Week 64: Shot Gunning

Hello Family,

Scripture of the week: D&C 103: 7-9, 12

Q's Vermont Crew, before the Transfer

Hope all of you are doing well this week, don't worry about me, all will work out here in Beford, but I cant lie to you this has been the hardest week of my mission so far. Shot gunning is just really hard, I learned that in Newport, so I shouldn't have anticipated this would be any different, but boy oh boy this is kicking my butt! The assistants are so busy that they didn't have much of a teaching pool, but even the few they had have fallen off the face of the earth and we haven't been able to meet any of them. For the first time of my mission I didn't get to teach a single lesson this week, never thought I would be able to say that! All in all it was just a rough week, but that is enough about the negative parts of the week.

NHMM Leadership 

Tuesday we had Mission Leadership, and that was fantastic, those meetings are always fun because get to see so many good friends. Never thought I would be so happy to see elder davis, but it was great to see him! Elder Wells and I ate lunch that day with president and we spent the whole time telling him why it would be a really good idea for he and I to be companions, so I think it put a good bug in his ear, just gotta give it some time now. After the meeting we had to drive a load of missionaries back to maine, so yes I have now set foot in maine, spent the night there actually, it was dark though so I don't really know what it looks like!

Thursday we had interviews with president and those were great as always. I just love that man so stinkin much. He trusts me way too much though its pretty scary sometimes!

By the time sunday got here I was so excited for church, I don't think I have ever enjoyed church so much in my entire life. I just needed it so much to be able to feel that spirit and just cool down and talk with heavenly father.

Tonight we are driving to Massachusetts to pick up some missionaries, tomorrow we are talking a visa waiter to the airport, and then tomorrow talking missionaries back to mass. Gonna be another event packed week.

So our zone covers Bedford, the four sets of missionaries in Manchester and then the 3 sets in concord. We live in Manchester cause we cover just a sliver of it, but most of it is Bedford. Bedford is the richest area in the state, ao its a bit different. Very nice area though. Once you get out in Bedford its spread out a lot more just huge houses!

So I met ward Nielsens Sister at church yesterday, she is a sweet heart ill send a picture.

Ward's Sister :) (Can you tell?)

Sorry this is a short email. Just know that I love you all bunches.

Keep us in your prayers, but don't you worry about me!

I read in a talk the other day I cant quote it perfectly but it said along the lines of... heavenly father has designed our earthly existence to prepare us for our lives in eternity. So this is just another one of those time when I get the privilege of growing and learning. We will get the work going here and it will be wicked awesome before I leave this area!

Sure do love you all

Hold to the Rod

Elder Zilles

The Seay's Before the transfer

Week 63: Bedford New Hampshire

Hey family,

Scripture of the week: D&C 123:17

Oh how I love my wonderful crazy fantastic just really crazy sometimes almost over whelming life!!! Tuesday morning when I woke up I had the thought in my head that I would be shot gunning an area this transfer. I thought to myself "please no,… shot gunning Newport was hard enough" and I knew I would still be a ZL so I thought shot gunning as a ZL would just be way too hard. But guess what the lord must think I can handle it, cause here I am sitting in an area that we are shot gunning. Welcome to the Bedford New Hamp days. Yup the big city, I am right in the hub of missionary life here in the Hamp, all the office staff, and president and sister stoker are in our ward, not that they ever can come to this ward cause of their travels, but still pretty cool. The city is so stinkin huge, I am seriously way out of my element here, and have found myself wanting my Vermont back many times this week, as all the sirens and loud city business goes on around me, but i know for a fact that the lord called me to this place at this time. 

I am serving with Elder Nielsen, we came out together, so it’s really cool to be serving together. Our area used to be the assistants area, so there has been absolutely Zero work done here for almost 11 years, cause the assistants are always in the office doing mission stuff. So we have plenty of work cut out for us. Of the two lessons we got to teach this week, one of the people speaks primarily Arabic, and the other speaks Napoli. Neither of which either elder Nielsen or I speak, so this is really going to be quite the adventure. But the ward is awesome, we had a great testimony meeting yesterday, and we are really gonna get things rolling here. Elder Nielsen and I get along wonderfully, as we know each other very well from partying at leadership meetings. We have leadership meeting all day tomorrow, and then we have Wednesday to plan for zone interviews and then we have those on Thursday. So please pray for me to be able to handle all of the craziness here.

I really, really miss my Polls. I have started to rely on them so much over the past 4 months, I just really miss them. Elder poll gave me a fantastic blessing right before I left, and it really comforted me. Sometimes I just wonder why heavenly father sees fit to pile so much on my plate. I asked Elder Poll that right before he headed back to Essex after dropping me off and he said "it’s because he knows you are the one that can handle it". It’s comforting to know the Heavenly Father knows me better than I know myself, cause sometimes life is just tots crazy. But don’t get me wrong I love my life, I love my mission, I am absolutely stoked to be serving here in the Bedford ward, and serving with the concord south zone. It is going to be a great transfer. I have already told president that i want to go back to my Vermont for the last 6 months of my mission. 

I would love to hear where you all guessed i would be headed.... so fill me in on those next week. have to see if any of you were remotely close!

Sounds like all is going well back home which is always so comforting for me to hear.
The lord really does bless us so much for our service. I think I will just stay here forever so you can all keep receiving the blessings of having me in the field. As much as I miss you all I love this work so much. That doesn't mean I am perfect at it every day, as some days I get lazy and could work harder, but I really do love this work so much. I love the gospel with all my heart, and each day I am more and more grateful for the atonement that at times is really the only thing that keeps me going. It is an amazing feeling to lay down at night so exhausted that you don’t think you will be alive in the morning, but at the same time you feel so fantastic because you know you gave all you had to give that day. The gospel of Jesus Christ is amazing we are so blessed to have it in our lives, Never forget that.

Wish I was better with words so I could really fully express how I feel right now. But what you need to know is your son and brother loves the Savior with every fiber of his being, I would give all I have for the gospel. It’s an amazing feeling to feel that way, as that is not how I have always felt. In a few months when I have to return home, I pray you will be able to see the difference that the atonement has worked in my life, and I hope I will return and be able to give you all a huge hug knowing that I have given all that I have to give in the service of our savior. Think of all he did for us, these two years of my life are so small in comparison, and it is a huge blessing that I have this time to give to him.

I don’t know if any of that made any sense at all, but I hope you feel the spirit in this email, as I have felt it so strongly while writing it.

I love you all

HOLD TO THE ROD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Elder Quinton J. Zilles

(Lori’s  notes- In Newport Elder Q and Elder Vanderholm were both brand new to the area. So we think that is what he means by shot gunning his new area. He and Elder Nielsen are both new to the area and starting from scratch- some would call this white washing, however there have been missionaries there before, the assistants to the PresidentJ)

Week 62: Elder Zilles is Leaving Vermont

Well Hello Family,

Scripture of the week: John 21:14-17

Sorry if i seem kind of disconnected this email, i have caught a wicked nasty cold, and it is pretty much just rocking my world, gotta love it! 

Elder Q, and Elder Davis with Alix @ her Baptism

Ok so i wont keep you all on the edge of your seats for too long. Elder Zilles is leaving Essex. Head to manchester tomorrow morning bright and early. So next week when i get on i will have to tell you where i am! The one thing i do know is i am leaving Vermont. Yea still not sure how i feel about that one, but the lord needs me somewhere else so i will do what he asks of me. Im really not looking forward to leaving my Essex ward. But i didnt want to leave lyndon or newport either, so each area becomes your home. Sister poll made me my "last Breakfast" this morning, man im gonna miss the polls something fierce, You would think transfers would get easier after 14 months, but im here to tell you that they do not get easier, in fact they probably just get harder. Telling everyone goodbye just sucks. These people just become my life, and it feels like i am just leaving my life behind! If i could find a way to take some of them with me i would. Brian, the polls, the bennetts and the brissons, and grandpa seay. But sadly i cant make that happen. It is such an amazing blessig to get to meet all of these special people, each one of them has helped me to shape my life and become the man i am. Sometimes i just sit back and think "ok which of these people did i know in the pre earth life" I am pretty sure that i knew most of these special people before! 

On to the baptism... What a special day it was. Alix is just awesome! Elder Davis baptized her and i confirmed her. That was the first confirmation ive ever done, and it was a really neat experience. The priesthood is an amazing thing. 

the lord has blessed us so much here the past 3 transfers. 

Sounds like all is well on the home front. The weather hit 45 this week here, so that was a really nice break. maybe spring will finally be here by the first of june or so, no promises though! Ah man im pretty jealous you got to clip the heifers, i cant wait to pick up a pair of clippers to clip a cow!

I was studying this week, and took some time to just sit back and think about all of the blessings i have seen in the past 14 months. While doing so it became very evident to me that we all need to take more time just to contemplate on the blessings we have been given in our lives. So often we get moving around so fast and don't even notice all that our heavenly father has done for us. Please take at least 5 minutes this week and just think about the blessings you have seen in the past 14 months. Just like the hymn says "count your many blessings".

Even our trials can be blessings. Brigham young once said about joseph smith that had he not gone though the trials in his life, it would have taken him 1000 years to reach what he did in his short life time. 

Sure do love all of you guys! The church is true. The Atonement is so real and is such an amazing gift, dont forget to utilize it in your lives. The power of prayer is amazing, and is very under used, pray fervently night and day and as a representative of Jesus Christ i PROMISE you that you will see a difference in your life. 

Love you

Elder Zilles

Week 61: Our Very BEST will always be good enough

Hola Mi familia, 

John 15:5, Philipians 4:13

I apologize for this email being a day late. We were supposed to have zone conference last thursday, but do to a snow storm it was moved to yesterday. Probably a good thing too, because thursday and friday combined we got 14 inches of snow here in Essex. Supposedly they got almost 6 inches more than that down in Manchester. 

Well it sounds like life on the home front has been pretty fantastic. Im sure Jax man gave a wonderful talk. A mission is the best thing for anyones life. They always say the best two years of your life, but really its the best two years for your life! I think about it often, think who would i be without my mission? I would be no body, and that is not who our heavenly father wants me to be. Thats not to say that people who dont go are no body, im just saying that for me personally i dont know where i would be without my mission. Im so grateful for the time ive had, and even more grateful for the time i have left. 

Im sorry for all the mud youve had back home, but i must admit i have been so happy to hear of all of the moisture youve been getting! Elder Poll updates me daily on the amount of moisture in Cache Valley. 

Part of the Crew @ Zone Conference

Im gonna talk about zone conference alot today, but first i have to tell you about a cool experience we had with one of our investigators! So we were supposed to meet with her friday, but because of the snow the car was grounded, so that fell through, well sunday she said "hey wanna have a lesson during 3rd hour?", so we did that! One of the goals elder davis and i set was to be wicked bold about everything this week. so that is exactly what we did! First you have to realize she (the investigator)  has been learning for more than two years and has never even come close to having a baptismal date... well not any more! she has a date set for april 10th, i am sure i will be long gone by then, but its still just really cool to get to set the date with her. 

Other than that we pretty much just shoveled snow all week. 

Now for zone conference... As i told you before president decided to do the training on the talk we used for our zone training a few months ago the title is the "4th missionary". So this talk goes over the four types of missionaries there are in the field. To make a long story short ill just tell you that the 4th type is where you want to be, to define the 4th type we will just say that he is the most christlike of the four. Really the biggest thing this talk does is help you see that the choices you make on your mission will not only effect your mission, but they will literally shape what the rest of eternity will look like for you! 

We started off by talking about the part of our missions that are already past and gone. As i was sitting there, i realized that i would not change a single thing from the last 14 months of my mission. It has really just been so incredible. sure i could have done better at times, but i have grown from every single experience i have had, and that is what its all about! The challenges i have faced are making me who heavenly father wants me to be, and i am so grateful for that in my life! 

We also talked alot about how our VERY BEST will always be good enough for our heavenly father. That doesnt just apply to missionaries, that applies to each one of you as well. Never forget that the very best you can do is goon enough for our father in heaven.

Lots of Snow at the Joseph Smith Memorial

Ah man we talked about so much amazing stuff i could never get it all into an email, so i hope these few tidbits uplift you all just a little bit. I will end the zone conference portion with a quote from President Stoker "At the sacrament we can look back and repent, and then look forward and move forward" Dont dwell on the mistakes of your past. 

So you asked about elder Wells and Lund. Elder Lund is from my mtc group, and elder wells, i dont really know how we got to be such good freinds. He was here in essex with elder simkins before me, and i dunno we are just super tight. Kinda just like one of those things that friends are friends no matter how long youve known them. Im so blessed to have made so many new friends on my mission. 

Well family, we are going bowling with our district today so i gotta run. Yes we are wearing our plaid pants.

Sure do love ya 

Hold to the rod

Elder Zilles 

PS read hymn 266 4th vs

 Be fixed in your purpose, for Satan will try you;

The weight of your calling he perfectly knows.

Your path may be thorny, but Jesus is nigh you;

His arm is sufficient, tho demons oppose.

His arm is sufficient, tho demons oppose.

a

Week 60: Miracles happen when you work hard

Hey Family, 

This weeks blog brought to you courtesy of Ashton M. 

Is it really week 60 already? I swear it was just yesterday that you were all making a big deal about it being week 50! time flies flies flies! 

Scripture of the week: D&C 58:2-4

"Tebow" in his Plaid pants

Hmmm so what happened this week? Let me see looking back into the files of my mind... 

So as i said last week Elder Davis got wicked sick, and we were supposed to go to manchester for meetings.. Well about an hour before we were supposed to leave i had to decide for him that he was too sick to go. He was gonna still try to go, but there was no way i was sitting in an 18 passenger van for 3 hours with him throwing up the whole time. So we went and got the Burlington Elders and they stayed and babysat him 

for monday and tuesday.

 Elder Poll took me to meet the van in montpelier and then we started our journey to manchester! Im not gonna lie i got pretty comfortable not having a companion for a while. Technically didnt have a companion, but i chose my own comps once we got to the meeting. Elder Wells, Elder Lund and i made ourselves into a trio. We tried to convince president that he should let us stay in the trio for the rest of the transfer but he wasnt gonna go for that. Had a great time partying with elder wells though, we have decided that heavenly father is way to smart to ever have us be companions. We get along far to well. But we did make some pretty awesome party plans for when we get home. 

The meeting was really good. I would say it is one of the better ones i have been too. We now have a new temple attendance policy, and im telling you all before i even tell the zone. (waiting to tell them on thursday at zone conference) So the policy before as you know was that we couldnt go at all until the day before we leave the mission. Well now we get to go once every 6 months. If we are serving within 2 hours of boston we get to go. So no one serving in vermont gets to go, but no worries im not going to be here for a whole lot longer! 

So my back has been pretty rough for the past few weeks. And sometimes when my back gets bad i tend to start to get really down on things. I felt very strongly that i needed to have President give me a blessing on tuesday so i did. And can i just say it was probably the top moment of my mission thus far. It was the most amazing blessing. I think i probably learned more about myself and my life than i did in my patriarchal blessing. It was just really amazing to get to share that moment with President Stoker. I love that man. Love President Wilkey, but i can honestly say that i am now closer with President Stoker than i ever was with President Wilkey. He is such an amazing man, and i am so blessed to be able to work with him! Of course i dont know exactly what is going to happen in two weeks with transfers, but president made it pretty clear that my life is going to get a bit more crazy here soon with this new transfer. Hes got something up his sleeve! Guess we will see what happens! 

So our investigators... everyone has pretty much fallen off the face of the earth! Its kind of a bum deal. But its all good because our one sister is so solid and is gonna be baptized the 22nd. Her interview is tomorrow so that is awesome! we are also going to start teaching her boy friend tonight, so maybe something awesome will come of that! 

We were doing some service at the salvation army this week and we found some plaid pants. Yup you heard correctly plaid pants. we couldnt help but buy them. we each got two pair so we turned one pair into cut off shorts. Pictures to follow. 

Technically we have 12 people in our teaching pool right now! Dont see them all frequently, but its still pretty cool. When i got here we had 2 investigators! The lord makes miracles happen when you work hard. 

Sure do love you guys.

Hold to the rod 

Tonernation

Week 59: there is no charge for awesomeness or attractiveness

Hello Family, 

Scripture of the week: D&C 43:34

So when i heard seattle won i just started chanting "Utah State Hey Aggies All the Way"! That is so cool that they ripped manning up so bad! i dont know what it is, but i just have never been a manning fan. I dont know if i have ever heard of a super bowl that was that much of a blow out, its crazy. 

So the weather wasnt too bad this week, didnt get lower than 20 all week, so it was a relief for sure! But when i thought of that line, it was so cold that i had a brain freeze! YUp Still not a huge fan of the cold, but the snow is a necessity. Elder Poll told us that the utah farm bureau had a state wide fast for moisture, so i joined in on that. 

 This week i can honestly say that Elder Davis and I have become friends. We are no longer just professional acquaintances! He came out with Elder Vanderholm, so they go home in September! elder Davis, Elder vanderholm, and Elder Wells all go home then! Elder Wells is one of my good mission buddies we are trying to find a way to be comps some time. 

So this week we were only able to meet with two of our investigators. Both lessons were awesome though. 

One came to church yesterday and she loved it! The ward did such a great job of fellow shipping her! She was even invited over to a superbowl party, it was neat. we went to the same superbowl party and sat in the kitchen and ate cheese cake! But last night we had an awesome lesson with her. She is so solid and is all set to be baptized feb 22. That is the last day of the transfer so we will get her baptized just in time for me to get transferred! 

We are headed down to manchester this afternoon for out meeting! itll be a good time, other than the fact that elder davis is sicker than a dog! 

Sounds like stake conference was great! ours was supposed to be next week but for some reason it was moved to june! 

I am anxious to hear more details about josh man, it sounds like it is literally a miracle he is alive. The lord protects his missionaries! 

We still dont have any of that technology stuff, but in all honesty i hope it comes the transfer i go home so that i dont have to deal with it. I will love technology when i am home and at school, but for now im 100% of without it! 

Well i guess i better go buy some food so we have something to eat when we get back from manchester love you guys

Hold to the rod

Elder Toner

"there is no charge for awesomeness or attractiveness"

Week 58: Living Prophet on the Earth Today!

Hey my dear family,

Scripture of the week: D&C 18:10-16, Moroni 9:6

So i dont know why, but i woke up in a pretty poopy mood today. But when i got on my email that all changed very rapidly. I saw that i had an email from sister Gregory, so i opened it to read the happiest most wonderful thing i have ever read in my entire life. The Gregory family will be sealed in the temple for time and eternity on april 12! She said they invited you, so you probably already know all of this, but i just had to tell you because i am so ecstatic about it right now!

Its people like Brother Gregory who make this work worth it! I just think back to my first week in the mission, Bro Gregory was one of the first people i met in vermont. we were at the church shoveling snow and he came and introduced himself. Ah man i dont think i make any sense right now but i dont even care i am just so excited for the Gregs! Ah man i miss them it seems like forever since i have see them! I might have to convince them to come visit me here in Essex before i get shipped out of Vermont.

So not a whole lot happened here in Essex this week. I think the whole state of Vermont has just caught the "winter blues". the good news is we have been able to help our zone avoid them thus far. Can you believe January is pretty well over? 

I was on exchange in Burlington this week, now that is an interesting city! It is a walking area, so they either walk or take the bus. For the first time in my life i rode the bus, and im here to tell you that if you want to meet some of the Cream of the crop you should ride the bus! Ive never seen so many interesting people. We found an iphone on the sidewalk so we went and knocked on the house right next to it and it was a "pot house" When they opened the door, man the smell of that mary jane just filled the air. It stunk so bad! 

So you remember last transfer when Elder Davis and i did our first Zone training... well president liked it so much, that he is using the whole thing in zone conference in two weeks. So this morning he called and asked us if next week at leadership meeting if we would do a training about it to all of the zone leaders. Its gonna be a pretty special opportunity. 

Oh so this week, we were teaching this older man, he is legally blind and pretty much deaf. So we were teaching him about prophets, and by teaching him i mean yelling to him! Everything has to be said so stinkin loudly! But out of no where he turns to me and goes "so how do i know that YOU are a prophet?" It took a second for it to register what he had said but once i realized i was like "no no no, im not a prophet i was called by a prophet" then elder davis asked him what he would do if there were a living prophet on the earth and he said" I would get up and i would go out side and shout hallelujah and then i would follow him, i wouldnt even grab my coat"! Funny old man!

Well family i sure do love you! 

Hold to the Rod

Elder Toner