! So it was pretty cool to see him up there. 

I didn't know that Sister McKnight was singing in the choir! That's so cool! and that's funny that you saw bro McKnight first haha! They did such a great job. Even the priesthood choir did pretty good this year! I just always love listening to the different arrangements of the songs and hymns. I hope I can sing in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir some day!

Thank you for that picture of Grandma and  Grandpa. They look just like I left them! That made me happy to see them.

That choir tour sounds like it was pretty fun! Have you ever done anything like that before? And I'm sorry about state. I can't believe it didn't happen this year. Ah well, there's always next year! Plus you still made it for the men's quartet! And yes... I have definitely been able to more clearly see the Bigger Picture since being out on my mission. There are things that matter just a little bit more! 

This week was pretty great. My allergies are killing me though! There is pollen everywhere. I took a picture of our car one morning, but there is this thin layer of yellow pollen on everyone's cars. I had to go get some Flonase, and I've been on that, an allergy pill, and sudafed all week. I take it in the morning, I'm good for the day, and then it all seems to wear off about 9:30 at night, and then the mornings I feel like garbage again. But as long as I'm still able to go out and work I'm fine! I did lose my voice because of them though, which was really weird! I know I'm not sick! My voice has been slowly coming back... it's really hard to rest your voice when you want to talk with people! (I should probably be better at not talking... haha!)

Can you see the pollen on the car?

Saturday was a crazy day though! We were on bikes this weekend, and in between the morning and afternooon sessions we decided to go see this less active family! Well it's close to our apartment, but the only way to get there is to bike down the 55 mph highway without any sidewalks... So we went down there! It was Saturday and it wasn't too busy. We got there about 3:20 and the next session started at 4, so we didn't have a lot of time. Well as we were pulling up to their trailer, my rear derailleur hanger broke. Again! It's 'the same exact thing that broke last time! I was a little frustrated. And we didn't know how we were going to get back because we couldn't walk up the Highway! And conference started soon! So we called Bro Tackett and he said he could come get us ( I was so thankful for that). But as we turned around to walk to where he was going to meet us ( I had to carry my bike too) we saw a former investigator walk by! He was one of the boys in that family that dropped us. We talked to him and we were able to set up a time where we could come back and meet with them! We were able to get a book of Mormon in Vietnamese for his Dad too. It was kinda crazy that the only way we would have talked to him is if my bike broke like that. Sometimes you gotta make sacrifices! 

The Johnson's are letting me borrow their bike again, and I'll have to take my bike to get fixed when we get the car back from the Sisters. It'll all work out! 

Then Sunday we were able to have a good lesson with Matt. He's doing really well, and we just talked about the role of the Holy Ghost in our study of the Book of Mormon! It was a good lesson. We invited him to keep a study journal! As I've done this on my mission I definitely know that writing stuff down helps you be more in tune with the Spirit. When we write it down and act on it, we receive more. 

Overall it was a fairly good week. Things are definitely tough, but I've learned to just let things come and deal with it! Sometimes opposition just happens. Elder Oaks had a great talk about that in General Conference! But I know that Jesus Christ can help lighten our load. I'm going to ponderize Mosiah 24:15 this week which talks about this! "And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord." I know that while opposition is necessary for our progression, the atonement of Jesus Christ is what helps us through that! Everything is for our good and will work out in the end. It definitely hard to see it in the moment, but I know that eventually things will get better! Sometimes like you said, you just have to look at the big picture! 

Thank you so much Mom! It was great to hear from you this week. I love and am so thankful for everything that you do for me. Thank you for your testimony and example. I know that this church is true! As Elder Holland put it "We just have to try." As long as we try our best, we will receive those blessings! Our Heavenly Father loves us! Jesus Christ is His Son, and is resurrected.

I love you so much, and I will talk to you next week! 

Love,

Elder Collier

Happy Easter!!

Hey Mom!

Easter was really great! And thank you so much for the Easter box as well! It came like right at the right time. We were having a tough couple of days and Elder Sorensen and I both got packages so it was great.  For Easter dinner we actually didn't have any resurrection potatoes! I know I couldn't believe it! The family we were with had like a ton of family in town because one of their kids got baptized, and we had Lamb Burgers. They were pretty good, but just not the traditional Easter dinner! Also one of them said that they knew a Jonathan Collier in Northern Virginia, is that my cousin Jonathan? I hope your dinner was great!

Wow all four of them came up from Utah? That sounds like it was a lot of fun! Hopefully y'all had a good time! 

I'm glad Grandma is able to do rehab now.. I've been praying for her so much. I hope she gets better soon! Grandpa is still driving? haha! That man never quits! I'm glad they can still see each other every day. 

Chamber auditions are always tough... but that sounds like a great group of people! I can't wait to see all those freshman guys when I get back! They'll all be seniors! It'll be weird. Hopefully they aren't causing too much trouble haha! I'm not there to keep them in line. It sounds like they're all starting to really mature though which is great to hear. 

So back to the tough couple of days... it was a long week this week! It felt like our investigators just started dropping like flies. We were teaching three families, a couple, and 4 individuals, and then this past week we only met with our investigator Matt (who is solid) and then one of our new investigators, Brooke! And we were dropped by: that one family who came to church, another family that we found, and an older couple that we were teaching. And then another one of our investigators we found out is in the hospital, but for a while we just thought he disappeared! It's been a crazy week, and we haven't really been able to get in touch with anyone. So hopefully that will change this next week! We did see some more less active members than we have been though so that was great. 

Through it all we just kept pushing forward. On Thursday we got dropped by that family, and that was just devastating. But we won't give up on them! I know that we can do all things that we are asked. The great thing is that this ward is just so awesome. We try to work as hard as we can, and I think that the ward notices so they love us! And I love this ward too. They work so hard! We haven't gotten many referrals recently, but a few are in the midst. I'm excited! 

I don't have a lot of time today because we have some plans for P-day. We're gonna go play volley ball! But I love you so much mom! My ponderizing scripture is Philipians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." This one is pretty self explanatory, but I am so thankful for Jesus Christ! I know that through Him, all things are possible. He rose from the dead, and because of that, we can overcome death. He suffered in the garden of Gethsemane, and because of that, we can overcome Sin. If we put our faith in Him, all things will be made right. It's all possible! This is the true church of Jesus Christ. 

Thank you so much for your love and support. I will talk with you next week! 

Love,

Elder Collier

Hallelujah!!!

Hey Mom!

You have just been put through everything at once it seems like! Right when work starts to pick up, something else crazy happens. I hope Grandma is recovering better! Tell her that I love her. I hope everything goes well. 

That's fun that Zach and Skyla are up there! And I'm so glad that Skyla is feeling better. And that is so funny that Lilo follows Dad around. I feel like all dogs love Dad! How big has Lilo gotten? She probably won't remember me at all! haha!

I can't believe Danielle leaves already! That is so crazy. She's going to do great! And Autumn's going to the Czech Republic? That's crazy! 

This week was pretty good. We had a Zone conference on Friday that was pretty fun to be at! The Spirit was so present at that meeting. It was something I definitely needed to feel. At the Zone Conference, I was asked to accompany a musical number, so I did! They sang Nearer, My God to Thee, and I kinda just made up an accompaniment so that was pretty fun! They did really well. Something I got out of Zone Conference was that I want to be better at talking with everyone I see. That is something that I really want to focus on this week! 

 After missionary meetings I always just feel super excited to be a missionary! That day we were on bikes because we gave the car back to the Sisters... and we had scheduled 3 appointments, miles apart from each other... back to back to back. And then dinner right after. I don't know what we were thinking! As we were sprinting on our bikes, I was praying the entire time that we would be on time! We were a little late to the first one about 2 miles away, but that was okay because they wanted to reschedule anyway, and we got their phone number so that is a plus! Then we had to sprint back about 3 miles to get to a less active couple's house! We had a short 15 minute lesson with them, then went down the street to one of our investigator's house, and had a short 15 minute lesson on the Plan of Salvation. We got a return appointment out of both of those too! Then we had to sprint back to our apartment about 1 mile so that we could get to dinner! I had dropped the phone and we had to pick it up and put it back together, but once we got to dinner, I felt so accomplished! We had 2 lessons within 45 minutes, and had biked 6 miles in about an hour. It was a crazy day! Miracles do happen! 

So our investigator, Okey, the one from Nigeria is leaving this week! I'm gonna be so sad to see him go! But we sent his information to the mission in Nigeria, and we are going to give him the address to the church building nearest him. We may also start teaching a woman from Japan! We don't know if she understands a word we are saying, but we gave her a Japanese Book of Mormon, and Restoration pamphlet! Her 8 year old son has been translating for us... so we'll see how that goes on Thursday! 

We also stumbled across an Unbaptized Youth the other week, and we started teaching her today! We were just biking along and we felt like we should go stop by someone we had taught before, and as we were biking this girl stopped us and asked us if we were Mormons! We said, "Yeah!" and she told us that her dad was in our ward, and she lives with her Mom right now. Her Mom doesn't want anything to do with us, but Brooke, the daughter, was super excited to see us! She got permission to meet with us so we have started teaching her, and she has a friend who is a youth in the ward, so it is perfect!

And on Sunday we went into a CTR 7 class and encouraged them to be member missionaries! That was pretty fun. I love helping the little kids be excited about the Gospel! 

Those are some things that happened this week! I love being out here. 

The church also put out an easter video and you should go watch it! It's called Hallelujah. It is seriously so inspiring! The website is followhim.mormon.org. I thought I would make my ponderizing scripture Easter related because of the upcoming holiday! "And if Christ had not risen from the dead, or have broken the bands of death that the grave should have no victory, and that death should have no sting, there could have been no resurrection. But there is a resurrection, therefore the grave hath no victory, and the sting of death is swallowed up in Christ." (Mosiah 16:7-9) Because of Jesus Christ, we will ALL be resurrected! I love how plainly the scriptures teach us that. And you are exactly right, because of the Atonement and resurrection of Christ, we can have the confidence and comfort to know that all will be well in the end.  Hallelujah! 

I love this Gospel! I love everything about it, and I am so excited for Easter. It's a great time to remember Christ's atonement and resurrection. 

Thank you so much for everything you said Mom! You set such a great example for me! I love you. Everything will all work out. 

Hope you have a great week! I love you so much.

Elder Collier

Room for Improvement

Hey Mom! 

Solo and Ensemble is probably the most stressful time of the year. I'm not going to lie, I'm kinda happy that I didn't have to deal with it! But that sounds like it was a crazy day! The competition is definitely rising in that region. It used to be a piece of cake to get to State. (It used to be a piece of cake to win state). I think the hardest part of that competition is the regional one! But I'm so happy for all the groups! There's definitely still a chance for y'all to get a call up! I can't believe there were actually disqualifications and everything! I've never seen that! Crazy.

That choral festival you guys will have will turn out great! I'm really excited for y'all! 

Sister Moon (our ward mission leader's wife) walked up after I sang and said that she had "accidentally" pressed record while I was singing haha! She's the same one that texted you and asked for your special waffle recipe. She told me that it was your special recipe and I said, "Bisquick?" haha! That made me pretty happy. I got a lot of compliments on Sunday after the meeting, and a lot of members of the ward were telling me that they needed to hear that song because they were having a tough week. I felt so loved by everyone! I'm just so thankful that I have this talent that I can share with others. And we had 6 investigators there, so I think that they liked it too!

This week has been pretty great. We have been able to teach a lot of lessons recently. I'm not even sure where they all come from sometimes! I just look at the totals at the end of the week, and they seem to be increasing. We still don't have any investigators with a baptismal date, but that should change soon. At least we are keeping busy with how much we are teaching! We can always be busier though. 

I was having a tough time earlier this week. My companion and I are very similar. When we both have an idea for something, and they are different from each other, we have a hard time deciding which one is right. My stubbornness is becoming a problem! haha! We can both be pretty stubborn sometimes, and during those times we tend to not get along. But other times it's like we are best friends! It's super weird. But earlier this week, I was just struggling because I couldn't tell if I was feeling the Spirit or not. I don't know what had gotten into me, I just kinda felt alone. But I prayed, and I worked through it. Sometimes I feel like we go through trials of faith, just to see if we won't give up. For me, the best answer was just to keep working and have faith that what I'm doing is right. As I pressed forward through that day. From 10 to about 5, I still didn't think I had gotten an answer. But we had a lesson at 5 with one of our investigators, and I know that me teaching in that lesson was my answer that I am doing the right thing. I could feel the Spirit so strong, and I KNEW that I am supposed to help him! I just love being a missionary. 

I've been trying to be more diligent and work hard at all times. It's definitely a process, but that's what this Gospel is all about! We can ALWAYS try to get better! No matter what we are going through, no matter what we have done, we can ALWAYS be a better person. Even if we have done that right things for most of our lives! There is always some room for improvement. Which brings me to my scripture that I will ponderize this week, Alma 48:17 "Yea, verily, verily, I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men."  That's where I want to get to! I want to be a man like Captain Moroni. And I know that through the help of our Savior Jesus Christ, we can always improve!

And Mom, I know that you are definitely helping with the Salvation of souls through your work at the school. I personally don't think I'd be here today without the constant support I had from you! And I know that there are so many other members of the church that you help every single day! You are an amazing example, and I love you so much. 

Thank you for everything! I love you so much. I hope you have a great week this week!

Love,

Elder Collier