The Last Email!

(Anziano Wilkinson)

Well, the last week of my mission has come and went and now as I write this I'm completely packed and am only hours away from boarding a plane that will bring me back to America for the first time in almost two years. Honestly, it doesn't feel real. I don't think it's really hit me that soon I will no longer be preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ nor speaking Italian on a daily basis! I'm really going to miss all the friends I've made, speaking Italian, and helping people draw closer to Christ, but I'm also very excited to see all of my family and friends!

This week one of the people that the sister missionaries were teaching, Marvison, took the first step of discipleship by being baptized! I mention this because he asked me to preform the ordinance, which I was honored to do! He was nervous at first but I helped him through it and after all was said and done you could see in his countenance that he was so happy about it. After the actual baptism took place he and I walked back the the changing rooms to put on dry clothes and he couldn't help but keep saying to me "I'm renewed, I'm renewed!". Marvison's faith is truly so strong and I know that with the covenant of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost, he will only continue to grow and mature in his faith in and understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. There are so many blessings the come from living the teachings of Christ and Marvison is only just beginning to learn that for himself!

I know that this is the work of the Lord. He wants so badly that his children return to live with him forever. I'm humbled and honored to have been a tool in his hands for these past two years to proclaim and teach the principles of his wonderful plan for us.  My testimony of the truth has been strengthen greatly by sharing what I know and believe and although it has not been easy to dedicate this much time, exercise so much patience, or overcome my own many weaknesses, it has been 100% worth it. I hope to never cease to be on the Lord's errand, even if I might not be able to have an experience quite like this one ever again!

See you all soon!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Rain, Viviana, Soccer and the Savior

(Anziano Wilkinson)

We all know that "April showers bring May flowers", but, when Italy forgets that it was April until the last week and just decides to keep on pouring into May, we can expect flowers some other time. That is our reality this week. That old time saying put a nice due date on most of the worlds downpours and trickles in Italy, like a washed up high schooler, rushing to finish his procrastinated homework the night before. Of course, dealing with the rain gets a lot easier in missionary life if one happens to be in possession of a Toyota Yaris. Haha

We this past week was a pretty great one! It started with a solid lesson with Viviana about the Ten Commandments. We are so excited about Viviana's progress and the way that she is trying to bring the Spirit into her life! It was a great lesson! She, sadly, wasn't able to make it to church this week due to complications, but it'll be good. She plans on introducing us to her boyfriend Adrian sometime soon, so wish us luck!

This weekend we went on exchanges with the Anziani in the town next door, Merate (a thirty minute drive). And that went really well. We got some good work done and saw some awesome people up there (which basically looks like a brand new city compared to a lot of Italy as the oldest parts seem to have been built around the 70s and 80s at the earliest).

On Saturday we had a YSA/missionary activity where we came to the church and played sports. Mainly handball and soccer were played but we did some other games as well. It was a good time and we had Paul, our new convert, there... And he brought 7 of his friends! They made a soccer team and it looked like team Nigeria vs. Team Italy haha. It was great! You just have to try hard to integrate them and make sure things are communicated correctly for them because Italians don't speak English that well, and the Nigerians often don't really speak Italian. But it was a great success!  This week I wanted to share that truly, our Heavenly Father loves us! He has very high expectations for us, it is true. But, He knows that we can all make it. And He wants to help us and will help us as we strive to be like Him and His son. Miracles happen everyday, and I would argue that the very greatest of the miracles that happen are the ones that deal with our very nature. When we put ourselves trustingly in the hands of our Savior, and He takes what was once raw material with only great potential, and makes us more than we could ever become by ourselves. He does this by changing changing our hearts when we let him and try.

I hope that you have a fantastic week and remember to let the Savior change your hearts!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Resegone, Bergamo, Volleyball, and Commandments!

(Anziano Wilkinson)
Last week we had an unfortunate turn of events with our P-day activities. We decided to take a hike up in Lecco with some other anziani and so we started out early so as to have enough time to come back and finish doing the other things we needed to do to prepare ourselves for the week. We had a great time hiking to the top of Resegone peak and we even celebrated our arrival with a typical Italian Easter cake called a colomba haha. For some reason, however, the group decided to take different way down. I was against this idea but I was out numbered so I had no choice haha. Anyway, long story short, we got lost on the way down and ended up making our four hour hike an eight hour one, in the which we hiked 17 miles and took 37000 steps... on a mountain... we were all pretty tired in the end haha. So needless to say, the rest of our day was shot and we only managed to get home by the end of the day. We definitely won't be doing that again any time soon! Haha

This week we played volleyball with some other missionaries around the Milano area and it a bunch of fun! Luckily the field was indoors and the sand was heated, because it was really cold and rainy! We had a blast, but after so many hours of running around in the sand my legs started remembering our misfortunes on Resegone and we had to call it quits haha.

Then on this past Tuesday we had another crazy thing happen that ended up taking up a bunch of our time! So that day, April 25, is Italy's Independence Day, so obviously it was a national holiday. Apparently the Anziani of Bergamo didn't get the memo and ended up stranded in a small city in the mountains about two hours away from their home with no bus to take them there. So naturally, we, having a car, got a call from our president asking us to do a rescue mission for these poor stranded anziani haha. It was a long drive, but it was fun and the mountains were gorgeous! Bergamo and it's surrounding areas are easily some of my favorites in our mission! The mountains are super green and steep and every once in a while you drive though charming little towns that look like they could be part of a storybook. Let's just say that this little detour was more than worth it for my companion anziano Farneman and I haha.

Aside from these adventures, we had a fantastic lesson with one of our investigators, Viviana! We talked about obedience and commandments and more particularly about how they don't restrict us, but rather, free us! God is our loving Heavenly Father, and because of this, He gives us commandments so that we can know what things make us happy and what things make us unhappy. It's always our choice to obey the commandments, but every time we do we are guaranteed blessings! As our Heavenly Father has declared in the scriptures, "I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise." He never varies from His promises! When we obey, He blesses! Always! But when we disobey, we forfeit blessings and become slaves to the consequences of sin, which consequences range from legal trouble, to addictions, to haunting memories and feelings of guilt. Obedience to true principles frees of from these things and that's why God commands us to obey them! This principle clicked for Viviana and the spirit testified powerfully of the truth of it. She's now anxiously anticipating learning more about what those commandments are so that she can live them more fully! She has a great desire to do what's right and she's one of the most sincere learners I've ever taught!

I hope you have a great week and remember to obey the commandments!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Emmanuel, Baptism and The Prince of Peace

So this week one of our dear friends has made the covenant of baptism! His name is Emmanuel and we've been teaching him for several months now. At the first he was hesitant to open himself up to the concept of baptism, but as we continued to meet with him he warmed up to the idea until one day a month or so ago he called us up and told us that he had made up his mind and that he wanted to be baptized! This call was a huge surprise for us, seeing as that just days before he had seemed as closed to the idea as ever. But something changed in his heart, and it wasn't the sophistry or eloquence of men that made the change, but rather, the Holy Spirit.

As Emmanuel bore his testimony to my companion and I, he explained that the Spirit truly did speak to his heart as he read the Book of Mormon, listened to the words of  living prophets, and applied in his own life the principles we taught. The doctrine of eternal families and the great importance of the family in God's plan for us were truths that particularly stood out to him as his testimony of these truths grew. His own family situation was not a good one while growing up and he often found it hard to understand what his role as a husband and father might be someday. The truths of the family that we taught him rang true in his heart and he has come to understand for himself that the best way to raise a family is by teaching the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ in the home.

Emmanuel's baptism truly was a special event for all of those present, but especially for him! I'm excited for him to continue to grow and develop his faith in Christ and to learn and apply even more profoundly the doctrines He taught. I'm so grateful for the teachings of Christ. As Emmanuel, I too have found peace and hope in living the gospel of Jesus Christ, for which feelings I am grateful beyond words! Many in the New Testament looked to Christ as the solution to their problems, their bringer of relief. There are dozens of stories recorded in the Bible of people who were despairing, left without hope of relief or escape from their physical and spiritual ailments, but who looked to Christ with faith and hope and found in full the healing, both physical and spiritual, that they so desperately sought. Indeed, Christ's mission was to save. Ultimately it was to save all of us from sin and death—the two great obstacles to our eternal happiness—which saving He is capable of on account of His matchless life and sublime payment for our sins. But beyond this, in doing such a selfless and all-encompassing act, Christ has acquired not only power over life, death and forgiveness, but also power over every kind of affliction that we could possibly come across. For this He is fitfully named King of kings, Lord of lords, and even Prince of peace.

The title Prince of peace is one of Christ's lesser used names, but it highlights one of His most significant roles as our savior. The name entails one who has mastery over the tempests and turmoils of life. It connotes someone who can help others face great troubles with calmness, even a sense of peace. It implies one who promotes unification, rather than division. Christ is the Prince of peace because He holds the power to bless us with real, lasting, internal peace on the simple condition of our obedience to His teachings. He offers all the same invitation: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28).

Some try to find peace by escaping problems and numbing pain, but Christ offers us a more lasting and fulfilling peace. In His own words He said, “Peace I leave with you... not as the world giveth, give I unto you.” Christ offers us peace different than that which the world offers, and he does so through “the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost" (John 14:26-27). The kind of peace that comes from "the Comforter" is unique and transcends the counterfeit that the world tries to offer us, which at best is mere temporary escape. The peace that Christ gives is the kind that endures and overcomes trials with patience and hope. It's the kind that relieves, rather than covers up. Repairs, rather than ignores. It's the kind of peace that allows us to rise above instead of delay and dodge. He has promised this kind of peace to all of those who try to live to the fullest the teachings which He taught and try to follow as closely as possible the example that He set. He has promised that all those who try their best to live His commandments will receive the peace that only the Prince of peace can offer.

Ponder these things as Easter Sunday approaches. Study the teachings and life of Christ. Discover the real meaning of Easter. Start by watching the beautiful short video that our Church has made about this aspect of Christ's mission, entitled "Prince of Peace". Then ask your Heavenly Father in prayer to bless you with the peace that you are seeking and ask Him to show you the next step to take. He will respond. He will send the Comforter, even the Holy Ghost, to be with you. And as long as you do your best to keep living Christ's teachings, it will never leave your side. I know this is true, I experience it every day, and it's the reason why I've given two years of my life to teach it to anyone who desires to learn!

Have a great Easter and remember the wonderful blessings that the Prince of Peace offers you because of the work that He finished on that great morning! Talk to you next week!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

P.S. Here is a picture of the baptism and one of Anziano Farneman and I on a typical day in the car

General Conference and Broken Windows

(Anziano Wilkinson)

Things are doing great here in Muggiò! Some interesting things happened this week and another fantastic general conference! But we'll start with Thursday.

That morning we decided to go and talk to people about the gospel in Monza Park. So we drove there, parked, and headed out. This place is enormous! When we go we have to plan which side of the park we want to go through, because it would take an entire day to cover all of it. Major points of interest are Villa Reale (the once was summer home of the king of Italy, now a museum), a marathon loop, the gardens, a couple of small, man-made lakes, a hippodrome, and an entire Formula 1 Racetrack! It's an awesome place. So after we had been walking for about an hour or two that morning, we headed back for lunch and noticed that one of the little front windows on our car was broken. Upon further inspection, opening the car, we saw that everything had been rummaged through... but nothing had been taken... So, we were left with a broken window to fix. Which we promptly got done, by some miracle, within 24 hours! Now the car is back to working order and we no longer have to hang pictures of Jesus among the shards of shattered glass in order to ward off further burglary attempts! (Pictures below)

Then we had General Conference! It was absolutely amazing! I noticed that a lot of the talks focused on the guidance of the Spirit and how vital it is in our daily lives. I have decided to work more on inviting the spirit into my life in order to be a more inspired teacher and disciple. I'll let you know how it goes! I'm so excited to get to study these talks for the next few months. We have an 8 hour difference between here and Salt Lake and the ward likes to watch live as many of the sessions as possible, so unfortunately we still have been able to watch the last session on Sunday. But as soon as they put it up on the gospel library app I will be all over that!

I hope you all have an amazing week! Enjoy our broken window and a picture of Paul and I!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Temples, Eternal Marriage, and the Pope?

(Anziano Wilkinson)

So the pope came to visit Monza (the city right next to Muggiò) this week! It was truly a mess, but we survived it! Fear 24 hours they closed down all traffic in and around where the Pope would visit and drive past, so we basically could not use the car the whole day... Luckily for us though, we have bikes so we put them to good use! But even on bike navigation was tricky, as crowds upon crowds of people (almost everyone in Italy is catholic after all haha) clogged the streets, each trying to get a view of the pope when he would drive by. We stopped for a second and watched as he rode by waving at the people from the side seat of his FIAT Tipo. I don't know what I was expecting to see him riding in, but I certainly wasn't imagining a navy blue hatchback haha. I guess it just serves as a reminder that he's really just a normal guy like all the rest of us. Anyway, not being able to use the car didn't stop us and so we still scheduled a full day of appointments, however, after a whole day of riding bikes I was thoroughly beat! So I guess what we can take away from this is that if you want a solid workout, just invite the pope over for visit!

Apart from that, among other things, we had a really special moment while teaching one of the newer members in the Muggiò Ward! His name is Francesco (I know what you're thinking and no, not pope Francesco :P) and, seeing as he has not yet been able to visit the temple, we decided to explain in more detail the importance of temples and the work that is accomplished inside. He's long been eager to go and finally be sealed for eternity to his wife, who passed away decades ago. The hope and relief that came from the realization that his relationship with his dear wife could be made eternal though the blessings of the temple played a huge role in the development of his faith in Christ his restored gospel.

We explained to him that temples are sacred places, houses of God on earth, and that to enter he must be spiritually prepared through obedience to the commandments of the Lord. We taught that inside he would learn through the impressions of the Holy Spirit and even be "endowed with power from on high". We taught that inside he could make promises with God and with his spouse as well as perform ordinances of salvation for those of his family who have passed away never having been able to do so for themselves. We explained to him some of the symbolism of the temple, including the brightness of the decor and the angel Moroni that sits atop the steeple, proclaiming "the everlasting gospel to preach unto... every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people" (Revelation 14:6). Beyond these, we explained the feelings that he would experience inside the temple; feelings of peace, tranquility, and joy; the kind that can only be felt by means of the Holy Spirit.

As we taught, the Spirit confirmed the truth of the things we said in the heart of Francesco and his desires to visit the temple grew immensely! There are so many blessings that the Lord offers us through his holy temples and every single one of them is something to get excited about! However, the greatest of all the blessings of the temple is that of being sealed for time and all eternity. With the proper priesthood authority, not only marriages, but families can be together forever. This is one of the greatest blessings that God can give us! Our Heavenly Father's plan of happiness for us is based around the family and the incomparable love that can exist there between, husbands, wives, children and beyond! To me, heaven would not be heaven if I couldn't experience it together with my family and I am unbelievably grateful that it has been made possible through the holy temple!

Well, I hope you have a fantastic week! Till next time!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Baptisms, Faith and Treasure

(Anziano Wilkinson)

This week was pretty great! We have been seeing so much success in teaching the Gospel lately as a mission and more specifically as a zone! We have a mission goal from July of last year to have 300 baptisms as a mission before the Rome temple is completed and what an amazing change in the mission this goal and our mission president have brought to the mission! We are half way complete and the trend is only going up! In the last month alone we've had 10 baptisms as a stake! There are people here who are so ready for the gospel in their lives and we are doing a better job than ever as a mission getting this message to them.

In other less-exciting news, this week Emmanuel, the man we're teaching that has planned to get baptized next month, got sick this week and so we haven't gotten to see him. The ward, however, is doing a great job fellowshiping him and making sure that he's doing well and feeling like a part of the family! We had a lesson on tithing the last time we met him and, come to find out, he had read the gospel principles lesson manual on his own the week before, so he walked into the lesson already knowing everything haha. Also, Viviana, the person we help with math, came to church with last Sunday without the rest of her family, who we are also teaching. The rest of the family couldn't come because they were all were sick, but on the phone Viviana told us that she was feeling fine and still wanted to come even without them. Her faith is growing so fast!

This week I read Luke 6:45 which says, "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh." This is so true! No good person is comfortable doing wrong and no evil person is comfortable doing good. For the one will fear doing wrong and will be uneasy and the other will hate doing good and complain and whine and make excuses and cut corners and lie and do anything not to do it. I think at times we fall into both of these categories. Sometimes we resist following a certain counsel because we don't think it's important or likewise with a task that we don't want to do. But the thing about the discomfort I mentioned above is that the more you do what is uncomfortable for you, the easier it will get. So if you do bad things despite discomfort, eventually you will get comfortable with them, and vise versa, if you do good things, despite the discomfort, you will eventually become more comfortable with the good! That is the difference between the grace of Jesus Christ and the "power and captivity of the devil". So let us choose to do good despite the difficulty it may bring! The natural result is that with time we will become good people, and it's not that the point of why we are here on this earth? To become more than we are now? How great it would be if we could all recognize and apply this principle in our own day to day lives!

Anyway, I hope you're doing well! Talk to you next week!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Bowling, Math and the Bread of Life

(Anziano Wilkinson)

This P-day we went bowling with a bunch of other missionaries and it was great. I hadn't bowled in so long and getting to do it was like a blast from the past all the way back to elementary school when they first taught us how it's done. It was fun though! In three games I bowled 320, so clearly I'm not looking at a major league career here, but still not terrible for my complete and utter lack of practice and natural skill at things sport-related haha. I'll attach a picture of the bowling squad so you can enjoy it too!

This week I had the unique opportunity to tutor someone in math... in Italian... after two years of doing practically no math... let's just say that it was an experience to remember! The explaining part wasn't so bad, but the whole recalling how to do stuff part was like trying to carry a ton of bricks up a hill. It was a battle haha. Luckily after I got the gears moving again after their long period of stagnation, things started coming back to me and I was able to provide at least a meager portion of help. Let's just say I have a lot of review to look forward to when I get back!

This week I was thinking about a story in the New Testament and its application to us today. This particular story takes place after Christ miraculously fed 5000 of His disciples. After this event, Christ traveled with His apostles across the Sea of Galilee to carry on His ministry among the Jews. Many of these faithful followers, however, followed them, partially because they liked His teachings and partially because they believed that if they did He would provide free food for them. When they caught up with the Savior they asked Him, "What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?" To which the Master responded, referring to himself, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent."

Apparently their faith in Him only extended as far as their desire to receive free food from Him, for they responded, "What sign shewest thou then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost thou work? Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, [Moses] gave them bread from heaven to eat." Christ responded to this faithless statement patiently, instructing them to look not for physical nourishment, but rather, spiritual nourishment. He told them, "I am the bread of life" and that "whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life". Today, we readily understand this passage to refer to the symbols of the sacrament, the bread and the water, which represent the flesh and blood of Christ, in memory of His matchless sacrifice of His own sinless life. But these followers of Christ did not understand these sayings and supposed that Christ was teaching them doctrines of cannibalism. Their lack of understanding, coupled with their lack of faith caused many of them to stumble, in fact, "from that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him."

In each of our lives, we will be confronted with situations like this one, where our faith will be put to the test. We are bound to hear things, see things, or experience things that will try our faith and cause us to question our belief in Christ, His doctrine, and His church. We will inevitably be put in situations that give us cause to doubt and to stumble and we, just like each of the twelve apostles, will be faced with the Christ's piercing question, "Will ye also go away?" The Lord is not interested in weak faith. He does not want skin-deep disciples. That's why He lets these kinds of things happen to us. They are meant to test and grow our faith and they will come whether or not we are ready for them. But the amazing thing is that greater understanding always comes to those who patiently wait for it, yet further darkness is the other thing that awaits those whose faith isn't strong enough to endure. Let us prepare faithfully against these inevitable trials so that when they come our way and try to cause our faith to crumble, we can respond as Peter did and say, "Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life."

I hope you have a great week and that he first days of spring treat you well!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Pictures!

(Anziano Wilkinson)

Monza park and Villa Reale, the vacation home of the once king of Italy!

Paul, Baptism, and Poems

(Anziano Wilkinson)

This week has really been a wonderful one for us in Muggiò! This Saturday we held a baptismal service of our dear friend Paul. It was a very spiritual experience for both him and for me and really everyone else as well. Even better was Sunday, when he received the gift of the Holy Ghost, completing his baptism and making him an official member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was just glowing afterward! The night before, without anyone asking him, he had even written out a short testimony about how much his life has been touched since meeting with the missionaries and bore it during that sacrament meeting, it was such a special moment for both him and the people present for it. He's had a lot of support from the church members and already feels like a part of the family!

When a person gets baptized in our church, they wear all-white clothing, to symbolize purity and the cleansing of sins that comes with a baptism performed with the proper authority. I was the one who performed the baptism and so he and I both wore all-white. When we looked at ourselves in the mirror for the first time, after having changed into the baptismal clothing, Paul said to me, "we look like angels; one black, one white" hahaha; he's such a fun guy!

I don't have very much time today, but I would like to share his poem that was shared in Zone Conference that I really liked! I hope you guys like it too!

Our Deepest Fear

Marianne Williamson

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness

That mist frightens us.

We ask ourselves,

Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small does not serve the world.

There's nothing enlightened about shrinking

So that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine,

As children do.

We were born to make manifest

The glory of God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us;

It's in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine,

We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we're liberated from our own fear,

Our presence automatically liberates others.

Have a great week!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Transfer Calls!

(Anziano Wilkinson)

These past few weeks have really flown by. Already we're doing transfers and it feels like I just got to Muggiò! I'm going to stay here for the next month or so, but my companion is going away to, of all places, Verona! I spent six months there and I can attest to how amazing the city is. Needless to say, Anziano Engen is very excited for his transfer call. My new companion's name is Anziano Farneman. He gets here on Thursday, so I'll be sure to tell you more about him next week!

These past few weeks with Anziano Engen have been really great and I'm excited to keep things going with my new companion. There are some really amazing people in this area and there's never a lack of excitement. Right now we are working with a man named Paul who is extremely faithful and has recently decided to make the commitment to be baptized. We are working with him to help him prepare to reach the goal and I continue to be amazed at his faith and desires to learn. He truly has a desire to follow the example of Jesus Christ. He's been coming to church every week and every week in Sunday school the teacher struggles to finish a lesson because Paul asks so many good questions haha. He's learning fast though!

On another note, we had an adventure of sorts while we were on a companion exchange with the missionaries in Lecco. Their proselyting area is massive and travel from one end to the other is very impractical at times, but since we have a car, we decided to help them out. They had some visits that they needed to make in a town called Sondrio that sits along the border of Switzerland, over 80 kilometers away from Lecco by car. The entire ride was a breathtaking trip among beautifully snow capped mountains and unbelievable panoramas. Even if all of the appointments we had set up had fallen through that day, the whole trip would have been worth it just for the beauty of it! And luckily our lessons didn't fall through! There was one man, who's name is Patrizio, that I got to meet who is very spiritual, as was clear by the way his home was decorated. There were Buddhist and Christian symbols hanging from every wall and sitting on every shelf inside his house. I guess he's both Buddhist and Christian, which is an interesting since I didn't know that was possible, but hey, no judging! He also just happened to be an artisan wood worker as was evidenced by the abundance of handmade wooden furniture and knickknacks with man had. Definitely an interesting man!

Like I said, there's a bunch of exciting stuff going on right now, but I'll spare you the reading and just post some photos at the bottom! Anyway, I hope you have a great week! Remember the Savior often! Even if you're a devout Buddhist, cause I guess that's fine?

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Lago di Lecco

Life and Death Experience

(Anziano Wilkinson)

So I got sick this week. Okay, so maybe it's not as bad the title makes it sound, but it was catchy so I couldn't resist! I saw it coming last Wednesday, but it really hit the next day with a wonderful mixture of coughing, fevers, headaches, and congestion. But now I've made basically a full recovery and I'm back to work as always! In the meantime I taught my companion how to play an Italian card game called Briscola, learned how to cook a super good pasta dish from Calabria, practiced my cockney accent ('ello, mate!),  watched three church history movies, and used up an entire roll of toilet paper just blowing my nose. So I'd say it was a pretty successful sick period! And yet, despite being sick, we still managed to get a decent amount of work done!

Last week there was a baptism of a man named Simone at our chapel in Muggiò and a member brought a friend to come and watch it. It was the first time he (Emmanuel is his name) had ever been to one of our church's baptisms or even heard of Mormons. We had a good conversation about the Book of Mormon and what we believe and we set up a time to see each other again. Fast forward to this week, we arrive at his apartment building and find that it looks almost like an abandoned building. One of those haunted ones that kids go into and are never heard from again haha. So not certain if we had found the right place, we called him to confirm the address only to find that we were at the right place. Moments later, Emmanuel came out to take us inside. Much to our relief, the building looked far less abandoned from the inside and was not full of ghosts and murderers like our imaginations would have liked us to believe haha.

Emmanuel is a smart guy and an honest seeker of truth, and his two friends that are sharing an apartment with him whom we also invited to join us as we taught are just the same. The Spirit was present among us as we taught the simple truths of the Restoration and Emmanuel and his friends asked all the prefect questions. After we had introduced the Book of Mormon, the friend of Emmanuel bore powerful testimony of the truth of the book and the positive effect that living the principles it teaches has had on his life. By the end, Emmanuel was asking us for a copy so that he could read it for himself. That Sunday he came to church and had a great experience and says he want to come next week.

The Lord is preparing His children all over the world and this is just one simple remainder that He has not forgotten any single one of us and He never will. It's such a wonderful thing that we have a Heavenly Father who loves us and care for our spiritual wellbeing!

Have a great week and don't be sick! It's not as cool as it sounds, trust me, I would know!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Panzerotti e Miracoli

(Anziano Wilkinson)

Today was really neat in that we got to visit Milan and tour around the city center! There are endless stores and restaurants and touristy spots around it, like the Milano Duomo. There is a famous restaurant called Luini's right in the heart of the city center that makes amazing panzerotti! Panzerotti are basically small pizzas folded in half and deep fried, so you can imagine how amazing that would be haha.

As far as my new area goes, however, I am loving it! There are some really great members of the church here and some amazing investigators that we're working with. We had a really cool miracle with a family that we found this week. A few weeks prior, a man named Edward came to church out of the blue with son, Kevin. They gladly accepted the invitation to have the missionaries come over to their house and teach them, so they missionaries at the time got his contact information and address. Some time passed and the missionaries couldn't get in contact with them, so Anziano Engen and I thought we'd try to pass by the address.

We found the house and looked at the names listed on the outside of the apartment building only to not find anyone with the name Edward listed there (which is a super common thing, since no one updates those lists). So we figured we'd try to ring everyone's doorbell and ask each person if they knew the person we we're looking for. But no one seemed to know anyone by the name of Edward. We had rung about half of the doorbells when a lady and her daughter came up to the front door of the apartment building. We asked them if they knew Edward and the woman's response was basically, "Yes, that's my husband, why do you ask?". Seconds later Edward and his son came walking up to the door too. We were amazed at the timing of their arrival!

They invited us in their home and we had a great lesson about Christ and His role as our Savior. The whole family was involved and there was a special spirit present during the whole experience. It was a miracle in our eyes that we could be in the right place at the right time just to run into them and share that message. They invited us to come back this next Sunday and we are more than excited to see them again! They are such a beautiful family and a great bunch of people.

The Lord has a way of putting us in the right places at the right times if we are sensitive to the promptings of the Holy Ghost. He can make us tools in His hands to help uplift and bless the lives of others and spread joy and happiness. It's such a privilege to be called to serve His children in Italy for two years, but even if we aren't serving full-time missions we can still do our small part to brighten the world with service and compassion!

Hope you have a great week! A dopo!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Happy New Year!

(Anziano Wilkinson)

I survived my first week of driving in Italy!

After a several hour train ride from Ancona to Milan, I met my new companion, Anziano Engen. Within minutes of meeting him, he informed me that he had misplaced his driver's license in the first few months of his mission... Which meant that I would be doing all of the driving... So that was a bit of a shock! I was not expecting to be the one doing most of the driving, let alone ALL of it. I had hoped to sort of ease back into it, but I guess the Lord had other plans haha.

Luckily, as soon as I sat behind the wheel I felt a little more relaxed because I realized that I had not forgotten everything. Then, after a few shaky kilometers and a safe arrival at our apartment, I was back in the swing of things. It seems that driving a car is like riding a bike; you just don't forget! It helps that Italy drives on the right side of the road just like we do and that I've been here long enough to know what all the road signs say/mean. The biggest difference that I've noticed is that Italy uses A TON of roundabouts, which can be a little tricky at times. It'll take some practice, but I'll get used to the road infrastructure here eventually.

For New Year's Eve this year my companion and I made something called Arancini, which are basically balls of rice stuffed with mozzarella and then fried. They are so good and so simple! So yeah, I guess you could say that neither of us used New Year's Eve as an occasion to kick off any new year's diet regimes haha.

Moving to Milano

(Anziano Wilkinson)

So I got a call on Friday last week telling me that I'm getting transferred to a new city! My new area is called Muggiò, which is a part of Milan. It's right next to Monza, which is where they race the famous formula one race cars, so that's pretty exciting! Hopefully I can plan a visit to the race track to watch a competition or something, we will see... Anyway, I will arrive in my new area Thursday afternoon, where I'll meet my new companion, Anziano Engen!

The transfer call brought more than just a new area and companion, however. I got called to be a zone leader. So missions are made up of missionary companionships stationed in various cities. Companionships are grouped into districts and districts are grouped into zones. So with my new calling I will help lead about twenty missionaries in the East Milan zone. Hopefully I didn't make that too confusing. Basically, it just means I have more stuff to do and people to look after. Hopefully I can manage to not mess that up haha.

On the plus side though, this new calling comes with the privilege of driving! So finally after almost a year and half I will get to drive again! Yesss! There are only about fifteen cars owned by the mission (since gas is expensive and Italian driving is a bit chaotic...) of which most are driven by the senior missionary couples. So basically I'm really fortunate to get to use one! I'm pretty excited, if you haven't been able to tell by now. Let's just hope I can manage to not mess that up either! Haha

This week we had a bunch of meal appointments with members of the church, first of all because they're really amazing and super generous and second of all because this week happened to be the week upon which Christmas, my birthday, and the news of my departure fell. So this created the perfect storm, per se, to make Anziano Larsen and I very happy missionaries! On Tuesday some members took us out to eat at a restaurant owned by a family friend. The food was great and I was very satisfied with it, but the cool part was what happened after. After the meal, the cook/owner named Glen came out to greet us and we got the chance to talk to him. That's when I found out that he had just lost a son in a car accident a few weeks before.

Glen explained to us how he missed his son and became slightly emotional as he recalled fond memories of him. I had the amazing privilege of bearing testimony to him of our Heavenly Father's plan of salvation and the blessing that it is to have a Savior to help us overcome all trials trials and limitations. I shared with him the truth that he could see his son again. This visibly touched Glen and lifted his heavy heart. He agreed to meet with the missionaries again to learn more about the Plan of Salvation and how he could see his son once more. It was a powerful experience in which I could feel the Spirit guiding my words in order that they could reach Glen's heart, rather than his ears.

I'm excited to hear what happens next! It's too bad that I won't be here in Ancona to see it, but that's just how it goes I guess!

I hope you had a great Christmas and that the new year brings you an increase in hope and happiness! Talk you to soon!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

Fasting and Christmas Miracles

(Anziano Wilkinson)

This week we had a conference up in Modena because we were being visited by a member of the area presidency, Elder Paul V. Johnson, and his wife who's name I don't remember. They talked to us about serving with your whole heart and the difference that it makes in missionary work. Our mission president also talked to us about Christ and the magnitude of His role in our Heavenly Father's plan for us. It was a really uplifting conference and a perfect way to prepare ourselves for the Christmas season!

The Ancona branch also threw a Christmas party last Saturday and it was actually a really big success. Our senior missionary couple, the Kochs, put together a Christmas program that really helped to invite the Spirit into the event. My companion, Anziano Larsen, who hasn't even been learning Italian for more than four months yet, sang a solo in Italian that turned out to be really great! It was the first verse of "Venite Fedeli", which is the Italian version of "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful". I can't believe that we've already been together for 11 weeks by now. He's almost done being trained! He's grown up so fast! Haha

After the Christmas program we ate, and there was a LOT of food, even for the 40 or so people that were there. As I said last week, Anziano Larson and I brought some American desserts, which turned out great. Our apple pie was surprisingly good for our first attempt ever, our banana cream pie was amazing as always, and the chocolate chip cookies were phenomenal. Anziano Larsen couldn't stop eating them until they were completely gone haha. All in all, it was a really good experience and a lot of fun for everyone who went!

This last Sunday, our zone fasted together in order that we might be able to advance the missionary work in our respective areas. On Monday morning we finished our fast and spent some time before lunch doing some finding. We decided to ring doorbells since we hadn't done it in a while and to our surprise we were let in four times in only  two hours. Those kind of odds are very good, in my experience. We shared with each of them the Light The World video and found, in total, five new people who asked us to come back!

The next day, Tuesday, we didn't have any appointments planned because we weren't able to set anything up (everyone is on vacation it seems, unsurprisingly haha). However, as the day went on, things just seemed to fall into place to allow us to set up last-minute appointments with the few people I hadn't called the day before. One of those people, a new contact named Evans, told us quite sincerely that he really wants to develop a stronger relationship with God. Perfect! That's our job! It just goes to show that there is a lot of power in fasting and that when we commit ourselves so serving the Lord He provides a way for us to succeed.

I hope this Christmas is a very special one and that you can always remember the blessing that it is to have a Savior. Make someone's Christmas bright this year by spreading a little joy and positivity wherever you go!

Merry Christmas!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

The Book of Mormon

(Anziano Wilkinson)

Today Anziano Larsen and I went to Rimini to play soccer and beach volleyball (all indoors, of course haha) with the other missionaries in our area. It was pretty fun! My team was the winner of the volleyball tournament, naturally. I mean, with a benchwarmer like me you're bound to make it the top, right? But seriously, it was a lot of fun, especially since it's winter and usually you don't get to play sports like that at this time of year! Earlier this week I tried an experiment for one of the meals I cooked for lunch: stuffed bell peppers. Basically it's an Italian dish that I've heard about before and heard was good, but I'd never had one or even seen one before. So I decided to make up my own recipe! It turned out really good in the end and I was slightly surprised that they weren't terrible seeing as it was my first attempt haha. We ended up with a ton of leftovers though since I underestimated how filling they would be... oh well, more for later! I forgot to take a picture, so you'll just have to use your imagination until I make them again!

At the beginning of the year I set a goal to read the Italian Book of Mormon cover to cover before the year was over. At the beginning my progress was very slow, but as I kept reading and learning Italian my progress picked up rapidly. So now as the year is coming to a close I have officially finished reading! It was quite the task, but it was definitely worth it in the end! I've grown and learned so much in the process, both with regards to Italian and the Book of Mormon itself. The amazing thing though is that the Book of Mormon is just as powerful in Italian as it is in English! The voices of ancient inspired prophets still resonate in your heart as you read their teachings and testimonies, almost as if you were right there with them.

The Book of Mormon is a record of the ancient inhabitants of the Americas and was written by prophets for the purpose of "convincing [all men] that Jesus is the Christ". It was translated by the gift and power of God through his chosen prophet, Joseph Smith. In his own words, Joseph Smith says, "the Book of Mormon [is] the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." The Book of Mormon above all else is second witness of Christ, alongside the Bible. It's unique in part because it was written by a group of people that lived isolated from the influences of Eastern religious culture, yet it teaches the same truths and testifies very clearly and directly of the same Savior, Jesus Christ, that has been talked about since the beginning of time. The Book of Mormon also serves as the evidence of the reality of Joseph Smith's prophetic calling, because if he were not inspired by God then it would not have been possible for him, a man as young and uneducated as he was, to translate or write such a book. That's why he called it "the keystone of our religion" because if the Book of Mormon is truly inspired scripture from God, then the person through whom He brought it to light was truly an inspired man. That's why Moroni, the last prophet to write in the Book of Mormon, exhorts us to read it, meditate upon it's teachings, and then to ask God in prayer whether or not it is true. He promises that each who does so with sincerity and faith will receive a witness of its truth from God by the power of the Holy Ghost (Moroni 10:4-5). I've tried Moroni's promise for myself and I have felt the truth of the Book of Mormon confirmed in my heart by feelings that can only come from the Holy Ghost. Feelings of joy, love, and desire to live the precepts taught within the scriptures. Every time I read the Book of Mormon I feel those feelings rush back into my heart and they convince me that the Book of Mormon is true, that Jesus Christ is our Savior, that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and that the church he established is the church of Jesus Christ.

I am not alone in bearing witness of these things, there are already millions of others who have personally found these things to be true by the same power. I want to invite everyone to take the chance to read the Book of Mormon and ask God if it's true! As Joseph Smith said, "a man [will] get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." There is joy in living the teachings of the Book of Mormon, as with all inspired scripture, and truly it's an amazing gift that our Heavenly Father would provide us this convincing evidence of the truth and of his love for us. So read it! Pray about it! And ask God if it's true! He will answer every sincere and faith-filled prayer that you ask him! That's no small thing; the God of the universe is anxiously waiting for each of us to ask Him to answer our prayers. If you don't have a copy of the Book of Mormon you can order one for free from Mormon.org or you can download the app for free on the App Store.

I hope you all have a great week and that winter break treats you all well! Happy reading!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson

#LIGHTtheWORLD

(Anziano Wilkinson)
This week we celebrated a little thanksgiving, nothing too special, but still really tasty! We decided to make a lasagna this year instead of a turkey, partially because we didn't know what we'd do with all the leftovers if we had and partially because we had no idea where to find one! I guess Italy is just not a huge turkey fan!

Anyway, we had a meeting in the morning on Thursday and after that was over we asked our Italian friend about how to make the best lasagna. He told me his recipe and my companion and I went home and immediately got to work cooking it (it was already lunchtime by this point). The lasagna turned out wonderfully! It took a good while to prepare, but as soon as we pulled it out of the oven we knew it was going to be good. And it was! It wasn't a turkey, but hey, when in Rome, do as the Romans, right? We also made a banana cream pie for desert which turned out a lot better than we were expecting for our first made-from-scratch pie! Here are some pictures of our accomplishments:

Now we begin the race towards Christmas! Anziano Larsen and I have already got out tree up and everything. Someone before us left it in our apartment I guess, with decorations and all! So that was pretty awesome. Here's a picture, don't laugh, our decorations were scarce haha:

Speaking of preparing for Christmas, there is an amazing Christmas campaign that they have begun on Mormon.org designed specifically to help us prepare for the Christmas season! The campaign is called #LightTheWorld (I actually like the title in Italian better, which is #SiiUnaLuce, which means "Be a Light", but it's all the same idea!). The concept is this. Christmas is a holiday for remembering our Savior, Jesus Christ. Before all the gift giving and the partying, Christmas is a time to reflect on His gift to the world: the atonement, which allows us to become better people each and every day. So in honor of Him and all that He has done for us, it only makes sense to give back in some small way. And the best way to do that is through service!

The whole idea of the campaign is to inspire as many people as possible to follow the savior in his example of selfless service. And it's easy, too! They have created an advent calendar with new ideas for every day of December up till Christmas, ideas to inspire us to serve more people more often. And not only that, they've created a really nice video to go along with it! So I invite everyone to go visit Mormon.org, watch the short little video (you can't miss it, it'll be quite conspicuous haha), and then check out the advent calendar and commit to serving everyday for the first 25 days of December in 25 different ways! The website outlines dozens of ways in which we can reach out and Light the World, many of which you may have never thought of before, so go check it out! I know that as we commit to serving others for these first 25 days of December, that we will make a difference in the lives of at least 25 different people. That's a lot of people with brighter Christmases! Now imagine if we all helped 25 people! We can truly make the world a brighter place, one act of service at a time.

I hope you have a wonderful week! Good luck Lighting the World!

Photos!

(Anziano Wilkinson)

Sorry, I don't have much time today, but I have these photos of the coast the we visited today near Ancona. It was beautiful! I hope you all have a great thanksgiving!

Captain Moroni

(Anziano Wilkinson)

This week we had the chance to go visit Milan again! As always, it's a terribly long train ride, but we survived it once again. The reason why we went up there was because there was a meeting for trainers and trainees in order to help the trainees understand how things work as well as give us trainers a refresher course. Basically, they told us what to do if we got hurt or sick, or if a bike breaks, or if an emergency happens. Nothing's super special, but all important stuff geared at helping us be more informed and more efficient. It was nice though to see many of my good friends there as well, since many of them are training or for some reason or another showed up to the church building we were in.

We also found some cool places to explore in Ancona as well! There is apparently an abandoned fort in the top of the highest peak overlooking the ocean. It's open for people to walk through the grounds (but not the buildings, sadly haha) and it's pretty sweet, kinda like Chernobyl in a way! Here's a picture of the view from atop the peak; in the foreground is a super old Jewish cemetery (or at least it looks super old):

And here's also a random art price that we found that was pretty awesome. It's called "La Porta di Nu" if I remember correctly:

Lately I've been reading in the book of Alma in the Book of Mormon about the conflicts between the Nephites (the good guys) and the Lamanites (the bad guys). The Nephites had relatively recently switched from a monarchal government to a more democratic form of government and two decades later there apparently still existed a faction of opposers of the change. They referred to themselves as kingmen and advocated for there to be a king once again set up in the place of their "chief judge". They didn't have much success and when the matter was put to a vote, the voice of the people expressed that they would much rather have the freedom to choose their rulers. Eventually a portion of these kingmen dissented from the Nephites and joined the Lamanites and proceeded to rally them up to go to war with the Nephites. This began a long and difficult war between the two groups where one group was fighting unjustly for greater power and the other fighting (or rather defending) for their liberties and lives.

A prominent figure in the recount of this conflict was a man named Moroni, who was the captain of the Nephite armies. He was a man of great integrity and faith and when the liberty of his people was threatened, he was the man everyone turned to for the defense of the people. Alma 48:16 sheds some light on the type of person Captain Moroni was. It explains that Captain Moroni's "heart did glory in [the defense of his people]; not in the shedding of blood but in doing good, in preserving his people, yea, in keeping the commandments of God, yea, and resisting iniquity." Clearly from this verse we can gather that he was a great guy, whose glory was in doing good, but verse  17 sheds even more light onto the quality of his character when it says, "Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men."

What a statement! Basically, if everyone was like Moroni, there would be no evil in the world, because we would all be beyond the influence of it! He was a man whose heart was set entirely on doing what was right and he was driven by the cause of freedom and defense of the many things he was grateful for, like his family, his country, and his right to worship (Alma 46:12). Imagine if we were all a little more like Moroni! Imagine if we were all a little more committed to "doing good,... keeping the commandments of God,... and resisting iniquity"! The world would be a much better place, without a doubt. Take some time today and think about this; think of ways you can be more fully dedicated to good causes and good things and remember the promised blessings, including that, if we would all do it, then "the very powers of hell would be shaken forever". We may not be able to convince everyone to be more like Moroni, but if we can do our part, then I am certain that we can make a difference, even in our own small ways. As Mother Teresa once said, "What we do is nothing but a drop in the ocean, but if we didn’t do it, the ocean would be one drop less."

I hope you have a great week and that you find even more ways to be even more valiant in "doing good"!

-Anziano Jake Wilkinson