Hey hey hey from the LBC!
We basically had a week with about 10 years amount of rain that came down in 3 days. It was really interesting this week to work as our streets turned to rivers and lakes formed at intersections. Then Surf City (Huntington Beach) turned into twister city and Long Beach turned into a shower. Basically the Lord had to wash this place with water before he cleanses it with fire. That is my belief or he is softening the ground for a big earthquake so it can break into the ocean.
Well sad but great news.... the baptism we were going to have is not going to happen this Sunday. But the only reason is because he said he wants his family to learn and go to church. He does not want to do it alone. So of course we said "ya who else do you know" and we should be teaching more people of his. His name is David Grajera, he speaks spanish and is way humble and nice. We love teaching him because we do a good lesson on the Gospel and then teach English and eat real Mexican food. It is funny because Elder Black doesnt like chile peppers and so we always have to tell him to eat more so he can speak spanish better.
Other great news is that some families in old areas that i had taught and found are slowly but surely getting baptized as time goes on. It is great to see that because it helps me realize some promises in my patriarchal blessing are coming true. Also i dont know if i told you but i am doing translation for Sacrament Meeting now...... let me tell you that is super hard when you got a Polynesian, a 13 year old white girl, and they all speak english either super machine gun like or super mumbly and hard to understand. Half the time i just make it up and keep to the theme of the talk. But ya pray because I always just laugh with all the latinos that just know what im tyring to say and what the speaker is really saying and so we just laugh it off.
Have a good week love you all.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Week 76
Feliz dia de Martin Luter KING!!! How were the festivities and whatever else happens on that day? Well we have had some great things going on besides every single week we have been skunked with no one attending church with us. Here are some pics sorry not much more time to write.
So here they are
1) Me in my suit with my new tie
2) Me at 6:35 am getting ready to go run/ hopefulluy make it back to the apartment
3) eating helote!!! corn on the cob with mayonaise, butter, chile powder, and lemon
Love you all!!!
So here they are
1) Me in my suit with my new tie
2) Me at 6:35 am getting ready to go run/ hopefulluy make it back to the apartment
3) eating helote!!! corn on the cob with mayonaise, butter, chile powder, and lemon
Love you all!!!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Week 75
Dear Family,
Life has been good in the hood for the past week. We have 3 baptismal dates right now and hoping for 5 more this week. Last night we had a great lesson with David and we taught the Plan of Salvation which he enjoyed a lot. It was really something to see last night because Elder Black still is struggling on the Spanish part and he was able to give a great and simple explanation on the Atonement and Pre-Mortal Life. Even though things were not said the way they exactly should have been, the Holy Ghost carried the message of the love and truth. We keep on telling Elder Black that he need to eat more chiles and then his Spanish will progress at a speed that he won't even understand himself he will be speaking so well. But he says he is too gringo for that so he wont.
Yesterday we were knocking doors in the early afternoon and as were knocking we found nothing but Cambodian people and we also found out that the Cambodian Elders had just knocked that street and no body wanted to talk to us, like normal but little bit more like "what are you doing here, we just talked to you?" So, we left and as we were walking back to the bikes and there was a jolly older looking Mexican man getting into his car in front of a house that we just knocked and no one was there but now he was. So I stopped and talked to him and shorter long story made shorter.... he invited us to sit with him in the backyard and taught him the Restoration. So we did and he liked it and now has a baptismal date for the 30th this month. That is just a little example of what I have been missing for the past year while not being the barrio and how life is going on these days here. I hope all is going good for everyone and I pray that God be with you.
Love,
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Life has been good in the hood for the past week. We have 3 baptismal dates right now and hoping for 5 more this week. Last night we had a great lesson with David and we taught the Plan of Salvation which he enjoyed a lot. It was really something to see last night because Elder Black still is struggling on the Spanish part and he was able to give a great and simple explanation on the Atonement and Pre-Mortal Life. Even though things were not said the way they exactly should have been, the Holy Ghost carried the message of the love and truth. We keep on telling Elder Black that he need to eat more chiles and then his Spanish will progress at a speed that he won't even understand himself he will be speaking so well. But he says he is too gringo for that so he wont.
Yesterday we were knocking doors in the early afternoon and as were knocking we found nothing but Cambodian people and we also found out that the Cambodian Elders had just knocked that street and no body wanted to talk to us, like normal but little bit more like "what are you doing here, we just talked to you?" So, we left and as we were walking back to the bikes and there was a jolly older looking Mexican man getting into his car in front of a house that we just knocked and no one was there but now he was. So I stopped and talked to him and shorter long story made shorter.... he invited us to sit with him in the backyard and taught him the Restoration. So we did and he liked it and now has a baptismal date for the 30th this month. That is just a little example of what I have been missing for the past year while not being the barrio and how life is going on these days here. I hope all is going good for everyone and I pray that God be with you.
Love,
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Week 74
Dear Family,
Life is going great now that my prayers have been answered and I have returned to Long Beach. So far we have met and seen people that I remember and met before. Yesterday we met the Arias Family... a very dear and close family that I had taught and got to teach everything but did not get to see baptized. But I now get to see them get prepared for baptism and are now teaching their friends the Gospel and just committed someone and soon his family to the 30 January for baptism. It is fun because I have to do most of the talking in Spanish b/c my comp does not try because he just does not want to screw it up. But I am helping him along.
It is amazing to be able to do what I have done and see different areas of the mission and see all types of worlds. The richest of the riches and the the most poor of the poor. Right now I have a ward and area that covers both of those worlds and is interesting to see what people are motivated by and what they want in life and what they do to achieve what they want. The man we committed is truly searching for truth and wants to know if God really is there and if He can help his family. His name is David (DA-veed) and I pray that my knowledge of our Heavenly Father and our Savior will guide him and influence him to be baptized.
Thank you all and i love you all and hope everything is going great at the start of the new year. Speaking of that Do not ever go to Long Beach for New Year's. Unless you are packing some kind of explosive of firearm. :)
I love you and see you next week.
Love Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Life is going great now that my prayers have been answered and I have returned to Long Beach. So far we have met and seen people that I remember and met before. Yesterday we met the Arias Family... a very dear and close family that I had taught and got to teach everything but did not get to see baptized. But I now get to see them get prepared for baptism and are now teaching their friends the Gospel and just committed someone and soon his family to the 30 January for baptism. It is fun because I have to do most of the talking in Spanish b/c my comp does not try because he just does not want to screw it up. But I am helping him along.
It is amazing to be able to do what I have done and see different areas of the mission and see all types of worlds. The richest of the riches and the the most poor of the poor. Right now I have a ward and area that covers both of those worlds and is interesting to see what people are motivated by and what they want in life and what they do to achieve what they want. The man we committed is truly searching for truth and wants to know if God really is there and if He can help his family. His name is David (DA-veed) and I pray that my knowledge of our Heavenly Father and our Savior will guide him and influence him to be baptized.
Thank you all and i love you all and hope everything is going great at the start of the new year. Speaking of that Do not ever go to Long Beach for New Year's. Unless you are packing some kind of explosive of firearm. :)
I love you and see you next week.
Love Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Week 73
Dear Family,
I have something amazing to report.... I am in my greenie area!!!! Long Beach 1st Ward!!!! I am way excited to be here. If you want to send letters you can send it to my new address 1875 Cedar Ave #1 Long Beach Ca 90806 Sorry I have no time I will have great stories next week I love you all have a good one.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
I have something amazing to report.... I am in my greenie area!!!! Long Beach 1st Ward!!!! I am way excited to be here. If you want to send letters you can send it to my new address 1875 Cedar Ave #1 Long Beach Ca 90806 Sorry I have no time I will have great stories next week I love you all have a good one.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Post from Mom
On Christmas Day I got to talk with Jimmie. Oh how I needed that. He never fails in bringing a smile to my face! He got to talk to everyone, Dad, Justen, Courtney, Ronny, Katie and even Clark Anderson. We are so proud of him and his growth. He has not lost his "JIMMIE" personality (and all those who know him, know what I mean). However; he has gained a maturity and spirituality laced with the greatest sense of humor and confidence that in our wildest hopes couldn't have been better.
He only has 6 months left. We encouraged him to stay hard working and he said he would love to go back to his "greenie" area. Well I got a call today that he is being transferred back to Long Beach and his "greenie" area. He is stoked and I am sure gonna go out with a bang of hard work and touching the lives of all those he can.
For those of you who have kept up on his blog and or his work...thank you and don't hesitate to comment. He will love reading them when he gets home.
He only has 6 months left. We encouraged him to stay hard working and he said he would love to go back to his "greenie" area. Well I got a call today that he is being transferred back to Long Beach and his "greenie" area. He is stoked and I am sure gonna go out with a bang of hard work and touching the lives of all those he can.
For those of you who have kept up on his blog and or his work...thank you and don't hesitate to comment. He will love reading them when he gets home.
Week 72
MERYY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!
FELIZ NAVIDAD!!!!!!
I hope everyone can share the best gift they can give to someone else this year... thats their testimony of Jesus Christ and bring them church or do something for someone that really needs it.... and thats everyone that isn't a member or someone who needs to return to church. Share with them the witness of Jesus Christ's birth from the Book of Mormon and bear testimony of it. And if they reject you and say something mean... then you know how Mary and Joseph felt. Have a Merry Christmas and I hope all is well. Remember the address to send packages is still 6500 E. Atherton St., Long Beach, CA 90815 and my name is .....
Elder Jimmie G Watkins!
FELIZ NAVIDAD!!!!!!
I hope everyone can share the best gift they can give to someone else this year... thats their testimony of Jesus Christ and bring them church or do something for someone that really needs it.... and thats everyone that isn't a member or someone who needs to return to church. Share with them the witness of Jesus Christ's birth from the Book of Mormon and bear testimony of it. And if they reject you and say something mean... then you know how Mary and Joseph felt. Have a Merry Christmas and I hope all is well. Remember the address to send packages is still 6500 E. Atherton St., Long Beach, CA 90815 and my name is .....
Elder Jimmie G Watkins!
Week 71
!Salud!
My family and friends how art thou? Life is going good now that I am not all sick and inable to do anything constructive with my life. Ya on thursday I woke up with the flu (not the HINEY, H1N1, thats what i call it or the chancho) and it was not fun. Gave Elder Cluff a wonderful wake up call from the bathroom at about 3:30 am that was journal worthy. Saturday was El Dia de La Virgencita! or Day of the Virgin Mary and all the Latinos were playing all sorts of fun music for us to listen to as I sat in my recliner chair for 60 hours sick. Thats about how exciting it was for us. We should be having some baptisms hapefully coming up and just need all the prayers and support for them to happen. Anyways hope all is well and have Very Merry Happy Christma-Hauna-Kwanzi-kaughs!
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
My family and friends how art thou? Life is going good now that I am not all sick and inable to do anything constructive with my life. Ya on thursday I woke up with the flu (not the HINEY, H1N1, thats what i call it or the chancho) and it was not fun. Gave Elder Cluff a wonderful wake up call from the bathroom at about 3:30 am that was journal worthy. Saturday was El Dia de La Virgencita! or Day of the Virgin Mary and all the Latinos were playing all sorts of fun music for us to listen to as I sat in my recliner chair for 60 hours sick. Thats about how exciting it was for us. We should be having some baptisms hapefully coming up and just need all the prayers and support for them to happen. Anyways hope all is well and have Very Merry Happy Christma-Hauna-Kwanzi-kaughs!
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Week 70
Hello from Surf City USA!!!!
Life is going pretty cold here in sunny southern California. Yesterday and today have been WAY cold because it rained all day yesterday and night. It is neat to see today because all the mountains around us have snow on them and it actually feels like a winter now. We still had nothing to do on a normal monday afternoon so we resorted to knocking praying that someone would be nice and have compassion on us and give us hot chocolate or something. But,...... no nothing but normal rude people in the down pour. We did witness the tender mercies of the Lord as we were knocking we recieved a referral on the phone. So the Lord was watching out for us. We are planning to be having a baptism/s for the week of Christmas and we could use all the prayers possible.
It has neat lately for me, I have received letters from people that I have worked with and that have been baptized and how much they have a grateful heart to God that I had been able to teach them. That to me is the greatest thing ever to have received for this Christmas season. I want to thank all of you for the influence that you have had on my life in order to get me to where I am now. Please know that your influence on me has brought more children of God to his fold than you even are able to comprehend. Keep up the good work and love and have a Merry Christmas.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
17 DAYS til CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Life is going pretty cold here in sunny southern California. Yesterday and today have been WAY cold because it rained all day yesterday and night. It is neat to see today because all the mountains around us have snow on them and it actually feels like a winter now. We still had nothing to do on a normal monday afternoon so we resorted to knocking praying that someone would be nice and have compassion on us and give us hot chocolate or something. But,...... no nothing but normal rude people in the down pour. We did witness the tender mercies of the Lord as we were knocking we recieved a referral on the phone. So the Lord was watching out for us. We are planning to be having a baptism/s for the week of Christmas and we could use all the prayers possible.
It has neat lately for me, I have received letters from people that I have worked with and that have been baptized and how much they have a grateful heart to God that I had been able to teach them. That to me is the greatest thing ever to have received for this Christmas season. I want to thank all of you for the influence that you have had on my life in order to get me to where I am now. Please know that your influence on me has brought more children of God to his fold than you even are able to comprehend. Keep up the good work and love and have a Merry Christmas.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
17 DAYS til CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Week 69
Dear family,
Sorry this is going to be short but we re in a library and have limited time to write. As i got on the computer we started to teach a guy sitting next to me that kept on asking all sorts of questions and so we were losing time on the computer. He turned out to be a white muslim??? that was saying alot of weird things.
Thanksgiving was good, ate ALL day and got sick but was well taken care of. All of our appointments fell through b/c of Thanksgiving and now its all back to normal. Love all you and love to hear from you since CHRISTMAS IS 24 DAYS AWAY!!!!
Love Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Sorry this is going to be short but we re in a library and have limited time to write. As i got on the computer we started to teach a guy sitting next to me that kept on asking all sorts of questions and so we were losing time on the computer. He turned out to be a white muslim??? that was saying alot of weird things.
Thanksgiving was good, ate ALL day and got sick but was well taken care of. All of our appointments fell through b/c of Thanksgiving and now its all back to normal. Love all you and love to hear from you since CHRISTMAS IS 24 DAYS AWAY!!!!
Love Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Week 68
Hello Hello and Hello there....
Westminster is a lot different from Buena Park area, in that there are now only Vetnamese people and not Korean or Chinese. My new comp's name is Elder Cluff from Lehi, UT. Very big change from my little Guayanese boy Elder Danesh but we are doing great. We should have a bpatism coming up this week and are working our best to have a lot in Christmas. Elder Clayton from the Presidency of the Seventy wrote our President and said that we need to have a " White Christmas" in Long Beach Mission. Referring to baptisms and all dressed in white. We are all very excited for Christmas to be coming and hope people will listen around this time. I love you all and hope you dont miss me too much during the Christmas season. :) have a good week
Love,
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Westminster is a lot different from Buena Park area, in that there are now only Vetnamese people and not Korean or Chinese. My new comp's name is Elder Cluff from Lehi, UT. Very big change from my little Guayanese boy Elder Danesh but we are doing great. We should have a bpatism coming up this week and are working our best to have a lot in Christmas. Elder Clayton from the Presidency of the Seventy wrote our President and said that we need to have a " White Christmas" in Long Beach Mission. Referring to baptisms and all dressed in white. We are all very excited for Christmas to be coming and hope people will listen around this time. I love you all and hope you dont miss me too much during the Christmas season. :) have a good week
Love,
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Week 67
I got transferred to Westminster... right next to Huntington Beach.....lots of Vietnamese people. We are moving this week out of the apartment that we are in so if you send anything just send it to the mission address 6500 E. Atherton St., Long Beach, CA 90815. Sorry have like no time to write.... new comp name Elder Cluff from Lehi UT.
Love Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Love Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Monday, November 16, 2009
Week 66
Look at that sticker!!!! That was horrible for me to see.... I am dying for some Pete's Fish and Chips. Life is going well for us here in Buena Park. The work is going relatively slow for us but we hope it is starting to swing back into normal routine. We are all really excited because in a couple of weeks we the missionaries will be working with the Reflections of Christ photographer and running booths for a display that he is doing here in the stake. The only worry is that transfers are this coming Tuesday and with my luck ... I will be transferred b/c something cool will be happening here. Sorry not much time to be on here gotta ge t going and get things done
Elder Watkins
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Week 64
We had a rough but great week of work. All of the people that were going to get baptized on this coming weekend...turned up to be weak sauce and ignored us and act like they want nothing to do with us. That is very hard to see but unfortunately not a rare occurence in the mission. Yesterday i almost blew up at a guy i was not happy at all towards him because we were knocking and then out of nowhere this old man tells us to go save souls somewhere else and that we should go to afaganistan being basically a jerk to us. But the Lord did provide us with 5 new people to teach and having a really good referral.
Elder Danesh is doing great, he is learning a lot right now and it really made me happy to hear some news from my mission President about him. He told me that I have been doing a great job with him because when he had first arrived he wasnt sure on staying or not. Now it is the total opposite with him. And the way he is going he will become a great missionary and do great things.
Life is going good love you all.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Elder Danesh is doing great, he is learning a lot right now and it really made me happy to hear some news from my mission President about him. He told me that I have been doing a great job with him because when he had first arrived he wasnt sure on staying or not. Now it is the total opposite with him. And the way he is going he will become a great missionary and do great things.
Life is going good love you all.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Week 64
Well.. thats all folks.....not much happened this week hope all is well..
Love Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Love Elder Jimmie G Watkins
Week 62
Hola de California,
This week was great we had real good sucess in many ways and they were all great blessings that the Lord saw fit to give us. We had a great experience this week to be able to go on splits with the young men in the ward and Elder Danesh took the YM President and a Priest to a lesson and I went knocking with another Priest in the area of town that all the white people do not like to go and we call little meh-hee-co and lots of murders and bad stuff goes on there... so he was having fun and enjoying it.
(Dont worry mother everything is ok) It was quite ironic the first door we knocked was in a huge latino apartment complex and white people answered the door and I did not know what to say b/c it was weird to see them there. Unfortunately they didn't want anything to do with us and told us to go away basically and shot my whole dreams to ever be happy again. Just playing but the lesson that Elder Danesh was at went great. That family (Los Hernandez) is going to get baptized sooner or later they just need to get to church and that is the hard part, something ALWAYS comes up Sunday morning. We also had a great lesson with a girl (Corina) that went with a friend to General Conference in Salt Lake to two sessions. She loved it and stop talking about it and is driving her sisters crazy talking about it, she came to church on Sunday and with her sister and loved it. SO basically the Lord blessed us with being able to teach her and set a baptismal goal for the first of November and hope all runs smoothly as it has til then.
We are diggin the new pad and only one problem or two. Elder Danesh loves sugar stuff and leaves it out all the time(which is one problem) , and then the ants attack in full forces to wherever it is at. We finally got rain last night after 10 months of nothing!! We are all exicted and loving it. Hope all is well with everyone and would love to hear from everyone so love ya bye.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
This week was great we had real good sucess in many ways and they were all great blessings that the Lord saw fit to give us. We had a great experience this week to be able to go on splits with the young men in the ward and Elder Danesh took the YM President and a Priest to a lesson and I went knocking with another Priest in the area of town that all the white people do not like to go and we call little meh-hee-co and lots of murders and bad stuff goes on there... so he was having fun and enjoying it.
(Dont worry mother everything is ok) It was quite ironic the first door we knocked was in a huge latino apartment complex and white people answered the door and I did not know what to say b/c it was weird to see them there. Unfortunately they didn't want anything to do with us and told us to go away basically and shot my whole dreams to ever be happy again. Just playing but the lesson that Elder Danesh was at went great. That family (Los Hernandez) is going to get baptized sooner or later they just need to get to church and that is the hard part, something ALWAYS comes up Sunday morning. We also had a great lesson with a girl (Corina) that went with a friend to General Conference in Salt Lake to two sessions. She loved it and stop talking about it and is driving her sisters crazy talking about it, she came to church on Sunday and with her sister and loved it. SO basically the Lord blessed us with being able to teach her and set a baptismal goal for the first of November and hope all runs smoothly as it has til then.
We are diggin the new pad and only one problem or two. Elder Danesh loves sugar stuff and leaves it out all the time(which is one problem) , and then the ants attack in full forces to wherever it is at. We finally got rain last night after 10 months of nothing!! We are all exicted and loving it. Hope all is well with everyone and would love to hear from everyone so love ya bye.
Elder Jimmie G Watkins
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