Sunday, October 13, 2013

Oct 7, 2013 Taylorsville and Conference

Hey!

So yes I live with members. She is a super old lady. 78 or so. And her husband just passed away. Her daughters live close by and so they are over all the time. There are 4 rooms downstairs. At first we were going to organize it all. But when we realized how long it would take we just started throwing things in the other rooms. She said she didn’t care about any of the stuff and that she is planning on getting rid of it all anyways. But there is a ton of stuff and some cool stuff. She doesn’t cook for us. For dinners we go to members houses to get to know the area and the members better, and for lunch and breakfast we cook for ourselves. She has offered and she always offers to give us rides and stuff and whatever. She is awesome! I think she just wants excuses to leave the house and so we asked her to take us to the store today and she was super excited and stuff! Just a sweet old lady.

So yes we are just finding new investigators. We are teaching a family straight out of Mexico. We have the grandparents on date and now we just need to work on the parents. But we'll get um. We have a family. The mom is less active and the dad is non. And they have 3 kids, 2 of baptism age. The kids are on date and the dad said yes to baptism but no to a date and so through teaching the kids we will also teach the dad and really talking about the importance of baptism and such. Then there is Maria. She has a son who was baptized when he was 10. She has desires to be baptized but she isn’t married and works Sundays. Those are mild hurdles and not hard to get over if she truly has desires.

So cool story time! We were sitting in a lesson on Friday night with Maria. And Bishop Texts us telling us he has 5 tickets to Saturday morning conference if we have an investigator. So we just look at each other and then at Maria and asked if she wanted to go. Although she just got finished telling us how tired she was and how much stuff she needed to do on Saturday, she was like Oh yes I want to go! And she was so excited! So we spent the last hour looking for a ride and someone to fellowship. We ended up going with a bishop that speaks very little Spanish and his wife who doesn’t speak Spanish. But still it was a great experience and she was crying during it. I loved the talk from Uchtdorf! Where he was just smashing the inactives and the nonmembers! It was perfect!

Let’s see on Friday we got to go to the Oquirr mountain temple and go through a session. That was ALOT of fun! And after we went to Red Robin! It was hard to not order something with caffeine especially cuz they ended up not charging us for drinks. But I stayed strong and got a sprite and lemonade. That basically took up our whole Pday. But it’s okay. Worth it!

Saturday we had the wedding of Elias and Carmen Rascon! It was performed in a church with the branch president performing it. It was a beautiful little ceremony. We were going to be the witnesses. And I was super excited but as soon as we stood up to do it, another couple who helped fellowship stood up so we let them do it. Haha. Afterwards we had a little Mexican fiesta in the gym. Some weird like soup with chicken in it. IT was really funny. Since the wife doesn’t speak any English the only thing she said to me was "LE gusto" she said it super like strong and forceful. Basically she was asking if I liked the food haha! It was pretty good. We had to leave a little early because we had to go to the priesthood session! WHICH WAS AWESOME BTW! It was cool when we left we saw the guy that just got married leaving the stake center. "Elias what are you doing here it’s your wedding night" "its conference. I had to be here. This is what we do" It was so awesome! I love that guy! Also I got to watch the priesthood session with my old companions. There wasn’t enough time to take me back. Oh well haha.


So Sunday we had conference again. We got invited to go to a recent convert’s house right after I made and ate 2 steak burritos. So when we went they offered me food and I had to say no. I was too full as it was. So we watched conference in Spanish. That was.... interesting. I fell asleep. I couldn’t keep up haha! And then after conference we had 2 hours to go out and work and talk to people and such and the lady's house that we were at tried to offer more food for lunch. And my companion is like well we don’t want to be rude. We need to stay and eat. I put my foot down. I said no we had to go and work. We had things to do and I wasn’t going to waste time just hanging out with some recent converts. They were cool and everything but yeah. So he felt bad and took the food to go. Haha! That night was the baptism of Elias and Carmen Rascon! It was so awesome to see them be married and baptized! President Salazar did both marry them and baptize them, haha! He is a boss! After they are baptized and while they are drying off and changing and stuff the Elders go up and give the first lesson (the restoration). So I got to go up and since Elder Julian was translating it was just me and elder Toborg. I just had a lot of confidence and I was going to focus on teaching and not worry about the Spanish. And it was really well. Everyone told me my Spanish was really good! It was a great experience and I could feel the spirit so strong! I definitely know I was being guided! I could not have learned Spanish so fast if it wasn’t for the help of the Holy Ghost! Conference was great! But I can’t wait to get the ensign so I can read back through them and highlight and just really learn and understand!


 General Conference
 Traditional General Conference Sweet Rolls
 Oquirre Mountain Temple Trip



 Rascon Wedding and Baptism



 General Conference - The Benefit of being in Salt Lake


Oct 4, 2013 Transferred to Taylorsville and Happy 20th Bday!

Hey!

So yes I got transferred! My new companion is old companions of both of my first companions so they filled me in a little bit about him. So I found out I was getting transferred on Monday and so I had Monday night to pack and on Tuesday I went to my new area and started working. It happens that fast. So when I found out about the transfer it didn’t say where I would be living or what my new phone number was. So on the way to the new area we got an address. The lady got a call on Sunday asking to house missionaries and then we showed up on her door step on Tuesday. She wasn’t prepared, she gave us her master bedroom. And we felt bad so we searched the house a little and checked out the basement. It was filled with junk but it was perfect and so we asked if we cleared it out if we could live there and she said yes. So we spent the first 2 hours doing that.

So basically what happened with our area is. There is a Spanish ward here that covers 2 stakes, Taylorsville south and Jordan stake. Originally there was one set of elders covering the 2 stakes. Now what happened was they split it. The elders there stayed and then they put us in and we cover Taylorsville. And so. We had no area book. No cell phone. No nothing. We were white washed into the area but way more intense. But we are getting the area going so that is good. We didn’t have a cell phone for 3 days. It was difficult. Also we don’t have a car and so we are on bikes and I am on the mission bike that is Horrible! And our home is down hill and the area is uphill so everyday we are going up hill! SUPER annoying! But! Since the MTC I have lost 20 lbs. I am down to 218! Watch out Spencer I am coming for ya!

SO! On Sunday! I got my first baptism! The kid Salvador Oregon! He is 19 years old! We found him 2 weeks before he was baptized! But he knew it was what he needed to do. It was in my other area but I got to go back and see him be baptized! It was so great! And then this week is a pretty special weekend. Today is Pday because we get to go to the Temple (Oquirr Mountain Temple, We went to the Open house so that is pretty cool!) and then tomorrow is General Conference and the wedding of the Rascon Family! And Sunday is again conference, and their baptisms! And then Pday again on Monday! So basically I am just having fun this weekend! =P haha!

So my Birthday was on Tuesday! I got my package on Tuesday at district meeting. And on Monday since we didn’t have Pday and we needed food cuz we only buy enough for 1 week. We got to go to the store and so I got steak and a couple other fun stuff! =P but yeah so I opened the package. And put up the banner and blew up the balloons! Also the member family dropped off a cake in the morning and so I lite the candles and did all that! It was fun! I cooked up all the steak on Tuesday and packaged them up to have one a day. I really enjoyed the birthday cards and everything!


Um yeah! Things are going good in our area we are really just focused on finding new people. We have one lady named Maria on date but she is not married and works on Sunday and so we have to work through those but she really wants to go to church and everything and be baptized. We have another family that is friends with recent converts and they are straight from Mexico and very interested in the church. She seems more excited than he does but we have only had one lesson so we will see what happened. Also there is a family that the other missionaries found. She is a less active member. And he is none. And they have 2 kids that are baptism age. The kids want to be baptized but he does not. He is willing to be but not anytime soon. So through teaching the kids we will also teach him and hopefully resolve some concerns! But yeah! This is a pretty good area. Oh yeah! One more thing I forgot to mention! Our whole entire proselyting area is out side of our mission! Since the Spanish ward covers 2 stakes. One of the stakes is in the mission and ours is out side. Haha! It’s a very interesting situation but yeah! So I leave my mission every single day! Haha! Haven’t gotten in trouble yet though! =P but yeah! Want to know anything else! Let me know. Oh Elder Hall is from Kentucky.  He likes to fish and hunt and stuff like that. His mom is from Venezuela so that’s pretty cool. He has been on his mission for 16 months and is extremely trunky! He’s a good kid though. But I’ve only know him a week and a half. And I’m not going to let him slow me down. We are going to kill it this transfer! Just you watch! =P

Connor



 We have discovered that Connor really knows how to work when he wants to!






 Salvador's Baptism


 Happy 20th Birthday Connor
 A member family texted me and told me that Connor's Pday would be changed that week from Monday to Friday.  I told him thank you and that it was Connor's Bday that Tuesday and said I didn't know if he would get his package in time.  I asked him if they would take a cake to him and he said they always do.  So the members dropped off a cake for Connor the morning of his Birthday!

 Connor decorated his bed and desk with the birthday supplies I sent him.



 Next to his MOM, Connor LOVES STEAK!