So for transfers Elder Gamez is taking off and I'm staying in Cleveland. I'm sad to see Elder Gamez go but happy that I get to stay in Cleveland. This place is absolutely nuts but there are a lot of really great families. Yeah it is a huge area. One of the biggest in the mission. The only bad part is that it's really wooded and most of the people are English speaking. In Broadway there can be 3 Spanish areas for one English but here there are two English for one Spanish. It's a lot of fun but it's a lot different from what I'm used to. Plus it's weird being in a car. It does kind of remind me of Duck Dynasty. Probably because of the beards. By the way that stuff is huge out here. EVERYBODY watches Duck Dynasty.
We'll find out who my new companion is tomorrow. I don't really like this because there is a lot of suspense. I'm excited to see what will happen though!
Grant (friend from home) is related to some people in my ward. They are a super nice family and they feed us at least once a week. They're super great. It was a pretty shocking experience but it was great to hear how Grant was doing. I was happy that they sent that picture to him. Kind of a cool way to let you guys know I'm doing all right. Thanks for saying I look pretty good. I haven't gained too much weight but I definitely have had my fair share or food. Hopefully I'll be able to be on a bike a little more this next transfer but we'll see.
Yeah I am super excited for thanksgiving! It is one of my favorite holidays ever. I'm not too worried about this year. I did it last year and we'll probably end up only eating at one place anyways. I cannot believe that Elder Ek is going home. It's really scary because now I've only got a little more than half a year left. I remember this time last year and it's strange to think that all that was a year ago. It's all nuts.
I'm grateful that I was born to a goodly family. I know a lot of people who have some tough family situation. I also have been thinking a lot on gratitude. I think that whenever we are ungrateful we are actually being selfish. When we focus on others that is when we start to see the hand of God in our lives.
Make sure to have everyone eat a lot for me! Have a great Thanksgiving!
Love,
Elder Ressler
Monday, November 24, 2014
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Cleveland, TX - November 17, 2014
I'm so excited for winter! I was getting tired of the heat! It's been pretty nice lately. It's around 40 degrees most of the day and I broke out my Poncho for studies. I'm so excited for Thanksgiving! We had two families sign up to feed us which is going to be a TON of food (If I don't get transferred). I'm really excited for Christmas especially! There's something special about that time of the year. I've had a little bit of ice on the road but that was last year and it didn't really hit us in the city. Most of the time all we have to deal with is rain because when it rains it pours. It doesn't really snow here but it rains a lot. I'm going to be fine this year because now I know exactly what to expect and I have my coat. I think I'll be fine. I try to be as safe as I can though and I think we'll be okay. As far as the cold this week it got down to about 34 degrees but maybe I'm wimping out because it felt like 15. I like the cold a lot though, It's nice to have a change.
I'm going to have to make sure that we Skype on Christmas. Last year it was just crazy. I'm super excited for it!
There is a pretty good chance that either me or Elder Gamez will get transferred next week and I think it might be me. I really want to stay but the way things are lining up who knows. We do it differently from other missions. We get flush calls on Friday which is when both missionaries are leaving. Saturday is when we get a call from the DL to see who is leaving. Sunday is when we get Leadership calls. We all meet up in Kingwood on Tuesday and there President tells us who our companions/areas are. It's pretty cool but it creates a lot of gossip/speculation.
Yeah I can tell you too that by reading and praying fervently every day I can feel a significant difference in my life. It makes me want to continue after my mission. I haven't been perfect on my mission but I know that the times when I have felt the closest to my Savior is when I am really looking for his guidance. It's been a huge testimony to me that through the small things we do we receive a lot of the blessings. In a Hank Smith talk he said that when we do what is right we think that we are going to live this perfect life without any problems but that's not true. We still have problems but we are able to deal with them more prepared.
I have grown to really appreciate Mom out here on my mission. It's a bit different cooking for yourself and cleaning. As far as members feeding us...we have many members sincerely worry that we are not getting fed every day. They also get offended if we don't eat enough. It's pretty crazy. They are all just way too nice. I like it a lot because then you get to know a lot of the members and get to build relationships. As far as my weight I've gained a little weight but I'm sure I've grown taller a lot too.
Yeah I am not complaining when I say this but I drive ALL DAY EVERY DAY. I'm starting to enjoy it especially because I'm cruising around in a 2014 Jeep Compass named Bianca. It's pretty tough being in a car area because you have to know the streets if you want to go anywhere. My area covers all the way from New Caney to past Livingston so I just have to know my way around. At first it was a little stressful but now I'm getting the hang of it.
This week was great and I feel like each day I'm getting closer and closer to the Savior. I've been praying a lot asking for the spirit and I feel it in my life. I pray every day that I will do what Heavenly Father wants me to.
Just keep praying for us!
Love,
Elder Ressler
I'm going to have to make sure that we Skype on Christmas. Last year it was just crazy. I'm super excited for it!
There is a pretty good chance that either me or Elder Gamez will get transferred next week and I think it might be me. I really want to stay but the way things are lining up who knows. We do it differently from other missions. We get flush calls on Friday which is when both missionaries are leaving. Saturday is when we get a call from the DL to see who is leaving. Sunday is when we get Leadership calls. We all meet up in Kingwood on Tuesday and there President tells us who our companions/areas are. It's pretty cool but it creates a lot of gossip/speculation.
Yeah I can tell you too that by reading and praying fervently every day I can feel a significant difference in my life. It makes me want to continue after my mission. I haven't been perfect on my mission but I know that the times when I have felt the closest to my Savior is when I am really looking for his guidance. It's been a huge testimony to me that through the small things we do we receive a lot of the blessings. In a Hank Smith talk he said that when we do what is right we think that we are going to live this perfect life without any problems but that's not true. We still have problems but we are able to deal with them more prepared.
I have grown to really appreciate Mom out here on my mission. It's a bit different cooking for yourself and cleaning. As far as members feeding us...we have many members sincerely worry that we are not getting fed every day. They also get offended if we don't eat enough. It's pretty crazy. They are all just way too nice. I like it a lot because then you get to know a lot of the members and get to build relationships. As far as my weight I've gained a little weight but I'm sure I've grown taller a lot too.
Yeah I am not complaining when I say this but I drive ALL DAY EVERY DAY. I'm starting to enjoy it especially because I'm cruising around in a 2014 Jeep Compass named Bianca. It's pretty tough being in a car area because you have to know the streets if you want to go anywhere. My area covers all the way from New Caney to past Livingston so I just have to know my way around. At first it was a little stressful but now I'm getting the hang of it.
This week was great and I feel like each day I'm getting closer and closer to the Savior. I've been praying a lot asking for the spirit and I feel it in my life. I pray every day that I will do what Heavenly Father wants me to.
Just keep praying for us!
Love,
Elder Ressler
Monday, November 10, 2014
Cleveland, TX - November 10, 2014
I'm doing great! This week was super crazy and actually for me it went by really slow. Some weeks are like that... we have found a couple of new people. I was on exchanges with Elder Hunter. He's an English Elder who's fresh out. I decided to knock this one house and this Hispanic guy answered the door and I told him we were missionaries and he got super excited and told us to come in. He had just finished making some tacos and he gave us some to eat. He answered all of the questions I asked him and told us we could come back. I'm super excited about him. Sometimes they just want to feed us though. I've had that happen a lot.
Yeah it's SO crazy Elder Ek is going home! He will be my first companion to go home. Then right after him Elder Long will be going home too. It's so crazy. Time is going by way too fast.
I've had a lot of really neat times to think about the savior. I was listening to a talk and the guy shared a scripture in which Nephi prayed to be afraid of sin and then he explained how he thought that Nephi did it so that the Savior would have to suffer less. I'm trying have Jesus Christ in my head as much as I can. It's helping me to have the spirit with me and to be focused on missionary work.
I've been getting super ready for Christmas. There really is some crazy feeling in the air...even if there isn't any snow... It's nice because pretty soon I can listen to Christmas music.
I listened to a great talk that Elder Gamez had by Joseph B. Wirthlin. It helps once I make a earnest effort to pray. I've started to pray a lot more too because I feel really good when I do. I could just be sitting there thinking and I'm like man I really want to pray right now. It's kind of weird but it's been helping me a lot too because I've been a little worn out lately. I really love the story on Enos and how he really wanted to receive an answer. It's a huge example to me of earnest prayer.
Love,
Elder Ressler
Yeah it's SO crazy Elder Ek is going home! He will be my first companion to go home. Then right after him Elder Long will be going home too. It's so crazy. Time is going by way too fast.
I've had a lot of really neat times to think about the savior. I was listening to a talk and the guy shared a scripture in which Nephi prayed to be afraid of sin and then he explained how he thought that Nephi did it so that the Savior would have to suffer less. I'm trying have Jesus Christ in my head as much as I can. It's helping me to have the spirit with me and to be focused on missionary work.
I've been getting super ready for Christmas. There really is some crazy feeling in the air...even if there isn't any snow... It's nice because pretty soon I can listen to Christmas music.
I listened to a great talk that Elder Gamez had by Joseph B. Wirthlin. It helps once I make a earnest effort to pray. I've started to pray a lot more too because I feel really good when I do. I could just be sitting there thinking and I'm like man I really want to pray right now. It's kind of weird but it's been helping me a lot too because I've been a little worn out lately. I really love the story on Enos and how he really wanted to receive an answer. It's a huge example to me of earnest prayer.
Love,
Elder Ressler
Monday, November 3, 2014
Cleveland, TX - November 3, 2014
I'm doing really good! It's been a crazy week. Cleveland is one of my
tougher areas but we are working our hardest and I'm sure that we will
have some success. It may just take time. Spanish is good even though we
don't talk to as many Spanish people. Investigators are good we are
just trying to find a lot of new people.
The mission definitely isn't easy. It takes a while to get used to it and a lot of people struggle for the first bit. A lot of times it isn't what you expect. I've had a really good mission and made a lot of really good friends out here. Honestly it might be hard to leave but I've still got a while.
Wow that's crazy how cold it is getting in Utah. In Cleveland it hasn't changed a whole lot. Everyone is complaining how cold it is but they are still walking around in shorts and a t shirt. It is getting a little colder though. It got down to about 50 degrees one night and when we go out walking in the mornings it is a little colder than usual. I do miss the snow but I guess I'm happy I don't have to drive in it. I don't think that it will snow this year and if it does it probably won't stick. I remember it got really cold last year though and you feel it more just because of how humid it gets. I think that I'll be ready for it this year just because now I know what to expect.
During Halloween we had to be inside at 7pm. A senior couple invited us over and we ate hamburgers. Man it was good. I haven't had a home cooked hamburger in a long time. I have hamburgers just fast food ones and that is pretty rare. Then we came back and were just chilling in the apartment. Then we got a call from some other missionaries I know one of them being my old companion Elder Long. He's doing really well. He's just a little shocked that he only has two months left.
Yeah I'm excited for Thanksgiving too. Last year we got invited to two thanksgiving dinners and I think that was the most food I'd eaten in a long time. It's sad but I can't eat as much anymore. It all started when I got to Cleveland.
Right now we are focusing a lot on finding new people..The branch is doing really well. They are all really close. We've become close to a couple of families. A couple of them are the Vega Family, La Familia Torres, La Familia Avellaneda, La Familia Medrano, and La Familia Resendez. It's really funny because the Resendez family is this really big family in the mission and there has been at least one Resendez in all of my wards. Here it's the older brother but my first Obispo was a Resendez and the lady who sent you the picture is their sister and also in the picture is their mom.
Nothing really does matter except what Christ did. I really like a talk that someone gave about grace and how we are changed by it. A lot of times we get distracted by all of the things around us that don't matter. It's all about the new styles or money or how many friends you have. In the end all of that fades away and you are left with yourself and how close you were with your Savior.
Love you,
Elder Ressler
The mission definitely isn't easy. It takes a while to get used to it and a lot of people struggle for the first bit. A lot of times it isn't what you expect. I've had a really good mission and made a lot of really good friends out here. Honestly it might be hard to leave but I've still got a while.
Wow that's crazy how cold it is getting in Utah. In Cleveland it hasn't changed a whole lot. Everyone is complaining how cold it is but they are still walking around in shorts and a t shirt. It is getting a little colder though. It got down to about 50 degrees one night and when we go out walking in the mornings it is a little colder than usual. I do miss the snow but I guess I'm happy I don't have to drive in it. I don't think that it will snow this year and if it does it probably won't stick. I remember it got really cold last year though and you feel it more just because of how humid it gets. I think that I'll be ready for it this year just because now I know what to expect.
During Halloween we had to be inside at 7pm. A senior couple invited us over and we ate hamburgers. Man it was good. I haven't had a home cooked hamburger in a long time. I have hamburgers just fast food ones and that is pretty rare. Then we came back and were just chilling in the apartment. Then we got a call from some other missionaries I know one of them being my old companion Elder Long. He's doing really well. He's just a little shocked that he only has two months left.
Yeah I'm excited for Thanksgiving too. Last year we got invited to two thanksgiving dinners and I think that was the most food I'd eaten in a long time. It's sad but I can't eat as much anymore. It all started when I got to Cleveland.
Right now we are focusing a lot on finding new people..The branch is doing really well. They are all really close. We've become close to a couple of families. A couple of them are the Vega Family, La Familia Torres, La Familia Avellaneda, La Familia Medrano, and La Familia Resendez. It's really funny because the Resendez family is this really big family in the mission and there has been at least one Resendez in all of my wards. Here it's the older brother but my first Obispo was a Resendez and the lady who sent you the picture is their sister and also in the picture is their mom.
Nothing really does matter except what Christ did. I really like a talk that someone gave about grace and how we are changed by it. A lot of times we get distracted by all of the things around us that don't matter. It's all about the new styles or money or how many friends you have. In the end all of that fades away and you are left with yourself and how close you were with your Savior.
Love you,
Elder Ressler
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