New Arrivals 8/1/16

The 22 missionaries from the MTC in Provo were to arrive at 1:50 and the hermana was to arrive from Mexico at 2:13.  Hermana Alder arrived closer to 2:00.  The connection in San Francisco for the 22 was delayed and they arrived around 2:45.  We can count on the flights not coming in at the specified time.  We have to get to the airport early though in case the flights arrive before the sheduled time.

President Felix was able to have an interview with 

Hermana Alder at the airport while we were waiting.

Hermana Alder

Sister Devitt

Sister Adamson

Elder Reeves

Elder Thurgood

Elder Reichman

Elder Gray

Elder 'Iongi

Elder Whatcott

Elder Ballantyne

Elder Mecham

Elder Shumway

Elder Ward

Elder Richards

Elder McLawhorn

Elder Kelly

Elder Morgan

Elder Dewey

Elder Judd

Elder Hansen

Elder Kopaunik

Elder Horman

Elder Malone

Not good -- some luggage didn't make it to Santa Barbara.  President Felix signed the receipts and the luggage was to be delivered to the mission home around 8:30.  Still not good as those staying with members were going to be picked up at 8:00.  Fortunately the luggage arrived just before 8:00.

We had the missionaries get out of the suitcases the things and clothing they needed for the night and the next day.  We had bags for them to put these things in.  This makes it so much better so that the suitcases don't have to be transported to the member's homes.

We drove to Goleta Park and had danishes and water.

Sister and Elder Iverson drove the truck and trailer with a couple of missionaries needing to drive with them.  We rented a 15 passenger van and used the mission's 10 passenger van also.

The following pictures are the missionaries making the commitment to have both feet in.

We drove to the mission home and put all of the luggage in the garage.  The Assistants did a short orientation about the culture of the mission.  We were able to have dinner out on the deck.  

The missionaries were so tired as they didn't get to bed Sunday night and then they woke up around 3:00 to leave from the MTC.
The missionaries came from 7 different states:
Utah, Idaho, Oregon, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Colorado.

President's letter

BIG changes in the California Ventura Mission.  We are very excited!  We feel that there will be more energy and success.  "If we always do what we have always done, then we will always get what we have always gotten." 

Elder David A. Bednar  

The following letter from President Felix to the missionaries may help to clarify.

Dear Missionaries of the Great California Ventura Mission,

What a week!  By now you know that the assistants and all zone leaders will be serving in family wards.  Each of the YSA wards will have sisters serving there.  We will be receiving 23 new missionaries today meaning that there will be 23 trainers.  The assistants have been very busy putting together the "transfer train".  I really appreciate Elders Kuepper and Gibb along with Elder Weiss who will be the new assistant who helped with a lot of the details of the transfers.  There are only 7 of 80 companionships without any changes.

So with all the changes, Please:

Make sure that you are at your drop off place 15 minutes before your scheduled time.  Be responsible for your luggage and see that it gets into the trailer and out of the trailer when you get off the train.

Whether or not you will be driving your car to Oxnard as a trainer on Tuesday, please fill up with gas today.

Update your area book and make sure the area book is where it needs to be.

Clean your apartment and get rid of things that have been in the apartment that don't belong.

 Elder Iverson asked that I remind all of you to log out of TIWI when you get out of the car.  Make it a habit.  If the car is getting serviced and you did not log out, you will be the one responsible for any variances caught by TIWI.

We certainly will miss the 16 missionaries who are leaving with this transfer.  I've interviewed each of them and they will be wonderful returned missionaries.  We wish them our very best. 

There are 20 Elders (all English), 2 Sisters and 1 Hermana arriving.  We welcome them all to this wonderful mission. 

Our goals remain to find the elect, teach repentance and baptize converts, however the CVM Target for this transfer is "We teach Repentance: a Trial of our Faith".

"In our efforts to follow the trail leading to Eternal Life, we will undoubtedly have to face the trial of our faith."

President Dell C. Felix

Follow up

The follow up training went very well today.  There was a wonderful spirit.  We appreciated hearing from them that our mission is obedient.  These new missionaries are doing great!  We're grateful to have them serving in the Great CVM. Before returning back to their areas they had some fruit with a dip.

Letter from President Felix

All the missionaries will receive an email tomorrow in the newsletter.  Here is the letter that President Felix wrote to them:

Dear Missionaries,

It certainly has been a delight to visit with most of you now after having zone conference and interviews.  This transfer is rolling along too quickly.  We heard from those missionaries who are departing during the past couple of weeks and Sister Felix and I have been so impressed with their testimonies.  Oh how we’ll miss them.

Elder Kuepper shared his testimony in every one of the zone conferences.  Just this past week in MLC, we were impressed with the visual that Elder Kuepper painted as he talked about a young eaglet who was orphaned and was raised with a bunch of chickens.  This eaglet learned how to eat and fend for itself from the other chickens.  Not knowing anything different and despite his size and genetics, the eaglet would peck at the ground for its feed along with the chickens.  A visitor noticed the eagle amongst the chickens and thought that the eagle should be able to fly.  He picked up the eagle and tossed it in the air.  It flapped its wings and dropped to the ground.  The man then took the eagle up to the top of the barn and tossed it off, but the eagle just flapped its wings and clumsily came to the ground.  The man went away and studied how eagles learn to fly.

The man returned and asked the farmer if he could try one more time. The farmer realized that the eagle did not belong with the chickens and agreed.  The man found out that eagle’s nests are high on the edge of steep cliffs.  When the eagles are mature enough, the adult eagle coaxes the young eagle to the edge of the nest and gently pushes them into the canyon.  The only thing that can support their wings is the air.  So the man drove to a high point in a steep canyon where he gently pushed the young eagle over the edge.  The eagle, raised as a chicken, now looked up and opened his wings.  He began to soar and then to fly.  “For these eaglets, the thrill of soaring begins with the fear of falling”.

President Uchtdorf said in the most recent New Mission President’s Seminar, “Life as a missionary is about growing.  It is about having faith and hope, about acquiring knowledge and skills.  It is about enduring and trusting that God is always there and that He will bear each missionary up as on eagle’s wings.  You have to trust God.”

Sister Felix and I love all of you missionaries and we pray for you multiple times daily.  Please know that the challenges you might face with your area, a companion, homesickness, or whatever will help you grow and develop as a missionary and later as a responsible adult.  From President Uchtdorf again “Faith is a principle of power.  God works by power and His power is usually exercised in response to faith.”

Love and soar high,

President Dell C Felix

MLC

The goal for this month is 31 baptisms.  Our CVM target is Find the elect, a trial of your faith.  Our Christlike attribute is faith.  We have the faith that this mission can baptize.

We had great discussion today in MLC.  Elder Kuepper and Elder Gibb led a discussion on How to Prepare for MLC.  We need to look at what we can improve on.  In Preach My Gospel there are four principles of language learning that were adapted to priniples of leadership:  take responsibility, make your study meaningful, seek to communicate,  and learn new concepts thoroughly.

President Felix discussed three aspects from Elder Bednar:

1.  Prepare to learn

2.  Interact to edify

3.  Invite to act

The senior couples prepared a wonderful lunch - watermelon, corn casserole, baked beans, pulled pork sandwiches, chips and blueberry cobbler. 

Doug Montague from the Newberry Park Stake shared his experience as a missionary taking the example of Ammon and his brothers in teaching the Lamanites.  He had slides to go with his presentation.  I mention that because there were missionaries who had not seen a slide projector before.

Zone Leaders

Front row:  Elders Taufatofua, Swenson, Rosenlof, Davis, Stewart, Carpenter, Harvey, Weiss

Back row:  Elders Peterson, Dorius, DuPlessis, Snyder, Summers, King, Parkinson, Campbell

Sister Training Leaders

Front row:  Sisters King, Capener, Hermanas Hemingway, Scott

Back row:  Sisters Ulassin, Houseman, Hermanas Frias, Johnson

Sisters Hardy, Floyd, and Iverson busy cleaning up in the kitchen.

Sisters Ulassin and King presented the application of success in working with members is having a good attitude.  The three Ps are:  positive, proactive, and productive.  Have a positive attitude -- be supportive, encourage and help the members.  Be proactive by continuing to follow up.  Be productive in using time wisely and in gaining members trust.  The EDPEP was helping a member invite.

We were edified by listening to the departing missionaries bear testimony (Elder Keupper, Hermana Johnson, 

Elder Snyder, and Hermana Frias).

The commitment that President Felix extended was to focus on faith for this transfer and the next two transfers.