You Are Loved

 Dear Friends! 

The joys of doing missionary work washed over me in full force this week. It is difficult to describe the profound feelings of my heart, suffice it to say, they are wonderful and many. All the travails of my mission thus far were all worth this week. 

And the best part is, there were no astonishing or miraculous occurrences. No serendipitous displays of power. To any onlooker it would have seemed standard relative to my experiences so far. And yet to me it meant the world. The small simple truths of what I teach, sunk in a little further. The wells of my heart got a little deeper. The breadth of my perspective got a little wider. And the joy, peace, hope, and love that have filled my life are unspeakable and tangible. My true desire is that all can partake of what I have discovered. And that's why I'm a missionary :).

This week we met up with a lot of old friends and made some new ones. One old friend of ours had out in the open space of his home, a line of crack cocaine. Mostly I just thought to myself…nice. We did our best to instruct him on the spiritual rationale for keeping our bodies healthy and helped him set some reasonable goals. 

Another friend we reunited with after a long time, informed us of some serious personal trials of faith that she was experiencing. As we ministered unto her, mourned with her, and showed genuine love and compassion towards her, the softening of her heart towards us and God was visible. As was the invisible burden upon her back becoming lighter as she allowed Christ to shoulder its crushing weight.

We engaged in a fascinating conversation with a man who was wholly devoted to his own theology. Though our views differed, his perspective was thoroughly instructive, and provided new insights within my own beliefs that I could scarcely have imagined. His own devotion and passion to his values was motivating and has helped me dig deeper into mine.

There's so many more experiences I would love to share but for the sake of your time and mine I will conclude with a simple but moving sentiment conveyed in the 8th chapter of Romans.

38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I testify with Paul of this truth. You are loved. "Today, in twenty years, and forever." I love that doctrine. And I know it to be true with everything that I am and all that I profess to be. I pray that you all can come to understand the reality of this transformative and fundamental truth.

And now some songs for you all. Because none of you would take my Dad's recommendations seriously, now you're obligated to by a servant of the Lord. ;)

You In. Everything–Gang of Youths

Forbearance–Gang of Youths

Heart is a Muscle–Gang of Youths

Thank you for your support to me in my efforts. It means everything to me. 

Love yall lots. See you soon.

Elder Winegar

You Are Loved

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

To Every Thing There is a Season

Hello my good ol' savvy crew,

I love what I am doing here more than anything in the world. And I'm sure a lot of missionaries say that but I really, truly mean it. I've seen growth in myself and relief to others that I never would've dreamed was possible. I cherish my time here. 

But unfortunately the work we do is not always glamorous or exciting or even very profound. Yet assuredly, "To every thing there is a aseason, and a btime to every purpose under the heaven:" 

We helped our classic Southern Grandmother, Mama Vega, take down her Christmas decorations. It ended up being quite the ordeal but we persevered and she is now ready for spring decor.

We had dinner one night with a friend of ours from Ghana, named Reggie, and some of his kids. We taught a really cute (or at least I thought it was…) object lesson for them with a spoon, two oranges, a large cup full of water, and ten Starburst. I'll leave the rest to your imagination.

We met a few souls who weren't interested in talking about Christ with us, but who were really sweet and still chatted for a few minutes. We were sure they knew how grateful we were for their kindness.

Sometimes it's difficult to push forward through monotony and uncertainty. It has been for me as a missionary. But I am motivated by the truths that I teach, and the remarkable, transformative power of Christ that begins to flow into their lives because of them. We have been taught,"God loves us as we are, but He also loves us too much to leave us this way. Growing up unto the Lord is what mortality is all about. Change is what Christ's Atonement is all about. Not only can Christ resurrect, cleanse, console, and heal us, but through it all, He can transform us to become more like Him."

I have seen these transformations in the lives of the people we teach. In their lives and in their homes there is a tangible increase of "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance."And these, the greatest of all gifts, are offered freely by Christ unto any who will receive them. And so my invitation to you is the same as to all the world, "Come unto Christ, and be perfected in him." If you don't quite think you know how to do that, I know some guys who can help ;). I promise you greater happiness awaits you in this endeavor than you have ever experienced before.

I love you very much. Never forget it.

A tune.

Vagabond–Wolfmother

Farwell,

Elder Winegar

To Every Thing There is a Season

Tuesday, March 15, 2022

That's Life

 I hope Elder Winegar doesn't mind but I snuck in an extra pic again this week, sent from a member in Monterey with an expression of love for him and his companion 

What's up,

 

Though the slope of spiritual growth and joy in Missionary service seems to be generally increasing, there are certainly ups and downs. But having an eternal perspective is a great blessing. I can say like an old friend, "That's Life" when the hard things inevitably come my way.

 

I'd like to thank you all for your birthday wishes, I greatly appreciated them. I felt so very loved which is truly the greatest gift of all. I will make a good effort to respond to all of you but I cannot promise success. Keep your eyes peeled for emails next p-day…

 

An update, I've been drinking about 4 cups of various herbal teas a day. 

 

A man I met this week named Gary deepened my understanding of Faith and Hope. He is struggling with Cancer and upon asking him how he bears the weight of that burden he said, "I pray, I love God, and I trust that what he wants to happen will happen." What a principle. That if we seek truth, if we seek righteous paths, if we love God with all that we are, whatever he knows is best for us, will happen.

 

In a talk by Elder Nelson last October, he said "Through literature, music, and art, the Savior Jesus Christ has often been referred to as the Balm of Gilead because of His remarkable healing power." While I wish to talk about this healing power in a moment, I also want to talk about an experience I had learning about the Savior through a unique medium. As an astonishingly generous birthday gift, a group of extremely talented musicians covered some hymns to give me a wider variety of musical accessibility. Not only did I appreciate the Christlike kindness of the gesture but through the art they created the spirit was amplified and I learned things about my Redeemer in a completely new way that I never had before. I am infinitely grateful for all that we can learn through the God-given gifts of artistic people. 

 

Throughout the Scriptures we can learn of Christ's "remarkable healing power." In all His ministering to the people of various nations, at various times, he has always worked mighty miracles of healing. Some of the most well known scriptural accounts are those of His healing of the Lepers, the Lame, and the Blind. But perhaps even more miraculous and profound is His unique ability to "healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." He can heal us from the deep mental and emotional wounds of trauma, the seemingly undiminishing pains of betrayal, and even from the guilt and shame that stems from our own grievous errors and transgressions. Christ himself has asked each of us "will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you?" Brothers, Sisters, and Friends, I plead with you, let Him heal you. His heart is filled with compassion and his bowels filled with Mercy towards you. He loves you and everything He does is for your benefit. I promise you that if you'll seek His healing, strengthening power with diligence and real intent, you will find it.

 

I love you, I pray for you, and I hope you have a marvelous week.

 

Some tunage for you,

 

Harmony Hall--Vampire Weekend

I Won't Let Up--Rostam, Hamilton Leithauser

 

God be with you till we meet again.

 

Elder Winegar

That's Life

Tuesday, March 8, 2022

Happy Birthday Elder Winegar

Happy Birthday to one of our favorite Missionaries, Brothers, Cousins, etc...

We love you!

 

Happy Birthday Elder Winegar

Wednesday, March 2, 2022

Old Friends

Hullo,


Hey I hope you had a good week and that this week has started off right for you. If not, it's gonna be alright. Sometimes life is tough but we are always promised brighter days ahead. Never stop expecting brighter days.

I met some really interesting people out on the streets this week. And I found that this week, that more often than not, I was the one taught something by the people I met. In a variety of ways. I love how much we have to learn from one another and know that there is so much we can learn each time our path converges with someone else's. God didn't create us to be here alone. We all have each other. That's beautiful to me.

This week I also had the most fire egg custard buns from this Chinese restaurant called Jim's. The food is spectacular and the lady who runs it is SO nice. A must if you are ever passing through Seaside.

One of my favorite experiences this week and maybe of my mission so far was a little service project we did for a woman named Brooke. She had met missionaries in the past and told us she didn't really want to hear what we had to talk about. But upon offering our services to help spruce up her condo's cool little patio garden, she happily accepted. We scheduled a time to go over and work when we weren't in our "nice white shirts" as she put it. Upon our return we helped for a few hours to clean, and prune out some of the dead things in her garden and tidy up her storage locker. Afterwards she asked us if we could stay for lunch. We told her we'd love too, and we had a fun little lunch and teatime out on her porch.

Before we left she asked if we could leave with a prayer and we responded by asking if she would be willing to offer it. She said yes and proceeded to give a short but very genuine prayer of gratitude. As we finished, we opened our eyes and she was weeping. She told us that we would never know how much it meant to her that we would spend our time helping her.

We didn't teach or instruct her in any capacity. We didn't even expect to. We just went to serve and love her and it meant more to her than anything else ever could. That is the Savior's way. To love without any reservation or expectation of reciprocation. That is a powerful truth.
This week we went and visited a lot of old friends and what impressed me once again was how the Spirit will speak to the heart of anyone who is truly seeking. Whether they are searching for truth, hope, repose, or greater faith, God will send his spirit to those who are diligent, humble, and sincere.

With Moroni I seek to "show unto you a God of miracles" and testify that "God has not ceased to be a God of miracles." The struggles and sorrows of morality can have great and devastating power that can leave us feeling completely desolate. But I can promise you that God has not forgotten us, that he can literally enable us to do the impossible, to work miracles. Christ taught, "whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you." When we are seeking miracles, we must always remember that God can do anything for us, but he will do that "which is right" for us. God may not answer our cry in exactly the time, or in exactly the way that we want. But he knows better than anyone else what we need, not merely to be happy, but to grow. I know that "God listens to all His children’s sincere prayers, and heaven is open to all—not just a few."

"ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." Never stop seeking miracles.

Phew sorry she's a long one today. Thanks for taking the time. I love you. Stay strong.

Here's a song.
Maybe You're the Reason--The Japanese House



Elder Winegar

Old Friends