My new area is called "Glenelg"

Well Hello family!  My new companion is Elder Mikami he is from Oregon and he’s pretty cool and is smaller than me so its looks like 12 year old’s are knocking on doors sharing the gospel so it’s pretty funny. 

We are sharing a flat with 2 other Elders and they are the zone leaders. Our new area is a bike only area so we bike all day every day. My new area is called "Glenelg" and it has been closed for the last 3 years. We are the ones that are going to reopen the area and we are basically starting from scratch.  We have little information on the area. The area book has barely anything in it so we have nothing to go off of so we have to rebuild the area... that means we will be doing tons and tons and tons of finding just to find people to teach and we will be working with the members as much as possible, it should be a fun transfer and since we are opening up a new area we will probably  be here for a couple of transfers... yay!... We have a road called Jetty it’s like a strip of shops and there is a pier at the end and that's where we do a lot of our “finding” So find it on Google Earth and look where I’ll be at.   Love you all so much!

Love Elder Riding

"I feel like a new man..."

Well it’s gonna be a short one today but this week has been one for the books for sure! I was able to witness one of our Heavenly Fathers children go through the waters of baptism. It was an amazing experience!   When he got baptized and he came out of the water he rubbed the water out of his eyes and said "wow i feel like a new man" it was truly amazing to see him choose to follow Christ and the joy that it brings to him.  I’m glad I was able to help him come unto Christ and change his life for the better but in the end its not us missionaries that changed his life he did it on his own we just gave him a way to change. And that is what our Father in Heaven does he doesn’t change us we have to change ourselves. He just gives us the steps and it’s our choice to follow them.

Elder Riding 

Hey Family~

Hey Family~

We were able to email Dillon last night and got a few picture of his district/Zone!  He looks so dang cute  LOL!

Elder Riding is do well!  They have a baptism set for June 18^th and he is super excited about it.    They had transfers on Sunday but Elder Riding will be staying  in the same place with the same companions for another 6 weeks.  He really enjoys the trio that he is currently in and is really loving his mission.

He wanted us to tell everyone that he loves you all soooo much!

These past couple of weeks have been great!

These past couple of weeks have been great! We talk to so many people every day. we are street contacting and door knocking for 5 hours a day, almost every day, and it is truly amazing to see the people that the Lord has put in our path to share the gospel with. We recently met this guy while we were street contacting. He told us that he was in a serious car accident and he had a lot of brain damage he had to relearn everything. he had to learn how to walk, talk, write, etc. literally everything but now 8 years later he is almost back to 100% and he told us that he knows that he couldn't have done it without God. and his story is really cool. we are teaching him and he has accepted to be baptized.

This mission is truly amazing. there are so many different cultures here in Adelaide. People from all over the world come here. In our area, we contact people from India and China and they speak very little English but that makes it really fun. They are all very nice people and very accepting to the gospel. The main religion for Indian people here is Hindu and most of the Chinese don’t believe in God. I love teaching them about the restored gospel and about how we have a prophet on the earth today to lead and guide us back to our Heavenly Father if we have faith and follow the commandments.

Yesterday we had zone conference from 9:00 AM to 9:30 PM it was a really long meeting it was really good though. we got trained on how to be better missionaries and how to contact people better. We got fed lunch and dinner so that was good, we also got flu shots. I shared my testimony 3 times throughout the day and I cried every time because the spirit is so strong and I am learning so much and there is no other place that I would rather be than serving the Lord. I am grateful for this gospel in my life and all the joy it brings. With God on my side, I can do anything. I’m thankful for all the support and examples that I have in my life. I know this church is true.

I’m loving my mission and my testimony is growing so much here.
I love you all I hope you all have an amazing week.


Love
Elder Riding

Hello Hello!

Hello Hello!

This week has been pretty good. This week I helped 2 people start their cars because they didn't know how to lol. One was an older man with a 1995 jaguar and he just had some electrical problems so i followed some wires and found out they have been unplugged and that there was a fuse blown so I fixed it up and it started right up. The second one was super funny, their battery died and they had no idea how to fix it. This was a young couple and I just told them to get another car and park it on the side of it and use jumper cables, but they didn't know how to so I showed them and I got the car running so it was pretty cool! They both didn’t want us to come back and share our message so it was kind of a let down but I still helped them so it was good! Other than that nothing much happened this week.

I got the package of food thanks! :) We went shopping and I got more food so we are good for a while but you can keep sending little snack stuff. :)

It is hot out here and really humid! It rains a little every day but it gets really hot after and it gets really humid.

We all got shots today after our interviews LOL!

I haven’t cooked much yet. I made hash browns this morning with some potatoes, and I make little random side dishes like nachos and stuff. I’m gonna make crepes tomorrow!! HAHA!

I Love and miss you all!

Love Elder Riding

He is really enjoying Australia.

We got these awesome pictures yesterday in front of the Adelaide Temple!

Elder Riding is doing well!!! He is really enjoying Australia. He says they ride their bikes a lot and walk to most places. There are no highways there so they have to weave in and out of the suburbs. He hasn't seen any cool animals yet like koala bears, kangaroos, or big Spiders but he is sure he will! They have a few possible baptisms scheduled for May 21st if they are willing to commit to the Mormon Life style. He really loves his companions and is learning so much about the gospel and the people of Australia. Both of his Companions are Zone leaders. Elder Leutele is from New Zealand and Elder Ellingson is from Arizona. He says that his "Flat" or Apartment is super small. The kitchen only fits 2 people and he gets to sleep in the top bunk bed. They have a washer and dryer to do laundry so that is super nice. He is staying super busy and they are on a pretty tight schedule daily. Elder Riding says Australia is just like America except they drive on the wrong side of the road (haha). There are no big trucks there just smaller size trucks on the roads. He has eaten at Hungry Jacks which is like a Burger King chain in America. It cost him $21 for two burgers fries and drink! Things are super expense there. He wants everyone to know that he loves and misses everyone.

ARRIVED!!... finally...

So last night around 11 o'clock, after not hearing from Dillon, Rhett sent the office missionaries an email asking them if Dillon had arrived. He did arrive last Wednesday, but they emailed Rhett to an old email address and they sent another email to Tiffany's hotmail account but unfortunately never arrived.  Both of those email addresses had been updated but something must have gone wrong. So attached is the email that should have been received last Wednesday.

We are just so grateful that he is there safe and sound!!





12 April 2017

Dear Family,

Elder Dillon Jay Riding has arrived in the Australia Adelaide Mission safely. Sister Parker and I are mindful of the great trust you have placed in us by sharing your son. When he arrived, we met him at the airport and he was taken to the mission office to be introduced to the Senior Couple office staff and Assistants to the President for orientation and photographs. Our interview was followed by dinner and testimonies at the adjacent church building with the other arrivers and Senior Couple office staff.

Elder Riding’s companions are Elder Dean Jordan Leutele from New Zealand, and Elder Quinn Jacob Ellingson from USA. Theyare serving in the Prospect area of the Firle zone. We are including a picture of Elder Riding with President and Sister Parker.


PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL MAIL (including PACKAGES) IS TO BE SENT TO:


Australia Adelaide Mission Office
ELDER DILLION JAY RIDING
PO Box 97
Marden SA 5070 Australia


I am aware that the Lord blesses, in many special ways, the families of missionaries. As your son serves, you will find that to be very true. Your support is greatly appreciated.

(Missionaries are allowed to send and receive email from family and friends only.) They check their emails at the local library on preparation day, which is usually Monday.

Warmest Regards,

President R. Jeffrey Parker
AUSTRALIA ADELAIDE MISSION

THE FLIGHT!!

Elder Riding finally arrived!!
A flight attendant texted a picture of Elder Riding during his long 15 hour flight to Sydney, Australia.
Elder Dillon Riding flew from Ontario, California to San Francisco (which was a 1hr flight) and then from there he flew to Sydney Australia (which has taken him 15 hours).  He still has another flight yet to go- Sydney to Adelaide (1 hour and 55 minute flight).  Taking in his 2 hour lay-over in Sydney, he should arrive in Adelaide around 7pm tonight Tuesday April 11, 2017 (Utah time).  However just to keep everything in perspective, it will be 10am in Adelaide Wednesday April 12, when he finally arrives there.

Paul, the flight attendant said that he loved having the missionaries on board. He sent this text to Rhett and Tiffany just after they had landed safely in Sydney.

In T- 6 hours I'll be starting my adventure to Australia.

Well the time has come! In T- 6 hours I'll be starting my adventure to Australia. My flight leaves at 8,  I'm super excited! It's gonna be awesome. I fly out of Ontario airport and I land in San Francisco, then from San Francisco I make the 15 hour flight to Sydney.  Then from Sydney, I fly to Adelaide. I only have about 1 hour lay overs at all my stops so it wont be that bad. 

WOW, its been crazy with how much I have learned here in Californian.  I am so blessed and thankful for the opportunity that I had to serve here.  I've grown to love this place and the people here. It's crazy to look back and see how far I have come in such a short amount of time. It's only been 2 months that I've been out here and I've learned more about life and this Gospel then I have in my whole 18 years, and I still have 22 months left.  I still have a ways to go, but I'm ready to face it head on, because,  I know with God on our side we can conquer anything that stands before us.

Thanks for all the love and support.

Endure to the End, 

Love, Elder Riding 

...so we taught him about the restoration and the priesthood...

 My week has been pretty good just one thing happened this week.

This last Wednesday we taught a member and her nonmember boyfriend. He agreed to take the lessons so we taught him about the restoration and the priesthood. At the end of the lesson He asked for a blessing and choose me  to give the blessing. At the end of the blessing he said he felt something and wondered what that was and we told him that it was the Holy Ghost telling him that these things we have taught are true. He said he wanted to feel that more often so we talked about baptism and how the Holy Ghost can be our constant companion and he said he wants that, so we set a date for him to be baptized and sadly I wont be here. But if all goes well he will be baptized. So that was a really cool experience. 

Cant wait to Head to Australia!!

Love Elder Riding

P-study at the church this morning. waiting for the blitz. love you lots  

I'm gonna miss California a lot!

This week was a really good week!
My visa has arrived! I'll be heading to Australia April 10th im way excited!

I'm gonna miss California a lot though.  I've learned so much here it's crazy.  At first it was really hard, but as soon as I made the choice to just do the work, forget about everything and just focus on the Lord and His work, everything started going better, everything started to fall into place and it was really cool.

I had a really cool experience this week. I was given to opportunity to give a blessing to a big Tongan. He injured his knee and he is a police officer. If he couldn't go to work, he couldn't provide for his family. So he asked me to give him a blessing. At first, I was scared because I still don't really know what I'm doing. As I began, the spirit guided me through it and it turned out really good.

I also had another really weird thing happen to me this week. As we were walking back to our car we passed this scary looking guy and I said, "good evening," just to be nice and he started swearing at me and flipping me off and stuff and we just kept walking then he turned around and pulled his pants down and mooned us... like seriously? We just laughed it off.

The family that was suppose to come to church this week couldn't come sadly,  because they both
had work. We talked to them and they said they will come next Sunday,  so let's hope they come.

I'm sad to leave California, but Australia should be fun too.

Love, Elder Riding

Because, I know I didn’t say it. It was the spirit.

Well this week has been the best week so far. I'm starting to get along with my companions. I told myself that I'm just not gonna let them bother me or annoy me anymore so things are better there.

I had a really cool experience this week. A couple days ago, I went on a split with a member to go see another family it was just me and a member. And when we started talking (with the investigator), the conversation was weird and awkward and boring, the member was not helping me out like they are supposed to, but as I got into the lesson I prepared, the spirit was so strong with me, and everything I was saying I didn’t even know I knew, and it all came out and I was asking questions and they were answering them and they were asking me questions and I thought I didn’t know the answer to the questions, but then it came to me and I knew all the answers to all the questions they had. And I testified that what I said was true and the mother started to cry and then she asked me why I was out on a mission and I told her I’m here to help people like you that don’t have the light of Christ in their lives and give them the light because there is true happiness in this gospel, and I told them to give it a chance and they said they would and they should be coming to church this next Sunday so I hope they do.

That’s my experience for the week. Pretty cool. I’ve never had that feeling of knowledge before and looking back, I don’t even know what I said. Because, I know I didn’t say it. It was the spirit.

But yeah cool stuff is happening. We just have to recognize the Lord’s hand in all that we do, because he is always there for us even when we don’t notice.

Everything is going good here in Cali. I’m lovin it out here. I just have to stay positive about everything. I’m learning so much it’s amazing!

Love, Elder Riding 

Zone Conference

Zone Conference

Sweet finds at a garage sale! Ties and a leather camera bag.

Elder Riding says that this is a common sight.  Bikes that are missing parts because they are stolen and then sold.

Elder Riding is Doing well and is loving missionary work in Riverside California

Elder Riding is Doing well and is loving missionary work in Riverside California.  Still waiting on his visa to go to Australia!   Here are a few pictures we have received.  The first picture is of Jackie who Elder Riding and his companion taught in the Provo Utah MTC.   She committed to be baptized  the end of March  J  We are so happy and proud of Elder Riding and cant wait to hear about more adventures in the mission field. 

Thanks for all your love and support.  We love you all!!

temporary assignment to the Riverside California mission

From Elder Riding:

Hey everyone, sorry its been awhile, but for those that don't know, my visa hasn't been approved yet, so I got a temporary assignment to the Riverside California mission. It's been a full week in Cali and its been a really good week, its pretty scary here. I'm in the ghetto and everyone is scary looking. I'm in a trio companionship Elder Cornaby is from Oklahoma and Elder Goodrich is from North Dakota. They are really cool and I love them to death, I'm glad I'm in a trio because I still have no idea what I'm doing. I'm still getting use to everything. The people here are pretty scary but I'm growing to love them. The members feed us most of the time and the food is really good especially the tacos. We don't do a lot of teaching because we don't have anyone to teach yet. A lot of the people speak Spanish and hardly any English so we have them talk to our Spanish speaking missionaries that are in our area. Everything is going good. I'm surviving  

Elder Riding

    

I made it to Cali safe and sound

Hey well I made it to Cali safe and sound. All is well. I'm at the mission home right now getting all  the info for this area. and how it works out here. my P-DAY is Monday.  the address to this place is...  

California Riverside Mission 

5900 Grand Ave 

Riverside, CA 92504

make sure you put a return address on it. and make sure you put my name on it so they can give it to me. 

i love you lots and ill talk to you on monday. Love, Elder Riding.   

Hello everybody,

We received our first email from Elder Riding today at 10am.  It was short and sweet.  He said his companions name is Elder Bryner and that he's "pretty cool".  His P day's will be on Thursdays.  We are anxious to hear more about his experience at the MTC.

Breakfast of Champions!!

Breakfast of Champions... says Elder Riding.   According to Rhett this is what he has been eating since he arrived at the MTC.  He doesn't care for any of the food offered, so cereal has been his meal of choice.

One of his first emails from the MTC was short and sweet:

well i made it through my first day!! I dropped my stuff off at my room and then they sent me straight to class. i don't hate it so far so that's good haha..  my companion is Elder Bryner he's pretty cool. i only get 5 mins and only get one email today. but my P day is on Thursday so next Thursday will be my first Full P day. :)

I love and miss you guys! 

Love Elder Riding       

p.s  the food sucks lol 

Off to Classes.

MTC fun