Weekly Update 04-11-11

The Lord truly loves His children. I am grateful to be a personal witness of His great love that He has for all of His children. This week He has blessed us and the lives of those whom we are working with. We have a lot of great success in the near future. We have Betina who is from Haiti. She was actually caught in the big earthquake that they had there about a year and a half ago. She was in school and the school fell on top of her, and she was stuck under the rubble for many hours, she has scars on her arms from the destruction. We now have been teaching a great family, we invited them to be baptized on Saturday, they said that they want their children to be baptized. We will continue to work with the parents and are hoping that we can baptize the children and the parents on Easter Sunday. That will be a big day for us, with Betina and the Dass family all being baptized on that special day.

Right now we have a lot of great people that we are working with and are hoping that we can have a lot of great baptisms in the near future. This transfer is coming to a close and I feel strong that I am going to be staying here in Jamaica. We still have 2  weeks left in this transfer so yeah. The work is moving and we are motivated to do well.

It is now coming to my last stretch on my mission, I will definitely sprint to the finish and work my very hardest, I know that this is what it takes to receive spiritual power in this work and there are great miracles that will follow. I am excited to work hard, and I feel an increase of motivation that I haven't felt for the past 2 transfers, maybe it is because I have been studying every morning at 5:30 AM the past 2 transfers because I had to take a test for college. I am now finished and it feels great. I know that I did well and my future college education is all planned out. 

I have to get going now. I love you all and I hope the best for each of you.

Elder JD Doyle

Weekly Update 04-04-11

    This weekend has been an incredible one for me personally, it is my prayer that most of you if not all of you feel the same, as the influence of the Spirit was powerfully carried into my heart as I intently listened to the words of counsel that has been given to the world. I can truly say with honesty of heart that I now know my Savior Jesus Christ even better than before. I now know of the true importance of seeking an eternal companion and not procrastinating taking one of the Lords chosen daughters to His house and there be sealed for time and all eternity. This is my desire and I know it is in the near future.

    We had a lot of investigators come and attend conference this past weekend and I know that they all felt the spirit in a special way as they each have expressed their gratitude towards us by inviting them to attend. Our work is definitely on an uphill rise as our teaching pool is growing and as we are continually striving to work harder and do better day after day. I know this is my calling to share His gospel with the Lord for as long as I live. This church is true, and I will declare that His church has been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith. Anyone can know this as they specifically pray in faith to our Loving Father about His restored church. 

     I cannot and will not hide the things that I know, this is the truth and the joy that enters into ones life as they apply the teachings to their life that is found in the fullness/restored Gospel. This same joy is what I desire for all to experience and that is why I am here doing this sacred work.

     I cant believe that I have sent a letter out every week of my mission. I look forward to doing this every week. This week is going to be a short one. I love you all and I pray that you all may be able to reflect again on the inspired heaven sent messages that were given this past weekend. 

Love, Elder JD Doyle

Weekly Update 03-28-11

There is a very special opportunity that we all have to partake of this coming weekend. The Prophet of the Lord is going to speak to the world. I am so grateful and I look forward to hear from these inspired chosen servants of the Lord. I am a little sad that this is the last time that I am going to hear from these prophets of God while I am on my mission. It has all gone by so quickly. I am saddened, but at the same time I have a lot of faith and confidence for my future. 

As I have been praying a lot my faith is in the Lord and His will and none else. I know that he has a distinct individual plan for me and it is my will to follow His plan. I know that it is my calling to share the Gospel throughout the rest of my life. I feel that I have found such great power and love in this gospel that I am obligated to share it with the world and all ears that can hear my voice that speak my language. I will declare the truth with boldness and with power. This church is true brothers and sisters, I absolutely love it that I have come to this sure knowledge and sure understanding, yet I take no credit for it, but give my full thanks to the Lord for him revealing these truths to me with such great power. I have received the convincing evidence from the Lord that this is His church. 

This week I encourage each of you to ponder what it is that you may question about the church or whatever it may be, as you pray with sincerity I know that as you listen to the words of counsel that will be given this weekend that your questions will be answered. I am running low on time. So I have to get going soon. I love each of you so much, as I say that every week, but it is true and my love for all of you is real. 

     ELDER JD DOYLE  

Weekly Update 03-14-11

     Hello everyone, once again I am going to be short  this week. I want you all to know that the Lord is truly watchful for his children here in this part of the Lord. Our work is starting to progress further. Yesterday we baptized Rickyna, she is an 11 year old daughter of a Less Active, but now active member of the Church. This weekend was a miracle we got a media referral Aida Lee, requesting a free Bible. I gave her a call the next day and she said that she wanted six Bibles. We set up an appointment with her for this past Saturday. As we knocked on the door I felt such a great feeling enter into my heart and I was filled with a powerful amount of comfort. Troy (her husband) came to the door, and he was very sincere about welcoming us into his home. We sat down with both of them and talked to them about the Bible, and then about the Book of Mormon, they were so very interested and understood that the Lord had children in other places of the world such as here in the ancient Americas. They are interested in learning more about the message that we share, we explained that not everything can be learned all at once. They are hungering to know more, we are so excited to teach them, we have another appointment set up to teach their family this week. They have 4 children and 3 of them are over the age of 8. 

     The work here is amazing, I love New York City, and I know that this is one of my callings that I have been called to for the rest of my life, I will continue to be a missionary forever. This is the least that I can do, and the Lord has truly showed forth his power unto me in a remarkable way as I have been here on my mission. I have changed and have seen others change through power that is not of me but of God alone. I know that I have been called to a great work, and I know that each of us that have come to the knowledge of the truth have the same responsibility to share the things that they know with everyone that they possibly can. This is the truth and I know it, and I know that the Lord will give me the power and ability to share it with others for the rest of my life. 

     This is all that I can do today. I love you all! My time is short and I really don't have much time left here, and I look forward to seeing each of you when I return!

 

     Elder JD Doyle 

Weekly Update 03-07-11

     Hello everyone, I really don't have much time today, but I do want to take the time to talk a little bit about having an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ that came and spoke to us missionaries this weekend. We had Elder Neil L. Anderson, Ronald A. Rasband President of the seventy, and 1st counselor of the Presiding Bishopric Bishop Edgely all of them came and spoke to us. The Spirit was so strong. My experience was amazing. When Elder Anderson got up and spoke to the mission he asked a few questions he asked what will make your missions a sacred time in your life that you can remember for the rest of your life.  and I raised my hand and he called on me to speak and I spoke out to the mission and I said that our missions will be a measured based upon how much we are willing to sacrifice ourselves for this sacred work, and based upon that same sacrifice it will be followed by much miracles and blessings in the work. I said something like that, he then looked down at my name tag and spoke about what I have said and mentioned that what I have said is true, and he testified of the things that I said, It just felt so great to hear him speak and to have been moved upon by the spirit to share those words that the Spirit of the Lord put into my heart.

     This weekend we are supposed to have a baptism on Sunday for Rickyna Martin. We are happy for her and working on her. She is a daughter of a less active member, who has now been coming to church for the last 4 out of 5 weeks. So yeah that is great for her and their family. Well I need to go home and get ready. We were playing basketball all day. So yeah I have to go now. I love you all and I am so grateful for this work. This is the greatest time of my life. I am so happy to be here. 

    Well I have to go now. Love Elder JD DOYLE

Weekly Update 2-28-11

     Ok so today I really dont have much time at all so I have to hurry as fast as I can. Bro, I am with you on that one I absolutely love the Haitian food. It is amazing, and I hope that one day you all can have the opportunity to try it sometime, it is my favorite.  This week has been great for us. We are still working on building a stronger teaching pool. It has been a little rough, when we came into the area there wasnt much going so this transfer has been a time of building the teaching pool and getting in with the members. So yeah... We have one person  that is close to being baptized her name is Rikyna, she is a young lady who is a daughter of a member, she is 11 years old. So we are hoping that we can get her baptized in this next little bit. She is great, but her mom is the hold back right now, so we have switched our focus over to working with the mom better. 

     So this weekend we are going to have Neil L. Anderson come and speak to us, we are so excited. I know that he will give us powerful words of counsel that will be heaven sent. I love this, we are also going to be hearing from Elder Rasband President of the Seventy. Well I really have to go now I know this kinda stinks a bit, but I have to go. I love you all so much! 

Elder JD Doyle 

Weekly Update 02-21-11

    Hello everyone... Wow, I know that you have heard this a lot from me, but wow time flies when you are doing the Lords work. I am so happy right now, I truly am. I know that I am a new man, and a different person. This great change is still occurring within myself, and I am amazed to have recognized all of the weaknesses that I once had before I came out on my mission and now amazed to see how I have been able to overcome these weaknesses, yet I know that I still have weaknesses and I am imperfect, but I am still working on them, and praying for the faith to overcome them.
    I had a great week, but I do feel that we are still struggling a bit with getting in with the members, us being the newer guys in the ward, no one really knows us. We are doing a great job with working with a few members. Like the axillary leaders as well as the Bishopric. So that is a good sign for us. Bishop Urbanowski is such an amazing guy he is from Germany. He has been a bishop for the last 6 years and before that he was a branch president, he is funny he said that it is the same calling with a different name. He came here on a boat in which he built when he was in Germany and he sailed it across the waters here to America. He talked to us about his family history work and he and he has gone all of the way back to Adam and Eve, He finished his family history it is amazing how he found all of this information. Now I am interested in family history work, and I know that my sister has been doing a great job on it.
    This next week we are going to have Neil A. Anderson of the Quorum of the twelve apostles come speak to our mission. We are all so excited to hear from him. It is going to be so great. It is such a privilege. Well I am seriously about out of time and I have to get going now. We are going to get ready and get some stuff done. I love the Caribbean people here the food is great, it is ghetto, but not near as ghetto of where I once was in Brooklyn. Well I have to end this now. I have to go. Love you all!

Elder JD Doyle