November 21, 2011

Dear Family,
 
Not a very eventful week.  Last Monday when I was sending you my weekly email I started to feel the beginning of what turned out to be a week-long sickness that had me throwing up and running to the bathroom every 30 minutes.  So I've been bed-ridden all week, along with some other members of our District -- Elder May from Indiana and I got to know each other pretty well.

Aside from that, Gabriel passed his baptismal interview and we found another family that expressed a desire to be baptized.  We had a cool lesson with them because we were able to read the entire first part of the Joseph Smith History* which I've never done before.  He was just really interested about the background of Joseph Smith and the story as to how he was called to be a prophet.  They will be coming to the Gabriel's baptism this Saturday so I'm hoping it will be a good experience for them.

Thanks for your prayers.  I love you guys a ton.  Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!
 
Love,

Elder Kinney



*In the Joseph Smith History, the Prophet, Joseph Smith, tells about his family, his upbringing and where he lived.  There was also an unusual excitement about religion that prevailed in western New York at the time.  He had a desire to seek wisdom as directed by James, chapter 1, verse 5 in the bible which reads: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. The Father and the Son appear to Joseph.

(Link to Joseph Smith History:  http://lds.org/scriptures/pgp/js-h/1?lang=eng)

November 7, 2011

Dear Family,

I don't really have much time to write today.  It is my first P-day (preparation day) in my new area and I have a lot of stuff to do.  Unfortunately, we don't have another set of Elders with a car that live in the same apartment with us like in my last area, so coordinating P-day to-do's and any transportation is kind of a hassle.  I have a new address (see top of blog).

We live right in central Phoenix around all of the big buildings.  We don't really teach anyone around where we live.  We mostly go to the projects.  I feel like my new area has more of a "hood" feel to it but there were definitely more shady people in my last area.

On Saturday we had a baptism of the Solis family.  I only got to teach them once -- they were basically the investigators of Elder Camarillo and his old companion.  They are pretty awesome.  The best part of my week was yesterday when we went to Patty Torres' baptism in my last area.  She had asked me to give the talk about the Holy Ghost and I did a better job than I thought I was going to be able to do.  The service was really, really awesome, the best part being when Elder Hernandez bore his testimony and shared his conversion story which is super powerful (I have heard it a couple times).  I miss him a lot.  He is definitely one of my favorite companions.

My new companion, Elder Camarillo, is from San Juan Capistrano, CA, and was just trained so I am his "greeniebreaker".  He is good at Spanish, obviously, but due to his American childhood he can't answer any of the gramatical questions I ask, and my vocabulary is more vast compared to his.  It is kind of weird knowing more Spanish than a Spanish person.  He is super awesome and hardworking though and I like him a lot.  He has a really innocent and docile personality but he isn't shy so a lot of poeple like him, which is good.

My time is running out on this library computer so I have to go.  I have one other really quick miracle.  We found this guy named Gabriel on my first day, who moved from the Tempe mission to our area and has a baptismal date.  He came to the Solis family baptism with his four daughters.  He will be baptized on the 26th of this month.  Hope everything is well in NC!!!
 
Love,

Elder Kinney