Monday Message: February 23, 2015

What a week of total caos! Most missionaries can probably back me up
on the saying that transfer week is so crazy and sometimes stressful.
It use to never be this bad for me but now i have to still worry about
everyone elses area i have to make sure it is still getting worked and
that mine still is doing good it is so crazy!
We did get our transfer call on saturday and Elder Ort is staying with
me for another six weeks! Elder Barlow is being transfered to my
starting area in st maarten and i am pretty jealous ha. I was showing
him pictures of the people and it made me miss them so much! I still
am amazed that i was able and still am able to love people and get to
know them so fast! i am sure not the same Shy Elder Woodruff that
entered the MTC 17 months ago. I love talking to people and it is so
fun. I make it my goal everyday to get people to laugh and loosen
up.This world is full of people who are so busy they dont see the sun
shine or they dont realize the little things in our lives. it always
reminds me of president uctdorfs talk about the "Forget me Not".
In my transfer call however i was told that they are going to combine
the Christ Church and Oistens Districts and now i am the District
leader over 11 Missionaries instead of just 5. I will be on the phone
for ages now at night haha! And also i will have to go on a lot more
Trade offs with the missionaries. But the good side of everything is
that i will be getting a car to drive and it will make is so much
easier to get around from the different areas!
Other than that it has been a crazy week just getting everyone where
they need to be and getting the areas ready for the new missionaries
coming in and also i believe that this week will be pretty hectic as
well.
I do have to say that Barbados is beginning to grow on me and that
this new change of the missionaries will help pick it up and give it
the energy to do the work. i am excited to be the District Leader and
to see how well we can prepare the Island for the upcoming mission
split that happens in 5 months. It is such a beautiful island and even
though the people can be difficult at times there is still many that
are so nice and sweet to us! i love it here and i need to keep that
attitude because i will probably have two more transfers here. I
expect to stay here for at least 6 months because after this when
elder orts visa to suriname comes in he will leave and i will stay!
Well have a fun week and stay warm!!! I love you and please be safe! i
will talk to you next week!
Love
Elder Woodruff

Monday Message: February 16, 2015

Wow that is all i can say this week!! Who knew that when you have been
out almost 17 months you could get so homesick? My struggle this week
was all focused on School. I was told that i probably need to start
thinking about it and decide what to do. I am so stressed and i dont
even know why? it isnt even stress from companions or the work this
time it is all something that doesnt even matter to me right now but
it still sucks!
The work is great here and we are seeing a lot of success in little
ways. Nothing to the point of Baptisms yet but we are seeing people
truly change. we have a lady named cheryl and she told us last night
that she knows there needs to be a prophet and that our lessons havent
been in vain with her. the best part is her mother is a member and
that is already a huge support.
Barbados is such a great island even though it has its difficulties. I
truly love the people and know that as soon as i leave them behind i
will always have a special place in my heart. The funny thing though
is lately we have been meeting a lot of Guyanese people and that makes
me the most homesick than anything because all i do is talk to them
about guyana. I sure do love and Miss that place. im not sure how
Elder Ort likes when i talk to them because sometimes we get carried
away and i have to remember time schedules haha. I love that kid so
much and we are doing great things together. It did get off to a rough
start but i have realized we both go through some of the same
struggles and thought processes.
I hope that this week can be a great week for us and we can get the
work done that is needed. I hope that you have a great week and i will
talk to you next week. I Love you!!!! oh and yes i finally sent some
pictures home so you can see them! I LOVE YOU!!!
Love
Elder Woodruff

Monday Message: February 9, 2015

Wow can you believe the week is already over? it went by pretty fast.
i dont really remember what went on this week. all the weeks are
starting to run together. HA the joke for the week is that i am
starting to feel the pains of an old body because i am becoming an old
man!!!
Everyone always asks me how long i have left and it gets less and less
everytime. but i always feel bad when i answer and then they ask elder
ort and he has to say 21 months ha. ii remember when i was at that
stage! it sucks so badly. we are doing better together and we get
along. The only thing is i still feel like our lessons are missing
something and it is the quiet and sacredness of the message. he talks
kind of loud with all the people and forcefully. i went on a trade off
with elder harding and had a great and stress free day because we were
able to talk quietly and calm. it relieves so much of the stress
because people are willing to listen.I do love elder ort though so
dont get me wrong we are having great success and he is a good
missionary.

At times i feel like all i have to do is make it through the next
transfer and things will be great but then i caught myself. and i
realized that that is what makes it hard. It makes me wish my mission
away and i dont want that i want to enjoy every moment i get here. We
are finding so many new people and they are great but the hardest part
is getting them completely interested. I have learned so much and i
just realized how i have gotten over my awkward shyness from home. i
just remember how i wasnt ever able to go up and talk to anyone and i
was scared to talk. now i talk to everyone. and i dont even care if i
get embarrassed because they dont even know me haha. I can talk to
anyone about anything now and the great part is no matter what you can
link it back to our message!
Just the other day we talked to a guy who had a pet monkey on his
shoulder and all we talked about for the first 15 minutes was his
monkey and yet it still turned into a gospel discussion and he even
invited us back. i just hope he will turn into a solid investigator
and then progress. i think that is the hardest part i have is to put
my faith in people and see them progress and not just judge them
before i give them a chance.
other than that the week was full of stress and success you can say
ahha. but i just hope that your week was great and that next week will
be even better. I pray for you and hope that you do the same! i love
you so much.
Love
Elder Nathanial Woodruff!

Monday Message: February 2, 2015

So this week has been a long and trunky one. But then again it was somewhat fast because i ended up sleeping through most of it.

This week i had the visit from patti and her friends and i loved it. even though she came up and embarrassed me by giving my a huge hug and yelling Nate at the top of her lungs. In the middle of a square might i add! haha it was so nice to get things from home though! After that i had to catch a bus back and teach District meeting which was pretty good.

But that is where the Week went bad starting on wednesday morning. Elder Ort got a phone call from home that said one of his good friends passed away. And we know that is never a welcomed or happy thing for anyone especially a missionary. And to add to it I woke up with a little cold. We then went to shadow the sisters for a little bit of the day but ended up coming home at lunch and i spent a lot of time at home over the next 3 days.

On thursday i spent the morning asleep and then tried to go out but it hit even harder and sent me home early to take some niquil and go to bed. As for friday i stayed in my bed and near the toilet all day long. I think that my cold was actually the flu and it hit me the hardest out of all the other missionaries that had it. I still have it today and it has come back with all the aches and pains this time! I havent been so sick for a long time and almost never on my mission. I mean i have had a little cold here and there but was always able to work through it but this one made me bed ridden for a bit. it was the worst thing in the whole world. i didnt even have time to prepair any lesson for District meeting or anything because i just slept the whole time!I am doing a little better and i know that through out the week i will return to normal.

I just want to thank you so much for all the prayers and love you send my way. it is much needed each and everyday. I will say missionary work is not easy but it is so worth it. Wilford Woodruff once said on the topic of Obedience "Obedience Is never an easy task, but it is worth it". I just want you to know that i love this gospel and all that it teaches us. it is so important to accept it but yet nnot many do and it breaks my heart. at times me and Elder Ort catch our selves getting mad at people for not accepting and we wish they would just realize how much they need it in their lives. But in reality that is why we all have Agency. But we just pray and hope they accept soon. I love you and hope that you have a great week. Please be safe. I LOVE YOU!!!

Love

Elder Nathanial Woodruff!

PS less than 8 months haha not trunky at all:) love ya!

Monday Message: January 26, 2015

Well this week has been so long but it is over and that is good now i get to start a new week fresh. This District leader and trainer thing is a killer. i never get time to myself at night to unwind and relax and now i have to not only worry about my area and investigators but all the other ones as well. But it is fun and rewarding. The hardest thing was having the two sisters call on two different occasions and both of them were crying. I ended up having to talk to them and calm them down. Wow i just realized i havent had to talk to a girl who was crying for 16 months! I forgot how to help them. Honestly it was awkward because all i can tell them to do is take a break and read the scriptures and pray untill they feel better. 

Other than that the week was good. we ended up having a surprise baptism. His name is Nikko Harewood and he has been coming to church with his grandma and aunt for a while. his grandma had her papers removed and was working to get back into the church so when she was getting baptized on saturday nikko told us on tuesday he wanted to be baptized with her. So we worked hard and taught him about 7 lessons in 2 days and prepared him. Then he had his interview and passed sso he was able to be baptized on saturday with his grandma!

So elder ort and i are doing a lot better. We talked and i just was scared and stressed about my new assignments and didnt give him a chance when we first met. We are trying hard to make things work and i think it is going well. We do a small companionship inventory at nights to see how both of us can improve and get better. I hope he feels the same way. we are already seeing success together and are excited to see all the potential success. We are doing well.

Oh and by the way i think that my first District meeting was a success. i taught about prayer with faith and how to take the message "to" the gators heart and not just "near". As for tomorrows i think i plan on talking about the things we can control and to forget about the things we cant. Also i will talk about using the scriptures and comp. unity. so hopefully it will go well. I run out of time when i go to prepare there is just to many things that i end up studying but all is well. i like my job and responsibility. 

But i hope to be able to send things home with that lady tomorrow so be looking for it. i think you will like it and it is going to make you happy and surprised haha. i hope that you have a great week and i pray that this week goes by faster than last. oh and ps My seahawks are going to win the superbowl and that is going to be great. and no im not a bandwagon i just choose to follow the best team haha. jk i dont even like NFL that much its all in the NCAA in which my Ducks lost this year:( Better luck next year! 

Well have a great week and i love you!!

Love

Elder Woodruff

Monday Message: January 19, 2015

Well i can honestly say What a week. i feel totally exhaughsted and it is the start of yet another week. I have to say training a new missionary isnt a walk in the park especially when both have pride in them. As you know i dont do well when someone thinks they are better than me. if you can show me i will accept but to talk and act it makes me upset. I try to be calm and dont make a big scene but then i look bad when i stay quiet i need some help!

We had a good week of work but we just havent found the unity side of things. He got upset when i talk to elder barlow because we know each other so well and he feels left out i think. i guess i will have to work harder at including him in things. but i need to help him understand that we must work together or people wont listen. he cut me off in teaching and then went on total tangents. but it will work. i hope that it will click soon!

Tomorrow is my first District meeting that i am going to teach and i am praying that it will go as planned. i have a good topic i feel and hope the district will take it into their hearts! It is so weird having to call every night and actually having to care for the other companionships and be responsible for them and their questions but it is nice even though i have to write in my journal in the mornings now. i honestly get no time to my self at night now!

Other than that my week was plain and hopefully this week will go better. i dont want to get pushed around and walked all over so i have to take control and show the leadership. things will get better! i hope that you have a great week and please be safe in the weather! I love you!!!

Love 

Elder Nathanial Woodruff!

Monday Message: January 12, 2015

Well what a week. it has been good but also long. we spent some time
with elder free this week in the hospital. he has a heart problem and
may need a pacemaker so he is off to trinidad to have test. so that
took up a lot of our week. other than that we had a pretty successful
week. just having a hard time getting our investigators to make the
commitment of coming to church!

So this week was our transfer calls and i am staying here in Christ
Church. I have been Called to Train and also be the District leader of
the district here in Christ Church. I have been freaking out a little
inside but i am ok. i know that i have a lot of help both from home
and also here in the other missionaries! I just hope that i can live
up to the standard that has been set and that i can set a great
example for the new missionaries and the district.

Does anyone have advice for me or things that can help me teach other
missionaries better? i would love any help!

Sorry my email isnt long more letters are going to come and be
detailed but i have little time to email. i hope you have a great
week! love your friend
Love
Elder Woodruff!