Week #48 12/14/2015

So, I have a few cool things to talk about...

We found the family whose house burnt down when we were knocking doors in an apartment complex. We set an appointment, that was pretty cool. 

We had a member of the quorum of the 70, one of the leaders in our church, visit the mission and gave us a lot of advice and amazing council about how we can help members find and introduce friends into the church. It helped a lot, and he gave us spanish missionaries some really important advice specifically for us. It was a lot of help. One thing we have started applying is instead of asking members "do you know anyone who would be interested?" we ask them if they know -anyone who had a recent death of a loved one who could use a message of comfort- anyone who recently had a birth in the family -anyone who moved in recently -or anyone who has trouble with their teenage children. It really help you think better, because it is at times like that that the Lord can touch people's hearts, and when they are searching for His guidence and direction. We already have 3 refferals because of it, and we are going to start teaching the father in a part member family. I am really excited, we really needed that council. 

The English speaking elders baptized 3 people into the Lord's church yesterday, and thta was a really neat experience. We had the opportunity to share the message of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ at the service, and no matter how many times I share it, it always bring a great peace of the Holy Spirit that testifies of the truth, and I love my job. 

But, all good things must end, and I am getting transferred to a new area on Thursday. Not sure where I will be going, but I know wherever I am, it is where the Lord wants me. This was an amazing ward, and I am going to miss everyone greatly. It was a good 6 months here. A lot of work, and a lot of miracles. I love these people like my home ward. I sometimes wonder why I am placed in a certain area. I have worked my guts out here, but have baptized none, but I have grown close to these people in a way I didn't think was possible with strangers. After working with them through countless hours, I am proud to to call these people brothers and sisters. 

They have shown me what charity means. 

Moroni 7:

45 And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not ininiquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things,believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

 46 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity,ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—

 47 But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day,it shall be well with him.

 48 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen.

Whenever I am feeling mad, or fed up with people, I try to remember that last verse. Our Father gives charity to all those that are true servants of His Son. So when I have not charity, am I really His servant? But it is through that that we can be purified. 

We had the amazing opportunity to go to the temple last Saturday. I love it there so much, the e is such a quiet calmness. I was impatient at first waiting in the chapel, but then I realized I was in the House of the Lord, and the reality sunk in. I started just praying as I waited, and thanked God for all the things I have, and I felt such an incredible feeling of the spirit, and as I thanked my Father in Heaven, I felt so much love and peace, and I received some very needed personal revelation. The temple is a marvelous place, and can seem like nothing more than a building, but it can be the greatest place of rest and peace, if we let it be. I never really understood how important it was before my mission, or even really now, but if we prepare ourselves spiritually beforehand, it is the coolest experience I have had. I am going to visit as much as possible to the one in Oakland when I get back. The Holy Ghost is real, as is our Father in Heaven and his son JEsus Christ. Everything God does, he does for us. To lift us, guide us, comfort us, and help us feel the love He has. 

Jesus Christ can help us through anything and take away all guilt, pain, and suffering, if we let Him. HE already paid the price, it is why he was sent here. 

Alma 7:
10 And behold, he shall be born of Mary, at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers, she being a virgin, a precious and chosen vessel, who shall be over shadowedand conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God.

 11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.

 12 And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.

 13 Now the Spirit knoweth all things; nevertheless theSon of God suffereth according to the flesh that he might take upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance; and now behold, this is the testimony which is in me.

Week #46 11/30/2015

We visited the house of a potential for an appointment, only to find it burnt down. None of the neighbors knew where they went. 

It snowed, and is thus cold, but it is even colder when it doesn't snow for some reason. Iowa...

Thanksgiving was amazing, but I seriously think I ate more than I ever have in one time. We had 2 thanksgiving appointments with members. One at 12 and the next at three. The food was great enough at the first one. It was with an old couple and all their old friends, and it was hilarious just cracking jokes with all these funny old people whose children and grandchildren couldn't come. I get along with them pretty well. But the next one took the cake, food wise. The member, Brother Gray, does nothing much more in his freetime than smoke meat, and then build his own smokers from scratch, sell them, and use it to buy more meat. 

It was heaven. He smoked an entire turkey, inch thick slices of prime rib, and things called "fatties". Imagine a log of meet. The inside is stuffing, or cheese and eggs, or cheese and pepperoni, the next layer is sausage, and the next is a pound of weaved bacon on the outside, all smoked to perfection.

We had a really great lesson with Ernesto, and he is on track for being baptized on the 13th! I am so happy, he is so humble, and has changed his life around completely. He went from drinking two 32 packs in a weekend to nothing! I love this guy. We taught him the law of chastity, which most single guys might have something against, but he completely understood it, and told us "man, why didn't someone tell me the importance of that before!?" 

Love you guys so much. Remember Jesus Christ this Christmas season! The church has a really cool website called https://www.mormon.org/christmas. All about chirstmas. You shoudl check out this video, it is my favorite one. https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2014-00-1460-he-is-the-gift?lang=eng

Love you all!

Week #44 11/16/2015

Funny week, frustration turns to blessings. So just a background, there is a town about 24 minutes away called West Liberty. This town is about half Spanish speakers, and would be a great place for us. Due to orders from the mission president, we were not, in the past, allowed to contact or knock doors in this town because the large number of less actives, and the president wanted us to just work with the less actives for now, or focus on Mucatine. The contact ban was lifted last wednesday, and we were excited to finally be able to work there, and the next day we received what I am just going to call a blessing. 

A pair of Spanish speaking sisters from an area 2 hours away drove to West Liberty and had been contacting there. They had to drive through two other areas to get into ours... They had an investigator there and about 11 other potentials, and this all happened about a month ago. They realized there mistake, and never went back, but failed to notify us of their investigator and potentials until Thursday. Every leader is still scratching their heads about how they thought West Liberty was anywhere near there area, and but it is funny how things worked out. The Lord gave us a great start to open up the town, so I am not complaining. I'll be honest I was a little less than patient with them when they came up to us like champions for "blessing" us with so many potentials. "Hey Elders, guess what?! We have a ton of referrals for you, isn't that great?!". 

The investigator they gave us was a 24 year old guy who was very disappointing to see two men come to his door, but we are now teaching his Mom, so it all works out, haha. That is missionary work. 

I found a great scriputre that perfectly describes the world today. Everyone is searching for happiness, but can never find it, and everything they do to fill the void leaves them as empty as before.

Isaiah 29 

8 It shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.

Just like a man who is starving and eats in his sleep, he is still empty in the morning. So is everyone else who doen't find Christ. That is why Jesus says in John 6: 35 "And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst."

It can sound so cliche, but Jesus Christ, and His gospel, really is the only way to find happiness, the only way to find meaning, and he fills our hearts with joy. I continually see day in and day out, that men and women are only dragged down by the addictions, the sleeping around, the sin in general. They all feel so guilty deep down, and they don;t even know why, so they try to numb it with more crud. They don't understand that going against God's commandments naturally moves you away from God, and being away from God brings feelings of emptiness and unhappiness, because as His children, our natural, happy state is by His side. That is why the scriptures call being away from Him "spiritual Death".  And only through the Atonement of Jesus Christ can we be cleaned, brought back to our Father, and have this weight lifted from our shoulders. That is why He overcame both spiritual and physical death. 

Sorry for the exceptionally long one this time, just something I have been able to learn in a real sense on my mission. Love you guys

Week #42 11/02/2015

So Halloween was fun. We had to go in at 6 (in case people mistake us for trick or treaters. Also drunk people.)  and so we watched the Testaments in our apartment and I made grilled cheese and drank a hot cup of Abuelita. It was sweet. Sunday was stake conference, and it was going awesome until the stake president got up and gave his talk on how the missionaries don't need member meals, we need referrals and help teaching. We need both!! I'm losing weight here! Not really, but still. To add insult to injury, no one even signed up for our meal calendar this month. To be fair, we forgot to pass it around the week before last and last week was conference, but still. 

It has been a great week. We taught Ernesto the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and we told him about the importance of prayer and asking to know if what we teach is true, and he just said "I don't need to ask, I already feel it's true, but if it will put your mind at ease, sure, I will." That was pretty awesome. It will be a process, but he has gotten rid of all the booze in his house, and accepted a date for baptism, so I am pretty happy. Just another thing to point out how awesome and necessary the spirit is in teaching. Love you guys, hope you all have a great week!

Heleman 13

38 But behold, your days of probation are past; ye have procrastinated the day of your salvation until it is everlastingly too late, and your destruction is made sure;yea, for ye have sought all the days of your lives for that which ye could not obtain; and ye have sought for happiness in doing iniquity, which thing is contrary to the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head.

There truly is no real happiness in the world. I see it every day, life that were focused around "fun,"  only to result in sadness. it is one of the Greatest lies the devil has told. "Sin is lawlessness (1 Jn. 3:4); it is a refusal on men’s part to submit to the law of God (Rom. 8:7). By transgression man loses control over his own will and becomes the slave of sin (Rom. 7:14) and so incurs the penalty of spiritual death, which is alienation from God (Rom. 6:23)" 

We become slaves, not free. I have never met a man who became happier, his life more fulfilling and his ability to Love, bless, and serve others increase by turning away from God. 

Week #41 10/26/2015

Two investigators came to church last Sunday, at it was awesome! A father and his daughter came, and even though they only made it to the last hour, the relief society welcomed his 20 year old daughter with open arms, and she loved it. It feels good to be a missionary.

Being a trainer is awesome, but it gets kinda embarrassing and funny when the missionary you are training knows far more than you, which happens quite often with Elder Burgess. But I like it, I am learning more each day with this kid, and the wisdom he has is really beyond any guy our age.

I don't really have much time at all, we've been knocking most of this week. A guy we met gave us an entire folder of Christian poetry he had spent years writing. It was pretty cool. We gave him a book written over the course of about 1000 years and contained the words of eternal life, so we came out even. He liked the book a lot.

Watch conference, it is awesome. Read the Book of Mormon, it is true, and the direct word of God.  We have a prophet to guide us and a Heavenly Father who loves us, as does Jesus Christ, our savior who lives today. Love you guys. oh, and it's getting colder.

Matthew 11:28-30 28 ¶Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I ammeek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

It doesn't mean that we wont have work, but that the work of the savior: the service, the callings, and the families will be lifted up by Christ, and take away the soul crushing burdens of sin, sadness, addiction, temptation, anger, and remorse, and replace it with peace, love, and a feeling of being strong and whole. I know that to be true.

Week #40 - 10/19/2015

The Spirit is Awesome!

So this week has been a super cool week. We were just walking down the street (as always) and ran into this around 60 year old guy walking down his driveway. We were about to talk to him, but he flagged us down first, and just asked "I see you guys all the time, why do you walk so much?". We then just led into who we are and our church, and talked about the book or Mormon. He is one of the most genuine men I have met, and asked us if we could come over and teach him. We had to hand him over to the English Elders, which is still kinda annoying, but they taught him and he came to church Sunday, and stayed for a Baptism after! The man went to 4 hours of church and just loved it! We were sitting next to him for priesthood in the 3rd hour, and he told us that he had gotten home and was going to just go inside, but the he saw us down the street and that a good feeling told him to just wait to talk to us. That made our day.

It really goes to show how important it is to always be an example, and to remember that we are servants of Christ. It gets hard to feel like a pure, representative some times when you have been walking for 6 hours, your most recent blister has popped, and you are almost hungry enough to eat your tie, and honestly, sometimes bitterly expecting the next door to slam in your face with a curseword like the last 5. I almost thought the guy was flagging us down to try to bash with us. But it is always nice to get that reminder that people can recognize it if they are humble enough, and the Lord knows were are trying and still lets us be his servants, as imperfect and impatient as we so often are. 

I continue to learn so much about the need to listen to the spirit. I have had to real myself back lately. It is a cycle every missionary goes through. In the beginning you know nothing and have to rely on the spirit so desperately, but then, over time, start to think you know enough and find yourself getting a bit arrogant, then the Lord has to show you just how little you know again. My companion and I were teaching an inactive member. She had invited us back after giving her a blessing last week, but started off the lesson by saying that she was happy with her new church and didn't want to change. We started talking about her conversion story to the Gospel 20 years ago, and she almost couldn't tell the story of her baptism without tears filling her eyes, yet she still through out a list of concerns and reasons she had fallen away. I quickly whipped out scripture and started teaching what I "knew" would answer her concerns perfectly, while my companion stayed silent. I started addressing all of her concerns with scripture and other things that directly spoke of and answered them, but the spirit kept nudging me away. I wouldn't listen at first, because on the surface, it all seemed like perfect answers, but looking at her, you could tell it wasn't going anywhere. Finally I shut up for a moment, and after a short pause, my companion (who just hit 4 weeks in the field) started to talk. He just bore a simple testimony about the importance of prayer and not giving up on what you know to be true. 

We then asked here to pray as a closing prayer, and after she did, she raised her head back up and was crying. She said she knew it was true, she felt it, but that she didn't know how to tell her family and get their support when they were so against it. We were then able to have a short, but awesome lesson to help her, and the spirit was present and strong as we followed it. She called us later that night and told us she would be at church, and had set up a ride with her visiting teacher. All her other reasons before had just been excuses to try and ignore her testimony so that she wouldn't have to face the backlash of her family for going to a different church, and If I had just listened to the spirit, I would have learned sooner. I am learning more and more why the Lord sends us in twos. So if one is being too stubborn to listen, the other can smack him upside the head. Love you guys, I know this church is true. 

Week #39 - 10/12/2015

Sacred Shoes and Winter Blues

So a cool thing happened this week. We went to the always classy Good Will, and there were only 2 pairs of dress shoes in the store, they were only $4, and they fit me and my comp perfectly. The 9 1/2s were super good quality, but not as much of a miracle as finding a size 14 for my companion. It is little things like that that are always so cool. I know it might sound stupid, but I really think that those were there just for us, and it is a cool thing to see how the Lord loves us and just does things as simple as letting us have some sweet shoes. 

Winter is coming soon, and we are getting prepared. It has been super nice this week, but is is supposed to go from 70 to 50 on Friday, and it is all downhill from there. I wouldn't mind it, but we really rely on the ability to teach women on their porch when their isn't a man in the house, and I don't think they would be to happy when it's that cold. But I'm not worried, I know it will be alright. The work has been going really well, if pretty challenging. We found about 6 people by knocking doors. All seemed more solid than most, and we set return appointments, only to come back to an empty house. But hey, welcome to missionary work. We are making some great progress with some investigators, though. It can be pretty awkward, though, when people try to ask advice about marital problems and other crazy family ordeals. Being the 18 and 19 year old kids that we are, we don't have the greatest advice, but it is always nice to know we just have to point to the Lord, and his words will help them and heal them far more than man ever could. 

Don't have much time, but I'll leave a quote I love.

"That's the way it is when Jesus Christ becomes a reality in your life. It isn't that he somehow makes you do things that you wouldn't want to do otherwise. Rather, you find yourself wanting to do what he would do and respond as he would respond in an effort to bring your life in harmony with His." - Our search for happiness.

I know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ really is the only way to true, lasting, and eternal happiness in this world, not just for the broken and downtrodden, but for every living soul. If you don;t believe me, just try it.