And he is home safe!!

Last Email from the mission

Moses 1:39 For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

"It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which,if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree helping each other to one or the other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all of our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations - these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit."- CS Lewis

Last email in the mission, it crazy how fast it all goes. The mission really does come to an end with mixed emotions, at times i feel like it cant really have been two years and at others it feels like i have done this my whole life... But I can sincerly say I gave it my best and I wont be coming home sad. I feel satisfied with my offering, I gave it what was needed of me and in the process I matured alot. The mission is not the best two years of your life, its the best two years FOR your life. A missionary can see how God really does change, improve, mold, and carry His children to their destination - Exaltation. 

I have seen Gods hand in the lives of a lot of miserable people, me being one of them. I have seen the power of Jesus Christs atonement and I have felt Gods love for me and for others. 

Jesus Christ lives, my whole mission I have seen a lot of dead ceramic Jesus statues on the cross (the more horrific and mangled and bloody Christ looks the more people like to put it in their house, it's sad) and people wonder why they don't receive the blessings they need. Christ is not a morbid dead body that we should worship, if we focus so much on His moments of humiliation and death then we have missed the point. Obviously I'm not trying to disrespect the death of Christ in any way His death is essential to our eternal progress but it is the resurrection that is His victory and should be our focus. Christ lives, and loves us. He is an all powerful being that can save us if we will just humble ourselves  and shut up and do what He asks. I know He lives.

I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, I have read it in Spanish 6 or 7 times on my mission and every time I have found the power and the wisdom of God that can and has changed me. The purpose of it is to bring people to Christ, who in turn brings us to our Father, a Father that offers us eternal life, glory, progression, and happiness.

I know that the family can be eternal, that we are here to be a part of and form relationships and bonds that are meant to last forever, and will if we will obey God. I'm grateful for the family that God has given me and that we have the promise to be together forever. 

Don't think I'm sad or feel like I'm taking steps backward in coming home. I learned what was needed on my mission, and I am ready to keep taking steps forward in my life. 

Elder Roberts

Fruits of the Gospel

Lifes good. We're having success in the area, gonna baptize this week and the next one. I also got a letter from Fam. P. (in Tlahualilo) and they told me that a man we baptized there is the new branch president. That's pretty cool haha. To be honest nothing too special happened this week. I'm feeling good. Had a good birthday, the C. family got me a cake and whatnot. 

The Gospel really does change lives

It was a really good week. We were contacting this week and we knocked on the door and a lady peeked out her window and asked us what we were doing, we told her we were missionaries and she asked us to share a message with her, so we shared about the restoration and about the family, it was a really good lesson, but the best happened at the end. She said that she would say the closing prayer and as she said it she started to cry and thanked God for sending her two angels to teach her the truth. We were both a little stunned. We went back two days latter, she had read the pamphlet we had given her and her boyfriend (theyre in the process of getting married) was there as well. We asked her why she had said those words in her prayer and she started to tell us how she was born in a catholic family but never believed that it was true, then she had listened to the jehovahs witnesses for three years but afterward she felt like she was more confused than ever. She stopped looking for a while until she and her boyfriend started to feel the need to find God, so she told us she prayed to ask God to help her know what to do.....and we showed up a day later. This is not one of those lame missionary stories that we hear about all the time, this really did happen, it was amazing. Both of them are reading and praying and went to church. It never ceases to amaze me that God can take two 20 year old kids that are wandering around hoping to find somebody and can put them in the exact right place and the exact right time.

Another miracle, We have an investigator that has gone through hell. He is an ex alchoholic, he has no money, he has no education, he has nothing. When we found him he was completely lost and we honestly didnt think he was going to progress, he just seemed like the million other people that are in trouble and that tell us they need Gods help until they realize that it takes a little effort on their part so they stop listening to us. But he's not, he is completely different. He has gone to church for 4 months, he has cleaned his house, he stopped smoking, drinking, his "friends" make fun of him and tell him hes an idiot for listening to us but he just lets it go and walks away, he has bought new clothes so that he can go to church and got a job so he can progress in life. And yesterday he paid his tithing. 

In the mission we have the opportunity to see people that have lost themselves in the lies of the world. They have hit rock bottom, and that really feel like it can never be okay again. We find them, and we teach them, and if they will apply the gospel that we teach them (that Christ Himself taught) in their lives they really do change. They. Really. Do. Change. God gives us as missionaries the opportunity to see with out own eyes, His hand in the lives of His children as He lifts them up, dusts em off, and carries them to where He wants them to be. Christ carries each and every one of them, and us, out of hell. The gospel has to be true because nothing that I do or say can change and save people like I have seen this message change and save people over and over again. 

Elder Roberts

Family who was baptized a year ago was Sealed in the Temple this week

It was a good week. I'm studying a lot, a lot, to try and help me not "die" on the mission. Haha I'm not gonna lie with only six weeks left it is hard to keep me focused. 

I have been studying a lot about the church, about Jesus Christ, about the Book of Mormon, and about the prophets that God has ordained. 

Something I love and I would like to share about the mission is that the mission really does give us a new purpose, a new sense of who we are and what we are doing. As my time in the mission gets shorter every day I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to be here, not because it has been fun, haha because it hasn't, not because it has been easy, because it hasn't, but because it has helped me to mold me into who I want to be. 

I am grateful to my God for what He has given me, I am grateful that in His mercy He has carried me through some of the hardest trials of my life here in the mission, I am grateful that I have come to know Him as my Father and His Son Jesus Christ. I am grateful that I have gained a stronger testimony not only of them but of the divinity of the work of the Lord. I am grateful for families and for priesthood, and that God has made it possible to live forever as families. The Family C. got sealed on Saturday,  I don't have the pictures yet, but soon. 

I am grateful.

Elder Roberts

Pres Monson is a prophet of God

It was a good week we spent the whole week teach about and inviting people to come to conference. The fam. C. junior came and are progressing really well, so well in fact that after only a couple weeks of teaching them they are going to feed us this week, haha awe yeah.

Conference was really good. I think we were all a little moved to see how much our prophet really has given to the work of the Lord. As he bore his testimony and exhorted us to keep the commandments he looked very tired, but as I have thought about his testimony, really this is one of the greatest testimonies that there is from this prophet of God. He has given everything that he is to the Lord, his life, his will, his soul, to his God. I cant imagine how hard it really would be to be physically spent and have to speak and bear testimony in front of 15 million people throughout the world, but President Thomas Monson did not waver, although physically weakened his testimony, his message, and his example are stronger than they have ever been. As I saw him lean on the podium for support and testify of our Savior with a soft voice, it was not him but the Spirit that was speaking. I know he was a prophet of God if not for his teachings, if not for his example, than for his determination to testify of Christ and try to help the members of the church to become true Saints through Jesus Christ. 

Men are that they might have joy

good week good week. we actually found a young couple that are super ready to hear the gospel. In the first week they accepted baptismal date, they came to church, they got married a while ago, and we have lots of support from members so its looking like they will be baptized the last week of October. The crazy thing is that they have the same name as the first family I baptized here in Gomez. Haha I kid you not I baptized family C. the first time I was here and if it is possible i will do it again (no they are not related) Its really weird how things like this turn out.

Also we baptized K. this week. That all turned out well. 

We had a really good lesson with 2 teenagers named C. and A.. they are siblings, C. is a less active member, A. is investigator, their sister is currently serving a mission in Peru. We taught them about being happy and read 2 Nephi 2 with them. It was actually super powerful, as they read and began to understand the need to make the right decisions so that they can be happy. At the end C. said the prayer and was crying, the Spirit was super strong and they both committed to changing their lives and coming to church. Awe yeah.  

Unprofitable Servants

Well we had some problemillas this weeks...haha 

C. wasn't able to be baptized for some personal problems and will have to wait about a month til she is eligible to be baptized again. ni modo. 

We are actually experiencing a lot of trials right now on all sides with our investigators which really is to be expected, we have a lot that are progressing and so of course they are all gonna have trials and God will test them to see if they will be faithful in trial. Everybody's just gotta calm it down, haha.

Me and my comp were talking the other day about a scripture in the Book of Mormon 

Mosiah 2: 21 I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

How true this scripture really is. We are nothing, if we would put 100% into serving Him we still are not going to be able to achieve anything without Him. 

But it isn't something to make us sad, it is actually something that helps us in our progression. If we can see how much we really do depend on the Lord, how essential He is in every move we make, then we will be Humble, we will be Obedient, we will Repent and when things don't turn out how WE wanted them to, if we really did do our best, than our effort as unprofitable servants will be made perfect in the Lord.

Elder Roberts

Who's on the Lord's side??

Good week. C. had her baptismal interview, and shes gonna be baptized Saturday. We also had the re-dedication of the Mexico City temple this week. Presidente Eyring dedicated the temple and he and Elder Holland talked about the importance of sacrifice and dedication. 

Elder Holland shared a story from the history of the church about the building of the Salt lake temple. The saints had lost 2 temples and had lost the land of 2 others in their journey westward, they had sacrificed literally everything to build temples in Kirkland, and Nauvoo. They had walked, and suffered, and bled, and died on the American prairie (not gonna lie I don't have any idea how to spell prairie) and at last got to a place in the middle of nowhere and their prophet immediately tells them to get to work building ANOTHER TEMPLE.... Elder Holland said that at that point many of the saints began to doubt and wonder if a temple was really that important, there were some saints that went so far as to challenge President Young and ask him "and are we gonna be able to finish this temple before they kick us out again?" To which Brigham Young answered "I don't know and I don't care. I don't care if the temple is completed, the thing that I worry about is if I am where the Lord wants me to be and am doing what He wants me to be doing. And I am sure that the Lord wants this temple built." 

'And that really is what matters. If we are where we should be and doing what we should be, the outcome really doesn't mean anything, We did our part and we have made our covenants and we can trust that the Lord will fulfill His promises in His time and in His way. 

Elder Roberts

Good missionary traits and Mexico City Temple redidication

Everything is looking like the last 3 months of my mission are going to be the best ones. 

1 my new companion, my lil son, is probably the best companion I have had in the mission. He is very obedient, he is very humble, he is funny but spiritual as well, and he knows why he is here. I am so grateful that God has given me the opportunity to train a new missionary for my last 2 transfers and that this Elder has hit the ground running. He is the only member in his family, and actually he come from a very difficult family situation, so he is obviously not here because mommy and daddy made him come, he is here because he wants to be. 

2 We have a lot of investigators who are progressing and the number grows every day, I have never seen so many sheaves ready for the harvest, I just hope I can reap the majority before its my time to call it a day. 

3 The C. Family is preparing to be sealed in the temple in one month. On Sunday the whole family come with us to visit our investigators for the whole day. It really makes me want to cry when I can see the family that I taught more than a year ago teach other people. 

Also the Mexico City temple will be rededicated this Sunday and all the members in Mexico will be watching via satellite the dedication. Its gonna be awesome!

Good week. 

Love 

Elder Roberts

Wear out our lives

We literally don't have time to teach all of the investigators we have right now. Its insane, I have worked my butt off for 21 months and really haven't seen a whole lot of fruits, so the Lord is blessing me in the last 3 with so many blessings and investigators that sometimes it really is hard to keep up with it all. We have member support here like crazy, we had 30 lessons with members this week, the average in the mission is 10-12. all of our investigators are progressing well, ha ha but let me tell ya the last couple months have slipped by like nothing, I cant believe that there is only one week left in august.

Really don't know what to write this week. We are working harder than I have every worked in my life, we and seeing miracles that I haven't seen in my life. Pray that I can have the energy and the spirit I need to keep going for 3 months, ha ha because sometime I really do feel exhausted.  

Doctrine and Covenants 123: 12 For there are many yet on the earth among all sects,parties, and denominations, who are blinded by the subtle craftiness of men, whereby they lie in wait to deceive, and who are only kept from the truth because  they know not where to find it—

13 Therefore, that we should waste and wear out our lives in bringing to light all the hidden things of darkness,wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven—

14 These should then be attended to with great earnestness.

15 Let no man count them as small things; for there is much which lieth in futurity, pertaining to the saints,which depends upon these things.

Life is good. God is good.

Pure miracles man. I kid you not. We had a ton of lessons again this week, but the difference is that we had a ton of members come with us in the lessons and that really does make all the difference. The area is changing so much every day, we have so many investigators and the area is so big that we literally don't have time to visit everybody, so we have to have divisions with members and I love it. I have never had so much success in my whole mission. The chapel was full on Sunday with investigators, less actives, and others that we and the members had visited throughout the week. The Lord has poured out His Spirit so much in this area and we are achieving miracles and goals that I haven't seen for the past 20 months. The last 4 months of my mission are gonna be the best ones, the refiners fire of 20 months of adversity has done its job and I'm finally ready to be an instrument in the hands of God. 

2 stories I want to share.

1 we have been teaching a girl and her brother for like 2 months and they have come to church for the whole time but haven't been baptized because their mom is catholic and doesn't like us.... ni modo. We have tried to teach the mom too but she is never home when she says shes gonna be there so its been hard. But on Saturday we got to their house and the mom was home, whenever we drop by and happen to find her she tells us that shes too busy and quickly leaves, but this time, as she was getting ready for work she called her kids, had us all sit down with her and she said, I want to hear too. What?! haha so we taught her a good lesson about the Gospel, she felt the Spirit, and she came to church with her kids yesterday. I couldn't believe it. Not only did she come to church but she stayed for the full 3 hours. Not only did she stay the full three hours but afterward she told me that we had to come and visit her again next week. She really is completely different. Miracle. 

2 The sister that I baptized the first time I was here Y. went inactive for problems with her family and with some member of the church. We went to visit her this week and taught her a lesson, she told us she knows the church is true and that she would come to church again. She came. And after church me and Bro C. went to visit her and her husband. Get this I went with one of my converts to visit and strengthen another one, and I'm not gonna lie Bro C. knows how to teach the gospel man, he taught a really good lesson, his testimony is super strong, I was gonna cry, the man God gave me to baptize a year and a half ago is a Spiritual giant. And not just that but the husband of Y. has changed a lot too, he is ready to come to church and the next time were gonna put a baptismal date. 

God has given me a unique experience in the mission, getting to see the progress of converts really is an amazing experience. 

Life is good. God is good. 

Missionary Work, Miracles and Sealing a family for eternity

Ha ha good week, I don't really know what to write about, when you hit 18 months you've hit the point where the routine of the mission is just the way you live, so the days, and weeks, and months, all kinda mix together. Every day we find new people, every day brings it's challenges and it's miracles, and every day you get better. 

This week has been another good one. Right now the focus of the whole mission is work with members - nothing brings more results but it is also the hardest form of missionary work. Here in Mexico all responsible male adults work from 7 in the morning until around 8 or 9 at night, all day, every day. So its a challenge to get time for them to help us out, but were movin' along.

We have a couple investigators that are progressing really well. C. is gonna get married and baptized this month, We had several families in church this week but the story of the week is with a lady named D. and her husband. He lost his job and she works part time, they have a lil' girl and a lot of money problems. They are both looking for work but Diana rejected a job offer because she would have to work on Sundays. That was a miracle in and of itself, but I caught her paying her tithing..... it was sooo cool! 

Family C. is gonna be sealed in October, and this week I'm gonna ask president for his permission to go with them this week. pray hard. 

That's about it.

Elder Roberts

“Tithing is the great equitable law, for no matter how rich or poor we are, all of us pay the same one-tenth of our increase annually (see D&C 119:4), and all of us receive blessings so great ‘that there shall not be room enough to receive [them]’ (Malachi 3:10).”

—Robert D. Hales

“Becoming Provident Providers Temporally and Spiritually,” Ensign, May 2009, 9

"The things that endure, the things that are real, the things that are important are those things represented in the temple of God."

—Ezra Taft Benson, "Chapter 13: Priceless Blessings of the House of the Lord"

The Sealing ordinance links families eternally

Sealing Room in the Temple

Working hard and the power of the restoration

Woo this week was AWESOME! haha I've never hit the ground running like I'm doing here. I have the experience, I have the confidence, what I lack right now is time, 4 months and yeah, that's the game, gotta win it! 

This week we taught a TON and found a TON of people, I have never taught so many lessons nor contacted so many people in my whole mission, haha I thought I was tired before but when I get home at night I feel like I'm gonna die, so we go to sleep and like magic the next morning I'm up and ready to go again! The Lord has given me a lot of strength and energy in this area and I'm taking advantage.

We are teaching a lady named C. and her daughter, they will both be baptized at the end of this month, we also are teaching about 5 other families that are hearing the message of the restoration of the gospel for the first time in their lives and they are changing. The restoration really does change the way people think about religion, about themselves, and about God, I love teaching the lesson of the Restoration because the Spirit is always present and it changes people in a really profound way, I don't really know how to explain it, but you can see that as they begin to understand how to church was organized by Christ, rejected, and restored they really do receive more of the Spirit and the atmosphere of their home changes. It's awesome!

I'm working hard, I'm doing good, pray that I can work this hard for 4 more months, haha.

How much I have grown

I really have been given a huge opportunity in returning to Bosque.  We have a lot of investigators that actually want to progress, they come to church, they read their Book of Mormon, they pray, oh man I love it here. Haha Madero was deader than a door nail and it was taking me with him, so glad to be here again. 

By far the coolest thing about being here again is seeing my converts, S. got married in the temple in June and goes to institute and all that good stuff, Her mom also got baptized after I left and is progressing really well. Y. was assigned to teach a class in church, got scared and hasn't come back to church since hahahaha so we gotta work with her a lil more...

But by far the coolest thing was to see Family C. El hermano is president of the elders quorum and yesterday he was assigning and testifying and doing all kinds of stuff in priesthood class. His wife is the president of the primary and the two youngest daughters just got back from EFY. They are all attending a temple prep class and will be sealed in September. I really can't tell you how grateful I am to God for sending me here again, I get a unique experience to see the progress of converts I had a year ago and get to see how much they have grown, and really how much I have too. We have a lot of member support and I'm feeling 100% the last 4 months of my mission are gonna be the best. 

Wooh. 

Back to the beginning

I had transfers and you are not going to believe where I got sent. Bosque 1 Gomez Palacio. I might finish my mission where I started it.... no lo puedo creer (i can't believe it).... 

Family C. is going to be sealed in September and S. got married in the temple about a month ago.... I can't wait to see them again. 

I really don't know what else to write, I feel really weird. 

Missionary Moment: The Fruits of Our Labors

https://www.lds.org/church/news/missionary-moment-the-fruits-of-our-labors?lang=eng&query=fruits+of+missionary+work

Do anything to receive the blessings of the gospel

This week was actually a really good one we had lots of really good lessons and I'm feeling good! We did a lot of contacting this week (like we do every week haha) and we found a couple of good investigators. We found a family of four that seemed really interested in our message and we will be going back to visit them this week, so I'll letcha know.

We taught F. (the policeman that I wrote about last week) and his wife again this week and had a couple of members come with us. We taught them about the Restoration, the Spirit was strong and they accepted a Book of Mormon and they will be coming to church next week (didn't come to church this week because the wife is in a University and had to take her final exam) and we will be seeing them again. After the lesson the members that came with us left the lesson really happy and told us that they felt the Spirit really strong, they will be coming with us again! Oh yeah!

The week ended with us teaching an investigator named I. We found him about 2 months ago and wasn't really all that interested, told us he went to a different church, he was never home other than on Thursdays, so we could only visit him once a week, and yeah not really all that interested. We went over to his house yesterday to talk to him and see if he had read the Book of Mormon we had given him, he hadn't but he was very different. He is having a lot of problems in his family right now and told us that he needs Gods help, I don't really remember everything we said, but it was one of the most powerful lessons I have had as a missionary. We talked about the Book of Mormon, about the need of the restoration, and about the importance of the family. We prayed with him and he cried and told us he would do anything to have the blessings we talked about, so boom, he told us we could visit him every other day, he will be coming to church, and accepted a baptismal date in August. It was awesome. 

I'm doing good.

Elder Roberts

The Spirit helps us endure hard things

Nobody came to church again this week, woooh... hahah naw it's alright, after 19 months if they don't show up it's not gonna ruin my life. 19 months, so old...so old....

It was actually a really good week, we taught some good lessons and we also gave a priesthood blessing to a little girl that is very sick. She has epilepsy or something, she has seizures and is always twitching and her body is so exhausted by the attacks that she can't walk by herself. It was hard, it is hard, to see little kids that have to suffer like this, I can only imagine how hard it is for their Heavenly Father to have to see them suffer in a life of trials and probation.

 We taught a lesson to her mom (inactive member) and aunt (investigator) and she just sat there in the lesson, her face very sad, and tired, and serious. Shes is 6 and has had to mature fast to be able to deal with her problems. We had a very spiritual lesson about the plan of salvation and then gave the little girl a blessing. It was probably the most spiritual and special priesthood blessing I have given on my mission. The spirit was super strong afterward, the mom was crying and everybody else was very solemn and reverent.

Nothing compares with the Spirit. I love the Spirit. It doesn't matter where you are, or what trials you have in life, if you have the Spirit you will be at peace and will be happy. One of my heroes Elder Packer died this week and if there was one thing that he always spoke about it was the power, the importance, and the mercy of the Spirit.

 We also met a really cool family this week. We taught them about the importance of the family and they both started to tell us how much they want and need God in their lives because they are going through a lot of problems as a family. The husband is a policeman, and policemen in Mexico have to deal with the worst of the worst, so it's hard for him to have a family life and the professional life that he has to deal with every day. It was a really good lesson and afterward they fed us, first lesson and BOOM food, golden investigators.

If the world hate you

Good week, good week. Haha when you hit the 18 month mark nothing really is a surprise and everything just kinda mixes together. We talk, we teach, we walk, its hot, we contact, we take buses, we get made fun of for being white, hahaha and all that stuff.

We had some really good lessons this week one with H. and his wife, she wants to be baptized but feels a lot of pressure from her family to not join our church and blah blah blah. We talked about what it means to be a true disciple of Christ and shared John 15.18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.

When the mission is hard, when there is no one that wants to listen, when family and friends of our investigators don't want them to progress this little scripture is the reason why. The world hated and rejected Christ long before it hated and rejected us. H. and his wife are progressing but yeah its hard, hard for them hard for us, and it was hard for Christ to pay the price so they could come back into their Fathers presence.

It was a good week but to be honest we are seeing a lot of opposition right now, ni modo.

Elder Roberts

Sugar comas and investigators at church

you know that part on cloudy with a chance of meatballs when the lil kid eats so much candy that he goes into a food coma.... yeah that happened this week to me, haha the package I got from home was great but I got so excited with all the candy and the ideas of winter chubbining that me and the other 4 elders ate all of it in 2 days, and trust me food coma is a real thing. Haha naw but thank you mom for sending me the package it was great. 

This week was alright, we had a really good lesson with I. and his wife, and with i.´s brother H. (yes that is really his name, he was born into the church but hasn't gone in like 6 years) and his wife P. The 4 of them wandered into church on Sunday haha you could tell they were pretty lost but it was actually a good Sunday this week so I think they felt the spirit. 

All in all good week.  

Humble and Willing

haha my new companion is probably the best companion I have had the whole freakin mission, he is by far the most obedient and the most humble. He doesnt speak very good spanish yet (but still speaks a lot better than I did when I only had 6 months) so he is very humble and willing to do what he needs to without a lot of whining. que bueno. 

We taught the restoration a lot this week and in one of the lessons I was teaching about Joseph Smith and the first vision and the Spirit was so stong, nothing brings in the Spirit like talking about the first vision. Matt if you can memorize the first vision in sign language before you start your mission. 

We also had a flood this week, no joke. The whole week it was super dry but Saturday night and Sunday morning rolled around and it rained harder than I have ever seen in my life, when it stopped there was like 2 feet of water in the streets, it was a chore to get to church, hahah so nobody came..... ni modo. 

Good week. 

Elder Roberts

Teach by the spirit or it is not edifying

A good week. To be honest not a lot happened haha we taught, we walked in the sun, its hot... haha what more can be said. 

Naw actually I did relearn a good lesson this week and it's actually a lesson I have learned a lot on my mission. To start here in mexico there is a certain religion that I'm not gonna name but they teach with their understanding of the bible and are actually really aggressive in their teaching style, they make those crazy Mormon kids look tame. We come across one of these people in the street one day and start to talk to him. Before we say anything he asks us for our bible, like a couple of idiots we hand over our bible and he starts telling us a bunch of "in Joshua it says blah blah blah, in Matthew it says blah blah blah, in this, in that, blah blah blah." So instead of doing the smart thing, bear our testimonies, ask if he would like to hear our message and if no say goodbye, we start to argue about what the bible says and we start off with the blah blah blah as well. And guess what happened? The Spirit was no where to be found, and the "lesson" was anything but edifying... 

The teaching of the gospel is by the power of the Spirit and not by the interpretation or knowledge that we have of the scriptures. The scribes in the times of Christ were "experts of the law" and yet Christ called them hypocrites and said they were just "the blind leading the blind". In the time of Joseph Smith the people causing the most confusion were the leaders and the priests of the different churches that supposedly used the scriptures as means to prove their point, but only left their followers with more confusion. One of Satan's  favorite methods of confusing is to teach "the philosophies of men mixed with scripture". Obviously the scriptures are the word of God and I love to study the scriptures on my mission, but if we do not first have the Spirit, if we are going to teach by our own interpretation of the scriptures and not with the guide of the Spirit and of living prophets to help us truly understand the word of God, than man and Satan turn them into weapons to confuse and cause contention. 

 Matt as you leave on your mission, study and restudy the scriptures, they are the word of God, but more than anything, develop the ability to share your testimony, to feel, understand, and share the impressions of the Spirit. 

STUDY 1 Cor. 2 and Chapter 4 of Preach My Gospel a lot. 

1 Cor 2: 14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Joseph Smith said, “Salvation cannot come without revelation; it is in vain for anyone to minister without it” 

Changes, Death and a wedding- the circle of life in a week

It was an alright week. We have been teaching a guy named E. a lot and he is actually changing more and more every day. When we found him he was a punk without a purpose, alcohol, girls, parties, "believed in God"... but not really... We have had several really good lessons with him about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. In several of the lessons with him the Holy Ghost has helped me so much to teach, I leave our lessons learning new things - nothing is cooler on the mission than when you learn something new from your own lessons, when it happens it's a sure sign that it wasn't really you that was teaching, but the Real Teacher. After about a month of teaching him he came to a church activity with his little brother and they loved it, we learned about temples and eternal families and they told us they were for sure coming to church on sunday. We go by his house on sunday and he is standing outside his house, half and hour early, showered, shaved, in a polo shirt, and waiting for us. There is nothing better on the mission then moments like that, physical evidence that the gospel really does change people. He will be baptized in June and in the MTC by June 2016. Awe yeah.

One thing I have learned from this area is that the punks and cholos in the streets that call us names and make fun of us are actually some of the most receptive when we talk to them. This area is full of little thugs so we have to contact them or we are left without a whole lot of other options. At the start I just did it for the numbers, figuring that that was about all we would get out of it. Nope. These teenage kids between 14 to 20 have never really known a happy family nor really who is Jesus Christ and when we talk to them the Spirit really does help them to understand and to start to think about making some changes in their life. There is a neighborhood here that what I would call the ghetto of the ghetto and when we first showed up all we got were a bunch of stupid jokes or they would all just run into their houses and hide because they know that two white kids wandering around in the middle of Mexico aren't here to party....But little by little in this transfer we have actually talked to a lot of them and it is not just changing them but the attitude of the whole area. One kid said that he liked talking to us because afterward he "tiene ganas" he feels like doing something as opposed to just sitting around. We'll be seeing big changes soon.

On a sad note one of the great members of the ward Hno T. died this week. He went with us or with the other missionaries EVERY DAY, he showed up to the chapel on Sundays to clean it at 5 in the freaking morning ALONE, every week he would call the branch president to ask if there were specific assignments he needed to do that week and he always came through. He stopped going with us last week, so we called him and he told us he didn't feel good, he had a cold, so the other elders went by to give him a blessing on Saturday. He was always assigned to bring the bread of the sacrament and on his last Sunday on earth he shows up to church, he can barely walk, stumbles into the chapel and gives the bread to the priests so they can bless it. This poor man had walked like 2 miles, sicker than crap just so he could bring the bread instead of calling and asking someone else to do it. He was too sick to return home so some of the members took him to the hospital and after to his brothers house. And there he died. He didn't get the care he needed in time. He was only 54. God needed more people like him on the other side. He didn't have a wife, nor kids, nor parents, just his brother. For some people life really is hard, I thank God that He hasn't seen it necessary to put me through some of the trials that I have seen on my mission. 

Baptism Last week

But just so we don't end on a sad note a really funny thing happened this week as well. We went to a little podunk town in our area in the middle of nowhere to visit J. and his family (The drunk guy that came to church a long time ago and his family). When we get to the town it started to rain really hard so we hauled it to their house and knocked and got in quick....the house was FULL of people, packed, what the heck is going on.... turns out that I. (the return missionary that has gone AWOL, that miraculously showed up to church) was getting married.... I crashed a wedding on my mission. Haha it was uncomfortable for us for sure but I can't even imagine how I. felt. A super stressful day, raining super hard so all needed to be in the house, all of his family (mormon that don't approve of the lifestyle the he has chosen) was in the house giving his wife dirty looks, and all of his wife's family (die hard Catholics that can't understand why there is no alcohol at the wedding, "freaking mormons man..") were all jammed together, and to top it off, two soaking wet gringos show up just as a reminder of what he once was. I'm sure he thought he had died and gone to hell.... hahahaha The first, and yes my friends, the last wedding I will ever crash... 

Working hard and overcoming trials

The nearer a person approaches the Lord, a greater power will be manifested by the adversary to prevent the accomplishment of His purposes. Joseph Smith

We had a baptism. yay haha it actually went really well. Haha poor P. she's like 3 feet tall and weighs like 10 pounds and she had to wear an adult jumpsuit hahahah but she took it well. I didn't get to see the confirmation because we had an incident Sunday morning that I can't talk about over email but lets just say Satan is going after our investigators.

Actually we have had several incidents this week that are proof that Satan has to do his work too. When I got here we had nothing, nothing. So we started working really hard to try and find people and we found 5 really good families, we had really good lessons, they were reading the Book of Mormon, we had a lot of member support, and things were looking promising.

This week 2 of them moved to a different state and the other three have told us that they can't be baptized because they were born in their religion and they will die in it.... daaaaangit. Everything fell through this week EXCEPT THE BAPTISM THANK YOU LORD. So guess where we are again? 0`s man...

John 14:30 Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

The Lord Himself told of the power that Satan CAN BUT DOESN'T HAVE to have in this world. Satan has the power that we give him, and there is the trick -And has nothing in Me. Christ beat Satan because He never gave Satan even a little power to drag Him down. Satan can only hurt us if we let him.

We had almost 140 street contacts this week and lots of lessons and whatnot but as we closed the week, we realized that we gotta do more. If we don't put in more effort, if we don't try harder, then Satan is gonna beat us. God is more powerful than Satan, Jesus Christ is more powerful than Satan, representatives of Jesus Christ are more powerful than Satan, there is no reason that we are gonna lose unless we give up and call it a day until we get transferred. I will leave this area better than I found it.


John 15:18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.

I can't imagine how hard those last hours must have been for Christ. He knew what was coming, and instead of being afraid, or doubting, or complaining, or preparing Himself, He turns to His Apostles and quiets THEIR fears, strengthens THEIR confidence, prepares THEM for what will come. The world hated Him first. This week will be a week of turning to God, working hard to start over again, and praying for miracles.