Happy Mother's Day

We just wanted to wish all the Mother's in the family a Happy Mother's Day. We are so grateful so have such a wonderful family that are all striving to keep the commandments and to raise our grandchildren righteously. We know so many couples that do not serve missions because they feel they cannot leave their grown children because of their many problems, but we feel so blessed that we have never even had to think about that.

We have learned much while serving as missionaries and being away from all of you, Nothing has much meaning if you don't have your family. We certainly have a new motivation to work harder, repent more and to be more obedient so that we can have an eternal family!

Thank you for the great examples that you all are to us. We wish we could do some things over and do better. We hope that you can forgive mistakes and change those things in your lives that need to be changed, that you learned from us.

We send our love to you all.

Love, Mom and Dad

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA!

Idaho Falls Visit

Thanksgiving

Mom's Reunion

No TIME

everything is going good here in guatemala, the work is progressing an moving forward. hope to have to some good baptisms in the month of september. i love you all and take care.

Miles Moving Bros. Inc.

This is just a shout out to the Miles' brothers for their packing, driving, and road tripping skills. Enoch has a lot to be proud of...they couldn't have learned from anyone better. Thanks again for all your help and to the wives for letting their husbands go!

ONE YEAR!

Well, one down, one to go. I did the the one year ritual of burning one of my shirts. It was pretty intense, especially because my cook and her sister decided to throw buckets full of water at me. But, besides that we are working hard and finding a lot of those choosen people. One went to church yesterday, his name is Wilbur. A great man, has a lot of integrity and wants to find the thruth. He already had read the chapter we left with hi and starte reading the BOM from the beginning. I´m doing my best to teach my comp the best I can, the best part is at the same time he is teaching me a lot. I have found these past two weeks that obedience is key. It is the most obedient I have been my entire my mission and the most happy that I have ever been. Love you all, take care,
Love
Elder Miles

Howdy

Well, just finished my first week as a trainer. I will say it is really nice to have a new elder as a companion and one that likes to work. His name is Elder Guzman and he is from El Salvador. He is a stud, he speak a lot of english so I have a lot of fun messin around with him. This change is looking pretty good. I just barely realized yesterday that so far in this area they have only baptized 5 people. Every thinks that in Central America, that you are going to have a ton of baptisms, but I´m coming to see that it isn`t so easy. But, right the members and the bishop are so willing to help us. I had to work my can off for the respect and help. Now the members are giving to many references I can´t handle them all in one week. Sorry that I haven´t wrote for a while, I´m not really sick, Mom and Dad are over reacting. All I have is bacteria in my intestines, but I´m doing just great. It was just I was a little down in the dumps because this area I´m in is really rough. But thanks for all of the support from Craig and Jeff. David, Jackie? I have no idea if your alive and the same with Chris and Michelle. I would like to know how my nieces and nephews are doing. But I love you all, press forward. One down, one to go. I love you all. Can we not go forward in so great a cause?

Love
Elder Miles

Baptism

We had another baptism this past Saturday. It was awesome, first, because I didn`t have to plan it and second, the spirit was really strong. We baptized an 11 year old, but she is going to trun 12 this thursday. I think im the 5th Elder who has tried to baptize her, but all of the other ones before she always said no. She was so nervous, but it turned out well. Besides that, I have put the members to work. I now pass around a sheet every week and the members have to put a name down as a person we can visit. From yesterday, we have 11 people to pass by this week. Im really trying to imply the words of Elder Bednar. But im just helping the members by showing them, HOW they can help the missionaries. So for the experience has gone really well. I love you all so much. Take care.
love
Elder Miles

Hello everyone

I should have posted on the blog as I was writing an e-mail to him when he was writing here but my messenger is shut off I just noticed or we could have had a minute with Andy. I hope to write some kind of e-mail tomorrow as Sunday was spent in the kitchen preparing dinner for the new President. It was fun to make a lot of American food. It is easy to remember why it is so hard to loose weight at home. It all actually tastes good! African food is mostly about survival.

We have been quite immersed with the new President today. He starts Zone conferences in the morning and has transfers the 17th. The area office didn't get new signature cards at the bank so that is our next dilema that Dad is working on.

Welll it is 6:00 and I am beat so will sign off -

Love, Mom

Another Week

Well, Tomorrow in 11 months in the mission. how time flies? especially when your having fun. we are working hard and trying to get things going in this ward. Jeff wrote me an email that really inspired me, so yesterday we were combined with relief society and priesthood. after the bishop taught his class, i asked for a few minutes and explained a new way that we are going to try and do missionary work in the ward. i read part of the talk from Elder Bednar`s talk from general conference that gave it pretty good to everyone in the church, that members find and missionaries teach and that the members shouldn`t pray that the missionaries do their work. i explained that the next week im going to pass around a work sheet that i have prepared that they put there name, a person that we can teach, the direction of the person and the hour that the member can visit with us to teach this person. i know im going to get a good response and in this ward we are going to have a lot of success. it was absolutely amazing when it came to me, i was praying and the idea just popped into my mind. Jeff thanks for the needed inspiration to help me think and mediate for a better way to advance the work of the Lord and involve the members. the other thing i talked about was, every new member needs a friend. Well, what is a true friend, when that greets you a church every week or what? well, Elder Clark taught us, a true friend invites someone to his house for dinner. that is what a true friend is. we are going to figure out a way to start implying this concept into the ward and reactivate a ton of people. in gautemala the activation percentage in %25. ya, pretty low. well i love you all. i hope all is well and going great. we have a meeting with the new president tonight so that should be pretty interesting. i love you all. take care
love
Elder Miles

TRABAJO

I haven`t wasted much time trying to put this area into order. The past two Sundays I have sent to Priesthood and the Bishopric out to make some visits to less active families. I`m pretty sure that the Bishop doesn`t like to do it, but it`s good for him. Afterwards they give me a report and all tell me that they had a really good experience. So, I think it is going to help this ward really turn around. Also, we put a ton of baptismal dates. To tell the truth, I don`t know how many will go through, but at least it really made the people think serious about baptism. In total, 7 dates. One family of three, but they have a daughter, so only one priesthood holder. The others are with a woman that is about 40 years old and her daughter, and the other two with an 11 year old girl and a 9 year old girl. The 9 year old girl is a neighbor of some members, so she goes to church every week, we just have to teach her and the 11 year old, everyone single one of her aunts is a member of the church. I have been really busy, we had a baptism Saturday too. A 73 year old man that is absolutely hilarous and very punctual. It was pretty funny, not one from the bishopric came to the baptism and yesterday at church when we were about to confirm him, he started saying in front of everyone, Where were you yesterday? Yesterday was the important part. Everyone heard and were laughing there heads off, because there is no support for the missionaries from the leaders. It was awesome and later the Stake President came everyone told him what happened. It was pretty funny because the Bishop pretty much got cuffed in front of everyone. My comp is started to open up a little more, he doesn`t know the doctrine so he doesn`t have much confidence. He hardly studies and he is always talking about his girlfriend. I have to get on him to snap out it all the time. But we get along really well. I love this work, it is really kicking my trash right now, becuase I really feel like I have no idea what I`m doing. I just do someone how do it and it all comes through. There is no way I can do this without the help of Christ. Everything I do is because it is what He wants and He just guides me to these places and the Spirit helps me to the things I need to say. I love you all so very much, I hope everyone is well and having success.
Love
Elder Miles

Hey There!

Sorry I've been slacking. We've been out of town and then had a lot of company. It was fun! I wanted to scrap the pictures before I posted them too. I was at my four month mark for catching up on scrapbooking. (Then I only have to worry about it 3x/ a year) We are doing great, enjoying the basement and the nice summer weather. I can't believe that I have to be pregnant for 2 1/2 more months! I'm getting really uncomfortable already. We bought the kids a new swimming pool last night and they will play in it today. Check out or blog for all the pics!

FIRST WEEK

Just ended my first week as Senior Companion. Let me tell ya, the mission is a whole lot different now. A lot of responsibility and worry about just little things, and my comp doesn`t like to talk much when we are in lessons, so I do a lot of the teaching. I really need to help him learn the doctrine and how to teach eficiently. But everything is going really well, we have a baptism the saturday with an older gentleman that is about 70 years old, and we actually put the date with him. We also are helping an 11 year old girl get ready for baptism. All of her aunts are members, so she has a lot of support and her testimony is really growing. I have really been thinking a lot this past week, life is way too short to not take advantage of all the opportunities that we have in this life. Even if it may be something small, such as going to the temple or reading your scriptures by yourself and with your family. You all have such great opportunities to teach your children the gospel and watch them learn and grow in the gospel. Hay que aprovechar este oportunidades y enseñen sus hijos el evangelio para que ellos puedan tener un testimonio fuerte y un buen conocimiento de los principios del evangelio. No creo gue haya un gran gozo mas que ver sus hijos haciendo las cosas buenas y seguiendo adelante. I love you all very much and I hope all is going well. Recognize the hand of the Lord in all things, things don`t just happen, they happen because you are suppose to learn for those experiences and change something is your life.
love
Elder Miles