Times are Changing

August 12, 2014

Hey friends and family!

I just want to say that I am so grateful to be serving as a missionary. This is the best work ever, and I am so happy to be a part of it!

Our week was so great. We were working very hard, and not having a whole lot of success, and it was really tough. Winkler has been really tough throughout the summer, and it has been hard to get consistency out of our investigators and new contacts. We kept going though, and were just praying really hard and making sure that we were putting our trust in the Lord, and we saw miracles this weekend! We found five new investigators from friday-sunday, it was unbelievable! The people just seemed to come out of no where, one of them was even a potential that we had been trying by every so often for the past three months, and they were NEVER home. But the Lord provided a way! Things are going to pick up here, and get established, we are learning more about faith in the Lord every day, it really is the foundation of our work, and our purpose, is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in His ability to work miracles.

As far as change, we just had our second service at the fossil museum, which was just as great as ever, but at the beginning of September Megan Andrew, our only english speaking member, and The Menloves, a senior missionary couple from idaho, are all leaving! So we are working hard and praying hard that we will have those families that can replace them and help build the kingdom more fully in this area. Please pray for us! I know that there will be miracles when we join together and pray in faith.

I love you all, things are going well, I love being a missionary, there is no where I would rather be! I hope you all have a great week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Moving On

August 5, 2014

Hey friends and family!

It was a long week in Winkler.We moved and deep cleaned all week. It We had to clean our old home so much, it was really long! I have never done such detailed cleaning in my life. And we also had to move all the supplies and everything, it took a really long time this week, all we had were two boxes and our little car to move everything in, it took so long! But I am grateful for what we had, it was just a blessing to have a car at all! I am glad that we are in a new place, and that we have exciting things to look forward to! I am really grateful for where I have lived since march, I was really blessed to be in that home, but now we are even more blessed with a new location for church! Things are progressing really well, we are getting into better contact with investigators who are finishing up a lot of extra summer work and vacations, and we are connecting with our members a lot better, I am really looking forward to the work that is in store. One particularly good thing that happened this week was another really great FHE with the Fitzgerald family, it went really well, we shared the restoration DVD and they had a lot of good questions and I think that they are capturing the spirit really well. They have their fair share of concerns to overcome, but we are going to be there to help them along every step of the way.

I love being a missionary so much! This is the most wonderful work that we could ever be a part of, and I am just so grateful that I have the privilage of contributing in some small way to the work of the Lord. I love my Savior, and I am so grateful to be serving here in Winkler. Keep everyone in your prayers, I hope you all have a wonderful week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

I love Lindsey Sterling

July 29, 2014

Hey friends and family!

So, don't you fret, I have fallen in love with a young lady named lindsey stirling on my mission. She's actually a famous mormon! For those of you who don't know, she is a hip-hop violin player/dancer that is apparently getting to be pretty popular! So. Here's a story. We were walking to follow up on a potential one day, and we passed by this truck that said I love Lindsey Stirling on the back Windshield. (just so you know, someone in winkler claiming that they love a famous mormon isn't exactly all that common.) So, even though we are not doing a lot of door knocking, we decided to give it a knock! I mean honestly, who would pass that up? We knocked and a young man named Jamie answered the door (He's the one in love with Lindsey Stirling... Typical.).We started talking to him about just a bit of everything, and it was a rather hot day, so we asked if we could come in to "get a drink" (A.K.A teach the restored gospel). We talked for a long while, and then his mother, Nella, came home in the middle of it and started talking with us as well! She had so many good concerns, and so many great questions, and we were able to teach about the restoration of the gospel and how that can bring their family closer together, and give them increased guidance and direction in life. It was wonderful! She received it very well, or at least that was the impression we got, and we are looking forward to getting in touch with them again.

I know that miracles are real. God is a God of miracles, and He will not let His work fail! Please keep praying for us and for the area, your prayers are working! Also, please keep Elli and Lett, Brittany and Sandy, Joanne, Eva and Dillon, Jim, and Jamie and Nella in your prayers! I love you all, thank you for the support, I hope you have a wonderful week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall   

Miracle on 3rd street

July 22, 2014

Hey friends and family!

I am so glad to hear that you are all doing so well and that you are enjoying your summer vacations! It has been really crazy here, we have two extremes going on with weather. It's either really hot, or really rainy. We have had major flooding in the part of the mission that touches down into the states, and a bit in manitoba as well, it's really intense! there have been a lot of missionary flood relief projects, I've seen photos of missionaries up to their waists in the streets! Please keep the mission area in your prayers!

Winkler hasn't experienced any flooding, but we have had a lot of crazy experiences! The first is a little more negative, we got a bunch of anti-mormon literature left on our car when we were doing our e-mail last week, and that really bothered me, I think that has been the hardest part of serving here. In my previous two areas, we would get laughed at from time to time, or rejected, or people just didn't want to listen to us, but here a lot of people are just plain harsh. They will tell us how crazy they think we are, how terrible we are, they sometimes run the other direction when we walk down the street, it's been a very interesting experiences! However, as we all know, there must be opposition in all things, and despite the hard times, the work moves forward! All of our investigators are doing well, they just seem to be piled up with work and vacations and busy life lately, so it has been hard to remain consistent, but we are working hard to stay in touch and keep with them, that's one of the benefits of facebook! Also, the miracle that we had on 3rd street went something like this: A man in his truck drove by while we were walking on the street, and he pulled over and asked if we were mormons. We told him we were, and then he asked us for a card with the church address. We could hardly get another word in because right when he got the card he drove off. Strange. So on sunday, right after sacrament meeting, we got a ring at the door, and we go and answer and it's this guy! His name is gabriel, he liked church and stayed and participated in second hour, when we offered him a book of mormon while setting up a return appointment he told us he wouldn't need one, because he already has the book on his phone! We still haven't taught him, it's been less than a week since we met him, but we will be teaching him this week! I just want to bear you all my testimony that God is a God of miracles. He loves us and wants His work to succeed. When we have faith, He provides. I am so grateful to be a missionary for the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I know this is the true way to follow Jesus Christ, so that we can gain the most happiness available to us in this life and return to live with our Father in Heaven. I love you all, have a great week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

P.S. please continue to pray for Elli and Lett, Joanne, Eva, Brittany and Sandy, and Jim. They need your prayers!

         

Another Week in Winkler

July 15, 2014

Hey friends and family!

This week was just another week in Winkler! ha ha there wasn't too much new stuff this week, other than MIRACLES! We had all our members except for one who was sick at church for the first time ever, so that was really exciting, and we were able to find a new apartment to move into, which was really fortunate, because we were worried about availability. We were on the road a lot this week, spent a full day in portage and half a day in carman, and we'll be expecting the same in the upcoming week.

We have had a big focus on praying for families lately in the mission, and it has had great results for us! We met a man named Nathan, and luckily enough he doesn't have a church that he goes to, but he said he would like to find one! We have an appointment with him this week, and that should go well. If we are able to teach him, that will be the fourth solid family that we have to teach! I am so grateful for the gospel's unique message that we can be with our families forever. Please keep Elli and Lett in your prayers, that they can be prepared for baptism this transfer! Also Joanne, and Eva and Dillon, and Sandy and Brittany, and Jim. I love you all, I am so grateful for all that you do for me, I hope you have an incredible week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Let Freedom Ring

July 8, 2014


Hey friends and family!

Just wanted to wish you all a late happy Fourth of July! This is my final fourth in the mission field! That is so crazy to me, I really hope the time doesn't pass by too quickly. I am really loving my mission and am loving all the experiences I am having our here. 

We got our transfer calls this week and I will be staying in winkler for another six weeks with elder Johnson, and I have been called to serve as the district leader, which is really humbling, but I think it will be a good experience! 

This past week went really well, we actually struggled quite a bit at the beginning of the week, lots of appointments fell through and investigators left for Winnipeg on the weekend or were working, so we were scrambling to get work done. Thankfully, we were able to set up a family home evening with a less active woman (not really less active, her husband has kidney failure so she can rarely make the trip to church, she lives a half an hour away in a town called carman), and she invited her son and his soon to be wife (they are living together right now and have two kids, Justus and nevaeh). We had planned to teach them the gospel of Jesus Christ, but the lesson led right into the plan of salvation, and it was received very well, and they actually were quite interested, so we now have a new family to teach! I am so excited, I cannot wait to be here for another six weeks and be a part of the growth in this area. 

I love you all, and am so grateful for the support and love that I receive from each and every one of you! Thank you all, I hope you have a wonderful week!

With love,

Elder Kendall 

Canada Day

July 2, 2014

Hey friends and family!

I am sorry to be e-mailing late, canada day was yesterday and the libraries are closed on monday, so I didn't get to e-mail until today. Yesterday was my last Canada in the field! ahhhh! I am definitely not ok with having less than a year left! (ok so maybe it's 11 and 1/2 months to go, but still!). I am loving every second of my mission, and I am just so happy to be here!

This past week was tough, we met a lot of new people but couldn't secure appointments with a lot of them for some reason, it was really difficult. But we were able to talk with Elli and Let, and we think they will be preparing for the first week in August, we have to confirm that this week though. PLEASE keep them in your prayers! Also, we get transfer calls this week, and I would really like to stay, so please keep me in your prayers! But seriously. We had a really crazy experience this past week on Saturday. We were walking to all of our appointments and finding locations (we walk whenever we can, who needs a car?) and it just started POURING rain on us. I could have jumped in a swimming pool and I would have been just as wet as we were on Saturday. We were drenched head to foot, and no one was outside, and it was just really tough. So, during lunch we went to change and get the car. Our coats were drenched and we didn't have any spares, so we thought we were going to get soaked again whenever we were outside. We really needed to get out to all these appointments, and so I just told Elder Johnson that we should pray that the storm would clear (I don't want it to sound like I did anything special, I just made a suggestion). So, we prayed. When we were done praying we went outside and the storm was completely cleared! There were storm clouds surrounding Winkler, but completely clear skies above us. It was such an incredible experience, we were able to get to a lot of our appointments and have a successful day, and I am just so grateful for Heavenly Father answering our prayer. I want to testify to all of you that miracles are REAL, Heavenly Father does love us, and He wants us to succeed in life. When we get on our knees and pray for help and then get on our feet and go to work, He will bless us.

I love you all, thank you for the support, I hope you have a wonderful week!

With Love,

Elder Kendall

There's a new church in town

June 24, 2014

Hey friends and family!

So, I am really excited to tell you that yesterday we secured the new location for our church services, we are moving out of our living room and on to bigger and better things! We will be having services in the back room of the Canadian Fossil Discovery Center in Morden (the neighboring town to winkler) starting in August! I am so excited for this, to already see the tremendous growth that has taken place here, I love serving in Winkler so much, what a blessing it has been!

If there is one thing I want to ask it is that you please keep E and L in your prayers, that they will be able to be baptized. They are so close, they just need that final step of faith! I feel your prayers on my behalf and on theirs, please keep it up! This week was good, we found two new investigators, C and J. They are cousins, and both have families so hopefully we will be able to teach their families in the future. We met them just going from place to place, they were sitting in their front yard in lawn chairs so we just sat down and started talking, and an hour later they both had copies of The Book of Mormon in their hands! I was really excited for this, the Lord really does provide when we work hard and trust in Him.

I know that this gospel is true, I love it with all my heart, and I am so grateful to have the opportunity to preach that gospel each and every day. I love you all so much, thank you for the support, I hope you all have a great week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Ups and Downs

June 17, 2014

Hey friends and family!

Winkler is doing just as well as ever. It has some ups and downs, but is going so well overall! I love my mission so much, I am just really grateful to be serving here.

So. A couple things. E and L are our main investigators, and are really struggling to keep the commitments to come to church and live the word of wisdom. PLEASE KEEP THEM IN YOUR PRAYERS. please pray that they may be baptized this transfer, we feel really good about it, and they want to be, so please pray that they can reach that goal that they have. Other than that E, J, and J are doing really well. J is struggling with commitment level as well, so those prayers on their behalf would be much appreciated.

Also, we have been fasting that we would be able to acquire a new meeting space for church, and we got one! there is a spare room behind the exhibits in the fossil discovery center where we volunteer, so we will be holding church starting at the end of july in the fossil center! We are so excited this got approved, especially because we did all we could to invite as many people as possible out to church, and we didn't have everyone that we invited show up, (including E and L), but we were still able to have a miracle in getting the building approved! The Lord really wants His work to move forward here.

I was studying miracles this week. I feel like I sometimes don't have enough faith to expect miracles, and I was thinking about that a lot, so I read about miracles in the bible dictionary, which says, in essence, that miracles are an important element in the work of Jesus Christ. and what is His work? to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. His work is missionary work, and miracles are an important part of that! I am so grateful for this study, it truly has strengthened my faith that the Lord is going to perform miracles when we exercise the faith and give it all we've got. I pray that this may be so for E and L especially at this time.

I love you all, I am so grateful for all that I have and all the support and love that you give me. Have a wonderful week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

One year down

June 10, 2014

Hey friends and family!

Thursday is my year mark. SAY WHAT?! I cannot believe that this has gone by so quickly! I have LOVED my mission, the good, the bad, the learning that I have done, and the lives that I have seen affected by the gospel. I am so grateful for everything that I have been a part of during my service as a missionary, this gospel is true, the church is true, and I am honored by the privilege of spreading that great message!

This past week was wonderful, the first and foremost blessing being the fact that T was baptized in Kenora! I am so grateful that he continued to progress to the waters of baptism, and that I was able to participate in a huge portion of his teaching. It is incredible to see the change of heart that has taken place in his life since we first met him, the gospel has truly changed his life forever. What a wonderful blessing. The rest of the week was really busy, we had two trips to Winnipeg to prepare for a presentation that was given in a world religion's class to 15 students and 5... skeptical visitors (pastors) :), and It was a really incredible experience! I loved the opportunity to testify to each of those individuals and tell them that I knew the gospel of Jesus Christ was restored and that it could bless their life. They each left with a copy of The Book of Mormon, and I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to spread that message in that setting.

Please keep E and L in your prayers, they are having a hard time with church attendance and keeping the word of wisdom, and we really want them to meet their date of june 28th. Also J, that she can overcome push-back from friends and family; J, that he can recognize God's love in his life and be willing to act.

I want you all to know that I have a testimony of this work that we are a part of. This is the only true and living church on the earth today. What a wonderful blessing to be a part of that work, and to spread the joy of the gospel to all who will hear the good news. I love you all, thank you for the support, I hope you have a wonderful week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall  

Here Comes the Sun do do do do

June 4, 2014

Hey friends and family!

So, the title of this e-mail is ironic because it is actually raining right now, but it has been very sunny and hot so I decided to include it. Also, you may be asking yourself why I am e-mailing on a wednesday. It's because I was in Winnipeg on monday and portage la prairie on tuesday, so this is the first opportunity I have had to get an e-mail out to everyone. My apologies!

Anywho, week. We are doing super well, Elder Johnson is already my favorite companion that I've had, we get along really well and are working very hard, we are teaching a lot and still have baptismal dates for E and L for June 28. They are progressing nicely, as are some of our other investigators, such as J, and J, and E. We are also going to be giving a 1 hour presentation in a world religions class on our church, we have free reign to bear testimony, hand out copies of the book of mormon, ask and answer questions, and teach everything about our wonderful church! I am very excited for this opportunity. Also, last transfer I told my previous companion that we needed to fast for member move ins to help the work grow, and last week we ran into four new members, two in Winkler and two in Morden, that just moved in! they are both hispanic families, a couple and a single mom. They are really great, and I can't wait to work with them more. It just goes to show that God is watching out for us.

I want to just bear my testimony to you all that I know this gospel is true. We are part of an incredible plan that our Heavenly Father has established for us because He wants us to be happy. He loves us! Although I know you all believe this, I promise that He will answer your prayers. He wants what is best for you, and He will NEVER let you down.

I love you all, thank you for the support, I hope you have a wonderful week!

With Love,

Elder Kendall

Elder Johnson's coming to town

May 27, 2014

Hey friends and family!

We just received transfer calls, and I will be serving with Elder Johnson, who I actually went to high school with, so that will be really great! I am super excited to work with him.

We found two new investigators this week, p and l, they are a really great young family that have a lot of faith, they are strong in their belief but are willing to read the book of mormon, so hopefully that goes well and they are able to progress, as long as we teach by the spirit we will be successful. E and L also have new baptismal dates for the 28th of june, so please keep them in your prayers!

I learned a big lesson this week in the importance of teaching by the spirit, and I would invite you to read chapter four in preach my gospel if you ever have the time, because relying on the spirit is the most important part of this work.

I love you all, thank you for the support, I hope you all have a wonderful week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Youth Night

May 20, 2014

hey family and friends!

It's me, Elder Kendall, hanging out in Winkler. Actually, working quite hard in Winkler! This past week was really good, we actually had a lot of appointments with a lot of other religious groups and different pastors and stuff, so that was interesting. One instance in particular that I can think of is going to a youth night. Their worship was so crazy, and it is strange to see how they treat their relationship with God, but also good to see that a belief in God is still going strong here. Canada has a 9% religious affiliation, so it is very different in this area, but still great to be serving here!

E and L are doing well, and should be baptized in June.

I am so sorry, I am running out of time, but I hope you all have a wonderful week, thank you all for the love and support!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Mother I love you, Mother I do

May 13, 2014

Hey friends and family!

I just wanted to give one more Mother's day message to the best mom in the world! I love you so much mom, I am so grateful for you, thank you for the support that you offer to me every day, I can feel the prayers offered in my behalf, and I am just so grateful that Heavenly Father blessed me with such a wonderful mother. I love you mom!

This week was kind of slow, we were out of our area for 2 days in a town called Brandon for our Zone Training Meeting, but we still were able to get one new investigator! there was a young lady riding by on her bike, and she went pretty quick so we weren't able to talk with her, we kept going and then she turned back around and came and talked to us! She is very religious, and just told us she wanted to pray for us right there in the middle of the sidewalk! So she did. and it was crazy. That's the third time I have been prayed for on the street since I've been in Winkler! It was really strange, but good. She then, after having known us for all of 2 minutes, invited us over to dinner. So we went this week, and although she is very passionate about her faith, she wants to learn more, and is willing to read the Book of Mormon, so that is really exciting! Also, E and L were able to come to church, so we should be setting new baptismal dates with them soon! So many answers to prayers this week, I am so grateful for it!

I love you all, thank you for the support, I hope you have a wonderful week!

With Love,

Elder Kendall

Here Comes the Sun

May 6, 2014

Hello friends and family from Winkler!

Slowly but surely the weather is warming up, I even had a few days where I didn't need to wear a jacket! I know. Crazy. Things are going really well here in Winkler, We had another successful week with three new investigators, J, J, and E! All of them are really great, E is definitely ready to make some big changes in her life, so hopefully that all goes well!

E and L had to move the date back because they need some more time to keep certain commitments, but we'll keep working hard with them! please keep them in your prayers.

I am doing super well, I am loving my mission experience and sharing the gospel with the people here. One scripture that left an impression on me this week was 2 Nephi 26: 23-24. Sometimes life seems to be tough, and we turn and look into Heaven and ask "Why me?" just remember that the Lord doesn't work in darkness, that everything that takes place in your life is for your benefit, and that we will one day rest from our afflictions, and be lifted up. I love you all, I hope you have a wonderful week, thank you for everything that all of you do for me!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Teaching J

April 29, 2014


Hey friends and family!

Elder Kendall here, and I am doing super well in Winkler! It was a really great week, ups and downs just like with any experience in life, but we have a lot of good to look forward to. This week we found five new investigators to teach, J, who is an older man that we found while we were walking down his street to an appointment, T, who is a pastor for another church that was referred to us by President Palmer, and C and S, who are a mennonite family that we also met street contacting.

I don't have too much time for detail, but my favorite lesson was with J this week. J is a man with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, He is really looking for peace in his life, and so his lessons are really spiritual, and I always learn a lot with him.

I hope you all have a wonderful week, I love you all and appreciate the support!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Elder Christofferson and Easter

April 22, 2014

Hello friends and family! 

First off, I just wanted to say thank you all for the birthday support, I felt so much love this weekend, and I am just so grateful for the people that Heavenly Father has put into my life, you are all such a blessing to me. 

I had the most incredible weekend ever. We drove to regina on friday, which is really long and really flat, so that was... fun, and then we had our meeting on saturday with elder Christofferson from 930 -1130. I was asked to play the opening and closing hymn, and then about an hour of prelude, I just played some arrangements of hymns that I've done, and arrangements of hymns that I know well, so it was nice, because I haven't had the chance to play that kind of stuff in a while. I played also while everyone shook Elder Christofferson's hand, and then I was the last one to shake his hand once everyone was done and he thanked me for the music, which was really great. Elder Soares of the 70 was the first to speak, and he spoke on pages 3-5 of the white handbook, and how we can receive the spirit power necessary for our missionary work. Then Elder Christofferson spoke. He is so kind, and humble, and funny, it was such an icredible experience. He essentially opened up the meeting to questions from missionaries, so we were able to discuss specific things that we could to do improve, and it just went so well. I am so grateful for men who are called of God to lead and guide us today. Easter was also incredible, We had 12 people at church which is actually a good turnout, and a lady named eva who was invited by megan showed up, which was really great, we will be teaching her and her son this week.

I am just so grateful for the easter season, for a loving savior who was willing to give so much for me so that I could return to my Father in Heaven. I know he has done the same for all of you, and I am just so grateful for the gospel in my life. 

We have baptismal dates with Elli and Lett on may 10th, and if you could keep them in your prayers that would be great. Also, Pray for Joanne, Nettie, Eva and Her son, and Peter, a young man we tracted into this week who really needs to know that God is there for him. other than that, pray that we will continue to find prepared people, especially prepared families that we can share the gospel with.

I love you all, thank you so much for the support, I hope you have a wonderful week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

A day in the life of Elder Kendall

April 15, 2014

Hey friends and family! I am doing super well, we have two baptismal dates set for may 3rd with Elli and Lett, the Filipino family, and so that is super exciting! it will be the first ever baptisms in morden and winkler! I am so grateful to be serving here, Elder Petersen and I will be staying together here for the next 6 weeks, so it will be great! I love serving here, it is really hard, but really worth it.

So. Here's a day in the life of me. Wake up at 6:30, work out, breakfast, get ready for the day, and then at 8 I study Preach My Gospel and the scriptures, and then 9 we do our companionship study and practice. once ten rolls around, we get out and work! following up on potentials, teaching a couple less actives, tracting, street contacting, and teaching lessons to investigators is usually what our days involve, and then we have service here and there. I am so grateful to be serving here, I wish I could tell you more, but I am running out of time! I love you all, thanks for the support, this weekend Elder Christofferson is visiting our mission and so I will let you know how that goes. I love you all, thanks for everything!

Love,
Elder Kendall

The Winkler Life

April 8, 2014

Hello friends and family from the actually relatively warm area of Morden and Winkler!

It is 60 degrees outside today and I am so happy to be here, I am loving serving in this area! When president Thomas called me here he told me to pack my bags and go establish the church. So that's exactly what we are doing! I want to tell you all a little bit about my work.

The area- The area has a combined population of close to 20,000, and is pretty rural on the outskirts with a lot of small suburbs in the city. really nice neighborhoods, if there were mountains around it would seem very much like some spots in utah to me. It is nice and flat, and the people are very friendly, and also very devout for the most part in their beliefs, which is interesting in terms of missionary work, but it is still great! The predominant religion is mennonite, and there are a lot of people here who have immigrated from places like germany and german-speaking areas in mexico (who knew?) so that is exciting as well!

The Work- We are encouraged to meet with a lot of members, which works for about two hours out of the week (megan and the valdez family) so the rest of the time we are seeking/doing service (as encouraged by our mission president), street contacting, and tracting. Tracting is actually decently effective here, most are nice christian people who, even if not interested are willing to let you in and have a pleasant conversation, so we are able to talk to a lot of people, and we have found two new investigators in the past week while tracting, which I'll tell you about in a bit.

Investigators- Elli and Lett have baptismal dates (the Filipino family the valdez family introduced us to) and we found three new investigators in the past week, Joanne (referral from President Palmer) who is a retired woman and wants to join but is facing opposition from her husband, Jake, who is 80 and is slightly confused but is fun to talk to, and nellie, who we just tracted into yesterday. It is really wonderful to work with all these people!

Companionship- We are doing super well, Elder Petersen is from roseville, california, and he is just a good, hardworking guy. We get a lot of work done and have fun doing it, so it is tons of fun!

I am doing super well, loving every minute of my mission, and I am just so grateful for the love and support! I am nearly out of time, so I will have to go, but let me know what details you would like and I will be happy to give them to you!

Love,

Elder Kendall

Baptism Dates!

April 1, 2014

Hey friends and family!

I am running out of time, but here's a couple updates:

We set two baptismal dates with Elli and Lett, and we got a new investigator yesterday

Elder Christofferson of the quorum of the twelve will be attending our zone conference on april 19. I am so excited!

I love you all, thank you for everything, I am doing super well!

With Love,

Elder Kendall

Life in Winkler!

March 24, 2014

Hey there friends and family from the still cold area of morden and winkler! I am doing super well, I am loving the mission, and we had a pretty great week, so I am really excited! 

Elder Petersen was sick, picked up what I had, so we were inside again. It was the worst. So, by saturday we had a lot of ground to cover (literally and figuratively, our area is pretty big, we have to drive a lot of places.), so we set out and got to work! We had two less active appointments, which were really great, and then the one member family that we have, the valdez family, invited us out to a tiny place called st. joseph to meet his friend named darius and his wife arlene, who moved here from the Philippines. He also invited his friend Elli (who is a man) and his wife lett. We started talking with Darius, and he didn't seem very interested, and then got up with the wife and the valdez family to prepare dinner for us, so while they were we just started talking with elli, and shared with him a little bit about the Book of Mormon and why we have it, and he said he was super interested! so we taught he and his wife a bit, and then set up a return appointment for wednesday! I am so excited to have new investigators, that even though it was tough with Elder Petersen being sick, The Lord still provided a way for us to find people to teach.

Saturday night we had a fireside in our church/home, given by our branch president, president palmer on "why he's a mormon", and all our invitations fell through to come to that, but we had a lot of members vist from surrounding areas, so that was nice. He is very missionary minded, and although he is serving in another area, he is a big help to us. I am so grateful to be serving here, there are going to be a lot of good things happening soon.

I love you all, thank you for the support, I don't have time for a spiritual thought, but just know that I am grateful for all of you and I hope you have a wonderful week!

With Love,

Elder Kendall

The Winkler Life

March 18, 2014

Hello Friends and Family!

I am doing super well here in Winkler, I ran into a bit of a nasty cold last week, so we were inside a lot, which was the worst, but I am ready to go out and hit the pavement this week!

a couple things:

1. Church. So we still hold church in our home, and this week there were only four of us, and Elder Petersen and I spoke. I chose my own topic, and it was on making our own environment a personal temple. It went really well! Hopefully we can get more people to church soon.

2. No appointments this week because I was sick, but we have one set up with angele and her three sons, so please keep her in your prayers!

3. Please read mosiah two if you have the chance, a lot of my talk was based on that, and it was a really wonderful chapter to re-study!

I love you all, not much else to report, just thank you so much for the love and support that you offer to me, it means a lot! I hope you all have a wonderful week!

With Love,

Elder Kendall

Morden and Winkler

March 11, 2014

Hello friends and family from the incredibly flat area of Morden and Winkler!

I am back with elder petersen, and after a prep transfer in the area he and I are officially opening the area of Morden and Winkler for the church! I am so excited to be a part of this, it's going to be hard, but it will be well worth it.

1. The area- the population of this area is about 17,000, so relatively the same as Kenora, but it is much more flat, and a lot better established. (well established families, and people in general.) It is very religious, about 80% is Mennonite, and the rest are baptist, catholic, etc. it is definitely the bible belt of the mission.

2.The Work-There is only one member family that lives in Morden and Winkler, it's the Valdez family who are a family of 4, and then we have 1 YSA age young lady named megan, who I haven't met yet because she was on a trip. We hold Sacrament meeting in our 5 bedroom home every sunday, and a senior couple from the mission home makes a trip down every week to help preside over that meeting, because he is the 1st counselor in the branch presidency to the portage branch, about an hour and a half away from us. We are literally starting with a clean slate, so it will be interesting to see how we can add people to our teaching pool. The work will be old fashioned, lots of walking around, talking with people on the streets, and potentially a lot more tracting, so it will be interesting.

3.We had one appointment at the valdez home where we got into a bashing situation with some baptists, but we were very calm and cordial and did our best to just testify of the truthfulness of the gospel. This is going to be fun :)

4.Please pray for our potential angele, and her three sons stephen, nathan, and gabriel, that they can accept the gospel and become investigators.

I love you all, I have to go, but thank you for the support and I hope you have a wonderful week!

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Goodbye Kenora!

March 3, 2014

Hey there friends and family from the lovely yet super cold area of Kenora Ontario!

 

As you can tell by the subject of this e-mail, I am leaving Kenora! I just found out on Thursday, and I am actually pretty sad. Most of you know I had a rough go at the beginning of my service here, but I will really able to just buckle down, get to work, and we saw a lot of miracles and blessings as a result of our service here! We were teaching a lot, getting more and more support from the branch, and I am just so grateful that we were able to make things happen. I am grateful for the lessons I learned, and I am excited to head off to serve in Winkler Manitoba! (ha ha it sounds like such a dorky place, it will fit me well). Winkler was just opened a transfer ago, so it is practically new, I will be the third elder to ever serve there, and I am going to be serving again with my previous companion Elder Petersen! That will be really great, he and I were working really hard in Gateway, so I am looking forward to what the area has in store for me, and what I can do there. I cannot wait to serve there, and I know that as I turn to the Lord, we will see wonderful miracles!

 

1. The People- Tyson is doing super well, he got a bad cold and wasn't able to come to church, but we taught three member present lessons to him this week, committed him to quit smoking, and set a baptismal date! I am sad to go now, but I know that he will continue to progress in the gospel, and that he will be able to see the blessings that come from it. Greg and stephanie are doing well, they didn't make it to church because their ride bailed on them (no one has cars in Kenora), but we committed him to read the book of mormon and we came back two days later and he had read 50 pages! He is loving it, and I think he will continue to progress nicely. Stan dropped us, which was unfortunate, but hopefully we softened his heart and that he will be receptive in the future. Everyone else is still coming along slowly but surely, so keep the work in Kenora in your prayers so that this people can continue to progress in the gospel!

 

2. Fun stuff- So this week we went out on the ice roads in Kenora with our Branch President. Guys. I drove on a lake! It was so much fun, we were passing huge snow drifts and islands, I don't know how many of you have driven on and off an island onto frozen water with a car, but it was pretty great! Also yesterday we had a weird 2nd and 3rd hour for church, all we did was watch 17 miracles. It was super strange, but hey, you know what they say, sometimes you watch two hour movies in church!

 

3. Siritual thought- This week I learned a lot about loving our neighbors as ourself. I think we sometimes overlook loving ourselves the way God loves us. I have found that I am very self-critical, and that as a result I get upset with people, and impatient, but I know that if we are able to look at ourselves the way God looks at us, we will be able to then turn outward and love others the way God loves them. I have been focusing a lot on this lately and it has made a huge difference. I invite you all to pray to see yourself the way God sees you, and you will then be able to see others the way God sees them.

 

I love you all, thank you so much for the love and support, I hope you have a wonderful week, you are all in my prayers!

 

With Love,
Elder Kendall

Kendall in Kenora

Hey friends and family from the frigid area of Kenora! I am doing really well, and I appreciate all the support, I am sorry that I have lost a lot of contact, I am going to do better though! I wanted to tell you a little bit about my experiences the past couple of weeks:

1. New investigators.
This week and last we found 6 new people that we are teaching, and we received antother promising phone call that I will tell you about in a bit. The first man's name is tyson. He is thirty years old, and works at Tim Horton's (starbucks equivalent) where the sisters met him and then turned him over. He is a very spiritual native guy, and is just simply looking to make his life better. He is huge! He is a super tall guy, and is hilarious, and is one of my favorite people that we have taught so far. The next one is greg and stephanie, who were found in the former investigator section. Greg and stephanie are not married, but have been living together for about 20 years. they have 3 kids, ages 18, 15, and 13, and Greg invited us back because he wants security for his family, and he wants to overcome his drinking problem. They are really great. Aggie is an older lady, she is in her 60's and is also native, she grew up really spiritual, and experience full healing from being crippled in another church, which is really different, but she loved the book of mormon and desires to learn more! we are going to be working close with her. The next one is stan, we found stan on the street, he was walking to work, and we were able to set up an appointment with him and then teach him about the restoration. He said he had a similar experience to Joseph smith in a dream, which is really neat, and we hope that he may be able to see that this is the path for him. He is kind of slow, but a really nice guy, and it will be great to work with him. The last one is Haven. Haven is Tyson's niece, she's 8 years old, and she was found because Tyson decided to bring her to game night (one of our activities at the church). She is super excited about meeting missionaries, she is really cute and fun, and loved being at the church, we got a call from tyson on saturday saying that Haven really wanted to come to church, so we were able to scramble and find her a ride, and it worked out! She came to church with tyson, the others weren't able to make it even though they were committed to, but we will just keep working on it.

2. Nick
We got a call on saturday night from a man that met with missionaries 4 years ago named nick. Nick is a MMA fighter, and is possibly the nicest guy on the planet, we have only talked with him on the phone, but he expressed a deep desire to meet with the missionaries, so we were able to set up an appointment with him this week. We don't know much about nick yet, but hopefully our appointment with him goes well and that we are able to help him progress in the gospel.

3. Me
I learned a lot this week about being patient with myself. I am really self-critical, and I tend to beat myself up a lot and tell myself that I am not good enough, but I learned that as I slow down, and focus on the small things that I can work on, that the bigger tasks become much more managable. I especially enjoyed reading in 2 Nephi 4 this week, it helped me learn a lot about myself, and I would recommend that you all look it up!

4. Snow
This is the coldest snow since 1974 in Kenora, it was the coldest december since 1893, and on new years day it was more warm on mars than it was here. We have the most snow since 1967 in Kenora, and so most of it is a little past my waist, some spots taller than me, and it is just crazy!

5. miscellaneous
a) We had a specialized training that had to be cancelled due to the fact that a huge storm hit the morning we were supposed to leave (it was a three hour drive... our mission is huge), and we had 4 other elders from a neighboring area staying with us, and they got stuck from wednesday to saturday, so we had 6 elders in our apartment, and had to come up with a lot of work to do. We did tons of service with them, and a lot of shoveling, and the members were very gracious to invite them over frequently, so that was great. All in all, it was just a crazy experience!
b) We are not on facebook nor do we have tablets yet, but we have been told sometime in the early spring, so hopefully we will be on soon. I have talked to other missionaries in other missions and they say that they have it and that it is helpful, so hopefully that will be the case for us here
d) We were invited by a member to join the community choir, and then the men in the community choir invited us to join their choir, so I am singing in two choirs in Kenora! it is really strange, but it is a good thing to be involved in, we are talking with a lot of people, and are hoping that a couple of them will become investigators soon.
c) the members have really come around and we are getting a lot of support, they are planning activities and having us over a lot and giving us referrals a little bit, so that is really exciting! they want us to start musical numbers in sacrament meeting, so I will probably be playing a little bit in church, I don't play a whole lot anymore, so that will be nice. I hope that things will continue to go as they are, I am really loving Kenora, and I hope and pray that things will continue, I know that the Lord has a great work in store for us!

I want to leave you all with my testimony that I know that Jesus Christ is my savior, that He was sent by a loving Heavenly Father to save us, and that through the restored knowledge of the gospel we can enjoy all the blessings that God has promised us. I love you all, I am so grateful for the support, and I hope that you each have a wonderful week!

 

love,

Elder Kendall