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.