Coming Down with the Sickness

Dear Parents
I'm feeling fine right now but i must admit that i do miss getting letters, but the letters aren't bothering me, I just feel like i'm missing something, I had a really good spiritual day yesterday, but right now i just feel a bit empty, i'm trying my best to do what's right but i'm just not happy. it shouldn't be a big deal i just feel that way to day.

So I guess people think i'm talking in code now, well i guess that could be true, so i'll try to explain.

Faulkner is known for writing stream of consciousness books, well in my opinion that's what my last letter was, very many bullet points with thoughts that didn't quite all go together. that's why faulkners got my back, or it maybe the way i write.

So this week I got sick and now i'm better, but it's not fun being sick. i had the "cocococky" virus or that's what the doctor told me it was i don't know, I know is that I had a Canker soar type thing on the back of my throat and it felt like a cold/flu, so on thursday i basically slept all day and then friday i felt a whole lot better but still not 100% and since then i've continued to feel better and i would say i'm at 90% of what I could be. well in the process of this the lesson that i learned is that God is willing to help but he wants us to do all we can, like president Uchtdorf said in general conference that god is more inclined to help the man who gets out of the cart to push it than the man who just sits and prays. so i went out and i got a myriad of pills and drops and cough syrups, and even went to the doctor to check it out. and i got the news that it was a viris and there aren't pills that can make it go away so just wait it out. so after all that i got home and then slept and after i did all that i could do then God helped with the things i couldn't do myself not to mention he was helping me throughout.

ok so as to give those who are looking for more info. I'm back on the Beach with two Zone Leaders and i'm the "area boy" as thad has put it. i just try to help out where i can, and i think that i'll be leaving after this next transfer which is going to happen in 2 weeks or so. as to where i'm going i'ven't got a clue. yes i'm I'ven't is a word at least i think it is. (i have not)

well spring break i think is over, there haven't been a lot of college people around and the traffic is less. as for the locals they don't really seem interested. Although we were able to have a wonderful baptism this week. Trenton Medina was baptized which was really cool because last time i was here we started working with him and I got to see him baptized. we keep trying to work with our investigators and they seem to be doing alright, it's just the culture down here nobody really does anything, they just all talk about what they want to do, but they don't really have a desire to change. which i don't want to see anybody do that, i want people to people of action. if you say your going to do something then you better mean it, I don't care if you say what people want to hear just go and do. now i'm speaking to myself when it comes to this but i'm trying my best to do what i say and to learn what i need to learn.

so yeah this week was kind of slow in teaching ways but I think i learned something this week, which is progress.

Love Elder Gillespie

Jethroybn i can't believe that Sophia is almost walking, tell her to quit it. and Lincoln Keep up the good work, keep praying. Robyn i'm glad your finding yourself again, i'm trying the same thing, Jethro don't affiliate with anyone but the Lord i don't trust the government anymore.

Jan Ben, Clarks Video was adorable and i miss that little tyke he looks a lot like adam swindlehurst in my opinion so he'll be alright as for Eva i bet she's just driving you guys bonkers but it's not that bad. and your so close to being done with the school year ben how exciting!!! Jan Keep up the good work you've always been like a mom to me.

Toni Ben what an exciting week!!! ben just think of this as the beginning of a transfer, go ahead and start making a transfer plans about what's going to happen. Toni one question? September?

Thad. Best of luck to you during this whole endever with work and such, it must be hard trying to guess what's going to happen, i would say that's like being back in missionary life but more on an individual level rather than with others.

Beetle I miss you and will talk to you soon in fact about 6 sundays roughly

Dad your starting your political candicy? what's that news about?

Mom I Love You!!!

Elder Gillespie

Faulkner's got my back

Hello Everybody

This week has been NUTS!!! first of all we had an amazing Zone Conference where I Learned that right now is the time to be a man of action. that while we might rely on others we need to build a foundation for our self.

another thing that i've learned this week is that the gospel is easy and we as humans want to make it more complex. it's simply
Faith in Jesus Christ
Second Repentance
Third Baptism
Fourth Receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost
Fifth Enduring to the End

and when we learn these simple things and act upon them then God is promised to bless us. and while we might think that we don't get enough of those blessings we need to just stop and think about what great things we have in life and all of that comes from God.

and the other thing i've learned this week is that we all have to take a step of faith, that we need to walk into the dark and God will help us in our endeavor to do what he wants for us to do.

so these are the things that i've learned this past week and more importantly since Elder Wood came back from utah from his operation. he is an amazing person and has definitely showed me how to be a better missionary.

one of the other things i've learned is that Scripture study really does make a difference in a day, and it comes down to having the spirit with us at all times which we want to have and have the opportunity to do.

Thanks to all those who sent me Birthday Greetings it really does make a missionary's day.

well sorry this is kind of a short letter I've got a couple of things running through my head and hopefully will be able to write them out when the time comes.

Here i know that God Does answer questions and usually that's through other people and not necessarily the words that they use but what the spirit shows to them, and all that God wants for us in simple terms is to be better in the evening then in the morning and to be ourselves. That's all he asks as we try to be like Jesus he will then help us all along the journey.

I love all of you and want the best for you. and can you believe that General Conference is just around the corner.

this Email is dedicated to William Faulkner.

Love Elder Gillespie

Spring Breaks: Beware the Ides of March

So what is spring break like?...

Well i'll describe what Panama City Beach was before and now, so when i was first here most of the stores and restaurants were either shut down or a skeleton crew was working, at 9 pm the streets would just be about clear of traffic and nobody would be out on the streets after dark, the motels parking lots were empty at all times. etc, etc... basically a ghost town.

Let's contrast that to now, we (Panama City and Panama City Beach) have a population now of about 2 million college students, or that's what the estimate was. and will continue to be about the same over the next 4 weeks, last week it was about 1.1 million and it will stay about the same amount. Now realize that colleges only have week long breaks, so every week a new group of students come to stay at the beach. so with that being said what do missionaries do in a situation like that? we stay away from all thing relating to Spring Break for example, we stay away from the main drag down the beach also called Front Beach Dr. we also stay away from Wal-mart between the hours of 7am to 9pm which only leaves us the opportunity to go there at 6:30 am to 7am. now for some interesting facts about this place, the Wal-Mart on the beach sells more alcohol than any other Wal-Mart in the world. the largest night club in America is located on panama city (Club la Vela). and the list can go on and on.

But among all of this the work is going on. and all of these are not spring breakers. like last week i said our investigators are Larry, Rosa, Chirs and Lindsey, Matt, Trenton, Skylar. these are the ones who are most accepting of the gospel and i think are going to be baptized pretty soon. all of them are amazing and are honest with us and are willing to talk about what's on their mind and not really trying to answer for themselves. and there would have been no way to do this except we have an amazing branch who really want to do missionary work, and who are really trying to help everyone come closer to God through Jesus Christ, the branch wants to feed us and wants us to come over to their house so they can introduce us to their friends and relatives. this is probably my favorite place to be since i've been on my mission, yeah i know i've only been to one other place but still my favorite is here on the Beach.

Now here is my spiritual thought from this week. i've noticed that i haven't really done the best at a lot of things, that i've been "going through the motions" but i haven't really got anything out of it. so i've made a new resolve to try to do the best i can at all the things i'm doing. this whole thing reminds me of the talk about good better best, i'm doing a good thing but i could be doing better and try my best, so while i've now established that i'm doing what's good, i'm now trying to do what's better. or the best. other than that i'm still putting along and doing the best i can and am trying to do better, which is what we are supposed to do. so yeah no real crazy spring break stories, just trying to get by.

so back to spring break every Thursday night Friday and Saturday the traffic to get into Panama City Beach is horrendous it's bumper to bumper traffic for a good 6 miles just trying to get to Front Beach road and on front beach you only go 15 feet every 15 min, so all the natives stay off of front beach from the beginning of March to September, yeah this is most definitely a tourist town.

Janben thanks for the Emails, and Ben don't worry about the email it got to me but now you've got both emails, Jan the kids sound wonderful and full of energy, tell Clark that i haven't seen any Iguanas, but i think i might of seen a few dolphins, also i'm loving the weather that you are describing, and if you can do it, I can do it!

Jethrobyn potty training sounds intense and it sounds like you have a vampire on your hands as well, Jethro make sure you keep Fenimore safe and no more accidents.

Thad, you should find a different job it's not healthy for anyone to stay up all night and then sleep all day, remeber back when you used to sleep twice a day.

Tonibenanna i love you guys so much and anna please be nice to you mom she needs it, and we can have a PARTY when aunty beetle and Crazy Uncle Matt Return. Ben i know exactly what you mean when it comes to taking a job or anything it's like the analogy of God gives us a little plot of land and tell us to do the best we can with it, that how i think about it

Beetle HAPPY FREAKING BIRFDAY!!! !!! !!! I love you guts and all ther rest of you too. and as the southerners say keep on keepin' on, and hang in there like a hair in a biscuit.

I love all those who read this and hope for the best for you,

Love

Elder Gillespie

Definitely Spring Time

This has been pretty much a blessed week not only am i serving with one of my old companions but i'm also serving with a companion who has been companions with my companion so we are getting together just fine, and not only that but we are actually teaching! which has definitely been a new experience for me, but which i'm so glad to have. but it is so much improved.

The reason I'm back here is because Elder Wood is going to have an operation in SLC and won't be here for about 10 days so please keep him in your prayers and so Elder Perkins and I are going to be in charge till he gets back after that i'll probably get moved somewhere again at transfers, my guess is it's going to be back in Chipley but i'm not sure yet. Anyways It's been amazing so far.

so now for some news about teaching we have one investigator who is on fire, she is just picking up the principals and learning the concepts so fast and is definitely been prepared for us to teach. while i've only meet her twice since i got here on weds. she is going to go far, but like always there is something that she needs help with and needs to talk to Heavenly Father, about what to do. she has three little girls and all are adorable. and the mothers name is Rosa. She is just plain and simply amazing.

Another investigator is Matt when i first got here he was very interested and then disappeared then this Sunday he came back for the first time in 3 months which was a miracle and he is ready to make a big step on faith. he wants to learn more and is now here for the right reasons. He is going to do great things in my opinion. i can just see it.

So from these experiences what i've found is that people in general will eventually have to take steps of faith and that is what God wants for us to do. but the great thing about having to make these steps is that he is willing to help us make those choices we only have to look at our options find out what we think is the best idea and then go to Him and wait for an answer, and if we don't get an answer then i guess it's what would be the best for the family or individual. but the overall theme is that he will make sure that you get the right answer, we just have to be open about what it might be. but now i feel like i'm walking on to thin ice right now. So the moral of the story is that God loves us and wants for us to have the most joy possible overall, not always is joy going to happen right when we make the right choice but it will eventually pay for itself many times over.

the other spiritual note that i've had this week is the fact that all people no matter what their ages are, are always looking for a sense of comfort, weather that's from a friend, family member, complete stranger. people want to have a sense of belonging which i think overall comes from god and is shown through other people. so i commit all of you who are reading this to go out of your way to make someones day, whether that's a simple hello or a good embrace. i know that if you do, do it. you will feel happier because you were able to help someone else and in return help yourself.

that's about all I've got to say today besides thanks for the Happy Birthday wishes and for you prayers and support.

Glad containers are the Poor Man's Pyrex

Yes everybody Glad containers are the best bowls and the best for mixing items together ex. pancakes, tuna fish, waffle mix, and cereal bowls or basically the poor man's version of Pyrex. isn't it amazing the things you learn out in the field... there will be more updates on other household items that can be used for other things.

ok now for some real stuff i suppose...

this week i've learned that if you want something done and it dosen't seem to get done well then get it done yourself, don't let others take control of your life to tell you what you can or cannot do. but keep in mind that you should always Council with the Lord. (alma 37 36-37) or pray in faith that you will do the things which you and the Heavenly Father wants you to do, to ask and then to do. to seek guidance and then go and do. this is better explained by Elder Bednar in a conference talk about 2007 it's SOOO goood....

umm... other things that have happened... well we had a lesson this week with a baptist preacher who wanted to tell us missionaries what the scriptures say, so here's the story. we shop at walmart and one day one of the workers told us of his dad who wanted to talk to us about religion, so we found out where he lives and then delegated that to the proper missionaries in the area. so after a while and another visit to the walmart. the worker told us that the the other missionaries didn't show up so they set the time for us to show up, now this was very exciting so we brought the missionaries who live in bonifay over to this place, once we got there then the missionaries who were supposed to work over there showed up, so we had 6 missionaries with 2 "gators" who really weren't, so the night went on and the preacher was basically just pulling stuff out of the anti web sites to try to prove that we were wrong and that he was right so eventually after two hours of him telling us what the scriptures mean we just stated that we have a curfew and we can't stay long to try to teach and then they invited us back over to which the proper missionaries then took over and set up a time with them, so all in all a very interesting and fun time. which is why i'm so glad we have so extra scriptures because the bible is kind of boring and confusing.

umm... other than that we didn't have any deaths this weeks or weddings, or anything really exciting but we do have a few people moving out this next week to which we are helping move, which brings me to another point don't be mean to each other. that's just not nice and it just causes more problems then it would solve. and if you have some guff with someone do it as the lord would, and if you don't know how to do it then read the scriptures until you find your answer.

Hey i just remembered that we have an investigator, who just gave up smoking which is so great to hear and not smell. she has been looking into this church for about the last 2 years so hopefully she'll come around. i'm not giving up hope. because that's all we got

as for the weather, (yes i know that's supposed to come first) it's amazing it feel like it's spring cleaning time back home, which is what i did in our apartment i totally cleaned all the little corners and even tried to polish the faucet to the shower. so yes i am a bit nuts when it comes to cleaning but i think that's a good thing. also we had another amazing thunderstorm this morning it was definitely weird to wake up to flashing lights and notice that it's only lightning. which is so cool!!!

Transfers are next week so i'll tell you the news.

Love you all with my heart and soul.

Elder Gillespie

Toniben i'm glad you enjoyed the letter and the birthday party and good luck with the school and job ben i know you can do it!

Mom I love you and i'm supposed to tell you that you have raised a very nice and caring son. complements of Sister Anderson

Dad Keep on, keepin on.

Thad Your word of advice are key and very thought provoking and you can do anything you set you mind to! this i know and you know for sure. i hope your withdraws from the mission are soon put back into remission.

Jethroyblincophia, Jethro i'm glad you are not hurt from you car wreck, but i'm sorry for the back being thrown out, you should of caught it. robyn quit being so worried about the little things, hair will always grow back out and you could always just buzz it off anyways, start back to square one. lincoln don't you fret little buddy. sophia don't be a vampire, they get killed by angry mobs or warewolfs or so i've heard.

Camille, i love getting your letters they brighten my day and your insights are always welcome. infact i insist.

and to everyone else i would love to hear from you so don't be afraid to write, and if you can't afford a stamp then send an email, and in the mean time look on the ground for some spare change to get a stamp.

Elder Gillespie

Snow?!?

Ok, so, just so you know Yes is Can Snow in Florida, weird I know but still amazing, in fact it snowed for the first time in 17+ years in Chipley, and i was a part of it, which make me appreciate even more of the falling of snow, how peaceful it is, how quiet it falls how clean it is and how wonderful it can be, now to make it better lets add in some Lightning and thunder and also have about 6 to 9 inches already on the ground, now that would be awesome. but other than that life here has been kind of the same as a missionary, just going around trying to share the gospel with others, and helping out people in the community. and a host of other things,

So an Update of the week i suppose....

nothing really happened until Thursday when we had Zone Conference, and it was amazing, it's really awe inspiring to be in the room with somebody who is basically like an area 70 and knows you on a personal level. and gives you guidance like a patriarch during a patriarchal blessing and the list goes on and on. and the lesson that I've learned from that is that if you are prepared both spiritually and mentally then the guidance he gives, doesn't really sound all that far fetched and mostly comes as a reassurance to what you are doing, which is what happened to me this last time. and the talk that sums up his advice is found in Elder Wirthlin's last talk, Come what may and Love it. this talk is soon becoming one of my most favorite talks of all time.

Well this week was a great week and i can't believe that it's been 4 months and most of the major holidays i've already had in the mission field so it's only one more time through them, but that's not the point, i'm really loving it here and while it's been really hard and has stretched me to my limits and then stretches me again it is still the best thing i've done in my life. so thank you all who have helped me get to this point in my life, i wouldn't be here without you.

Elder Gillespie

Janben WHAT!?! Congrats! that is all

Ben Gains you are amazing and you shouldn't worry to much about your job and your doing and amazing thing so far so don't sweat about the job you'll get it or else something else will pop up. and your almost done with school!!! hooray

Mom you sound like a busy bee right now keep it up

Dad you should tell me about the garage and such

Thad you need to find something productive like 8 hours of scripture study ( just kidding) but then again? i don't know you'll find something productive to do.

Happy Birthday to Jan Francisco and to Anna Gains

What's New?

Hello Everybody!!!
What a Great day to be alive!

so some news here on the Chipley side of the world.

this week has been kind of a sad week for our members because we have had two deaths and two funerals in the same week, and we also had one about 3 weeks ago and then another members daughter in law also passed away in between the these others, ok so that was a bit confusing so i'll break it down. Chuck Kriser passed away in the first part of the year, then Sister Morris's daughter in law also passed away about two weeks ago and then last week we had Brother Brantley and Sister Miles's Husband passed away, so all in all a very sad day for the ward and community.

but why am i so happy because isn't it great to know where we go after this life and know what is going to happen in the future. i'm so grateful for a living Prophet and Apostles I'm also so grateful for more books to read, i'm not saying that the bible isn't a good read but if that's all i had to read to know about gods work i would be so confused, no wonder there are so many religions down here, (364 in a one hour driving radius). So this week i'm trying to be the best person who is grateful for all of the blessings that Heavenly Father has Given us.

Thanks again for all the great things you have done for me, your letters have really boosted my spirit today. and for those who are reading this i hope you know that i love you and that i would do just about anything for you.

Hey i got a new Email address
mgillespie@myldsmail.net

Well time is short there is much to be done.

Elder Gillespie

Ben Gaines you worry too much and all you can do, is all you can do if somebody doesn't want you to be on their team they are fools! i would have you on my team any day. you just need to relax a bit but maybe wait till after the presentation.

Jan Your amazing and i'm so glad that you gave us some of your insight it really put my mind into a perspective that it needed to be.

Jethro just keep trying to stay alive and all will work out in the end.

Beetle i miss you and you are an amazing person as for referrals while i've been in chipley i haven't got a single media referral. but the members are going out of their way to tell us about who they think might be interested.

Thad Sam moving out is sad news but just think you now have the opportunity to find somebody almost as cool as Sam and i miss all the craziness that always happens at BKE!