Doctor's Orders

On Tuesday, I woke up feeling absolutely awful, so I slept in for a while and then we went to the Mission Doctor. I felt much better at that time, and the doctor gave me some medicine and told me I could work! YES!! I would have hated staying at home, I felt much better and we had a ton of appointments, so this was a huge blessing from God to me, and I hope for those we visited. It was hard, but I felt so much happier working than staying at home. I love being a missionary!

This week, we have been contacting and what surprised me is that almost everyday, we contacted a member that had somehow lost touch with the church. I didn't know them, but we would ask if they knew the church, and they would say, 'Yeah, I was baptized (so many years ago)' It was really amazing how God placed us in their paths, and vice versa, really a very strong testimony to me that God knows and loves each of us and wants us to be happy! God is so Good!

We've also had to leave some investigators this week, people who like to listen, but don't want to change. Cool story, we were going to leave one investigator, he really just wanted to argue. I was thinking about it, praying really hard to know what we should do, and I felt prompted to visit him one more time. I really didn't want to if I'm honest, I would much rather have visited someone that would listen to our message and do something about it, but we went. 

When we arrived, we found he wasn't there, but his daughter who had just moved in a few days prior, invited us in. She listened attentively and invited us to come back. Had we not returned, we probably would never have found her, but again, God knows each of us PERSONALLY, our needs, our desires, how we can be happy, and He sent us there to visit that woman because this is something that she NEEDS, and that CAN make her happy. How grateful I am for a Father in Heaven who knows and loves me, and each of you!!

This week coming, we celebrate not just one, but TWO wonderful people! First, the studliest of studs, the clutchiest of the clutch, the fastest of people who are really fast, the one and only, JACooooooooooob CONNORRRRRRRRR!!! This man among men is just about the coolest guy around. Good looking, athletic, loving, and the epiphany of awesome, he's got it all. I love this kid so much and I'm so lucky to have him as my brother! Happy Birthday, 16 YEAR OLD. That's right ladies, he's dateable! You better get in line now though, it's already probably a few miles long. And he's only got two years before his mission! LIMITED TIME OFFER!! TAKE ADVANTAGE NOW!! 

11 And [Jacob] was a strong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect understanding...
12 Yea, a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God, for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed upon his people; a man who did labor exceedingly for the welfare and safety of his people.
 13 Yea, and he was a man who was firm in the faith of Christ...

The second person, and by no means lesser than my younger brother. My sister Julie also has her birthday this week, turning 21!! She's equally wonderful, funny, and such the nicest sister named Julie ever! I have a ton of fun memories when we would play together as kids and I love having her as my sister!! 

 17 A friend loveth at all times...

Happy Birthdays! I love you all! Have a great week! 

Elder Connor

P.S. Sorry I haven't sent pictures recently, the computers have had trouble, but here they are!!

1. (left to right) Elder Pacheco (my brother), Elder Jimenez (my father), me, Elder Castillo (my son!!) 
2. (left to right) Elder Kleinman (an elder from my generation), me, my son, and Elder Zabriskie (Elder Kleinman's son!)
3. We have a momma bird in our cactus!!
4. The burgers we made a few weeks ago. So. Good. 

Burgers and Transfers

Sorry everybody, but I'm almost out of time, so I'll have to make this quick!

This week was the last week of the cycle before transfers, so we had a little District party. One of the Elders in my District, Elder Celis, is an awesome cook, truly amazing what he can do. He made us some hamburgers, and you might think, why wouldn't you go gourmet if this guy is so good? But let me tell you, you've never had burgers like this; he bought some yummy meat, mashed it up, and mixed it with onions and cilantro to make the patties, then we put on onion rings, avocado, tomato, lettuce, bacon, cheese, and some sort of mayo-chili mix. Soooooo good, why can't the States have burgers this good (or good burgers period...?)? He also made a really yummy strawberry drink and a cookie cake, just...gah so good! After eating, we played a Church Doctrine/History game, he's actually suuuuuper knowledgeable when it comes to the scriptures and such. Lots of fun, Mormon Missionaries party hard. 

During this week, we've been trying to be better about teaching people in every moment; in their houses, the streets, public transportation, everywhere. We also have been traveling more to the other pueblo, Zula, in our area. It's really small and not very many members live there, but I've been wanting to go more often because I know there are people there to teach! 

One day, we were there and we contacted this old man in the street. He started trying to argue with us, and all of a sudden, I began to understand something. The thought came to me that this man, was really truly a son of God who God loves and really really wants to return home. I don't think I've ever worked so hard in a contact to get an appointment. I told him exactly what I had just thought, that God loves him and wants him to listen to our message. I then gave him a Book of Mormon and explained it a bit. After I handed him the book, he looked at me, and said, 'Can you come by on this day at this time?' I was stunned. His demeanor completely changed. I don't know if he will be there waiting, but I pray for that almost every night. 

Another cool Zula experience. We found another dog that followed us for about 45 minutes as we walked from appointment to appointment, not finding anybody. We really began to like this little puppy and were not excited to leave it. As we were walking to get on some public transportation to go back to San Pablo, the dog ran up to this man on the sidewalk. He looked homeless, had no shoes, ragged clothes, all that stuff. The puppy sniffed him and then sat next to him, completely forgetting us. The man seemed a lot happier after that. Good dog. 

TRANSFERS!! Elder Antonio is the only one in my district that's leaving. He's going to open a completely new area AND train at the same time! He has one transfer less than I do, and already he's gonna train! He's such an awesome missionary, he'll make a great missionary father for some greenie missionary! I'm staying, waiting to receive....my OWN son!! YES! I'm going to be a father!! I'm super excited for this opportunity, and very humbled by the trust God has placed in me to help shape the rest of this young missionary's mission. A little nervous yes, I still find it hard to get around my area, but very excited! In other transfer news, Elder Jimenez, my trainer/father, goes home tomorrow. Insane man, he'll get to know his grandson before he goes! I'll be sure to get some pics. 

I love you all! Have a great week!

Elder Connor

Hello all!

So my new area is made up of two little pueblos called San Pablo and Zula, and a whoooooole lot of country! There aren't very many roads, just dust and dirt everywhere (hence, San Polvo, or Saint Dust). We have some investigators and members that literally live out in the middle of nowhere, we have to hike through all these open fields, and we can see their teeny tiny house from forever away. Crazy, man. My companion is Elder Antonio. He's been serving for one transfer less than me, lives a few hours away in Ixtapa Zihutanejo, and is one of the two members in his family of 11 (I hope that makes sense...). He has been a member for just over a year, but he loves the church and he knows the scriptures really well. He's a great guy, I'm really lucky to have him! District leading is so fun, I really enjoy it! I now have this renewed desire to be more obedient and serve more diligently and everything, I love it! 

On Thursday, we had our mission wide Christmas, which was so fun! I got to see my mission dad, Elder Jimenez, as well as some other awesome mission friends. So great, I love these elders. 

One thing I've noticed in my area is that there are lots of investigators who are progressing really well, and yet, they don't have baptismal dates. I'm not sure why, but we're gonna work on getting them prepared to make those holy covenants with God so they can truly enjoy all the wonderful blessings God has in store for them. 

Alma 5:45-46; 'And this is not all. Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety? Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me.'

I love this scripture so much! Just a little bit of back story, the prophet speaking is called Alma. As a youth, Alma hated the church and went about causing all sorts of iniquitous acts to be committed by members and nonmembers alike. One day, he was going around with his friends, the sons of Mosiah (who was a prophet and the king of the people at the time), when an angel appeared to them and told them to stop it. After much guilt and pain and sorrow, Alma repented and became one of the greatest prophets and missionaries ever. 

Now back to the scripture. Notice he does not say, 'I know these things because I saw an angel. That experience never even enters the conversation. Instead, his testimony came from the witnesses of the Holy Ghost as he prayed and fasted to gain this knowledge. Some people say seeing is believing, but honestly that's a load of...well, it's not correct. To quote President Joseph Fielding Smith;“When a man has the manifestation from the Holy Ghost, it leaves an indelible impression on his soul, one that is not easily erased. It is Spirit speaking to spirit, and it comes with convincing force. A manifestation of an angel, or even of the Son of God himself, would impress the eye and mind, and eventually become dimmed, but the impressions of the Holy Ghost sink deeper into the soul and are more difficult to erase.' 

I love this! Things we see with our eyes are never going to be firm foundations for our testimonies, but the feelings of love and joy and happiness we receive when the Holy Ghost testifies of the truth to our hearts, THOSE experiences change us and make us better. I encourage everyone to do the same as Alma; that is, fast and pray for your own witness. As you do so with faith, I promise, as a representative of Jesus Christ, that you will receive your answer and that it will be a resounding 'YES!! IT IS TRUE!!'

I love you all! Merry Christmas!!!

Elder Connor

Old Friends, New District

I guess I'll start off with the new district. My companion is Elder Gonzalez, from Guatemala, and he's super great!! He doesn't speak a ton of English, but he is always complimenting me ('You are the best!'). Dang it Elder, I'm trying to be humble here! Elder Berger and Elder Cory are the other companionship. Elder Berger has 14 months in the mission, and he is awesome! He's lost something like 50 pounds or more since he's been here, such a champ. Elder Cory is new! He doesn't speak a lot of Spanish, so I try to help him out. I totally remember being in those shoes and I'm realizing how far I've come with the language in these 3 and a halfish months. I'm still not at all fluent, but...well, for example, we had a zone conference this morning and a spiritual thought in English, and I was gonna add a little spiritual insight I had, and then I couldn't remember how to say it in English...yeah, I felt Hispanic. Yay!...

Wednesday was a day of very mixed emotions. We had to leave a bunch of investigators this week because they really have no desires to change. We have 4 now, and none of them are progressing. It was really sad for us. BUT! We decided to go visit a little family of a mom and her two kids. I love this family, the son is 16 and just got ordained a priest. The daughter is 14, and a little rebelious. We went by there place and talked with them a bit, and we soon found out that their house had never been dedicated. Normally this is something that a Melchizedek Priesthood holder would do, but families can also do it together. I felt impressed to ask the son, Brian, if he would do so, after our lesson. We talked about obedience and how we can grow closer together as families. 

Afterwards, as he offered the prayer, I felt the Spirit super strong. We all ended up crying, because we could tangibly feel a huge difference in the presence of the Spirit settle over the home. It was an incredible experience, especially for this little family. What a great blessing that they have a loving mother who looks out for them, that they have a worthy priesthood holder in their home, that they have the Gospel to help them get through the trials in their life! This Gospel is the perfect truth, something I know from having seen it in action, changing the lives of those I've met who have accepted it. 

Saturday and Sunday we had Stake Conference. During the sunday session, we had some speakers broadcast talks to us; Elder Daniel L. Johnson of the 70, Elder Benjamin De Hoyos of the 70, Elder Richard J. Maynes, Sister Linda S. Reeves of the General Relief Society Presidency, and Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles! Sister Reeves and I met on the plane ride out to the MTC, and I'm telling you, she totally requested to speak at this Stake Conference because she knew I'd be there. We're best friends, guys. They all had to speak in Spanish and most of them don't know the language, but even with all their mistakes and their Northern accents, the Spirit was strong as they testified of the truth! 

Last week we had to get flu shots, and last night, I got pretty sick. It didn't last very long, I'm a lot better now after a 12 hour nap, but lemme tell ya, it was no fun haha. In other news, I've decided that Mexican hamburgers are better than those in the states. Call me un-American, but the ones down here actually taste good. 

I'd like to share a scripture in Mosiah 23. In this chapter, Alma the older and his people have escaped the armies of the wicked King Noah and built an awesome city in this beautiful land named Helam. They're doing great, lots of prosperity and blessings, super obedient righteous people, all that good stuff. Then, all of a sudden, this Lamanite army comes out of nowhere and brings them into bondage.

Verses 21-22 say; 'Nevertheless the Lord seeth fit to chasten his people; yea, he trieth their patience and their faith. Nevertheless—whosoever putteth his trust in him the same shall be lifted up at the last day. Yea, and thus it was with this people.'

Sometimes in our lives, we're doing all these good things and being super obedient, and then all of a sudden, out of nowhere comes this great trial. We may often think, 'Why me?? Why do I have to suffer even though I'm being such a good person right now?? Why not my mean boss, or Kim Jong Un, or someone else??' My belief is this. Sometimes we are like the people of Alma, in that we're being righteous, receiving blessings, and not getting prideful. God can see our reaction to the blessings we receive, and now it's time to test our faith. He knows that we're righteous when we're comfortable, but what about when we have trials? Will we stand firm in our beliefs? Will we still trust in God? Or will our confidence crumble? 

I can testify to you that if we do not let go of our beliefs amidst our trials, we will be lifted up so that we can overcome them. The people of Alma were faithful, even when tried, and because of that, they were also lifted up. God does not cause bad things to happen, but sometimes, He allows us to experience evil so we can truly appreciate the good and seek after it. There's a lot of evil going on in the world right now, and so it is our responsibility (and to our benefit) to stand strong and draw ourselves even closer to God. 

I love you all!! 

Elder Connor

1. Me, Elder Pancheo (my little brother!!!) and Elder Jimenez
2. My zone! Love these guys
3. My district! from left to right: Elders Cory, Gonzalez, Berger, Me

Proper Grooming and Scorpions

This week we had lots of meetings. On Tuesday, we had an 'ending of training' meeting, where all the trainers and their sons attended. It was awesome to see the rest of my generation and how far we've come in only three months. Also, Elder Brewer was there!! We had a fun little reunion, I missed that guy. 

Wednesday, was Elder Jimenez' 21 monthiversary, and my 3 monthiversary was Thursday, so we bought a pizza and celebrated! Sad thing was, we were both sick that morning. I recovered pretty quick, but he's been sick all week. As a result, we didn't get to do a whole lot of work, which was a bummer. 

Thursday, a Seventy came to visit, Elder Salinas! Apparently the whole 'Dallin H. Oaks coming to visit at the end of the month' thing was a lie, he apparently visited at the beginning of October and we weren't told until later...but Elder Salinas was AWESOME! He met with my zone and two others on Thursday and talked a lot about how to be better missionaries. His wife also spoke and talked about proper grooming. Classic. It was a really inspirational and fun meeting, I gave the closing prayer! 

Friday, he met with the same three zones, plus the leaders of the stakes that they pertain to, so it was a nice big meeting! The main message was that the First Presidency has charged the Church in Mexico with becoming autosufficient. I love it!! It was a discussion meeting, so I stood up and spoke! Such a blessing that people can somehow actually understand most of what I say haha. Here in Mexico, there are lots of people that join the church because they want to get something out of it, but they don't give much. It's really sad to see because these generally go inactive. Part of the charge of the First Presidency is to become first autosufficient in your faith. This is so important! It's nice to know that someone else knows the Gospel is true, but how far is that going to get you? It may carry you through your life, but a testimony of someone else's testimony will not help you as much as your own can. If you know for yourself that the Church is true, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet, that the Book of Mormon is true, etc, then you can not only receive more blessings in this life, but you can also bless the lives of others more effectively!! As we are autosufficent in our faith, we become better tools in the hands of the Lord; forget the manual screwdriver, let's use the electrical power tools!! 

My Spanish has gotten to the point where I came up with my very own, HILARIOUS Spanish joke! It's seriously so funny, I'll tell you all about it one day. 

Sunday was the Primary Program! It was so fun to hear the little kids sing and speak and direct the meeting! That's right, one of the primary kids directed it! All the kids were dressed in white and the girls had matching red bows with blue or yellow ribbons, and the guys had matching red ties with a blue and yellow stripe (for the primary colors). It was adorable, Mom, you would have loved it! 

I suppose I've made you wait long enough. TRANSFERS!! I'm staying and Elder Jimenez is heading out! My new companion will be Elder Gonzalez, from Guatemala! Dad, you might somehow know his family, I'm gonna find out! He's in my generation, so we're gonna greenie break each other! I'm excited! Elder jimenez is going to open a new area, be a district leader, AND train again! I'm gonna have a baby brother!! I will call him Jacob. 

I know I normally share scriptures at the end of my letters, but this week I'm gonna share a quote from our meeting with Elder Salinas. As he was bearing his testimony, he said this; 'The best way we show our love for someone is seen when we show our love for Christ.' BOOM. I love that! Lots of people feel love in different ways; for example, through receiving gifts, or service, or what have you. But EVERYONE can feel the love Christ has for them, which love works through His servants; us! If we love Christ, we DO those things that He asks us to do. We don't just sit around twiddling our thumbs, we get on our feet and ACT. As we serve, share, help, teach, testify, and invite others, we show our love for Christ and His teachings and they can feel it! I love that!! That's why I'm serving a mission; I want people not only to know that I love them, but more importantly that God does and that He has a plan for all of us. THAT is what's important. 

I love you all! Have a great week!! 

Elder Connor

1 & 2: The Stake President's son taught us how to make scorpions out of copper wire. So cool!! 

3: For our celebration, we made signs. His basically says (not a direct translation), '21 months down' and mine basically says '21 months left...' So clever, I know haha. 

1. Elder Brewer and I, reunited! Love this guy.

2 & 3. This is a fun little family whom I love, their kids are so funny and fun! Sarah, the kid on my left in the blue sweater is your age, in case you were wondering ;)

A Lesson on Geography

This week, I've had to lead all the planning sessions for every day, and then direct us everywhere. It's a little tough, Mexican directions are way different from American... but I'm doing pretty well and learning lots more about the needs of the investigators this way, which is good! I also had to report to our Ward mission leader, brought me back to the days of ward missionary-ing with Brother Pacini. Boss. 

We also had emergency exchanges this week on Thursday! Elder Long left and we got this elder named Elder Yupanqui. He's from Lima Peru, same mission generation as Elder Jimenez. I don't know much else about him as of yet.

On Wednesday, we went to the temple!! We can't do any sessions, but there are tons of little church stores right next to it, so I got three new ties, a scripture bag, a nex shoulder bag, and a little Mexico City Chalco Mission keychain thingy, all for un 300 pesos (about $24). It was awesome! 

Sad news time, Sergio, the investigator who lost his fingers that I mentioned a few weeks ago, has basically decided he doesn't want to meet with us anymore. It's really sad when we go to his place and he's 'not there' or when he doesn't show up to church. I'm learning it's hard to have to let investigators go.

But there is good news! We picked up some new investigators, the Gomez Savala family! They have cousins that live right next door that are members, one of them just got back from his mission last year in Colorado Springs. They're a really cool family, super rich too, I don't think I've ever seen such a nice house in Mexico. Or in the US for that matter, it's really impressive. They were being taught some years back by Elder Roura's sister who served here, and they want to be taught again! The dad has a lot of questions and doubts, but he's really cool, and the mom just soaks everything right up, so I'm excited to see where this family goes. 

On Sunday, I went on splits with Immanuel, the Satake President's son, to go pick up some investigators. No one we stopped by was home. We walked back to the chapel feeling pretty crummy and who should show up, but 4 less active families! It was such an awesome miracle and blessing, I was so happy to see them! And, one of our investigators ended up coming a little late. Better late than never! 

Fun things that happened this week, we got a water heater thingy that we can use to heat our shower water! Why didn't we do this 8 weeks ago? Don't know, but we have it now! Also, we had a party on Saturday with the Bishop, don't know what for, probably Heather's birthday. We ate hot dogs and hamburgers! I surprised myself and ate 3 burgers. I don't even like burgers. Or at least, I didn't. 

Some funny things about Mexico, everyone here thinks there are only 5 continents; America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa. Antarctica doesn't count and they don't split the Americas. Somehow they get all offended if you try to make a North and South America ('What, we're not good enough to be in the some continent?' So many things wrong with that statement haha). Also, if you're a white Mormon, they all think you're from Utah ('Maryland? What part of Utah is Maryland?') 

This week, I want to share with you 2 Nephi 27:19-20, which says: 

 'Wherefore it shall come to pass, that the Lord God will deliver again the book and the words thereof to him that is not learned;and the man that is not learned shall say: I am not learned. Then shall the Lord God say unto him: The learned shall not read them, for they have rejected them, and I am able to do mine own work; wherefore thou shalt read the words which I shall give unto thee.'

When Joseph Smith was translating the Book of Mormon, he had little more than a third grade education. He could only read and write basic English, and yet, he comes out with a 500-something page book in less than a year, all about the history, culture, language, beliefs, wars, etc. of a people who lived over a thousand years before him. As critics slander this God-given book, trying to disprove it with 'historical facts', they are time and time again confounded and proved wrong, as the world learns that in reality, the facts add up. There is no possible way that Joseph Smith could have done this without divine help. It just couldn't ever happen. It doesn't make any sort of rational or logical sense that a man of little education could have done so on his own. He must have had the aid of God to do so, to give him the understanding he needed to accomplish this great work. 

And so, that being said, I want all of you to know how truly convinced I am of God's hand in the writing, translation, and publication of the Book of Mormon. I know it's true. I've read it, and there is just no way it can be wrong. Given that knowledge, I also know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and thus, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in God's one and only true church on the earth. There is no other. I encourage all of you, member of the church or not to read the Book of Mormon and seek this knowledge for yourself. Doing so will bless your life in unimaginable, uncountable ways. 

I love you all! Have a safe week! 

Elder Connor

Pictures:

1. Temple trip!
2. New ties!
3. Dog on our roof. During the night, sometimes he runs around up there and we can here the little pitter patter of his feet haha

The church is true....but I cannot rotate this picture to save my life. Tilt your heads? -Heather

Mama's Boy, Eagles, and a Frisbee....ish

First and most important: This Wednesday, we celebrate THE BEST woman in history, my Mom! It's her birthday on the 24th, and I'm gonna take a couple minutes to tell you why she's THE BEST. 

• She's loving: I don't think I know anyone on this earth who loves people more than my mom. Really, this could describe everything about her, so here's how she's loving

LIST 2

• She's service oriented: My mom loves to serve! She is always one of the first to put her name down to feed the missionaries, to show up to Eagle Projects, to sacrifice her time to help out others
• She's a great missionary!: My mom isn't afraid to share the Gospel with people, because she knows it's true, and she loves it! And she loves them, so she's going to share as much as possible! 
• She's patient: My mom is very long-suffering, with seven rowdy kids, you kinda have to be. But she does it with a smile on her face and love in her heart! When we're giving her a hard time, she's very patient in helping us understand what's really up. 

And much much more! She's just the best, if you've met her, you know what I'm talking about. And if you've met me, you know I always tell the truth.

This week, to celebrate Mexico's bday, our district partied with some other elders. Pizza, non-caffeinated soda, mormon church music. Rock on. 

On Wednesday, we had a Multi-zone meeting, which was awesome (Even though I couldn't understand about half of it...) I still learned tons and felt the Spirit, and got to talk with President and his wife! I love them so much.

We visited a family this week for a Family Home Evening. The dad isn't super active, but tjey're all really nice and love having us over! The mom also speaks English really well, so they had me sing the opening song in English! It was so fun! We had a really good lesson about repentance and faith, and the dad is coming to activities more often, which is awesome! 

On Friday, I found a frisbee. A ring actually, and it was plastic, so not that great, but it was nice...for a day. We had another ward party this Saturday (for my mom's bday, obviously) and I made the mistake of bringing it. Some kids grabbed it and it didn't survive the night. Ah well, it was fun while it lasted haha. 

So remember that talk I was supposed to give last Sunday and never did? Well, I found out on Thursday that E. Jimenez and I were gonna speak this past Sunday (yesterday), so I got to give it! I think it went well, I got lots of nice compliments afterwards, and I think they could mostly understand me haha. 

This week, I was reading in 1 Nephi 18:12-13, which says: 'And it came to pass that after they had bound me insomuch that I could not move, the compass, which had been prepared of the Lord, did cease to work. Wherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest, and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly lest they should be drowned in the sea; nevertheless they did not loose me.' 

I love these verses! Notice how the first thing taken from them was their direction: When they started sinning, they no longer knew where to go. 'The compass...did cease to work.' Our lives are very much the same. When we step off the path of righteousness, and stop heeding the words of the prophets, we too become lost. When we cross over to that path of wickedness, we no longer know where to go. A little later, Laman and Lemuel, who had bound Nephi, repent and free him. When this happens, Nephi picks up the compass and PRAISES God, not complaining over the fact that he's been tied up for 4 days. When this happens, the compass starts working again and they can find their way. As we obey the commandments, we too will be led out of the storm of sin and brought to our promised land. 

I love you all, have a great week! 

Elder Connor

That one time Joseph almost killed a Family Pet....And Happy Birthday, Mexico

Today is the birthday of Mexico! Yay! 

Shoutout to Sister Nicole Connor, who I received letters from this past week! She's the best sister missionary! 

This week was great, on Monday we had a zone conference, so I got to meet the rest of my zone! All Elders, all awesome. They're all really helpful and nice, super hard workers who know when and how to have fun! I'm talking a lot more in lessons and such, the language is still giving me trouble, but I'm learning everyday! Elder Jimenez and I have also started running a lot more, which surprisingly, I missed a lot haha. Things are good here.

left to right: Me, my trainer, and my grandpa! (his trainer)

On Thursday, we met a guy who had just come back from the US after living there for work for 3 years. Apparently, he had met with the missionaries while there, so he asked if we could meet with him! We're gonna find him again this week, I'm super excited for those lessons.

I also used my four generation pedigree chart this week! I honestly never thought I'd need it, but one of our recent converts asked about family history, so I showed him mine! It was a really cool experience, family history is such an important part of the Gospel. Do it! 

Funny story, on Friday we went to teach Sergio about the Book of Mormon (which turned out really well) and afterwards, I asked to hold his parakeet. It was in a cage outside, but he said it wouldn't fly away, so I went to pick it up. As soon as I had it out of the cage, it wiggled its way out of my hands and was gone! Turns out it was his mom's bird, another investigator...needless to say, I felt awful about it. Could things get worse? Well they almost did. As we were leaving, we found the parakeet...IN A DOG'S MOUTH. I ran up to the dog, yelling and kicking at it, and it dropped the bird. Amazingl, it was not only alive, but generally uninjured! Minus all the trauma we'd caused it. Elder Jimenez and I are still laughing about that story.

Saturday, the ward had a party to celebrate Mexico's birthday! It was so fun! Tons of food, lots of pretty legit cultural acts (dances, singing, machetes), and lots of Elders! About ten other elders from my zone had been there for a baptism, so we got to chat with them, which was super fun. I got tons of pictures, I'll send them.

The youth of our ward performed some dances, it was really cool! 

A couple weeks ago, the Elders (including me) were asked to give talks this past Sunday, on missionary work. I started mine this past Thursday, so I could get it all corrected by the other elders in my district, and spent a lot of time on it. When we arrived to church on Sunday, we found out that only Elders Roura and Brewer were giving talks...so I didn't have to give mine! It was a relief, but at the same time kind of a bummer...ah well, I'll save it for later. 

This week, I was reading in 1 Nephi 13:35, which says, 'For, behold, saith the Lamb: I will manifest myself unto thy seed, that they shall write many things which I shall minister unto them, which shall be plain and precious; and after thy seed shall be destroyed, and dwindle in unbelief, and also the seed of thybrethren, behold, these things shall be hid up, to come forth unto the Gentiles, by the gift and power of the Lamb.'

I love this scripture! As members of the church, we believe the Bible to be the word of God. But since there have been so many translations, many of those words, those 'plain and precious' truths have been lost. But Heavenly Father and Christ knew that would happen, so Christ came to the Americas to teach those things to the Nephites. I often wondered why He taught the same things there that He did in the Bible, but now I get it. It wasn't just for them, it was also for us! For our time, to restore those lost truths to the world in a perfect form. 

The Book of Mormon was written for us, so we could know more perfectly the Word and Will of God. As we read it and follow the principles taught, we will become more like Him, which is always the goal.

I love you all! Pictures to come. Until next week! 

Elder Connor

I got a minion (they're speakers)! Despicable Me 2 is huge down here, I love it.

Week 1 in the Field!

Hello everyone! Here's the address to send me things!

Elder Connor

Mexico City Chalco Mission

Calle Porvenir No. 8

Colonia Centro

C.P. 56600 Chalco

Estado de Mexico

I'm alive! First, final MTC days. We sang on Sunday and it sounded great! I was really pleased with how it went and the Spirit was very strong! Funny story, one of the other Elders I roomed with, Elder Solano, didn't have enough room in his bags for all his things (I don't know how he got them out here), so he gave me a whole bunch of stuff, since I had more than enough space. Christmas came early, I got a few shirts, some shampoo, and an entire suit. And it fits. I almost cried. 

2 AM on Monday morning, I woke up and left the MTC. Any tears that may have been shed were because I was so tired. The flights were fine, we had a layover in Dallas for a couple hours, and then flew out to Mexico. When we arrived, we (there were two other Elders that came with) met with President and Sister Crickmore and their assistants. I love the President and his wife! They are so nice and funny! 

One thing I learned about Mexico when we left the airport is that I never want to drive here. Ever. I have never seen such unorganized, crazy driving in my life. It was insane. We made it to the Mission Office (by the Grace of God) and had interviews with President. The first thing he asked was how I would feel having a native companion who didn't speak much English...I said It'd be quite the learning experience and I would most certainly be happy with it (I wonder if he knows how terrifying that idea sounded). We then ate some food and went to a little house to sleep for the night with the other greenies. 

Tuesday, I met my trainer! His name is Eldr Jimenez, he's from El Salvador, converted when he was 13 (8 years ago), and he doesn't speak much English...it's actually a lot of fun though, we play lots of vocab games while walking to appointments, so I'm learning lots! He's super patient and has a great sense of humor, so I consider myself pretty lucky to have him! 

There are two other Elders in my district, Elder Rauro and Elder Brewer. Elder Rauro is hilarious, speaks even less English than my trainer, and he loves my ties. he offered to pay 500 pesos for one of them (about $40, but I declined). Elder Brewer is from Utah, and he's only been out here for 7 months, so he still speaks English (phew). He's a lot of fun too, we sing together a lot and he is really helpful with giving me tips to help me adjust. 

We've had lots of good lessons this past week, a lot of times people aren't home, but when they are, the lessons are (in general) great! I've discovered that little kids speaking spanish is one of the cutest things ever. It reminds of the little turtles in Finding Nemo; they're super cute, and I can hardly understand them at all haha. 

On Thursday, we went to visit this woman named Nina, only to learn that she had passed away just the day before. We went in and talked with the family for a bit, and then told them we'd come back later. That night, there was a funeral for her, and a few people were asked to say some words. When they opened it up for anyone to talk, I felt impressed to do so. Super nervous, I stepped forward and stumbled through the language, hoping that what I was saying would help these people feel the Spirit. I don't remember what I said, but I do remember a feeling of peace in the room and it seemed to have touched the hearts of those present. It was an incredible experience. 

Oftentimes while walking to lessons, we'll see people doing some sort of work in the streets like moving dirt or whatever. We stop as often as we can to help and people are so thankful! I love service!

Oh, one thing about Mexico; there are dogs everywhere. Like, so many dogs, they just walk around streets, on rooftops, in houses (!!), doing whatever they want. It's so weird. 

I've already tried a whole bunch of weird new foods, here's a list:

-Nopales (cactus)

-Tuna (it's a fruit that tastes like watermelon, but is actually good)

-Guayaba (another fruit that tastes delicious)

-Higos (Ee-gos, it's a fruit)

-Jamaica (a really good drink)

-Chinchuron (pig skin. yup. I wanted to throw up all day.)

Things are really different down here, but I like it. Not enough to live here again, but I really just like being here, spreading the Gospel. It's such a joyous work! I love you all, write me letters and things, I don't have a ton of time to respond to emails! 

Elder Connor