My Year Mark! SPECIAL WITH STATS!

Christmas Tree Without a Top

Hello everyone! Happy New Year! 2015! 

On the first of January 2015 I will have been on my mission for ONE year! This blog is going to be about this past week and also included are some statistics with a few pictures. Hope you will enjoy your new year! 

Someone sent me some CDs this past week, as he found me online! I am listening to the audio book and I will report on it later if it is good or not. 

Christmas Eve Fruit Baskets

We have been working hard trying to get to know all the people that the sisters used to teach. (There used to be another set of missionaries in our area, but not anymore so we have taken over the people they were helping) Some of them have been dropped and it has been funny to see that some of them just wanted to be taught by sisters (girls who are missionaries.) We are teaching a few people and we are excited to continue to teach them! 

Refreshment!

 What did we do on Christmas Eve? We delivered a few fruit baskets to some people from the ward, it took a long time as we were super busy and time was an issue with some people needing to leave early when the fruit baskets were not done yet. It was fun though. It was so cool to see some of the people's reactions. It really does mean a lot to be able to receive something to even just show them your love for them. We also went to a senior center where we go every Wednesday and Friday to help out with games. (Bingo) While we were there I was shouting out the numbers (because people are deaf), but then somehow the topic started about me being single! Then one of the ladies next to me said that she had a single granddaughter! WHAT! Then it was worse because the lady who was there working with us said that they can all bring a picture of their granddaughters next week and she told them that they can't have me, because she is reserving me for her own daughter! WHAT! HAHAHAHA. 

Skyping with Family on Christmas Day

CHRISTMAS! We were not allowed to knock on doors so instead we started to do some planning for the next week and then we decided to go to our dinner at 1:40. We were also able to skype home! What a blessing! It was fantastic to be able to see my family again and to hear them all. My companion called his mother in Tonga, which was good. I tried to keep the call for 30 minutes but instead, it went over just a little. Well I get to see them again in about 5 months on Mothers Day! I got a few presents from a few friends and I thank you all for thinking of me and helping and supporting me on my mission. 

I love serving my mission! I am learning so much! I can't believe how much I have changed in just one year! I know this gospel is true! SO many miracles happen that my journal that I have written in each night is full of miracles! I know God lives and I know this is the Fullness of the Gospel. 

Preparing the Stats for this Blog

STATISTICS! 

Planners with Key Indicators

Finance Worksheets

I have decided to share some stats with you from my mission that I feel would be cool! All will be for this year apart from the first Key Indicators which is a record to just a few days ago, everything else is for the rest of the year. 

Key Indicators - As of Dec 28 2014

• 2245 Open your Mouth (Talking to random people on the street who we 1. talk to about the gospel and 2. invite them to act) 
• 209 Total lessons. This includes lessons taught to Recent Converts, Less actives, and investigators. A lesson typically includes a prayer and some gospel topic.
• 100.8 Hours of recorded service. 
• 37 new investigators. (People we start teaching who are new)



Some of my receipts

• 
  



Belts

• I have helped 2 people be baptized thus far on my mission. 

Finances

• Church Money spent: $1539.70 (My family and I have paid towards this)



Cards & Letters

• Personal Money spent: $692.73

Clothing

• 1 shirt broken
• ZipBelt worn (Top): About 302 times
• Brown belt worn (Middle): About 7 times
• Belt from Philippines worn: about 56 times (My dad wore this on his mission)

My Study Journal

Other 

• Hours of Sleep: About 2737.5 hrs (That is a solid 114 days!)
• Letters/ cards/ packages: over 50! 
• Emails: 
• Received Emails: 1,090
• Of which 584 are from my mum!
• Sent Emails: 953
• Using 3.36GB of space
• Total bikes owned in mission: 3
• Study time: About 328 hours of personal study
• about 387 Hours of companionship study 
• about 715 hours of total study! 
• Read Book of Mormon cover to cover once this year
• Hours in meetings: About 145 hours in meetings.
• about 156 hours in church 
• about 301 hours in a church building where the meetings are located. 



Ties

• That is a solid 12 days  of meetings! 
• About 33 ties. Spent no money on any of them. 
• 8.5 Transfers with 6 companions and 2 areas. (San Ramon and Hayward)
• Over 100 CDS with a few missing. (Picture is only of about 89% of them)
• Times cut my own hair: 3. As you can see my last time.... 
• Weight: 140 lbs. Before Mission: 125 lbs

Transfers, Companions and Areas

STORIES Not in other emails home

In my first area we ran into one women who lives in our apartment complex but in the sisters' area. One day we were asked if we could help with some service in her home with the sisters. We helped but when we arrived there there was a strong smell of something.... Later we left due to having a dinner but the sisters stayed there so they could teach her a lesson. Later all three sisters were feeling sick and we gave them all a blessing. A few days later Elder Brown and I were coming back home when we saw her trying to get past a speed bump. She was falling asleep as she was walking! So we told her we would walk her home. I was standing right next to her as we walked her home - like 5 minutes due to slow pace. The same smell was strong around her. 

Me cutting my own Hair last July

Some CDs I have

After we dropped her off we started to head back to our apartment. I started to feel WEIRD! It was super strange! I felt different. Colours started to change. I was acting a little weird. I was warm. I was weird. We knew she had a drug which is not allowed in the USA. It is a drug to get off Heroin! She finally told us what the name was and we were ok. I think it may have been some strong essential oils that she was using haha, but everything worked out fine. 

Our District

Well that is all I can think of. But I am enjoying my mission a lot! It has been the most rewarding thing I have ever done in my whole life! I have grown so much! I am glad that I am able to serve a mission to be able to help others find the same joy that I have been able to experience as I live the gospel. I know it is true, I have seen it change other people's lives. I want to invite you all, if you have not yet, to listen to the 2 guys in white shirts and a tie, because I promise you that this is not just any other church, it is the fullness of what we all need in our lives. Through it we can return to live with our God again. 

In the Name of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, Amen.

Love Elder Kloosterboer

Merry Christmas

Transfer Day

Too much dinner!

Merry Christmas! 

Hope you will all have a good Christmas to celebrate :-) I am super excited! As a missionary we only get to see our family two times a year over Skype; Mothers day and Christmas. So I am pretty excited to see my family! ​

It feels weird that it is Christmas because it is nice and warm outside! 

I wish all my missionary friends a Merry Christmas too. I know you will get this email a week late. Also something funny - my trainer, Elder Brown gave me his email but I wrote it wrong and so as a result I had been sending my blogs each week to him and also to another elder who has the same name but who is serving in the New York South Mission!  

This has been a busy week. On Tuesday I got my new companion! His name is Elder Otuafi, from Tonga. He is pretty funny. We did 60 miles in the car that day because we had so much to do. I also led my very first district meeting as a new district leader :-) I really love being a district leader! The spirit guides me when as I prepare for the district meetings and as I make trainings to help us all become better missionaries.

We had a meeting in Oakland on Friday to train me how to be a district leader. I am excited to be able to serve other missionaries. 

Putting sand bags out

We went caroling with the Youth and it was pretty fun! It worked out really well since our plans fell through and we arrived at the church at the perfect time to join them! We also did some service for a member. Since with all the rain their drains got stuck with mud from their garden and it flooded their garage! So we helped them put sand bags up. It was fun to help, and we got some good lunch! 

Some presents

Finally we taught Ishmale. Elder Nelson and I had ran into him a few times and he finally made it a higher priority to meet with us. We met in Starbucks! It was my first time ever to teach a real lesson in a food place. He told us that he believed contrary to what his church believes in and he said that when he first talked to us he said that he was surprised that we agreed with what he believed in. But he is in the process of moving so he wants to wait until he is more stable. Man, if people could just know that the gospel will bless their lives they would put off everything to partake of this fruit. 

I know that this gospel is true. I have seen it bless people more than you can imagine. I love it! 

I love you all, and thank you all for praying for me. I need it. 

Love, Elder Kloosterboer 

Changes

Hello everyone,

Thank you for reading this blog! I hope that you can feel the spirit as you read this. It has been a good week with a lot that has happened. 

Relief Society Christmas Dinner

On Tuesday we had a zone conference. It was pretty good! This time it was about the basics which is always good to review and to say, oh yea I know this. After that we had a dinner with the Relief Society where we showed the video, "He is the Gift"! 

A storm? One of these days (haha I can't even remember when) we got a text in the evening telling all the missionaries who were on bikes to stay inside no matter what. There was supposed to be some kind of storm and so we wanted to be safe. We were in the car this past week so we still got to go out and work. We met a few cool people and we even got to find a brand new investigator because Elder Nelson talked to a guy while he was backing me up in the car! 

What is something cool that happened this week? I wanted to send a letter to a friend, but I couldn't read the return address fully, we asked a few members but no response. Then we asked them again and they helped us figure out the address. This was perfect as it helped us find a new potential! Here is the story! We were dressed up for service on Wednesday, and I really wanted to send off this letter which was supposed to be sent off on Monday. For some reason I took a un-logical turn in the car to drop off the letter which made us to park. As we parked we saw a young woman and two guys trying to fix her tire. We asked if they needed help which they accepted. Their jack was not working so we got ours and helped. They brought up religion a lot since we arrived in our service clothes and the young woman said that she wanted to go back to church. We invited her to come and join us on Sunday. We also invited her to our ward Christmas party, but she didn't show :-( There are a few more details that I am missing here but it was a great miracle!

Eating at "VALS"

The girl that has been placed in our path for a few months now - who has a broken down car a week ago - came to the Christmas party! We were so glad to see that she came! It was super good, free food and just being able to relax and feel peace and comfort. We talked to a lot of people there which was great! While we were talking to the sisters they had an idea that this young woman should be given to the Young Single Adult missionaries. We thought about it, and after a little bit agreed, as we needed a good transition. 

Luckily though, Elder Nelson is being transferred to the Highland YSA ward! This will make it an easy transition to hand over some of the people we have been teaching or other potentials. This morning we made a list of people who could qualify for the YSA ward and we decided that about 8 people will be taught by the YSA. These people include potentials, former's and less actives! 

Santa!!

I am staying here. I am also now a district leader! This means that I will be making a training each week. But this is not the only change in our ward. For a long time two sets of missionaries (us and the sisters) have been here, but not anymore. It will just be me and my companion. This means that we have double work load! I asked president if we could have the car full time, as so far we are still switching every other week. On Sunday the sisters went over a lot of people with us so that we can make it an easier transition. It should be pretty fun though. Lots of stress and excitement! My new companion is from Tonga! The other Elders in the district are also leaving and new ones coming in so I will be the only one here who knows the district.

Eating a pig!

 I do know this church us true, I also know that the work I am part of is a privilege. I love sharing this gospel and I love seeing the workings of God in peoples lives. I hope that you will all have a great week!

I love you all! 

- Elder Kloosterboer

The Lord is Helping us

P-Day today, writing emails at a member's home

Hello everyone, 

This is super cool, I am sitting in a super comfortable chair at a member's home with a laptop! We got special permission to do this because elder Nelson and elder Lee are practicing a Piano Guys music piece called O come, O come Emmanuel.  

Tongan ward Christmas party

A few days ago they were asked to play a musical number at a zone conference that is being held tomorrow. We went to the chapel (Church) to practice on Saturday. We were there for a long time. After a little bit some other missionaries came in and they asked Elder Nelson if he could play the piano for them when they sang at the nativity for the Tongan ward Christmas party. They were actually looking for a piano player but no one could, so a little blessing that we were there. But it was a bigger blessing to us as we ate a ton of food at their Christmas party and took a week's food home. Plus the sisters made us these two cakes! YUM! :-)

Thank you cakes from the sister missionaries

We have been looking for some recurring service that we can do and we found some! We are helping play Bingo with some older people at a retirement health center. It is a ton of fun and it is nice to be able to sit down and help. Some of the people are super deaf so you have to shout a lot haha.

Rain!

Some miracles. It rained a lot here, but one day we were on our bikes and we saw a car waiting at the front of the traffic lights, the window was down and they had a broken umbrella sticking out. I just thought the window was broken. Shortly after we noticed that we had taken the wrong turn! We turned around and saw that the car was still there! We left our bikes and walked up behind them, asked them if they needed a push. The car would not go in N! So we stood there. A few minutes later a fireman pulled over 

and it was a man we had talked to a few days before while street contacting! He called some cops over who helped. We got the car to the side of the road, but the tow truck never came until a lot later! But the miracle was that we get some help by just standing there and others knowing who we are.

Sinterklaaspakket from Holland

Another miracle. We were with a member who was giving us a ride to the church. We went up this steep hill and at the top of it there were two cars with their hazardous lights on. Being missionaries we stopped and asked if they needed help. The car that was broken was from a young women who we have been trying to contact for months! We originally met her at another religion's put luck which were were invited to because we talked to two women on the street. We did see her a few other times in our area since the pot luck was not in our area. But both those times we were too slow to react! This time though we have her number and have been in contact, soon we will invite her to listen to our unique message to the world. 

Contents of Sinterklaaspakket

I would like to leave you with my testimony. I know that this church is true. I know that God is hastening his work because I am able to see it. I know that God is with us and that he knows every single situation. He wants to bless us. I know that God blesses us when we act. I know this because I have applied it in my mission. 

Getting ready to share some mission stats with you, half way through my mission

I love you all! I hope that you will all have a great week!

- Love Elder Kloosterboer

He is The Gift

​Hello! 

WOW! Can you believe that in one month that I have been out for one year​? I can't! This has been a great week! We had a special training on Tuesday about a video that I will talk a little bit more about later in the blog. Hope you all had a good thanksgiving! Our thanksgiving was crazy! 

We had about 4 appointments for the day. We are not allowed to knock anyone's door. So we went to a nearby store where we talked to a few people. We had about 4 appointments with members. It is so nice to see that people have such a love for the missionaries that they would invite us. Not only do members do this, but every day we have members inviting us over for dinners. It is amazing what happens when we work together! We were so full eating at all those places haha. :-) 

We also had an exchange. I went to Elder Schaeffer's area. We did some service for a member and then we decided to walk for the rest of the day because the bike I was using had a bend in the rim of the bike. We got in to one home and that was it. It was so exhausting, but so worth it. It is the best thing ever to come back home at the end of the day feeling the most tired I have ever felt in my whole life! THE BEST! 

At the end of Exchanges, with Elder Schaeffer

On Sunday I gave a talk (Members are able to speak on a topic in-front of the whole congregation at church). I spoke about the blessings of obedience. One example that I would like to share is that a few weeks ago I wanted to send home a lot of things. Missionaries are only allowed to buy things on Monday. But later that day, after the time allotted for us to go shopping, I realized that I didn't buy a box! I suggested to my companion, Elder Nelson, that we would go and get one the next day. He asked if I could wait till next week... I had already waited a long time. I gave it some thought as I didn't like it. but decided that it would be best to wait till next Monday. The day before Monday (Sunday) we were greeting people at church when someone said that she was visiting. We had a quick conversation about where she was from and I said that I lived there too! Then out of the blue she said that she could take home any package of any size for me! Blessings of obedience is real. 

Crab!

The video that I had mentioned in the beginning of the blog is called, "He is the Gift". It is a Christmas video that is about 2 minutes long. What does Christmas help you do? What is its real meaning? What does this mean for you? I invite you to discover it for yourself. Here is a link http://www.mormon.org/christmas . I love watching this video. This video will change things. Please watch it. Lets make this Christmas about Him. 

I know that God loves us, Look at the Gift He has given us. We are so lucky that we have such a loving father in heaven who watches over us and who knows who we are.

I hope that you will all have a great week!

Love, Elder Kloosterboer.  

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello everyone,

This week has been great! We have been trying to work hard on trying to talk to 20 people a day!  We did something that I did in my other area, which is to talk to 10 people before you are allowed to have any lunch. We talked to 90 people where as the other weeks it was about 18 people a week. Because of this we have seen direct blessings and we have been able to meet with a few people that we have been trying to teach for over 2 months now! 

This is how it should be done -----

We have also been trying to get a hold of a young man for a long time. We normally just talk to the dad who is a member, but his son who isn't a member yet has always been gone. But this week he was there! He went straight on the x-box and that was difficult to stay focused. (Missionaries are not allowed to watch TV or such things) We then set some expectations and the son wants to be a member! He just doesn't like the water! :-) We then set up a return appointment! 

What makes one cold! RAIN! We were on our bikes this week and it was raining a lot! It was fun, we would walk in the rain with our umbrellas and then we also tried to cycle in it. I didn't take my jacket one day and thought that it was going to clear up, but it was a not so! It kept raining and it got worse hehe. We were just happy that it wasn't freezing.

...not like this - drowned rats!

On Sunday we were cycling to dinner, and we were on the pedestrian path.  As we were waiting a member said "Hello Elders" we saw that she had a friend and told her to ask Tammy more about the church. We followed up later that day and she said that they has just been talking about missionary work at dinner! We told her that it is a sign! :-) 

I know this church is true! I know that God watches over all of us and that he knows each of our situations fully. I love this Gospel! Obedience brings blessings, look at the things that have happened this week for us here. It can happen for you too. 

I hope that you will all have a great week!

Love you all! 

Elder Bednar commemoration of 50th year of temple!

Hello, 

This week went by so fast! We had so many things happen this week! I would like to share a few things with you today :-)

We had the privilege of going to the Oakland temple on Tuesday and that was so cool! Going to the temple is the best feeling ever! We also went to the Visitor Center while we were on exchanges which was amazing as we only get to go with investigators or recent converts. I love seeing the Joseph Smith movie as it is always a testimony builder! 

Our District at the Temple

We went on exchanges (also known as splits) this week. Elder Parker and I went to Union City where we were able to learn from each other. I am not sure why but it was just fun! 

On Exchanges with Elder Parker

In the ward we are serving in, Hayward 1st ward, we have a dinner with members every night! I should be a lot fatter! But it must be the biking that keeps us in shape! We had two dinners on one day because at the second dinner we shared a message about the Plan of Happiness with Liz who is a non member. It was a good short message and we will continue to teach her more about God's plan for us. 

We are also teaching a few other people. Their lessons are going well and I love teaching. There is such peace when we preach the gospel and teach it. This week we are trying to find more investigators. Well that is what all missionaries try to do each week, not sure why I put that down haha. 

Elder Bednar came! He is an Apostle of the Lord! We went to one specifically for missionaries. In this we were asked to study three of his talks. At the fireside he asked us what we learned and then he asked us follow up questions. Later he asked us what we learned from this pattern he was using in teaching us. It was super good and I learned a ton! I reviewed my notes this morning... but I forgot what I want to share. There was also another fireside by Elder Bednar for the public on Sunday evening!

At Elder Bednar's Fireside

The fireside on Sunday evening was about the 50th year of the temple! Some of our investigators came to it! Elder Bednar remembers (since he grew up here) as a 12 year old boy that he was sitting in the same room where he was speaking that he saw the dedication of the temple done by President David O McKay. It was a miracle that he was able to get up and speak! He was very ill as he had had a stroke not too long before and was unable to speak much. However when he got up to the pulpit to dedicate the temple he talked as if he was 20 years younger. When he finished, he went back to looking as an old frail man. We were all able to feel the spirit. 

At the end the sisters talked to us about a girl who they were teaching. As the sisters talked about this girl we all decided to go and visit her. Even though we left the fireside at different times and went and did other things before we went to visit her it was all perfect timing! We had never been to the student housing where the girl who we were going to visit lived, so we were lost! Luckily some people on a double date were near the road so we asked them where the housing was. They gave us directions :-) As we were finding parking the sisters shouted "Elders!" phew! We asked them to wait because we had no idea where to go still! As we walked inside the student housing dorms, someone told us that we needed someone from the same room to sign us in. A miracle happened as one of the girls behind us waiting for the lift just said that she could sign us in as she was on of the girls room mates! It was all perfect timing! We visited them and  it was weird to be in the girls dorms as a missionary! 

My Bedding Rolled up like a Burrito

Thank you all for sending me letters and emails. They are good, just as proverbs says, "As cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country." I know sometimes I don't always reply a lot. My year mark is coming up in a few months and I am going to do a special edition with just a few stats on there of my mission. 

I know that this is God's work. We see miracles each day because the Lord is Hastning His work. I know God loves us all. I see it each day! 

I love you all! 

Elder Kloosterboer

Keeping Productive

bow wow

Hello Everyone! 

Hope that you have all had a good week! 

The week here in the mission field has been a good week. A lot of our appointments have fallen through a lot but we have been blessed to be able to know the area well enough to think of other things to do. 

When we email

It has been a pretty normal week for us. We have been trying to talk with everyone more, but today in our District meeting we were reminded that we have committed ourselves to talk to 10 people each a day. Our promise is that we will baptize twice the people that we would otherwise. How are investigators supposed to keep their commitments if we aren't keeping our commitments? Even if they are different. There is no moral authority without that. 

What are a few miracles that happened this week to us? As we were walking away from El Pollo Loco (A fast food restaurant - I call Crazy Chicken) we were walking across the zebra crossing (cross walk) when someone shouted our names out of the stacked traffic at the red light right next to us. It was the first car with three women in it. We walked up to their passenger window and the driver asked, "Do you have a Book of Mormon?" hehe yep! As my companion was looking for the book in his bag, another women in the car next to us said hello to the person asking for the Book of Mormon! Then the driver asking for the book said that she had been challenged to read it in 180 days by a family member! I am positive that her life will change if she heeds its message. I know it will. 

Helping with a random move

Who are our investigators that we taught? One of our investigators, Arthur, just got a job which has made it more difficult to find a time to teach. But when we went over this week were greeted by his dogs :-) He is trying to figure out what the differences are right now. Another family we are teaching is the Alverado family. The wife and 2 daughters have been baptized already but the dad, Hugo, is learning with us. Notice that I said, learning WITH us. On my mission I have learned that the spirit also teaches the teachers because that is His role. Everything in missionary work is dependent on the Spirit of God. Without it, there is no point in doing teaching. The spirit is the one who testifies to us of truth, but how can we know it is the spirit? I invite you to read these two verses in the Doctrine and Covenants. 

Elder Schaeffer

Is the spirit real? Test it out. This week with a family we dedicated their home to be a safe refuge from the world. The spirit was strong. We left and later that day the grandmother came. As soon as she walked in to the home she felt the difference that there is peace, warmth, light in the home. She is not a member. The spirit is real.

I know this is the true gospel of Jesus Christ that has been restored to this earth again. How can you know? Take up the promise in Moroni. It is logical. It makes sense. The spirit will testify if you put in the right ingredients that it mentions. 

woof woof

I am loving my mission. As I have seen sister Fitu go home I have reflected upon my mission and where I would like to be at the end of my mission. I know this is my only time when I am working FULL time to share the Gospel with the people of California. Even though there are many difficulties it is well worth every ounce of my time! 

- The best way to learn is to act. 

I love you all! Have a great week.  This week we will get the car. We will also be at a few firesides where Elder Bednar will talk. 

love Elder Kloosterboer