Welcome to Elder Skiles' Mission Blog

Elder David William Skiles (pictured on the left with his mother) served a full-time mission with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from October 2008 through October 2010. He has dedicated two years of his life sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with the people of Santiago, Chile in the Chile, Santiago East Mission.

On the morning of Tuesday, December 16, 2008, Elder Skiles arrived in Santiago, Chile to begin his proselyting duties. He returned home in October 2010. After which, he returned to Brigham Young University in January 2011.

For more information about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, click here.

The purpose of this blog is to share with family and friends any letters, pictures, etc. that we receive from Elder Skiles.

eMail of October 4, 2010

Time is moving by fast. General Conference seemed to just melt away. I learned a lot though. The main themes that I heard in the conference were about prophets, confidence and faith, and repentance. It really is a great opportunity to listen to the mind and will of the Lord for His children. On Saturday we also got the chance to go to a ward baptism. We helped prepare everything and one of our investigators came. He enjoyed it a lot. I am really excited to see him progress. As of yet we still haven´t been able to teach Ruby but I´m sure we will soon. She has been too busy with work. I am happy and having fun. Well, I love you all and hope that everything continues to go well. Have fun in Mexico!

eMail of September 27, 2010

The days here have been cooling down again. Last night the clouds came in and began pouring rain and then went away before we woke up. The rainy season should be over by now. As for how things are with Ruby, this last week she had too much to do. She had to work all week and we didn´t get the opportunity to teach her at all. We are pretty sure that she will get baptized it just might be a few weeks more. This last week we taught a middle-aged man that has had enough with organized religion having seen too many problems and too much hypocrisy. He talks a lot about the problems he sees in the world, but as we began talking about prophets and the restoration, he began to listen more than talk. In the beginning he wouldn´t believe in any religion, but by time we had finished he already began to believe that Joseph Smith could have been a prophet and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. He still has a lot more to learn but he is ready and willing. The work has been going well in everything else as well. I feel like we have been able to do exactly what the Lord wants us to. Through His divine direction we blessed many people this last week. it is incredible though how fast we´ve come up on General Conference. I can hardly believe that we are where we are at. I have been able to keep myself focused though. Well, I love you all and hope that everything continues to go well. Have fun!

eMail of September 20, 2010

Time keeps going by more and more quickly. As for Eric I´m sure he with be all right. This last week things have progressed really well in the sector. It was a little difficult to get to teach a lot of people this last week though. Chile on Saturday completed its 200th year as an independant nation. For three days straight everything was closed by law except for a few things and public transport. We ate a lot but didn´t get to teach much. We found a great new this last week too. We had made a contact with someone a while back and we had gone back to talk some more, then their dad came out and told us to come in. He started saying he had a lot of doubts and descrepancies with organized religion. As we began talking he began to learn that we believe just about all the same things. He even brought up the scripture in Genesis that says "let us make man" to say that Christ participated in the creation as well. I have never met someone that knew as much about the gospel as him without being a member of the Church. Nearly all of the things that he didn´t agree with are restored truths. We had set up an appointment with him at the Church on Thursday but he couldn´t go, and so he went to the Church on his own, went in and told the members that he wants to keep studying with us and that he wanted to set up another appointment for another day. It is amazing to see how the Lord prepares His children to receive the gospel. Ruby is also close to getting baptised and is ready, she just feels scared still. Well, I love you all and hope that everything continues to go well. Have fun!

eMail of September 13, 2010

First thing first. The food that I want most would be Stroganoff, joes and hamburger rice casserole. Oh and popcorn, kitkats, salt and vinegar chips and cheezits. As for the more important things, we have a lot of investigators, more than I remember having at one time in my mission. There are several that are progressing slowly but others that are doing really well. No one came to Church but we had success in other ways. Today we are hoping for a lot as well. Right now the most promising investigator is Ruby. She will likely be baptised the 26th of this month and I´m excited. She will be of great stregnth to the ward. We had a really interesting experience last night though. We went to a members house as we are teaching the girlfriend of one of the members there and when we got there they had found a mouse in their kitchen. We went to help them chase it out and it ran underneath the fridge. We moved it out and the mouse disappeared for a bit but suddenly it came running out again and the sister smacked it like 20 times with a broom. At that point it was just about dead and my companion took it and finished the job. Exciting few minutes. We also had a mission activity on Thursday. It was for the Chilean independance day, the 18th of September. We talked for a bit and then finished the night watching Hoosiers. It really is a good movie and the principles of teamwork involved have a lot to do with the gospel. On Saturday we had to go in early as well for precaution. The 11th of September is a special memorial day and there tend to be disturbances. But nothing happened and even with the cut in time we had a lot of success this last week. Today we had a fun zone activity as well. As for the time, it has been going by fast. It is difficult to get everything done you need too and time seems to just be cut short always. It is amazing how fast time goes by when one is focused. It is a wierd feeling to know as well that this is my last ward that I will be in. So far I have managed to keep my focus and everything though and I am grateful. From what I´ve seen in other Elders I have noticed that as they get this close to getting home they tend to begin to turn off and just follow their companion around. Anyway, I love you all and hope that everything goes well. Don´t count the time, see you soon! :)

eMail of September 6, 2010

The weeks and months move by very fast. Time is no longer the same as before. When do you two leave for your trip? As for my side of the world, things are going well. We had a lot of success in many areas this last week. We had a great lesson with a family where the Spirit was very strong and hopefully changed their hearts a bit. We received a reference for a new and taught them, we set a baptismal date with Ruby who came to Church, had several investigators come to our English class and one of them came to Church the next day too. Last night we felt like going by a specific less active and when we got there they were there, listened and the Spirit was strong. We also taught several other lessons where the Spirit was abundant. We have been trying to implement new tools to be able to teach the Gospel better and what we did this last week is write down the main, important events and doctrines in each Chapter of the Book of Mormon. It is a very brief outline but it will help to know where to go to teach specific principles. We got to go to the Temple as well and the Spirit was strong there too. I am so grateful to be here in this ward. We have the confidence of the members and everything. And the best part is that I will finish out my mission here with my companion. I have learned a lot with him and hope to learn even more. Well, I love you and pray for your safety often. I hope that everyone has fun in School and that things start off well.

eMail of August 30, 2010

Well another week has gone by and quickly. It is hard to fathom how quickly time is moving by. I hope that everyone is doing well and ready to start this next school year. Here in Santiago things have been going well. The ward continues to get better and the work is moving along. Two of the families we have been teaching, one a less-active family and the other investigators, have begun reading regularly the Book of Mormon and now have a lot more desire to come to Church. Another investigator is beginning to quit smoking and another is getting ready to be baptised. We also found a new family of five this last week. We had made a contact with the father about a month ago, and we finally got to teach the familiy this last week. They all listened and they seem prepared. Even better, yesterday we told the Bishop about the family and he said that he knew who they were and wanted to come with us. He went with us to the appointment last night and then we found out that they have been friends for nearly 20 years. The Lord has people prepared everywhere to receive the Gospel. Well, I want you to know that I am happy and having fun. I pray for you and hope that everything continues to go well. Have fun!

eMail of August 23, 2010

This last week was a full week. Every morning from tuesday to friday we had special on Saturday morning we listened to Elder Costa from the Presidency of the Seventy. Also on Saturday we had English Classes at 4:00 after lunch. Needless to say time went by fast. I enjoyed the meetings and learned a lot and felt a strong spirit the whole time. Elder Costa said that the Southwest area of the Church that he directs has already had 16,000 baptisms this year. We also had several great lessons this last week. Our investigator Ruby finally understood repentance and now wants even more to get baptised. Our other investigator has come to Church the last two weeks in a row. We have also had success with the English classes. So far we have had two references from it and it has only been three weeks. Also the ward is beginning to improve a lot more. More people than ever were there for sacrament this last week and they finally had their first Ward Council in nearly a year. They are making progress and I´m excited. I am looking forward to working hard and having success these next few weeks. As for whats happening in Chile, over two weeks ago 33 miners got trapped in a mine that collapsed. The air tunnel also collapsed. The situation was grim but miraculously yesterday they finished digging another tube for air, and made contact with the miners. All 33 are alive and safe. They should be down there another 2 months but it is a miracle. Also the nation tends to give God the credit, which I am grateful for. The economy has gotten stronger here too. Even with the earthquake the economy has grown 6.5%. This is a blessed nation. I feel that things are going to get better. Well, I love you all and hope that you are safe and protected. Have fun, be smart!

eMail of August 16, 2010

I´m sorry to hear that Bill passed away. It must be hard on the family. I am glad to hear though that everyone is doing well. That is incredible that Marc has a week left. It´s hard for me to fathom. Time is dissolving away like cotton candy. As for everything that has happened this last week, I will start with Tuesday. On Tuesday we started a set of leadership training as missionaries. Our mission president is giving us a set of 8 lectures, one a day for two weeks Tuesday through Friday. We still have a week left, but this first week went well. The First Presidency wants us to focus on those 8 specific things so that the missionaries will better understand and know their purpose. I greatly enjoyed them and learned a lot. We as a mission are unique in the world as we can do the lectures with the Mission President. No other mission can as they are too spread out. The Mision Presidents are teaching zone leaders and sometimes district leaders and no one else. Also we had the opportunity to find several news this last week. One came to Church too. He smokes but we should be able to overcome that problem as he gains a true testimony of the gospel. There are several other investigators that seem rather promising as well. On Saturday we taught a class of English for the second week in a row and it went well. We have had an investigator family come the last two weeks and several others, and afterward we played soccer for a bit. It has been fun and we have already had success. I can see that there are several people who´s hearts are opening more and more. I have also had a fun time with my companion. With all that this week went by fast. I can hardly believe how fast time is going. Well, I love you all and am grateful for you prayers and support. I hope that everything continues to go well and that you are protected. Have fun, be safe!

eMail of August 9, 2010

This last week went well for my companion and I.  We had a lot of fun and got some good done.  Ruby has been reading and praying and now said that she wants to get baptised.  She just wants to wait a bit more time.  We also were led directly to several people that are interested in the gospel, at least to know what it is.  For example Saturday my comp felt like we should knock a specific street.  The next day, yesterday, we knocked the street and began teaching a lady who then accepted a return appointment for next week.  We also contacted another lady that seems interested as well.  It feels good to be able to receive revelation and have success.  We also felt the need to use the Book of Mormon a lot more while teaching.  We set up a plan to teach the first half of the first lesson using 1 Nephi 1.  It teaches perfectly prophets, dispensations and apostasy.  We are trying to set up the rest of the lessons with different chapters of the Book of Mormon.  Yesterday we had a Stake Conference where they called a new Stake President.  The old one had been there for nearly 9 years.  Elder Corbridge of the First Quorum of the Seventy was there and I enjoyed his talk.  Our Mission President was there too.  We are making steady progress and I am grateful to be here.  I am hoping that everything continues to go well.  As for the rest of everything, if we do a Weight reunion next year we would need to do it before Marc goes on his mission.  You did tell me that Rob had his baby.  I would like pictures if you could send them.  There are several cousins I don´t think I´ve ever seen that I would like to see.  How many are there now?  Well, I love you all and pray that everything continues to go well.
--
Elder David Skiles

Email of August 2, 2010

I hope you get back safely and everything goes well.  In my world things are going well and we have had more success.  We are steadily increasing our teaching pool and futures pool.  The Lord has people prepared everywhere one goes, that is for sure.  Some of the other investigators are beginning to dry out but we are trying to keep moving.  Probably the most spiritual experience this last week was last night.  We went to dedicate the home of an excommunicated member of the ward who we have been working with and the Spirit was strong.  We began talking about a lot of things and we helped him with a few things.  While talking I began to think about all of my experiences especially during the mission and I learned some important things.  I´ve learned a lot about people and how to help them, and a lot about the gospel.  I was thinking about everything and could see how my faith has changed.  There have been times where I have felt an absolute confidence in the Lord and have been able to work miracles that way.  I have seen how my testimony has grown.  I wouldn´t say that its gotten strong during the mission, just more active.  Yes it is stronger, but I didn´t gain my testimony here.  I´ve also learned more fully the principle of obedience and how it works.  I want to share a quote that my mission President just gave to me.  It´s from President Hinckley about the Gospel of Jesus Christ:
1. Faith is the power.
2. Obedience is the price.
3. Love is the motive.
4. The Spirit is the key.
5. Christ is the reason.
I like the quote and it explains very good principles.
As for another cool experience, my companion is from Woodscross Utah, right next to North Salt Lake.  We went to a less-active families house and began talking with them, and the sister got a call from her sister that also lives in Salt Lake, North Salt Lake to be exact.  They started talking a bit and began talking about her nephew that has been on a mission for about a year now.  Turns out that they went to the same high school and graduated together.  They know each other and everything.  Small world, no?  Well, I love you all and pray that you are all happy and safe.

--
Elder David Skiles

EMail of July 26 2010

I hope everything goes well during the trip.  Have fun!  As for my side of the world, things have been cold.  We have had the coldest temperatures in 30 years here in Santiago.  It still isn´t that cold but it drops bellow freezing every night.  The work has been improving little by little.  We still haven´t had any progressing investigators but close.  I had several good experiences this last week though.  Several times during the week I could tell that the Lord was guiding us very directly.  We would arrive at investigators and others houses just as they were arriving as well, which helped us teach a lot more.  I also felt him guide our words too.  Yesterday we had to give talks in Church as those that had them weren´t there.  I had about 5 minutes to prepare a 15 minute talk.  All I could do was pick one scripture to start with and just let the Spirit do the rest.  It didn´t feel very smooth but I said what I needed to.  I was able to finally understand the true meaning of the name the Lamb of God as well.  It helped me understand all of the ordinances and covenants better.  It also explains why and how the law of Moses was fulfilled in Christ.  As for other things, we had changes today and I have a new companion, Elder Perry, from the Salt Lake City area.  He is my 16th companion of the mission.  Also I have only one more change after this.  I am feeling really excited about going home.  However, I don´t think about going home too often.  As soon as I leave the house I forget about it, about time and everything.  It really is a blessing and gift of God to be able to focus, and I am grateful for it.  Well, I love you and hope that the trip goes well.  Have fun, be safe!

eMail of July 19, 2010

I´m glad to hear that Caleb got all of those badges. As for my side of things, everything is going well. I wish I could be there for everything that is going on, but I am enjoying everything here. This last week has built my testimony a lot. We get to go to the Temple every transfer now, so we went last week. I felt happy. And we got to go de sealings again for children to parents. We didn´t end up doing any but we did get to see four couple sealings which was great. The Temple and the ordinances are amazing. In relation with that I got to read D&C 88 just before while waiting for the session. It is an amazing chapter. I also reread the book of testimonies that you sent me. It has been of strength to me and I am grateful for it. The Church is true, Christ lives and is the God of Israel. I had several interesting experiences this last week as well. Yesterday night I went home teaching with a brother in the ward, who in fact was taught but Sister Killian, aunt Laura´s friend, and as we were walking down one street another family of the ward was walking toward us. The youngest had a soccer ball and kicked it at us but it hit his mom in the back of the lags and she tripped. She fell hard. The interesting part of the story is that just that morning she was sustained and set apart as the Relief Society President. She is all right, nothing too serious, but it was interesting. Today we got to talk to two university students that are learning English. They are studying to be English teachers and they both speak really well. We talked for a good amount of time. Anyway, the Lord is moving the work forward and I am grateful to be here. I must confess that last night I had a dream about going home. It was a little off of what it really will be and so I woke up and began day-dreaming about how it really will be. I can feel the pressure of having little time already. But I just tell myself that "it´s still a lifetime" ahead of me before I go home. That helps me stay focused. It really will be a lifetime of experience before I get home. There is a lot left to be done. Well, I love you all and pray that you continue to be happy. Truly, we are here to be happy, regardless of our circumstances. We shouted with joy to come down here.
--
Elder David Skiles

eMail of July 12, 2010

Time does fly by. I thought about that last week too, that Marc is going to get the high priesthood soon here. There is only a month and a half till school starts again. I am grateful to be here though. Last week we had our regular interviews with the President and it was a great experience. He is inspired by the Spirit, and is taught by Him things that cannot by otherwise known. He gave me the support I needed at the time and I feel so much more capable now than before. We have interviews every transfer, but the last several we have had to deal with other things. The ward here is doing better now than it was before as well. As for the investigators we have had difficulty teaching and helping them to progress. We are trying harder every day but this work really depends primarily on the Lord. I´m glad to hear as well that Eric is in the MTC now. I hope he does well and learns what he needs to. It isn´t easy to prepare for a mission. The only way to be truly prepared is to be capable to feel and follow every prompting of the Spirit. When one can do that, he will be an excellent missionary and servant of the Lord. The Lord blesses His children in many ways. Well, I just want to add that I really do know that the Gospel is truth, it´s how things truly are. There is no doubt in my mind or heart that this is the true Church of God on earth. I love you all and pray that everything goes well, that you are protected and happy.

eMail of June 21, 2010

Thanks, and Happy Father´s Day to Dad. The package came. So, Eric is leaving for the MTC. He will have fun I´m sure.

I´m glad to hear that everyone is happy and having fun. As for my side of the world, things are a little crazy right now. On Wednsday Chile won their first World Cup game this tournament, the first one they have won in 48 years. They played at 7:30 in the morning here and we were hearing fireworks and horns and trumpets nearly all day. Today again they won and there was a lot of celebration. Still every once in a while we hear horns and shouts and stuff. It isn´t as big as at first, but they are celebrating. As for the investigators we weren´t able to make any progress this last week. We only got to teach one and she couldn´t come to Church this week because of Father´s Day. She had to go to her parents´ house. We did get to teach several converts and less-actives. One convert came back to Church after months of inactivity. Things are moving slow right now but I can see that things will be much better later. All we have to do is keep working and doing our best. I must say that I am grateful to be here and to have had the opportunity to serve in this country. It is an amazing country and has a great deal of potential. I found out this last week as well that one of the brothers in our ward is an emeritus General Authority. He was a Regional Representative and the personal assistent to Bruce R. Mckonky years ago. Basically, what the first quorum of the Seventy is now, that is what he was a part of. It was interesting because you never would have known he was a general authority unless he told you. Well, I love you all and hope that you have fun at the reunion this next week.

eMail of June 14, 2010

No, I don´t know a Jackie Melton. She might be coming into the mission tomorrow though. Today were the transfers and nearly the whole mission stayed in their sectors including my comp and I. Only two Sisters are arriving but I don´t know who. As for Marc graduating that is great. That is wierd though. Time has flown by fast. As for my side of the work today we talked with a guy from Manchester, England. In that area at least. He married here and is living here now. It´s interesting as our Bishop here lived in England for many years too. Yesterday the first investigator since February came to Church. She´s 18 and lives with a friend that is less-active. We met her as her friend invited us over. They moved in together around 2 months ago. They were partners in an internship and are good friends. However, the less-active hasn´t been going to Church for years, and the investigator had to wake her up and bring her to Church. We are excited to see her progress even against those odds. The best part was when they got to Church immediately there were members that came and befriended them. They were going to go home right after sacrament but the members convinced them to stay another hour. As for the rest of the investigators there are several promising ones but they have yet to progress. Anyway I am doing great and am happy. It rained again last night, which it should be every day now. I miss the rain. Well, I hope that all of you continue to have fun and enjoy life. Congratulations to Marc for graduating! I love you all!

eMail of June 7, 2010

So, I will miss two Anderson Family reunions in a row then. No matter, I will be there for the next one. I´m glad to hear that Marc finished his eagle and everything. As for those who we are teaching right now there has been progress. Several of them read and becoming more interested in the gospel. One began to ask us about the requirements of baptism and everything. We have great hopes for them. I have learned a lot through the teaching experiences I have had last week as well. I have been working on trying to follow the Spirit more as I teach and have had progress. There were several times I began teaching and felt very clearly and distinctly what it was that I should share. Subsequently things changed and they are more receptive. This really is a great and a marvelous work. The Lord is behind it and it is Him that does it. I also finished reading the Old Testament this last week. I have now officialy read all the cannonical works. I still have to read the Book of Mormon during the mission, but I´m at the end of Helaman, in Spanish. Everything else I have read in the mission. I learned a great deal, but I think the main lesson I learned was that it is best to trust in the Lord and obey Him, over anything else. In fact the mission president gave us an interesting fact the other week. The Bible has 2376 chapters, and exactly in the middle is Psalms 118:8 which is half of 2376. The longest and shortest chapters in the bible surround it, and verse 8 says that "It is better to atrust in the Lord than to put bconfidence in man." Well, I am happy and having fun. I love you all and pray that the Lord will continue to bless and protect you.

eMail of May 17, 2010

Well, that sounds like an eventful last week. I hope you can get things fixed quick. What are you going to do with the trailer? As for myself I haven´t gotten my flight information yet. Perhaps they don´t want ot send it yet to me. I imagine the plane is coming in the morning. That may just be the longest day of my life. As for the sector things are rapidly improving. We have one kid that wants to get baptised and severall others that are interested. There was really no work leftover from before when I got here, but with some we are starting up again and finding others. We are hoping for several that they can begin to progress. Yesterday we got to teach a Catholic lady that had previously been looking for a Church and decided to in the end stay with the Catholic Church. She understood the message well in the end, but still didn´t really want to accept. The amazing thing is the Spirit really seemed to take over. I thought I butchered everything but she understood just the same, and now we are hoping that she will pray and ask about the Church of Christ. She has prayed before and received comfort and guidance through the Spirit, so she is no stranger to the way of receiving an answer about the Church. I felt really good after the lesson. I am grateful for the Spirit and am learning how to take full advantage of its power. He really does the work, far better than we ever could. Well, I love you all and pray that you continue to have fun and be protected.

eMail of May 3, 2010

First of all for Mother´s day this time we are going to need to be in the house of a member family. We actually don´t know what family right now as we got the information about that today. Also, I just had changes today. I have a new companion Elder Jacobs and I´m in a new ward. That also makes it difficult for the thing with Robert, because I don´t know where this chapel is at all. I´ve never been there. As for the call later this week we are going to figure out who you can call and the times and the phone number and give it to you. It should be in the afternoon, like 4 or so your time.
As for the rest of life I´m in a new sector today with a new comp. I am looking forward to seeing what we can do to bring about the work. As for this last week Fabian was confirmed and received the priesthood. He is doing great and should be going this Tuesday to the Temple to do baptisms for the dead. As for the other family they are doing well too, except for this last week the mom´s boyfriend was really drunk and it seems he gets drunk just about every day. There are some difficulties there but we are moving along. I really hope that they keep progressing. A good experience from this last week would be we got to paint a room for a couple of somewhat less-active members which was great. It was fun and the room looked much better afterward. More than that I don´t know. There was a bad experience. On Saturday we had a zone activity and one of the Elders that is leaving today lost his camera. Better said someone stole it. That was an interesting experience that I will have to tell you later. Well, I love you all and am grateful for your prayers and support. I am happy and having fun and looking forward to what the future has to bring. Have fun, be happy, and don´t doubt anything!

eMail of April 26, 2010

It rained once, hailed really, a week ago Friday. But it is still just getting cold right now. It is cold in the morning and at night and gets dark quick, and hot during the day. I don´t have to use sunscreen anymore though. As for the missionary work right now, things are going really well. Fabian was baptised yesterday and for me it was a rather special experience. When we got there Fabian hadn´t arrived yet. We went looking for him at his house but we learned that he had stayed at his friends house a ways away. We went back still hoping but not knowing if he would come. Suddenly we see him coming and I felt so happy. The baptism went great and everyone left happy. Also another lady Blanca who started coming to Church again said that she wants to get baptised too. She could this coming Sunday but we are going to see when she wants too. This last Saturday we also got to do a service for another investigator family. We fixed up the electricity and put in some lights and switches along with the cieling in their back room. It took most of the day but they gave us lunch and everything. The family is really beginning to open up and I have high hopes for them to get baptised. Anyway I am happy and grateful for everything that you have done for me and your prayers. This is an amazing work and the Church is the true Church of Christ. I love you all and pray that you are all safe and happy.

eMail of April 19, 2010

First of all what I´m not telling you is about someone else, it´s not about me. I am doing great right now. My companion is doing great as well and it doesn´t have to deal with him either. I think it is sufficient to say for now that the Lord is just and wise. I am glad to hear that Deborah is moving forward and taking the Temple classes. She will enjoy the Temple and learn a lot there. As for things I am learning, I must say I keep learning more and more always. This last week I learned a great deal about the Atonement and the power the Lord has to heal. I also learned greater patience and just plain discipline. This last week we did our best to prepare our investigators to come to Church and provided ways for them to get there. However, not one showed up at first. We went looking for several after the Sacrament but none of them would answer or wake up. As the meeting was ending, Fabian finally walked in. Fabian is the investigator that had his prayers answered and everything as I told you before. Before he came I was feeling down as no one had come, and the members that had been commited to bring the investigators either forgot or didn´t come either. But when I saw him I felt an immense joy and peace. Several times I started thinking bad about the investigators and members, saying to myself that they really aren´t reliable, but I decided just to try and be patient, and was rewarded for it. Well, I love you all and pray that you are happy and protected. I pray that Randy enjoys his mission and does his best. It brings me joy to know that he is finally going.

eMail of April 12, 2010

I hope that Ariel gets better quick. That has got to be difficult especially during the school year. As for Marc I´m sure he will get the project done. He works hard and doesn´t let up till he´s done. My week went well. None of our investigators are progressing though which is frustrating at times but we are moving along. My comp this last week got his "trunky papers," the papers to fill out that say how you are going home and everything. They have already bought his airline tickets and everything and he got his itenerary today. As for some experiences, yesterday we had an interesting one. For some reason the MTC here in Chile came to the other ward for sacrament meeting. It was an interesting sight to see 20 or more Elders walk in suddenly. The MTC President here spoke with us for a minute, President Kemp. His son is going to the Concepción South mission, but had to stay in our mission for a few weeks because the mission couldn´t receive more missionaries because of the earthquake. I guess that today and tomorrow they are receiving 44 missionaries. That would be a nightmare I´m sure. As for another experience, we are going through an interesting one but rather shocking and depressing. I can´t really tell you what´s going on right now but it´s a sad story and I will probably tell you later. Anyway, I love you all and hope that you are doing well. Thank you for your love and support.

eMail of March 29, 2010

I had a good week this last week. We had a great ward activity and one of our investigators, Fabian, said that he wants to get baptised and everything. He now just has to work on his schedule to be able to come to Church. He says he should be able to from this week and on. There is a great story going along with that too. I asked him on Friday if he believed in the Book of Mormon, and why. He gave his conversion story and testimony. He said that a few years ago he had learned that a friend of his that lives in Spain was diagnosed with an advanced brain tumor. He prayed that she would heal and be okay. Nothing had happened for a while, and the possibility that she wouldn´t survive treatment and everything was around 75%. These last weeks he has been reading and praying to know whether the Book of Mormon is true. He just learned that from one day to the next his friend´s tumor had completely disappeared. He said that it was an answer to all of his prayers. It´s an amazing story and I´m grateful to have been here to hear it.

The Lord loves each and every one of us and knows what´s best for us in the long run. As for the weather it´s just hot. It´s gone back to normal really. Down south though it will be starting to rain soon. The Church News website talks about that, trying to get temporary homes ready before the rainy season hits. It won´t be a problem here as there is very little real damage. Only a few buildings took serious damage. They were all newer ones too.

Anyway, I am excited for Conference this coming week and hope that everyone enjoys it. I love all of you and pray that you continue to be protected, blessed and have fun.

eMail of March 22, 2010

We did have a great week in the end, although my companion has been sick. With the little extra time I had the opportunity to study a lot. I´ve read the last couple of weeks Isaiah and Dueteronomy through 1st Samuel. I learned a lot, especially about the consequences of sin and disobeying the Lord. The Lord really does require exact obedience to all His commandments.

I am glad to hear that the play went so well. Marc will be okay as well.

As for everything else we have about six people we really feel can and want to be baptised right now. We are working on getting them ready now. We also just had changes, or transfers. I stayed with my companion for the first time, nearly a year and a half in. We are doing great and I am learning a lot.

As for some great experiences, we´ve gotten to teach several great lessons and such. Probably the most rewarding experience this week was at Church. None of our investigators came that we had been working with, but suddenly an old investigator that should have been baptised before I got here came to Church for the first time since the beginning of December. Seeing her there I felt great and really happy, and she seems really exited about everything again. While there she asked for a priesthood blessing and we got to help her with it with another brother in the ward. Everyone said hi and she felt really welcome. The earthquake she said scared her a little and now she wants to get baptised.

The Lord truly does work in amazing ways. I can honestly say that baptisms in a mission are not dependant so much on the missionary. The Lord will bring who he will to the Church regardless. There are other forms of success that are really more important and dependant on the missionary. I am grateful to be here and looking forward to what is to come this next month and a half. I am excited for General Conference as well in a couple of weeks.

Well, I love you all and hope that you continue to be protect and lifted up by the Lord. I pray that you are happy.

eMail of March 15, 2010

Every week seems to be busy, but moving faster and faster. It´s hard to believe I´ve been with my current companion for 5 weeks already. Time just keeps moving blindingly fast.

As for the aftershocks everyone is okay. We actually happened to be in our weekly zone class at the Chapel at that moment. Probably the safest place to be in an earthquake. We are doing well in every aspect. Last night the power went out just as we were ending the day and as I was talking with a devout Catholic, apparently in most of the country. The power came back really quick but still it was interesting. We could see the Milky Way for a time which was great, the first time in months. In fact, the power came on just as we got into our apartment after climbing the 14 flights of stairs.

As for the investigators and everything we are working on getting them to progress. We have several that want to get baptised and others that are continuous. There are a lot of kids popping up right now as well. We should be getting a few baptisms really quick here.

I had a funny experience this last week. We were walking down the street and a drunk stopped us and yelling at us told us to go home to our country. He made us stop and started swearing like crazy and trying to tell us we were stupid and didn´t know what we were doing. He got up in my face and stuff but I could tell he really didn´t know what he was doing. In the end he asked us for money and then left in a rage because we didn´t have any. Anyway, I found it funny as it was just a classic drunk that just wanted to get angry at someone.

As for some good experiences I have seen the gospel in action in several peoples lives and we are being led to people that really need our help and want the gospel. Today while grocery shopping a lady stopped us, asked us for our number and said that she was going to need help with some things within the next few days. It´s really amazing the gospel and this work. Probably the best thing this week has been reading in Isaiah. I learned a lot about Christ and everything. There is another name for Christ in Isaiah and a lot of symbolism with it, as well as the symbolism of Zion and Jerusalem.

Well, I love you all and am grateful for you. I pray that you all are happy and safe. Love you!

eMail of March 8, 2010

This last week was a very interesting week. We weren´t able to get too much done actually but I am excited to get working. There are some old investigators that want to start coming back again and everything. It could very well be true that this month will be a high baptising month [referring to sentiments of his mission president].

As for the aftermath we are feeling tremors all the time and we are returning to our apartment today. In our sector our building had the most damage with the ceilings and everything. There are no problems with the water, food or anything.

As for some good experiences I must say it was fun living in my first house for a week with my second comp Elder Maruri as well. I went by a couple of converts one day and got to teach a lesson with another which was great. Probably the best day of the week was yesterday. There was a sattelite transmission for an area conference of Chile. Elder Bednar and President Monson spoke. Elder Bednar talked about receiving the stregnth of the Lord through the Atonement and how it will give us strength beyond our own. President Monson also had a great talk. They gave a message of calm and hope to the people and I hope they receive it. He also talked about bringing back all the less-actives that are not coming to Church. The thing is Chile has an inactivity of more than 80%, nearly 90%. There is only so much us missionaries can do, and our main job is to baptise new people into the Church.

As for myself I am learning a great deal about interacting with other people and stuff. I did have an interesting experience the other day though, yesterday in fact. We went with a large group of missionaries on last notice to a family that was moving out of their apartment. As we were just finishing up moving everything into the truck the Landlady came and started saying that the family was robbing her and hadn´t payed two months of rent. She was going into the house and the two kids told her to go away but she pushed them. She kept going and the mom came and pulled her hair, and a man impersonating a cop for the Landlady grabbed her hand. Meanwhile there are two real cops out on the street trying to figure out what was going on. The Landlady got desperate and pulled one of the Elders in the house with her and locked the door. I didn´t leave at that point to stay near him. The kids and the mom left to talk to the cops and the lady finally let the other Elder out but kept asking us to be witnesses to the whole thing. Turns out she didn´t even have a contract for the apartment, had brought a fake cop and lawyer with her and was just trying to get the best of the family. We left and helped them finish. Needless to say, it was interesting. Nothing bad happened and nothing is going to happen with us but still, people are willing to get anyone and everyone involved in things that don´t have to deal with them. I was calm during the whole thing though.

This last week I have seen an incredible strength and patience that I don´t remember having. Anyway, I love you all and hope that everything goes well with the play this week. I am happy to know that you are all doing well and pray that you are happy. Love you!

--
Elder David Skiles

Earthquake Update (eMail of March 1, 2010)

I´m doing well just so you all know. Attached are a couple pictures of the damage. There is more but this is what I have. The earthquake hit about 3:15 in the morning here. I had just woken up for nothing and was laying there when it started. My first thoughts were "here it is". About two weeks before the mission received info on earthquakes and what we should do just in case. We joked around saying that the Church was predicting a quake. But it really happened. The building started moving like crazy to the point that I wasn´t able to stand up. I just stayed where I was being a little bit away from everything. It lasted for a minute and a half and everything was moving like crazy. The building was moving several feet, probably up to 6 or 8 feet. As it was slowing down we heard a few crashes and the plaster ceiling outside our door fell down, with some other stuff. The building was still moving for several minutes afterward and several feet. During the whole thing we saw a bunch of transformers blow up as well.

In the end there wasn´t any serious damage but we were still told to leave at least until the aftershocks are all over. The plate moved a lot. We still feel some tremors every now and then.

As for investigators and converts everyone is okay. There wasn´t too much damage in other parts. In fact yesterday went great. Sebastian and Hortenzia came with the three children which hasn´t happened before. Another two investigatores came and half the people at the baptism weren´t members. Camila Díaz of nine years was baptized. From the baptism several people were left with more desires to listen and we have some good futures now. I am really hoping that everything continues to go well. Right now we have all we need.

There are possibilities that the wate[r may be contaminated.] I am grateful to be here and even more so to have the protection of the Lord with me. I know He loves us. Today we have a mission Family Home Evening so I think we´re going to learn some more today about everything. I just want you all to know that I am safe, that we are doing well and having success. Thank you for your prayers and support and don´t worry. The Lord is God.
--
Elder David Skiles

Earthquake Update - March 1, 2010 AM

The following is an email sent to family from David's mother.

I just got an email from David with permission to call him, after several tries I was able to reach him. He is fine. They have moved out of their apartment for now--it is on the 14th floor and the ceiling in the hall is partly down. It was hard to hear everything--his voice cut out every few seconds so some of this is a guess--he will email with more details later. The inside of their apartment is fine but they are living with other elders for at least the next week until damage in the building is assesed, cleaned up ect. One set of Elders on the first floor have cracks in their floor and have moved out completely, I don't know if it is the same building or not. Those two were a little scratched up in getting out of the building. David said he was afraid at first but quickly felt calm. If I heard him correctly he said he realized if the building was coming down being on the 14th floor he wouldn't be able to get out. They could see the buildings around them swaying 3 to 4 feet side to side after it was over. He said he would not have been able to walk around during the quake it was moving too much. After the quake they left the building to look around and see if help was needed anywhere around them but people seemed to be fine--not a lot of damage where he is. They had a baptism yesterday in cold water since there was no electricity. For now they are just on a normal schedule. Some metro routes are not running but most are. It sounds like Concepcion is really the area that has been hit hard. David did say the stores are packed with people buying up supplies. It was such a relief to hear his voice and know what is going on. Three weeks ago the mission sent out instructions to all the Missonaries on the protocols for what to do in case of an earthquake specifically or an emergency in general so they all knew what to do. He had not heard that the Angel Moroni on the Temple lost his trumpet--that was in a Salt Lake City newspaper. Now I can rest easy but I will still be praying for those who have sons in Concepcion where there is a lot of damage and looting going on. Thanks for your prayers.

eMail of February 22, 2010

That´s great to hear that Eric is going on a mission. Chiuaua Mexico. I´m not sure how to spell it either but I´m sure he is going to have fun. That is great to hear that Marc got in to BYU. Sometimes the trial of faith takes longer than we would like it too.

As for me the President gave me the okay with the scholarship. He said he would send a letter of recomendation and everything. I am also happy to hear that Caleb had a good start already. It´s almost hard to believe that Caleb is already in Junior High.

As for my side of things, it was a good week. We got a lot done and had success. We have around four people that have already decided on getting baptised and several more in the process. Fabian wasn´t able to come to Church so he´ll have to wait till next month, but this coming Sunday we may have a baptism still. The couple that need to get married still need to get married. Nothing really has changed recently but we are trying to work with them. Just the same I hope they will come around.

As for some experiences, well the best one was probably with a less active lady. She was from farther north and had recently gone through a period of great stress and anxiety. The problem was that she had gone to therapy and the therapists had told her some crazy stuff. When she talked to us she said that she believed wholly in reincarnation and that she was in her seventh life already and that there are these "Big Brothers" that live in UFO´s above us in the sky, and that when Jesus Christ ascended into the sky he was brought up in a UFO. It was crazy. But we explained to her the gospel and its principles and in the end she accepted the message and changed completely. It felt good to be able to help someone change and have a stronger testimony in Christ.

Every day I stregnthen my testimony and learn more. I am grateful to be here and I am also grateful for all you have done for me. I hope that you are all happy and enjoying life. I love you all and pray that you are all right.

eMail of February 15, 2010

Happy Valentines Day! I love you all too!

This last week has been a great week. We are moving along well and having success. Fabian a youth of 21 years came to Church yesterday and is getting ready to be baptised. We have a bunch of other people getting ready as well. Personally I am learning how to be more focused on baptising and helping people accept the restored gospel. It really is a difficult process to forget yourself and go to work.

As for some other experiences to share from this week, yesterday I got to see a convert, Raul, from Puente Alto 1 my second ward. It was great to see him and talk with him. It is a joy to see someone learn the gospel, change their lives and continue faithful.

I really hold on to and testify of the promise in D&C 18. This last week I have also learned a great deal from my companion Elder Wyatt. He is a great teacher and knows his scriptures well. I am happy and grateful to be here, and also grateful for your support. I love you all and pray that you continue to grow and find happiness.

Que el Señor les bendiga y que siempre tengan gozo.

eMail of February 8, 2010

It didn´t even realize that Nathaniel had an opportunity to be a part in the play. That is awesome! I´m sure it will be an excellent play and everyone will enjoy it. I´m glad to hear that my service is blessing the family as well. Truly the Lord loves His children. When I get home I think I will watch the DVD as well. I also have a goal now to listen to all the conference talks possible. I´m going to listen to two a day at least till I catch up again to the current conference, then perhaps go through them again. There are 24 conferences on the internet starting from 1997 and I´m going to start from there. I´m going to figure out a way to listen to them now.

As for everything else, things are going great. I have a new companion, Elder Wyatt from California. He has a month and a half more time than me in the mission. I am greatly looking forward to working with him. It seems to me like the Lord wants us to work hard and raise up the ward even more. Time is going by so fast though.

As for our investigators we have several that are great and about five that can be baptized this month if we put all our heart and soul into it. I really do feel like getting them baptized. We had lots of success with many people this week. Every time we have needed to find and talk with someone we have run into them. The Lord is guiding the work.

A faith-building experience that I had this last week was that during the week I began to get more and more worried about one investigator. We hadn´t been able to teach him for several weeks. I began to pray hard that we would be able to find him and teach him so we could help him progress. On Saturday we went to his house after not having been able to get a hold of him for the whole week. We rung the bell but no one answered for several minutes. Just as we were about to leave, he answered. He had been sleeping all day, he had work off. While there we felt the Spirit and so did he. We learned what we needed to know to help him progress more, and he also learned more about what he needed to do to know if everything is true. It was a great experience and a testimony that God truly does answer prayers, the prayer of faith.

Well, I am grateful to be here and know that we are bringing about a great work. The Lord loves us and wants us to be happy. I love you too and hope that everyone is able to find joy in all that they do.

eMail of February 1, 2010

I had a great week. Constanza was confirmed, Sebastian and Ortenzia are one step away from getting baptised. They can get baptised at any time. We found some excellent news that should progress. Lots of things are going great.

As for some good experiences, we had several. This last week I learned a ton about faith and patience. The best experience I would like to share is when we taught a less-active lady. She couldn´t walk much for her hip and she wanted a blessing. We gave her one then helped her clean up a bit. On Sunday she came to Church walking well. She said she has been able to walk since and has felt much better. We both felt good and she was happy. We also improved in some areas that had been difficult for a long time. Well, I love you all and am grateful to be here. Things are moving along in the Lord´s way and I am learning a great deal. Have fun, be happy, be faithful and obedient.

eMail of January 25, 2010

I had a great week. On Tuesday we took an investigator to have an interview with the Bishop, and after the interview decided to accept the gospel. Yesterday her husband came to Church and asked some things that showed he is preparing to accept baptism as well and he talked about the responsibility he feels. The only problem is that they need to get married, but they both understand why they need to now. We are excited for the family though and we are hoping everything will be said and done here in a couple of weeks.

During Church I met up with a family that I had taught before and a daughter just after I left had gotten baptised. Another lady was baptised from my first ward, someone that I had met and taught a year ago. Back then she was Catholic and said she would attend us but not listen. Now she´s a member. At night we had the baptismal service for Constanza which went very well. In truth all of this was amazing and I feel happy. The Lord continues His work and shows His love. I am grateful to be here. I love you all and would write more, but I am short on time today. I love you and hope that everyone continues to have fun.

Here are some of the pictures of the last few baptisms. The first is Alexandra, the second Cristian and the third Constanza. There are also my last comp and my current one. Enjoy!

eMail of January 18, 2010

The members are feeding us well. I always have sufficient to eat and rarely go hungry for too much time. Usually it´s a feeling of having eaten too much.

As for some experiences, probably the best experience this week was on Friday. Thursday night we were talking with an investigator that wants to get baptised but isn´t married. There was a Stake activity on Saturday to go to the Temple but he had to work, but we decided to set up on Friday a tour with the Sisters in the Temple. So we set it up and the next day called him. He couldn´t go on Friday for a complication but his wife said that she still wanted to go. We went with her and she had a great time. She was asking questions like "how soon after I get baptised can I go to the Temple" and such. In fact as we were leaving, we saw a couple leave the Temple having just been sealed. It went perfectly and the Spirit was strong.

The work is moving forward, and now we just need to help this family become the family the Lord wants it to be. That was really a great experience. I am feeling like they are going to get baptised any time now, they just have to get married.

Truth be told, there are many miracles rolling forth right now in this mission. In one ward an Elder Trumbo, the same one I lived with my second transfer, and Elder Caligari from Urugay already have 5 or 6 baptisms this month. The zone already has more baptisms than it did the whole last transfer half-way through. The mission has doubled the number of baptisms since President Laycock got here. It is truly amazing to me. The Lord is moving forward His work and cutting it short in righteousness.

Personally I feel great and am learning better how to fully give myself over unto the Lord. I´m also learing about the absolute necesity of baptism and the gospel. It is true, if I know anything now, I know it´s true. Through the power of the Holy Ghost I know it is true and through that same power I learn the truth of all things.

Well, I love you all and am glad to hear that you are all doing well. I hope and pray that every one of you continue to learn and have fun. By the way, if you want to know what true joy is, look up the definition in True to the Faith. ¡Chaoito!

eMail of January 11, 2010

I´m glad to hear that everything went so well. That is great that Caleb is going to get his Star. Well, I forgot to bring my camera with me again so I will have to do it next week. But anyhow, I am doing great. We still have a baptism for the 24 and hopefully some more the next week. We are going to have to fight for it though. Most of the baptisms we do are on Sunday.

As for some cool experiences, I must say that this last week I have felt the guidance of the Spirit more than ever. Many great things happened, but also some not so great. The Spirit warned us of a couple things, with out investigators. There was one who gave us a cold shoulder that nearly got baptised just before, but we felt that it was going to happen the day before.

In the other direction, we were looking for people to teach and we thought of a convert that has been less active, so we went by. She wasn´t there but we went next door and met a lady that said that she believes in the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith but has never been baptised. We also had a bunch of references to go by and we went by one during the week, but the girl said that she couldn´t at that moment. I felt good about it so we kept going by after we didn´t find her again. Yesterday we went by and her Mom came out and said that her daughter wasn´t there, but she also said that she is a member that has been inactive for 11 years. Hearing that I felt really good about everything, the family is truly interested in living the gospel and accepting it in their lives. Well, there are a couple of cool experiences with the Spirit.

Also once this week both of us, my comp and I, studied the same subject about the Spirit, without planning it before. The Spirit guided us both to learn about the same thing and it helped our studies so much. I feel so motivated right now and grateful to be here. I am where I need to be and am grateful. I love you all and hope that you can feel the Spirit´s guidance like that always.

eMail of January 4 2010

It seems more like the true reality is over and we just have to come back to earth. The meetings in my ward here are at 11, so we are opposites right now. My first ward here and this ward are both in the Chapel, and so I got to see a bunch of familiar faces. It was great to meet and talk with many of the families and people I had worked with and taught before. I saw Marcos, who was baptised in April last year. I felt so happy to see and talk with him.

I also found out that the mother of a convert that I had taught all that time ago now has a baptismal date for the 24th. I could hardly believe it. She really didn´t want anything to do with the Church being Catholic, but through faith it seems all that has changed. The last time I saw her I decided to ask her why she thought her son had joined the Church. She explained it and I saw some hope. Now its becoming a reality.

I am so grateful to be here. However in the end it seems like I am here for nothing more than to enjoy the ride as the Lord performs His work. All you have to do in the mission is work hard, rely on the Lord, be happy and more than anything love the people. The Lord does the rest. For example yesterday. Yesterday was the baptism of Christian Diaz a 9 year-old whose dad is becoming active again after 11 years. For the baptism we had set up everything and a few things fell through. However, everything was provided for and it went smoothly and powerfully. It was a great spiritual experience. Christian himself ended the service with a prayer, having all his family and many friends there, and said during the prayer that he wanted that
"everyone be baptised like me." His mom started crying who also is inactive for 11 years and everyone was silent and felt the Spirit. It was such a simple and powerful prayer.

Just after the baptism we had to plan a "sector slam," where the whole zone of missionaries came into our sector to tract. Our original plan fell through and couldn´t work, so we improvised to tract the whole section in front of the Church. We had great success and a lot of work to do and people to find. Including we found at least one baptism. One person accepted to be baptised the 24th. It was amazing and I felt like what Nephi must have felt, going into Jerusalem not knowing beforehand what to do.

Sometimes we have just got to do our best, then let the Spirit guide. Truly I am grateful and excited to be here. I hope that everyone is as happy as I am, and that they are growing a testimony as strong as mine. It is a very sure foundation knowing that Jesus is the Christ and following His teachings. I love you all and pray that everything is going well.

Happy New Year!