Hello my friends and family!
This week was true to my prediction last week, it cruised by.
I've mentioned a few different meetings in the past that come every month or so, and this week we had a lot of them. On Tuesday we met with President and Sister Gubler and other missionaries from around the mission to council together about how we can help each other to keep up our successes but as well how to keep moving forward. That one lasted basically all day haha, but it was great!
That translated over into having a very similar meeting on Wednesday, but with missionaries from around the zone. Then on Thursday we got to district meeting with the Crystal Palace missionaries! It was fun to go back and see them again! Even though I was not there for a few weeks it was still good to go back and see Elder Chazuka as well as the other elders in the district.
On Friday we went on an exchange! We went with Elder Hartshorn and Elder Fa'aoso from Crystal Palace. I went with Elder Fa'aoso, the last time I went on exchange with him was only a few weeks ago but we both changed and improved in that time, so it was very rewarding to see that. Plus they are hilarious, so we had a good time.
We were blessed with many miracles this week! On Thursday night we met Tony, a great man with a stalwart faith in Christ. He originally converted from Islam to Catholicism, but now he worships with the Jehovah's Witnesses. We talked with him for a minute and he quickly invited us to walk with him to his house so we could sit down and teach him. When we got there he invited his wife to come and listen as well but she was in the middle of taking care of their newborn, so she couldn't join us. As we taught him about the Restoration he was wrestling two kids on his lap but miraculously kept them from running away and still stayed locked in on us during the lesson. His questions were amazing, and the Spirit speaking to all of us was constant throughout almost the whole lesson. As soon as it was over he set an appointment for us to come the next day, and Elder Howe and Elder Hartshorn were able to teach him on exchange!
Giving the Lord everything I have is the least I can do for the experience my mission has been this far. I owe Him everything.
I love you all! I love hearing from you! Talk to you soon!
Elder Draney
Monday, April 11, 2016
Monday, April 4, 2016
Peckham!
Hello my friends and family!
The first week in Peckham flew by. It happens every week, but I just thought I would remind you. :)
Honestly it's been amazing, we saw a lot of miracles and were to but it very simply just blessed this week. Elder Howe and I are doing great, the first few days of our companionship felt like we were on exchange again but things have settled in and we are having a good time.
Conference was amazing. No other way to put it. The things spoke about and the answers I received to questions I had confirm to me that the speakers are called of God and speak His words.
I've gotten to know the other missionaries we are staying with as well, Elder Pitbladdo and Elder Ferreira, they are hilarious! Our flat is a lot of fun. It's interesting though because it's full of old antique ashtrays, furnaces, and creepy African carvings that are all part of the furniture that came with the flat. Regardless it's great. In the coming weeks other elders in the zone will be coming to our flat for exchanges, so it's going to get pretty full pretty quick, so we bought a ton of food today.
This week is going to be crazy crazy busy, but I'm looking forward to it, so you'll get another "This week flew by!" next week!
One of the miracles that we saw this week was meeting our friend Gregory. On Wednesday night we ran outside for our last 20 minutes of the day after some phone calls and we were able to talk with him very briefly and invite him to meet us at the chapel the next morning. On Thursday we were able to show him around the chapel and teach him about the Restoration. It was a great teach because he was focuses in on us entirely and Elder Howe and I both knew that the Spirit was speaking through us exactly the words he needed to hear. At the end of the lesson he prayed and afterword said "I think I'm onto something good,". All the rest of the day we saw many other miracles, but that is the one I felt to share!
I love serving here in England! I never think it can, but my love grows for the work the longer and longer I serve. I love you all as well!
Elder Draney
The first week in Peckham flew by. It happens every week, but I just thought I would remind you. :)
Honestly it's been amazing, we saw a lot of miracles and were to but it very simply just blessed this week. Elder Howe and I are doing great, the first few days of our companionship felt like we were on exchange again but things have settled in and we are having a good time.
Conference was amazing. No other way to put it. The things spoke about and the answers I received to questions I had confirm to me that the speakers are called of God and speak His words.
I've gotten to know the other missionaries we are staying with as well, Elder Pitbladdo and Elder Ferreira, they are hilarious! Our flat is a lot of fun. It's interesting though because it's full of old antique ashtrays, furnaces, and creepy African carvings that are all part of the furniture that came with the flat. Regardless it's great. In the coming weeks other elders in the zone will be coming to our flat for exchanges, so it's going to get pretty full pretty quick, so we bought a ton of food today.
This week is going to be crazy crazy busy, but I'm looking forward to it, so you'll get another "This week flew by!" next week!
One of the miracles that we saw this week was meeting our friend Gregory. On Wednesday night we ran outside for our last 20 minutes of the day after some phone calls and we were able to talk with him very briefly and invite him to meet us at the chapel the next morning. On Thursday we were able to show him around the chapel and teach him about the Restoration. It was a great teach because he was focuses in on us entirely and Elder Howe and I both knew that the Spirit was speaking through us exactly the words he needed to hear. At the end of the lesson he prayed and afterword said "I think I'm onto something good,". All the rest of the day we saw many other miracles, but that is the one I felt to share!
I love serving here in England! I never think it can, but my love grows for the work the longer and longer I serve. I love you all as well!
Elder Draney
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
March Moves!
Hello my friends and family!
This email is going to be very short, just a warning at the beginning.
A very in expected change came this week! After serving in Crystal Palace for only 6 weeks I got moved! Seven transfers in Croydon and only one in Crystal Palace! I've moved to Peckham, which is the ward that covers all of Central London in our mission. Most of our area is bordered by the Thames, and we have the Eye and the Shard in our area. Peckham ward borders Crystal Palace ward and we are in the same zone, so I basically hop-scotched my way into London! I'm pumped!
My new companion with be Elder Howe! We've already gone on exchange a couple of times on different areas and served around each other for awhile so it will be a lot of fun! We will be staying in a flat with the Spanish speaking missionaries in London as well so it's going to be good time!
I'm so sad to leave Elder Chazuka :'( we got to know each other really really well in just a few weeks. He's one of my brothers. The nice part is though that he is staying in Crystal Palace and we will be able to go on exchanges together as time goes on! Both of us were so sad when President Gubler called us to tell me I was moving, but it
turns out we will be right next to each other so we won't be far at all.
That's pretty much all I have time to write about, we still have to finish preparing for the week so we don't have loads of time.
I love you all so much! Have a good week! :)
Elder Draney
This email is going to be very short, just a warning at the beginning.
A very in expected change came this week! After serving in Crystal Palace for only 6 weeks I got moved! Seven transfers in Croydon and only one in Crystal Palace! I've moved to Peckham, which is the ward that covers all of Central London in our mission. Most of our area is bordered by the Thames, and we have the Eye and the Shard in our area. Peckham ward borders Crystal Palace ward and we are in the same zone, so I basically hop-scotched my way into London! I'm pumped!
My new companion with be Elder Howe! We've already gone on exchange a couple of times on different areas and served around each other for awhile so it will be a lot of fun! We will be staying in a flat with the Spanish speaking missionaries in London as well so it's going to be good time!
I'm so sad to leave Elder Chazuka :'( we got to know each other really really well in just a few weeks. He's one of my brothers. The nice part is though that he is staying in Crystal Palace and we will be able to go on exchanges together as time goes on! Both of us were so sad when President Gubler called us to tell me I was moving, but it
turns out we will be right next to each other so we won't be far at all.
That's pretty much all I have time to write about, we still have to finish preparing for the week so we don't have loads of time.
I love you all so much! Have a good week! :)
Elder Draney
Monday, March 21, 2016
Easter Week
Hello my friends and family!
This email will probably be really short, there was a lot we had to do today and still some things we need to finish so I apologise!
This week flew by! Some weeks are refining weeks on mission, and this was a refining week. Some days it felt like everything was slipping through our hands and their was nothing we could do about it, but regardless many things we saw this week still confirmed to us that the Lord is in control.
On Sunday night we were at a fireside with President Gubler where he was training us and the members from the stake on reaching out as member missionaries, and at the end a sister approached us and told us that she had been less-active for 4 years and wanted to start coming back to church. She told us that she wants us to come and reteach her the gospel, and that her non-member boyfriend would be there as well. It was definitely a great blessing right at the end of the week!
This week is the last week of the transfer, so we will find out what is happening to all the missionaries in our district. Elder Chazuka and I are confident that both of us will stay. I pray that we will, because we really get along and have done a lot of good work together.
Plus he makes really good food!
This email will probably be really short, there was a lot we had to do today and still some things we need to finish so I apologise!
This week flew by! Some weeks are refining weeks on mission, and this was a refining week. Some days it felt like everything was slipping through our hands and their was nothing we could do about it, but regardless many things we saw this week still confirmed to us that the Lord is in control.
On Sunday night we were at a fireside with President Gubler where he was training us and the members from the stake on reaching out as member missionaries, and at the end a sister approached us and told us that she had been less-active for 4 years and wanted to start coming back to church. She told us that she wants us to come and reteach her the gospel, and that her non-member boyfriend would be there as well. It was definitely a great blessing right at the end of the week!
This week is the last week of the transfer, so we will find out what is happening to all the missionaries in our district. Elder Chazuka and I are confident that both of us will stay. I pray that we will, because we really get along and have done a lot of good work together.
Plus he makes really good food!
Monday, March 14, 2016
Hallelujah!
Hello my friends and family!
There are always very interesting things that happen in our weeks as missionaries, but most of the time they don't translate into good stories via email! Regardless of how exciting this email may end up sounding, Elder Chazuka and I had an eventful week.
I have to mention first how strong Elder Chazuka is, and how much of an example he is. During this week we found out that one of his siblings passed away suddenly. After communicating with home and finding out the details to make sure everybody else was okay he pushed through and continued to work. He's pushed through a lot of different trials on his mission and since we've been companions, all the time with a smile on his face.
We were able to accomplish a lot this week, it definitely wasn't a perfect week but the Lord blessed us with many opportunities to teach. We've been able to help our investigators a lot this week which is always a great feeling. At the end of one of our lessons this week with Sophia she prayed and thanked the Lord for answers that she had been waiting for for a long time.
Our time in Crystal Palace has gone by soooo fast, but at the same time it feels like we have been companions for a lot longer than a month.
Some of you probably know but yesterday the website FollowHim.mormon.org went live with videos about the Savior for the Easter season, and they are very good. Definitely watch the videos and share them! I'm not asking you to because I'm compelled to in any way, but because they truly are profound and were made for the purpose of spreading the gospel message across the globe. We've been given an amazing missionary tool right in our laps so we should use it to meet our responsibility to share what we know. :)
Sorry for the short letter this week, there is a lot we still need to do today!
Love you all!
Elder Draney
There are always very interesting things that happen in our weeks as missionaries, but most of the time they don't translate into good stories via email! Regardless of how exciting this email may end up sounding, Elder Chazuka and I had an eventful week.
I have to mention first how strong Elder Chazuka is, and how much of an example he is. During this week we found out that one of his siblings passed away suddenly. After communicating with home and finding out the details to make sure everybody else was okay he pushed through and continued to work. He's pushed through a lot of different trials on his mission and since we've been companions, all the time with a smile on his face.
We were able to accomplish a lot this week, it definitely wasn't a perfect week but the Lord blessed us with many opportunities to teach. We've been able to help our investigators a lot this week which is always a great feeling. At the end of one of our lessons this week with Sophia she prayed and thanked the Lord for answers that she had been waiting for for a long time.
Our time in Crystal Palace has gone by soooo fast, but at the same time it feels like we have been companions for a lot longer than a month.
Some of you probably know but yesterday the website FollowHim.mormon.org went live with videos about the Savior for the Easter season, and they are very good. Definitely watch the videos and share them! I'm not asking you to because I'm compelled to in any way, but because they truly are profound and were made for the purpose of spreading the gospel message across the globe. We've been given an amazing missionary tool right in our laps so we should use it to meet our responsibility to share what we know. :)
Sorry for the short letter this week, there is a lot we still need to do today!
Love you all!
Elder Draney
Monday, March 7, 2016
Good morning!
Hello my friends and family!
Elder Chazuka and I had a great week!
Last Monday night we met our new friend Ade from Nigeria! We talked to her only briefly when we first met her but she said to come back the next day, so we did! She has a strong faith in the Savior and asks a lot of questions, but is humble and listens intently to everything we have shared with her thus far. We are going to see her again a few times this week which will be great!
On Tuesday we taught one of our friends Sophia who was taught a little bit by the missionaries before us, and the lesson went really well. She is preparing to be baptised on the 19th of this month! She really wants to feel closer to her Father in Heaven and knows what she needs to do to receive a testimony of what we have shared with her, so we are confident things will continue to go well.
We went on exchange from Wednesday to Thursday deeper up in London near Elephant & Castle (gotta love the names in London). It's interesting to see how the environment can change so much just a few minutes away from our area but the people stay pretty much the same! We even found people in the other elder's area that live all the way down in the bottom of our area. The further we get into London the more we end up referring people to other missionaries because most of the time they are just passing through our area on their way home. It didn't happen as often in Croydon but we get it almost everyday here so sometimes it's hard to keep on top of the people we are teaching and the people we need to send to other missionaries!
Friday was a good day as well, we were able to teach Sophia again and do some service for a sister in the ward who lives very close to us. I remember back home whenever Dad would volunteer us to help with service needed in the ward I would always drag my feet. I'm grateful for the opportunities we have on mission to serve others and see the look of relief in their faces has changed my attitude about service.
We had some more service on Saturday cleaning the chapel. We spent an hour poring industrial strength detergent on the parking lot to kill the moss growing on it. Definitely a new experience, but it was fun!
Those are what the weeks look like in Crystal Palace! Elder Chazuka and I are having a ball serving the people here together. At the beginning of my mission I never believed the "Best two years" phrase, but the Lord has humbled and changed me. I can't see it any other way now, I love serving and growing here in England. I might just have to extend my mission 😉 (I can't, I asked 🙁)
Love you all!
Elder Draney
Elder Chazuka and I had a great week!
Last Monday night we met our new friend Ade from Nigeria! We talked to her only briefly when we first met her but she said to come back the next day, so we did! She has a strong faith in the Savior and asks a lot of questions, but is humble and listens intently to everything we have shared with her thus far. We are going to see her again a few times this week which will be great!
On Tuesday we taught one of our friends Sophia who was taught a little bit by the missionaries before us, and the lesson went really well. She is preparing to be baptised on the 19th of this month! She really wants to feel closer to her Father in Heaven and knows what she needs to do to receive a testimony of what we have shared with her, so we are confident things will continue to go well.
We went on exchange from Wednesday to Thursday deeper up in London near Elephant & Castle (gotta love the names in London). It's interesting to see how the environment can change so much just a few minutes away from our area but the people stay pretty much the same! We even found people in the other elder's area that live all the way down in the bottom of our area. The further we get into London the more we end up referring people to other missionaries because most of the time they are just passing through our area on their way home. It didn't happen as often in Croydon but we get it almost everyday here so sometimes it's hard to keep on top of the people we are teaching and the people we need to send to other missionaries!
Friday was a good day as well, we were able to teach Sophia again and do some service for a sister in the ward who lives very close to us. I remember back home whenever Dad would volunteer us to help with service needed in the ward I would always drag my feet. I'm grateful for the opportunities we have on mission to serve others and see the look of relief in their faces has changed my attitude about service.
We had some more service on Saturday cleaning the chapel. We spent an hour poring industrial strength detergent on the parking lot to kill the moss growing on it. Definitely a new experience, but it was fun!
Those are what the weeks look like in Crystal Palace! Elder Chazuka and I are having a ball serving the people here together. At the beginning of my mission I never believed the "Best two years" phrase, but the Lord has humbled and changed me. I can't see it any other way now, I love serving and growing here in England. I might just have to extend my mission 😉 (I can't, I asked 🙁)
Love you all!
Elder Draney
Monday, February 29, 2016
Happy Leap Day
Hello my friends and family!
It was another fun week in Crystal Palace! Elder Chazuka and I feel like we've settled down pretty well thus far. Getting around in our area is the biggest thing we are getting used to but we have figured it out quicker than I thought we would.
This email is probably going to be really short because we haven't had much time to sit down and write our emails so I apologise if it seems brief!
On Wednesday we had a meeting with of the missionaries in the Wandsworth Zone (The only zone completely in London). There are a lot of missionaries that I know well in the zone and all of the missionaries are solid hard workers, I'm grateful to be serving around them.
On Friday we had to travel down to Croydon so I could take the driving theory test. It was really weird to be back in Croydon even though it's only been a couple weeks. I could definitely feel the difference in being there, that Crystal Palace is where we are both supposed to be. Even though it was the same city, the comparably small mantle had shifted. It was definitely very interesting. I passed the test as well, so it was a good day!
Saturday was a really special day for us! A few months ago I wrote about in my letters a woman that we were teaching named Brenda, and on Saturday she got baptised! Elder Chrimes and I taught her several times before we found out that she lives in an entirely different part of London, so we referred her to the sister missionaries in Clapham Ward. The reason that we were there is because Clapham and Crystal Palace wards meet at the same chapel and President Gubler gave us permission to go and support her. It was great to see it happen because it is something she has been looking forward to for a long time. She was so happy the whole time and that happiness spread over to all of us who were there.
The pictures will explain why the email is short and why we are emailing so late, but hopefully they make up for it!
My favourite scripture I read this week came from Alma 7, which is an amazing sermon on its own but is full of shorter verses that are great as well. It's verses 23&24:
"23 And now I would that ye should be humble, and be submissive and
gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering;
being temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the
commandments of God at all times; asking for whatsoever things ye
stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks
unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive.
24 And see that ye have faith, hope, and charity, and then ye will
always abound in good works."
It's a great formula to continually be happy and bless others around you.
I love you all!
Elder Draney
It was another fun week in Crystal Palace! Elder Chazuka and I feel like we've settled down pretty well thus far. Getting around in our area is the biggest thing we are getting used to but we have figured it out quicker than I thought we would.
This email is probably going to be really short because we haven't had much time to sit down and write our emails so I apologise if it seems brief!
On Wednesday we had a meeting with of the missionaries in the Wandsworth Zone (The only zone completely in London). There are a lot of missionaries that I know well in the zone and all of the missionaries are solid hard workers, I'm grateful to be serving around them.
On Friday we had to travel down to Croydon so I could take the driving theory test. It was really weird to be back in Croydon even though it's only been a couple weeks. I could definitely feel the difference in being there, that Crystal Palace is where we are both supposed to be. Even though it was the same city, the comparably small mantle had shifted. It was definitely very interesting. I passed the test as well, so it was a good day!
Saturday was a really special day for us! A few months ago I wrote about in my letters a woman that we were teaching named Brenda, and on Saturday she got baptised! Elder Chrimes and I taught her several times before we found out that she lives in an entirely different part of London, so we referred her to the sister missionaries in Clapham Ward. The reason that we were there is because Clapham and Crystal Palace wards meet at the same chapel and President Gubler gave us permission to go and support her. It was great to see it happen because it is something she has been looking forward to for a long time. She was so happy the whole time and that happiness spread over to all of us who were there.
The pictures will explain why the email is short and why we are emailing so late, but hopefully they make up for it!
My favourite scripture I read this week came from Alma 7, which is an amazing sermon on its own but is full of shorter verses that are great as well. It's verses 23&24:
"23 And now I would that ye should be humble, and be submissive and
gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering;
being temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the
commandments of God at all times; asking for whatsoever things ye
stand in need, both spiritual and temporal; always returning thanks
unto God for whatsoever things ye do receive.
24 And see that ye have faith, hope, and charity, and then ye will
always abound in good works."
It's a great formula to continually be happy and bless others around you.
I love you all!
Elder Draney
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