Almost Got Shot - April 23rd letter

OK. Umm, I have a ton to talk about this week.

Birthdays:

Helped paint at my bishops house

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DIMANI!!!! I hope you have a great day and that everything is going good.

Send me your birthday if you want a special birthday email and a shout out. 

First off, the title:

1. So last Tuesday, we were walking around a corner and we were in our "area book" looking for people to go see. I told Elder Waters to stop walking so fast so we stopped at a corner. As we continued walking past this house we said hi.  This guy in his garage stands up and puts his hand to his waist and pulls his pistol up a little bit for us to see.  We were like, "Well let's keep walking."

2. Then last night we knocked on the door of a less active family and he was like "who is it" and we said "the missionaries."  He answers and said we sounded like the cops. Haha. But then you could see the shotgun swinging behind his legs and it was funny.

I really feel like you haven't experienced a mission unless you've almost been shot at multiple times. 

Miracles/spiritual moments:

So this is what my desk
looks like with all the candy
and junk food my mother and
brother Hunter sent me. #oops

I can only think of one right now but it was amazing. We were going to visit a family that used to take the missionary lessons. They didn't answer so we decided to go talk to this guy sitting in his garage. He told us that he didn't believe in God but lately he has thought about the questions: where did we come from, why are we here and where are we going? He told us that his cousin and brother in law recently passed away and we talked about the plan of salvation and how he will see them again. We gave him a book of Mormon and he said he would read it. We don't know what will come of it but it was amazing because you could just see the look on his face that he could definitely feel the spirit and it was super cool.

Movies:

I thought this picture of the
Millineum Falcon Flying towards
the construction of The Death
Star was kinda cool.

First off, I don't miss Snapchat or Instagram or Twitter or social media. I know, crazy

 that someone who was addicted to social media doesn't miss it. I'm insane. HOWEVER, I miss The Greatest Showman so much. I convinced some girls in the ward to play A Million Dreams the other night when we were at a ward activity so I could listen to it once. I am a horrible example. But that is like the one thing I miss. I can't wait to see it again in 2 years.

Speaking of movies, I hope everyone enjoys the 3rd Avengers movie. I think it comes out this weekend. And then the Han Solo movie comes out soon. Enjoy both those movies and go see them another time for me. I'll see it when I get home at some point. But for now go see it a 2nd time in my honor.

Football players:

Talked to a guy going into the NFL draft soon. His name is David Knox. Super nice guy and everything. When we tried to give him a book of Mormon he said "Oh no thanks, I'm not Mormon." So if he is ever in the NFL, I can say "HEY!!! I met him and he denied a Book of Mormon from me." Haha. He was fun to talk to though.

Funny stories:

We were riding home and the sisters stopped in front of us when we were pulling into the apartment complex just to be obnoxious so we raced our bikes through the parking lot to beat them. Suddenly two young boys came riding up and talked to us and they asked, "Do you have snacks?" and we said, "No". And they're like "you gotta have snacks."  So we finally gave them some grapefruit. It was super funny because they kept begging for food.

Zone conference and a sleepover:

View in front of the apartment
complex. This is literally what all of
Vegas looks like

Friday we had zone conference. We had Elder Nielson and Elder Down stay with us Thursday night since they live all the way in Panaca and it would have taken 3 hours to get down here. It was super fun especially since we stayed up all night to talk. My first mission sleep over. Haha. Zone conference was amazing. It was focused around teaching the lessons around the needs of our investigators and less around teaching the actual doctrine or the whole lesson. They also emphasized that members should be super involved in missionary work. The members should be the ones doing the work. They know their friends and neighbors and they should be the ones inviting people to church. We are all just ministers and it is our job to help each other and bring others unto the gospel. It was a great first zone conference and I loved it. Members need to work with the missionaries and it is their responsibility to help further the work.

Anyway I think that's it. Thanks to everyone who has written me and sent me stuff. It means a lot. It always makes my day better when I get emails and letters from people. I'm beginning to love the work more and more. Its difficult but amazing. Thank you for the prayers and don't stop. It's really awesome to hear how people are doing. Keep sending emails and letters and pictures. Show me what you guys are doing. Update me on everything you guys are doing.

Love you all!!!

Elder Skaggs

Address:

Elder Michael Skaggs

4455 Allen Lane Suite 140

North Las Vegas, NV 89031

My old license

My new license came in and I
look much better than my old one

Here's the creepy mannequin
I talked about. They told us that
they did it to scare people and we
suggested that they make robot like.

Finally met some crazy people - April 16th letter

Hello all!!! This is Elder Skaggs and week 3 on his adventures of surviving the heat and sins... I mean awesomeness of Vegas.

Birthdays:

Picture 1 - see explanation
below

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GENE HAYES!! Great guy. Haha. Love you man!!! Don't swallow any goldfish today. 

Crazy people: 

We actually met a real crazy man. He was 100% cross faded and drunk at 11:30 in the morning. He was talking to someone on the other side of the gate but there was no one there. It was super funny.

Oh and we had an investigator block our number and tell us to go away as we knocked on her door so that was fun. 

We also tried mowing someone's lawn but he wouldn't let us. Not a crazy guy but we were disappointed that we couldn't help.  Always let missionaries do service for you. 

Miracles: 

Picture 2 - see explanation
below

After a long tiring night of meeting with Mormons and meeting with people who aren't LDS and trying to convert homies, we were stranded on a street corner with no where to go. We were lost sheep. Then suddenly Elder Waters said, "Let's pray for a miracle. When we don't know what to do then pray and the Lord will provide"...as these 2 young men stood on a street corner (not spinning a Sprint sign like I used to do) praying, cars drove by and stared at the weirdness going on. Then suddenly a light bulb hit Elder Waters in the head. So we went off to Kim's house (she's the one who blocked our number). She told us behind the door to go away. So we left and Elder Skaggs saw an open garage door and went over. A nice Hispanic man was sitting there waiting for his buddy to get back from the store.  We talked to him and shared the Book of Mormon as he sat and listened and we talked to him. He asked if there was a Spanish version and we told him that we would send Spanish missionaries to him. We rode off in joy as we helped another man come one step closer to the light of Christ and the gospel.

Miracles do happen when you are patient and you seek for the help of God to bless you.

Picture 3 - see explanation
below

I probably shouldn't say anything but I will anyway. So the other day we were talking to an investigator and he was talking about how he has to go grow some stuff on his farm and his work is right next to the strip. Turns out, he works on a weed farm. So that's pretty interesting. Haha.

Hardships: 

Nothing to report on this week. It has turned out to be a great week and I have loved it. The members here are amazing and Elder Waters, although we don't always see eye to eye, is a great guy. Tonight, we are butchering a chicken at a member's house so you might want to skip next week's pictures because it'll be super gross but I'm excited.

I tried recreating the Luxor
light. I think it worked
perfectly. LOL

If you have time send me a letter or something. I love writing people. Or send me your address to get a letter from me. I love you all and I'm thankful for everyone for keeping up with my emails. Although, I'm salty to those who don't write back when I write to them. Just kidding. I understand that everyone is busy. Trust me, I didn't always write missionaries and email them. Hope everyone is doing well. Update me on missions, weddings, engagements, people having children. I love hearing about these. Being on a mission is weird though because you don't hear much on the news. I did hear about the latest event but we don't need to get into that.

We just had a lady come up to us and hand us $20 for our p-day shopping at Walmart. I love members of the church who are so kind. Much appreciated.

Anyway, have a great day everyone!!! Life is great!! Wahoo!!!

Oh and many of you know about my minion onesie. Well, I had my mom send it to me so here I am. Haha.

Love,

Elder Skaggs

Elder Michael Skaggs

4455 Allen Lane Suite 140

North Las Vegas, NV 89031

Picture 1 explanation - Don't judge. I thought I looked good so I took a picture. A sister in my district was wondering what the heck I took this for during device audits. Every day, companionships check each other's emails, pics, etc to make sure we're following the standards and we do the same at district meeting.

Picture 2 explanation - Blessed with jersey Mike's which is basically my child. Shout-out to my aunt for the gift card. [Note from Elder Skaggs' mom - it was my COUSIN that sent him the gift card, so his 2nd cousin.  He was just thankful for the thoughtfulness of the gift.]

Picture 3 explanation -  I think my ADD medicine had worn off and I was super hyper and weird Saturday night and got free snacks from a member family and used the grocery bag to make a sculpture coming out of my helmet. I think I should take my medicine 20 times a day. Haha!

Send Me Food - April 9th letter

So the title is because I need people to send me snacks and gift cards and everything. Haha. 
But if y'all want, then send me food.

My every day inspiration.
 I've had the teddy bear for such a long
time and it has a name tag on it that says
Elder, but my name tag is covering it.

This week started off horrible but ended amazing. So let's get this started.

PSA for non members and members: if you ever see the missionaries, offer them water and be polite. It's always so amazing when we're walking by and people aren't interested but they offer us water and are nice to us.

Birthdays: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JENNA HARMON AND BROOKLYN DEAN ON THURSDAY OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT!!!! Two amazing young woman. Also send me your birthday if you want a shout out.

I got lazy and decided not to
fold my clothes and rather
sleep with them

Miracles:

I don't remember too many but following promptings blesses everyone.

We were riding our bikes and I told Elder Waters that we should keep riding and I saw a housing complex I felt we should go to. We rode by and saw in that there was a guy getting out of a truck so I was like, "Oh crud I wanna hurry and get it and ride over and talk to this man." So we got in and we rode by and they waved so we turned around and it turned out they're members. The dad had some chemical burns on his hands and needed a priesthood blessing and so it was amazing to be able to give him a blessing.  Not much else has happened that I can think of. 

Crazy/rude people:

It's amazing how close
we were to the strip 

Ok. We don't force religion on anyone and we honestly just love talking to people about normal things. We rode by this guys house and we were like,  "Can we help you?"  He said no so we confirmed and he said no again.  We told him to have a good day and he ignored us and was just so cold and rude towards us. Can't we all just be polite?

Oh, and then we saw some guy and started talking to him and he was like, "You guys hate me."  We told him that we don't. Then he was like, "I'm Baptist and Mormons hate Baptist."  I have no idea where he got that idea but I love  Baptist and people of all religions.  I can't think of any crazy people for the time being.

Hardships:

1. I had a small emotional breakdown last week but felt so much better when I got a blessing from my companion.

2. Biking is becoming way easier and I'm loving it now. I haven't gained weight and I haven't lost weight.

Exchanges:

Elder Knowles and I on
exchanges

So we had exchanges on Saturday and it was amazing. I went out with Elder Knowles and he was an awesome companion for the day. We got a family to come to a baptism and we committed them to be baptized.  We talked to a bunch of people and handed out a bunch of Book of Mormons.  I learned that we should just talk to everyone about the gospel.

Gospel related:

I'd like to share my favorite scripture which is Jacob 3:1 and talks about how Jesus will comfort and love us when we have faith and that he will protect us from our enemies. I love that scripture and think its amazing to remember that there's so much He'll do for us if we believe and have faith in Him.

Other than that, everything is going great. Still fixing some problems I have with the mission and my comp. But I'll slowly work my way up.

I love you all and I'm grateful for all of your examples in life and for everything that you all do.

Love,

Elder Skaggs

Address:

Elder Michael Skaggs 

4455 Allen Lane suite 140

North Las Vegas, NV 89031

Our area borders the mission
so going straight would take
us to the other mission

This was us at 8 at night
sitting down on our phones
looking super suspicious

What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas - April 2nd letter

That's the end of this email. Just kidding. Oh man, I have no idea where to start.

Going up to the mission field: leading up to entering the field, I was so excited and wasn't nervous at all. I just wanted to finally serve. And then 3 hours before I was supposed to enter I just completely shut down. We went to In N Out and I ordered a burger but wasn't hungry at all. Plus the fact that I don't like In N Out and I wanted Cafe Rio instead. But I was super nervous and stressed and just didn't want to go. Then we got back to my cousins house and I got ready and finished watching some training videos and started to feel at peace and after I prayed for some comfort it was great. Anyway let's get onto the good stuff.

The area:

I'm serving in the Dove Canyon and Aliante ward. Super nice. I love the members of the ward so far and they have all been amazing. Both our bishops are super awesome.

Companion:

My companion is Elder Waters. He graduated in 2017 and he's been out for 6 months. He's from twin falls, Idaho. Super cool but I'm still learning to get along with him more. 

Crazy peeps:

Not too many crazy people yet. We had one guy tell us that he thinks we're wasting our time and then some guy just us he loves being Baptist more than he loved being Mormon. Oh and one of our investigators has mannequins in his garage window and it's the creepiest thing ever.

Funny stories: 

1. We had some young kids around 10 or 11 tell us that when we come to play basketball that we need to bring an ambulance because they're going to break our ankles and go low. Yeah it was funny.

2. We knocked on a Hispanic families door and the woman was super scared and my companion thinks that maybe they thought we were part of the drug gangs because there's a certain knock that they do and he thinks he did that knock. But first off, that sounds kinda racist to associate them with that and second, I'm pretty sure drug dealers and the mafia would have a more elaborate knock than one that many people could accidentally use.

Tender mercies:

As many of you know, my grandma passed away back in January. Well, these first few days has been rough. Then we went by this ladies house. Her name is Velma and she's 97 years old. She was baptized young but has been inactive for like 75 years. She was telling us her stories and then told us that we can come by whenever we want for cookies and ice cream. It was so sweet because I will definitely be back. I just thought of my grandma the whole time and how she was always super caring and sweet and always loved having people over to visit and talk to. I wanted to cry the whole time being there.

Hardships:

The mission has definitely been rough. On a mission, the members usually feed the missionaries every evening. A mission rule here is that members can only feed you once a week so we have more time to find and teach investigators. I was really hoping to have meals every day and I didn't like the rule at first but I know that our mission President is guided through revelation and there's a reason that he made this rule. 

Another hardship is that you literally share your food with your companion. That's how my comp has done that all his mission. I love just buying my own food and cooking my own meals so I'll have to get used to it. I wish I could just shop for myself.

Also biking has been rough at first. But that's not too bad. The first few days I wanted to just leave the mission and come home. The schedule is rough and I'm always tired. It's going to get hot in Vegas but I'm doing the Lord's work. 

Going off of that and continuing that thought, I have almost cried because I've been miserable and I have almost quit a few times but I've waited 2 years to serve a mission and I can't give up now. I've worked too hard to get where I'm at now. I know the Lord will bless me for my patience and dedication.

Mailing:

Elder Michael Skaggs (include 1st name, too)

4455 Allen lane suite 140

North Las Vegas 89031

SEND ME LETTERS!!!!

General conference:

Oh my goodness!!! That was a great one. So many changes. No more high priest group. No more home teaching. And then Russia and India are getting temples. That's pretty cool. Favorite talk was from Elder Hawk about forgiveness. It's so much easier to forgive and to love. It doesn't give anyone an excuse to treat you bad or do you wrong but forgiving people will make you feel so much better.

Our area is on a hill and every few days we go down a hill that has a beautiful view of the strip. I know the actual strip isn't a clean place to be but it makes me super happy to see the lights of the strip and it's super beautiful. I never thought I'd love living in Vegas but it's an amazing place to live. 

I'm extremely grateful to be here. I have tried for 2 years to serve a mission. I didn't want to go to BYU Idaho for 2 extra semesters but I'm so grateful that I did. The people that I met, the friends i made, and the memories I made are things i never want to forget. I know that there's a reason I had to wait to serve my mission. I'm thankful to be in Vegas and for the opportunities the Lord has given me. I have been blessed with so many amazing people and opportunities in life. Never forget your blessings and always love the opportunities you have. The Lord is always looking out for you. 

I'm so thankful for all your love and support to everyone reading this. You guys don't how much it means to me to know that there are people looking out and praying for not only me but all the missionaries around the world. Oh and email me or write me letters. I'd love to get updates from everyone on engagements or mission calls, etc. Every Monday I have until 6 pm Pacific time to sporadically check and reply to emails so you guys can still email me and I'll see it today.

Much love,

The one and only Elder Skaggs

Have a great week everyone!!!