background

Monday, January 12, 2015

Dia De Los Reyes, Baptisms!!, and Lizards

FIRST! I want everyone to go take a look at this page:

Watch the videos, listen to the music, read the articles, and SHARE! One thing I will always miss about life back home is the Church's youth program. I learned and grew so much from this program and I really want to be able to be a part of it after the mission. The songs are actually pretty fantastic, and the theme video almost made me cry. So good. Go now!!!

Dia de los Reyes in Mexico is on the 6th of January. On this day, the people all celebrate when the Wise Men found Jesus and Joseph and Mary and gave gifts. It's basically another Santa Claus deal, where the Wise Men come and leave gifts. Everyone also buys this bread called Rosca de los Reyes, it's really good. They have a bunch of little dolls hidden in the bread (apparently they represent the Christ child??) and if you have on in your piece, you have to make everyone tamales on February 2nd. I found two...too bad transfers are a day AFTER the second. Sheesh.

One of the members in our ward is this 18 year old kid, Logan, who's preparing to go on a mission, he's just about to send in his papers!! He's also coming out with us every Friday to help further this work and prepare for his own mission. Stud. 

On Saturday, we had baptisms for three kids! Said (14), Filiberto (10), and David (8), all entered into the waters of baptism and received the Holy Ghost the next day. It was honestly a little stressful at first, trying to get everything put together, but when they bore their testimonies, three kids, they invited the Spirit in a way I could do all the time. Basically everyone was in tears by the end, including the kids, and it was just an awesome service. The Church is too true. There is no possible way for me to deny it, I've seen, felt, and experienced too much to go back, to not be excited and incredibly HOPEFUL for the future. I love being a missionary.

Random analogy that just popped into my head out of nowhere this week; spiritually, we are like lizards. Now before you think the mission has knocked some of the bolts and screws that hold me brain together loose, let me explain. Lizards, during the day, need to sit on hot rocks in the sun in order to warm up and store up heat for the night. When the sun goes and the night comes, they seek shelter from the cold and use the heat they've stored up to survive until the day comes. 

Now. Here's where the genius comes in. In our lives, we have moments of 'light,' where we can feel the 'fire of the Spirit' burning in our hearts and we know the Gospel is true. Our testimony grows when we 'stand in the light.' But then the night comes. We have trials, difficulties, hardships. Sometimes, we lose sight of that light that we once stood under, we can't remember as clearly the experiences we had, or maybe we don't understand exactly how we believed what we believed. In these moments, the chill of the night and our own doubts threaten to kill us,  spiritually. But if we stored up those moments where we knew, if we can remember them and hold on to them, if we do not let the light of our testimony dim, we can survive. We can make it through those times of trial that will so surely come, and make it back to the day for more experiences of peace and love. But we CANNOT be lazy about the Gospel. We have to actively seek those 'rays of sun,' those faith-building moments, so that we can overcome our faith-trying times. 

2 Nephi 28:24-25;
 24 Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!
 25 Wo be unto him that crieth: All is well!
So in our times of ease, we cannot let our guard down! We must be vigilant at all times, striving to implement the Gospel into our lives and remembering it in our times of trial. 

I love you all!! Have a great week!
Elder Connor

  1. My two little dolls. I don't even know how to make tamales!! 
  2. The family of the kids that were baptized! 
  3. In our whites!!



  1. Some hilarious cards that I got from Nicole in a package she sent!! Best Full-Time Missionary Sister!!


No comments:

Post a Comment