Back to Yucaipa

4/30

Good afternoon! So I would like to start off by saying thank you to all who have been praying for me :) I never thought it would be possible to actually feel the prayers of someone else. Not that I was lacking in faith, I just always thought that the result of a prayer for someone would just come and possibly be noticed, but not necessarily felt. If that makes sense. Well, the other day (actually the other week) I was in a lesson teaching someone somewhere and I could honestly feel the power of the prayers that others have been saying for me. Sounds a little crazy but it was recognized! :) I made a little note in my planner so that I could say this weeks ago, but I must have forgotten. Oh well, now you know!

Okay, so this week was transfers. The last thing that I was expecting to happen actually did. When we got the call, since I’m the District Leader, they just give me all of the news and I write it down so that I can relate the message to all of the missionaries in my district. Well, they started by telling me all of the people that were leaving Murrieta. When they got to my companion I was like, oh great, this is normal... NO! They call my name Elder McNew; he is going to be serving in the Yucaipa 4th ward!?! What??? Okay, so I continue writing and he tells me all of the people that are coming new into the zone. Sister Larsen and Sister Sonoma are going to be in the Winchester ward; okay, this is nuts. Are you telling me that we are getting doubled out and replaced by SISTERS!? Um, whatever!

Ha, so it was shocking, but I do know that the Sisters will do great in the Winchester ward and I also know that the Lord has a plan and part of that plan is having me go back to Yucaipa :) Ha, it’s kind of awesome because, well first I get to see some of the people that I left, and also my new companion is Elder KAVA. That’s right, a Polynesian from Hawaii :) He is so chill! He has only been out three months so I will be his step daddy! (His companion right after his trainer AKA daddy) lol It’s going to be sick! And I’ll bet the guys at the Yucaipa bike shop miss seeing me around lol :) Aright well that is about all of the news that I have for today.

Love you all!
Thanks for everything :)

 LOVE, Elder McNew

Birthday Visitors

Okay, So this week was awesome, absolutely awesome!
 Here we go! So, on Monday, as you know, I was able to go out to dinner with Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt Jean.
So last week as soon as I was done emailing here we went home and met everyone at our house. Everyone means grandma, grandpa, and aunt Jean. Everyone really hit it off well with my home-share family, the Shelley's. After a little reunion we went to Sizzler and got some food. We visited together and it was great! Then we went shopping at Wal*MART.

After that we all headed back to the Shelley's house and I had asked if we could have a lesson, and they said it was cool. So we had a little lesson on the Doctrine of Christ. I shared one of my favorite scriptures and then we shared a video and it was really good! :) During the video I was thinking about my grandparents, and more specifically my grandpa and how I had never really heard his testimony, at least from what I could recall. So after we watched the video I asked grandpa to bear his testimony. Without hesitation, he was proud to bear it! I would have to say hearing my grandfather bear his testimony with such a strong conviction and seeing such a (what i have always seen) a rough and tough man bear his testimony with just pure conviction was amazing. It was super simple but I could tell it was real! I think I felt it the most when he began to cry a little bit. It was awesome. Definitely one of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had on my mission. I was to be able to teach my grandparents and Aunt Jean and then hear my grandfather bear his testimony :) ... so definitely a highlight of my mission and week.

 On Thursday we had interviews with President Smart and it was great! I have decided to focus on charity, patience, and obedience. Most specifically; charity. It is something that I have noticed I have struggled with. It's something that I never really noticed that I had a struggle with until my mission. I love everyone, but sometimes its hard to have the pure Love of Christ. As it describes in Ether 12:27: "If you come unto the Lord, He will show you your weakness." Notice weakness is singular. In 1 Nephi 19:6 it says; "weakness is the flesh or the natural man!" We are all weak and when we grow closer to Christ and strive to become like him, he shows us where we can improve. Just like it says in one of my favorite talks by Elder Enzio Buche: "unleashing the dormant spirit"

 Okay, that's about all for this week :)

Love you all! Thanks

Love, Elder McNew

Falling Down to Heaven

4-9-12

Hey what’s up!

So this week was great! I have a few experiences thoughts that I would like to share with you all. The past few weeks I have had the opportunity to go on exchanges with some of the Elders and Zone Leaders in my district.  I had kind of a cool spiritual experience that I wanted to share.  It’s just kind of awesome how the Lord can really speak to us through the Holy Ghost and how we can learn from the spirit.

So, I was riding down a hill and I got a prompting to go the other way (up the hill).  I was cruisin' down this hill and I didn’t really want to turn around so I just continued to ride down the hill.  When I got to the bottom the prompting was pretty strong so I turned around and I started back up the hill! I was on exchanges with Elder Lamb and he said, " Oh, did you go the wrong way?"
"No, I just feel like we should go this way."
So, as we were riding up the hill, sure enough there was a man walking his dog and we stopped and talked to him.  We walked/rode slowly with him back down the hill.  We had a pretty good discussion and ended up leaving him with a Book of Mormon and committed him to read it! It was cool, something kinda small. But it’s always good to be the receptor of good, through our Father in Heaven.

Another cool experience that I had was something I learned from our home share when I was on exchanges with the zone leaders.  It was that in order to progress, we need to fall down. Let me explain. It comes from a book called Falling Down to Heaven. And the principal is that, like the people in First Nephi (in Lehi's dream of the Tree of Life in chapter 8), all of the people who made it to the tree and stayed there were those who fell to their knees as they arrived.  All the others (in short) either wandered off or fell away before even making it to the tree, or after they partook of the fruit.  They fell away because of the other people mocking and pointing fingers.

The lessons I learned this week are that first, when we are riding downhill sometimes it’s just too easy and the Lord wants us to turn around and go up hill.  And, although it may be a struggle at first, we are rewarded in the end. The second thing would be that we can never let ourselves be puffed up. We must remain humble and on our knees in prayer so that the Lord can help us progress and move forward.  Hence, "Falling Down to Heaven."

That’s about all for this week! The Church is true and the book is Blue! Lol :)

Love you! Love, Elder Justin Charles McNew

Thoughts from General Conference

4/02/12

Well, I'm doing pretty good! This week was great! We got a new investigator kinda, but then she hasn't been in contact with us since, but I am stoked to have seen conference!  It was great I'm sure you know. My favorite talk was the one by Dieter F. Uchtdorf, it was about forgiveness and being charitable and loving others.  I think the reason that I enjoyed it so much is because I felt like it spoke to me. I have been struggling with being charitable and patient. Probably because I pray to become such.  But. I think I have it all figured out now.

Oh, and I got to work on a truck this week! I love having time to do things that I haven't done in such a long time.  Like when I was in Moreno Valley I got to work on a car and this week I got to work on Brother Alejos' truck.  We just did plugs and wired and ran some sea foam through the cab, but it was still fun to me. Work, fun? Yeah! Even doing work as a missionary to me is enjoyable. I remember at the beginning of my mission I was thinking like, "the best two years"? Yeah right, more like the most difficult two years of my life.  I have to wake up at 6:30 everyday and when I wake up in the morning I dread doing more missionary work. (this was when I was only out a few weeks) but since then I have truly come to love it and I would not take back my opportunity to serve for anything. It was the best decision I have made. Simply because I have come to know the true purpose of life! The Atonement is so important to me now! Worldly things just aren't as important to me as they used to be. God's Plan for us is so real! I think people need to analyze their lives and look and see what is truly important to them. There was a talk in conference that was about that I think it was in the priesthood session. It was talking about the differences between sacred and secular things. I totally have to agree. I think people forget the true reason they are even at church partaking of the sacrament. It's a bigger deal than some people make it! Anyway, sorry to ramble.

I just want to finish with my testimony.  That I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the true and living church that has been established once again on the earth through the prophet Joseph Smith. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God as well as the Bible, as far as it is translated correctly. I know that it is only in and through the Savior Jesus Christ that we can find TRUE and lasting happiness in life, I also know that God is real, he is our Father and he loves all of his children, he loves and cares and knows each of us individually and is there by our sides every step of the way, especially in times of trial struggles and loneliness. If we are willing to turn to him in prayer and ask for his help, he is there and he will help us. All we have to do (as described in scripture specifically Matthew: 7) is ask, seek, and knock. I know prayer is real and it works. The plan that God has for us is amazing and true. All we have to do is stay on the narrow path, that is impossible to stay on WITHOUT HELP. I also know that if we take the words that were and are spoken by current church prophets and listen and follow them we will make it back to live with our Father in Heaven again.  Of these things I bear testimony of and say in the name of our true and living Savior Jesus Christ.  Amen.

I love you and hope that you have a great week! - your little brother Elder Justin Charles McNew

March 26, 2012

3/26/12

Hey whats up?

This week for me was great! We have been teaching 20 lessons per week regularly, which is great!  The ward helps out quite a bit with our teaching efforts and its so helpful. I remember at the beginning of my mission my mission president (Pres. Reeves) told me that a teaching missionary is a happy missionary and I would have to definitely agree. A cool part of our week was that we got a new investigator! He had been taught a few times by the other missionaries and since the ward split he is now in our ward. It's awesome.  His name is Jason, he is married but I don't think that his wife is super interested. Give us some time and she will be.  Jason is a very good guy! He is golden.  He basically told us that he already thinks that the church is true! So, all we have to do is teach and invite and he will follow. He already quit smoking and drinking previously so now all he has to work on is coffee. No biggie!

Oh, and check this out.  Since the ward split we have a whole new half to our area and that area is over or around a huge hill, (small mountain).  Well we chose to check out how we could get over the hill. We found an off-road pedestrian trail that goes over the hill so we rode our bikes to the other side and it took us about 20 minutes.  There is a gully with a stream and trees it's a sweet bike ride!

You know who Escape The Fate is? A couple of the band members are in my ward! They have been there the whole time and I didn't realize it until like two weeks ago. They are kind of less-active, but they are way cool. We teach them on every Wednesday.  We got to talking and stuff and they are going to get me a signed CD and they said that when they come to Salt Lake he can get me into some shows and we could hang out and stuff.   He said that it's good to be around a better influence and it would help keep them out of trouble.

Anyway, I think that's about all for now!
Love you!
Have a good week!

Love, Elder McNew