Hot and Cold

Here at home we have had some heavy snow storms and cold temperatures in the single digits. 
But in Tobago....

ARGYLE  FALLS

   Well I'd just like to start off by rubbing in some warm weather! It is 85 degrees and real humid! haha like always! I'm used to it now though! At the start of my mission you probably could have made the ocean raise an inch or so with how thick of a stream of sweat was coming off my face! Now I'm acclimatized and it feels actually quite nice! It's also the rainy season and we are getting a lot of rain!

Cool missionaries that are on fire....

E. Christensen and I have been getting along great! He is a super hard worker and he LOVES DUCK DYNASTY, hunting and fishing and camping!!! OHHH YAA!!! It's been so fun the past few days! He knows how to be serious and knows how to be sensitive and spiritual. He has only been out for 3 months but he is very smart and follows the spirit very close. Obedience and Diligence are our goals! This past week we have been doing a lot of contacting! We have been finding a lot of new investigators to teach and we have slowly been increasing our teaching pool! We have found some really awesome people that we see some amazing potential in! I will say that being a District Leader is pretty much baptism by fire. You just have to learn as you go and adjust your life to the new standards!

Elder Hill and Elder Christensen

We have been having a man named L---- fix the car. After the radiator was put in the corolla he came up to us and said..."Elders, I have been meaning to ask you some questions about your church. And I'm pretty interested about what you guys teach so will you come and teach me?"... MY JAW JUST ABOUT HIT THE GROUND! It was so awesome! We told him we would love to come by and teach him. So we set an appointment to visit him the next day around 1:00pm. We got there a few minutes late and then he told us that he was swamped with work, and that if we could teach him as he worked he would appreciate it. So we did. He asked some awesome questions about how people are going around and performing miracles. He told us that something wasn't sitting right with him, and I told him it's because God is not in it. He replied...what do you mean? I said, Well in order for it to be a God given act, God's authority has to be present. He replied... How does a man get the authority. I then told him, It's given to him by someone holding it. It was a really long discussion and I could totally tell that it wasn't my words. It was a pretty cool experience and I see some great potential in him.

Zone Conf.- Transfers - Thanksgiving!

So Friday we woke up at 4:30 am so that we could make it to the airport by 6:00 am and board at 6:30. We made it to the mission home around 8:30. Zone Conference lasted until 3:00 pm. We had interviews after and a big tie trade; I got a couple of sick ones. I loved my interview with President Mehr. He really just knows how to help out. He told me that the Lord is blessing me for my diligence and courage to stand up for what's right. He gave me my official transfer call and then had me recite my memorized scriptures (1 Nephi 16: 17-32). He told me that he wants me to memorize a full chapter for the next interview I have with him! Haha ok President! We were taken to the airport at around 7 that night and got home around 9:30 pm. We got to our apartment at 10:00 - it was a very long day but was really inspirational and I loved it a lot.

I'm pretty nervous about being a District Leader and all of the responsibilities that come with it! It will stretch me into more of what Heavenly Father wants me to be and I'm really excited and can't wait to baptize more here on the wonderful island of Tobago! My district now consists of Sister Reddy, Sister Joseph (from St. Lucia) and my new companion Elder Christensen. The Zone Leader...(just one) comes up once a transfer and does a 3 day trade off with the missionaries here on Tobago! So there is a lot of flying involved with the island missionaries. 

Trinidad South, Central, and Tobago Zones

We went to the Lintons to have a Thanksgiving feast! Rolls, turkey, potato's, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and jello. All made by Sister Linton! She spoils us!

Sooo Much To Be Thankful For!

 

Gotta Love Ocean Baptisms!

 It is amazing to see the change come over people when they are baptized.  Half way through the baptismal interview for N-----  his father came and told us that he had been doing a lot of thinking and knew that he needed to be baptised with his son on Saturday. My jaw just about hit the floor! So we had 2 awesome baptisms. I was able to confirm F-----.  He is a completely changed person and actually participates in the lessons in Sunday School and Priesthood. Amazing!

Tobago Baptismal Font

fish in the warm clear water

Beautiful Baptism Day 

Sweet Is The Peace The Gospel Brings

Well everyone! It sure seems like the time just flies by when you are giving all of your time to the Lord! 

A fun and cool story that happened this week when I was with Elder Reyes Tuesday on trade-offs. We were told that a certain area called Bacolet in lower Scarborough was a dead zone and it was difficult to get people to listen. E. Reyes and I went knowing this and had our heads held high, and we walked in being really positive. I really felt I needed to find someone in this certain area. We contacted some really awesome people in there. I asked a man named Alvin If he had ever seen a missionary in the area before and he immediately said no. I was drawn back from the comment, I asked another person and they said the same thing. These people have also lived in Bacolet for 15 plus years and the church has only been on Tobago for 5. We were walking towards a dead end on a road called Bacolet Cres. and the beach was in front of us. A real big storm was coming in and it started to pour. We snapped a few quick pics( E. Reyes hadn't seen the beach for almost a year so he was island trunky... :) ) and then it really started to rain! 

Then a man that is 6'6'' weighing prob...285, big massive rugby player look...starts running at us, and E. Reyes, says.. "we need to leave". I felt peace and love and told him I wanted to talk. I was very scared at this giant man running at me full speed. I held my ground. He comes up to me and says "Hello my name is Anthony, what is yours?" I was so taken back at how soft hearted this man was. I loved him instantly. He was super cool and told us he has always wanted to talk to a missionary but has never seen one. I just started to speak and I taught him about the Restoration and how Jesus Christs church has once again been established on the earth. He told me well if it was gone it would have to be brought back...ent.( saying for correct in Windies) I really felt the spirit as I was talking to him and I know he was feeling it too because he wouldn't leave us. He walked us to the street and helped us catch a car to head back down the road. We set up an appointment to come back this week so we can teach him more about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. I learned from this whole experience that we can't be too quick to judge, because that person might just be the next member of the church. I really love this man now and I hope we can get him to accept this wonderful message of the restoration. It was a very awesome yet humbling experience for me. I really had a good time with E. Reyes and E. Christensen. (<-- he is from Oak City Utah...by Delta somewhere) He loves to hunt and fish so you can imagine that we got along really well. 

We are preparing a boy name N--- for Baptism this Saturday..he is 16 and is a sweet little kid... He has a learning speed like an 8 year old but he is very nice and lights up when you talk about Christ and Baptism. We are also helping his dad prepare for baptism as well.

We have been teaching a man named W---. His best friend's mother was killed in Trinidad just a few days ago and the only people he could think about calling was the missionaries. I hung up the phone with him and he said... Elder Hill,... I love you so much... I then just about cried, because I could feel this mans pain... We saw him the next day and had a great lesson... His countenance was completely changed and It was a great experience for me!!! 

Well Thats all I have time for this week!!! I love you All!

Elder Hill

Day Of Service

Thank you to the senior missionary couple's blog for the following information about the International Day of Service for the West Indies Mission in Tobago....

On November 2, 2013 the branch members of Tobago assembled at Lambeau Beach in Helping Hands Vests to clean up the debris that washes ashore from the millions of square miles of open water. Members of all ages worked for 2 hours and gathered 80 bags of trash along a stretch of beach about 1/3 of a mile long. Working together helped form strong bonds of friendship. The Helping Hands volunteers were treated to a breakfast of sandwiches, fry bake, coconut bake, cheese paste, sausage and treats which were brought by members of the Tobago Branch.

Elder Hill

Showers of Blessings

Hey Every one! 

I'm doing well in Tobago...Except I have had a pretty bad cold all week! I have a lot of head and chest congestion and one day I had to stay inside because when I would stand up it felt like my head was going to explode and I also had a fever. It really sucked but now I'm doing good and just have the sniffles. It's not really fun being sick and also doing missionary work at the same time. It is really draining. Although I did get some good nap time because that's what the mission doctor told me to do...Sleep! It was the best Gift I could receive at the time! Oh boy did it feel so amazing to get some extra sleep!

I was able to give quite a few blessings this week. They were all very good experiences for me and I wrote them all in my journal. It still amazes me to be an instrument in the Lords hands. I absolutely love that feeling of love and appreciation when I do something right. My testimony has grown so much in the powers of the priesthood since I have been on Tobago.

C---- is doing great but didn't come to church yesterday so we have to push his date back a week...but that's a small thing! We taught him last night and had a good lesson with him about the Plan of Salvation and how families can be together. It was a really great lesson and the spirit was really strong! He accepts everyting we teach which makes it really cool and awesome! Were going back over on Wednesday, to teach The Plan in full detail! It will be a good lesson I'm sure.

Another awesome baptism in the ocean -- while it was raining! What a blessing to be 'Clean'!

BuMp Day!

Hey everyone!! I just celebrated my 6 month mark!! It really does seem just like yesterday I was getting kicked out the door and told to not look back. But I'm glad I did it and It has been a lot of fun and a great change for me. I have grown a lot in the past six months. I feel like a completely different person and I'm excited to see how much I've grown when I make it back to the states. 

I survived a 6.1 earthquake! It was actually freaking awesome! We were talking on the phone Friday night at around 10:15 pm (so 8:15 pm your time). As I was talking to E. Reyes in Chaguanas, we hear "oh my gosh do you feel the earthquake?"...we're like no...then it wasn't 10 seconds, and our apartment starts shaking. We start screaming and I start looking for something to climb under... then it ended! It was pretty crazy and has been quite interesting talking to everyone and hearing their story. No damage was done surprisingly but it was a pretty cool experience. Quite the way to wrap up 6 months - right?

(Earthquake was off the coast of Venezuala; about 50 miles west of Port of Spain, Trinidad)

General Conference

General Conference. I loved all of the talks and for some reason I really enjoyed sitting on my bum for 10 hours...haha. I'm proud to say I never fell asleep and I was pretty proud of myself. President Mehr gave us a challenge to listen to the spirit as we watched conference. I took the challenge and when I was listening to what the Lord wanted me to hear, I was amazed on what I was receiving. After every talk I just felt like they were all talking to me and that I was being edified by the spirit. I loved all the talks, I didn't have a favorite, because they all touched me in a very special, and spiritual way. I did realize something very scary though. My thought was that Satan will be working double time and putting it into overdrive, on bringing souls into misery. I really want you all to focus on the teaching of the past conference so that you will be strengthened and you won't be caught in Satan's grasp. Robert D. Hales even said that we need to listen and then study the teachings after so we won't fall hard.

Elder Petersen and Elder Hill reserved seats for their fathers at the Priesthood Session. Since they were able to watch it live, their dads truly were with them in spirit.

Ocean Baptisms!

 Things here in Tobago are looking up....After 7 months, finally a baptism! Elder Linton had to pull her back because the first time she didn't go all the way under. She came out of the water screaming, 'Mommy'.

Elder Peterson and Elder Hill

   

     

Our evening baptism was scheduled for about the same time as the sunset. I was asked to do the baptism...I was very excited and pretty nervous. It was a great experience. I felt the spirit really strong all day and it was just great to feel Heavenly Fathers love for me for so long. I know I am in the right place at the right time doing what God has intended for me to do...finding my buddies and bringing them in to the fold.

The less active family I have been praying and fasting for came to church! The mom asked for some scriptures so they can start having daily scripture reading. Another member I was fasting for came to church and stayed for the whole block; he also wanted some scriptures. My testimony of fasting has definitely changed and will never be the same again. I love fasting and I can't wait till next month. We also had 48 at church and 18 Priesthood holders - 6 Melchizedek! That's really good for this area.

I'm pretty excited for General Conference this Saturday and Sunday! We get to watch it live here and so that makes it even better!

Studying On The Beach

We have a car! It really helps a lot because most of the members live outside of our walking distance and so it will boost some rcla (recent convert/less active) lessons. Having a car it makes our job so much easier and we don't have to stand and wait for a taxi for 2 hours.

This morning we woke up and went and did studying on the beach in a secluded area where we do baptisms (Back Bay - by Mt. Irving). It was a lot of fun and it was really beautiful. It was a lot of fun to see all the crabs and 'ting'... haha. It is actually a Leather Back Turtle egg laying ground in July when all the turtles are laying their eggs. Pretty sweet! 

    

We had a cool story with a member that hadn't been to church in a few months. He served in this mission a few years ago and then went less active when he got home. We shared the john tanner story with him about tithes. It really touched his heart and he opened up to us. He told us that he thought the missionaries hated him because they weren't coming by...Elder Petersen got the prompting to do service a few times last week and he didn't know we were the ones doing it. He started to get really emotional when I told him we were the ones helping him with building his addition to his home. After the lesson he told us he was going to come to church and that he wants to be a member missionary. Really neat story about reactivation. He has come to church 3 weeks in a row now and he went up to Branch President Linton and told him that he wanted a calling in the church... Now he is the new Branch Clerk... And to think if Elder Petersen and I wouldn't have done service, he would still be having a grudge against us and we wouldn't have a clerk now.

We have really been working hard here in Tobago and can actually see the miracles that are happening here! I love the people so so much here and I have only met just a few in a three week period. I feel my Heavenly Father's love so much every time I talk to someone... I just feel that need of being kind and gentle to everyone. I am really going to miss the people here when it's my time to leave. I'm going to cry when I leave this place... for some reason I've bonded here better with the members and the people... I know that this is where God wants me. 

I'm going to finish with my testimony...I have really received a personal witness of these things. I know that God lives and that he is watching over us every second of every day. I know that love is a major part of what kept Jesus Christ going. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and that as we read it, it will help us gain that testimony that we so desire or want to have. I know that this Gospel is the only way we can find our true self and make it back to live with our Eternal Heavenly Father. I know that this work at my fingertips is so, so important and that making it to the Temple is super important. You don't really miss something until it's gone...and i can tell you I miss the Temple so badly! I know that God knows us personally and that if we just ask for his help we shall receive it. I know these things to be true..This is my personal witness.

Love you all!
Elder Hill