Crazy Week!

Well then we both have had some crazy weeks!  I am sorry about your foot and everyone being sick!  Thats not fun! I like the kitchen table! I thought you would have gotten a bigger one though!  So I dont have a ton of time so I will tell you about my week.   It was insane and I have been way stressed all week.

 

Tuesday we had ZDM (Zone/District Meeting).  It was so stressful being the one who has to put it all together and make sure everything is on time and conduct the meeting and give a 30 minute workshop.  I don't think I got much out of it just because I was too worried about how everything was but everyone else and the assistants thought it went well so that's good. This week we have been teaching a new girl named Kristen and she is amazing!  The W family invited her to take the lessons and we have taught her twice and she went to church yesterday and wants to get baptized!  The lessons we have with her are so good.  I may have already told you about her but she is awesome.  I love when members invite their friends and let us teach in there home.  It makes things so much easier.  Things have just been so busy this week.  We had to move the other 2 elders out of our apartment to PA this week too plus ZDM and other stake meetings and there is just like not enough time to do the work!  My whole mission its like been hard to fill my days with effective stuff to do but being in this area and being a zone leader there isn't enough hours in the day.  We had our interviews with President Sorensen this week too.  It was weird because this is our last interview with him as our mission president.  I had a good talk with him.  I am gonna miss the Sorensen's so much. 

So I am exhausted.  Last night we were already late getting to bed because we were doing numbers till like 11:30 then right when we were about to go to bed we got a call from our ward mission leader who had a friend dying in the hospital.  We got dressed again and went to give him a blessing.  He made it through the night and is doing better so it worked.  So we finally get to bed at like 2 am and then we are still expected to wake up at 6:30.  I was so tired.  I just pushed through studies and we took a nap right after studying.  About 15 minutes into our nap we get a call saying someone else is in the hospital and needs a blessing so we got up and got dressed again and went haha it has been a long 2 days...  I feel like I haven't gone to bed yet haha  we are gonna go home after the  library and sleep though.  Next week is gonna be just as crazy with exchanges mission council, stake presidency meeting and preparing for zone conference.  haha I didn't sign up for all this I just want to teach haha oh well I love it.  Better too much work to do then not enough.  Keeps me focused.  

I love and miss you!!

 

Elder Skalla

Leadership Training Meeting

I found this photo on a mission blog and decided to post it.  This is from Leadership Training Meeting.   A faithful group of young men and women serving the Lord!

Loving Youngstown!

Hey!! 

Man, you got it exactly right when you said overwhelmed. haha There is soooo much to do and talk about and plan for and calls to make and meetings its insane.   I seriously love it here though.  The ward is awesome and things are looking so good for this transfer.  It wasn't really hard to say bye to members because I can go on exchanges there and half of them are still in my area.  President put 2 more missionaries in y town cut our area in half and gave us half the Alliance ward.  That's why he kept me in Youngstown because I knew the Alliance members so the area changes wouldn't be confusing.  You will never believe who is in Alliance now either haha.  Elder Johnson and Elder Buxton are companions and now I am Elder Johnson's zone leader. haha It's kinda crazy how it happened.  I bet its way weird for him to have his greenie be his zone leader but we are excited to go on exchanges and stuff.  Sunday nights suck even more.  So much time on the phone taking numbers and stuff.  We are so busy.   I have A LOT more to pray for too! haha I have to like write it all down or else I will forget. It takes me like 20 minutes to pray haha but its all good.  Its amazing how as soon as I got called to be a zone leader and found out about all the missionaries in the zone and their investigators you just instantly develop a love for all of them. 

We have 2 new straight up golden investigators now too.  The members have been awesome and invited their friends to hear the lessons in the members home and now a lady named Tina and her daughter Alicia are getting baptized in May!  She is like the most prepared investigator ever and wants to go to the temple more than anything.  Then Sister W invited her friend to take the lessons and we had our first lesson with her last night.  The work is sooooooo much easier when members invite their friends.  It's amazing how prepared they are.  I am so excited for this area though.  My companion Elder Anderson is awesome too.  I think this is going to be an awesome transfer. 

Looks like Ryan had fun at prom!  He is still not old enough to go to prom or drive! haha I still cant get used to him being so old haha.  It just feels like I went to prom last year. haha I hate how fast time goes.  I cant believe you are getting rid of the table. haha Everything about our house is changing!  Well we are limited to an hour on the computer at this library so I gotta go but I love and miss you all so much!!  Have an awesome week!

Elder Skalla

 Elder Buxton and Elder Skalla 

Elder Skalla working hard

Elder Meza, Elder Skalla and Elder Haiparai

Transfered and called as a ZONE LEADER!!

HI!!  

I did get my Easter package, haha thank you.  My Easter was good!  We just went to church and had dinner with some members.  We were in church and like 2 minutes before it was supposed to start there was only 15 people in the chapel, haha EVERYONE was late.  After we went up to Boardman.  All the members from out west that are here for medical school all get together for the holidays since they cant go home, so we went up there and had dinner.  It was fun.  

We had a pretty good week!  When we told the people at the pantry that
one of us was leaving they were like devastated and made us come in the next day and have a "going away party" and brought in breakfast and wanted pictures and stuff. haha It was funny but it's so good that they like us because we get to talk about the church and missions a lot when we are there. We met a few good potentials this week tracting too so it has been a pretty solid week.  

So now for the big news...  I am getting transferred... But not very far.    I got a call from president yesterday morning and he released me as district leader and called me to be a zone leader.   I will be in the Youngstown ward and be the Youngstown zone leader.  Its kinda like I'm not really leaving Alliance because just last transfer they split Youngstown into 2 areas and the zone leaders took the part of our area that is really far away so I am still covering like 1/4 of the Alliance ward.  I have been on exchanges with Elder Anderson (He is gonna be my new companion)  In Youngstown like 3 times so I already know the area kinda and him so that is good.  I think we will do well together.  I know I will learn a lot from him.   I was very humbled when president asked me to be a zone leader though.  Definitely not a call I was expecting.  Every Zone leader I have ever had I thought was like so old and was such an amazing missionary and I just don't feel like that!  I as well as everyone else I know has always like really looked up to their zone leaders and its just weird to me that I am one so early in my mission.  I know the Lord will help me, He always has, but I am still way nervous.  There are only 12 in the mission and I  always thought they were all like amazing.  I don't feel good enough. haha  I am very excited though to get to work closely with president though.  And odds are I will still be a zone leader when the new mission president takes over... That's only 2 transfers away.  I am excited for everything that lies ahead, but just pray for me because I don't exactly feel qualified haha. 

(Leave a Message for his address)
I hope you guys have an awesome week!  I know my week is gonna be crazy! haha I love and miss you all!!  

Elder Skalla

General Conference Week

I definitely agree conference was awesome!  I haven't watched the Saturday morning session yet but I think my favorite talks so far were Elder Hollands and Elder Ballard's.  I don't know why Elder Ballard's, I just like the way he teaches haha.  I think it was him who was talking about how people are prosperous because they have good families and morals not that they have good families because they are prosperous. I thought that was very true. Some people think you can only have a functioning family and be happy if you are rich I have noticed.  I guess it is just a matter of priorities.

This week has been pretty slow...  It was a tough week for a lot of the members here.  I didn't watch the Saturday morning session because there was a funeral.  A 22 year old kid in the ward passed away earlier this week.  We directed traffic and helped set up for the funeral.  It was probably the most non members we have ever had in the building.  Maybe even the most people we have had in our little building.  It was a great funeral and very Christ centered.  Maybe it will lead someone to the gospel I don't know.  It was a little weird though.  I have not had many experiences with death in my life and I think the only funeral I have ever been to is grandma greats when I was like 11.  It just made me ponder a lot about the plan of salvation and atonement.  It is weird seeing someone one week and then going to a funeral the next... especially so young.  I have become pretty good friends with his dad because he goes out teaching with us a lot.  This is is second child he has lost so I can't even imagine the pain they are going through.  How grateful we should be to have the knowledge of Gods plan for us.  

The guy with the beard is a member here that we have been re-activating.  He has come to church every week since my second week here and I have been trying to get him to shave that beard since the day I got here! haha Finally!  He is a funny guy.  The 2 kids are Tommy's kids I am pretty sure.  They are funny.  The girl Chyanne is 11 and is basically in love with me, haha she is so funny she like writes me notes and all kinds of stuff.  We taught the little one, Kase to say Elder too haha He can only say like 4 words too.  We showed him a picture of Jesus yesterday and he knew exactly who that was!  haha The veil is thin at that age!  

Well that's all I can really think of this week!  P day is on Tuesday next week so I will let you know then if I am staying or going.  I am pretty excited for transfers.  I love my companion to death but 3 transfers is a looooooong time with one person haha.  I hope you have a good week!  Love and miss you!!!

Elder Skalla