Elder Bolliger, Colton, CA Week 89: Happy Mother's Day, Great to See Converts Growing!

Mother's Day was great with technology connecting the family in three states!

Hello family,
Well if you haven't already noticed right now I am back in Grand Terrace/ Colton California, the same place where I started my mission I will now be ending it here and I am so excited for that!

All of my recent converts from here are still active, and truly that is where almost all of your joy comes from in the gospel is seeing how far your converts have come and how much the gospel truly means to them. Well next week I will have to send pictures with all of the people that I have been talking about, but onto the work.

So a lot has changed since I was last here in the Colton 1st Ward in Colton/Grand Terrace/ Reche Canyon California,

I left on November 7th, 2010 and arrived back on May 8th,2012 gone for almost 18 months exactly. Last year they split the ward into two areas so there is an East side and a West side, I am not used to that though as when I was here it was all one but next transfer it should be recombined into one area again.

Our former bishop, Bishop Sorensen had been released and a new bishop had been called, the former Bishop is now our Ward Mission Leader and he is awesome at it, he really knows the ward well and knows how to best help them.

There are some people that were here from the last time I was in the ward and we have been slowly following up with them

Sorry mom for having such a short email. But I was working on some other ones for now. This next week we should have a lot more work.

Elder Bolliger

Elder Bolliger, Upland, CA Week 88: Transferred, 21st Birthday, 3 months Have Flown, Making Lemonade of the Rest of It!

Hello family from the hills of Alta Loma and Upland, California,

Well this will be my last day here as tomorrow I am getting transferred to my new area.

I got the call on Saturday night, and then had my 21st birthday yesterday, which probably compared to most people was quite boring. But I am now 21 and I just found out that my new cousin was born yesterday as well to share the birthday with Grandma Sorensen as well.

It feels slightly strange to be leaving so early, but this happened last time I got transferred as well but this time I have so little time left. When I got here I had 6 months left, and the past 3 months have flown by, now that is all the time I have left, and here comes college and the world and everything else flying back at me.

But I just need to make lemonade from all of the wonderful lemon trees you get out here in California, Katie I think you know what I mean, but there are tons of thorns on those as well. And don't forget the grapefruit, Avocados ( of course) and Oranges.

This past week our Zone went to the temple ... you can receive very clear and precise direction.

But I wish yall the best.

Elder Bolliger

Elder Bolliger, Upland, CA, Week 87: Birthdays and Teaching

Hello family from Upland California,

Well This may be my last week in this area, as transfers are coming up a week from tomorrow. And we will find out who is going and who is staying as early as wednesday/ thursday of this week.

I also turn 21 this week, and that thought is just  Its a strange thought to have been here for 3 months and it has flown by so fast, its so strange.

Anyway, our main investigator came to church yesterday with her husband and they stayed for sacrament but due to other work obligations they were unable to stay for longer. But we will be teaching her today as on wednesday we have a temple trip to the redlands temple, its going to be exciting for sure!

 I am sorry about this email but next week should be a lot more detailed on where I will be going the last 2 transfers of my mission, I can't believe May starts tomorrow and the "jump" to the end of my mission then begins. Its going to be quite a ride.

Elder Bolliger

Elder Bolliger: Upland, CA Week 86: Referrals and Trainings

Hello family from the crazy weather of Southern Califorina, on Saturday and Yesterday it was in the 90s and hot and sunny, it doesn't help that our AC was broken as well. Oh well, so this morning I wake up to rain around 4am which was very strange but made a little sense. And today is nice and damp and rainy.

This past week there were 2 notable events.
The first was a referral that referred herself to us through Mormon.org and we were going to her house when another member pulled us over and was talking to us. Then the lady who referred herself went to drive away from her house and then drove over to us and started to talk to us. She has lots of friends and family who are members of the church and she has had a large 'spiritual hole' in her life and is looking to see if the church can help fill that gap for her. We taught her a little but we were unprepared for the depth and amount of questions that she was asking us, she really is a prepared person who has some small word of wisdom issues but she is willing and trying to get over them. Its going to be exciting talking to her this next week about the gospel and how much good it can do for her. And also her mother in law got baptized a few months ago so her and her husband are both wanting to learn more about the church. All this next week.
The other big event from this past week was Elder Ballard of the 12, Elder Shayne M Bowen of the Seventy, Elder Whitting of the Seventy and Elder Heim who is an Area Authority.
Here are some notes from the Trainings,
Elder Heim - He Taught us that we have the authority to lovingly correct our investigators in the correct way to pray to our heavenly father and how important this was so that they can feel the spirit and have a personal relationship with god. "Part the veil for those whom you teach"
Elder Whiting,
you have been given the authority but have you done what is necessary to have the power of your calling? Earn the power, it starts with appearance.
Elder Shayne M Bowen
"Many are called but few are obedient".
Covenant People, God deals with Covenant people through covenants, We (missionaries) are the noble and great ones. And you dont recieve more priesthood than you have now, as Jesus Christ organized the world with the same Priesthood, of  Melchezidek.
Don't put on the uniform of the world after your mission.
Elder Ballard
Sacrifice a little for the work. He joked a lot in his talk, one funny thing he said to us was "When I was a missionary you were in the spirit world, and maybe your mission president too and others here". We have every tool necessary to be a great missionary. The World is covered in sin and darkness, lucifier is unleashing everything that hes got to keep people in spiriitual darkness. People don't know who they are, you have got to be really good teachers, A teacher of light and Truth. Trust Him and Know him, and you can go anywhere and be bold and confident in god. And that weak and simple people should confound the wise and learned of the world. Turn over the remainder of your mission to the lord. And then he said how we are the future of the church and this mission is training us to take it over when we are gone. And To have joy have faith in the lord every day.

Fast Foward to Stake Conference Yesterday,
so during Stake Conference Elder Shayne M Bowen of the Seventy had all of us missionaries stand up, he then said "Here is the problem, (pointing out the fact that there are only 12 missionaries in the whole stake), He than said Missionaries can sit down except the one on the end" Which was me... So he first asked my name, and he said it in the right way. He then asked me how long my call is for, I really didn't hear the question and replied 21 months but he asked again, and i replied 24 months, so 2 years, he then proceeded to ask me what my #1 Priority was when I got home. I had a complete brain freeze right then, and was not being as quick as I should have but eventually one of the other missioaries said "The temple" and I repeated that and he wanted a better answer but I now knew where this was going and replied "To Be sealed in the temple to my eternal companion for time and eternity" And that is the answer that he was looking for and had me sit down. He then talked on how these are only the 'part time missionaries' and the full time ones are the members in the ward And went into a good long talk about how important the temple is to members and to less active or inactive members, who he said there was no such thing as if any member really understood the doctrine he would not be less active or inactive.

Well I only have 2 weeks left in this transfer and only 2 more transfers left until i come back home.
Elder Bolliger

Elder Bolliger Upland, CA Week 85: Thoughts, Really Awesome Lesson & Upcoming Experience, Birthday's Coming

Hello family from Upland California,

Well I am here and it is strange with my birthday coming up so soon, and other things, right now my mind is in a very retrospective attitude as I look back on all the memories that I have made, and people that I have met. It is really a strange thought.

Well this past week the moment that stands our the most is a lesson that we taught on the Doctrine of Christ, which is 2 Nephi 31. It was really awesome as the spirit was really there and taught both the son and the father about the importance of baptism and the sacrament. It was a really a good lesson and it had been too long since I taught a lesson like that.

Well this weekend I am looking forward to Elder Ballard this weekend as he is coming to one of the Stake Conferences down here and will be speaking just to our mission. I can't wait for it to come as it will be really an awesome experience.

So my companion just had his birthday yesterday and my birthday is now in less than 3 weeks away.

Well I hope all yall have a wonderful week ahead!

Elder Bolliger

Elder Bolliger - Upland, CA Week 84: Starting to Get Warm, Service, Baptism of Tyler, It's a Small World

Subject: Hello family from Upland California

Date: April 9, 2012

Hello family from Upland, California where it is starting to get warm now, and I have less than 4 months now from going home. I am not counting the days but just the months for now.

This past week we spent a lot of time doing service for some members in our ward who were unable to do it for themselves, we have as of recently been able to get into houses that other missionaries have had difficulty in doing so but now we are teaching them and we are again this week. On Saturday we had a baptism of a girl named Tyler who was 12 and it was awesome, we had a great turnout of more than 30 people there including us and other missionaries and tons of family. It was amazing.

And for Katalin, its sure a small world, one of her bishop's parents are serving a mission over there in Rancho Cucamonga and they come and check on our apartment every month, last month they asked me if I had a sister that served in Fresno mission and in Lemoore and I replied in the affirmative.

Well I hope that yall have an amazing week back home!

Elder Bolliger

Elder Bolliger - Upland, CA Week 83:BBQ, Really Good Day with Service and Following impressions to Do Exactly What We Needed To Do, General Conference

Subject: Some awesome experiences and General conference

Date: April 2, 2012

Hello family from the Upland of California, where I am serving my mission right now.

Well on Monday after emailing we had a BBQ at a members house where he smoked 10lb of brisket and 3 racks of baby back ribs, ooohhh they are so good smoked, we have to smoke a turkey for thanksgiving now!

Tuesday was a really good day as well as we did service for like 5 hours at a part member families house cleaning up the front yard and making it look incredibly better, we then did some other stuff, went to dinner and then after dinner we had the best splits that I have ever had on my mission, we went out with a brother in the ward and I had the thought to visit 2 part member families, well the impression, not just a thought turned out to be exactly what we needed to do. We amazingly got in with both of those families and our member was the perfect man to bring as he could really, really relate to them, and we set up return appointments with the both of them! It’s awesome.

The Next day (Wednesday) we had splits again and we had another wonderful experience at a part members family’s house, it was really good and again.

For General Conference, I loved the Priesthood Session a ton!

Here are some of my notes from it.

Bednar, it was an excellent talk and he talked about how persistent he was with his father who was not a member and how he asked him about home teaching and the lack of it in the ward at church,

Edgely, Approach nonmembers/less actives and give them a responsibility to be a missionary to their friends and go in there assuming they are a member, unique approach.

Uchtdorf, spent time on the Why things are the way they are, Callings called of God. But there was a phrase in there I absolutely love, "Inspired Priorities", and why not use inspired priorities more often in everything that we do? to prioritize our lives, and or goals? And how the applications of the Doctrine change from time to time but the Doctrine does not.

Eyring, The Sealing Power of Elijah, And on how April 3, which is tomorrow, back 174 years ago Elijah appeared and put back the power that puts everything else in the gospel together, The Holy Spirit of Promise

Monson, The Call of Duty, The Priesthood is an Everlasting Principle, " When God calls and man obeys God, man will always be right" or something along those lines. Called as Bishop @ 22 yr old. and being persistent cause eventually it will work, "Do your duty, that is best, leave to the Lord, the rest" And how we need to magnify our callings.

I sure do love you all and I am trying to end on a great note.

Elder Bolliger