27 July, 2015 - Week 3

Dear lovely family,

I miss you all and love you. The work is starting to slow down a bit but still busy nonetheless.

Tuesday we started to prepare a baptism for a investigator. This investigator had been taught for a while and was planned to be baptized last week but when the zone leaders went to give her the baptismal interview, she was gone. Well, we caught up with her and she said is was just a minor thing and it won't happen again. She got her interview and had everything planned for the ceremony. I am just so lucky to come in when the work is strong.

Wednesday was the day of the baptism! For some reason the bishop here likes to have baptisms on Wednesdays, which I find weird, but it's California. Anyway we go through the day and then after lunch we got a call from the guy baptizing that we won't be there until around 7 or 8 when the baptism was planned for 6. We then called the investigator and she was really determined to have this guy baptize her and wanted to postpone the baptism to Sunday and we were thinking"No way! You pushed this back too much!" So after several calls to the ward mission leader and a bishop's councilor since the bishop was out of town and other people, we managed to have a set time for 7:30. So we got the font filled and ready to go and the investigator didn't show up until 7:45 and the guy baptizing didn't arrive until 7:55. It was really scary but it got done after 3 or 4 tries since this was the guy's first time to baptize.

Thursday was basically a breather as we recovered from the baptism chaos...and we did so by preparing for another baptism. This investigator is a lot more solid and has that excitement in his eyes as he went to church and priest's quorum as he is only 17. After church last week, he was so excited and curious about the Priesthood. He has that enthusiasm which is hard to find. So he is ready to be baptized this Wednesday at 6. I think he will be on time. We also did weekly planning and all that fun stuff.

Friday and Saturday was when we started to look at the Part-Member family list. We didn't have a lot of luck and we discovered that 2 or 3 of them actually moved, but one of them might still be in the area. These days are the hard days we had but some things you can always count on like the presence of the Spirit...and dinner appointments. Apparently this ward is really well known for feeding the missionaries well. So far we only had one appointment cancel, but that's OK.

Sunday was my first ward council meeting. For some reason they only do it every other week but we have mission coordination meetings every week so that's good. Every talk, lesson and testimony is so great here. A lot of the members are some sort of a convert so their testimonies are great since they know what their lives are like without the gospel. That is something we all can learn from. After yet again hard times we felt inspired to visit an investigator we planned to visit tomorrow. So we went and ended up talking to the father of the household instead of the investigator and we discovered his trials and concern that we otherwise would not have noticed because he is always so happy. It was great to help him out.

So for the rest of the day we plan on visiting that investigator I mentioned on Sunday and hope that we can get her fully committed to being baptized since she knows it all. Well I miss you all and I want to hear from all of you.

❤Elder Jewkes

20 July, 2015 - First week in the mission!

Hello everybody!

So I just got through my first week in the mission. I am doing well. It has seem to fly by rather quickly but I'm not going to pay any attention to that or it might drag on.

So I finished my stay at the MTC and took a bus and a train to SLC Airport, a plane to Ontario, CA and a car to both the mission home and Hemet which is about an hour or so away. So it was a lot of sitting and waiting...especially if there was an hour delay at the airport. The Mission President's Fireside was really amazing as President and Sister Mullen taught us about the true meaning of the gospel and missionary work. I got to spend the night with two missionaries who both had been here for 20 months and they helped us understand missionary work a little better.

So on Wednesday, we had training for 5 hours and then I left with my trainer, Elder Manson, to go to the Park Hill Ward area in Hemet. It was crazy! I just got there and we had a dinner appointment an hour or two later. I got to share a little scriptural thought and enjoyed Little Caesar's. It kinda reminded me of home a little.

Thursday was super busy! We had several lessons and a few baptismal dates. So I got here and there are 3 or 4 dates already! So Thursday was an amazing day. I meet many people and they were amazing.

Friday however was a little harder. It wasn't as successful but we got to ride our bikes a little more. We only had 2 or so lessons but I guess everyday can't be a perfect day.

Saturday was pouring rain all day! I guess I really should have brought an umbrella or something. Oh well. Elder Manson had something I could borrow. Of all days to go finding, it had to be that day.We walked for hours with no luck. Well, at least the rain cover on my bag works well and my shoes are really waterproof.

Sunday was amazing! I got to meet the people of the Park Hill Ward and they are amazing people. The ward only had like 60 or so but it was great. So apparently they have a person serving in the Spokane Washington Mission. I wonder if he meet Elder Shirk at all. Sacrament meeting was all about their girl's camp which kinda reminded me of home but it was great nonetheless. For Sunday School we had a great lesson on keeping the Sabbath Day holy. I actually got to go to Priest's Quorum with an investigator and he is what we call GOLDEN. He was so excited to learn about covenants and Pachriodical Blessings (or however it is spelled). 

And now it's P-DAY! My first one since last Thursday. I am SO glad to finally get another P-DAY! The zone is amazing and we had fun playing Hawaiian Football, Ultimate Frisbee, Volleyball, and Basketball. Don't worry, I didn't hurt anybody...yet☺.

Well I miss all of you. Please let the rest of the Family know that. I guess I'll write again next week.

❤Elder Jewkes (The California one)

 Sorry I forgot to mention the Pioneer Day celebration we had Saturday...in the pouring rain. There were inflatable water slides and the kids were still using them. Crazy! The party also had real handcarts that youth were pushing for the primary children. I though that was cool. The dinner part was fried chicken and potatoes with beans.So far there was only one day where we didn't have a dinner appointment. That is so cool! One day we had a watermelon the size of like 3 put together and it was in an almost perfect sphere. I had seen a Zebra and an Ostrich in the same street! It reminded me of the Llamas (or whatever it was) at the end of the road on the way to church. Alright I hope I remembered everything.

17 July, 2015 - Missionary Arrival

Dear Brother and Sister Jewkes,

We are so grateful to have Elder Benjamin Jewkes join us here in the California Riverside Mission! It was exciting to meet him at the airport. I had the opportunity to interview your missionary and we were able to hear his testimony. He told us that the MTC was a total emersion experience. He felt blessed to meet so many “cool” people. We have been impressed with his testimony and desire to serve. It has been a privilege to get to know your missionary.

Preparation day is Monday; most missionaries choose to email their family on that day. We encourage you to write or email weekly as well. Thank you for keeping your letters positive, uplifting and encouraging your son to work hard and take advantage of the time spent here in doing the work of the Lord.

We look forward to a wonderful experience together with your missionary.  Thank you for preparing one worthy to serve.  May God continue to bless you.

Sincerely,

John H. Mullen, President

16 July, 2015 - I'm safe.

So I am just e-mailing quickly that I made it to California safely and that all is well. I am in the Park Hill area which is in,,,Hemet. So all is well and I am safe.

-Elder Jewkes

9 July, 2015 - 1st week at the MTC

Hello! I would have e-mailed earlier today but there was something wrong with the computers. It was probably because there were too many missionaries trying to use the computers all at once.

Anyways, the 1st week at the MTC was crazy, fun, and everything in between. I am having a hard time believing that I am actually here! Time flies by at the MTC and it has already been a week! The first day was long but everyday after that starts to get shorter and shorter. It was a little scary to dramatically change the lifestyle I have been living, but nevertheless I am adjusting, although by the time I am adjusted it would be time to go to California. I was shocked by how quickly we would be teaching real lessons. Maybe it is because I am teaching in my native tongue or something like that. Now a little about my companion. My companion is Elder Cornaby and he is from Mustang, Oklahoma so he is a little ways from home. We were able to get along fairly quickly. One major thing that is different from us is that I don't talk much and Elder Cornaby loves to talk. We are both trying to work on these differences so that we can equally participate in our lessons. Unfortunately, Elder Cornaby had been feeling a little sick so we went to the clinic yesterday to discover that he had some virus which is really a cold. So we got to go to the BYU Pharmacy to get some medicine for him and says he is starting to feel a little better.I was given the opportunity to anoint some consecrated oil for him and I thought it was great because I witnessed the zone leaders do the same thing for another missionary in our zone. So for the rest of our district, we have 8 Elders and 2 Sisters. The sisters, Elder Mayo (like the spread), Elder Smith, Elder Cornaby and myself are going to Riverside and Elder Elliott, Elder Levis, Elder Wilson and Elder Bronson are going to Ventura, California. Elder Mayo is our District Leader and he is an awesome cowboy who knows when to have fun and when to study hard. Elder Smith is a pretty smart and spiritual guy. So a funny story: Elder Smith accidentally got mustard on the back of his pants and didn't notice until class time and so now the companionship is called "Elder Mayo and Elder Mustard". The sisters are probably the smartest of us all, but not necessarily the most focused in the group. Sister Bradshaw always likes to have fun and Sister Pitman actually got to serve 3 months in Twin Falls, Idaho before coming here and we often look up to her to hear her experience and words of wisdom. These Elders and sisters are going to Riverside with me so we might be able to meet up again sometime. Elder Levis is actually a convert was converted about 2 years ago and is the only member in his family. He is an excellent example to all of us and he is the one that keeps us focused. Elder Elliott is a sewing master! He told us that he had sewn his shoulder bag and his scripture bag because he didn't find anything he liked. Elder Wilson is more of a geeky elder (not trying to make it sound bad of coarse) that loves to talk but he is a little stressed about being here. Luckily, Elder Bronson is a compassionate elder who sincerely cares for Elder Wilson and is trying his best to help him out. Our roommates are Elder Frost and Elder Williams (who are the zone leaders) Elder Young and Elder Moss. Everyone in our room is just so excited to go serve their missions (All to Riverside) and I love the environment they create.

The devotionals we had so far were amazing! The first one was a special 4th of July devotional that MY BRANCH PRESIDENT spoke at! It was a great devotional about how America was a chosen land for the Restoration of the Gospel. Afterward we did get to watch "The Stadium of Fire" that was a few blocks down at BYU. It was Spectacular! There were some trees and buildings in the way where the MTC Presidency wanted us to stay but it was good nonetheless. The Sunday Devotional was amazing as well as the mission conference. The best part was the devotional because it featured Jenny Oaks Baker, a talented violinist as well as related to Elder Dallin H Oaks. She performed some musical numbers with her family as well as speak about giving 100% and sharing our talents. The Devotional on Tuesday was also great. All the devotionals are great! We had Elder Condie of the Seventy speak, along with Sister Condie, about the converting power of the Restoration and our testimonies. But by far the best was the  "Characteristics of Christ" video by David A Bednar that we watched. The spirit was so strong as he talked about turning ourselves outward as Christ has done and to not think of ourselves.

I am sad that I only get one P-Day at the MTC and the next one probably won't be until next Monday, but I am glad to finally do laundry!!! Unfortunately, the Provo Temple is closed this week so we didn't get to go.  We were able to do service on Tuesday. We cleaned up the bathroom in a different Residence hall and I am sure thankful that I live in a nice, clean Residence as our room is the example for all the other rooms.

Well I miss you all. I guess I'll communicate with you again next Monday or something. Best of luck in your lives.

 Elder Benjamin Jewkes