Elder Cameron Perkins has returned from his mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He served in the Washington, Spokane Mission. He is the son of Maurie and Christy Perkins of the Heritage Ward, West Stake. Elder Perkins will speak in the Heritage Ward on Sunday, December 29, 2024, at 1:30 p.m. in the Mesquite Nevada West Stake Center. He will continue his studies at SUU in Cedar City, Utah starting in January. Welcome home Elder Perkins!

As we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ this Christmas season, we are reminded of the profound love that He offers to each of us. His birth, His life, and His ultimate sacrifice are a testimony to the boundless love of the Savior who came into the world to redeem us. In the quiet of that holy night, a child was born who would change the world forever. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came to teach us how to love, forgive, and serve. Through His example, we learn that true joy is found in loving others as He has loved us. As we reflect on His life, let us be reminded that love is the greatest gift we can give and receive this season. May our hearts be filled with gratitude for the Savior's love, which is unconditional and eternal. Let His light guide us in spreading kindness and compassion, and may we seek to follow His example in all that we do. As we gather with loved ones and celebrate this special season, let us remember that Christmas is not just about the gifts we exchange, but about the greatest gift ever given—the life and love of Jesus Christ. May His peace fill our homes and hearts, and may we share His love with everyone we meet. Wishing you a Merry Christmas, filled with the light and love of our Savior, Jesus Christ. President Jared Hollingshead Mesquite West Stake

As we think about and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas, we follow His teachings and example of kindness and love a little more clearly and completely than at other times of the year. This added measure of love, compassion, and concern for others makes this the most wonderful time of the year.  His birth in Bethlehem, highlighted in the heavens with the star, helped draw those to the stable who looked forward to His promised mortal mission. Adoration, praise, and gifts were given to the new King.  He was, and still is, the light, the life, and the hope of the world!  His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come.  What gifts can we give at Christmas? Each gift of kindness to anyone becomes a gift of kindness to the Savior because He loves all of Heavenly Father’s children and wants us to have joy. Our gifts of caring, forgiveness, service, patience, and love for others, help bring joy to us, Him, and to His Father.  Wise men still seek, adore, emulate, and praise Him. There is no better time than Christmas for all of us to seek to emulate His teachings and example by rededicating ourselves to the principles taught by Jesus Christ: to love the Lord God with all our heart and love our neighbors as ourselves. May we follow the Son by gifting gifts of tenderness, mercy, and love to all at Christmas and throughout the year. We testify that he lives and loves. He wants us to live and love. He truly is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son.   Mesquite NV East Stake, President Ryan Toone Travis Wakefield Darrell Garlick

Missionary Letters Sister Kiera Davis Read Letter Sister Tyra Ludvigson Read Letter Sister Marian Leavitt Read Letter Elder Gunner McOmie Read Letter Elder Andrew Maxfield Read Letter Sister Danzel Park Read Letter Sister Jasmine Bundy Read Letter Sister Jasmine Bundy Read Letter Elder Cameron Spilker Read Letter Elder Connor Zarate Read Letter Elder Drake Wakefield Read Letter Elder Caiden Jones Read Letter

Elder Caiden Jones Back to Missionary Letters #26 Aussie Willy Wonka🦘 What's up everybody! Welcome back to another email! This week absolutely flew by and it was a blast. Lot's of exciting things so let's get into the weekly epistle! Google Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/SPHBKzMm2s5zEyUQ8 Email: caiden.jones@missionary.org ————————————————————————— Mission Address Letters (in Mission) PO Box 97 Marden SA 5070 Australia Packages (in Mission) 11 Sommers Avenue Firle SA 5070 Australia ————————————————————————— Lost Ring Counter: 4 So last week the ring was lost by the time I sent the email. It was found the next day or something like that and so I had it for a day or two but then I lost it again😭 Luckily, it was at a members house and they contacted us and so I'll get it back today. ————————————————————————— Animal(s) of the week: KANGAROO!!! Bro was just hopping around the hills and I got a very short video but it was cool to see one I honestly can't remember anything else because Kangaroo trumps all ————————————————————————— Highlight Reel: - Hit 6 months today🥳 Time flies guys - Got driver certified and so now I get to drive around (for a little bit at a time) which has been fun - We have had some fantastic days this week. Elder Katoa and I have been working hard, improving a lot, and finding joy everywhere - The Close family is awesome - Said by to the McGregors :( - Finally saw a Kangaroo!! It was cool even if it was only for a little bit. The hunt is still on for a Koala - Lots of services - Sang in church which was fun - We have a few friends who seem really interested and Garry is still going strong! He's been coming to church which is difficult for him so that's amazing! ————————————————————————— Daily Stories (Long): Monday: Pday was fun. We went on a trip to this place called "The Whispering Wall." It's a dam that was built in a unique way, and so now you can stand on opposite sides of the dam, talk, and the people on the other side can hear you very clearly. The design of the dam carries the sound over and it's pretty cool. We also had a picnic which was un. We made it back to the chapel and watched a Christmas movie/play, but I can't remember what it was called. Wasn't super interesting can't lie. After that we went to Jared's basketball game to support him and that is always fun. For the last event of the day, we had FHE! This was a blast because the McGregors came (which is huge by the way) and we had a ton of fun with them. We played the game where you set up on obstacle course, blind someone, and then try and disrupt them and the person leading them through it. It got out of hand really fast. Tuesday: Today was pretty fun. We had stopped by a referral from some other missionaries and he is pretty down to have lessons! He said that he wants to learn more about Revelation 14 so if anyone has some cool insight on that chapter then send it my way please. We went to Young Men's today and it was awesome. It was a pool party at a members house but obviously we can't get in the pool and so we got to tour the garden and his storage of candies. This guy is literally the Australian Willy Wonka. He has sheds and garages full of fridges, freezers, cabinets, shelves, and more. All stocked with tons of chocolate, lollies, drinks, ice cream, and who knows what else. He let us have a LOT for free because he says he likes to give it out. Bless that man. I don't think I've talked about this yet but the chocolate here is soooo good. The main brand is Cadbury and they've got everything guys. It's all fire and I really need to watch myself. He introduced me to a New Zealand chocolate brand named Wittickers or something like that and I had the Hazlenut one. 100% the best chocolate I've had. This stuff was crazy good. For Young Men's we also got a tour of his garden like I mentioned earlier and he grows a lot of things. One such thing being chili peppers. He gave us all some of them and so I ate a Carolina Death Reaper and a Trinidad Scorpion. It was actually a fun experience which was surprising. I learned that the reaction makes it seem a lot worse then it is because all you're trying to do is breathe in as much as you can. I would definitely do it again. Wednesday: This was a very good day for missionary work. We were out visiting a lot of people and we met some wonderful people. We met someone who was looking for service and he is awesome. He has met with the missionaries in the past so hopefully we will be able to meet with him more. He also had a caretaker over who was also awesome. He seemed kind of young but he told us that he actually used to go to church and so we're hoping to start meeting with him too. Later that day we went and had dinner with the Close family where I got to eat Kangaroo Sausages. Honestly not the biggest fan but if you like lamb then you'd probably like Kangaroo too. So I got to eat a Kangaroo before I saw one. But then I saw one. On the way back home after dinner we were driving through the hills and sure enough I SAW A KANGROO! It was lit and hopefully next time, I will be able to get a little closer. Still cool though. Thursday: We went and visited some more people and did some letterbox dropping. It was a pretty good day because we got in contact with some friends and managed to get their phone numbers so that's awesome. We were also going to have a lesson with one of our friends but we couldn't find a member who had the time to join us and so instead, I called my family. It's a huge perk for it to be 1:30 in the afternoon for you, but 8:00 at night for them because they usually won't be busy. Sadly he fell through but that would've been fun. Then we went and said bye to the McGregors. They are an awesome family nd it's sad to see them go. However, before they left they told us that they wanted to start going to church and asked that we get them in touch with the missionaries in Brisbane. Their daughter even said that she wanted to start going to Young Women's, get baptized, and serve a mission. This is amazing. I only got to know them and be there for three weeks of their journey but I love that family. We had a blast whenver we were together. Let's hope Brisbane treats them well! Friday: Got driver certified! Wooooo! It's so nice being able to drive because now we can borrow the car when we need to and so now we don't need to take hour long bus rides to our lessons that are far away. The vehicle coordinater wasn't too keen on the idea of me driving after being here for only a few weeks but he let me take my test and we're good baby. The driving itself isn't that bad but it took a sec to get used to. While we were down in Firle we also (accidentally) crashed the departing missionaries pizza party. Elder Harper (the vehicale coordinater) invited us to it but we didn't realize what it was. It was fun though and nobody cared. President Standley is really funny. That's all I'm gonna say. After we headed back home, we had a lesson with our friend Andy who is awesome. The lesson went well and the members in my ward are beasts. Super awesome members. Then we had a lesson that fell through, English class which was great, and choir practice. Saturday: Today was FULL of service and I loved it. There isn't much to say about it but I recommend all of you to go out and find opportunities to serve others. It is honestly wonderful. On a side note we had dinner with some members. One of them is Philipino and they said that next time they're going to feed us chicken feet and pig head. So yay?? Sunday: Sang in church with the other missionaries and the Close family. It went well and it was a lot of fun. Our friend Garry came to church! He is the one who's on date and this man is amazing. He has such a strong love for Jesus Christ and has such a positive attitude about everything. Please keep in him your prayers for his health. That's the only thing holding him back right now. After sacrament meeting there was a fire lesson given and it has actually inspired the spiritual thought for this week. Sadly Garry couldn't stay but that's alright. The rest of the day was just planning and meetings. Nothing too exciting. The mission might start Vision Series here though so that's funny. As for the lesson we did an activity where we all wrote things down with the question: "What is my relationship with..." For example some of the things written on the board were - Pride - Prayer - The Spirit - Temptation - Anger - Love - etc. The simple truth that I would like to talk about is that everyone can improve. There are always new things that we learn, habits that we can start or quit, attributes we can work on, and more. Our purpose for being on this earth is so that we can grow, learn, and prepare to meet God. It's important for us to take a step back at times and to reflect on how we are doing on our mortal journey. My invitation to you is to write at least five things that go with the question and then truly ponder what your relationship is with those things. Call upon the Lord for help and guidance and He will strengthen you. Ether 12:27 27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them. This exercise is not for the intention of looking down upon ourselves. We're human and we have struggles. We are not expected or quite honestly intended to be perfect...yet. However, with the Lord's help He can bring us closer to where He is. I hope you all accept the invitation! The Lord loves you and He wants you to be happy. We can find true joy in following His example and by being His disciple. I love you all and 'till next time! - Elder Jones Previous Letter Next Letter

Elder Drake Wakefield Back to Missionary Letters The Greatest Gift Welcome back, this week flew as always, I dont even know where to start for food of the week, we were blessed. Of course there was popeyes as always, a calm two timer for the week🙏Went to the mexican resturant for my Bday, that was fire again This one was an absolute banger, this goated family invited us to lunch bro, man it was good. We were in this VIP room and there was big plates of food on a spinny thing, so you'd just spin the spinny thing to the food you wanted and scooped it to your plate. Had Bebek(duck) for the first time, im a fan. Potentially life changing, it was bomb. Yea that one was epic, and then on Sunday we had my ward's Christmas party, they balled out too. They had these copper pots with food, and you scooped it out too. They had lasagna too bro, that was legendary. So i was definitely filled🙏 A more eternal filling happened this week as we were able to help Mario. He came to church and our Christmas party, and after he said he felt "warm" here. That made my day. He's coming back next week so prayers up that he can continue to find peace and joy when coming🙏 There was also a Christmas party for my old ward on Saturday, basically like a talent show, people danced and sang it was fun. We were given stage time too, and a member told us not to sing cause everyone does that, so we did a Nativity scene. I was Joseph and another Elder was Mary, it was epic I think this represents where my thoughts have been this week about Jesus Christ, The Greatest Gift even been given. The best Gift ever given is Jesus Christ, so we need to seek Him while remembering why He was given, for YOU. He was given for those who love him, which is everyone on earth as we all chose God's plan with Jesus Christ at the center in the premortal existence. So remember that eternal love you have for Him, your existence here on earth is evidence for that love. Remember why we were given The Greatest Gift, so we can live with God and our families again. All this is done through The Greatest Gift ever given, Jesus Christ, so accept Him this Christmas season and the rest of your life.DnC 46:8-9...seek ye earnestly the best gifts, always remembering for what they are given;9 For verily I say unto you, they are given for the benefit of those who love me and keep all my commandments, and him that seeketh so to do Love yall -Elder Wakefield Apparently this kid is a famous Actor's kid, so here a picture of him. He was filming a vid for this random Mufasa promotion, so that was cool I guess Yea im not good w pics, sorry, peace✌️ Here is my address for those who requested🙏 Jalan Senopati 115 Kebayoran Baru Jakarta 12190 Indonesia Previous Letter Next Letter