Elder Schwimmer July 28, 2014

July 28, 2014

Ok, explanation. I am going to have to order a name tag that says "ELDER SCHWIMMER". Haha. I am constantly being told that I look like David Schwimmer. In fact, we started talking with a guy earlier this past week; he started off by telling me that I did a fantastic job in some movie. He then proceeded to tell me about how much I look like my celebrity doppelganger. That's not all though, he started telling us how he was making a movie about our church history and asked me if I would be willing to be casted in the movie as Brigham Young. I don`t think he has done much of his research, because I look nothing like Brigham Young. Haha. Not only that, but I would be the most chill Brigham Young there is. We had a good laugh on the way home that night. :)

Other than that, it has been a pretty crazy week. It actually has been the busiest I have had as far as teaching goes. We talked to and taught tons and tons of people. By the end of the night last night, we ended with a total of 43 lessons taught in the week. It really is some tough work. I have really been looking forward to this Pday today as well as church yesterday. I love how church is just a time for rejuvenation and rest for the coming week. The scripture of the week is definitely Matthew 11:28. " Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest". This week has been another confirmation to me that the atonement is for each and every one of us. No matter what it is that we may be going through. Jesus Christ is aware. He is constantly willing to let us come unto him and lay down our burdens. As a missionary, I have found it very difficult to show that unto others at times. I feel that it has been hard for us to do that with our investigators here. However, as my testimony has been strengthened in the truthfulness and reality of the Atonement, I know that I will be able to be more capable of showing that unto others. This mission is definitely the perfect mission for me. I can look back over the past few months and really see the changes I have made. Changes for the better. Another example is the joy that comes from working hard. It isn't the most enjoyable in certain moments, but in the end there is no regret. I am grateful that I have been able to learn that as well :)

So yeah, one exciting thing that happened with the people we are teaching was that Calvin finally agreed to and said his first prayer. It was powerful. As slow as he is progressing, it gives me joy to see him make those steps. :) As for all the others, we had three of them at church. Good things are happening. Just slowly. Very slowly. I am feeling like I may not be able to see all these people through it all. Transfers are coming up once again. We will receive the calls on Sunday. We will have to see what the future has in store. :)

That is what my week has been though. Not quite sure what else to tell ya :)

Dad- Well I suppose the polite thing to say is You're Welcome :) I am glad to hear that though, truly. We got a ride home with our ward mission leader yesterday after church and even he mentioned that he has received a lot of good feedback from members of the ward about us. Like I said, I have come to realize that nothing beats hard work. I can see myself becoming the missionary I have always wanted to be. Still got some work to do, and I have gone through some rough patches. I couldn't be any happier with my mission to this point though. I love it :) I am glad you are still doing well this week amongst the hot weather, rain storms, raw ankles, and tough workouts :) I hope that you have another good week! I sure do love and miss you. Thank you for all you do :)

Mom- I talked to you a little bit about the whole school thing last week. Well Bishop and his wife told me at dinner on Saturday night to go into school in January and to come back and thank them later. Haha. I was thinking maybe just doing a few classes at MCC for a semester and then just transferring to ASU. Just let me know what you think :) I hope you are doing well and I hope you have had a good week. I sure do love and miss you :)

Jeri Lin- I am glad you had an exciting adventure of bike riding. I am tired of bikes personally :P I am glad you enjoyed it though! :) I am glad all is well in Texas, because all is definitely well here in Nevada. It isn't too hot here. Even though people freak out when it is in the 90's. I enjoy it. I would much rather be hot and sweaty than being freezing and not being able to hardly function. I can't complain :) I love and miss ya Sis, and I hope you have a good week :) One more thing. Could you accept people as friends on Facebook and Instagram for me??

Keila- Well it is good to hear that you like your new job. Should I say love your new job? I hope the first week of it has been as good as the first week was. I also am glad that you like your mommy car. :) This week, "Mini Takes the States" has come through Reno. I was in Heaven Yesterday with all the Minis. Like...coolest thing ever! :) Then I also got to ride in the Bishop's mini. :) It was pretty sweet. I love and miss ya! Have a good week :)

Sydney-Well I hear that you are coming home soon! I hope you have a good last week there in Washington and that you have had a good week this week as well. I love ya and miss ya Syd! Smile and Stay Happy :)

Leslie- Well I hope you enjoyed camp! I have a letter for you, I just need to get it sent! I love ya Sles and miss ya! :) Have a good week!

Brooke- Hey you! Are you excited for School or do you still wish it could still be summer? :) I love ya and miss ya! Have a good week! :)

Hayden- Dude! Thank you for your letter! I am sending you a letter back :) I hope you have a good week! I love ya and miss ya man :)

Well that is all I have for now. I sure do appreciate and love each and every one of you and the support you give me as a missionary. :)

Love,
Your Son
Your Brother
Elder Bryton Dane Shinkle :)

Downtown Life July 21, 2014

July 21, 2014

My missionary life is just not letting up in going quickly. We are already in week five of this transfer and I have been in this area for nearly six months now. I have come to know just about everyone on the downtown streets. It doesn't stop us from having some interesting experiences though. The crazy story for this week was getting offered a lap dance by a lady on the street. I told her that I would have to pass on that. It amazes me what people will try to do when they see that you are a missionary. They sure do keep life interesting. Even amongst all the craziness though, we are still able to have some good This week was another one full of teaching and learning experiences. On Thursday, my District and I had a special training with President and Sister Hermansen. It was a training based on a talk that was given by a former mission president, and it is titled, "The Fourth Missionary". It is a great talk, and the things that were discussed were very helpful. A lot of it was about putting our whole heart completely into this work. While we were discussing it, I kept thinking back to the football team we had my sophomore year. We kicked trash. The reason being that we worked as a team and I feel like we surrendered ourselves for the team. We were happy and successful. So, in these last few months, that is my goal. To more fully rely on what Heavenly Father would have me do and not necessarily what I want to do. Which means being better today than I was yesterday. :)

Like I mentioned before, we also had lots of opportunities to teach this week as well. One of the coolest was probably yesterday. On Saturday, we got a call from a lady in our ward. She is dating a non member and he is getting ready to go back to school. She explained to him that she used to get blessings from her dad before she would go back to school. He asked her if there was any way he could get one. So yesterday between the second and third hours of church we were able to teach him about and give him a blessing. The spirit was definitely there and the smile on his face made that apparent. We are hoping to start teaching him some more in the near future. That experience was a good seed planted.

Let's see...what else. I went on exchanges this week with the zone leaders. I was in their area with Elder Reeder. We had a real good time. He has been out just a few months more than me and we had a good time reflecting on all our crazy missionary experiences that we have had up to this point. I also realized that I am one of the oldest as far as missionary life goes in my zone. I think there is only like 4 other missionaries ahead of me. That just blows my mind...I remember being one of the youngest and looking up to all of the ones who were out as long as I have been out now. I am trying to be the best example I can be. After all, that is all I can really do for my District anyways, because I don't have the opportunity to go on exchanges with the Sisters.

Other than that, we had three people at church and broke our companionship record with total number of lessons taught in a single week. It was a busy, successful week. I feel as if my time here is coming short. I think the next transfer has a new area in store for me. We will see though. Gonna finish the last two weeks of this transfer strong. :)

Dad- I am glad to hear that you are enjoying your new car, even if it is dirty due to the monsoons. Oh well :) The pictures on the blog...haha. You are right. Every once and a while there is a good one...most of the time they aren't too good. Especially the most recent ones. :P Speaking of working out, would you be willing to be my coach when I get home, to push me to get in shape for football? Have our own training camp. :) Speaking of Manziel...I saw a shirt that said, "Money Manziel" yesterday...I almost barfed in my mouth. Oh well. We will have to see what football season brings :) Thanks for all you do Dad. Have a great week! I love and miss ya :)

Mom- I still haven't got anything from ya, but I will be on for a little bit. :) I sure do love and miss ya. I hope you have a good week and I hope you have another good week this week :)

Jeri Lin- Well I am happy to hear that you have had a good week as well. Complete with feeding the missionaries. :) So, will you be there when I get home then? Or would that be the week after? I am excited to see you as well. It is going to be a real good time :) Stay awesome Sis. :) I love and miss ya! :)

Keila- Well your car looks good. :) Do you have a soccer mom sticker on the back?? ;) Just kidding. It looks a lot better than my car ;) I am glad to see that you are doing well. I sure do love and miss ya, and I hope you have a good week :)

Sydney- I didn't get anything from ya this week! I hope you are doing well in Washington. You will have to be sure to let me know how things are going :) I love and miss ya Syd! Have a good week :)

Leslie- I got your letter this week, and I will be sending one your way shortly :) Thank you for that. It is always nice to find mail in the mailbox :) I hope you have a good week! I love and miss you :)

Brooke- I hope you are still doing good! I love and miss you :)

Hayden- Hey little man! Hope summer is going good still! I love ya man :)

Well that is all I got for now. I sure do love and miss you all. Hope life is treating you well. :)

Love,
Your Son
Your Brother
Elder Bryton Dane Shinkle :)

July 14, 2014

I called it. Germany won the World Cup :)

Anyways, besides me calling the winner of the World Cup, this week has been a pretty good one once again as well as a busy one.

Let me start with Tuesday. It was a stormy day. A day Mom would call a "Bryton" day. We were out walking and decided to hurry back to the apartment to wait for at least a majority of the storm to pass. While waiting some thunder came that shook our apartment. It was pretty neat. Another neat thing that happened Tuesday is that we met a lady that blows glass. We watched her do that for a while and just talked with her. Now she is a pretty cool potential investigator and she even gave us each a glass bead that she made :)

Wednesday. Wednesday was our zones temple temple trip day. Those are always fun. While we were waiting for the session to start, we were standing in the dressing room. Elder Flake was next to me and President was across from us. Elder Flake asked me if I would sit next to him and President asked me if Flake wanted me to hold his hand. I said yes. :) haha it was a good session with no hand holding :)

Thursday was a first for me. I was able to give my first baptismal interview. That is one of my responsibilities as the District Leader. I interview people for baptism who have been taught by the other missionaries in my District. Dave and I had the neat experience of being able to share our testimonies with one another in the interview. It was much needed for me. It was like a breath of fresh air. Which is exactly what I need if I want to continue on this sprint to the finish. The spirit was so strong in the room as Dave told me the story of his conversion. I felt as if the two of us had been friends for quite a while. I have mentioned it before, but it is quite amazing how the gospel is able to bring people together so quickly :)

Friday was a pretty average day for missionary life here in the downtown area. Elder Reynolds and I did share some good laughs.

Saturday was the day of Dave`s baptism. It was really good. We brought Kimberly along, and she really enjoyed it as well. Juan was also there and I just kept reflecting on his baptism which happened a little over 16 months ago. That is crazy. He starts his mission in a month!

That now brings us to Sunday. Which was also a good day. Just about all the ward was gone yesterday. Just about every single one of the men were gone to help and enjoy scout camp at Yellowstone all this week. Which meant that we had the opportunity to help with passing the sacrament. I can't even remember the last time I got the chance to pass. It has been a while. We still struggle with getting people we are teaching to come to church, but we are doing our best. It was a goodSunday and good week altogether :)

I am so grateful for the opportunity and privilege that it is to be able to serve my mission here in Reno Nevada. It is the perfect mission for me. I have come to know that the Lord truly is the one in charge. It is his work. It is the best work. Thank you for all you do. The love and support is very much appreciated and it does not go unnoticed. I hope you know that :)

Dad- You are right when you say that life is full of ups and downs. One thing that I have noticed on my mission is that I remember the ups a lot more than the downs. You will have to send me pictures of you new sick whip. (New Car). I am glad you were able to get it all worked out :) As far as work goes, that is tough. I will be praying that you can get it all worked out without too much stress. Just gotta keep improving each and every day and saying our prayers. They work :) I love and miss ya! Have a Great week! :)

Mom- Thank you for your email this week, still not sure what happened last week, but oh well. Thank you for the pictures as well. I have to tell you that I miss the haboobs, and can't wait for them next year...even if it means that the pool needs extra attention :) I am glad to also hear that you have had some good experiences this week amongst your normal busy schedule. You are always in my prayers. It is good to hear that everyone is doing well. I love and miss you Mom. Have an awesome week :)

Jeri Lin- I can agree with you that it is nice to have the nights cool down. That is how it is here in Reno, minus the humidity. So I am sure I like it here more than I would if I was in Texas. It is good to hear that you are all doing well and having some good times :) It is good to hear that you are doing so well with the family history stuff as well. We will just have to see what happens when I get home. I am excited for the day that happens...but also kind of not excited for having to deal with real life again. Mostly school. haha. I hope you have another good week though! I love and miss ya!

Keila- Thanks for the giraffes. Totally awesome :) You should send me a picture of your car. I love and miss ya! Have a good week! :)

Sydney- Glad to hear that you are still doing well in Washington and that you are helping out around there. Keep having fun, but remember to stay safe! I love and miss you! Have a happy and good week :)

Leslie- Mom tells me that you did a good job in giving a talk yesterday. I was happy to hear that. I hope you are doing well. I love and miss you! Have a great week!

Brooke- Thank you for your awesome email! That is so cool that you are doing championships with your syncro team. Keep up the good work and keep having fun. Mom told me you are going to camp, so you will have to tell me about it when you get back. Love and miss ya! Have a good week :)

Hayden- Mom told me and sent me a picture of you going to camp. You will have to let me know how it goes. Keep having fun and staying happy! I love ya man :)

I love and miss you all!

Love,
Your Son
Your Brother
Elder Bryton Dane Shinkle :)

July 7, 2014

July 7, 2014

This week has been a good one. I am grateful that I am serving in a state in a country that has so many freedoms. I am grateful for the opportunity that it gives me to be able to openly share my testimony with others. Especially those here in the downtown area of Reno and surrounding areas. Whether they be people who are not members of the church, members of the church, and even other missionaries. I am also grateful that they all have the same privilege as well. It is a privilege to be able to continue to learn and grow each and every day. Even though it is a little bit tough at times.

In this area, I feel as if my ability to be diligent is tested time and time again. I know I may have mentioned this before, but I have come to a realization that Heavenly Father truly is aware of the efforts that we do put into this work. I know that because Elder Reynolds will spend hours and hours doing our absolute best to find as we teach and teach as we find with no apparent success, but soon enough things will just fall into our laps. Those little bits of success are what carry me through. Along with the blessings that I know come from hard work. In our apartment, there is a magnet on our front door that says "Good things don't come to those that wait, Good things come to those who work their butt off". It doesn't get any more true than that :)

Good things include funny stories. I always ask the sisters in the District for funny stories every Sunday night when I call them. I will share a few more of mine that I had this week with you. The two that I have to share both happened yesterday actually. The first being that we were waiting for one of our investigators outside of her apartment and a guy walked up to us. We started talking with him...he seemed pretty interested. He asked if he could join us, which we agreed to of course. Come to find out that all he was interested in was arguing. The arguments he had brought up, I have heard like 100 times already. Our investigator, Jacklynn, was telling him that he was being a real jerk the whole time. It was funny. Then he ended it by "rebuking" us. We just bore our testimony and kinda left it at that. The people that argue with us pretty much have the same exact script. It is like they go to school and memorize a bunch of scriptures just to try and disprove anything we say. The Church is still true :)

The next story is a little bit funnier. We were walking and came across a couple of drunk people again. One, was like, "Elders! Where have you been??". Uhh...neither of us knew him. So we decided to talk with him. Shortly after we started a conversation with him, his friend came over and started talking to me. At this point we are having two separate conversations. As I am talking to this guy, he just randomly is like..."Do you want to fist fight me?" No thanks man. He keeps trying to egg me on...saying that he can take me down in 2 minutes. I just kept joking around with him, and eventually he dropped the desire to fight. It was just kinda funny to me. People are crazy :)

Those are my crazy/funny stories for the week. We are continuing to find opportunities to serve and teach the people down here. We were able to find a couple new investigators this past week and we were able to set one with a baptismal date. Now it is just a matter of keeping them on the right course. That is the true challenge. We are looking forward to another good week and I don't have much to complain about. I am enjoying the responsibilities I have :)

Dad- Well I am glad to hear that I could help out a little bit with my last letter. :) It is about time Kevin gets married, my goodness ;) That is crazy that Alexa is already coming home...it was weird for me to see the Sister that came out with me go home last transfer. Darn sisters ;) Don't worry about me though, I am doing my absolute best in finishing strong :) Still got a little ways to go though! You lucky guy...driving all those cars. I hope you do find something that does work with that Challenger. That would be a dream come true for you. Is it manual? And was the Mini Manual? I didn't do much for the 4th either though. We went out and worked most of the day and then went and had dinner, and then drove to the temple grounds to watch all the fireworks going on in Reno and Sparks. We waited and waited...because they wanted the wind to die down. So we finally decided to just head home...and then they started a few minutes after we left. Oh well. It is what it is :) I wish I could have been there for the haboob, but oh well. Thanks for all you do Dad. I love and miss ya. Have a good week! :)

Mom- Well I got the picture of Brooke, thank you! I also was able to read the texts you sent to Sister Hagler. Thank you. I love and miss ya Mom. I hope you are staying healthy and happy amongst your busy schedule. You are an amazing Mom :)

Jeri Lin- I agree with you in the fact that busy weeks are nice. I used to hate them, but have come to love them. It does feel good when we accomplish goals and I am glad you were able to do that this week :) I am also glad to hear that you are having lots of fun there in Texas. Keep it up and keep me posted! Also, thank you for sharing that miracle story. Pretty neat :) We each have had our testimony strengthened of the fact that Heavenly Father is aware of each of us. :) You and your little family are always in my prayers. I love and miss ya! Have another successful week! :)

Keila- Congrats on your new oven car! ;) haha I hope you are doing well. Love ya and miss ya! Have a good week :)

Sydney- Thank you for your email, it is so good to hear that you are doing well in Spokane. My good friend Keaton is on his mission there :) That is a cool experience you shared with reading the scriptures. It reminded of the experience the Stripling Warriors had with listening to their mothers. Keep being awesome Syd, and have a good week. :) I love and miss ya!

Leslie- I check the mail everyday looking for your letter! Hope to see it soon. I love and miss ya Sles! Have a good week :)

Brooke-Good job with your Synchro swimming! I love and miss ya! Keep up the good work :)

Hayden- You are the best brother :) Have a good week! I love and miss ya man! :)

Well that is all I have for now. I love and miss you all! Have a good week!

Love,
Your Son
Your Brother
Elder Bryton Dane Shinkle :)

My Life in the Biggest Little City June 30, 2014

June 30, 2014

My life in the Biggest Little City continues to move forward as the temperature is picking up. It has been a pretty good week this past week. Mostly because I was able to attend the temple with Juan on Saturday
evening. Let me tell you about some of the events that kind of lead up to that part though.

On Tuesday, Elder Reynolds and I were tracting. You know, the normal missionary life. We usually set aside at least one hour a day if possible for strictly tracting or street contacting. Well, we come to this one door and the guy living there had a security camera in his window of the door with a sign next to it that said, "Smile, You are on camera!". Haha ok, whatever. We knocked, and he answered. He looks at us for a sec and then says, hold on, I gotta go grab something. I was just hoping it wasn't a gun. It wasn't a gun. It was a camera. He took a picture of us. Super weird. He then proceeded to tell us that we had interrupted his dinner hour, and that we aren't the first of our "buddies" to do so. So, now that he had a picture of us, he was planning on pressing charges on us for trespassing. Then told us to immediately get off his property. Haha. It was quite possibly the most ridiculous thing that has happened to me while tracting. Don't be surprised if there is a warrant out for me ;)

Now we move on to Wednesday, and my Wednesday experience is much better than my Tuesday experience. I don't recall on whether or not I told you about Brenda. She is a woman we met on the street and said a prayer with her a few weeks back. Last week she called us up and asked if she could come to church. So we got her a ride for church last Sunday. She enjoyed it. Then we set a lesson up with her for Wednesday. We taught her at the church, and it was quite possibly one of the best first lessons I have ever taught. It helps that she is open to the knowledge of having a prophet on the earth today. Well in that lesson we set her with a baptismal date of the 26th of July. She was a church yesterday as well. Things are continuing to look up. :)

Thursday and Friday were pretty normal days. We are continuing to work with Kimberly as well as Calvin. Those two are a real test of my patience, but I love them to death.

That brings us to Saturday. We were busy all morning and afternoon. Doing service for a less active sister and then running to and fro for lessons. We almost didn't even get to have any lunch. It worked out though. Then we headed up to the temple with one of the members in our ward and we brought Kimberly along to walk around the temple grounds with her. We figured since we were gonna be up there anyways, we should make it a little more productive. It went really well and Kimberly showed an increase in desire to change her life around. Hopefully we can help her remember the feelings she felt there and that we can help her act on those desires. After doing that, the member took Kimberly home and we stayed for the endowment session for Juan. It was truly one of the absolute highlights of my mission. I am grateful that he allowed for me to join him and experience that with him. He is going to be an incredible missionary. Just you wait :) After the temple we all went out to eat. The Haglers, The Smiths, and The Jimenez family were all there and joined with us. It was so nice to be able to catch up with them all. I haven't seen some of them in like a year! A few of them thought I was already was home and that I had come back just to see Juan through the temple. Not quite. We had lots of good laughs :)

Saturday eventually came to a close and brought us into Sunday. I was once again a little frustrated as a lot of the people who said that they would be there stood us up again. Oh well. Gotta try again next week. Then, our plans for after church began to slowly fall through. It was looking like it was gonna be a slow day. We just kept going though, and we ran into a lady by the name of Meredith who was just about to start working on pulling out some old rose bushes in her yard. We offered to help her out, and surprisingly, she accepted. I pulled my tie off, rolled up my sleeves, and we got to work. It was so much fun. She was really cool. We were able to get to know her as we sweated and got to work. She is now a solid potential investigator and she gave us a few names and addresses of people we could also try and visit. It was probably the best way we could have ended the week. I felt as if I truly was a representative of Jesus Christ, because those are the kinds of things he would do. We may have not exactly been resting on the Sabbath, but that service allowed for Meredith to rest a little and it relieved a burden she had. Service is awesome. Especially when they are unplanned moments and opportunities that make someones day :)

Those are the highlights from my week. Oh!

Sometimes I try to kick rocks into storm drains and it makes me feel like I am playing in the world cup. It is kinda a big deal when I make those in. I might as well have kicked a game winning shot :)

Dad- Well thank you for sending me the pictures of the super bowl rings. The one part I do like is the score of the game inscribed on the inside. Poor Poor Broncos ;) I think it is cool that you can relate to me with serving in a downtown area. We sure do get yelled at a lot, but we also get told that people have our back down here on the streets. I don't think I have ever felt like I have been in huge danger here in this area. The Lord definitely plays a part in that I believe. I also appreciate that example you shared with me about basketball and running. How true that is. One quote that has been shared with me on my mission that I always remember is, "There is no growth in comfort and no comfort in growth". As for the 4th of July. We don't have anything planned as of right now...but we just got the guidelines from President, so I am sure we will figure something out :) I don't think I will be an assistant...that is a responsibility that I am definitely not envious of. We will see what the future brings. It is coming quick. I love and miss ya Dad. Have a great week! :)

Mom- Well it looks like I missed you this week. I just want you to know that I do love and miss you. I hope you have a great week this week. :)

Jeri Lin- I am getting the sun part here. Kinda missing the water part though. I am glad you and your kiddos are enjoying it though. Along with your reading activities. Your children are gonna be geniuses like yourself. I can see it already in Hyrum.,,how in the world did I not think of calling them Rubby ducks? ;) I am glad you are all doing well and that Tony enjoys his job. Seems like it can't get much better. You can't tell me that Tony is working on my Christmas present, you crazy! haha. I will be looking forward to it. That is definitely suspenseful :) I love and miss ya. Have another good, fun week in the sun! :)

Keila- Hey you. I miss ya and love ya! Have a good week :)

Sydney- Thank you for your quick email :) I am so glad that you had a good birthday and a good date :) I hope you have a safe trip to Washington. You will have to keep me updated as much as possible on how it goes. :) I love and miss ya! Have a good week. Oh, and always, always Stay Happy :)

Leslie- Well I will be looking for the letter that makes the picture make more sense! I love and miss ya. Have a good week! :)

Brooke- Guess what? I still love you and still miss you :) Have a good week!

Hayden- Stay cool my dood :) Have a good week! I love and miss ya man :)

Well I have some pictures to send your way. For now though, that is all I have. I love and miss you all! :)

Love,
Your Son
Your Brother

Elder Bryton Dane Shinkle :)

 Me and Fajardo

 Flake, Sister Waterman, and I

 Juan at the temple

BELIEVE