Meeting Some General Authorities

January 11, 2016
Ft. Defiance, AZ

Sometimes as we go through life we find ourselves tired and lost. We seem to realize or at least think we realize that nothing is going anywhere, but I am here to say something different. The time we have in life is such a wonder filled time. How many of our brothers and sisters across the world don't know or have the opportunity to experience the same things that we do. We first have the privilege of living in this wonderful country. Even though at times there is a lot of confusion and chaos there is a stark contrast with the things we know and experience as members of the Lord's Kingdom on the Earth. We know of the things which are past and the things to come. We are led by a modern day prophet who loves and prays for us daily. We know of the Savior's Atonement, the only thing that can truly help us continue to change and progress toward everlasting happiness. However as we know the darkness of life often surrounds us, leaving us feeling helpless, afraid, confused, or lost. We can be comforted knowing that the Lord has got it. When it comes to the Lord's work, don't worry about it, he can handle it. Just do as much as you can. There WILL be times that you feel like you can't overcome and this is how the Lord Tests us to see how we can handle it. Just push through it!

These are some things that I have really come to realize this week. I had the wonderful opportunity of having a few meetings with Elders Neil L. Anderson, Larry Echo Hawk, and Bradley Foster. There were some great things that I learned. First we had a missionary meeting with them which involved just 38 Junior Missionaries and some Senior Couples, then a Large Fireside. Yesterday they came to our sacrament meeting and spoke there as well. Some things that Elder Anderson talked about that will help the church grow is this;

1)Temples and Family History Work

2)Send Missionaries Out

3)Gardens (Being the "Garden Project" in this part of the world)

4)Education

5)Tithing

Keep those things in mind, as you try to help others. 

Elder Warnick

Email Again!

January 4, 2016
Ft. Defiance, AZ

It has been a great week in Ft. Defiance. There have been a lot of great things happening, at least when we actually are able to get out of the trailer and work. This week we found 5 new investigators, which is a drastic change from the time that I spent in Kaibeto. On that note Kaibeto is doing super great! Things are going so right in our area, I am very grateful for the Lord directing us to people who need to have their spirits uplifted. The meeting that took up so much of our time last week was a good one. The leaders in the mission (The Mission President, Assistants, Zone Leaders and Sister Training Leaders) were able to meet together and council together on some of the things that are keeping the mission from excelling, for example this year we had 100 less baptisms than we did last year, we were wondering why that happened. Yesterday I had my very first missionary coordination meeting, where the missionaries and the Ward Mission Leader meet together and discuss and plan out things and discuss the needs of the people that we are teaching and get others ideas of how to help. Well let me just say that is was an amazing meeting! I wish that I could go make sure that EVERY ward in the world would actually have in the first place have a ward mission leader and after have them actually hold that meeting it is super effective. I am doing great, and I am super excited for this coming weekend. We are having some special meetings with Elder Neil L. Anderson and some of the seventies. I hope that you all have a great week.

Stinkin' Rez

December 31, 2015
Ft. Defiance, AZ

Well It has been a great week! To get the story out of what happened on Monday--well the internet went down. It didn't just go out but the internet went out on the whole reservation. You know it is bad if none of the businesses can take debit cards because of it. Well Monday night we left for Farmington for our Mission Leadership Conference. All Tuesday we were in the meeting and then right afterward we went on exchanges with the assistants and just got back yesterday. I am am super excited to finally be home!

Yesterday we went tracting and met a pretty great new investigator. He was a missionary for his church so he really respects what we do, and is very open to hear us share messages about the savior. We also had an awesome experience yesterday when we went to a less-active members house, his name is David. So a back ground on him, he is 57, native and well...he is blind. We showed up to his house and got a come in, as we opened the door smoke poured out of the door. Rushing in he said can you help me start the fire? Well we were able to get the smoke out of the house and open the chimney on the stove to give the fire some oxygen and no longer pump the smoke back into the house. We shared a lesson on the Plan of Salvation which really touched him, then he asked us to sing him a song. I felt that we should sing I Know That My Redeemer Lives. As we sang the song the spirit was there in an immense amount, and he began to weep. After the song ended and he composed himself, he told us that after his mother passed away when he was in his teens the Elders shared a lesson and sang that very song. I am very grateful for that opportunity.

Well this is about it for today, we have to be in at 5:30 because of all of the crazy things that people do on New Years. Well Thanks for the Patience with me this week.

Elder Warnick

I live

December 31, 2015
Ft. Defiance

Hey I will be sending out the email soon and explain everything but I am alive!

Fort Defiance

December 21, 2015

Ft. Defiance, AZ

This has been a good first week here in Ft. Defiance. Let me tell you a bit about the area and about my position. So we have a very strange position. I am a zone-leader for the Chinle Zone, I serve in the Window Rock AZ ward, we cover Ft. Defiance, and we live in St. Michaels, wow 4 different places. Here in the Window Rock ward we have 3 sets of full time missionaries. Us in Ft. Defiance. Another set of Elders in Window Rock, a set of Sisters in St. Mikes. We also have a senior missionary couple and have another on the way. That will be 10 missionaries in 1 ward, this is very unique for our mission.

Ft. D is a pretty awesome place but it is pretty ghetto. Our area is riddled with gangs, in fact there is a housing that we are not allowed to knock because it is the center of their turf battles. Now they would by no means mess with us, in fact most of them respect us and would have our backs but we don't want to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, so need to worry about that.

Well I only have half an hour today but I hope that all of you have a very Merry Christmas.

Elder Warnick

Transfer!

December 14, 2015

Kaibeto, AZ

I am getting transferred. I am very ready for this. I will be going to Ft. Defiance AZ/ Window Rock AZ as a Zone Leader. This is one of the biggest zones in the mission it will interesting to be there in the Chinle Stake. Right now my zone has 12 missionaries in it, from the area I can think of in the Chinle Zone there are at least 22 missionaries. That is a lot! This past week was too long in Farmington. Here is how my time in Farmington for meetings went.

Wednesday arrive in Farmington a little early to do some shopping. Get a call from the Assistants that Elder Robins cancelled on us but will be coming another time. Get really sad. Shop. Elder Snuka gets sick so we head to the AP's house. The Ap's find us there doing nothing and send us on splits. Work, have no dinner.

Thursday wake up and go to the meeting with the missionary department from Salt Lake, 9:00-4:30 with one 45 minute lunch break. Felt the spirit and learned a lot! Went back to the Assistants with a sore butt. Go out for the rest of the day with the Spanish elders.

Friday pack up. Study. The assistants get ready to leave and then tell us that Elder Snuka got invited by president to attend the meeting, the transfer meeting. Me and Elder Peterson sit around from 9:00-4:00 waiting for them to get back. Finally they arrived and we ask if Elder Snuka is the next AP. We see his pamphlet on how to drive the van (which the AP's do). Grill him for an hour in which he denies all of it. Go to the mission office and some things came up so Snuka had to stay. We now work up a plan to explain to the other Elders why he stayed without telling them that he is AP. Drive home for 4 hours.

It was quite the experience. Well here is my new address.

PO Box 203
St. Michaels Az 86511

There is a ton on my mind that I now need to sort out. Thanks everyone! Happy Starwars!

Uhhhh

December 7, 2015
Kaibeto, AZ

It has been a good week. Lots of strange things happened though. Today for example we ran into a couple of drunks in the park, that is nothing new since we live in the highest alcoholic per capita place in the nation. But these 2 guys were different than usual. They wanted us to call their mom so she could come and get them. One just got out of prison and the other brother had picked him up. They felt so bad for all of the things that they had done and are really trying to fix their lives. They said they drink to keep the nightmares of all of the people they killed while they were in the Marines away. We made the call and went on out way. 30 minutes later we met them again. He was coming our of Safeway with some medication to help control his seizures and some other stuff to try to help with the addiction he faces. I don't know what it is but I think he may succeed. 

This week we also had a couple of people tell us some strange things. It all started when we told her that the Zone-Leaders would be taking our Chidi (truck) to Farmington when they go to their special meetings this week with Elder Lynn G. Robins. Her response was one that I will never forget "Are you curious?" The attempt to ask if we were 'serious' kind of failed. Later someone was talking to about the primary program it went like this. "So you know...what's his name? Thompson Monson? The president? Well I guess that he wrote bishop a note and told me that I have to do one....(sigh)...so I guess I will." We were stunned. 

Well now for what made me go Uhhh. While we were driving the other day we got a call from the Assistants. It was Elder Dunn, who I came out with. He said "Elder Warnick I am sure you have heard about the meetings with Elder Robins this week. Well I don't know how you swung this but president was able to invite some people and you are one of them." Whoa, that threw me for a loop, I did not see that coming...ever. 

This week I also gave blood. It was my first time and I enjoyed doing it. What I am most excited for is to finally find out what my blood type is. Well that is the big stuff for the week I hope to have a lot to talk about next week.

Elder Warnick

Oh we also had a baptism this week... His name is Joshaun. Just happy to seem him finally getting there.

Blood Donation

I accidentally broke the freezer, but I fixed it.

Joshaun's Baptism

Accidentally dropped my planner in the font

Last Night's Sunset (December 6th)