Monday, July 14, 2014

Week 42: What's English?

Elder Myler's email from 7/14/14:

Hello mom it is nice to hear from you and i am shocked that mitchell leaves this week for the mission. It is crazy just how fast the mission has been for me and all that i have learned and done in such a short time. I will be sure to send mitchell and email or two next in the next couple of weeks. haha I cant believe marcus is writing music with carson! its good to hear that he is doing well and i will be sure to write soon. This week was a good week, work work work but being busy is way better than haveing nothing to do. Mom you relly love to send pacages, i still have not received the last package but i am sure it will be here soon. Beisdes all of this i am doing well, I think i am almos fully converted to spanish it is weird to talk in english and a lot of the words sound funny to me now, i am constantly talking in spanish and am working on thinking in spanish all the time too. the weather has been a bit hotter in the day and cooler at night. All is well here and i too miss you a whole lot mom. I will be hitting the year mark here in no time and will soon be on the down hill (wich is both good and bad) but i think my second year will be much better than the first. I love you and MIss you 
Your son Elder Myler 

Monday, July 7, 2014

Week 41: 4th of July in Ecuador?

Elder Myler's emails from 7/7/14: 

Hi mom! how are you doing? this last week was a great week, we had a bautiizim this last week and it was great to have our first baptism here in Portoviejo. Our investgator´s name is carlos navia and Elder Garcia and I have had a great time teaching and helpnig him become converted. But besides that things here are going just fine. Our nights are getting cooler but its more or less the same during the day. I am sad that i could not spend 4th of july with you and dad (my 4th of july was nothing specal) But we are doing just fine. I cant wait to hear all about marcus´ school schedule and living arrangments. Sorry for the short email. Love you and miss you
With Love Elder Myler

Hello Dad it is good to hear from you! This has been a good week for me. Elder Garcia and I had the chance to baptise one of our investgators this week and we are working hard and progressing in our sector. This last week has been fairly average and i hope to have more to write about in the next week haha sorry the email is so short, 4th of july was nice and in the night it is getting cooler. We have had a couple of days when the sun was particularly strong and it reminded me of home but besides that things have been going just fine. Thanks for the email and i hope to write again soon. Say hi to marcus for me 
With love Elder Myler

Week 40: Update

Elder Myler's email from 6/30/14:

Hello mom Sorry for writing so late this week. this has been a crazy week so far and i am a little worn out. We traveled to Guayaquil this last monday and spent the day traveling by bus to meet with the mission to celabrate the annaverrsary of the mission. Tuesday was the actual annaversary and we celabrated with the whole mission (sharing skits, pictures and hearing testimonies) and we got to go to the temple also. It was a great day and today we trveled back to Portoviejo are going to start working. Sorry this email is so short i am a little tired from the past 2 days. I will be sure to inform you when i receive your package
With Lots of Love Elder Myler

Week 39: Update

Elder Myler's email from 6/23/14:

To Dad:
Hey dad i is good to hear from you today. sounds like the lava tubes were a lot of fun. I wish i could be back at home to see chelsey and celabrate Marcus´ Birthday but i have work to do here :) At times i think about what blessings i want from our heavenly father when i get back from my mission. But this isnt the purpose of my wokr and shouldnt be what i think about. When i think abotu these things i try and think of how i can be a blessing for someone else and what more i could do to imporve my mission. If all i do is think about what i will be doing after the mission my mission will be for nothing. I always try to keep my mission my focus during the day and work hard to make a differnce in the lives of all the people here in ecuador. Thank you for this email and for your love an support
Love you and miss you 
Elder Myler

Week 38: More transfere details

Elder Myler's email from 6/15/14:

To Mom:
Hello mom, Sorry for missing the last email but i was a little busy (check the other email i sent this week) it has been a crazy week and i almost missed writing this week as well. So here is a little more detail about my transfer. So i was told i was being transfered last sunday at about 10:30 so i had to pack up all my things and i went to a big bus terminal where the mission does the transfers. I was told i was being transfered to Portoviejo. I went a bought the ticket to go by bus to Portoviejo and was on a bus withinin the hour. the bus trip was about 4 hours long and pretty boring, but the view of Ecuador was nice. When my temporary companion and i arrived in Portoviejo we had no was to talk with the Zone leaders so my companion went looking for a phone booth while i gaurded our luggage. We called the zone leaders and waited for about 30 minuits untill they showed up. they told me we would be waiting in the bus terminal for my companion and we waited for about an hour and a half. The ZL decided to stop waiting and just go with me to my new house, when we got there the place was very dirty and i spent the last part of the day cleaning and unpacking. And with monday being the only day we can write i had to go without writing for the week. I am sorry i did not write but please dont worry about me in the future, I promise you if anything happens to me the mission will be sure to write you! there will be times when i will simply not have time but i will do all i can to write every week even if it is just a tiny email saying i am ok. But mom please dont stress over me and try not to worry so much about me. I am proud you were able to put your trust in the lord this week and i know you can do this every week while i am away,
I will be sure to keep you updated on everytihng as things progress here 
Con Amor Elder Myler 

Hello mom it is nice to hear from you, these past two weeks have been fairly crazy but rewarding. So i am in an apartment and it is just Elder Garcia and i. we live in front of El universidad técnico de manabi. It is one of the biggest universities in the providence. So there are a lot of students and temporary housing. Portoviejo is a lot like Tucon in my opinion. My companion Elder Garcia is from Quito the capital of Ecuador, he was suppose to be in our mission temporarily while he waited for his visa for Venezuela but the church has reassighned all the missonaries that were called to venezuela becuase of all the problems the county has with the united states and the govement dosent want to let the missonaries into the country. So he will be here in this mission permanently, he was bummed to learn this but he took the news well. Our new ward is awsome! we have received a lot of help these last two weeks and everyone is very nice. So the biggest differnece between my old secotr and my new sector is defidently the hills. I have been here for two weeks now and still havent exsplored all the side paths and houses that are up in the hills, The weather here is much nicer. it is nice and cool late in the afternoon when the sun is setting and all through the night. This last saturday some of the missonaries here in portoviejo traveled to a smaller city about and hour away where there are no missonaries and the entire city has 1-2 families that is active. we got to go to this city to try and help the families there start up a branch, it was awsome to go to a city where the people have never had missonaries and i think very soon the mission will be putting missonaries in parts of ecuador with little to no members! in all i am loveing my new sector and am looking forward to all the things i will be able to acomplish here. Have a good week mom i love you and miss you  With love, your son Elder Myler 
 
To Dad for Father's Day:
HAPPY FATHERS DAY DAD!!!!!!!!!!!! sorry i missed this specal day and i hope you had a good day. I am sorry i could not do something specal for you the mission has been a bit more hectic here in Portoviejo. I am so greatful for all you have done for me and for your exsample. We are always teaching people about the impotance of the family unit in the plan of God and everytime we teach about our families i think about you mom chelsey and marcus (and sometimes jetter) I have i picture of us for San Diego in my Bible so you are all with me every day haha. I know that i wouldnt be the person i am today without your help and being here in the mission has helped me develope more love for you and for our heavenly father. I think that before my mission i didnt truly understand a lot of things about the gosple and our family, my life at home and my exsperiences in church were more or less routine and now i feel that for 19 years i was just going through the motions, but now that i am a missonary everything has changed. Things like the sacrament, the book of mormon, the atoment of Jesus and our family have truly become important parts of my life and i have grown to love these things so much here in my mission. You have always been a great exsample for me and i am so thankful that you and mom raised chelsey marcus and i in the church and i am thankful for your love help and exsample for me. I know i wouldnt be here in the mission if it wasnt for you and i know you still are an exellent exsample for me. Thank you for being the best dad in the world and thank you so much for all you have done for me. I love you and miss you everyday
Your Son Elder Myler  
 

Week 37: Transfer! No email last week...

Elder Myler's email from 6/9/14:

Hi mom thanks for the Email! I is good to hear that you are doing fine and that you had a good Memorial day! Wow there in a lot going on right now back at home Mitchell getting ready for his mission, macus getting ready for school there is a lot that is happening but it sounds to me like everything is going fairly well. This week has been good for me as well. The weather here in Guayaquil is actually cooling down a bit (just a tiny bit) it is fairly cool at night and early in the morning. The seasons are opposite here because we are below the ecuador. Elder Hernandez and I are still working hard and learing a lot about our new languages (english and spanish). I am getting better at speaking the language every day (even though i am still not that good at speaking) but if i continue to grow and learn at the rate i am now i know i will be proficient in spanish very soon :). prety soon here i will be hitting the year mark. Time here in the mission is strange when i think about all that i have done and the work i need to do 8 months feels like forever, but when i thing about all my goals and plans for the mision 8 months feels like nothing. Well i know i have done what the lord want me to do and that i will never regret this descision to serve. Thanks you for writing me and for always writing and keeping updated on marcus and everybody back at home. I love you and always miss you! 

Week 35: 8 months in!

Elder Myler's emails from 5/26/14:

To Mom:
Hi mom thanks for the Email! I is good to hear that you are doing fine and that you had a good Memorial day! Wow there in a lot going on right now back at home Mitchell getting ready for his mission, macus getting ready for school there is a lot that is happening but it sounds to me like everything is going fairly well. This week has been good for me as well. The weather here in Guayaquil is actually cooling down a bit (just a tiny bit) it is fairly cool at night and early in the morning. The seasons are opposite here because we are below the ecuador. Elder Hernandez and I are still working hard and learing a lot about our new languages (english and spanish). I am getting better at speaking the language every day (even though i am still not that good at speaking) but if i continue to grow and learn at the rate i am now i know i will be proficient in spanish very soon :). prety soon here i will be hitting the year mark. Time here in the mission is strange when i think about all that i have done and the work i need to do 8 months feels like forever, but when i thing about all my goals and plans for the mision 8 months feels like nothing. Well i know i have done what the lord want me to do and that i will never regret this descision to serve. Thanks you for writing me and for always writing and keeping updated on marcus and everybody back at home. I love you and always miss you!  

Thanks for stopping by the blog!

Monday, May 19, 2014

Week 34: A Baptism! with Pics!

Elder Myler's emails from 5/19/14:

To Mom:
Hello mom! This week was a great week for me Elder Hernandez and i had two more baptisms this week, we baptised two best friends named justin and roberto, They are two relly great kids and they remind me of dejon and myself back at home haha. I am sure he is still hanging around the house with marcus! Besides that everything is going just fine. So this week i ate manta ray for lunch one day, I pretty much thought it was just fish untill the memeber that gave us lunch thata day told us it was manta ray hahah just one of the many interesting things that i have eaten here in the mission. Elder Hernandez and i dont have any investgatros right now so we will be talking with everyone we meet this week. I have meet a lot of interesting people and it is so humbiling to know that they are all chirdren of God. It is tough at times to talk to strangers and as you know i can be a little quiet at times but i am learning to leave my comfort zone and talk with as many people as possible. Thank you for the email and the pictures! I love you and miss you
Elder Myler 
I will love you forever i will like you for always and i know you will alwyas be my mommy now and forever. And i know i can feel your love for me even though you are far away. Have a good week mom cant wait to hear from you next week!

this last saturday Elder Hernandez and i had two baptisms ! and here are some photos from the baptism their names are justin and roberto

this last saturday Elder Hernandez and i had two baptisms ! and here are some photos from the baptism their names are justin and roberto


May 2014 PHOTOS

Three of the pictures are from one of my P-days when i went to a place called Las Peñas it if a historic neiborhood situated on a hill and there are 444 steps and (every step is numbered) to the top of this hill. Elder Henandez and i climbed all the way to the top and we had a great view of Guayquil

Three of the pictures are from one of my P-days when i went to a place called Las Peñas it if a historic neiborhood situated on a hill and there are 444 steps and (every step is numbered) to the top of this hill. Elder Henandez and i climbed all the way to the top and we had a great view of Guayquil

one of me at the top of Las Peñas

Three of the pictures are from one of my P-days when i went to a place called Las Peñas it if a historic neiborhood situated on a hill and there are 444 steps and (every step is numbered) to the top of this hill. Elder Henandez and i climbed all the way to the top and we had a great view of Guayquil

Three of the pictures are from one of my P-days when i went to a place called Las Peñas it if a historic neiborhood situated on a hill and there are 444 steps and (every step is numbered) to the top of this hill. Elder Henandez and i climbed all the way to the top and we had a great view of Guayquil

Week 33: Mother's Day

Elder Myler's emails from 5/13/14:

To Mom:
Hi mom happy belated mothers day. I hope your specal day was great. Talking with you was such a blessing and has helped me remember why i am out here in the mission in the first place. I was sorry to hear that you will be stiking around with Edward Don but i guess i dont know the whole situation. I am sure you will do just fine but i also know how stressful your job can be at times. I discovered last week that i have a spoon in my apartment from Edward Don. I guess the mission only buys from the best :) hey also i will put another photo of me cleaning our baptism font for our baptism! I wish we had more time to on saturday and i was tough to say goodbye again but Christmas is just around the corner and by then i will have more than a year in the mission. Time is truly going by fast and i am trying to do all i can everyday to make this mission a real blessing in my life. I know it is tough at times but i know it will all be worth it soon. I love you mom and i miss you everyday.
Con Amor Elder Myler
 
P.S I am working on my family history here in the mission and need your and dad´s help. If you could send birth dates locations and the date and location of your marrage it would help me a lot! also if you could help and ask G-ma for the same information for her and for her parents it would be a blessing Hugs and Kisses!
To Dad:
Hello Dad, it was so great to talk to you mom and marcus on saturday, it was diffiult to say goodbye again but it was worth it. Yester day we had a confrence with our mission president and it was a great exsperience for me. We learned a lot about how we are all sons and daughters of heavenly father and about our potencal as his children. We would all be more converted if we truly understood this important docterine. We also learned a lot about the Godhead and the importanec of each one of the members of the Godhead.
 
Hey i have a question for you. Do i need to pay titheing for the interest money from my bank acount? I dont know if i should be paying tithing for this money now or when i return form the mission.Thank you for the letter dad, it is always great to read your letters
Su hijo Elder Myler 

Weel 32: Planning Mother's Day phone call!

Elder Myler's emails from 5/5/14:

To Dad:
Hey dad thanks for the Email. Cinco de Mayo is just another day here in Ecuador (the holiday is more of a mexican holiday) so Elder Hernandez and i had a baptism this past week and it was a very spiritual exsperience for me. It has been a while but i have finally had a baptism. I know it isnt about how many baptism i have but it is always nice to be able to have baptisms. We have more baptismal dates so we will be working very hard every day. also i am very excited to talk with you mom and marcus. I emailed mom with the a time for the call. I hope to be able to call at 6:00 ecuadorian time on saturday. cant wait to talk with you guys. I do have my patirartical blessing and i do read it but not often enough. We all have great gifts and talents that we can use if we have more confidence and faith in Christ. thank you for your exsample and help for me in my mission. I love you and miss you
Your son Elder Myler 

To Mom:
hey mom so i this is more my normal email. I am super excited to talk with you this saturday (hopefully) and cant wait to have plans more concrete. I too like to have things well planned here in the mission and at times it can be frustrating when things are not so well planned. But the thing that i have learned for this is just to have paitence and hope for the best. So nothing much is all that new here in the mission. ELder Hernandez and I had a baptism this saturday which was super great and very spiritual. We also asked for permission to leave the zone this pday and visit other parts of the city. We still dont know if we have permission or not so all we can do is wait. OH well, I am doing very well and dont have quite as much stress as i had earlier in the mission. I am tired almost all the time but I think everyone is more tired during thier missions. haha well I gotta go, be sure to email me about the call for mothers day and i wil do all i can to make sure everything runs smoothly. Love you a lot and cant wait to talk. Elder Myler 
 
Hello Mom, as you know we will be talking this week, and we need to plan when and how, so lets start with when. My companion would like to talk with his family saturday night at 7:00 so would it be allright if we talked saturday night at 6:00? remember that this is in my time zone and i dont know what the time differnece is so be sure to know at what time this will be in Arizona. I dont know when i will be able to email again to this time with you but i will try and email agian. If saturday night at 6:00 (ecuadorian time) isnt the best time email me a new time and i will change plans to call at that time. Also my companion has a skype account with the name ¨elder-ohernandez¨ so be sure to share this email with marcus so he can help set up the call on your end.                               SO JUST REMEMBER SATURDAY 6:00 ECUADORIAN TIME. AND EMAIL ASAP WITH THE TIME THAT WORKS BEST FOR YOU IF THIS TIME DOSENT WORK!!!!!!!! cant wait to talk with you dad and marcus (jetter too) Love you Elder Myler         

Week 31: Update end of April 2014

Elder Myler's emails from 4/28/14

To Chelsey:
Hey Chelsey! Thanks for the Email! It sounds like your week was well spent with mom and dad in Phoenix. I too had a very good week and am working hard. It can be hard sometimes to enjoy life in the moment during the mission. Things can become routine quickly and it is easy to want a change of companions or a transfer. but dwelling in these things will only make things worse. I am learning to love the mission no matter where i am or who i am with. I can be tough at times but i will try my best. Thanks too for the pictures chelsey! Everybody is looking good (Jetter included). Thanks Chelsey for the update and the email.
Su Hermano Elder Myler

To Mom:
Hello Mom thank you for the letter. It sounds like you had a good time with chelsey this past week. Leave it to chelsey to drive herself into the water fall hahah, wow only ten weeks left for Mitchell thats crazy. Well my week was great as well. Elder Hernandez and i are doing just fine and actually have some baptismal date! we are very excited to be able to prepare these people for their baptisms and this has given us some extra momentum to work hard. Elder Hernandez is a bit of a goofball compared to me. He always has jokes or a prank to pull on me. He is a bit like marcus and it is good to have someone who isnt quite as serious as i am. haha also we will be attempting to watch what we eat and are trying to avoid eating in resturants or drink cola or juice with a ton of sugar. We will be makeing our own lunch this afternoon so wish me Luck! Also i will share a quick story. One of the families we eat lunch with during the week has a little boy who is staring to learn how to pray and so whenever we are with this family he always want to bless the food. He is very diligent in asking heavenly father to bless people (his parents, the missonaries, the computer, spiderman) and just about everyone and everything else in his life, we all paitenly wait with our arms folded and eyes closed while he is praying. The only thing he forgets to bless is the food.  Well thas about all i have time to write about this week, Thanks for your suppot, your love and the weekly update! I love you so much and miss you always. Su hijo Elder Myler  
 
To Myler Grandparents (Fred & Brenda):
Hey thanks for the letter papa and grandma! its great to hear from you both! sounds like your trip and visit with chelsey was a good time. I had a pretty good week as well, my companion and i are getting along just fine and we are working hard. We are starting to improve our sector and have a couple of baptism dates set up for May, we are very hopefull that these investigators will come to know the timportance of what we teach them and that they will be ready for their baptisms. We are also trying to eat better and are going to try and make our own lunch this week instead of going to a resturant. We will see if we have sufficient cooking skills to make our lunch haha. I love you both and wish you the best 
Your Grandson Elder Myler
 
 

Week 30: Easter 2014 and Photos!

Elder Myler's emails from 4/22/14

To Dad:
Happy easter! thank you for your emails. Here in Latin america easter is called La Semana Sante (or holy week) and they celabrate like Catholics, Friday saturday and sunday. everyone said its a big holiday but i didnt notice much differnence in the streets, haha oh well. The best part of this easter was our stake confrence, Sunday we got to hear talk by Jeffery R. Holland and Richard G. Scott. They were in Ecuador and their talks were transmited to all the stakes in Ecuador via satalite. They both gave great talks and i had a great time. Hope to hear from you again soon.
Con Amor Elder Myler

To Mom:
Hey mom, its so good to hear from you and all about Easter. My easter was very differnet. Here in the mission, in latin america easter is called la semana santa (the  holy week) they mainly celabrate friday staturday and sunday. It was more or less the same just work work work, But for sunday we had our stake confrence and were able to hear talks from Jeffery R. Hollad and Richard G. Scott The best part was that Holland dosent speak spanish and gave an awsome introduction and concluding testimony in spanish, he had some thing memorized in spanish, but his testimony in spanish was very powerful and the spirit defidently helped him with his tetimony in spanish. it was a good easter for me. Haha I would have never thought marcus would get into boomeranging but still it sounds like you guys have a lot of fun at the parks with the boomerangs! Same old same old here, elder hernandez and i are helping prepare a daughter of one of the memebers in our ward and Elder hernandez and i are growing and improving every day. Hope you have a good week, and keep me in your prayers
I love you Mom Elder Myler
hola hermana! tengo fotos para su blog. no es mucho pero no hay mucho para tocar fotos de durante la semana solamente mi compañero y yo con una cena que hicimos, fue huesos jamón y pan. los siento para la falta de fotos! :) English: hello sister! I have pictures for your blog. not much but there is not much to play during the week photos only with my partner and we made a dinner was bread and ham bones. Sorry for the lack of photos! :)

all the missonaries in my zone

Elder Hernandez and I
 

Monday, April 14, 2014

Week 29: Spanish better than English!

Wow! Elder Myler sent us an email today in Spanish. He is really good!

To Everyone:
HOLA Amigos y familia! voy a practicar mi español con ustedes con una carta! jejejejejej poner este carta en ¨Google translate¨y ver si mi español es bueno o malo. Entonces soy Elder Myler Soy de Arizona, mi hogar esta en un desierto y esta muy calor. Pero me gusta mucho mi hogar porque tengo mucho amigos y miembros de mi familia en Arizon. Ahora soy un misionero de Jesucristo y predicar su evangelio con mucho personas en Guayaquil Ecuador. yo vivo en un parte de Guayaquil se llama La Colmena y el barrio aqui es muy bueno y tengo mucho nuevo amigos aqui en este sector. Como un misionero yo tengo mucho regulas y trabajar todos los dias de la semana, Pero Tengo mucho feliz y gozo en mi corazon por que este mision es una bendicion para mi. Durante seis y media meses yo aprendí bastante cosas acerca de Jesucristo y mi vida. Gracia para su ayudar por mi durante este tiempo de mi vida y escribir mucho mucho mas! les amo cada uno de ustedes y mucho personas mas ( yo amo todos las personas en el mundo jejej) bueno voy a terminar este carta! Siempre tener mi en sus corazones y en sus oraciones.
Con amor Elder Myler

In English (via Google Translater):
HELLO Friends and Family ! I will practice my Spanish with you a letter! jejejejejej put this letter ¨ ¨ Google translate and see if my Spanish is good or bad . So I'm am Elder Myler Arizona , my home is in a desert and is very hot. But I really like my home because I have many friends and family members in Arizona . Now I'm a missionary of Jesus Christ and preach his gospel with great people in Guayaquil Ecuador . I live in a part of Guayaquil called The Hive and the neighborhood is very good here and I have many new friends here in this sector. As a missionary I have lots and adjusts work every day of the week , but I am very happy and joy in my heart for this mission is a blessing for me. At half past six months I learned a lot of things about Jesus Christ and my life. Grace for your help during this time of my life and my writing much more! they love each of you and a lot more people ( I love all the people in the world jejej ) good I will end this letter! Always keep me in your hearts and in your prayers.With love Elder Myler
 
I think jejeje is Spanish for hahaha
 
With Love, 
Chelsey   

Week 28: 2nd General Conference in the Mission!

Elder Myler's email from 4/7/14:

To Mom:
Hello mom, man the memories that those couches bring back. Haha it is great to see those couches again. I hope you week was as good as mine was, with my second General confrence i have been lifted up and have more animo ( dont know what word i would use in english) :) my spanish is better than i think, my companion is learning english and i have been talking to himn in english in our apartment. But i can hardly make a full sentence with out useing some spanish word. hahah it is great to help him learn english and to receive help from him for my spanish. I am learning and growing every day and am doing everything i can to make everyday specal. Elder Hernandez and i are working hard and i have faith that very soon God will reward our work. I love you mom and miss you so much (Jetter too) but i miss you more than any other person (or dog) in the world. Keep me in your prayers and i will keep you in mine
Con Amor Elder Myler

To Dad:
Hey dad thank you for the picture and for the letter. Wow what a week this was, General confrence was great (despite the fact that it was all in spanish) I didnt understand everything that was said but i got the idea of the talks. My favourite talk was from Elder Dallin H. Oaks about the Priesthood. I learned the importance of humility and obidience when we act in the name of God and that we do not have all the keys of the priesthood. I also enjoyed one talk given by a seventy (whose name i cant remember) about bobsleding and how those athletes in the olympics who train all thier lives for three or four minuits of raceing. The speaker applied this concept to our lives here in the earth but my companion applied the talk to his mission he called his mission his three minuits to serve the lord and that he had to make every moment count. I am going to do this as well and make every moment of the mission specal and meaningful. Things here in the mission are getting better, Elder Hernandez and i are working hard and i have received more enthusisasm to work hard. Siempre doy gracias por su amor y ayudar durante este tiempo de mi vida y voy a continuar a hacer este mission para mi familia y mi Dios. Con todo mi Amor Elder Myler 

Week 27: Update

Elder Myler's emails from 3/31/14:

To Mom:
Hello mom it is good to hear from you. Its great to hear that chelsey will be able to visit. Well it sounds like everyone is doing pretty well right now. The picture of jetter was great thank you mom :) Well i am still in my second area (La Colmena) and have been here for about about three months, there isnt a schedule for transfers so i have no idea how much more time i have in this sector. I still havent seen the ocean just city city city I dont know what there is to tell about the sector...... the only thing that is unique is that the sector is bordered by water on three sides, i am in the limit of the west mission everyting on the other side of the river is mission Guayaquil South. The streets here can be confusing at times because they dont use street names (everything is in letters and number) and there are no street signs to refer to ( it is hard to describe) sorry! We havent received any instructions for mothers day but i am sure the zone leaders will update us soon :) i too am very excited to talk with you dad and marcus! Oh i will be watching confrence in the stake center here. It will be my first confrence in spanish! but i am excited to try and understand as much as possible. Thank you for the email mom. I fasted for you that you will be able to find work that will enjoy
Con Amor Elder Myler

To Dad:
Hey Dad, hows it been going? everything here in the mission is allright, still havent had many people progress in my area, the lack of converts in the last couple of weeks has been a big test of my faith and i am trying my best just to keep on going. Elder Hernandez and I meet a family this week and we have high hopes that they will continue to accept our visits. they are the Flores family and they are very nice and acceptive. We hope they will come to church soon and accept our invitation to be baptised. I think things are gonna turn around for me here soon and i am trying to be as optomistic as possible. Hahah no one ever said the mission was suppose to be easy :) well thats all ive got to share this week. I will be thinking of you mom marcus and everyone in the family during confrence. this will be the second confrence of four! 
Con Amor Elder Myler  

Week 26: New Companion (Picture!)

Elder Myler's email from 3/24/14:

To Family:
Helllllllllllo Family so i am writing to the three of you at one becaues i do not have much time left to write. So sorry! haha well Last week will probably go down as one of the tougher weeks of the mission. Being the senior companion has taken its toll on me and i have been struggeling to be the best exsample to my Companion. Things here in this sector are tough we hardly ever have set apointments and much of ther time when we pass by an investigator or member they arnt in the house or are busy. So i have had some days where Elder Hernandez and i have had almost nothing to do during the day, and so we would just walk walk walk and tract all day. We have been trying our best but it hasnt resulted in much. But i have been taught a lesson this past week about being humble and to enjoy what i do have here in the mission. I am doing a bit better and am improving everyday! Thanks for your letters and the updates, it is good to hear you are all doing well and i am excitied to hear marcus has strong plans for school and i got news of Mitchel´s calling to Argentina i am very happy for him and look forward to emailing him in spanish. OK family gotta go! Salud!  Con Amor Elder Myler 


a picture of me and my new companion Elder Hernandez from El Salvador    
 To Papa and Grandma (Fred & Brenda):
wow thank you for the scriptures and for the advice, sometimes it is hard to remember that i am trying my best and that so much of what i do depends on the agency of others. I received some advice from a zone leader this week that relly helped, he is an american from Idaho and he told me that he struggled too when he had about 6 months in the mission and that just about everyone struggles in this time of the mission. SO even if i dont get a lot of baptisms i can still be a sucessful missonary. thank you for the email. My new companion is Elder Hernandez and he is from El Salvador. he is a hard worker and we are getting a long just fine.
Con amor Elder Myler
 

Week 25: Senior Companion Struggle

Elder Myler's emails from 3/17/14:

To Mom:
 Hey mom hows it going. This week has been very very though but i think i have done all i can to be the best missonary i can be. I will be sure to email marcus today and give try and lift his spirits. I dont have a lot to write about right now and am fairly stressed hopefully i will have more to write about later on but for now i dont have much to write about
Con mucho amor Elder Myler

To Dad:
Hey dad it sounds like you had a pretty good time at the air show, wish i was there! same old same old here in the mission. being a senior companion has been very stressful and i am struggeling a bit but i am doing my best to do what is write.
Con amor elder myler

To Grandma and Grandpa Myler (Fred & Brenda):
Hey Papa and grandma how is everything? i am doing allright and i am happy to hear that paxton is doing well. I miss you both a lot. I have been struggeling a little here in the mission but am doing all i can to be better.
Love you and miss you 
Elder Myler

Monday, March 10, 2014

Week 24: Update with PHOTOS!

Yay! Another week and another set of emails from Elder Myler! So happy to hear from him. 03/10/14

To Mom and Dad:
So i am writing to you both at the sametime today to save on time. And first off thank you for your letters this week it is so great to know all that is happening at home. And second OH MY GOSH I AM SO HAPPY FOR MITCHEL!!!!!!!!! Haha I cant wait to hear where he will be called he is basically my litttle b ! Third i have some exciting news, Elder Bustamante my companion will finish his mission tomorrow and wendsday i will be getting my new companion. Now normally this wouldnt be all that exciting of news but my next companion will be brand new and i will be traininig him! the training wheels are oficially off now and this will be my first exsperience with a new missionary. I am excitied and scared at the same time but i think i will do just fine. its good to hear that you fasted for me i will need all the help i can get these next couple of months. Love you both from the bottom of my heart!
Con Amor Elder Myler 

To Myler Grandparents (Fred and Brenda):
Hey, thanks for the email its good to hear from you. Thank you so much for the package! I have been savoring the MnM and they remind me of your house! I am so jealous that i am going to miss both temple dedications in Arizona (Gilbert and Phoenix) But thats all right i will have plenty of time in the future to visit both temples! I have some exciting news, my last companion finishes his mission this tuesday and my next companion will be brand new! i will be a trainer for this new missionary. It is exciting and a little intimidating at the same time, but i think i will do just fine. Thanks for the email and for your support and prayers! i will need all the help i can get these next twelve weeks
Con Amor Elder Myler
 
To Travis (brother-in-law):
Hey Travis Thank you for another great letter! its is always nice to get a letter that is completly focoused on missonary work. Because i dont have many people in my imidiate family who have served missions you have been an excellent exsample for me. Repentance has truly become somthing specal for me during the mission. I am defidently not perfect and need to improve every day. Knowing that everyone needs to improve every day helps me to know that i am not alone in this struggle to be a better missonary. Thanks for your wisdome and exsperience. 
Con Amor Elder Myler

To Chelsey:
Hey Chelsey, thanks for the email and for the talk on missionary work. I actually can print out the talk so dont worry about sending the talk. Oh and i am also sending pictures! not much to send right now for pictures. Just a couple of pictures from when it rained relly hard and my comanion and i had to clean our flooded apartment! I also have some exciting news! my last companion leaves tomorrow for his house and i will be getting a brand new missonary as my next companion! It  is exciting and scarry at the same time because it is a huge responsabilidad to train a new missonary. so i will need all the help i can get. Keep me in your prayers and i will keep you in mine
Con Amor Elder Myler 

Just a couple of pictures from when it rained relly hard and my comanion and i had to clean our flooded apartment!

Just a couple of pictures from when it rained relly hard and my comanion and i had to clean our flooded apartment!    

 Thanks for stopping by!

With love, 
Chelsey
 

Sunday, March 9, 2014

I spy... Elder Myler! Photos!

I was browsing Elder Myler's mission blog ( http://www.guayaquilwestmission.blogspot.com/ ) and found pictures of Davin! Happy day! :)

Zone Conference, first week of February 2014

Christmas 2013 with his area "Garcia Moreno"

Traveling to Ecuador, November 2013

Traveling to Ecuador, November 2013

First day in Ecuador, at the Mission Home. November 2013

First day in Ecuador, at the Mission Home. November 2013 (Elder Myler is on the far left)

First day in Ecuador, at the Mission Home listening to Pres. Dennis. November 2013. (Davin looks JUST like Dad with the way that he is sitting. That is exactly how my dad sits!)

I assume with was with his "first" companion before there was a switch around. November 2013.

Important information about sending Elder Myler mail and packages! (FOR YOU, MOM!)
 

What I Want My Son to Know before He Leaves on His Mission --James E. Faust


What I Want My Son to Know before He Leaves on His Mission

James E. Faust


My beloved brethren, the responsibility of speaking to the priesthood of the Church is overwhelming. I feel honored to be numbered one of you. It is a great blessing to hold the priesthood of God. I earnestly seek your faith and prayers.

This evening I would like to speak to you wonderful young men about 10 things that I would like my son or my grandson to know before he leaves on his mission.
 
First, you will be under call from the Lord Jesus Christ. What a marvelous thing it is to have the confidence of the Lord, your bishop, stake president, all of the General Authorities, and President Hinckley to honor you with a call. You will be a servant of the living God and an ambassador of the Church.

Most of our missionaries are young and inexperienced in the ways of the world. Nevertheless, the Lord said: “He that is ordained of God and sent forth, the same is appointed to be the greatest, notwithstanding he is the least and the servant of all.” 1

Despite our shortcomings and our inadequacies, we need to be reminded that the God who called you to serve is the “possessor of all things; for all things are subject unto him, both in heaven and on the earth, the life and the light, the Spirit and the power, sent forth by the will of the Father through Jesus Christ, his Son.

“But no man is possessor of all things except he be purified and cleansed from all sin.” 2
 
Second, your mission president is the Lord’s representative. Do not criticize or demean him, privately or publicly. If you will respect his authority, be obedient, humble, teachable, and follow the mission rules, you will be a successful missionary. For instance, one of the hardest rules to follow is to get up in the morning when your mission president directs. Many young men think the best time to sleep is in the morning. I’m grateful to my obedient senior companion, Elder William Grant Bangerter, who would set the alarm clock to get up early. When the alarm went off, it would jangle my nerves. In the winter it was dark, damp, and cold, and we never had any hot water for bathing or showering. He would cheerfully shower in that cold water; I would start to shiver as soon as he got out of the shower. I could not do anything but follow his example, but I have to confess that I was not quite as cheerful because my teeth were chattering.
 
Third, hard work is more important than intellect. Remember the Lord’s words in the Doctrine and Covenants:
“Wherefore, I call upon the weak things of the world, those who are unlearned and despised, to thrash the nations by the power of my Spirit;
“And their arm shall be my arm, and I will be their shield and their buckler; and I will gird up their loins, and they shall fight manfully for me.” 3

President Ezra Taft Benson once said: “One of the greatest secrets of missionary work is work. If a missionary works, he will get the Spirit; if he gets the Spirit, he will teach by the Spirit; and if he teaches by the Spirit, he will touch the hearts of the people; and he will be happy. There will be no homesickness, no worrying about families, for all time and talents and interests are centered on the work of the ministry. That’s the secret—work, work, work. There is no satisfactory substitute, especially in missionary work.” 4

One of the Brethren reported being in a missionary testimony meeting when a young elder, who was not given much to speaking, said: “I am enjoying my work. I guess that is all I can expect. I can’t enjoy what I don’t do!”

When President N. Eldon Tanner presided over the West European Mission some years ago, his slogan was “Have a good time.” One day he said to a group of missionaries in Germany, “I would like you all to have a good time.” After the meeting, one of the missionaries came up to him and said: “President Tanner, I don’t think that it is quite fair for you to tell the missionaries to have a good time. You know, the only way they can have a good time is to do their work.” President Tanner said, “Well, go have a good time.” 5
 
Fourth, forget yourself in His service. The Lord said, “He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.” 6 If you will lose yourself in missionary service, you will find indescribable joy.

Nothing you do as a missionary should get in the way of your important message: not your dress, not your hair length, your attitude; not your deportment; and not your girlfriend at home. I do not wish to be insensitive to the natural affections between a fine young man and a lovely young woman. However, if a missionary receives a letter from his girlfriend stating that her affections for him have changed—we used to call that a “Dear John letter”; some of us have gotten those—I commend the good counsel given some years ago by Elder LeGrand Richards, who said, “There’s a new group of girls every year! And the new group is just as good as the old group.”

You young men are properly concerned about finding your place in this unsettled world. However, when you are called as a full-time representative of the Lord, you should “serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day.” 7
 
Fifth, never permit contention in your companionships. Some of your missionary companions will be your life’s dearest friends. Be the kind of companion you would like to be with. Be unselfish in your relationship with your companions. When there is contention, the Spirit of the Lord will depart, regardless of who is at fault.

Each of us is an individual with unique strengths and talents, different from any other person in the world. Each of us has weaknesses. In a harmonious companionship, there is teamwork—where one is weak, the other is strong. As a boy, I learned to drive a team of horses. If one horse was balky, the other could not pull the load alone. So it is in a missionary companionship. Each must pull his share of the load.
 
Sixth, keep your bodies clean and healthy and your living quarters clean. It is very important that you eat properly and get adequate sleep so that you can maintain good health. If you become ill, not only can you not do the work, but you will also become a burden on your companion. Remember, also, that keeping your person and your living quarters neat and clean is conducive to enjoying the Spirit.
As a representative of the Lord, your personal appearance is very important. You, the Church, and your message will be judged in part by your cleanliness and neatness. People will be reluctant to invite you into their homes if you are unkempt.
 
Seventh, learn to love and serve the people among whom you work. You should pray daily for them that the Lord will fill you with love as you serve them. If you do not love them, you will have difficulty teaching them.

A lonely young Persian student was in Munich, struggling to find meaning to life in postwar Europe. He heard a knock at the door one day, and two Mormon missionaries stood before him. He was not the least interested in religion. The only thing that interested him about these two young men was their accent. He had mastered four languages, but English was not one of them.

He invited them in, but as soon as they began their discussion, he cautioned, “I don’t want to hear about God, nor how your religion got started. I only want to know one thing: what do you people do for one another?”

He waited as the elders exchanged glances. Finally, one of them said softly, “We love one another.”
Nothing the missionary could have said would have been more electrifying than this simple utterance, for the Holy Ghost immediately bore witness that these missionaries were true servants of the Lord. 

Shortly thereafter, he was baptized into the Church. 8
 
Eighth, study, ponder, and teach from the scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon and the New Testament. Know the truth so well that you can state it clearly. B. H. Roberts wrote, “To be known, the truth must be stated and the clearer and more complete the statement is, the better the opportunity will the Holy Spirit have for testifying to the souls of men that the work is true.” 9 You cannot convert people beyond your own conversion. The Book of Mormon, together with your testimony of it, are powerful instruments of conversion.

Elder F. Burton Howard of the Seventy acquaints us with a strong testimony of the converting power of the Book of Mormon: Sister Celia Cruz Ayala of the Puerto Rico San Juan Mission decided to give the Book of Mormon to a friend. She wrapped it in attractive paper and set out to deliver her present.

On the way she was attacked by a bandit who stole her purse and with it the wrapped copy of the Book of Mormon. A few days later she received this letter:

Mrs. Cruz:

Forgive me, forgive me. You will never know how sorry I am for attacking you. But because of it, my life has changed and will continue to change. That book [the Book of Mormon] has helped me in my life. The dream of that man of God has shaken me. … I am returning your five pesos for I can’t spend them. I want you to know that you seemed to have a radiance about you. That light seemed to stop me [from harming you, so] I ran away instead.

I want you to know that you will see me again, but when you do, you won’t recognize me, for I will be your brother. … Here, where I live, I have to find the Lord and go to the church you belong to.
The message you wrote in that book brought tears to my eyes. Since Wednesday night I have not been able to stop reading it. I have prayed and asked God to forgive me, [and] I ask you to forgive me. … I thought your wrapped gift was something I could sell. [Instead,] it has made me want to make my life over. Forgive me, forgive me, I beg you.

Your absent friend. 10

Such is the conversion power of the Book of Mormon.

Now I would counsel you young men as you enter your missionary service to forget the mysteries. Speaking of the mysteries reminds me of the man who got up to talk and said, “I will now proceed to expound upon that which the Lord has not yet seen fit to reveal!” Mysteries include those matters that are speculative. They are things which have not been revealed or are beyond our understanding. It is the plain, simple truth confirmed by the Spirit that converts when accompanied by the testimony of a humble servant of the Lord.
 
Ninth, you must know that Lucifer will oppose you, and be prepared for his opposition. Do not be surprised. He wants you to fail. Discouragement is one of the devil’s tools. Have courage and go forward. Recognize that the gospel has been preached with some pain and sorrow from the very beginning of time. Do not expect that your experience will be otherwise. President Wilford Woodruff recounted the difficulties of early missionary work:

“In my early missions, when preaching in the Southern States—Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky—I have waded swamps and rivers and have walked seventy miles or more without eating. In those days we counted it a blessing to go into a place where there was a Latter-day Saint. I went once 150 miles to see one; and when I got there he had apostatized, and tried to kill me. Then, after travelling seventy-two miles without food, I sat down to eat my meal with a Missouri mobocrat, and he damning and cursing me all the time. … In those days we might travel hundreds and hundreds of miles and you could not find a Latter-day Saint.” 11
 
Tenth, your own personal testimony is the strongest arrow in your quiver. I have often related that in the early days of the missionary work in Brazil, where we now have over half a million members of the Church, we did not have the Book of Mormon, the Pearl of Great Price, or the Doctrine and Covenants translated into the Portuguese language. All we had were the Bible, a few tracts, our personal testimonies concerning the Restoration of the gospel and the Joseph Smith story, and our testimony of the living prophet. The harvest was not great. However, some of those who were baptized have for three generations remained faithful because they were touched by the powerful testimonies of humble missionaries almost 60 years ago. Now, you cannot be responsible for whether or not those you teach will accept your testimony and join the Church. Do not feel that you must obtain a quota of baptisms to be successful. An old saying teaches that you can count the number of seeds in a single apple, but you can’t count the number of apples in a single seed. The harvest is the Lord’s. Your responsibility is to thrust in the sickle. The Doctrine and Covenants clearly records what is required of those who enter into the waters of baptism:

“All those who humble themselves before God, and desire to be baptized, and come forth with broken hearts and contrite spirits, and witness before the church that they have truly repented of all their sins, and are willing to take upon them the name of Jesus Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end, and truly manifest by their works that they have received of the Spirit of Christ unto the remission of their sins, shall be received by baptism into his church.” 12

If you have the Holy Spirit resting upon you, and you speak by that Spirit the words of the Lord as contained in the holy scriptures and as outlined by his living prophets, God will ratify your message in the hearts of those who are hearing you.

Now, my dear young friends, missionary work is not easy. In fact, it is often quite difficult, but the Lord is the greatest paymaster in the world. Dedicated missionary service is one of life’s most fulfilling experiences. This is in large measure because of the divine agency which flows so richly from the Lord to His humble and obedient servants to bless the lives of others. I know this because I have seen it manifested in the lives of thousands and have felt it in my own life.

May the priesthood of God be prepared and worthy for any calls that may come, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Week 23: Update

Elder Myler's update from 03/01/2014:

To Mom:
HI Mom thanks you for the emails and all of the pictures! I am writing a little early this week because Ecuador has a big holiday this upcomeing week. Its simply called carnaval and i dont exsacly know why they have this holiday. But for the next couple of days everyone is gong to be out in the streets partying and haveing a good time haveing water fights and such in the streets so it is not a great time to go out and work. SO we will be staying inside for a couple of days.  It is great to see and hear about marcus! I know i have been slacking on the pictures lately so i will be sure to find things to send for you guys! Wow it sad to hear that the theatre department has been struggeling but these things happen. this isnt the first time the department has struggled. I remember hearing stories as a freshmen about the theare department and how hard things were for everyone. But i guess it is good that marcus is staying busy! So i finally (FINALLY) got the packages sent for Christmas, thank you so much for the shirt pant and tie (HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY!) i dont quite know if it is an appropreate tie for a missonary but thats allright, im sure its fine and the shirt and pant are awsome its great to have a shirt that represents my state. Also thanks for all the food! my companion has never had beef jerkey so it was interesting trying to describe it to him, I also got chelsy´s package and the package from papa and grandma. So i am set on food for a bit.  i guess when it comes to packages we will just need to be paitent, The mission office is a very busy place so pouch for bigger things like packages can be slow. I also have the family christmas card on my desk so i can see it everyday. Before we know it i will be getting the next Xmas card! I am makeing a lot of progress in the language and progressing spititually as well. I am almost done with a quarter of the mission and it is going by so so so fast. I am not quite the missionary i thoght i would be at six months so there is lots of room to progress. Keep up the excelent emails mom it is a great boost to my soul and excitment to work every week!    
Con Amor Elder Myler

Week 22: Update

Here is Elder Myler's update from 02/24/2014:

To Mom: 

Heyyyyy mom, hope you are doing well Its is great to hear that you and chelsey got to spent a couple of days together. My exsperince with the rain was one of the non spiritual higlights of the mission. I had to walk around in soggy shoes for a day but everything is a ok now. And yes we normally keep the windows open because of the weather ( and it was nice and sunny when we left the apartment) :) oh hey i have the pouch adress
Elder Davin Melton Myler
Mission Ecuador Guayaquil West
Casilla dE Correo 09-04-206
Guayaquil Guayas
Ecuador
Hope that helps and good luck with the packages! if there is any other way i can help just let me know.
Con Amor Elder Myler

Week 21: Update

Here is Elder Myler's update from 02/17/2014:

To Everyone:
Hello and happy belated valentines day! wow my valentine was a bit crazy. everything was normal unill about five o clock in the afternoon when i began to rain. the rain didnt start out very strong but quickly became a major storm. My companion and I ran for the shelter of a member´s house. The rain became stronger and stronger and the drainage near the house of this particular member soon became clogged and the street flooded. it was up to people´s anckles in some places and people´s knees in other places. it was quite a site, kids started to play in the streets amidst all the rain. Our zone leaders called and told us to cancle all of our apointments and head home for the day. My companion and i had to walk through a couple of flooded streets and a torrent of rain to make it back to our apartment. when we got there our apartment to was partally flooded. ( we left a window open) :) and spent the next hour cleaning and getting rid of all of the water in our apartment. Well nothing much else to talk about right now so i will simply wish you a happy valentine.
Elder Myler

To Mom:
Hey mom sounds like you had a good valentines day with dad, its good you got to go camping with dad and jetter!
thanks for sending the pictures too, it is always nice to see a little slice of home. sorry to hear about the window! sounds like quite and exsperience. This week was pretty tough, none of our investigators came to church so Elder Bustamante and me will have no baptisms this month. i am trying not to get down about it and know that all i can do is work harder this next month. its good to hear marcus is busy and still has time to chill with friends, hope everything with work is going well and i wish you luck in searching for a new job! i know you will find work will be rewarding and will not be a huge burden. I did not confirm the adress as our last district meeting was very long. I will be sure to confirm the adress for you tomorrow.
Tell everyone that i say i and that i miss them
Con amor Elder Myler  

Week 20: Update

Oh my goodness! I have been slacking! So sorry. Here is Elder Myler's update from 02/10/2014:

To Mom:
Hello Mother it is good to hear from you. I am so happy to hear that you are finishing your job at edward don. I agree that hapiness is much more important than money and i think this descision is the right one. I am sorry the whole package situation isnt going well no packages scence before Xmas. i will be sure to compare the adress you have tomorrow at our district meeting and give you an update, my new apartment is not so good either. the water has become a problem for us and our water has been off for about a day now ( which isnt a lot of fun) but i am managing, elder bustamante and i are trying to figure out what is wrong. I think the Lord is trying to humble me here in ecuador and its certanly working haha. It is amazing to me how blessed i am to have so many good things in my life that problems like this dont make me very mad (emphasis on very) but besides this things are going well. Still havent had many investigators progress twards baptism but we are trying our best and that is what counts. This mission has been such a blessing to me and i know in these past 4 months my life has changed, thank you so much for your support and help for me as a missonary every day. I love you so much and miss you 
Con todo del Amor de mi corazon
Elder Myler  
 To Chelsey:

hey como esta mi hermana, soy muy bien. mucho trabajo pero la obra es muy bien y yo me gusta mi mision! haha dont try and translate that, its probably all incorrect! Eventually i will try and send an entire email in spanish! Thank you for the update on life back at home, espeshally about your work. sounds like work very rewarding for you. Thank you for the advice on paitence and for your testimony. I defidently need to work on my paitence, it is tough not to get mad when me and my companion dont agree on something or when he dose something that i makes me angry. But i know God has allowed our paths to cross here in Ecuador for a reason and that i can learn a lot for him. Man i wish i could give a testimony like that in spanish! I still have a long way to go but i know i progress little by little every day. Thanks for your love and support Chelsey, your words of wisdome help he feel the spirity every monday and it helps me feel the spirity through out the week. Love you and miss you
Con amor ELder Myler

Saturday, February 8, 2014

Week 19: Update with Photos

Hello!

This is what I sent Elder Myler this week:
I read this in my daily conference talk. It reminded me so much of you. I am so proud you are a missionary and representative of Jesus Christ. I love you Elder Myler and I pray for you often.

"...Now to the present for an interview I had with a handsome zone leader in the Brazil São Paulo Interlagos Mission. I said to the missionary, “Tell me about your family.” He then relayed the following. He was born into a wealthy family. His father had a responsible position in a multinational corporation. They moved from Brazil to Venezuela. He was one of seven children, all members of the Church. (Sacrifice in the Service)

When the missionary was fifteen years old, his father was shot and killed by a fleeing thief. In a family council it was decided to return to Brazil and invest their savings in the purchase of a small home. A year and a half later, the mother informed the children that she had been diagnosed with cancer. The family used valuable savings to help pay the medical expenses--but to no avail. Six months later the mother passed away, leaving the young family alone. (Sacrifice in the Service)

Our young missionary, Elder Bugs (pronounced Boogs), now sixteen years old, went to work, first selling clothing, then later computer supplies. He used his hard-earned money to support the young family. He said, “We were always blessed to have enough to eat. I would work during the day, then help the children with their studies at night. I especially miss my little sister. I taught her to read.” (Sacrifice in the Service)

Elder Bugs continued, “Then the bishop invited me to come in for an interview. He called me on a mission. I told him I would need to speak with my family first. In our family council, they reminded me that Dad had always taught us that we should be prepared to serve the Lord as full-time missionaries. I accepted the call. When I received my letter from the prophet, I withdrew all my savings. I bought a new suit, a pair of pants, white shirts and ties, and a new pair of shoes. I gave the rest of the money to the bishop (enough for about four months of support for the family). I hugged my little family and left for my mission.” (Sacrifice in the Service)

I looked at that brave young man and I said, “But Elder, with you away, who is taking care of your family?” (Sacrifice in the Service)

“Oh,” he said, “my brother is sixteen. He is the same age I was when our mother died. He is taking care of the family now.” (Sacrifice in the Service)

I had an opportunity recently to talk by telephone with Elder Bugs. He has been home from his mission for six months now. When I asked him how he was doing, he said, “I have a good job again and I am caring for the family, but oh, how I miss my mission. It was the greatest thing I have ever done. I am now helping my younger brother prepare for his mission.” (Sacrifice in the Service)

Why have these great missionaries and others like them been willing to sacrifice the comforts of home, family, loved ones, and sweethearts to answer the call to serve? It’s because they have a testimony of Jesus Christ. And when they know Him there is no bed too short or too hard, no climate too hot or too cold, no food too different or language so strange that they are unwilling to serve Him. No sacrifice is too great to serve the Master, who sacrificed His all to provide the way for His brothers and sisters to return home to their Heavenly Father. And because they are faithful to their callings, thousands will revere their names throughout the eternities." (Sacrifice in the Service)

Love,
Chelsey


To Chelsey:
wow chelsey thank you for sending that story, it is such an inspiring message for me. i reely like that last paragraph and i think i will print that and find a place for it near my desk. My time here on the mission has not been very easy, but every day when i get up i take comfort in knowing that what i am doing has an eternal importance and that i have the support of so many people back at home and the support of Heavenly Father and Christ. Thank you for the message chelsey i love you and travis and all the support you give to me. I hope work is going well for you and travis
Con Amor Elder Myler

To Dad:
haha its good to hear i didnt miss much for the super bowl. And that promotion sounds like a good opportunity to me. January was hit and miss for me, while i have  started to adapt to my new surroundings i am also running into new challenges. we only had one baptism this January because our investigators didnt progress very well, my companion and i have high hopes for this month and set a goal for 5 baptisms but so far we have exsperienced more or less of the same. this has stressed me out a bit and my paitence for invastigators and my companion somtimes wears a little thing. But over all i am doing ok. My spanish is still rough but i am starting to say more in lessons and now there is never a time when i go an entire lesson without speaking, so thats good. Good luck with the promotion, and keep working hard.
Con Amor Elder Myler

one of me with my new companion elder bustamante

one of us with our last baptism

me with the other elders in my zone after a game of soccer

 Thanks for stopping by Elder Myler's blog!

With love, 
Chelsey