Hello Family!
Its good to be able to write you today. I feel like the work is progressing here in the St. Davids Ward, and that's a good feeling. Sometimes, in any situation in life, we may feel like things aren't progressing as fast as we would like. We must realize that there are things we do have control over, as well as things that we don't have control over. So, do your best with the things in which you do have control, but don't worry so much about the rest. I have to remember this time and time again.
Marlene wants to get baptized but she doesn't feel quite ready to commit to a specific date. That's okay, its her decision and her journey. We are simply here to help her along that path, but she chooses what to do and when to do it. We've found a few others here and there, some want to go forward and some just drop off. Its all part of the work! The more I'm here I realize that we are merely instruments in God's hands. And I don't say merely to minimize what we do, because its actually a lot of work to be worthy to be used literally as God's hands. A scripture I really like is in D&C 4, it says "Therefore, if you have desires to serve God, you are called to the work." It later lists many attributes that qualify us to serve God. Among them is faith, hope, charity, love, and an eye single to the glory of God. And it lists many other attributes which, to be completely honest, make me feel quite inadequate most of the time.
I want to share a story from my life, which I think only Mom & Mick will know. Its an experience that I will always remember and draw from to help me keep moving forward. And its amazing to realize how many people share a very similar experience. When I received my Patriarchal blessing, I was terrified. I did not feel worthy. In fact, some people would say I wasn't worthy. I prayed constantly prior to receiving it "Please help me feel the spirit during this experience, I know I'm not what I should be, but please help me..." The Patriarch, whom I've never met and didn't know the pleading prayers I had offered, said as part of the blessing that I would feel the Spirit "which you have prayed for concerning your blessing." Whoa. God was speaking to me.... I felt like he was saying "Hello. Yes, I am real. I am here, and I heard your prayers. I love you very much, you are my son. You have made mistakes, you are still going to make mistakes, but trust in Me and in the Atonement of Christ, repent (move forward & work hard to be better), and everything will work out."
I am so grateful for the tender mercies of the Lord. He shows us so much mercy, so much love. Love is the motivation behind everything that our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ do for us. I know that they want to help us be happy and successful, and that is why they have given us the Gospel. They will help us become worthy. Its a process, not a one-time-thing.
I love you all. I hope you have a great week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Niagara, 3/11/2013
Hello Family!
It has been a good week. Lots of cool things happening. A girl here named Marlene wants to be baptized! She is the daughter of a recent convert. She's about 20 or 21 yrs old, and she seems to love coming to church right now & she loves to bring her 2 little sisters (who are baptized). Their Mom works quite a bit, so this would be a good change for the entire family. We also met a nice lady named Jennifer a couple weeks ago, and we sacrificed some P-day time to visit her today (that's why emails are late). It was a great sacrifice! She is also going to come to an FHE activity we will have tonight. So, those are a couple highlights from the week.
Today, we got this from President Scott:
Notice
To: General Authorities, Area Seventies, and Mission Presidents
From: Missionary Department
Subject: Adjusted Missionary Email Policy
Missionaries are to write to their families each week and are also authorized to communicate by email with friends, priesthood leaders, and new converts. Mission presidents should allow sufficient time on preparation day for missionaries to write emails and letters. While in the mission field, missionaries should receive authorization from the mission president before entering into communication, including via email, with converts and others of the opposite gender within the mission boundaries (see Missionary Handbook, 36–37).
.....
So, that's pretty cool! Now I don't have to worry about the people I haven't written letters to. Now I can just email you back! :) But of course, snail mail won't stop completely.
I feel like my mind is kind of scattered right now, but I hope ya'll know how much I care about you and love you. I don't want to do a lot of "preaching" anymore. Preaching doesn't really do a whole lot. That's why our purpose as missionaries is to invite, not to preach to. But I will continue to share my thoughts with you, and any news from the past week that I find necessary to share... which for some, it may still sound preachy. :) I know that the work that I am doing is truly God's work. If it wasn't... I'd be wasting my time. And only someone powerful as God could take someone like me, and somehow use me as an instrument in His hands... to do whatever little things or big things He wants me to do. It is true, as the Book of Mormon says, that "by small things, great things are brought to pass." We should never give up, nor expect too little from ourselves. We have tons of potential.
I love you all!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
It has been a good week. Lots of cool things happening. A girl here named Marlene wants to be baptized! She is the daughter of a recent convert. She's about 20 or 21 yrs old, and she seems to love coming to church right now & she loves to bring her 2 little sisters (who are baptized). Their Mom works quite a bit, so this would be a good change for the entire family. We also met a nice lady named Jennifer a couple weeks ago, and we sacrificed some P-day time to visit her today (that's why emails are late). It was a great sacrifice! She is also going to come to an FHE activity we will have tonight. So, those are a couple highlights from the week.
Today, we got this from President Scott:
Notice
To: General Authorities, Area Seventies, and Mission Presidents
From: Missionary Department
Subject: Adjusted Missionary Email Policy
Missionaries are to write to their families each week and are also authorized to communicate by email with friends, priesthood leaders, and new converts. Mission presidents should allow sufficient time on preparation day for missionaries to write emails and letters. While in the mission field, missionaries should receive authorization from the mission president before entering into communication, including via email, with converts and others of the opposite gender within the mission boundaries (see Missionary Handbook, 36–37).
.....
So, that's pretty cool! Now I don't have to worry about the people I haven't written letters to. Now I can just email you back! :) But of course, snail mail won't stop completely.
I feel like my mind is kind of scattered right now, but I hope ya'll know how much I care about you and love you. I don't want to do a lot of "preaching" anymore. Preaching doesn't really do a whole lot. That's why our purpose as missionaries is to invite, not to preach to. But I will continue to share my thoughts with you, and any news from the past week that I find necessary to share... which for some, it may still sound preachy. :) I know that the work that I am doing is truly God's work. If it wasn't... I'd be wasting my time. And only someone powerful as God could take someone like me, and somehow use me as an instrument in His hands... to do whatever little things or big things He wants me to do. It is true, as the Book of Mormon says, that "by small things, great things are brought to pass." We should never give up, nor expect too little from ourselves. We have tons of potential.
I love you all!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 3/4/2013
Hello Family!
I'm going to keep this one kind of short, because Elder Tinney has a ton of stuff to do today. And we have to clean our apartment, and we're going to see the Falls again... So, I'm sorry about not being able to write more!
There were many simple, but great, things that happened this past week. Nothing huge, no parting of the Niagara Falls, no awe-inspiring miracles. But the little things are the things that are the most important. Tiny moments that remind us that God is real, He is mindful of our situation, and He loves us. To me, there is no knowledge more important than those 3 seemingly small principles, because they are not small. Most of the time it seems like I'm just a spectator on the sidelines, watching as miracles take place in other peoples' lives (often complete strangers!). Not that we don't do anything, because we most definitely are always doing something, but most of the miracles I've seen happen when we just get out of the way. This is God's work. We are His children. We either submit to Him, and feel love, gentleness, and peace... or we don't and we are fighting against the nature of happiness. Because God doesn't need us to submit to Him, but we do. He doesn't command us to just for the sake of reigning over us... its just the nature of life. Anytime we are not loving or gentle or we don't act the way God has told us to, we will fail. We will go backwards.
I really do hope that none of my emails are in vain. And I hope that you will look to God for your support, for answers to your questions. Don't take anyone's word for anything. Ask questions, be reasonable, and be fair.
I love you all so much. Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
I'm going to keep this one kind of short, because Elder Tinney has a ton of stuff to do today. And we have to clean our apartment, and we're going to see the Falls again... So, I'm sorry about not being able to write more!
There were many simple, but great, things that happened this past week. Nothing huge, no parting of the Niagara Falls, no awe-inspiring miracles. But the little things are the things that are the most important. Tiny moments that remind us that God is real, He is mindful of our situation, and He loves us. To me, there is no knowledge more important than those 3 seemingly small principles, because they are not small. Most of the time it seems like I'm just a spectator on the sidelines, watching as miracles take place in other peoples' lives (often complete strangers!). Not that we don't do anything, because we most definitely are always doing something, but most of the miracles I've seen happen when we just get out of the way. This is God's work. We are His children. We either submit to Him, and feel love, gentleness, and peace... or we don't and we are fighting against the nature of happiness. Because God doesn't need us to submit to Him, but we do. He doesn't command us to just for the sake of reigning over us... its just the nature of life. Anytime we are not loving or gentle or we don't act the way God has told us to, we will fail. We will go backwards.
I really do hope that none of my emails are in vain. And I hope that you will look to God for your support, for answers to your questions. Don't take anyone's word for anything. Ask questions, be reasonable, and be fair.
I love you all so much. Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 2/25/13
Hello Family!
I am staying in Niagara Falls. Sadly, Elder Lee is leaving me! He has been one of my favorite companions. We only got to serve with each other for 5 weeks, but he is awesome. He's remaining in English work and going over to Leamington which is way over on the Southwestern part of Ontario. I don't know who my new companion is yet. He is one of the many missionaries coming into the field today, so I'll get to meet him tomorrow! Just so ya'll know for mail or whatever, next transfers are on April 7th.
It has been a pretty good week. Not many of our current investigators are progressing right now, but we have a couple of really good potential investigators that we'll be meeting this week for the first time. There is a couple named Marlee and Blair, they are being married by our Bishop here, and they would like to learn more about the church they are being married in. Could you keep them in your prayers?
In the world we live in, and in the world we're moving in to, people need to have a personal relationship with God. And families need to be unified by love. And well... that is what the Gospel is for. We don't baptize to get a statistic or to gain more members of the church. Baptisms, and more importantly- living the Gospel- help us feel closer to God. Feeling closer to God helps us know our purpose here. And knowing our purpose here helps us know our full potential for the Eternities. Baptisms pave the way for this path, and open the door to the Celestial Kingdom.
That entire above ^^ paragraph is found in the words of modern day revelations, as well as ancient scriptures. I tell you that so I don't take credit for it- its a bunch of words from people a lot wiser than me... God is always telling us "The Way"-- He is always calling for us to come back home! Pray to Him, read His words, and as long as you keep moving forward and never give up, you will never go astray. That's a promise from God. (which promise you'd find in the scriptures or modern day words... read them!!!)
We don't have a whole lot of time today, so I'll cut this one short. I love you all! And I hope you have a great week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
I am staying in Niagara Falls. Sadly, Elder Lee is leaving me! He has been one of my favorite companions. We only got to serve with each other for 5 weeks, but he is awesome. He's remaining in English work and going over to Leamington which is way over on the Southwestern part of Ontario. I don't know who my new companion is yet. He is one of the many missionaries coming into the field today, so I'll get to meet him tomorrow! Just so ya'll know for mail or whatever, next transfers are on April 7th.
It has been a pretty good week. Not many of our current investigators are progressing right now, but we have a couple of really good potential investigators that we'll be meeting this week for the first time. There is a couple named Marlee and Blair, they are being married by our Bishop here, and they would like to learn more about the church they are being married in. Could you keep them in your prayers?
In the world we live in, and in the world we're moving in to, people need to have a personal relationship with God. And families need to be unified by love. And well... that is what the Gospel is for. We don't baptize to get a statistic or to gain more members of the church. Baptisms, and more importantly- living the Gospel- help us feel closer to God. Feeling closer to God helps us know our purpose here. And knowing our purpose here helps us know our full potential for the Eternities. Baptisms pave the way for this path, and open the door to the Celestial Kingdom.
That entire above ^^ paragraph is found in the words of modern day revelations, as well as ancient scriptures. I tell you that so I don't take credit for it- its a bunch of words from people a lot wiser than me... God is always telling us "The Way"-- He is always calling for us to come back home! Pray to Him, read His words, and as long as you keep moving forward and never give up, you will never go astray. That's a promise from God. (which promise you'd find in the scriptures or modern day words... read them!!!)
We don't have a whole lot of time today, so I'll cut this one short. I love you all! And I hope you have a great week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Niagara, 2/19/13
Hello Family!
Last week was great! Elder Lee and I have been blessed to find several new investigators the past couple of weeks. Since not everyone is ready to accept the Gospel, lots of new investigators doesn't automatically equal lots of baptisms. But its important to keep a continual flow of new investigators so that we can find those who are ready. We've had the chance to meet lots of great people of many backgrounds. And we've had the opportunity to learn and grow ourselves. I want to share a couple of short experiences with you, then I want to spend a little more time writing to some of you personally.
It has been great to see Charles progress in the Gospel. He is just at the very very beginning of his journey. And so are all of us. On Sunday, Charles received the Aaronic Priesthood and a couple of assignments: to be an usher, and to be a Home Teacher. He is also very excited to go to the Temple. One of my favorite things is to witness a conversion happening right before my eyes. This is God's work.
Another neat experience we had was to meet two guys from India, one nick-named "Happy" and the other is named Tusha. Happy was a referral from the Welland Elders, who are our friends in our district. Then, we ended up meeting Tusha as we were visiting Happy. There's a couple things I liked about this experience: 1) Missionaries all over the world are on the same team, we are all united in the same cause. And 2) Happy and Tusha reminded me that all of us are unique individuals. Our Heavenly Father created us to be the way we are for a reason. Happy and Tusha had concerns & questions that we normally wouldn't even think about, let alone plan for. But they both have great love for their brothers and sisters in the world, and want to do good to them.
We are all so different in many ways. But in many ways we are all the same. Everyone needs to feel loved, everyone wants peace, and everyone wants to find happiness. The part where we differ is in how we find love, peace, and happiness. There are benign (as well as harmful) ways of finding love, peace, and happiness that are not based on the Gospel of Christ. However, the principles of the Gospel of Christ are the only source of lasting love, peace, and happiness. I know this is true! And I continue to try and indoctrinate all of you with these things because I care about you. I love you all, and I hope you have a great week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Last week was great! Elder Lee and I have been blessed to find several new investigators the past couple of weeks. Since not everyone is ready to accept the Gospel, lots of new investigators doesn't automatically equal lots of baptisms. But its important to keep a continual flow of new investigators so that we can find those who are ready. We've had the chance to meet lots of great people of many backgrounds. And we've had the opportunity to learn and grow ourselves. I want to share a couple of short experiences with you, then I want to spend a little more time writing to some of you personally.
It has been great to see Charles progress in the Gospel. He is just at the very very beginning of his journey. And so are all of us. On Sunday, Charles received the Aaronic Priesthood and a couple of assignments: to be an usher, and to be a Home Teacher. He is also very excited to go to the Temple. One of my favorite things is to witness a conversion happening right before my eyes. This is God's work.
Another neat experience we had was to meet two guys from India, one nick-named "Happy" and the other is named Tusha. Happy was a referral from the Welland Elders, who are our friends in our district. Then, we ended up meeting Tusha as we were visiting Happy. There's a couple things I liked about this experience: 1) Missionaries all over the world are on the same team, we are all united in the same cause. And 2) Happy and Tusha reminded me that all of us are unique individuals. Our Heavenly Father created us to be the way we are for a reason. Happy and Tusha had concerns & questions that we normally wouldn't even think about, let alone plan for. But they both have great love for their brothers and sisters in the world, and want to do good to them.
We are all so different in many ways. But in many ways we are all the same. Everyone needs to feel loved, everyone wants peace, and everyone wants to find happiness. The part where we differ is in how we find love, peace, and happiness. There are benign (as well as harmful) ways of finding love, peace, and happiness that are not based on the Gospel of Christ. However, the principles of the Gospel of Christ are the only source of lasting love, peace, and happiness. I know this is true! And I continue to try and indoctrinate all of you with these things because I care about you. I love you all, and I hope you have a great week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Niagara, 2/11/13
Hello Family!
It has been a pretty good week. It snowed a TON. At least it seemed like a lot to me, but everyone here says it wasn't anything too crazy. The weather here is weird. Because now its all melting away, and I have no idea if that means spring is starting or if its going to get freezing again and start snowing more...who knows! I think we're going to see the Falls again today, since some Elders in our district haven't seen it yet. Its a nice day to go. It's 7 celcius or so. It feels so nice! :) Some random things before I share a quick thought with you: Transfers are on 2/24 which is coming up really soon. So if anyone is planning on mailing anything to our apartment here, either wait or mail it to the mission office. And, next Monday is a Canadian holiday so P-Day & emails will be on Tuesday 2/19 next week.
In some of my past emails, I've shared some experiences that have made me realize how important home is to us. At a member's house for dinner recently, I received a fortune cookie- the fortune said "The home is the chief school of human virtues." That is so true! I believe that all evil in the world is directed at destroying families. The family is the most important unit of society- now and in eternity. Heaven is a continuation of the ideal home. Every false idea, evil motive, or sinful behavior separates us from those we love. There is nothing mystic or magic about this, it is just a reality we have to accept. But we must also realize what makes a home ideal. What is the ideal home? Its not a perfect house with a perfect family with perfect kids who always obey & behave perfectly. At least not "perfect" in a superficial, worldly sense. But can a home be a heaven on Earth? Yes. We won't be perfect. We make mistakes. But we must love, we must say sorry & be forgiving, we must share, we must have fun together! We have to cleave to our loved ones. Cleave means to hold on tight. Hold on tight, or else we ourselves may get lost or we may lose those we love! I know that "broken" families can be healed. They may be far away from each other, or they may have different beliefs or feelings- but families can still love each other. And in that way, we can be healed in a very real sense. I have seen people begin to change their lives and I've seen relationships healed because of love. The Gospel is all about love. Love comes from God. If you believe in love, then what do you have against God, or His Truth? Joseph Smith said: "What do we hear from the Gospel we have received? Truth, out of the Earth. Mercy, from Heaven. A voice of gladness, for the living and the dead! Shall we not go on in so great a cause?"
I love you. Be happy, and make it a great week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
It has been a pretty good week. It snowed a TON. At least it seemed like a lot to me, but everyone here says it wasn't anything too crazy. The weather here is weird. Because now its all melting away, and I have no idea if that means spring is starting or if its going to get freezing again and start snowing more...who knows! I think we're going to see the Falls again today, since some Elders in our district haven't seen it yet. Its a nice day to go. It's 7 celcius or so. It feels so nice! :) Some random things before I share a quick thought with you: Transfers are on 2/24 which is coming up really soon. So if anyone is planning on mailing anything to our apartment here, either wait or mail it to the mission office. And, next Monday is a Canadian holiday so P-Day & emails will be on Tuesday 2/19 next week.
In some of my past emails, I've shared some experiences that have made me realize how important home is to us. At a member's house for dinner recently, I received a fortune cookie- the fortune said "The home is the chief school of human virtues." That is so true! I believe that all evil in the world is directed at destroying families. The family is the most important unit of society- now and in eternity. Heaven is a continuation of the ideal home. Every false idea, evil motive, or sinful behavior separates us from those we love. There is nothing mystic or magic about this, it is just a reality we have to accept. But we must also realize what makes a home ideal. What is the ideal home? Its not a perfect house with a perfect family with perfect kids who always obey & behave perfectly. At least not "perfect" in a superficial, worldly sense. But can a home be a heaven on Earth? Yes. We won't be perfect. We make mistakes. But we must love, we must say sorry & be forgiving, we must share, we must have fun together! We have to cleave to our loved ones. Cleave means to hold on tight. Hold on tight, or else we ourselves may get lost or we may lose those we love! I know that "broken" families can be healed. They may be far away from each other, or they may have different beliefs or feelings- but families can still love each other. And in that way, we can be healed in a very real sense. I have seen people begin to change their lives and I've seen relationships healed because of love. The Gospel is all about love. Love comes from God. If you believe in love, then what do you have against God, or His Truth? Joseph Smith said: "What do we hear from the Gospel we have received? Truth, out of the Earth. Mercy, from Heaven. A voice of gladness, for the living and the dead! Shall we not go on in so great a cause?"
I love you. Be happy, and make it a great week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Monday, February 4, 2013
Niagara, 2/4/13
Hello Family!
It was a good week here. It was a little cold, and it snowed like crazy. But that's okay. Because Charles got baptized! It's been an interesting journey with Charles. I think it has tested a lot of people, including Charles, us, and the ward. People were unsure of his commitment. They worry that he'll just drop off after a little while. But we've also found that everyone who knows Charles, really love him. He is a great guy with a really big heart, he makes people laugh, and he has a strong desire to follow Christ. So there's been a few things I think we (us, the ward) have learned. 1) Don't come to conclusions before really knowing a person, 2) Don't say no for others. Let them decide. And 3) If you're concerned about someone's commitment level, show love and support- and be loving and supportive. Charles will be just fine. He has lots of friends in the ward and he wants to serve. His journey has just begun!
I've been thinking a lot this past week about my journey over the past few years. I was thinking about times I would counsel with Bishop McMaster, and he would tell me constantly to READ THE BOOK OF MORMON EVERY DAY!! And for the life of me, I just couldn't do it. I would read 15 mins for a couple of days, then I'd stop about mid-week. Then after several months of the same-old pattern of failure, I pretty much gave up. Then after several more months, I don't really know what happened that changed me, I was counseling with Bishop Frame- and he was telling me the same thing: Stop being a sloth, and read the Book of Mormon. (maybe those weren't his exact words) And I still wasn't doing that great!! But by this time, I don't know how, but I did not give up. I kept moving forward. I had a trust that if I had some sort of spiritual fuel every day, that even if it wasn't the scriptures, but any source of truth & light- that I would make it and eventually the Book of Mormon would be an everyday thing. I don't know why, but my mind just didn't want the scriptures as much as it did Mo-Tab or other easier-to-read church books, or even a random sampler of self-help books. And then it wasn't until several months later when I was riding on a bus early in the morning from the MTC to the SLC airport that I had this uneasy feeling in me. I was not comfortable. I was not at peace. I realized I hadn't said a prayer that morning, nor had I read in the scriptures! So, I said a prayer and read a small chapter in the Book of Mormon. Then, I felt better. I love the Book of Mormon. It is true, it is the word of God. And I need it every single day.
I think there are a lot of times when we feel like giving up. It doesn't have to be in our journey towards a full-time mission or becoming an every-day-scripture-reader. Maybe we feel it in our relationships, our work, our school, it could be a number of things. I am a strong believer in changing our desires, thoughts, attitudes, and then moving forward. I didn't really progress until I knew I could move forward. I think that's what helped me progress towards coming on a mission. When I was with Bishop McMaster, I felt stuck and I didn't think I could really move forward. So those thoughts needed to change, and eventually over time they did. So when I met with Bishop Frame, I still felt stuck at times and a little hopeless, but I knew that I must move forward, and I knew that I could. I could move forward, and I trusted that it would all work out. Have a worthy & positive goal at the end of your mind's tunnel, and always keep it there. And keep on going!! And you will make it. You will make it to somewhere better than you were before. And it might not be exactly what you had in mind, but it is worth the journey.
The Gospel is true! Jesus Christ makes the journey of transformation possible. We're meant to transform from someone good into someone better.
I love you all so much! I hope you have a great week. Attached is a picture of Me, Charles, Bishop Gilmour, and Elder Lee.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
It was a good week here. It was a little cold, and it snowed like crazy. But that's okay. Because Charles got baptized! It's been an interesting journey with Charles. I think it has tested a lot of people, including Charles, us, and the ward. People were unsure of his commitment. They worry that he'll just drop off after a little while. But we've also found that everyone who knows Charles, really love him. He is a great guy with a really big heart, he makes people laugh, and he has a strong desire to follow Christ. So there's been a few things I think we (us, the ward) have learned. 1) Don't come to conclusions before really knowing a person, 2) Don't say no for others. Let them decide. And 3) If you're concerned about someone's commitment level, show love and support- and be loving and supportive. Charles will be just fine. He has lots of friends in the ward and he wants to serve. His journey has just begun!
I've been thinking a lot this past week about my journey over the past few years. I was thinking about times I would counsel with Bishop McMaster, and he would tell me constantly to READ THE BOOK OF MORMON EVERY DAY!! And for the life of me, I just couldn't do it. I would read 15 mins for a couple of days, then I'd stop about mid-week. Then after several months of the same-old pattern of failure, I pretty much gave up. Then after several more months, I don't really know what happened that changed me, I was counseling with Bishop Frame- and he was telling me the same thing: Stop being a sloth, and read the Book of Mormon. (maybe those weren't his exact words) And I still wasn't doing that great!! But by this time, I don't know how, but I did not give up. I kept moving forward. I had a trust that if I had some sort of spiritual fuel every day, that even if it wasn't the scriptures, but any source of truth & light- that I would make it and eventually the Book of Mormon would be an everyday thing. I don't know why, but my mind just didn't want the scriptures as much as it did Mo-Tab or other easier-to-read church books, or even a random sampler of self-help books. And then it wasn't until several months later when I was riding on a bus early in the morning from the MTC to the SLC airport that I had this uneasy feeling in me. I was not comfortable. I was not at peace. I realized I hadn't said a prayer that morning, nor had I read in the scriptures! So, I said a prayer and read a small chapter in the Book of Mormon. Then, I felt better. I love the Book of Mormon. It is true, it is the word of God. And I need it every single day.
I think there are a lot of times when we feel like giving up. It doesn't have to be in our journey towards a full-time mission or becoming an every-day-scripture-reader. Maybe we feel it in our relationships, our work, our school, it could be a number of things. I am a strong believer in changing our desires, thoughts, attitudes, and then moving forward. I didn't really progress until I knew I could move forward. I think that's what helped me progress towards coming on a mission. When I was with Bishop McMaster, I felt stuck and I didn't think I could really move forward. So those thoughts needed to change, and eventually over time they did. So when I met with Bishop Frame, I still felt stuck at times and a little hopeless, but I knew that I must move forward, and I knew that I could. I could move forward, and I trusted that it would all work out. Have a worthy & positive goal at the end of your mind's tunnel, and always keep it there. And keep on going!! And you will make it. You will make it to somewhere better than you were before. And it might not be exactly what you had in mind, but it is worth the journey.
The Gospel is true! Jesus Christ makes the journey of transformation possible. We're meant to transform from someone good into someone better.
I love you all so much! I hope you have a great week. Attached is a picture of Me, Charles, Bishop Gilmour, and Elder Lee.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Monday, January 28, 2013
Niagara, 1/28/13
Hello Family!
It has been a great week. Elder Lee is awesome! He is from Vancouver, B.C. but was born and raised near Seoul, Korea. He's been here in the CTM for about 17 months, the majority of it being spent doing Korean work. He wanted to do more English work and learn how to speak it better, so now here he is! It's fun.
Just like any other day or week, we've had some highs as well as lows this past week. Charles is doing pretty well and should be getting baptized this Sunday, so that is really exciting! Unfortunately, Shawn saw some more anti-Mormon stuff but this time it affected him negatively. He sent a couple of texts to us on Saturday, and he basically said "There is no way you guys would be able to refute this (the anti stuff). I'm sorry guys, but I think this is where we part ways. You guys are awesome and I wish you the best." We let him know our door is still open for him. I don't think we've seen him for the last time, I think he'll come around again. But we won't really chase after him until he's ready. This tragic turn in his journey reminded me of something all of us should remember. Faith is a choice.
We don't become faithful or believing all at once. We may have powerful experiences that help us to have faith. But unless we want it and choose it, our faith will not grow. Our testimonies, our faith... really, our entire character as a human being, is like a bonfire- we need to fuel it to keep it burning, to keep it alive. We can either let it grow dim, or we can fuel it. I think we can go a little deeper too and say we can fuel it a couple of ways: we can fuel it with all sorts of dorito bags or other plasticy-paper wrapper things that my young-men's leaders always told us not to do. Or we can fuel it with nice firewood that's perfect for a bright, clean & natural burn. Sure, both will fuel the fire. But one gives off a nasty polluted smoke, while the other is just normal & natural smoke. (don't get all eco-friendly on me and ruin my analogy!)
We choose to believe what we believe. There is absolute Truth, which is God's. There is the gray area between truth and falsehood, which is man-made. And then there's the area of complete lies, which is Satan's. It's up to us to choose what we'll believe. Are we going to believe the Truth when it is right in front of us? Or, are we going to believe the lies? And what concepts of man do we believe? It's left to us to discern and choose who to follow. We can have help to know what is true and what is false (the Light of Christ, the gift of the Holy Ghost). We can know the Truth in this confusing world. Just be careful of what road you begin to travel down. The more you follow truth, the more you'll recognize it. And I believe the same principle is true for following a path of lies. The more you believe the subtle lies, the more you are deceived. So, we need to choose wisely. Ask questions, look at all sides before you make a decision (which includes trying things- like reading the Book of Mormon and praying)... then, you will be able to discern between what is really truth and what is really fraud.
I love you all! Have a great & happy week.
PS-I'm out of time... so you may or may not get personal emails from me this week. Sorry!!
Love,
Elder Simper
It has been a great week. Elder Lee is awesome! He is from Vancouver, B.C. but was born and raised near Seoul, Korea. He's been here in the CTM for about 17 months, the majority of it being spent doing Korean work. He wanted to do more English work and learn how to speak it better, so now here he is! It's fun.
Just like any other day or week, we've had some highs as well as lows this past week. Charles is doing pretty well and should be getting baptized this Sunday, so that is really exciting! Unfortunately, Shawn saw some more anti-Mormon stuff but this time it affected him negatively. He sent a couple of texts to us on Saturday, and he basically said "There is no way you guys would be able to refute this (the anti stuff). I'm sorry guys, but I think this is where we part ways. You guys are awesome and I wish you the best." We let him know our door is still open for him. I don't think we've seen him for the last time, I think he'll come around again. But we won't really chase after him until he's ready. This tragic turn in his journey reminded me of something all of us should remember. Faith is a choice.
We don't become faithful or believing all at once. We may have powerful experiences that help us to have faith. But unless we want it and choose it, our faith will not grow. Our testimonies, our faith... really, our entire character as a human being, is like a bonfire- we need to fuel it to keep it burning, to keep it alive. We can either let it grow dim, or we can fuel it. I think we can go a little deeper too and say we can fuel it a couple of ways: we can fuel it with all sorts of dorito bags or other plasticy-paper wrapper things that my young-men's leaders always told us not to do. Or we can fuel it with nice firewood that's perfect for a bright, clean & natural burn. Sure, both will fuel the fire. But one gives off a nasty polluted smoke, while the other is just normal & natural smoke. (don't get all eco-friendly on me and ruin my analogy!)
We choose to believe what we believe. There is absolute Truth, which is God's. There is the gray area between truth and falsehood, which is man-made. And then there's the area of complete lies, which is Satan's. It's up to us to choose what we'll believe. Are we going to believe the Truth when it is right in front of us? Or, are we going to believe the lies? And what concepts of man do we believe? It's left to us to discern and choose who to follow. We can have help to know what is true and what is false (the Light of Christ, the gift of the Holy Ghost). We can know the Truth in this confusing world. Just be careful of what road you begin to travel down. The more you follow truth, the more you'll recognize it. And I believe the same principle is true for following a path of lies. The more you believe the subtle lies, the more you are deceived. So, we need to choose wisely. Ask questions, look at all sides before you make a decision (which includes trying things- like reading the Book of Mormon and praying)... then, you will be able to discern between what is really truth and what is really fraud.
I love you all! Have a great & happy week.
PS-I'm out of time... so you may or may not get personal emails from me this week. Sorry!!
Love,
Elder Simper
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Niagara, 1/21/13
Hello Family!
Transfer time is here! I am staying here in Niagara Falls for at least 5 more weeks (this transfer is shorter by one week to accommodate all the new missionaries). I haven't met my new companion yet, but his name is Elder Li and he is Korean! Elder Welch and I have had fun together... he's definitely one of my favorite people and I'll miss him. He's now going up to serve in Oshawa, after being here in Niagara for the past 9 months or so. So, there's all the transfer news. Apparently it's supposed to get really cold here this week, so that should spice things up a bit! Or cool them down, I'm not sure.
We saw a couple of miracles this past week. Charles, who had gone missing in action, is now in contact with us again and has a baptismal date for February 3rd! Getting in contact again so fast was unexpected, but it's a miracle we welcome, that's for sure. And we had an especially good visit with Shawn, who I mentioned last week. Shawn is incredibly open-minded and is willing to do what God intends for him to do. The member whose home we met in, and who gave Shawn a ride home, spoke to us yesterday about a neat experience he had with Shawn after our visit. They were driving, and Shawn said "Whoa... that was weird!" Bro. Williams (the member) said "What's weird?" Shawn said "I just heard this voice in my head, I'm not sure if it was my own or what- but it said 'This is the right thing for you' and I got this, I don't know how to describe it, this feeling in my head and body." The reason why Shawn received such a powerful manifestation is because he knows what God wants everyone to know. That we can't say we went for a swim if we just dipped our feet in. We cannot know something absolutely unless we actually give it a fair try. Jesus said "If any man will do his (or God's) will, he shall know of the doctrine. Whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." Basically He is saying that the only way we will know if the Gospel is real, if it is true, if it is from God, is if we try it for ourselves. God is always saying "Prove me." He is inviting us to "come and see." Shawn's life story, in a nutshell, has been: devout Catholic until his teen years, he then developed strong animosity towards God, he became a drug addict, spent time in jail, then he pleaded for God to save his life. And then, God did save him. And now, years later, he is coming to know God in an even more personal and powerful way. That's the point of the Gospel. That's the reason for the church and for baptizing. Not to have a statistic, or to have membership in a social club that meets every Sunday- but this church has the authority and resources to help us know God in a personal and powerful way. How would you change if you knew God personally, and if you knew He has a plan for each of us individually?
What I'm reminded of by Shawn's story, is that God never gives up on us. He never turns His back on us. Everyone, me and you, we all need to put away our foolish self-serving desires and turn towards God. Our life is not really ours. God gave us this life. Who are we to fight against Him who created us? This life is the time for us to prepare to meet God. Or in other words, we are being tested to see if we will make it back home to our loving Father. If that doesn't make sense to you, then try it out! Say a prayer, read the scriptures, go to church, ask questions. There is nothing to lose, and everything to gain.
I love you all so much. Keep on going, keep moving forward, and never give up. Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Transfer time is here! I am staying here in Niagara Falls for at least 5 more weeks (this transfer is shorter by one week to accommodate all the new missionaries). I haven't met my new companion yet, but his name is Elder Li and he is Korean! Elder Welch and I have had fun together... he's definitely one of my favorite people and I'll miss him. He's now going up to serve in Oshawa, after being here in Niagara for the past 9 months or so. So, there's all the transfer news. Apparently it's supposed to get really cold here this week, so that should spice things up a bit! Or cool them down, I'm not sure.
We saw a couple of miracles this past week. Charles, who had gone missing in action, is now in contact with us again and has a baptismal date for February 3rd! Getting in contact again so fast was unexpected, but it's a miracle we welcome, that's for sure. And we had an especially good visit with Shawn, who I mentioned last week. Shawn is incredibly open-minded and is willing to do what God intends for him to do. The member whose home we met in, and who gave Shawn a ride home, spoke to us yesterday about a neat experience he had with Shawn after our visit. They were driving, and Shawn said "Whoa... that was weird!" Bro. Williams (the member) said "What's weird?" Shawn said "I just heard this voice in my head, I'm not sure if it was my own or what- but it said 'This is the right thing for you' and I got this, I don't know how to describe it, this feeling in my head and body." The reason why Shawn received such a powerful manifestation is because he knows what God wants everyone to know. That we can't say we went for a swim if we just dipped our feet in. We cannot know something absolutely unless we actually give it a fair try. Jesus said "If any man will do his (or God's) will, he shall know of the doctrine. Whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." Basically He is saying that the only way we will know if the Gospel is real, if it is true, if it is from God, is if we try it for ourselves. God is always saying "Prove me." He is inviting us to "come and see." Shawn's life story, in a nutshell, has been: devout Catholic until his teen years, he then developed strong animosity towards God, he became a drug addict, spent time in jail, then he pleaded for God to save his life. And then, God did save him. And now, years later, he is coming to know God in an even more personal and powerful way. That's the point of the Gospel. That's the reason for the church and for baptizing. Not to have a statistic, or to have membership in a social club that meets every Sunday- but this church has the authority and resources to help us know God in a personal and powerful way. How would you change if you knew God personally, and if you knew He has a plan for each of us individually?
What I'm reminded of by Shawn's story, is that God never gives up on us. He never turns His back on us. Everyone, me and you, we all need to put away our foolish self-serving desires and turn towards God. Our life is not really ours. God gave us this life. Who are we to fight against Him who created us? This life is the time for us to prepare to meet God. Or in other words, we are being tested to see if we will make it back home to our loving Father. If that doesn't make sense to you, then try it out! Say a prayer, read the scriptures, go to church, ask questions. There is nothing to lose, and everything to gain.
I love you all so much. Keep on going, keep moving forward, and never give up. Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 1/14/2013
Hello Family!
Real quick, from now on will you send all mail to the Mission Office?
Elder Brett Simper
Canada Toronto Mission
197 County Court Blvd. #203
Brampton, ON L6W 4P6
That way no mail gets lost and that way I don't have to keep remembering to send new info any time I move. Transfers are in a week, and over the coming months we are going to have about 80 new missionaries (from 205-285) coming in. So the chances of moving around in the coming months are pretty high.
It was a pretty good week, but it was also a pretty low week at times. Charles kind of "fell of the face of the earth" and he did not get baptized. We've been trying to contact him, with no luck. Hopefully we'll be able to talk with him again. If not, then there's not much we can do. However, we did have a pretty cool experience with one of our investigators, named Shawn. He had a concern about Jesus Christ. He believes in God, but he was wondering "Why Jesus? Why do I have to go through Him, why can't God just forgive our sins?" So that had the potential to be a pretty big obstacle. Since everything revolves around the divinity of Jesus Christ. So, in our past visits we bore sincere testimony of Christ and shared scriptures, and experiences, basically anything to try help him understand Jesus Christ and His Atonement. But, nothing really happened as a direct result. We know that we can't really persuade people to be converted. Shawn needs to find out for himself, and the Spirit will tell him in his heart and help him be converted. So of course we kept that in mind. We left him key scriptures to read, and encouraged him to continue to ask questions and pray about things.
So we get a text from him this week, and its been a couple of weeks since we've seen him because of the holidays. And he sends us some questions that he got while watching an Anti-Mormon video online. So we're thinking, "oh, great!" The questions were pretty 'out there.' Anyways, we get to meet with him and answer his questions and also correct any mis-information (he actually showed the video on his phone to us and the member whose home we were at). This was one of those videos where I think most people would say "Wow, these Mormons are crazy!" The video was full of speculations, lies, and partial truths. But the funny thing is, Shawn has a very open mind. So he knew that "if there's a plumbing problem, ask the plumber, not the electrician." It turns out that this Anti-Mormon video actually backfired and opened up ways for Shawn to receive answers. Answers that he actually liked and could relate to, and even be willing to accept Jesus Christ. Now, to be honest we have no idea how this video could have helped him. But I do know that the Lord works in mysterious ways... and I know that because Shawn has an open mind, is willing to ask questions, and wants to do God's will, he was able to receive impressions from the Spirit. He said that Jesus Christ was no longer a 'problem' to him, and he even closed his prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Which was something he was opposed to before.
I know that God is a God of Miracles. Again, I remind you all that He never turns our back on us. He never gives up on us. Stop fighting against Him and you will begin to feel more peace and light in your life. It may sound cliche and far-fetched to logical-thinking minds, but it is true. The Gospel is true. I love you all very much. And I hope you have a wonderful week ahead of you. If not, then make it a good week!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Real quick, from now on will you send all mail to the Mission Office?
Elder Brett Simper
Canada Toronto Mission
197 County Court Blvd. #203
Brampton, ON L6W 4P6
That way no mail gets lost and that way I don't have to keep remembering to send new info any time I move. Transfers are in a week, and over the coming months we are going to have about 80 new missionaries (from 205-285) coming in. So the chances of moving around in the coming months are pretty high.
It was a pretty good week, but it was also a pretty low week at times. Charles kind of "fell of the face of the earth" and he did not get baptized. We've been trying to contact him, with no luck. Hopefully we'll be able to talk with him again. If not, then there's not much we can do. However, we did have a pretty cool experience with one of our investigators, named Shawn. He had a concern about Jesus Christ. He believes in God, but he was wondering "Why Jesus? Why do I have to go through Him, why can't God just forgive our sins?" So that had the potential to be a pretty big obstacle. Since everything revolves around the divinity of Jesus Christ. So, in our past visits we bore sincere testimony of Christ and shared scriptures, and experiences, basically anything to try help him understand Jesus Christ and His Atonement. But, nothing really happened as a direct result. We know that we can't really persuade people to be converted. Shawn needs to find out for himself, and the Spirit will tell him in his heart and help him be converted. So of course we kept that in mind. We left him key scriptures to read, and encouraged him to continue to ask questions and pray about things.
So we get a text from him this week, and its been a couple of weeks since we've seen him because of the holidays. And he sends us some questions that he got while watching an Anti-Mormon video online. So we're thinking, "oh, great!" The questions were pretty 'out there.' Anyways, we get to meet with him and answer his questions and also correct any mis-information (he actually showed the video on his phone to us and the member whose home we were at). This was one of those videos where I think most people would say "Wow, these Mormons are crazy!" The video was full of speculations, lies, and partial truths. But the funny thing is, Shawn has a very open mind. So he knew that "if there's a plumbing problem, ask the plumber, not the electrician." It turns out that this Anti-Mormon video actually backfired and opened up ways for Shawn to receive answers. Answers that he actually liked and could relate to, and even be willing to accept Jesus Christ. Now, to be honest we have no idea how this video could have helped him. But I do know that the Lord works in mysterious ways... and I know that because Shawn has an open mind, is willing to ask questions, and wants to do God's will, he was able to receive impressions from the Spirit. He said that Jesus Christ was no longer a 'problem' to him, and he even closed his prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Which was something he was opposed to before.
I know that God is a God of Miracles. Again, I remind you all that He never turns our back on us. He never gives up on us. Stop fighting against Him and you will begin to feel more peace and light in your life. It may sound cliche and far-fetched to logical-thinking minds, but it is true. The Gospel is true. I love you all very much. And I hope you have a wonderful week ahead of you. If not, then make it a good week!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 1/7/13
Hello Family!
We're anxious for this week. Things will probably pick up this week. And things are probably going to pick up a lot in the coming months! Our mission is going to have many, many more missionaries. And many of them will be Sister missionaries, and I think they'll see tons of success. It's a very exciting time to be serving the Lord. Charles didn't get baptized yet, so we're a little worried about him. He was away most of the weekend, but we've stayed in contact and hopefully we'll be able to dig a little deeper and see what we need to help him with. I believe he is someone who will make a great contribution to the Lord's kingdom, and that's probably why he's facing so much opposition. The Lord needs us on His team. He needs you, any of you who have strayed.
We had an awesome testimony meeting yesterday here in the St. Davids ward. A couple of guys who I really admire got up and said some really thought-provoking things. One man said "Becoming a member of the Church is my greatest accomplishment in life. And what did I accomplish?? Nothing [in a worldly sense]." And the other man spoke about his thoughts about New Years resolutions, and he shared a couple of his goals. One was to focus more on eternal things rather than on temporal things, and the other was to pay more attention to the promptings of the Spirit. He said "the clock just keeps on ticking, and I don't want a whole year to go by with me doing nothing."
I was inspired by these testimonies. The truth is, if I were to have all the pleasures that the world can offer, but fail to live the Gospel... I would have nothing. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is real. It is the reality we must be living in. If we are not living the Gospel, then we are living contrary to the nature of happiness. So, many of my current personal goals and plans are to ensure that I consistently and diligently live the Gospel. Because I know it is living the Gospel that brings me the most joy. This is the joy that missionaries all over the world are inviting people to receive.
I love you all so much! Make this week a great week, and strive to make 2013 the best yet!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
We're anxious for this week. Things will probably pick up this week. And things are probably going to pick up a lot in the coming months! Our mission is going to have many, many more missionaries. And many of them will be Sister missionaries, and I think they'll see tons of success. It's a very exciting time to be serving the Lord. Charles didn't get baptized yet, so we're a little worried about him. He was away most of the weekend, but we've stayed in contact and hopefully we'll be able to dig a little deeper and see what we need to help him with. I believe he is someone who will make a great contribution to the Lord's kingdom, and that's probably why he's facing so much opposition. The Lord needs us on His team. He needs you, any of you who have strayed.
We had an awesome testimony meeting yesterday here in the St. Davids ward. A couple of guys who I really admire got up and said some really thought-provoking things. One man said "Becoming a member of the Church is my greatest accomplishment in life. And what did I accomplish?? Nothing [in a worldly sense]." And the other man spoke about his thoughts about New Years resolutions, and he shared a couple of his goals. One was to focus more on eternal things rather than on temporal things, and the other was to pay more attention to the promptings of the Spirit. He said "the clock just keeps on ticking, and I don't want a whole year to go by with me doing nothing."
I was inspired by these testimonies. The truth is, if I were to have all the pleasures that the world can offer, but fail to live the Gospel... I would have nothing. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is real. It is the reality we must be living in. If we are not living the Gospel, then we are living contrary to the nature of happiness. So, many of my current personal goals and plans are to ensure that I consistently and diligently live the Gospel. Because I know it is living the Gospel that brings me the most joy. This is the joy that missionaries all over the world are inviting people to receive.
I love you all so much! Make this week a great week, and strive to make 2013 the best yet!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 1/2/2013
Hello Family!
We had our first big snowfall last week just after Christmas. I think Elder Welch was a little bit scared since I'm the driver! But I've been doing pretty good driving in it. People have given me some good driving-in-the-snow tips. And the roads are cleared pretty fast, anyways. I attached some photos from the Falls, now icy and snowy!
The past couple of weeks have been different, with the weird holiday schedules we've had and stuff like that. So its been a little slower than it has usually been. We were planning on having Charles' baptism this past Sunday, but he wanted to move it to this week instead. So hopefully all will go well and he'll enter into the waters of baptism this Sunday, the 6th. Baptism is so sacred. I wish I understood it better earlier in my life. Baptism by immersion is symbolic of the death, burial, and resurrection of the Savior. And because He did those things, we can overcome death- both physical death and spiritual death. We will all live forever- that is a free gift to all. But, to overcome spiritual death and live with eternal joy we must live the Gospel of Jesus Christ and accept and apply the Atonement. I know things are confusing in this world, and I know we get many mixed messages. The only things I am sure of are these: my love for my family, and the truthfulness of the Gospel. These things get attacked too, but they are the only things I can hold fast to and always rely on to bring me peace and comfort. They cut through the darkness of the confusing messages around us. The only way we can find out if the Gospel is true, and really is the one sure way to peace and comfort... is to live it.
I love you all very much. And I wish you all the best for the New Year ahead!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
We had our first big snowfall last week just after Christmas. I think Elder Welch was a little bit scared since I'm the driver! But I've been doing pretty good driving in it. People have given me some good driving-in-the-snow tips. And the roads are cleared pretty fast, anyways. I attached some photos from the Falls, now icy and snowy!
The past couple of weeks have been different, with the weird holiday schedules we've had and stuff like that. So its been a little slower than it has usually been. We were planning on having Charles' baptism this past Sunday, but he wanted to move it to this week instead. So hopefully all will go well and he'll enter into the waters of baptism this Sunday, the 6th. Baptism is so sacred. I wish I understood it better earlier in my life. Baptism by immersion is symbolic of the death, burial, and resurrection of the Savior. And because He did those things, we can overcome death- both physical death and spiritual death. We will all live forever- that is a free gift to all. But, to overcome spiritual death and live with eternal joy we must live the Gospel of Jesus Christ and accept and apply the Atonement. I know things are confusing in this world, and I know we get many mixed messages. The only things I am sure of are these: my love for my family, and the truthfulness of the Gospel. These things get attacked too, but they are the only things I can hold fast to and always rely on to bring me peace and comfort. They cut through the darkness of the confusing messages around us. The only way we can find out if the Gospel is true, and really is the one sure way to peace and comfort... is to live it.
I love you all very much. And I wish you all the best for the New Year ahead!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 12/27/12
Hello Family!
Next preparation day is Wednesday 1/2/13 instead of Monday 12/31/12.
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! It was a great day for me. I enjoyed being able to Skype home and I'm grateful for all the love I felt from you and from the people here. As I've been thinking about the arrival of a new year, I thought about things I want and need to do better. Something I've done on my mission a couple of times and have had success with is writing down goals of "Who I want to become" and also writing down some plans on how I can become just that. Its a continual work in progress, and I am no where close to the person I want to become. But it is helpful to write down these goals- they can be anything! And remember to be patient and work at it one day at a time.
There is so much depressing stuff going on in the world. We all know that. We all get a little hopeless about it and maybe we choose to ignore it sometimes. But I know that we can make a difference in the world by starting small. Start with yourself- evaluate and improve yourself, then see what needs to happen to improve the relationships with your family and loved ones. This is something I'm still working on. We need to work at this the same way we should with our goals- be patient and work at it one day at a time. But the important thing is, is that we actually do it! Evaluate, set goals, and make plans to improve. If you can see something way down at the end of the tunnel and seems like a long way away-- don't give up, because I know from experience that if you just keep on going towards that goal, even if you fall... you will make it.
I know that in some cases, it is necessary to cut off certain relationships that are harmful. But I think if we cut off relationships based on assumptions, then we are making a big mistake. "When it comes to hating, gossiping, ignoring, ridiculing, holding grudges, or wanting to cause harm, please apply the following: Stop it!" (Dieter F. Uchtdorf) We're all human and we all struggle with these things. But we need to be careful with the way we treat each other. If we're not careful, and we burn all our bridges, then the coming years are going to be absolutely miserable.
I love you all very much. The Church is true, and God lives. Our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love us and are always calling us home.
Happy New Year!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Next preparation day is Wednesday 1/2/13 instead of Monday 12/31/12.
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! It was a great day for me. I enjoyed being able to Skype home and I'm grateful for all the love I felt from you and from the people here. As I've been thinking about the arrival of a new year, I thought about things I want and need to do better. Something I've done on my mission a couple of times and have had success with is writing down goals of "Who I want to become" and also writing down some plans on how I can become just that. Its a continual work in progress, and I am no where close to the person I want to become. But it is helpful to write down these goals- they can be anything! And remember to be patient and work at it one day at a time.
There is so much depressing stuff going on in the world. We all know that. We all get a little hopeless about it and maybe we choose to ignore it sometimes. But I know that we can make a difference in the world by starting small. Start with yourself- evaluate and improve yourself, then see what needs to happen to improve the relationships with your family and loved ones. This is something I'm still working on. We need to work at this the same way we should with our goals- be patient and work at it one day at a time. But the important thing is, is that we actually do it! Evaluate, set goals, and make plans to improve. If you can see something way down at the end of the tunnel and seems like a long way away-- don't give up, because I know from experience that if you just keep on going towards that goal, even if you fall... you will make it.
I know that in some cases, it is necessary to cut off certain relationships that are harmful. But I think if we cut off relationships based on assumptions, then we are making a big mistake. "When it comes to hating, gossiping, ignoring, ridiculing, holding grudges, or wanting to cause harm, please apply the following: Stop it!" (Dieter F. Uchtdorf) We're all human and we all struggle with these things. But we need to be careful with the way we treat each other. If we're not careful, and we burn all our bridges, then the coming years are going to be absolutely miserable.
I love you all very much. The Church is true, and God lives. Our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love us and are always calling us home.
Happy New Year!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 12/17/12
Hello Family!
Here are some dates really quick: Next transfer date is 1/20/13, Next Preparation Day is Thursday 12/27/12 because of Christmas next week.
I heard about the tragedy in Connecticut, and I couldn't believe it. That is awful. I was thinking how hard it must be for these families who were affected by it. And I can't even imagine the pain they must feel. But I do know that because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, "All that is unfair about life will be made fair" (Preach My Gospel). We always ask the question, "Why does God allow such horrible things to happen?" I don't know the wording exactly, but in the Book of Mormon there is a story about people killing children in horrible ways, and someone asks a prophet "Why does God allow such horrible things to happen?" He then says something like "God allows these things to happen so that the blood of the innocent will stand as a witness against the murderers on Judgement Day." God, our loving Heavenly Father, hates it when things like this happen. He is a God of love, and a God of peace. He is a God of Justice, and a God of Mercy. Because God is perfect and He loves us perfectly, He knows how to comfort us. Let us be His hands and comfort those who stand in need of comfort, and mourn with those that mourn, and stand as witnesses of God at all times, and in all places. I know this Gospel is true and I know it helps us with any challenge. It gives us the sure knowledge that there IS life after death.
.....
I hope each of you has a Merry Christmas! I want to share something from one of my favorite books (The Christmas Sweater). It's a prayer:
"God, thank you for everything you've given us. For the time we have together. And for the miracle of Christmas. Thank you for the Atonement, the chance to start all over again. Help us to always remember who we are and to trust that we are worthy to make it through our storms. Amen."
That describes what I feel each Christmas since the time I read that. I love this chance to remember all that God has done for me, and to know I am loved by God and by my family. With God, we can make it through anything!
I love you all so much, and I hope you have a great and memorable Christmas.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Here are some dates really quick: Next transfer date is 1/20/13, Next Preparation Day is Thursday 12/27/12 because of Christmas next week.
I heard about the tragedy in Connecticut, and I couldn't believe it. That is awful. I was thinking how hard it must be for these families who were affected by it. And I can't even imagine the pain they must feel. But I do know that because of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, "All that is unfair about life will be made fair" (Preach My Gospel). We always ask the question, "Why does God allow such horrible things to happen?" I don't know the wording exactly, but in the Book of Mormon there is a story about people killing children in horrible ways, and someone asks a prophet "Why does God allow such horrible things to happen?" He then says something like "God allows these things to happen so that the blood of the innocent will stand as a witness against the murderers on Judgement Day." God, our loving Heavenly Father, hates it when things like this happen. He is a God of love, and a God of peace. He is a God of Justice, and a God of Mercy. Because God is perfect and He loves us perfectly, He knows how to comfort us. Let us be His hands and comfort those who stand in need of comfort, and mourn with those that mourn, and stand as witnesses of God at all times, and in all places. I know this Gospel is true and I know it helps us with any challenge. It gives us the sure knowledge that there IS life after death.
.....
I hope each of you has a Merry Christmas! I want to share something from one of my favorite books (The Christmas Sweater). It's a prayer:
"God, thank you for everything you've given us. For the time we have together. And for the miracle of Christmas. Thank you for the Atonement, the chance to start all over again. Help us to always remember who we are and to trust that we are worthy to make it through our storms. Amen."
That describes what I feel each Christmas since the time I read that. I love this chance to remember all that God has done for me, and to know I am loved by God and by my family. With God, we can make it through anything!
I love you all so much, and I hope you have a great and memorable Christmas.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 12/10/12
Hello Family!
Elder Welch and I did not get a transfer call last night. So, we're both here in the Falls until the middle of January!
I attached a picture so I don't get rebuked by you guys anymore! :) It's kind of a funny picture. I ended up being in the front and center of everything. Which is kind of awkward, but Nan wanted Elder Welch on one side and me on the other. Nan is the lady right next to me, then Elder Welch and the Woodruffs (ward missionaries) on the left. Then our two Spanish missionary friends who serve in the St. Davids Spanish branch are on the right.
Nan is still doing awesome and she will be baptized this Saturday in Salt Lake City. We had another investigator named Charles come to church yesterday, and that was awesome. He's someone I didn't really expect to enjoy it and fit in as much as he did. We'll see him again this week and do all that we can to help him progress. He's someone who I think has the potential to influence many people for good. He's down to earth and always cheerful.
I've been thinking about The Gospel of Jesus Christ a lot this week. The Gospel is a 5-step pattern of living for sinners. Faith, repentance, baptism (or making/renewing covenants), receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end... this is not a one time deal. It is a pattern of living. And its the path to true, lasting happiness. I'm so grateful for the Gospel in my life. I can feel the difference between actually living the Gospel pattern and just going through the motions. Going through the motions might keep you feeling secure, but you won't really progress and grow into the person you are capable of becoming. We are all worth so much. We are all capable of so much more than we often allow ourselves to believe. Become what you are meant to become! That's one of the many things living the Gospel will do.
I love you all so much, and I hope you are enjoying this special time of year! Each of you has influenced me so much, and I'm so grateful.
Laus deo.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Elder Welch and I did not get a transfer call last night. So, we're both here in the Falls until the middle of January!
I attached a picture so I don't get rebuked by you guys anymore! :) It's kind of a funny picture. I ended up being in the front and center of everything. Which is kind of awkward, but Nan wanted Elder Welch on one side and me on the other. Nan is the lady right next to me, then Elder Welch and the Woodruffs (ward missionaries) on the left. Then our two Spanish missionary friends who serve in the St. Davids Spanish branch are on the right.
Nan is still doing awesome and she will be baptized this Saturday in Salt Lake City. We had another investigator named Charles come to church yesterday, and that was awesome. He's someone I didn't really expect to enjoy it and fit in as much as he did. We'll see him again this week and do all that we can to help him progress. He's someone who I think has the potential to influence many people for good. He's down to earth and always cheerful.
I've been thinking about The Gospel of Jesus Christ a lot this week. The Gospel is a 5-step pattern of living for sinners. Faith, repentance, baptism (or making/renewing covenants), receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end... this is not a one time deal. It is a pattern of living. And its the path to true, lasting happiness. I'm so grateful for the Gospel in my life. I can feel the difference between actually living the Gospel pattern and just going through the motions. Going through the motions might keep you feeling secure, but you won't really progress and grow into the person you are capable of becoming. We are all worth so much. We are all capable of so much more than we often allow ourselves to believe. Become what you are meant to become! That's one of the many things living the Gospel will do.
I love you all so much, and I hope you are enjoying this special time of year! Each of you has influenced me so much, and I'm so grateful.
Laus deo.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 12/3/12
Hello Family!
Real quick, y'all should check out my profile on Mormon.org: mormon.org/me/8V6K ...I was excited to finally finish mine. So, there it is!
Well, this week has been another awesome week in Niagara Falls. Nan is still well on her way to being baptized in a couple of weeks in SLC. She loves to ask questions. Which is awesome! Because we don't believe in blind faith. We believe in intelligent obedience. Like it says on mormon.org/commandments, commandments are not "arbitrary rules from a detached God" but they are "divine guidance that helps us navigate the confusion of life on earth." And one thing I love about God, our Heavenly Father, is that He LOVES questions. Just like James 1:5 says "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not..." That means that God does not get mad at you for asking questions. And he is willing to give us the answers, if we sincerely ask Him. Our Heavenly Father loves to give us gifts.
The Christmas Spirit is amazing. It is a Spirit of Giving. I'm just going to throw this out there: if there is one gift any of you could give me this year, a gift that would mean more to me than almost anything else, it is this: Have the local missionaries over for a visit. Whether it is just for a chat to say hi to them, get to know them, or let them know "Hey! Somebody I know is on a mission in Toronto Canada!" Or whether you have them over for a snack, or a meal, or to share a Christmas message with you... that would make my Christmas! Of course any letters or yummy treats would, too. But more than anything else, I would love for you to have a nice visit with your local missionaries. Then you could have a little glimpse at what it is that I'll be doing this Christmas season. I promise opportunities will arise in the coming weeks. Say hi to them when you see them! And have them over. We don't bite! :)
I love you all so much. Thank you for your love, support, and your encouragement.
Love,
Elder Simper
Real quick, y'all should check out my profile on Mormon.org: mormon.org/me/8V6K ...I was excited to finally finish mine. So, there it is!
Well, this week has been another awesome week in Niagara Falls. Nan is still well on her way to being baptized in a couple of weeks in SLC. She loves to ask questions. Which is awesome! Because we don't believe in blind faith. We believe in intelligent obedience. Like it says on mormon.org/commandments, commandments are not "arbitrary rules from a detached God" but they are "divine guidance that helps us navigate the confusion of life on earth." And one thing I love about God, our Heavenly Father, is that He LOVES questions. Just like James 1:5 says "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not..." That means that God does not get mad at you for asking questions. And he is willing to give us the answers, if we sincerely ask Him. Our Heavenly Father loves to give us gifts.
The Christmas Spirit is amazing. It is a Spirit of Giving. I'm just going to throw this out there: if there is one gift any of you could give me this year, a gift that would mean more to me than almost anything else, it is this: Have the local missionaries over for a visit. Whether it is just for a chat to say hi to them, get to know them, or let them know "Hey! Somebody I know is on a mission in Toronto Canada!" Or whether you have them over for a snack, or a meal, or to share a Christmas message with you... that would make my Christmas! Of course any letters or yummy treats would, too. But more than anything else, I would love for you to have a nice visit with your local missionaries. Then you could have a little glimpse at what it is that I'll be doing this Christmas season. I promise opportunities will arise in the coming weeks. Say hi to them when you see them! And have them over. We don't bite! :)
I love you all so much. Thank you for your love, support, and your encouragement.
Love,
Elder Simper
Niagara, 11/26/12
Hello Family!
From what I've read from you, it sounds like it was a great Thanksgiving! I'm glad it was. It was a good Thanksgiving for us here too. The people here are extremely nice and feed us like crazy. So, we had a couple of thanksgiving dinners this week that made us feel right at home.
I've talked about this before, but I'll share it again. I've seen how seemingly small choices can lead to huge consequences. There are so many messed up family situations that could have been avoided. One person deep in a drug addiction, or any kind of addiction, can end up destroying his or her family down the road... Now, we don't just stop here. I've seen and heard too many people, both within the Church and outside of it, who just mope about the problems of the world, as if just moping about it is going to solve it. I've been that kind of person before. But I think I've learned... moping doesn't solve anything. How do we fix the problem? I think first and foremost, everyone should know that any messed up situation or "destroyed" family can be reversed or repaired. It won't come easy. It will take work. But the beautiful thing about life, when you apply the Atonement of Jesus Christ, is that circumstances and people can be changed from something awful into something beautiful. Missionaries can tell you all day how we know this works. But the bottom line is that everyone needs to find out for themselves. So, turn back to God and ask Him. He loves questions. And He loves to help His children. He is much more willing to give, than we are to receive.
I wrote down a quote I heard yesterday at church: "Wisdom comes from good judgment. Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from poor judgement." Read that and think about it... its true!
Well, I love you all so much. And I'm glad that it was a happy Thanksgiving. I hope you make it a great week!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
From what I've read from you, it sounds like it was a great Thanksgiving! I'm glad it was. It was a good Thanksgiving for us here too. The people here are extremely nice and feed us like crazy. So, we had a couple of thanksgiving dinners this week that made us feel right at home.
I've talked about this before, but I'll share it again. I've seen how seemingly small choices can lead to huge consequences. There are so many messed up family situations that could have been avoided. One person deep in a drug addiction, or any kind of addiction, can end up destroying his or her family down the road... Now, we don't just stop here. I've seen and heard too many people, both within the Church and outside of it, who just mope about the problems of the world, as if just moping about it is going to solve it. I've been that kind of person before. But I think I've learned... moping doesn't solve anything. How do we fix the problem? I think first and foremost, everyone should know that any messed up situation or "destroyed" family can be reversed or repaired. It won't come easy. It will take work. But the beautiful thing about life, when you apply the Atonement of Jesus Christ, is that circumstances and people can be changed from something awful into something beautiful. Missionaries can tell you all day how we know this works. But the bottom line is that everyone needs to find out for themselves. So, turn back to God and ask Him. He loves questions. And He loves to help His children. He is much more willing to give, than we are to receive.
I wrote down a quote I heard yesterday at church: "Wisdom comes from good judgment. Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from poor judgement." Read that and think about it... its true!
Well, I love you all so much. And I'm glad that it was a happy Thanksgiving. I hope you make it a great week!
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Niagara, 11/19/12
Hello Family!
It has been another great week here in Niagara Falls! Nan, the miracle referral from Temple Square, is getting baptized in SLC on December 15th! She is awesome. She is someone who is truly prepared. She has a broken heart, and a contrite spirit. And she has found out that only Jesus Christ knows how to fully heal a broken heart. The Lord always has open arms, and is constantly calling for us to return to Him. He never turns His back on us. Rather, it is us who turn our backs on Him. The Lord, Jesus Christ, knows us and evaluated us before He paid the price for our sins. Much like we evaluate expensive things in a store before we decide to purchase them. Is it worth it? Jesus Christ evaluated each of us individually, and decided, "You are worth it. I love you, and I don't want anything except to see you- to see all of us- back home in the mansions of our Father!" And he suffered unimaginable pains for us, so we don't have to. Think about that. He died for us, He lives again, and He loves us. I know this is true with everything in me! Daily, I find myself bombarded by attacks from the confusion of the world. But it never changes the fact that I know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is true. It is not a set of man-made rules created to keep us in bondage. Rather, it is the way to live the abundant life! The Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us how to be happy. One of my favorite scriptures from the Book of Mormon is "And it came to pass, that we lived after the manner of happiness."
I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving! Laus deo! Remember where your blessings come from. Remember how merciful God is to all of us. I am grateful for each of you, and for your love and your influence for good in my life and in the lives of all those around you. Remember... life is meant to be enjoyed. Beware of counterfeit happiness! Pleasure is not the same as happiness.
I love you, and I pray for you! I hope you have a great week.
Love,
Elder Simper
It has been another great week here in Niagara Falls! Nan, the miracle referral from Temple Square, is getting baptized in SLC on December 15th! She is awesome. She is someone who is truly prepared. She has a broken heart, and a contrite spirit. And she has found out that only Jesus Christ knows how to fully heal a broken heart. The Lord always has open arms, and is constantly calling for us to return to Him. He never turns His back on us. Rather, it is us who turn our backs on Him. The Lord, Jesus Christ, knows us and evaluated us before He paid the price for our sins. Much like we evaluate expensive things in a store before we decide to purchase them. Is it worth it? Jesus Christ evaluated each of us individually, and decided, "You are worth it. I love you, and I don't want anything except to see you- to see all of us- back home in the mansions of our Father!" And he suffered unimaginable pains for us, so we don't have to. Think about that. He died for us, He lives again, and He loves us. I know this is true with everything in me! Daily, I find myself bombarded by attacks from the confusion of the world. But it never changes the fact that I know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is true. It is not a set of man-made rules created to keep us in bondage. Rather, it is the way to live the abundant life! The Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us how to be happy. One of my favorite scriptures from the Book of Mormon is "And it came to pass, that we lived after the manner of happiness."
I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving! Laus deo! Remember where your blessings come from. Remember how merciful God is to all of us. I am grateful for each of you, and for your love and your influence for good in my life and in the lives of all those around you. Remember... life is meant to be enjoyed. Beware of counterfeit happiness! Pleasure is not the same as happiness.
I love you, and I pray for you! I hope you have a great week.
Love,
Elder Simper
Niagara, 11/12/12
Hello Family!
It has been a very busy week. One of those weeks where it seems like it was just yesterday I was emailing you, yet it seems like forever ago at the same time. And SO much has happened. This area of Niagara is great. All over the people are awesome- the members of the St. Davids ward, our potential investigators, the investigators whom we're teaching... they're all great! There is so much potential here. This past week, we had some sort of service opportunity almost every day. It was very busy. And my companion, Elder Welch, is a great missionary. He is humble, honest, and extremely willing to serve people. He also likes to sing Hymns to the tune of various pop songs. We have a good time! In a nutshell, Niagara is an awesome place and I'm happy to be serving here. Oh, by the way, the ward feeds us like crazy here. I'm definitely not losing weight in this area!
The highlight of this week is a miracle investigator we met, referred to us by a senior missionary couple from Temple Square. Her name is Nan (aka Joanna), she's probably in her 70's, and she is recently widowed. She never went to any church, until shortly before her husband died. And she's been searching ever since. After her husband died, she decided to travel a bit. She made her way to Salt lake city, partially to see MoTab, and partially because the Spirit was directing her steps. She met the senior couple, and they've been holding meetings via Skype ever since! She lives in our area, but we are teaming up with the senior couple from temple square to teach her (via Skype at her house) and prepare her for baptism in December. She'll be baptized in Salt Lake, then she'll be confirmed here in the St.David's ward. The amazing thing about Nan is how fast this all happened. And she is so prepared, and is so willing to search and question things so she can gain her own testimony... and she has gained one! Its all been so fast, since we just met her yesterday, and only heard about her on Saturday! She is awesome, and Elder Welch and I are just happy to see the rest of her journey towards Baptism, and to help her as much as we can. The senior couple in Salt Lake has done an amazing job with everything. And the coordination that took place between them and the ward leaders here was amazing! Nan attended church yesterday, and she was welcomed with open arms. The St. Davids ward is so amazing at that. They're happy to meet and welcome new people, and they do it because they sincerely care! They are the real deal. So... that's been the highlight of the week, and it sure made it an awesome week! I hope you will keep Nan and us in your prayers.
For a moment, I want to zoom out of Niagara and look at the world as a whole-- since I've been on my mission, I've seen a lot of messed up families. I've seen people who have messed up lives. And each time, its been a time for me to look at my life and the choices I can make and say "Its your choice, Brett... its either this... or that." We all know, because we hear about it and we see it, that families are fading away. Too often, adults are making choices out of selfish desires rather than thinking of how it will affect their children. These major life-altering choices begin as small, seemingly harmless ideas. Every day, we choose by our thoughts, words, and actions whether we want to be happy or miserable. And eventually all these small choices can add up to some very huge consequences. I know how hard of a fight it is to constantly be choosing the right, but its a fight we're all fighting whether we want to be or not. We're all lost, we're all fallen. We all need mercy. From God, and from each other. We live in a crazy world. A world that can only be healed by the Gospel of Christ. We need to be united in love and respect. Love casts out fear, light chases away darkness.
I love you all!
-Elder Simper-
It has been a very busy week. One of those weeks where it seems like it was just yesterday I was emailing you, yet it seems like forever ago at the same time. And SO much has happened. This area of Niagara is great. All over the people are awesome- the members of the St. Davids ward, our potential investigators, the investigators whom we're teaching... they're all great! There is so much potential here. This past week, we had some sort of service opportunity almost every day. It was very busy. And my companion, Elder Welch, is a great missionary. He is humble, honest, and extremely willing to serve people. He also likes to sing Hymns to the tune of various pop songs. We have a good time! In a nutshell, Niagara is an awesome place and I'm happy to be serving here. Oh, by the way, the ward feeds us like crazy here. I'm definitely not losing weight in this area!
The highlight of this week is a miracle investigator we met, referred to us by a senior missionary couple from Temple Square. Her name is Nan (aka Joanna), she's probably in her 70's, and she is recently widowed. She never went to any church, until shortly before her husband died. And she's been searching ever since. After her husband died, she decided to travel a bit. She made her way to Salt lake city, partially to see MoTab, and partially because the Spirit was directing her steps. She met the senior couple, and they've been holding meetings via Skype ever since! She lives in our area, but we are teaming up with the senior couple from temple square to teach her (via Skype at her house) and prepare her for baptism in December. She'll be baptized in Salt Lake, then she'll be confirmed here in the St.David's ward. The amazing thing about Nan is how fast this all happened. And she is so prepared, and is so willing to search and question things so she can gain her own testimony... and she has gained one! Its all been so fast, since we just met her yesterday, and only heard about her on Saturday! She is awesome, and Elder Welch and I are just happy to see the rest of her journey towards Baptism, and to help her as much as we can. The senior couple in Salt Lake has done an amazing job with everything. And the coordination that took place between them and the ward leaders here was amazing! Nan attended church yesterday, and she was welcomed with open arms. The St. Davids ward is so amazing at that. They're happy to meet and welcome new people, and they do it because they sincerely care! They are the real deal. So... that's been the highlight of the week, and it sure made it an awesome week! I hope you will keep Nan and us in your prayers.
For a moment, I want to zoom out of Niagara and look at the world as a whole-- since I've been on my mission, I've seen a lot of messed up families. I've seen people who have messed up lives. And each time, its been a time for me to look at my life and the choices I can make and say "Its your choice, Brett... its either this... or that." We all know, because we hear about it and we see it, that families are fading away. Too often, adults are making choices out of selfish desires rather than thinking of how it will affect their children. These major life-altering choices begin as small, seemingly harmless ideas. Every day, we choose by our thoughts, words, and actions whether we want to be happy or miserable. And eventually all these small choices can add up to some very huge consequences. I know how hard of a fight it is to constantly be choosing the right, but its a fight we're all fighting whether we want to be or not. We're all lost, we're all fallen. We all need mercy. From God, and from each other. We live in a crazy world. A world that can only be healed by the Gospel of Christ. We need to be united in love and respect. Love casts out fear, light chases away darkness.
I love you all!
-Elder Simper-
Niagara, 11/5/12
Hello Family!
The next possible transfer date is December 10th... I have absolutely no idea or feeling as to whether I'll be staying here after that or leaving to go somewhere else. But for now, just keep that day in mind for mail and stuff. My address for this area is:
Elder Brett Simper
5257 Drummond Rd. #602
Niagara Falls, ON
L2E 6E8
Its a beautiful day in Niagara Falls, ON. Its 1 degree Celsius, and there's some snow falling outside! But its not sticking, and its nothing too heavy yet. But, I thought you'd like to know. The news about Hurricane Sandy last week sure made transfers really stressful, but by the time we all had to be on the road on Tuesday morning it had gone past us. I hear there is lots of damage on the east coast of the U.S. though. That's gotta be rough. The people here have been keeping them in their prayers, in just about every prayer I've heard since being here. That's one of the things I love most about Faith in God. There's something about Faith that tells us that everything will be okay. That, no matter what the trouble is at the moment, all things will work out for your good. We know that if we are doing good for others, and if we're personally being good, then the promise is true: all things will work out for your good. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said something in his most recent conference talk that I find powerful: "To all within the sound of my voice, the voice of Christ comes ringing down through the halls of time, asking each one of us while there is time, “Do you love me?” And for every one of us, I answer with my honor and my soul, “Yea, Lord, we do love thee.” And having set our “hand to the plough,” we will never look back until this work is finished and love of God and neighbor rules the world." That is the whole purpose of the Gospel. To help people love their neighbor. We can develop love for our neighbor as come to realize our true relationship with God- that He is our Father, He loves us, and every other human is our brother or sister. It is hard, but it is not impossible.
I love you all! Stay positive, and choose to be happy. Everything in life really is what we choose to make it.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
The next possible transfer date is December 10th... I have absolutely no idea or feeling as to whether I'll be staying here after that or leaving to go somewhere else. But for now, just keep that day in mind for mail and stuff. My address for this area is:
Elder Brett Simper
5257 Drummond Rd. #602
Niagara Falls, ON
L2E 6E8
Its a beautiful day in Niagara Falls, ON. Its 1 degree Celsius, and there's some snow falling outside! But its not sticking, and its nothing too heavy yet. But, I thought you'd like to know. The news about Hurricane Sandy last week sure made transfers really stressful, but by the time we all had to be on the road on Tuesday morning it had gone past us. I hear there is lots of damage on the east coast of the U.S. though. That's gotta be rough. The people here have been keeping them in their prayers, in just about every prayer I've heard since being here. That's one of the things I love most about Faith in God. There's something about Faith that tells us that everything will be okay. That, no matter what the trouble is at the moment, all things will work out for your good. We know that if we are doing good for others, and if we're personally being good, then the promise is true: all things will work out for your good. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said something in his most recent conference talk that I find powerful: "To all within the sound of my voice, the voice of Christ comes ringing down through the halls of time, asking each one of us while there is time, “Do you love me?” And for every one of us, I answer with my honor and my soul, “Yea, Lord, we do love thee.” And having set our “hand to the plough,” we will never look back until this work is finished and love of God and neighbor rules the world." That is the whole purpose of the Gospel. To help people love their neighbor. We can develop love for our neighbor as come to realize our true relationship with God- that He is our Father, He loves us, and every other human is our brother or sister. It is hard, but it is not impossible.
I love you all! Stay positive, and choose to be happy. Everything in life really is what we choose to make it.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
St. Davids/Niagara, 10/29/12
Hello Family!
Technically I am still in Brantford at the moment, until tomorrow morning... but my next assigned area is St. Davids/Niagara! With this being my first transfer in the mission field in which I actually have to move, I had tons of emotions last night after receiving the news. Tons of excitement, mixed with a little shock and a little bittersweetness. It was a similar feeling to the way I felt when I received my mission call back in February. In the past several weeks, I've been torn between wanting to leave Brantford and wanting to stay. I've been switching back and forth. But I told myself that regardless of the outcome, I'd be happy with it and trust that God knows what He is doing. I can either look at it in a negative way, thinking "Darn, I'm leaving this awesome place! Did I fail?" or I can look at the positive: "I've learned so much here, I've had the wonderful privelage to serve in a very personally special place... and now, I have the chance to start completely fresh in a totally new area, with a new companion... by Niagara Falls!" By looking at the positive side, and by knowing that this is what Heavenly Father has planned, I feel complete peace. It may seem like a small thing to be transferred, because it is in the big picture of life... but that lesson can be applied to everyone, in every situation. Do your best. Trust God, move forward, and be happy. Our Father in Heaven knows us perfectly.
I had a couple really good experiences this week. One that really stood out, was when we went on exchanges with our Zone Leaders. I got to go with Elder Bean, from Rexburg, Idaho. We just had a half-day exchange, but he taught me a lot, and I felt re-assured of a few things. One thing I was re-assured of, and something that everyone can hopefully learn from- is that its okay to be yourself. In fact, we are meant to be ourself. We are made this way for a reason! However, as in almost anything, "being yourself" can be turned into a vice. Because we have two variations of "ourself" to choose from.
We can choose to indulge the natrual man within all of us- which is carnal, loves pleasure more than God, who lives by the phrase "YOLO" a.k.a. "You only live once." Which is false, because the course of our life is one eternal round, and this little snippet of our eternal lifespan is the time to prepare to meet God... Not to waste it away by indulging in selfish pleasures, which take many different forms.
The other option, and the best option, is to be our best self. This means we are striving to put off the natural man- which means we know we have weaknesses, but we're trying to overcome them and become more selfless... rather than selfish. To be our best self means that we put our family first, that we make relationships a higher priority than materialism. And to be our best self means that we strive to learn more about our purpose here, and we do our best to fulfill our purpose! "Men are that they might have joy." We are meant to be happy! True, lasting happiness comes from being our best self, not by being indulgently selfish.
Sometimes we may feel like people are trying to mold us into being something different than who we are. We may feel that way, maybe because we had been selfishly indulgent- and that transition from selfishness to selflessness is exremely difficult. Or maybe we feel that way because we are misunderstanding who ourself really is. The natrual man is false, it is an illusion. It seems to lead to happiness, but it leads to misery. Our true self, our best self, as a child of God with infinite potential to do good, is portrayed by the world as a stuck-up buzz kill. But the truth is... it is the way to happiness. We all have to make this choice. Are we going to choose to be happy? Or are we going to choose to be miserable? We make this choice daily, and constantly- by what we choose to think, say, and do. It is difficult to always choose to be happy. In fact, many times we fail miserably when it comes to being and doing good consistently. But we must try, and trust that our Heavenly Father will help us along the way.
Anyways, after this series of rants... I have been re-assured that as long as I am trying my best to be my best self, there is nothing wrong with being myself. I don't need to mold myself into a cookie-cutter robot missionary. Instead, I need to apply the principles that teach me how to be a missionaryto myself. I don't need to change how I talk to people or how I smile,or I don't need to have a rote, memorized approach at a doorstep... I need to apply principles, and just be myself! And stop worrying about it.
Well, I sure hope that all of you have a great week! I love you lots, and I'll keep you in my prayers. I'll talk to you next week... from St. Davids! (I'm not sure when email time will be on Monday... fyi)
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Technically I am still in Brantford at the moment, until tomorrow morning... but my next assigned area is St. Davids/Niagara! With this being my first transfer in the mission field in which I actually have to move, I had tons of emotions last night after receiving the news. Tons of excitement, mixed with a little shock and a little bittersweetness. It was a similar feeling to the way I felt when I received my mission call back in February. In the past several weeks, I've been torn between wanting to leave Brantford and wanting to stay. I've been switching back and forth. But I told myself that regardless of the outcome, I'd be happy with it and trust that God knows what He is doing. I can either look at it in a negative way, thinking "Darn, I'm leaving this awesome place! Did I fail?" or I can look at the positive: "I've learned so much here, I've had the wonderful privelage to serve in a very personally special place... and now, I have the chance to start completely fresh in a totally new area, with a new companion... by Niagara Falls!" By looking at the positive side, and by knowing that this is what Heavenly Father has planned, I feel complete peace. It may seem like a small thing to be transferred, because it is in the big picture of life... but that lesson can be applied to everyone, in every situation. Do your best. Trust God, move forward, and be happy. Our Father in Heaven knows us perfectly.
I had a couple really good experiences this week. One that really stood out, was when we went on exchanges with our Zone Leaders. I got to go with Elder Bean, from Rexburg, Idaho. We just had a half-day exchange, but he taught me a lot, and I felt re-assured of a few things. One thing I was re-assured of, and something that everyone can hopefully learn from- is that its okay to be yourself. In fact, we are meant to be ourself. We are made this way for a reason! However, as in almost anything, "being yourself" can be turned into a vice. Because we have two variations of "ourself" to choose from.
We can choose to indulge the natrual man within all of us- which is carnal, loves pleasure more than God, who lives by the phrase "YOLO" a.k.a. "You only live once." Which is false, because the course of our life is one eternal round, and this little snippet of our eternal lifespan is the time to prepare to meet God... Not to waste it away by indulging in selfish pleasures, which take many different forms.
The other option, and the best option, is to be our best self. This means we are striving to put off the natural man- which means we know we have weaknesses, but we're trying to overcome them and become more selfless... rather than selfish. To be our best self means that we put our family first, that we make relationships a higher priority than materialism. And to be our best self means that we strive to learn more about our purpose here, and we do our best to fulfill our purpose! "Men are that they might have joy." We are meant to be happy! True, lasting happiness comes from being our best self, not by being indulgently selfish.
Sometimes we may feel like people are trying to mold us into being something different than who we are. We may feel that way, maybe because we had been selfishly indulgent- and that transition from selfishness to selflessness is exremely difficult. Or maybe we feel that way because we are misunderstanding who ourself really is. The natrual man is false, it is an illusion. It seems to lead to happiness, but it leads to misery. Our true self, our best self, as a child of God with infinite potential to do good, is portrayed by the world as a stuck-up buzz kill. But the truth is... it is the way to happiness. We all have to make this choice. Are we going to choose to be happy? Or are we going to choose to be miserable? We make this choice daily, and constantly- by what we choose to think, say, and do. It is difficult to always choose to be happy. In fact, many times we fail miserably when it comes to being and doing good consistently. But we must try, and trust that our Heavenly Father will help us along the way.
Anyways, after this series of rants... I have been re-assured that as long as I am trying my best to be my best self, there is nothing wrong with being myself. I don't need to mold myself into a cookie-cutter robot missionary. Instead, I need to apply the principles that teach me how to be a missionaryto myself. I don't need to change how I talk to people or how I smile,or I don't need to have a rote, memorized approach at a doorstep... I need to apply principles, and just be myself! And stop worrying about it.
Well, I sure hope that all of you have a great week! I love you lots, and I'll keep you in my prayers. I'll talk to you next week... from St. Davids! (I'm not sure when email time will be on Monday... fyi)
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Brantford, 10/22/12
Hello Family!
I hope everyone had a good week, and I hope my movie-referencing email last week wasn't too weird! I attached a picture of me with Kira, who was baptized here in Brantford about 3 months before I arrived here. He was back home in China from the time I arrived here until a few weeks ago. He's a really good guy. This picture was taken last Monday, when we went out to dinner with him as part of our Preparation Day. He just got that brand new yellow Camaro last week, and he's really proud and excited about it- so I got my picture taken with him in front of it! Just to remind all of you, this is possibly my last week in Brantford. You'll know for sure next week! There's also a good chance I'll read and write emails earlier in the day next week, around 10 a.m. (eastern).
I am anxiously awaiting the snow to arrive! It seems like it won't be snowing for a little while, but everyone says it could realistically start anytime now. But maybe they're just trying to scare me. I'm still enjoying all of the autumn leaves- we got to rake some last Monday, and it was really fun! I've never liked raking leaves... but for some reason, I liked these ones. It would've been fun to jump in a pile of them... but not in missionary clothes. This past week we spent a lot of time preparing for a stake-wide Youth Mini-Mission that took place on Saturday the 20th. We had to plan the day for 5 other companionships to go out and visit people, proselyte, and do other missionary things. I believe all the youth in Brantford had a really good experience going out and serving in their own city. We had a 16 year old with us for the day, and it seems like he had a good experience. It was a lot of work getting ready for it, but the youth and their leaders who were involved all had a good experience, and that's all that matters!
This morning I took some time to study about patience. President Uchtdorf said "Often the deep valleys of our present will be understood only by looking back on them from the mountains of our future experience. Often we can't see the Lord's hand in our lives until long after trials have passed. Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential building blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way to future opportunity, understanding, and happiness..." (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "Continue in Patience" April 2010). Preach My Gospel says "Patience is the capacity to endure delay, trouble, opposition, or suffering without becoming angry, frustrated, or anxious... You must be patient with all people, yourself included, as you work to overcome faults and weaknesses." (PMG, pg. 120)
Its easy to wonder why things aren't happening they way you would like them to. We wonder what it is that is stopping us from having succes, or from feeling happy, or from overcoming weaknesses. Warning: once you go down this road of thought, it becomes easy to believe that you're being punished, that you aren't worth very much, or that maybe you should just stop trying. But, as one of my favorite sayings go: "Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change." Stay positive, trust in God, do your very best, and never, ever give up. This advice continues to help me every day of my life. Hopefully you can find worth in it as well!
Thank you for your support and prayers. They're needed for all of us! Jesus tells us to "Pray always..." You are in my prayers. I love you very much.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
I hope everyone had a good week, and I hope my movie-referencing email last week wasn't too weird! I attached a picture of me with Kira, who was baptized here in Brantford about 3 months before I arrived here. He was back home in China from the time I arrived here until a few weeks ago. He's a really good guy. This picture was taken last Monday, when we went out to dinner with him as part of our Preparation Day. He just got that brand new yellow Camaro last week, and he's really proud and excited about it- so I got my picture taken with him in front of it! Just to remind all of you, this is possibly my last week in Brantford. You'll know for sure next week! There's also a good chance I'll read and write emails earlier in the day next week, around 10 a.m. (eastern).
I am anxiously awaiting the snow to arrive! It seems like it won't be snowing for a little while, but everyone says it could realistically start anytime now. But maybe they're just trying to scare me. I'm still enjoying all of the autumn leaves- we got to rake some last Monday, and it was really fun! I've never liked raking leaves... but for some reason, I liked these ones. It would've been fun to jump in a pile of them... but not in missionary clothes. This past week we spent a lot of time preparing for a stake-wide Youth Mini-Mission that took place on Saturday the 20th. We had to plan the day for 5 other companionships to go out and visit people, proselyte, and do other missionary things. I believe all the youth in Brantford had a really good experience going out and serving in their own city. We had a 16 year old with us for the day, and it seems like he had a good experience. It was a lot of work getting ready for it, but the youth and their leaders who were involved all had a good experience, and that's all that matters!
This morning I took some time to study about patience. President Uchtdorf said "Often the deep valleys of our present will be understood only by looking back on them from the mountains of our future experience. Often we can't see the Lord's hand in our lives until long after trials have passed. Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential building blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way to future opportunity, understanding, and happiness..." (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "Continue in Patience" April 2010). Preach My Gospel says "Patience is the capacity to endure delay, trouble, opposition, or suffering without becoming angry, frustrated, or anxious... You must be patient with all people, yourself included, as you work to overcome faults and weaknesses." (PMG, pg. 120)
Its easy to wonder why things aren't happening they way you would like them to. We wonder what it is that is stopping us from having succes, or from feeling happy, or from overcoming weaknesses. Warning: once you go down this road of thought, it becomes easy to believe that you're being punished, that you aren't worth very much, or that maybe you should just stop trying. But, as one of my favorite sayings go: "Change the way you look at things, and the things you look at change." Stay positive, trust in God, do your very best, and never, ever give up. This advice continues to help me every day of my life. Hopefully you can find worth in it as well!
Thank you for your support and prayers. They're needed for all of us! Jesus tells us to "Pray always..." You are in my prayers. I love you very much.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Brantford, 10/15/12
Hello Family!
I'm going to use a movie reference for my email today. I know some may think its weird, because I'm a missionary and usually missionaries don't use movie references. But today I am!
As many of you know, one of my favorite movies is "Inception." Much of the movie deals with the idea of different realities. Or, at least thats what I'll call it. If you don't know, the concept of inception (in a nutshell) is living life through dreams. There are a couple of points from the movie that are important for my purposes today: 1) To end the dream by waking up, you usually have to die in the dream, or be jolted somehow in real life. And 2) Many people involved with inception have a hard time distinguishing the difference between the real world and dreaming. I won't have a chance to go into those details in my email, but they are there as hints for you to ponder on. Come to your own conclusion.
In my own life, I have lived in different realities. One "reality" appeared to be exciting, and adventurous! And easy! I realized later that it was a dream world. Actually, more like a nightmare. Because in reality, it is enslavement. It is dark. And ever so cold. Part of waking up from this nightmare was learning to see things as they really are. The real world, REALITY. And more important than merely waking up, I needed to learn to live in this real world reality always, not bounce back and forth between one "reality" to the real reality. Now, some of you may be asking: What in the world is Brett talking about? Well, stay with me and do some movie-watching studying and pondering, and hopefully you'll see!
For my purposes in connecting dots, I'm going to separate people into general groups: believers (people who want to follow God), and the world (people who mock the believers). The world is incredibly deceptive, and is so skillful at making the believers look like a bunch of morons who are blindly following a fairytale. The world will surely tell you, "Well, look at those poor souls (the believers). They are being so deceived. You know that religion is the reason for many wars in the world. And look how they belittle anyone who doesn't conform to their idea of perfection. Its all a lie! Don't buy into it... they're trying to enslave you. You are an adult, you can act like an adult! Say what you want, think what you want, do what you want, be what you want! Who are they to tell you what to do anyways?" The world is under the control of the devil. Oh, here's another lie they'll tell you: "What devil?! There is no devil, and there is no hell." I know this all may seem like a jumbled mess. "Inception," life, dreams, realities, the devil, the Gospel? What the heck?! The message I want to share with you, whoever may need it, is to "awake from a deep sleep, yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe..." (2nd Nephi chapter 1). "There is only one way to happiness and fulfillment. He (Jesus Christ) is the Way. Every other way, any other way, whatever other way, is foolishness..." ("The Way" by Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge).
If you feel gloomy, find the courage to take your first step into (or back into) the light of the Gospel. Because the Gospel is real life. The Gospel of Jesus Christ shows us things as they really are. It shows us the path to happiness. Every other option is a counterfeit path. It may seem like you will find happiness and fulfillment on one of these counterfeit paths... but you will not. I don't know this because I've been brainwashed by some crazy church people. I know this because I've lived both ways. And I know which way is real, and which way is a counterfeit. Its up to you to choose who you will follow. That's the test we're all enrolled in. We all chose to follow Jesus Christ before we were born. Will we remember who we really are?
Whatever your struggle is, please remember that God- our Heavenly Father- does love all of us. Jesus Christ, our older brother, does love all of us. Their commandments are for our benefit and happiness. They are not made up by man, but they are based on unchanging eternal, natural laws. None of us have gone too far away from the light of the Gospel. Don't ever give up! Just wake up. I love each of you very much. Make it a good week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
I'm going to use a movie reference for my email today. I know some may think its weird, because I'm a missionary and usually missionaries don't use movie references. But today I am!
As many of you know, one of my favorite movies is "Inception." Much of the movie deals with the idea of different realities. Or, at least thats what I'll call it. If you don't know, the concept of inception (in a nutshell) is living life through dreams. There are a couple of points from the movie that are important for my purposes today: 1) To end the dream by waking up, you usually have to die in the dream, or be jolted somehow in real life. And 2) Many people involved with inception have a hard time distinguishing the difference between the real world and dreaming. I won't have a chance to go into those details in my email, but they are there as hints for you to ponder on. Come to your own conclusion.
In my own life, I have lived in different realities. One "reality" appeared to be exciting, and adventurous! And easy! I realized later that it was a dream world. Actually, more like a nightmare. Because in reality, it is enslavement. It is dark. And ever so cold. Part of waking up from this nightmare was learning to see things as they really are. The real world, REALITY. And more important than merely waking up, I needed to learn to live in this real world reality always, not bounce back and forth between one "reality" to the real reality. Now, some of you may be asking: What in the world is Brett talking about? Well, stay with me and do some movie-watching studying and pondering, and hopefully you'll see!
For my purposes in connecting dots, I'm going to separate people into general groups: believers (people who want to follow God), and the world (people who mock the believers). The world is incredibly deceptive, and is so skillful at making the believers look like a bunch of morons who are blindly following a fairytale. The world will surely tell you, "Well, look at those poor souls (the believers). They are being so deceived. You know that religion is the reason for many wars in the world. And look how they belittle anyone who doesn't conform to their idea of perfection. Its all a lie! Don't buy into it... they're trying to enslave you. You are an adult, you can act like an adult! Say what you want, think what you want, do what you want, be what you want! Who are they to tell you what to do anyways?" The world is under the control of the devil. Oh, here's another lie they'll tell you: "What devil?! There is no devil, and there is no hell." I know this all may seem like a jumbled mess. "Inception," life, dreams, realities, the devil, the Gospel? What the heck?! The message I want to share with you, whoever may need it, is to "awake from a deep sleep, yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe..." (2nd Nephi chapter 1). "There is only one way to happiness and fulfillment. He (Jesus Christ) is the Way. Every other way, any other way, whatever other way, is foolishness..." ("The Way" by Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge).
If you feel gloomy, find the courage to take your first step into (or back into) the light of the Gospel. Because the Gospel is real life. The Gospel of Jesus Christ shows us things as they really are. It shows us the path to happiness. Every other option is a counterfeit path. It may seem like you will find happiness and fulfillment on one of these counterfeit paths... but you will not. I don't know this because I've been brainwashed by some crazy church people. I know this because I've lived both ways. And I know which way is real, and which way is a counterfeit. Its up to you to choose who you will follow. That's the test we're all enrolled in. We all chose to follow Jesus Christ before we were born. Will we remember who we really are?
Whatever your struggle is, please remember that God- our Heavenly Father- does love all of us. Jesus Christ, our older brother, does love all of us. Their commandments are for our benefit and happiness. They are not made up by man, but they are based on unchanging eternal, natural laws. None of us have gone too far away from the light of the Gospel. Don't ever give up! Just wake up. I love each of you very much. Make it a good week.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Brantford, 10/9/12
Hello Family!
I hope you had a great Canadian Thanksgiving! It was a good Thanksgiving for us. Its a little weird for me to celebrate it so early. But it has its pro's and con's- the main con I feel like it has is just that it seems way too early. And its weird that its before Halloween. I like the "Trilogy of Holidays" (as GB likes to call it) of Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Years, being in that order. But, I was excited to find out that its so early, because that means you can play Christmas music right after Halloween. Although, no one really does that (so I've heard). Good thing someone in the ward here burned a Christmas CD for us! Because of that, I started playing Christmas music in our car already! I'm not sure if Elder Pitre is okay with it... but he hesitantly agreed to listen to it anyways :)
It was a wonderful Conference weekend. I am so excited about the age changes. The amount of missionaries is going to skyrocket because of that! I couldn't believe President Monson was making that announcement. As soon as he started saying those words about how successful 18 year old missionaries have been, and "after giving it some consideration" (or whatever he said)- Elder Pitre and I looked at each other with total shock. But it was an awesome announcement, and definitely historical, and a sign that the Lord is "hastening His work." I think it is especially awesome that Sisters can serve when they are 19 years old. That is going to open a ton of doors.
With it being Thanksgiving time, I've been continuing on my theme of gratitude (from my email last week). But along with gratitude, I've been thinking of service. As I was watching conference, ideas and thoughts about these two principles stood out to me quite a bit. The Prophet spoke of prayers being answered, and about "seeing others not as they currently are, but what they can become." There were a few strong themes I pulled out from Conference: 1) Make your home a safe haven NOW! Because the world is NOT a healthy enviornment. "Build Zion in the midst of Babylon." 2) Serve others. Love others. NOW is the time to pull together and work in unity! and 3) Focus on the positive and uplifting. "Count your many blessings."
Every Friday afternoon at 2 PM, Elder Pitre and I visit a long-term care facility called Brierwood Gardens. At that time every Friday, about 25 people gather together, and about 10 will play bowling on a shuffleboard table. These men and women are so sweet. Many of them who don't participate usually just sleep in their wheelchairs. Their poor health and lifelessness is tragic to see. The people who do play are very positive and energetic, and happy despite their circumstances of being extremely elderly, lonely, and much of the time- very confused. I'm going to write about service and how great it is in just a minute, but I want to draw this point- sure, people could say "Oh thats great, the Elders go over and help these elderly people bowl and have fun for about an hour every Friday! That is nice of them!" But that's not the point of service, nor is it the point of any "work" we do in the Church. One quote sums up the principle pretty well: "The most miserable people I know are those who are obsessed with themselves. The happiest people I know are those who lose themselves in the service of others." (Gordon B. Hinckley) If you serve others sincerely, you will be happy. You will learn more from them, than they learn from you. You will gain more from the visit with them, than they will from you. Focus on sincerely loving and helping others, and you will find more balance to your hectic life. I'm not sure how it all works or why it works, but its a promise and a principle taught by Prophets of God, and I know it works. Serve others. Love others. Respect everyone despite the differences.
Thank you for your prayers, support, and love. Like always, all of you are in my prayers. I love you.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
I hope you had a great Canadian Thanksgiving! It was a good Thanksgiving for us. Its a little weird for me to celebrate it so early. But it has its pro's and con's- the main con I feel like it has is just that it seems way too early. And its weird that its before Halloween. I like the "Trilogy of Holidays" (as GB likes to call it) of Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Years, being in that order. But, I was excited to find out that its so early, because that means you can play Christmas music right after Halloween. Although, no one really does that (so I've heard). Good thing someone in the ward here burned a Christmas CD for us! Because of that, I started playing Christmas music in our car already! I'm not sure if Elder Pitre is okay with it... but he hesitantly agreed to listen to it anyways :)
It was a wonderful Conference weekend. I am so excited about the age changes. The amount of missionaries is going to skyrocket because of that! I couldn't believe President Monson was making that announcement. As soon as he started saying those words about how successful 18 year old missionaries have been, and "after giving it some consideration" (or whatever he said)- Elder Pitre and I looked at each other with total shock. But it was an awesome announcement, and definitely historical, and a sign that the Lord is "hastening His work." I think it is especially awesome that Sisters can serve when they are 19 years old. That is going to open a ton of doors.
With it being Thanksgiving time, I've been continuing on my theme of gratitude (from my email last week). But along with gratitude, I've been thinking of service. As I was watching conference, ideas and thoughts about these two principles stood out to me quite a bit. The Prophet spoke of prayers being answered, and about "seeing others not as they currently are, but what they can become." There were a few strong themes I pulled out from Conference: 1) Make your home a safe haven NOW! Because the world is NOT a healthy enviornment. "Build Zion in the midst of Babylon." 2) Serve others. Love others. NOW is the time to pull together and work in unity! and 3) Focus on the positive and uplifting. "Count your many blessings."
Every Friday afternoon at 2 PM, Elder Pitre and I visit a long-term care facility called Brierwood Gardens. At that time every Friday, about 25 people gather together, and about 10 will play bowling on a shuffleboard table. These men and women are so sweet. Many of them who don't participate usually just sleep in their wheelchairs. Their poor health and lifelessness is tragic to see. The people who do play are very positive and energetic, and happy despite their circumstances of being extremely elderly, lonely, and much of the time- very confused. I'm going to write about service and how great it is in just a minute, but I want to draw this point- sure, people could say "Oh thats great, the Elders go over and help these elderly people bowl and have fun for about an hour every Friday! That is nice of them!" But that's not the point of service, nor is it the point of any "work" we do in the Church. One quote sums up the principle pretty well: "The most miserable people I know are those who are obsessed with themselves. The happiest people I know are those who lose themselves in the service of others." (Gordon B. Hinckley) If you serve others sincerely, you will be happy. You will learn more from them, than they learn from you. You will gain more from the visit with them, than they will from you. Focus on sincerely loving and helping others, and you will find more balance to your hectic life. I'm not sure how it all works or why it works, but its a promise and a principle taught by Prophets of God, and I know it works. Serve others. Love others. Respect everyone despite the differences.
Thank you for your prayers, support, and love. Like always, all of you are in my prayers. I love you.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Brantford, 10/1/12
Hello Family!
I'm glad I even got an open computer today! We got to the library and they messed up my reservation, but luckily there was one open after just a few extra minuets of waiting. So, its all good. No complaints. I have been absolutely full of gratitude this past week. For my family, my friends, for all that I've learned from each of you. For being in the great Canada Toronto Mission at this time. For being able to serve in Brantford, where I have so many roots. All my life I had been looking to this time of my life. "Where will I go? Will I have to eat weird food? Will I miss my family too much? What is it going to be like wearing that name tag?" I asked myself so many questions and wondered what this experience would be like. But never in a million years did I guess that I would end up in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. A place I knew was important because its where my Mom was born. But never did I expect to serve a mission here. But it has been a very sweet surprise, and it has been so fulfilling to be here.
Random, non-spiritual highlights from this past week: the leaves are changing colors to bright yellows and reds, I ate a real poutine (fries covered with gravy, cheese, and maple-bacon) and not one from Wendy's, and its been starting to get chilly enough to wear thermals. At least, chilly enough for a guy from San Diego. But don't worry, Mom, the thermals are warm and the winter accessories will be good :)
Joseph Smith once said "Brethren [and Sisters], shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward." (D&C 128:22) I've always felt that to be a powerful thought. Be anxiously engaged in a good cause, of your own choice, and always move forward-- don't ever give up! I really, really like something that Mick sent me today in an email: "I am sure you feel small, like a pebble mixed with large boulders, but you are one strategically placed by the Lord. And once in motion will create a landslide." Many times I do feel small, and I'm constantly hoping the Lord can use me for whatever His purposes are. For the past 8 weeks, Elder Pitre and I have been working really hard to repair relationships with the Bishop, ward leaders, and with families & individuals- one at a time. We cleaned up the area book and created a system so people will not fall through the cracks. And we've been trying to work hard to find people. The past couple weeks, however, we have been needing to adjust our finding efforts to be more effective. This week, we are going to be doing a TON of tracting (knocking on doors). Its going to be awesome!! Because that is the most effective way for us in Brantford to find people to teach. Its been an interesting ride since becoming a trainer. I've had a ton of learning to do, but I think its been a great experience for Elder Pitre and for myself.
Well, I am grateful for all of you and for your goodness. One of the motivations for me to be a missionary was to try to inspire people to do good, and be good. If people will be good, then their community will be good. And so will there city, state, and country. We will never be living in a perfect world in this mortal state, but we can be good ourselves and practice for what is in store for us in the future.
Will you all PLEASE watch General Conference this weekend? "Come listen to a Prophet's voice, and hear the word of God." I love you all so very much! you are in my prayers... always.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
I'm glad I even got an open computer today! We got to the library and they messed up my reservation, but luckily there was one open after just a few extra minuets of waiting. So, its all good. No complaints. I have been absolutely full of gratitude this past week. For my family, my friends, for all that I've learned from each of you. For being in the great Canada Toronto Mission at this time. For being able to serve in Brantford, where I have so many roots. All my life I had been looking to this time of my life. "Where will I go? Will I have to eat weird food? Will I miss my family too much? What is it going to be like wearing that name tag?" I asked myself so many questions and wondered what this experience would be like. But never in a million years did I guess that I would end up in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. A place I knew was important because its where my Mom was born. But never did I expect to serve a mission here. But it has been a very sweet surprise, and it has been so fulfilling to be here.
Random, non-spiritual highlights from this past week: the leaves are changing colors to bright yellows and reds, I ate a real poutine (fries covered with gravy, cheese, and maple-bacon) and not one from Wendy's, and its been starting to get chilly enough to wear thermals. At least, chilly enough for a guy from San Diego. But don't worry, Mom, the thermals are warm and the winter accessories will be good :)
Joseph Smith once said "Brethren [and Sisters], shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward." (D&C 128:22) I've always felt that to be a powerful thought. Be anxiously engaged in a good cause, of your own choice, and always move forward-- don't ever give up! I really, really like something that Mick sent me today in an email: "I am sure you feel small, like a pebble mixed with large boulders, but you are one strategically placed by the Lord. And once in motion will create a landslide." Many times I do feel small, and I'm constantly hoping the Lord can use me for whatever His purposes are. For the past 8 weeks, Elder Pitre and I have been working really hard to repair relationships with the Bishop, ward leaders, and with families & individuals- one at a time. We cleaned up the area book and created a system so people will not fall through the cracks. And we've been trying to work hard to find people. The past couple weeks, however, we have been needing to adjust our finding efforts to be more effective. This week, we are going to be doing a TON of tracting (knocking on doors). Its going to be awesome!! Because that is the most effective way for us in Brantford to find people to teach. Its been an interesting ride since becoming a trainer. I've had a ton of learning to do, but I think its been a great experience for Elder Pitre and for myself.
Well, I am grateful for all of you and for your goodness. One of the motivations for me to be a missionary was to try to inspire people to do good, and be good. If people will be good, then their community will be good. And so will there city, state, and country. We will never be living in a perfect world in this mortal state, but we can be good ourselves and practice for what is in store for us in the future.
Will you all PLEASE watch General Conference this weekend? "Come listen to a Prophet's voice, and hear the word of God." I love you all so very much! you are in my prayers... always.
Love,
Elder Brett Simper
Brantford, 9/24/12
Hello Family!
Emails are kind of messed up today... I'm using a different set of computers at the library that don't let me copy and paste, so I don't feel like typing in all of your email addresses. So, hopefully you guys can forward them to whoever would like them. And I will probably only type this one, and not personal ones today... but we will see. I'm on a 20 minute timer and we have to see if people are waiting... please forgive me if I don't! You are not loved less :)
Well... I hope all is well with all of you. I've been thinking a lot lately about doubts that people have. People think they don't need God, and people dismiss the idea of God altogether. They even seem to think "Who is God to tell me what to do?" Well, the truth is, God has always been there. And He is our Father in Heaven, and we accepted His plan to come to Earth, be tried and tested, and learn and grow to become more like Him. YOU accepted that plan. Even after hearing this, sometimes we still wonder why. Why is it like this? Why are we here? What is the point of all of this anyways? I've come to the conclusion, and I have a testimony from the Holy Ghost, that the framework for this Earthly existence and the plan to achieve happiness and fulfillment, is found in this Gospel. The full restored Gospel of Jesus Christ makes life make sense. It is either this Gospel and this plan, or nothing. I know that sounds a little weird to say. But hopefully you can think about that a little bit and come to your own conclusion.
One of my favorite conference talks is by Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge, from October 2008, called "The Way." Here are some of my favorite snippets that help strengthen my faith:
"Only God can bless us. Only He can sustain us. Only He can cause our hearts to beat and give us breath."
"The Lord's way is not hard. Life is hard, not the gospel. 'There is an opposition in all things,' every where, for everyone. Life is hard for all of us, but life is also simple. We have only two choices. We can either follow the Lord and be endowed with His power and have peace, light, strength, knowledge, confidence, love, and joy, or we can go some other way, any other way, whatever other way, and go it alone- without His support, without His power, without guidance, in darkness, turmoil, doubt, grief, and despair. And I ask, which way is easier?"
"Life is hard, but life is simple. Get on the path, and never ever give up. You never give up. You just keep on going. You don't quit, and you will make it."
"There is only one way to happiness and fulfillment. Jesus Christ is the Way. Every other way, any other way, whatever other way is foolishness."
Again... it is my firm testimony that this Gospel makes life make sense. To come here for a very short period of time when compared to our eternal lifespan, is like going to school for a little while. Its our most important test. We are to walk by faith, not by sight. We can waste it away, or we can use it as the time "to prepare to meet God" and prepare to live in His presence, with our families... for eternity.
I would add one thing... I know life is hard. It seems impossible at times to overcome our weaknesses, our past mistakes, or feelings of doubt or grief- whatever your struggle is. You need to change the idea of "I can't do that. I can't become strong, clean, and pure." The TRUTH is... You CAN! You must change those thoughts to "Yes, I can do these things! I can become strong, clean, and pure. I can learn and know for myself if the Gospel is true! Because, through the power of Jesus Christ, I CAN DO ALL THINGS." We are all completely dependent on our Savior. For our life, happiness, and salvation. "Get on the path, and never ever give up."
I love you all so much. I am truly grateful for each of you. You are constantly in my prayers.
I hope you will make it a great week!
Laus Deo.
-Elder Brett Simper-
Emails are kind of messed up today... I'm using a different set of computers at the library that don't let me copy and paste, so I don't feel like typing in all of your email addresses. So, hopefully you guys can forward them to whoever would like them. And I will probably only type this one, and not personal ones today... but we will see. I'm on a 20 minute timer and we have to see if people are waiting... please forgive me if I don't! You are not loved less :)
Well... I hope all is well with all of you. I've been thinking a lot lately about doubts that people have. People think they don't need God, and people dismiss the idea of God altogether. They even seem to think "Who is God to tell me what to do?" Well, the truth is, God has always been there. And He is our Father in Heaven, and we accepted His plan to come to Earth, be tried and tested, and learn and grow to become more like Him. YOU accepted that plan. Even after hearing this, sometimes we still wonder why. Why is it like this? Why are we here? What is the point of all of this anyways? I've come to the conclusion, and I have a testimony from the Holy Ghost, that the framework for this Earthly existence and the plan to achieve happiness and fulfillment, is found in this Gospel. The full restored Gospel of Jesus Christ makes life make sense. It is either this Gospel and this plan, or nothing. I know that sounds a little weird to say. But hopefully you can think about that a little bit and come to your own conclusion.
One of my favorite conference talks is by Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge, from October 2008, called "The Way." Here are some of my favorite snippets that help strengthen my faith:
"Only God can bless us. Only He can sustain us. Only He can cause our hearts to beat and give us breath."
"The Lord's way is not hard. Life is hard, not the gospel. 'There is an opposition in all things,' every where, for everyone. Life is hard for all of us, but life is also simple. We have only two choices. We can either follow the Lord and be endowed with His power and have peace, light, strength, knowledge, confidence, love, and joy, or we can go some other way, any other way, whatever other way, and go it alone- without His support, without His power, without guidance, in darkness, turmoil, doubt, grief, and despair. And I ask, which way is easier?"
"Life is hard, but life is simple. Get on the path, and never ever give up. You never give up. You just keep on going. You don't quit, and you will make it."
"There is only one way to happiness and fulfillment. Jesus Christ is the Way. Every other way, any other way, whatever other way is foolishness."
Again... it is my firm testimony that this Gospel makes life make sense. To come here for a very short period of time when compared to our eternal lifespan, is like going to school for a little while. Its our most important test. We are to walk by faith, not by sight. We can waste it away, or we can use it as the time "to prepare to meet God" and prepare to live in His presence, with our families... for eternity.
I would add one thing... I know life is hard. It seems impossible at times to overcome our weaknesses, our past mistakes, or feelings of doubt or grief- whatever your struggle is. You need to change the idea of "I can't do that. I can't become strong, clean, and pure." The TRUTH is... You CAN! You must change those thoughts to "Yes, I can do these things! I can become strong, clean, and pure. I can learn and know for myself if the Gospel is true! Because, through the power of Jesus Christ, I CAN DO ALL THINGS." We are all completely dependent on our Savior. For our life, happiness, and salvation. "Get on the path, and never ever give up."
I love you all so much. I am truly grateful for each of you. You are constantly in my prayers.
I hope you will make it a great week!
Laus Deo.
-Elder Brett Simper-
Brantford, 9/17/12
Hello Family!
Oops... I sent a blank message to all of you. It was an accident.
I am still here in Brantford! Our next Transfer day is on October
29th, so I will be here at least until that day. We have a shorter
time at the library today, so I might not write too much, or my typing
might be sloppy.
Its been a good week here in Brantford. We have one new investigator
named Karen, who is about 70 years old and is a good friend of a
couple of the members in the ward here. We are meeting with her
tonight, so we are excited about that. It has started to cool down a
bit here. Not too much today, though. But Thursday and Friday were
chilly, rainy days. But its kind of nice to have a change from the hot
and humid weather. And, since I'm trying to get myself excited for
winter... I'm so excited for it to get freezing cold! Its going to be
awesome.
Well, I'm going to cut this one short. Please know that you are always
in my prayers. Make it a great week! I love you.
Elder Brett Simper
Oops... I sent a blank message to all of you. It was an accident.
I am still here in Brantford! Our next Transfer day is on October
29th, so I will be here at least until that day. We have a shorter
time at the library today, so I might not write too much, or my typing
might be sloppy.
Its been a good week here in Brantford. We have one new investigator
named Karen, who is about 70 years old and is a good friend of a
couple of the members in the ward here. We are meeting with her
tonight, so we are excited about that. It has started to cool down a
bit here. Not too much today, though. But Thursday and Friday were
chilly, rainy days. But its kind of nice to have a change from the hot
and humid weather. And, since I'm trying to get myself excited for
winter... I'm so excited for it to get freezing cold! Its going to be
awesome.
Well, I'm going to cut this one short. Please know that you are always
in my prayers. Make it a great week! I love you.
Elder Brett Simper
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