Impressions From The Spirit

Hey there!

First! Happy late birthday to my dad! Don´t worry Dad, if you thought 48 was a good nickname, you´ll love this new one..! Haha I bet you can figure it out. Happy Birthday! Well, felicidades family on your successful and safe trip to and from Hawaii. It sure sounds like you ate very well which has caused me to reflect upon the delicious foods from Mexico that I will be making upon my return. The food here really is great. Just like in Hawaii. Yum.

Well, as I bet you all know, Mexico was rocked by a 7.8 (as I´m informed) earthquake on March 20th at about 12pm Mexico time. Elder Mendoza and I had just left from a lesson and we were walking through a tyangis (which are little or big markets that people put up and sell stuff in, they´re pretty cool) and we were almost out to the main street when people started grabbing onto things and running to different sides and saying "Padre Nuestro que estás en los cielos santificado sea tú nombre" (Our Father who art in heaven hallowed be thy name). Then I started to feel like I was going to fall down or as if I was drunk or something and I thought "why is the ground moving?" then I thought "wait a second! the ground is moving!" and that´s when I realized that we were in an earthquake! Yay! So, after we stood still for a while and waited for it to stop, we kept walking and laughing about the situation that lots of people think to be heard for reciting something and that everyone searches for God when it´s already too late. But! It´s okay, they just need to be made aware of the truth.

Moving on with the week, on Wednesday we got a phone call from one of the sisters in the ward telling us that her daughter wanted to talk with us. Before, Elder Lozano and I talked with her and invited her to be baptized, but she didn´t want to, so we dropped her for a while, but as surely as God lives, He truly does work upon the hearts of the children of men to bring about His great and marvelous purposes. So, certain situations in her life prompted her to want to talk with us. She had some certain concerns and questions about the church, so we resolved them real quick and testified of Jesus Christ and the power of the gospel in our lives when we live it. The Spirit came, was super strong, and testified, so we invited her to be baptized and she said, "yes!" So, knowing that her little sister always likes to follow the example of her big sister, we invited her to also be baptized and she accepted! Yay! Two points for the Spirit! So, Pamela (19) and Dafnne (9) were both baptized this past Saturday, where I had the privilege of baptizing them both, and confirmed members of the church yesterday. 

Then, on Thursday, after looking for someone and not finding them at home, I had the impression from the Spirit to go visit one of my converts, Guadalupe. When we got to her house, she invited us in and to our surprise one of her friends, also named Guadalupe, was there visiting with her. She started to ask us some questions and asked if we could share a message with her which we did with pleasure. We talked about the Gospel of Jesus Christ with her which is faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. The Spirit came very strong to testify of the things we had said, so we did exactly what the Spirit was there to do, invite her to be baptized. So we did just that and she accepted! She will be baptized this Friday! One more point for the Spirit!

Well, we´ve been working really hard and will continue to do so! That´s all for this week! I love you all! Have a happy week!

¡Ten fe y se obediente!

Todo mi amor,

Elder San Diego

Pamela & Dafnne's Baptism

We like to party big her in Mexico - 3.5 liters! Yeah!

Working Hard and Baptizing!

Hola!

The changes have arrived! After seven and a half months here in our area, Elder Lozano has finally left and got changed,suprisingly, to his first area! Funny. So, now I have a new companion, Elder Mendoza. He`s a cool guy and I actually knew him before because he was in this same zone, just in a different area. He is from Ecuador. We call him "El Guapo". It`s a funny little joke because here in Mexico, yes, it means handsome, but in Ecuador it means gay. You might see the humor in the culture difference. We get a kick out of it. But, I am now the senior comp and will be finishing off his training. Yay! Good thing is he likes to work and wants to baptize. Good, so do I! So we will have a good time working our area. Cool thing is that this past Thursday, he and I went on divisions in his area, we met a lady on the street, we went to her house, and we taught her and her daughter and set baptismal dates with them! Then, the next day, he and his comp went back and found the other daughters at home and put baptismal dates with them too and they baptized and confirmed them all yesterday. Mexico. Rock.

Well, that`s pretty much all for this week. Have a good week and work hard just like we will!

¡Ten fe y se obediente!

Todo mi amor,

Elder San Diego

My new companion - Elder Mendoza

The ZONE!

Even As Jesus Christ Is!

Hey folks!

We had a good week and worked hard with the Spirit trying to find the chosen of God and teaching them. Nothing truly special happened this past week, though. We had our "Ward Open House" this past Saturday and it was a great event. Unfortunately, not many investigators and friends of the members showed up to learn more about the church, but it´s okay. It was still good. However, we did get two new investigators who have great potential and want to know and find out more so we will be passing by them this next week and give them the opportunity to accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the truth into their lives. Good stuff. President Tervort also came to our zone last night to give a special devotional fireside for the investigators, new converts, and any member who wanted to come. It was good and the Spirit was there.

Since nothing else happened this week, I will share a scripture with you guys! A very simple scripture that I like a lot is in 3 Nephi 27:27. In this scripture, Jesus Christ is finishing His teachings to the people of the American continent before He leaves them and goes to the Father. He has just taught the people about His true gospel and tells the people that they should follow His teachings which then leads into this verse of scripture. He says "...what manner of men [and women] ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am." What a simple yet profound, and sometimes overlooked, concept! What manner of men and women ought we to be? Even as Jesus Christ. We need to be like Jesus! We need to love as He did, teach with righteousness as He did, live His gospel as He did, do all the things that He did, and be as He is. That is to say, perfect. Will we ever be perfect in this life? No. Does that give me or any of you the excuse to not try as hard as we can to be as perfect as we can? Absolutely not. That´s the whole plan and goal of everything, to do all I can to be as Jesus Christ is and then rely on His grace, love, and mercy to lift me up and fill in the gaps for me so that I may be made perfect in my Savior, the Christ. We are never done improving ourselves in our lives, so we should always find ways that we can be more like Jesus Christ, little by little, day by day. So, my invitation and challenge to all of you who read this is to make yourselves more like the Savior in at least one aspect of your life. I promise that as you live you life as Christ lived His, you will receive joy, peace, and the Spirit and truly live "after the manner of happiness."

I hope and pray for the best for you all!

¡Ten fe y se obediente!

Todo mi amor,
Elder San Diego

Big 'ol Cactus Tree

Comps enjoying a day on the mountain

A Love For The People And The Work

Hey!

Things have been going great. Last Sunday was a really neat experience for Elder Lozano and I. Our convert, Pablo, blessed the sacrament! Yay! It was so neat to see him sitting up there and put into practice the power of the priesthood. So cool. I know he is going to be a great, strong member. This week, lots of our appointments fell through so we decided to look for the inactive members in our area and get them back to church. We visited some sisters in the ward who have been inactive for quite some time. When we talked with them, we testfied of the truth and the need to be at church to renew our covenants with God. The Spirit was super storng and they knew that it´s time to come back to the Lord. They gave us their testimonies and how they know this is what they need to do. Great to know that they have built their testimony the right way.

I know and can feel inside of me the love I have and that is growing for these people. The members, the non-members, inactives, people who I just see pass by in the street, all these have an impact on me. I can feel that they don´t know the truth. They are looking for it, praying for it, hoping that they can find true and lasting happiness, happiness that only comes from knowing the truth, following our Savior, Jesus Christ, and serving the true and living God, our Father in Heaven. The best way I can describe me feelings is how the three Nephites feel. I have joy in this work, but I feel the burden and sadness of the sins of the people whom I am amongst.

This past Wednesday we had a zone conference with President Tervort. He told us something very remarkable. He said that he feels that something truly incredible is about to happen in this mission. Something bigger than the scriptures. He feels that we are about to bring to pass something that has never happened on the face of the Earth since it began, something truly amazing in the missionary work of the Lord. When he talks about this, I know it is true because the Spirit testifies of it to me. I know I am in such an amazing work. I will be the Lord´s servant to bring to pass His holy works here.

Well, we have been great and are planning a ward missionary activity for this Saturday. We can feel that it is going to be a success. Keep us and the people here in you prayers! I love you all! Take care!

¡Ten fe y se obediente!

Todo mi amor,
Elder San Diego

Angelica's Baptism

Helping the Ward Secretary update the ward list

Zac-qui & Ismael

The Joy Of Working With The Spirit

Hey guys!

We had a pretty good week as we searched for more people and taught them. The feelings and promptings of the Spirit are so great here and it is such a joy to be working with the Spirit, doing the Lord`s work. We have one baptism for this upcoming Saturday and hope to put more people on track for being baptized. Things are just going great and I am loving the work. This past Wednesday we ate with one sister in the ward who owns a little kitchen business. She always serves us up some great food when we go and this time I ate a traditional dish called pancita. So what exactly is pancita? Well, it is cow stomach!! Yum! It actually tasted pretty good and tastes a lot like clam. Also, today we went and climbed the nearby mountain with the rest of the district to the very tippy top and took some cool photos of the part of the city to the East of the mountains. Really cool. Unfortunately, the air was pretty contaminated so we couldn't see the volcanoes that are more to the East, but it`s okay. Well, that`s pretty much all I have for this week. I love you all!

¡Ten fe y se obediente!

Todo mi amor,
Elder San Diego

Elder Triana, Elder Rojas (our zone leader) and I

Elder Urrutia and I

Elder Martinez & I

Elder Triana, Me & Elder Lozano

Da Elders - 'Ey Wassup!

¡Feliz Cumpleaños Heather!

Hey folks!

Things are going great here. Oh! First! Happy Birthday to my big sister today! Yay. Party! Pretty tough week this past week. We taught practically no lessons the entire week but we still have faith and vigour and we are going to start fresh and new this next week and do all we can to receive the miracles or the Lord in this missionary labor that we are doing. This past week has been cloudy and cold (not really that cold, maybe 50-60 degrees) but it´s been a nice change of weather. What I want to share with you this week is about the power of the scriptures. The scriptures have such an amazing power in our lives to open our spirits and guide us in the correct paths of God. I know that when I read the scriptures, I have the spirit with me to help in my decisions and actions. I also receive direct revelation from God through the scriptures from the words that I read. The Bible and Book of Mormon are testimonies to us from a loving Father in Heaven of His son, Jesus Christ. No matter what challenges we face in life, we can always find peace and guidance through the scriptures and fortify our faith in Jesus Christ, our Savior. I know each of us will receive more blessings in our lives than we have ever imagined if we read the scriptures daily and ponder the message they contain and then apply the principles we find in them into our daily lives. I challenge you all to do this. I testify that the scriptures are ture and I do so in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

I love you all! Take care and keep doing your best!

¡Ten fe y se obediente!

Todo mi amor,

Elder San Diego

Back of the Bus...Elders!

Ice Skating

Happy 6 month party for Elder Urrutia & I!

Opening The Windows Of Heaven

Hey guys!

What a great past few weeks it has been! I guess I will start off with some of the funny and cool news first. First off, you know what I found out? The main facility for the company "La Costeña" is right here in my zone across the canal from my area! Cool stuff. We always buy their salsas in the markets when we decide to make some tacos for dinner. Second thing. You won`t believe what I ate! I ate elote! That is the corn on a stick thing that Nacho`s sidekick eats and loves in the movie Nacho Libre. It`s pretty good, and simple! Boiled corn on a stick with mayonaise, cheese, and chili powder! Yum.

Well, now time for the even greater news! I finally bought a new camera! Yay! Ok, now for even greater news! Elder Lozano and I baptized and confirmed 7 people in the month of January! Yaaay! I think you already know about Guadalupe being baptized, so I will skip on that. We baptized this cool guy named Pablo, who before was an atheist but some event in his life led him recently to start believing in God again and looking for truth. That`s when we came! Yeah! Isn`t it so neat how God prepares people to receive the gospel? So we baptized him and now he even has the Aaronic Priesthood! Wow. Next, we baptized two little twins who just completed 8 years. They are grandkids of a recent convert grandmother so it was great having that gospel base already started there. Their names are Juan and Charly. Then, we baptized two other kids of a member. They are really cool and buena onda (this just means basically the same thing as really cool, but in Spanish. I just felt like doing that). Their names are Ismael and Zac-qui. Then! Later we baptized a guy named Jorge! He is a cool guy and is the brother of one of our current investigators who is getting baptized soon too. Yay for families! Yesterday, we also had another baptism for a kid named Alfredo. He was a blessing from God to us. He is a son of a member famiy who got baptized back in August or something like that. But, he was rebelious and didn`t follow the others in being baptized. Ever since Elder Lozano had baptized that family, he always said no, but one evening this past week we were walking and didn`t have any appointments, so we decided to stop by and visit the family and maybe see if he wanted to be baptized. Well, we went and then he told us he wanted to be baptized! Yay for revelation and guidance!

Well, that`s all for this week. I`m doing great and hope you all are doing great too! I love you all!

¡Ten fe y se obediente!

Todo mi amor,
Elder San Diego

Pablo's Baptism

Juan & Charley's Baptism

Alfredo's Baptism

Jorge's Baptism

GET THAT CORN OUTTA MY FACE!