February 10th & 17th 2014

February 10th
I don't remember a lot of what happened this week.  A lot of the time we were sick with a nasty cold, so it was kind of a slow, lazy week for us.  We got a lot of work done, we just weren't able to do it with the same amount of energy as usual.  

We had a fun family night with C and V on Monday.  We did the same activity that we had done the week before--the classic Pew family pass the ball and say something nice about somebody else thing.  It was great.  I love them a lot.  Then we had a family night with R and L (V's parents).  We played Charades with the 10 commandments.  It was a blast.  They're a lot of fun.  

As far as new investigators go, we didn't find many.  We found a decent prospect, though.  M took us to visit a person she knows whose son is having problems.  We sat there listening to his poor wife and parents try to calm him down for a few minutes, then said a prayer and explained briefly about the priesthood and blessings for the sick.  The Spirit was strong, my hands felt hot afterwards.  So we told them we would like to keep teaching them about Christ and the strength they can receive through His Atonement and they accepted the invitation, but they day we put the appointment they ended up taking him to the doctor and we haven't been able to go over since.  Pray for his wife--her name is H.  

We've still been working with L, unfortunately he's had problems with his ex-wife and couldn't go to church on Sunday.  We've also kept working with A, C's dad, and he's progressing slowly, but he's progressing.  We had to drop L, C, and B this week--they kind of lost interest.  Someday.  

Sunday was district conference in M.  We rented a bus to take everyone, but the only investigators who made it were C, L, and A.  M made it also.  It was honestly one of the best stake/district conferences I have ever been in.  The District President gave an amazing talk about scripture study--sweet quote: "He who stops reading, stops believing. He who stops believing, stops acting. He who stops acting, stops feeling." He talked about Laman and Lemuel and how they had "stopped feeling" even though they had seen an angel and had a prophet for a dad and a future prophet for a brother.  Sister Wagner gave a powerful testimony about the Book of Mormon, and then President Wagner spoke and fit so many things in a half hour that I am still scratching my head about it.  He talked about faith, obedience, miracles, the Book of Mormon, missionary work, tithing, the word of wisdom, angels, the second coming, the sacrament, and the Atonement.  To try and resume it all would be pointless.  The things that made the biggest impression on me were these:

"Christ didn't do suffer generally--he did it individually.  He put himself in your place and lived your life, your pains, your temptations, your sins, so that he would understand you perfectly and so that he could know how to SAVE you.  But He won't do it if we don't show Him we want His help.  We have to be here every week, partaking of the sacrament to let Him save us."

His testimony at the end:

"I thank my Heavenly Father for the infinite patience He has with me.  I know Christ lives.  He has changed me.  He knows me perfectly, and I am coming to know him."

The humility and conviction in his voice when he said these words was something I will never forget.  I have always looked to President Wagner as someone out of this world--so good, so powerful, so wise--but what I felt when he spoke these words was just a small taste of what our Savior is like.  He is the perfect example of goodness, He has all power and all wisdom.  There are times when I feel like Lamoni's father "I will give away all my sins to know thee."  I am not there yet, but I know one day I will be.  He lives.  He is our Savior, our Master, our King.  And in a coming day, He will come again to this earth and reclaim all those who believe on His name.  We are his witnesses to prepare the world for that day.  

I love you all more than I can really express.  Have the best week of your lives.  Happy Valentines Day! 

Elder Pew

February 17th

Photos from the conference they had:

Getting ready to get their photo taken, getting organized!

Answering questions:

I´m not sick anymore.  The Valentines Day package hasn't got here yet.  But thanks Aunt Leslie and Uncle Brian for the Candy and the Monkey butt powder!  Also, thanks to all the ward members who sent cards/letters for Christmas.  I´ve sent emails about rooming at BYU but I haven't received any replies.  As soon as I find out anything I'll let you know--but it might just be easier to do it through the mom network.  Tell Tyler Romney hi.  

F (H's husband) is doing much better.  They went to the doctor and found out he had some nerve disease, so they gave him some pills and he's getting back to normal.  An absolute miracle, thanks to a Priesthood blessing and your prayers.  She seems a lot less stressed out and we've been able to teach them a couple times.  We invited them to church but they didn't come.  He's going to start working again this week so it might be a little harder to keep teaching them, but the seeds were planted at least. 

This week really was pretty nutsy.  On Tuesday we had district class in M in the morning, and we came back to C and worked for about 4 hours before having to go back to M to stay the night because we had mission conference Wednesday in Guadalajara.  They rented a tour bus to take the whole zone to the conference, and it left at 6:00 am from M.  The zone leaders were already in Guadalajara because of mission council the day before, so they put me in charge of the whole trip.  It worked out fine--we got there with plenty of time to spare and we didn't get lost.  I think I was the only one who didn't sleep the whole 4 hour trip because I was talking to the driver.  He was way cool--he's been working for this tour company for 23 years and has literally been to every cool place in Mexico that you could imagine.  Anyways, the conference was at the chapel by the temple in Guadalajara.  It felt like coming home.  I got to see a lot of old friends:  Elder Hernandez, Elder Diaz, Elder Monsalve, Elder Cervantes, Elder Ramirez, Elder Sanchez, Elder Duncan, Elder Jarvis, etc.  It seems like Elder R is doing a lot better--he wrote me a big long letter and gave it to me there explaining how much he's changed.  That made me really happy.  He might be my favorite convert of my whole mission, strangely enough.  The conference was amazing.  Elder Craig C. Christensen of the Presidency of the Seventy was there, along with Elder Benjamin De Hoyos of the Seventy.  They both spoke about how the Lord is hastening His work and we need to rise to His expectations.  Elder Christensen talked about the role of the Holy Ghost in the work--He is the teacher, we're just here to invite him and help the investigators identify when they feel his influence.  Then, we are to explain to them how they can feel that way forever (by being baptized).  We all left very spiritually well-fed and excited to keep working.  

A few days before the conference, President Wagner had a conference in Mexico City with all the mission presidents in Mexico, presided by Dallin H. Oaks with Elder Christensen and Elder Daniel Johnson, the area president of Mexico.  They asked Elder Johnson why they're not baptizing as much in Mexico and he said it's because the missionaries don't have faith.  So President Wagner's been really emphasizing that.  He had us all study faith one morning and put a goal for when we will be baptizing every week.  We're going to try for April.  He's really trying to change the way we do missionary work.  It's been amazing to see all the changes the mission has gone through since I've got here.  It's been a 180 degree change!  If we can really fulfill this goal, we'll see miracles!  It's becoming more and more apparent that the second coming is near, and that we need to prepare the world now.  What a blessing, what a great time to be a missionary.  

The rest of our investigators are kind of in standby.  C and V just need to get married, but it's taking a while.  L is ready to be baptized but since R needs to go to church 2 more times first before he can be baptized, she is waiting for him.  But they're doing great and we've taught them almost all the lessons now.  M is also in the process of getting divorced so that she can get married and it's also going very slowly but surely.  We really need to focus on finding more people to teach.  Pray for us to be able to do so!  

Thanks for everything!  I hope you're feeling better, Zane!  I want you all to know that I know this Church is true.  Christ is at its head, and the Book of Mormon is they word of God.  Joseph Smith saw our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. He was a prophet.  They live and love each one of us.  We are so privileged to know these things, and I will thank my Father until the day I meet Him again for giving me the family I have been given.  Have a fantastic week!

Elder Pew

January 27th & February 3rd, 2014

January 27th, 2014

Thank you all for everything you are, everything you do, and all you represent to me.  Missionary work is not easy, but when your family is really supportive, it's really helpful.  Know that you are loved and appreciated. 

Well, what more to report?  We've been working with a lot of the same people.  But  we did find some good news also.  We'll start with them. 

A:  Yet another one of M's daughters.  We had already met her, but she hadn't really seemed interested until last saturday.  We were in a lesson with her mom and our Elder's quorum president was there with us, and he mentioned something about temptations and she suddenly blurted out "How can I keep myself from falling into temptation?"  It was a question that seemed to come straight from her soul--she couldn't contain it anymore.  Her tone of voice made it obvious that she had a serious spiritual need in that moment.  Luckily, Preach My Gospel has a section about "questions of the soul" with different Book of Mormon references that answer them, and that exact question happens to be on there, with Helaman 5 as the answer.  So we opened up to Helaman 5:12 and read it and then asked her why she had asked the question.  She started crying and told us about some difficulties she has been having in her marriage.  We gave her the Book of Mormon, told her to read it, and put a return appointment.  We did a super family night with all of her sisters, parents and everyone else we could bring on Monday, then went back to teach her Wednesday.  She accepted a baptismal date for March 8th and by Saturday she had read from the Title Page of the Book of Mormon to 1 Nephi 3 and says she feels a lot better.  She also came to church on Sunday and liked it a lot.  

L:  A referral our Elder's quorum president gave us in priesthood executive meeting.  He's a single father with two daughters, ages 6 and 3.  He recently stopped drinking so that the government would let him keep his daughters with him and is really sincerely looking to better his life.  He came to church this sunday and also liked it a lot, and he has a baptismal date for march 1st.  

C and V are a little stalled.  C doesn't have her ID, and it looks like it'll take about a month for her to get it, so they won't be able to get baptized quite yet, but M decided that she wants to get baptized this Saturday, so ending this transfer we'll have a baptism!  She's excited, her family's excited, the branch is excited, I'm excited!  It's a big step for a 12 year old girl to take--being the first of many in her family to accept the gospel.  She needs all the prayers she can get this week :)  Hopefully everything goes well.  We had 11 investigators in church this Sunday: C, V, V, M, L, E, J, M, A, I, and L. 

Having a lot of investigators has been a great blessing, but it's also made it hard to not fall into a routine and forget to trust in the Spirit--it's something I'm still working on.  Whether or not they leave me here next transfer, I have had a priceless experience here in C and have learned a lot, and even though we've had a lot of success, I know I've still got a long, long way to go.  Thanks for your great examples and your love--I can feel it in your letters and every day.  Have a fantastic week!

Love, 

Elder Pew

February 3, 2014

Hey everybody!  How's your week been?  We had a pretty good one over here in C. Monday night we had a family night with a LA member.  Her 3 kids, ages 10, 9, and 8, were there, plus she invited a NM friend named D.  It was awesome.  We did that activity that we used to do in family night at home, where we pass a ball around the circle and whoever has the ball has to say something nice about somebody else before they can pass it on.  The Spirit was really strong and everyone had a great experience.  D was especially impressed and hopefully she'll be more interested in listening to the missionaries soon.  

Tuesday I was in splits with the zone leaders.  I stayed here and Elder M went to M.  We visited M and she was having a hard week already--the first thing she told us was that we were right when we told her she would have lots of temptations and trials that week.  So we took her with us to all the lessons to try and cheer her up.  We had a family night with the branch president and his family, and he had invited a friend from work to come listen to us.  His name is J and he seemed really interested.  We taught the Restoration and he even accepted a baptismal date for March 8th.  Unfortunately we haven't been able to teach him since but we're going back tomorrow.  

Wednesday we had a lesson with C.  She had some interesting things to tell us, so we talked about repentance. She dreams of getting old and still having her family all together and united.  These were the words that came out of my mouth: "God knows about your dream.  He wants you to have an ETERNAL family and be with them forever.  So if He told you that you should stay with V, then I promise you, as His representative, that if you do so your dream will be accomplished."  The Spirit testified so strongly of these words.  I am so proud of her.  She has come so far and has made so many sacrifices to get on the straight and narrow path.  She decided that this week she's going to get everything resolved with her ID, even if she has to go to M to get it.  We're planning a super baptism of C, V, V's parents, and his brother J and his sister E.  It'll be a great day.  

Thursday we had our first lesson with C's dad, A.  He came to the baptism and wanted to go to church, but at the last minute they called him in to work.  Hopefully he can keep progressing. 

On Friday I was in splits again, this time I went to M with Elder G.  We had some pretty powerful lessons together and it was a good experience.  Meanwhile, M had her baptismal interview and passed!

Saturday we were pretty much in the church all day getting everything ready.  The baptismal font here is basically just a tarp attached to some poles, so we had to clean the tarp and set it all up.  We noticed that there was a hole in the bottom and it wasn't holding any water.  We didn't have a whole lot of time, so we basically closed up the hole with super glue and stuck some bricks on top to keep it down.  Beforehand, we knelt down and our branch president, who was there helping us, said a heartfelt prayer asking Heavenly Father to work a miracle so that the baptism would be able to happen as planned.  Sure enough, it did.  Miracle.  M's great uncle (C's uncle, A's brother) is actually a member of the church from A (where Rockford is) and wanted him to baptize her, so he made the 4 hour bus trip to do the ordinance.  It was a great experience.  Lots of members and investigators went to support her, and she was SO happy when she came up out of the water!  She gave her testimony before the closing prayer and starting crying.  So amazing.  

Sunday was good.  M looked like a totally new person after receiving the Holy Ghost in Sacrament meeting. Pure happiness.  There weren't that many investigators in church this time, just 8, but it was a really spiritually uplifting day.  We've got some great members here.  

Thank you all for your love and support.  I know this is the true church, that the Savior lives and loves each one of us.  I know that we are blessed as we make sacrifices for Him.  Preach my Gospel says "All that seems unfair about life can be made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ."  I know that is true.  Have a lovely week!  See you soon!

Elder Pew

January 13th & 20th 2014 photos too!

January 13, 2014
Sorry, I was writing and the computer crashed.  we had a zone activity in M today so we were short on time as it is, but now I really don't have time.  

Preparation Day Fun 

Everything's going well, we had ten investigators in church this week and the branch is super excited.  I'm so very sorry this happened, but thanks for all your love and support. Your letters inspire me and help me feel loved.  I know this is the Lord's work and he is blessing me so much for participating in it.  

Thanks for the muffin, Granny! (She accidentally shipped her partially eaten muffin to Taran!)

I'm going to sign out now before the computer crashes.  I'll tell you about everything next week!

Love, Elder Pew

January 20, 2014

I owe you one after what happened last week.  Here we go!

Two awesome experiences from last week:

In our district class, I taught about teaching with the Spirit.  We did practices where we invited the investigator to get baptized, they had to say no, and we had to listen to the Spirit to discern what to say to them to help them accept the invitation.  Every time we do practices like this, we take the role of a real investigator that we have or have had.  In one of the practices, I was teaching Elder G.  He told me he did not want to get baptized yet because there was something he needed to fix in his life.  I felt very strongly that I should read him Alma 34:33 and explain that he needed to repent now.  When I told him to read the scripture, he literally started shaking.  He asked me, "So if I don't repent, I'll be condemned?"  I told him "that's right.  If you don't repent in this life, you will have lost your chance."  After the practice he told me that the investigator he was imitating was someone from one of his other areas, and that in a lesson with him, Elder G had used the exact same scripture, the investigator had asked the exact same question, and he had given him the EXACT same response that I did, and that from that day on, that investigator had progressed.  It was a powerful testimony to us all that the Holy Ghost knows all things and knows what God's children need to hear to accept and understand his Gospel.  But it doesn't stop there.  On Sunday, the Youth's Sunday school teacher had an emergency and had to leave after sacrament meeting, so I was left to teach the class.  I didn't even have the manual, so I just had to make up a topic on the spot.  I felt like I should teach "How can the Scriptures help me learn about Heavenly Father" and I did, using activities that I had used with the youth in S.  The teacher made it back for the last 5 minutes of the class, and handed me over the manual.  To my great surprise, the topic of the class that day was the exact same one I had just taught!  It was really quite an amazing experience.  

This week we had the activity on Monday, zone class on Tuesday, and interviews on Wednesday, so three days in a row of going to M.  I love interviews with President Wagner.  Everything he suggests works.  Wednesday night we went to visit C and V to teach about Eternal Marriage.  When we got there, they had just had an argument and C told us she didn't want to get married to V anymore.  We just pulled out the Family, a Proclamation to the World and read it through with them, stopping to explain every little important detail.  I feel like one of the main topics I have learned in this area is how the Gospel blesses families, the importance of different family roles and the importance of the family in the Plan of Salvation.  I was able to use a lot of the things I have learned in that lesson, and the next day they told us that everything was fine.  In fact, they got together all their papers that day and sent us to find out what else they need to get married on Friday morning.  Miracle!  This week they have to go to a little marriage prep training on Thursday that the government does here, then wait until C can get a new ID (she lost it) and next week they should get married and baptized.  The members have helped out there a lot--especially the Branch President and his wife.  Amazing.  

We've still been teaching V's parents, they went to church last Sunday and this Sunday his mom went alone (his dad was busy).  They also introduced us to their daughter, E, who told us yesterday that she has got an answer that the Book of Mormon is true.  She has a 10 year old son named J, and she really wants him to also grow up in the church.  We also met another one of their sons, J, who just got out of a rehabilitation center and  he's excited to learn and come closer to God.  

Elder Pew and his companion and wonderful families they know

M has another daughter, named I, who lives in another town but is here often enough to have listened to us a few times.  She talked to her sister in law about the church and she got interested, and we've visited her a few times.  Her name is B and she is a single mom with 5 kids, L (12), B (10), A (8), J (6), and a 2 year old girl whose name escapes me.  While teaching her, we also met her sister, C, and her two kids, J (12) and G (11).  Lots of work!  This Sunday we had an all time high of 12 investigators in church:  V, M, C, V, L, J, J, B, L, C, G, and J.  They all stayed all three hours and loved it!  The members are all super pumped and are helping a ton, and everyone is asking us when C and V are getting married.  The Assistants called to congratulate us and to ask us to share our secrets with them so that they could put them in the Mission newsletter and share our ideas with the whole mission.  We've been so blessed lately, I feel like Ammon:

35 Now have we not reason to rejoice? Yea, I say unto you, there never were men that had so great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began; yea, and my joy is carried away, even unto boasting in my God; for he has all ^apower, ^ball wisdom, and all understanding; he comprehendeth all things, and he is a ^cmercifulBeing, even unto salvation, to those who will repent and believe on his name.

 36 Now if this is ^aboasting, even so will I boast; for this is my life and my light, my joy and my salvation, and my redemption from everlasting wo. Yea, blessed is the name of my God, who has been mindful of this people, who are a ^bbranch of the tree of Israel, and has been ^clost from its body in a strange land; yea, I say, blessed be the name of my God, who has been mindful of us, ^dwanderers in a strange land. (Alma 26:35-36)

This is the Lord's work.  The Atonement is real.  Jesus is the Christ.  

I love you all and could not ever express how grateful I am for all you do for me.  I know it goes beyond the letters and packages--your prayers, fasting, thoughts, and temple attendance are also well appreciated.  The influence you had in me before coming out here has also made an unbelievable difference.  Your faith and goodness inspired and still inspire me to keep going on.  Have a great week everyone!

Love, 

Elder Pew

December 30th 2013 and January 6th, 2014

December 30, 2014

Singing at the Zone Mission Christmas Party, photos taken by the Mission President's wife

Nice back of the head shot, teaching a golden investigator.

Lunch, nice action shot!

Well, we already talked this week and I don't have a lot of time to write, so we'll get down to the basics: 

V, M, C, V, and M are still doing great.  M has read up to Alma 17 and can't put the Book of Mormon down.  We gave them a bunch of Church movies (The Restoration, Together Forever, Finding Faith in Christ, Joy to the World) and they watched them all and loved them.  We're going to have a family home evening with them tonight and watch The Testaments, even though it's rated R :).  (Family joke--the destruction part made Timo ask "what was that rated?")  They are more and more converted, united and happy every time we see them and they are working things out so that they can get married and get baptized.  They couldn't come to church this week because M suddenly had to be hospitalized Sunday morning, but she's fine now and they should be there this week.  

We found another golden family this week.  It's an older couple named T and G.  They contacted us on the street and told us that T works with a member who had invited him to church, but since he lives in another town he never could come.  We took their address and went to their house later.  They literally live in the middle of nowhere and are very poor, but very willing to follow Christ and recognized us as his servants from the start.  We took our ward mission leader to the lesson so he would know where they live so that he could take them on Sunday, and sure enough they came.  They shared with the branch president that missionaries had passed by their house before, but they had never come back, and that G had prayed that if ours was the true church, they would come back someday.  She told him that the prayer had been answered that Friday night when we went to visit them.  The members were all very helpful in making them feel welcome and have a good experience, and we're going to keep teaching them this week.  

I saw a really weird vehicle today--I don't know whether to call it a motor-trike with a roof or a 3 wheeled smart car, but whatever it was, I want one.

We've made it a tradition to eat chinese food every P-Day, and we've made friends with the Chinese people (yes they literally are EVERYWHERE) who work there.  They've been teaching us Chinese words and I'm really grateful they sent me to Mexico.  

On Sunday we had a great experience.  We went to visit the former Branch president of C,and we brought our Sunday School President, a 24 year old returned missionary.  He shared with him a scripture that really called my attention:

4 And thus they have been ^acalled to this holy calling on account of their faith, while others would reject the Spirit of God on account of the hardness of their hearts and ^bblindness of their minds, while, if it had not been for this they might have had as great ^cprivilege as their brethren.

 5 Or in fine, in the first place they were on the ^asame standing with their brethren; thus this holy calling being prepared from the foundation of the world for such as would not harden their hearts, being in and through the atonement of the Only Begotten Son, who was prepared— (Alma 13:4-5)

This is, to me, one of the saddest scriptures in the Book of Mormon.  We all have the same potential--to become like God--but some people, because of the hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their minds, don't ever fulfill it.  The member called them "Sleeping Giants", people who could be great if they would just wake up and realize the potential they have.  Let's all take a moment to recognize who we are--children of God, and heirs to His Throne.  We were valiant Spirits in his presence before the world was and were sent to build his kingdom upon the earth, and we have been provided all we need to acheive it--the Atonement of Christ.  When the task seems to be too much or when we feel like we have failed, the atonement of the Only Begotten Son, who was prepared, is the hope we have to help us wake up our Sleeping Giants and become who we were meant to be.  

I love you all and thank you for all your support.  This is God's work and it is His Church.  He is our Father and he loves us.  Jesus is the Christ.  Have a great week!

Elder Pew

January 6th, 2014

Great to hear from all of you.  I loved absolutely every one of your letters.  I love you a lot!

Let's get straight to the good stuff.  We had a good week, all the investigators are still progressing, and yesterday was one of the most miraculous days of my life.  

We had 9 investigators in church:  M, C, V, M, I (another one of M's daughters), her two kids N and M (I don't know his real name, everyone just calls him monkey), their cousin L, and G, the first counselor's wife. We had never really sat down to teach I and her family, but her kids had listened to us a few times with their grandma and invited their mom and their cousin to church with them.  The members were really great with all of them and they all seem to have had a good experience.  Testimony meeting was great, very powerful.  Oh, remember the inactive former branch president we visited last Sunday?  The member that came with us to that visit, M, promised them that if they didn't go to church he would go get them, and so halfway through sacrament meeting when they still hadn't got there, he left and brought them.  The whole family of 6 came, and there was a new excitement in the building when the members saw that brother in church again. In priesthood meeting the Elder's Quorum president, after giving him a long, warm welcome at the beginning of the class, started teaching about baptism and asked him how he felt the day he was baptized.  He didn't want to respond, but the teacher was persistent and that brother started crying as he explained the feeling of peace and forgiveness he had felt the day he was baptized.  The love of his fellow members and the presence of the Holy Ghost were able to penetrate his heart and remind him of the testimony he still had buried deep inside.  I really hope he keeps coming. 

Later that evening, we went to visit V's parents, who he had introduced us to a few days before.  Their names are L and R, and they felt the Spirit really strong and accepted everything we taught.  It also helps that their son is a completely different person now than he was 4 weeks ago when he met us.  They accepted a baptismal date for February 22nd.  

Afterwards, we visited V and C and taught them the Word of Wisdom. Without going into too many personal details, we invited them to take all the harmful substances that they had in their home and throw them away in that very moment.  C did so first, then V, and then M started crying uncontrollably, went into her room, and pulled out something else that she felt like she should also throw in the garbage.  Some day I`ll tell you the full story.  It was on of the most amazing moments of my mission--watching the Atonement go to work in their lives to lead them to repent, give up things that are harmful to them.  I couldn't help but think about what happened here in this same continent 2100 years ago, when the Anti-Nephi-Lehites buried their weapons of war in the earth as a sign that they had abandoned their sins forever.  That is true repentance: Burying our sins and covenanting (through baptism or the Sacrament) to never take them up again.  I am so grateful for the opportunity I have been given to represent the Savior in helping the children of our Heavenly Father to repent and come unto Him.  As their lives change, mine does also and, as Ammon described, my joy is full.  The Atonement is real.  I am living evidence of it and I have witnessed it in the lives of many others.  Trust in this truth.  

Sad news about Sister Stauffer (our neighbor passed away unexpectedly, her oldest son and Taran were good friends).  She was a great person and a great example for all of us.  I remembered this scripture while reading what had happened, I would like to dedicate it to the Stauffer family:

But there is a ^aresurrection, therefore the grave hath no victory, and the sting of ^bdeath is swallowed up in Christ.

 He is the ^alight and the life of the world; yea, a light that is endless, that can never be darkened; yea, and also a life which is endless, that there can be no more death.

Have a great week everyone!  Know that I love you all!

Elder Pew

December 16 & 23, 2013 and photos!

On his way to his new area he met up with these missionaries in the office.  Handsome group!

View of the town from their apartment

 December 16, 2013

Answers to questions:  It's Nahuatl (nawattle) and no, I'm not learning any other words in that language.  The only other one I know is Quetzalcóatl, which means feathered serpent or something like that.  Our Elders Quorum president is a high school history teacher, so he knows the whole history of the town and told me what C meant.  

I email from a normal cyber cafe .

I have taken pictures of all kinds of nutsy things but my camera never wants to connect itself to any of the computers here.  What I have to do to send pictures is ask for them to lend me an adapter for my memory card to connect it to the USB port, and so far I haven't found a cyber café that has one yet.  

There's a Bodega Aurrerá here, which is basically like Kholers (grocery store), so they probably sell baby powder there.  We'll see.

There's a military base in M so lots of people work there.  A lot of people work in the coconut farms and the processing factories also.  All the coconut trees are an amazing sight here.  Miles and miles and miles of coconut trees are all that can be seen from some of the tallest hills here.  

I'm going to skype, but I don´t know with who or from where.  This Sunday were transfers, you see, so we didn't plan anything yet.  But let me know if there's a certain time that would be easier for you and I'll let you know next Monday.  

Things I forgot to mention last week:  I bought new shoes.  My old ones are completely dead.  Ripped holes in the sides where the sole connects with the rest of the shoe, and the shoelaces are also completely destroyed.  Thank you C.  The new ones were like 600 pesos, so about 50 dollars and they are way comfortable and I'm 90% sure they'll last till I finish my mission.  But if they leave me here for a long time, who knows.  Also, they were totally playing "Dominic the Donkey" in the store where I bought them.  A nice, hilarious surprise.  I was a little embarrassed to be the only person in the store who knew the song.  

This was a great week.  Monday night we went to visit the D family.  They have about a year in the church and have been inactive the last few months.  We taught them the Restoration and at the end the Dad started telling us about all the doubts he had.  The Jehovah´s witnesses had been coming over, so he was pretty dang confused, but instead of answering his questions, we just kneeled down and told him to ask God if the Book of Mormon is true.  He did and EVERYONE felt the answer come.  Even his daughter's non-member husband, M. He thanked us and told us that they would go to church on Sunday, but then Sunday came and they didn't.  So we went over that night, not really having any idea of what we could teach them.  We decided to start reading in the Book of Mormon with them, but they told us that they had been reading, so we were clueless as to what to teach.  They didn't really have a specific reason for not going to church, so we just started asking questions and let the Spirit do its work.  I asked them how they felt about their testimonies.  The dad said he felt good, he knew the church is true and he didn't doubt.  The daughter, D, said she was confused and a little sad because of the trials she is going through right now.  I shared 1 Corinthians 10:13 with her and explained that God will never let her be tried or tempted more than what she can resist.  Elder M then shared Alma 7:11-12 and explained that Christ had suffered for her sins, afflictions, pains, and sorrows so that he could help her.  I then explained that we receive help from Christ through the Holy Ghost, and we read 3 Nephi 18:1-7, 12 to show them that they can receive the Holy Ghost by taking the sacrament and renewing their baptismal covenant.  It all just clicked in their minds-totally guided by the Spirit.  They understood this time why they should be going to church and committed to do it this week.  Also, we were smart and put another appointment this Thursday to check up on them.  It was a great experience.  

Tuesday we had zone class, and we talked about the Book of Mormon.  It was awesome.  It's a small little zone, there's only 23 missionaries here, compared to the 28 that there were in Union.  Afterwards, we had a lesson with V and M.  We read 3 Nephi 11 with them, and their daughter, C was there.  When we read the part where Christ explains to the Nephites how they should be baptized, she was impacted.  I think the Spirit taught her in that moment that she should be baptized in that way, and ever since she's been golden.  We went back Saturday and she looked more excited.  She brought her husband and her three kids to church on Sunday and surprisingly her husband seems pretty open too.  His name is V and he invited us over Tuesday to start teaching the whole family.  They'll have to get married before they can get baptized, but anything's possible.  

Wednesday we visited a less active member named Y.  She's about 32, she grew up in the church but is now an active member of some other church and is sure that it's true.  We tried to teach her the Restoration, but she wouldn't let us.  Instead of trying to fight, we just pulled out the Book of Mormon and said something like this.  "Y, this is the proof that the Church of Jesus Christ was restored through Joseph Smith.  On this page, there's the testimony of three people who saw an angel who showed them the plates.  They heard the voice of God declaring that the book is true.  Here is the testimony of 8 other people who saw the plates and testify that Joseph Smith was the person called of God to translate them.  This is the testimony of Joseph Smith, who gave his life for this work.  The first prophet that wrote this book also gave us his testimony..."  we then opened up to 2 Nephi 33:10-11, where Nephi tells us that what he wrote were the words of Christ, and that we will see him face to face before the judgment seat of God and will know that he was commanded to write these words.  After that, we gave our own personal testimonies that the Book of Mormon is true.  Then we kneeled down and she asked God if it was true, and stayed silent for 5 minutes afterwards crying.     

Thursday was Virgin Day.  Lots of parties, nobody to teach. (they aren't allowed to go out around large crowds).

Friday I turned 18 months in the mission, and it was kind of a slow day also.  

Pinatas from the Christmas Party

Saturday we had our branch Christmas party.  M, C, another one of M's daughters, some non-member friends that different members brought, and another investigator named G all went.  It was great.  Our branch president started out with a talk about Christmas, then the Elders Quorum president read the story of Christ's birth from the Bible, then the Branch President's first counselor sang a few Christmas carols and played his guitar.  Yes, we were already best friends, so he invited me to sing a few songs with him since he was a little sick.  It was fun. Afterwards, the childrens broke open some piñatas and we ate carne asada.  Delicious.  It was a great chance for me to get to know some of the members a little better, and it was a really good spiritual experience for the investigators that went.  As mentioned, C brought her husband and kids the next day to church and G also came.  Sunday were transfers, and we weren't too worried but you never know these days.  We'll be staying together another transfer, but this time I'm going to be district leader again.  It was a nice two week break.  It should be a great transfer, we should hopefully have some baptisms and help the branch grow a little more.  

Thank you everyone for all the love and support; the letters, packages, and prayers.  I couldn't do it without you.  This work is God's work and this is His church.  It's been an absolute pleasure to be on the front lines seeing how He does business these last 18 months, and I'm sure the next 6 will be full of miracles as well.  Have a great Christmas break, enjoy the weather (haha), and we'll talk next week!  Love you all!

Elder Pew

Iguana in the tree

Coconut trees

December 23rd, 2013

Answers:

Obviously I remembered Quetzalcòatl from my dinosaur days, which is why I investigated a bit to find out what it meant.  

This cyber cafe has what I need!  Pictures will be attached (above)!  The thing is pretty darn expensive, it's just a matter of finding who will lend it to me.  

Yes they have a big parade on virgin day, plus a lot of indian dances, mass, and who knows what other things.  We do everything possible to avoid it--the missionary handbook says to stay away from big crowds of people.  

Tuesday was district class and the first one with my new distict.  It's a big district--8 missionaries.  The zone leader, two other elders, two sisters, and us.  They're all really great missionaries and we're going to have a lot of success.  That night we had a lesson with V and C.  We taught them the restoration and they literally pulled out a pen and notebook and were writing down everything we said!  They accepted the baptismal challenge, and V said the closing prayer. After the prayer, C and her dad both told us that they had seen a light during the prayer coming from where I was sitting.  Kind of different, but they took it as an answer that the church is true.  V said he felt something good fill him up.  It was sweet.  

Wedneday we had the Mission Christmas party in C.  It was a blast, I got to see a lot of old friends.  Sister L was there and showed me a picture of M's baptism--the guy we contacted in an ice cream shop in E!  He's going to baptize his wife and daughter this Saturday!  I may have more companions than baptisms at this point, but I've left a lot of baptisms behind and it feels good to know that these people follow through with what I have taught them. We also had a training for district leaders, and I loved a quote from President Wagner: "The Leader doesn't have to be the god of everyone else.  He just has to help everyone else look unto God."  It's just a lot easier and effective that way.  Oh, and I forgot to mention, R, Breton's (Taran's friend from our neighborhood) cousin, is in the same zone as me now.  We'll be seeing each other at least once a month in zone class.  Finally.  

Thursday we had another lesson with V and C, and this time we were able to snag their 12 year old daughter, M, and teach her too.  We taught the Plan of Salvation, hoping it would help them to decide to get married so they could be baptized.  It worked.  V said at the end of the lesson "I really do want to get baptized, because I have a lot of sins.  So we're going to do everything we can to get married before January 25th so we can get baptized that day."  Awesome.  Then C said the closing prayer.  In the prayer she prayed to know how to help her daughter and how to better understand her.  At the end of the prayer, M was crying, and when her mom saw that, she started crying too.  When we left they were hugging each other and still crying.  It was such a beautiful experience.  The power of family prayer.  

Friday we went to M and found a new less active named F.  She's had a lot of economical problems lately and after listening to her talk for about 10 minutes straight about it, we shared 3 Nephi 13:31-33 and told her to stop worrying about those things.  We invited her to pray for help and she also ended up crying at the end of the prayer.  She wants to come back to church but she needs a lot of help getting there since she lives in another town.  

Saturday we had another lesson with V and C, but only their daughter M and C's mom, M, were there.  We read 1 Nephi 8 and talked about why it is important to read the Book of Mormon every day.  We brought her Jr. High teacher with us (our Elder's Quorum President) and that helped a lot.  She is really smart and super excited about everything we've been teaching her.  

Sunday was almost a record breaking day--C, V, M, M, V, and their granddaughter N all came to church, plus G made 7 investigators!  They took up a whole row to themselves!  And the members were great with them!  The talks were by two recently graduated young women who had just received their medallions and they were amazing.  The youth Sunday School teacher had to leave after sacrament meeting and assigned me to teach the class, just like old times in S.  I assigned all of them, including M and N, scriptures to read and explain to the class about missionary work, and they all did great!  Even the two who aren't members stood right up and explained their scriptures like it was nothing!  They made great friends there and are all really excited!  Right afterwards, we had to go to M because there was a district Christmas devotional and they organized a choir of all the missionaries in the zone to sing in it.  We sang like 6 songs and it went really well.  Nobody came from C because it`s kind of far and expensive, but the members there had a great experience.  It really is great to be a missionary during Christmas time.

Tis the season to bear testimony of Christ.  I know He lives, that He atoned for our sins and died so that we all might live.  I know He was resurrected and that He guides and directs His Church today through living prophets.  I know that He loves each one of us and is waiting for us to come unto Him, which we can do by repenting and making covenants.  I know that the Book of Mormon is evidence of His love for all people.  Through His Atonement, my life has changed, which is why I am now His witness.  Oh, come let us adore him, Christ the Lord.

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

Merry Christmas, 

Elder Pew

***I had him share his testimony of Joseph Smith to share at our annual Joseph Smith birthday party.  Here it is:

I know Joseph Smith was called of God to restore his church.  He saw God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, received the priesthood from John the Baptist and Peter James and John, and all the keys of this dispensation from Moses, Elijah, and Elias.  He received the Book of Mormon from Moroni and translated by the power of God.  He has done more for the salvation of man than any other person except Christ.  He fulfilled his prophetic mission, sealing his testimony with his blood.  It has been an absolute priviledge to "carry on in so great a cause" and help finish the work he was commanded by God to start.  Thanks to his diligence and faith, we have all been blessed by the restored gospel and have the opportunity to return to live as families with God again.  As my favorite hymn from when I was 2 years old says, "Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah.  Death shall not conquer the hero again."  In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.