Dear Fam,
So I was hoping for a white Christmas and it didn't happen, but the next day I felt like I was living in the North Pole. Partly because the people below us have a blow-up Santa and Elves in the yard, but mostly because there was a blizzard. We don't really know much of what goes on in the world outside of missionary work, and that includes the weather. We were at church and all of a sudden it was snowing like crazy. Then our members decided to tell us that it was going to snow all day and night, and it did. After church we went straight home and had to stay in. The next day was P-Day, and so it was super crazy trying to get all of our laundry and shopping done. The Library was closed so we couldn't e-mail, which is why I am e-mailing today. We were some of the few people who were crazy enough to go out yesterday, so we had a lot of fun at the mall that we basically had to ourselves. You don't mess with P-Day, I don't care how much snow there is, we're going out.
Christmas was awesome! We woke up and opened our presents, and then had breakfast at the church with our zone. After that we called home and then spent the rest of the day with three member families who all live in the same apartment complex. We ate a huge dinner and then they taught us all of the latest ghetto dance moves. It was awesome... I'm still sore. They laughed a lot, probably more at us than with us, but it was tons of fun. I think morning exercise will be a lot more interesting now. As weird as it sounds I'm kind of glad the holidays are over. No one ever wants to set up an appointment let alone talk to you during the holidays. Now, hopefully, we can be a lot more productive.
So a couple of weeks ago I told you I was going to tell you the story of why I had to take an Elder to the hospital, but I forgot, so I will tell you now. An Elder who covers Paterson in Spanish needed to go to the hospital, but his companion was throwing-up all night and was sick, so he called my companion and I and asked if one of us could go to the hospital with him while the other stayed home with his companion. I had seen this Elder at church the previous day and he was limping. The reason he was limping was because he had a swollen gland in his, how should I say this... manhood? I guess he passed out from the pain while he was in the shower and then went to the emergency room where they told him to go get an ultra-sound. So I took him to the hospital to get an ultra-sound. Everyone kept sending us to different parts of the hospital to see different people, and it was funny watching every one's face when they read his paper-work. I definitely will never forget it. I'm pretty sure everyone there thought we were like together, together. Oh well, can't care. so that's the story. I just talked to you guys on the phone so I don't have much else to say, other than I love you.
Love Elder Tilley
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Monday, December 20, 2010
Always Learning
My Beloved Family,
I'm finally starting to get settled in here in Paterson. I still have stuff I haven't unpacked yet, and probably won't until I have to leave. Our apartment is a blast. Elder Turnbow and I live with two other Elders, Elder Roper and Elder Casper. We all get along really well which is great! Elder Roper is training Elder Casper, so other than him our apartment is really young. Elder Roper also served in Ledgewood, so we often talk about both the awesome and the crazy people we knew there.
This week, like the one before was really rough. I don't know what happened since I wasn't here last transfer, but our area is really struggling. I finally met our only investigator a few days ago, so that's good news. I've made a point of calling every active member in our area, so that we can work with them to find people to teach, but so far nothing has paid off. We've also visited a lot of less actives, since we don't have any investigators to teach. That's probably the only success we've had so far, which helps me see that we're making a difference in some way. We talked to a less active girl named Laura who we're helping to get back on the right path, and she really opened up to us. We also talked to a less active lady, Sister Bosket, who we hope will start coming to church as well. We're trying everything we can think of, and everything Preach My Gospel can think of, but so far we haven't seen much progress.
A couple of days ago we got three referrals from a member that we were super excited about, but then we found out that they all live in the other Elder's area. I know that our hard work will pay off eventually, I just hope it does soon. Elder Roper was a Zone Leader before he came to their area, and he was dropped and sent here as a special assignment because that area was really struggling. He has done WONDERS for their area, and he has given us a lot of great advice. They have 10 baptismal dates right now and most likely have a few more on the way. Last week they got 15 referrals and 11 new investigators. They're in the same ward as us so I know it's possible for us to have a TON more success. We're just going to keep praying like everything depends on the Lord and working like everything depends on us, and I know things will turn around.
Neither my companion nor I have much experience so we're learning a lot together. It's really frustrating trying to figure out how to be a good district leader when you can't lead by example. My companion and I have been presented many challenges and because of that, I feel like I have learned more in the last two weeks than I have my whole mission. I am so grateful for this opportunity I have to learn SO MUCH. Believe me, I'm learning a lot, especially what not to do. There has been a lot of trial and error the last two weeks but we do our best.
This week should be really exciting with Christmas coming up. We are also going to the temple this Thursday and I can't wait. Hopefully I'll receive some sweet revelation on how to fix this area. What I'm most looking forward to on our temple trip, is for the opportunity to relax and really have a moment for myself. I plan on having some good quality time to spend pondering on what I can do to improve myself and my missionary work. I feel like a barely have time to think anymore. I spend all my free time studying the area book (I hope we find some former investigators who are ready to keep commitments now) and making phone calls, or doing my District Leader duties. The time spent doing these things is important, but not always fun. I am happy though, so I can't complain. I don't know how you could be a part of so great a work and not be. Hard times or tough situations are prevalent as a missionary, but overall things are great if you're doing everything you should be if you're not happy you're doing something wrong. There are many things in life that bring about sorrow and pain. There are a lot of reasons to be sad, but none to stay sad. I know that a hard working missionary is a happy missionary. This is what I try to live by. There are so many things that we cannot control. Sometimes things don't work out. As a missionary I see so many people who just won't accept the Gospel because they are lazy or they let dumb things stand in the way of accepting true happiness. Most of the time there is nothing I can do about it, I just do my part and hope that they do theirs. In the end, those who are God's Elect will do their part.
Love, Elder Tilley
P.S. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!
I'm finally starting to get settled in here in Paterson. I still have stuff I haven't unpacked yet, and probably won't until I have to leave. Our apartment is a blast. Elder Turnbow and I live with two other Elders, Elder Roper and Elder Casper. We all get along really well which is great! Elder Roper is training Elder Casper, so other than him our apartment is really young. Elder Roper also served in Ledgewood, so we often talk about both the awesome and the crazy people we knew there.
This week, like the one before was really rough. I don't know what happened since I wasn't here last transfer, but our area is really struggling. I finally met our only investigator a few days ago, so that's good news. I've made a point of calling every active member in our area, so that we can work with them to find people to teach, but so far nothing has paid off. We've also visited a lot of less actives, since we don't have any investigators to teach. That's probably the only success we've had so far, which helps me see that we're making a difference in some way. We talked to a less active girl named Laura who we're helping to get back on the right path, and she really opened up to us. We also talked to a less active lady, Sister Bosket, who we hope will start coming to church as well. We're trying everything we can think of, and everything Preach My Gospel can think of, but so far we haven't seen much progress.
A couple of days ago we got three referrals from a member that we were super excited about, but then we found out that they all live in the other Elder's area. I know that our hard work will pay off eventually, I just hope it does soon. Elder Roper was a Zone Leader before he came to their area, and he was dropped and sent here as a special assignment because that area was really struggling. He has done WONDERS for their area, and he has given us a lot of great advice. They have 10 baptismal dates right now and most likely have a few more on the way. Last week they got 15 referrals and 11 new investigators. They're in the same ward as us so I know it's possible for us to have a TON more success. We're just going to keep praying like everything depends on the Lord and working like everything depends on us, and I know things will turn around.
Neither my companion nor I have much experience so we're learning a lot together. It's really frustrating trying to figure out how to be a good district leader when you can't lead by example. My companion and I have been presented many challenges and because of that, I feel like I have learned more in the last two weeks than I have my whole mission. I am so grateful for this opportunity I have to learn SO MUCH. Believe me, I'm learning a lot, especially what not to do. There has been a lot of trial and error the last two weeks but we do our best.
This week should be really exciting with Christmas coming up. We are also going to the temple this Thursday and I can't wait. Hopefully I'll receive some sweet revelation on how to fix this area. What I'm most looking forward to on our temple trip, is for the opportunity to relax and really have a moment for myself. I plan on having some good quality time to spend pondering on what I can do to improve myself and my missionary work. I feel like a barely have time to think anymore. I spend all my free time studying the area book (I hope we find some former investigators who are ready to keep commitments now) and making phone calls, or doing my District Leader duties. The time spent doing these things is important, but not always fun. I am happy though, so I can't complain. I don't know how you could be a part of so great a work and not be. Hard times or tough situations are prevalent as a missionary, but overall things are great if you're doing everything you should be if you're not happy you're doing something wrong. There are many things in life that bring about sorrow and pain. There are a lot of reasons to be sad, but none to stay sad. I know that a hard working missionary is a happy missionary. This is what I try to live by. There are so many things that we cannot control. Sometimes things don't work out. As a missionary I see so many people who just won't accept the Gospel because they are lazy or they let dumb things stand in the way of accepting true happiness. Most of the time there is nothing I can do about it, I just do my part and hope that they do theirs. In the end, those who are God's Elect will do their part.
Love, Elder Tilley
P.S. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
New Area
Hello Family
The new area that I'm in is Paterson. We cover Paterson, Fair Lawn, Saddle Brook, Hawthorn, Elmwood Park and Haledon. It is definitely WAY different than Ledgewood, but I am loving it. My new address is 379 E 27th, 2nd floor, Paterson NJ, 07513. We spend most of our time in Paterson, and it's pretty ghetto. Almost every day we go visit someone over in the four 16-story project buildings. It's been quite an adjustment because we are working with a completely different type of people. My companion is Elder Turnbow, who has only been out one transfer. He's a really awesome elder though, and I've had a ton of fun with him. We had a baptism Sunday, which was really weird because I wasn't really apart of her conversion. Her name is Martha and it was so awesome to see her follow the example of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, now that she has been baptized, we have pretty much no investigators. Between going to a new area for the first time, being senior companion for the first time, being a district leader for the first time, the work in the area not going so well and having a companion that's only been out one transfer, I feel like I have a lot on my plate. The Elder who was here before me offended a lot of people too. I don't think I've heard one positive thing about him from anyone. I'm not quite sure what they were thinking when they decided to send me here with the current circumstances, but I guess there's a reason for it. For the first time I feel a lot of pressure to do well and succeed. I'm grateful for the challenge, I just hope I figure things out quickly.
Tomorrow I have to give my first training ever in District Meeting. I can't say that I'm looking forward to giving an hour and a half of training every week, but I know that I need it. There are eight elders in my district, which is very big, so it's hard to keep in touch with everyone and help them out. This week my companion and I are really going to focus on finding people to teach. I hope things start to look better here. This area has a lot of potential so things should be great in a few weeks.
I have had a good time getting to know some of the members here. We have two members, Shimaya and Keisha, who live right next to each other and they are awesome! They are really good at referring us to people to teach. Apparently Shimaya has been holding on to a few people until the missionary who was here before me left. Everyone here loves Elder Turnbow, so we shouldn't have any problems with gaining the members trust back. I really am SO EXCITED for this transfer! I'm really happy and loving missionary work. Sorry I can't write much because I have to take an elder to the hospital soon. I'll tell the details of that story next week. It's a funny one...
Love, Elder Tilley
The new area that I'm in is Paterson. We cover Paterson, Fair Lawn, Saddle Brook, Hawthorn, Elmwood Park and Haledon. It is definitely WAY different than Ledgewood, but I am loving it. My new address is 379 E 27th, 2nd floor, Paterson NJ, 07513. We spend most of our time in Paterson, and it's pretty ghetto. Almost every day we go visit someone over in the four 16-story project buildings. It's been quite an adjustment because we are working with a completely different type of people. My companion is Elder Turnbow, who has only been out one transfer. He's a really awesome elder though, and I've had a ton of fun with him. We had a baptism Sunday, which was really weird because I wasn't really apart of her conversion. Her name is Martha and it was so awesome to see her follow the example of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, now that she has been baptized, we have pretty much no investigators. Between going to a new area for the first time, being senior companion for the first time, being a district leader for the first time, the work in the area not going so well and having a companion that's only been out one transfer, I feel like I have a lot on my plate. The Elder who was here before me offended a lot of people too. I don't think I've heard one positive thing about him from anyone. I'm not quite sure what they were thinking when they decided to send me here with the current circumstances, but I guess there's a reason for it. For the first time I feel a lot of pressure to do well and succeed. I'm grateful for the challenge, I just hope I figure things out quickly.
Tomorrow I have to give my first training ever in District Meeting. I can't say that I'm looking forward to giving an hour and a half of training every week, but I know that I need it. There are eight elders in my district, which is very big, so it's hard to keep in touch with everyone and help them out. This week my companion and I are really going to focus on finding people to teach. I hope things start to look better here. This area has a lot of potential so things should be great in a few weeks.
I have had a good time getting to know some of the members here. We have two members, Shimaya and Keisha, who live right next to each other and they are awesome! They are really good at referring us to people to teach. Apparently Shimaya has been holding on to a few people until the missionary who was here before me left. Everyone here loves Elder Turnbow, so we shouldn't have any problems with gaining the members trust back. I really am SO EXCITED for this transfer! I'm really happy and loving missionary work. Sorry I can't write much because I have to take an elder to the hospital soon. I'll tell the details of that story next week. It's a funny one...
Love, Elder Tilley
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Transfer Time
Hello my wonderful family
Things have been crazy with transfers being tomorrow. I got called as a district leader and am being transferred. It's really hard to leave but it's obviously inevitable. I have enjoyed my time here in the Ledgewood ward so much and I have learned so many things from the the missionaries I have served around, as well as the wonderful members in our ward. I have been blessed to be a part of so many special moments here and witnessed countless miracles. Elder Althouse and I really struggled to find people to teach for most of the transfer, however, the last two weeks we have seen the results from our hard work. We have begun teaching some truly amazing people. We were very excited for next transfer because it is set up so perfectly for success. It's tough to leave when the future is so bright. This of course happens to missionaries all the time, so I can't complain.
The very first day of the transfer Elder Althouse and I knocked a street and met an older man named Richard. As we talked we found out that he had known members
of our church throughout his life and even had an uncle who was a member. Someone had even given him a Book of Mormon, which he still had. We asked him if he would allow us to teach him, but he just wouldn't have any of it. We stopped by a few weeks later and he told us that maybe we could talk to him after Thanksgiving. For some reason something kept drawing us back to him even though he wasn't interested. Last Saturday we went over again and he agreed to allow us to teach him at McDonald's. I never thought that we would ever really get anywhere with him until we taught him. We had such an amazing lesson with him, and he told us about many experiences in his life that I know prepared him to meet us. At the end of the first lesson we taught him, he prayed and thanked the Lord for the prophet Joseph Smith. When we taught him again just a week later, he had read the first 19 chapters of the Book of Mormon! He asked us all kinds of amazing and in-depth questions about what he had read, questions I hadn't even wondered about until I came out on my mission. He attended church yesterday and said that it "felt like coming home". He also agreed to come to the First Presidency Christmas Devotional Broadcast and afterwards told me that "everything that was missing from other churches was here". I have really felt a great love for this man and pray with all my might that he will make the necessary steps in working out his salvation.
There are many people who I will miss working with. We also started teaching another youth aged boy named Richie, who has a baptismal date set for Dec. 19. I really hope that I accomplished all that I could have while I was here. I will miss so many of the awesome members and their example to me.
This will be the first time I have ever been transferred. It will be hard enough learning a new area, but being a district leader for the first time makes it even more of a challenge. Surely I will experience a lot of growing pains like I talked about a couple of weeks ago. I know that I will learn a lot and I take comfort in the knowledge that who the Lord calls he qualifies. I'm going to need a lot of qualifying...
p.s. I have a cold so it's hard to concentrate and write an in-depth letter. Hopefully It makes sense.
Love Elder Tilley
I can't believe it is time for Ryan to leave the Ledgewood Ward. As a mother I was secretly hoping he would stay there for Christmas, well lets just be honest, I wish he could stay there his whole mission. The people there have been amazing! I have been in contact with several of them and I know that I won't be this blessed in the other areas that Ryan will serve. So I guess it was selfish to wish for him to stay, I know that he needs to learn and grow from all the people and experiences that New Jersey has to offer.
Again I say thank you to the wonderful people of the Ledgewood Ward who have fed, mothered, taught, loved and been an example to my Ryan. We will be forever grateful for all that you have given him.
Things have been crazy with transfers being tomorrow. I got called as a district leader and am being transferred. It's really hard to leave but it's obviously inevitable. I have enjoyed my time here in the Ledgewood ward so much and I have learned so many things from the the missionaries I have served around, as well as the wonderful members in our ward. I have been blessed to be a part of so many special moments here and witnessed countless miracles. Elder Althouse and I really struggled to find people to teach for most of the transfer, however, the last two weeks we have seen the results from our hard work. We have begun teaching some truly amazing people. We were very excited for next transfer because it is set up so perfectly for success. It's tough to leave when the future is so bright. This of course happens to missionaries all the time, so I can't complain.
The very first day of the transfer Elder Althouse and I knocked a street and met an older man named Richard. As we talked we found out that he had known members
of our church throughout his life and even had an uncle who was a member. Someone had even given him a Book of Mormon, which he still had. We asked him if he would allow us to teach him, but he just wouldn't have any of it. We stopped by a few weeks later and he told us that maybe we could talk to him after Thanksgiving. For some reason something kept drawing us back to him even though he wasn't interested. Last Saturday we went over again and he agreed to allow us to teach him at McDonald's. I never thought that we would ever really get anywhere with him until we taught him. We had such an amazing lesson with him, and he told us about many experiences in his life that I know prepared him to meet us. At the end of the first lesson we taught him, he prayed and thanked the Lord for the prophet Joseph Smith. When we taught him again just a week later, he had read the first 19 chapters of the Book of Mormon! He asked us all kinds of amazing and in-depth questions about what he had read, questions I hadn't even wondered about until I came out on my mission. He attended church yesterday and said that it "felt like coming home". He also agreed to come to the First Presidency Christmas Devotional Broadcast and afterwards told me that "everything that was missing from other churches was here". I have really felt a great love for this man and pray with all my might that he will make the necessary steps in working out his salvation.
There are many people who I will miss working with. We also started teaching another youth aged boy named Richie, who has a baptismal date set for Dec. 19. I really hope that I accomplished all that I could have while I was here. I will miss so many of the awesome members and their example to me.
This will be the first time I have ever been transferred. It will be hard enough learning a new area, but being a district leader for the first time makes it even more of a challenge. Surely I will experience a lot of growing pains like I talked about a couple of weeks ago. I know that I will learn a lot and I take comfort in the knowledge that who the Lord calls he qualifies. I'm going to need a lot of qualifying...
p.s. I have a cold so it's hard to concentrate and write an in-depth letter. Hopefully It makes sense.
Love Elder Tilley
I can't believe it is time for Ryan to leave the Ledgewood Ward. As a mother I was secretly hoping he would stay there for Christmas, well lets just be honest, I wish he could stay there his whole mission. The people there have been amazing! I have been in contact with several of them and I know that I won't be this blessed in the other areas that Ryan will serve. So I guess it was selfish to wish for him to stay, I know that he needs to learn and grow from all the people and experiences that New Jersey has to offer.
Again I say thank you to the wonderful people of the Ledgewood Ward who have fed, mothered, taught, loved and been an example to my Ryan. We will be forever grateful for all that you have given him.
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