welcome home elder JD doyle!

Weekly Update 08-22-11

As of right now, it hasn't quite hit me to accept the fact that i am going to be home on Friday. Oh by the way the computer that i am using it's shift button is broken and it only works when it wants to, so please bear with me. My mission has been the most real experience that i have ever had in my life, i know that this work is real and true it is truly the work of the Lord.  i am going to miss the people here in NYC the most, i have truly grown to love the people here so much.

My experiences that I have had here have shaped me and molded my life from being a boy to now being a man, a man built upon the teachings of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. I look forward to sharing my mission experiences with each of you when i return. I am going to miss some of the people that I have been recently been teaching, it looks like this next month we are going to be having about 5 baptisms, so that will be great to hear about, but sad that I wont be able to see.

I look forward to seeing the family at the airport and there may be some people that I have come to love on my mission such as some recent converts that have moved to Utah after they joined the church, one of them will be Josh and Lenni Vargas, they are such a wonderful young married couple that i love so much, they will be friends of mine forever. i am sure that i will be nervous with the whole coming home thing probably the day of or the night before I leave. i will see some of you on the 26th, and some later on, but I do look forward to seeing all of you.  i really don't have much to write this week, as i know I left a promise that I would, but i have a lot to say when i get home and I can tell you the stories instead of typing it. I love you all! see you this week. Invite whoever you want to my homecoming that will be this coming Sunday!

 

 Love Elder JD Doyle

Weekly Update 08-15-11

I am truly touched by the spirit in my life and filled with so much gratitude to my Father in Heaven. He has truly poured out blessings upon me in my life as I have been a missionary for these past 2 years. I know that this change that has taken place in my life will continue to carry forward as I press on in my life always observing the commandments of God and living them. The joy that I have experienced these 2 years are inexplicable, but are feelings that I hope to posses in my heart eternally. Also these 2 years have brought much heartache, sadness, pain, and sorrow. It is something that is expected as I am here laboring for the salvation of souls. My joy is full, I know that I will be home next week and it is a bit crazy to me, but as my mission president has told me this past week. He said that the Lord has given him the sacred opportunity to look into my heart and he knows and is certain that I am ready to make the next step in my life. Hearing him say that filled me with an increase of hope for my future. I know that I am ready for this next step. The foundation of my life has been built, and it has been built strong upon the rock of my savior Jesus Christ.

I look forward to seeing your familiar faces. I know that it will bring great feelings into my heart when I meet my family at the airport. The only thing is that I am not going to be able to see my best friend in the world, my great brother Tyler, I love you bro! I know that he is still embarking in a great work, and in some ways I am sad that I am about out of time doing this work 24/7. I have made some great friends here in NYC, and have brought souls unto Christ. That alone makes it worth it even if it was one soul that I have brought unto Him, but my joy is immensely filled as I have brought many unto him through repentance and baptism. I really don't have much time, but I love you all. I will try to make my next weeks a bit better. Right now I am at a Chinese place and it is all in Chinese so I cant tell how much time I have left.

 

LOVE YOU ALL!!             Elder JD Doyle

Weekly Update 08-08-11

I truly dont have much time for todays update, but I will do my best. Lately has been truly a rewarding experience for me I have been reflecting upon the many miracles that I have been a partaker of throughout my mission. This week has helped me with that as I had my departing Mission Home stay with President and Sister Nelson and the missionaries that I came out with. I love the people here so much that is one thing that I am sad about, that I have truly come to love the people here soooo much and now I have to leave them soon.

I will not miss the loud noise that NYC brings, I wont miss the heartaches that come into my heart when people just wont accept the gospel and we have to let them be. I have noticed the ones who are the hardest to love on my mission have been the ones that have needed it the most. I never would have thought that my mission would have been such a battle, but it has been one that I am willing to fight any time because of the joy that it brings. Despite all of this I will remember all of the many people that I have taught. This weekend I was able to attend a baptism of Shaneeza Dass, Kevin and Melissa's mom from Jamaica, she told me that she misses me the most and she thanked me for the blessing that the gospel has brought into her life, but I told her to thank God. I talked to her husband Andrew, he told me that he was going to be getting baptized, but he needs some time. The family is almost complete, when I was in Jamaica we baptized Kevin and later we baptized Melissa, now the Mother is baptized and soon to be the father. The great reward will be when they are all sealed in the temple and become an eternal family. 

I will always remember these people here, I will miss the NY Pizza, I will miss making friends with the homies on the streets, I will miss declaring the sacred gospel message all day everyday, I will miss the diversity found here in NYC, I will miss spending time with my companions. I can go on and on, but most importantly my mission has changed me it is a miracle. I know that I am not the person who I once was.

As of right now for the work here in Flushing, the family that I was supposed to baptize just left to Florida for the rest of this month and they will be back in September so, I will just have to hear about the news when I get back to UT. We still have a few others that we are working with, but I am going to just keep my faith and keep working hard and I know that the Lord will make up the rest, but most importantly I will be happy as I am working my hardest. My studies have been my favorite part lately I have been loving the spirit that comes as I diligently seek the scriptures.

Well I am like out of time for this week now and I have to go. I love you all!!!

 

Elder JD Doyle

Weekly update 08-01-11

Everyone here has been constantly reminding me that I am going home from the members to the missionaries, I always feel sick whenever I hear about it. It is just so hard for me to let this full time service come to an end real soon. It has been an eternal blessing in my life, I know that I have changed so much as a person. The spirit will continually be my influence in my life in all things that I do. I really dont have that much time to e-mail today, but I am going to finish strong.

Elder Munday and I are loving our time that we have to serve together, I seriously love him so much. This week I have eaten a ton of fun stuff like Jelly fish, snail, and octopus. I love that about Flushing. The members are throwing a going away party for me on the 22nd, I am happy to see their appreciation for me as I have served here. I am staying in the mission home tomorrow night because the first group of missionaries are going home on Wednesday, so I am doing all of my departing stuff early. Well I am out of time I love you all. See you all soon!

Elder JD DOYLE

Weekly Update 7-25-11

This past week has been a big week of reflection and satisfaction from the Spirit of the Lord that has carried into my heart with feelings of love, joy, peace, and pure happiness. This past week we had our departing temple trip in which we usually don't have those until the end of the transfer right before we go home, but the temple is going to be closed for cleaning. As we were within the temple with President Nelson, he told our group that we have all served honorable missions. It was weird hearing those words, because I went into the temple more pondering about these next 5 weeks that I have left.

I am so happy to be back in Flushing, and to be received by the members with such great love, they seem to be so happy and grateful to have me back. I love the work here so much. I was able to go to the temple for baptisms for the dead with my recent convert from Egypt Abdel Wahab Ahmed Muhammad Ahamed known as Bob Tut. He is doing so well it was so great to see him here staying strong in the church, and was blessing the sacrament. It was also great to hear and see Anita Ngo my other recent convert fulfilling her calling as Secretary of the Relief Society. They are both doing so well, I love them so much. This is truly some of the greatest joys that I have ever felt in my life to see the Spirit of the Lord enter into ones life and change them forever.

Right now my companion and I teach so very powerfully together there is something very special about our companionship, at transfer meeting Elder Doxey (one of the assistants to the president) pulled me aside and said if there is any companionship in the mission that was inspired it was yours. It felt great to hear that, I have not only seen that in the way we teach together, but he is good friends with Jake Cooper, and he knows Tyler, my little bro. They have hung out quite a few times. He would have never thought in his life that he would be companions on his mission with Tylers older Bro. We have a lot of fun together, and are excited to do the work. We both feel that we have been prepared in our lives spiritually to now be companions on our missions at this point in our lives. He is currently on his 3rd transfer and still has a lot of time left, but it is my desire to teach him everything that I know about the work to help him be the best missionary that he possibly can become in these next 2 years.

I was given permission by President Nelson to go to Melissa Dass' surprise B-day party, her mom really wanted me to be there because I was her first missionary, and I baptized her. She is amazing, her and Kevin have completely changed. There was a lot of members from the ward at their home with all of the missionaries in the Jamaica area, it was great to be there and to see them. I had to say bye for now,  but I will have to see them when I make a trip back out to NYC in the hopefully near future. I will miss all of these wonderful people here, but I will do my best to stay in touch with all of them throughout my life.

I know that this church is true, I know it. I am so grateful to know these things, I know that there are many people that are hungering for the truth, and know not where to find it. I have found many people on my mission who are as them, but I am continually seeking to find those who have been prepared in their lives to receive and accept the fullness of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that Christ is my savior that his very drops of blood was spilt for me, and for all of us. I truly feel his love in my life so powerfully and I have changed forever, and will never be the man who I was when I left on my mission, but continually strive on this uphill progression to enter in the presence of my Loving Father in Heaven. I love you all and wish you all the best!

 

Elder JD Doyle