Happy Thanksgiving!!

Hello Everybody!

Well happy Thanksgiving tomorrow! Too bad that doesn't exist here :( Oh well. Can't believe that week and a half is already over! Went by fast! And lots of changes! Lots of things happened since last Monday, lets see if I can remember it all. . . 

Well the big news is that I have a new comp! His name is Elder Guillén. He is from Bolivia! Well his mom is from Bolivia and his Dad from Brazil, so technically he is from both countries, and has lived in both. Speaks Spanish, English, and Portuguese! Hes really cool I like him a lot. Super easy going and easy to get along with. He is excited to be ZL for his first time. We already have lots of unity between comps. Last night in our first 4 hours working together we taught 6 lessons, contacted 4 new investigators, and put 4 new baptism dates. Good huh! haha It should be a good 2 transfers :)

Sunday we had Zoes baptism! It was super good. The best part is that her parents went, and really felt the spirit and super good in church. Last night we put baptismal dates with both of them in the first visit. We should have their baptism for Christmas! Yay! Elder Chacon baptized her. And the cold water sure knocked the wind out of her. Whoops. I tried to heat it up but apparently I didn't do a very good job. The primary did the special musical number. So it all went very well. The only bad thing is that we forgot to take pics.. sorry bout that.

Hmm. . what else happened. I forgot to repass my journal before coming. haha. This Sunday we are in the choir for the very private event of the lightning of the lights on the temple for Christmas. All them famous church people from Mexico should be there. haha. We are singing, Silent Night, Little Drummer Boy, and the EFY medley. Should be good. 

We had lots of changes in our zone, closed areas, opened others, new district leaders. So I have to get to know a whole new zone it feels like. We have lots of meetings and what not this week that should be pretty good. 

Elder Rodriguez is no longer assistant and is training in another zone. So now I can't have too much contact with him which is sad. haha. Oh well. 

Everything sounds good at home, I sure miss home during this time of year but I have a whole lifetime ahead of me to enjoy the holidays at home, and only one more chance to do it away so it should be good. I'm excited for the new cycle. Monday we are having another zone activity, and I want to do it Christmasy so we'll see what we come up with. 

Well I can't remember anything else but I love you all, have a super great Thanksgiving and we'll talk to y'all on Monday!

Love Elder Elgan

Hola!

Hello Everybody!

Well it sure sounds cold at home! I'm so jealous, its so hot and sunny today. haha. I'm sick of it. You always want what you don't have right? haha. It was a pretty good week for us here. Lots and lots of work.

We were supposed to have Alberto's baptism yesterday. But his daughter just had surgery and wants to be there and can't leave her house so we had to postpone it until December.  Oh well. Next week we will baptize Zoe, she's the granddaughter of Elisa, our other convert. We keep teaching lots every day, lots of contacting and we have been pretty successful so that's good.

This weekend we had stake conference Saturday and Sunday. It was pretty good on Saturday President Anaya was in both sessions which is always fun. They had lots of ex missionaries talk and they all planched the members for not working in the mission work but then Pres Anaya got up and planched all the ex missionaries for not doing it either and being hypocrites. It was pretty great. haha. Sunday it was a transmission from SLC and Mexico City and the ex area president and current area president talked. Also Sister Reeves and Elder Andersen talked. And they all did it in Spanish! Elder Anderson and Sister Reeves struggled a little bit, but they did pretty darn good. Gift of tongues. Loved Elder Johnson's (ex area pres) talk, he talked about how not one excuse exists in the world for not reading the scriptures and praying as a family every single day. Very true. They blessings are there for those who are willing to obey.

We had a good meeting with our stake president this week to talk about the stake and our zone, and the wards and what not. We got pretty lost trying to find his house. We got to where he told us and it was on a big busy street, with lots of food stands and what not, super sketchy, we found a big scary drug dealin type guy sitting on a bucket and said ummm were looking for President Cabrera? I was thinking, we are definitely in the wrong place, but nope he lifted up a curtain behind him and said all the way to the end. And yep, there he was. So that was fun.

Today was a pretty good pday. We got up cleaned then headed out. We went with the assistants and 2 other missionaries to Tepito (big scary dangerous black market where you can find anything in the world for cheap). I think at the end of the mission I'm gonna go back to load up. I found the Beats headphones that I have and the more expensive ones, real ones, for about 100 dollars. Normally about 500. Then we went to Buenavista, the big mall. We went shopping bc this weekend in Mexico is the equivalent to black Friday in the US just not as crazy. I bought 3 new ties :) Then we went to the mission offices, Walmart, and here to write. It was a good day, but I'm tired now. haha.

Sounds like everything is good at home. Lots of changes! I wanna see pics of G&Gs house, Julie you still haven't sent pics of yours either, and Britt you neither! Get on it! haha jk. So yes next week I will write on Wednesday, not Monday so that will be a change! And I will have a new compañero. :)

But that should just about do it. Love you all, and have a great week!

Love Elder Elgan!

Happy Monday!

Well its time to write again!

Every day and week just seems to go by faster and faster. The days and weeks can be SO hard sometimes but they come and go just like the waves on the shore. ha. But seriously. This week was really good, busy, with lots of things to do. 

On Tuesday we had our zone class. For our zone classes I always think that I don't have enough info and things prepared to share with our zone but 3 hours later I'm still keep talking and talking and the things just seem to come. It was a good class. Wednesday was a really awesome experience because we had a zone conference with Elder Valenzuela of the 70. (2 counciler in the Mexico presidency) It was a great conference, we were combined with 3 other zones. He talked lots about how the Lord is hastening the work and that the church wants Mexico to be completely independent from the US and be able to support itself and all that so it is our responsibility to strengthen our wards and areas so that they can accomplish it. On Saturday we had a leadership council with Elder Valenzula and it was great as well. He talked about the confidence that the Lord has put in each one of us to be leaders, as well as with those who have callings in the church and the responsibilities that we have. 

One of the parts that I really loved was about the parabola of the lost sheep. Its easier to apply this to people who have some leadership position but we can apply it to every member of the church. All of us know people who need help, who have problems, and have gone astray from the path. And as it says in Luke 15 we need to look for them until we find them. And we will not turn back until we do. When we find them we will, like the sheep, put them over our shoulders, suffering their afflictions with them, putting ourselves in their shoes, and help them every pass of the way like Christ does with us. But we must do it rejoicing, happy with a positive attitude, and when we bring them back to the flock, we will have the party. Later in the same chapter with the parabola of the prodigal son it lets us know what that party is. When the prodigal son came back the father said bring out the best clothes, ring, and sandels (Temple clothes), and then we will truly celebrate. The temple is the goal for everyone. Exaltation is impossible without the temple ordenanzas. We must help all the lost sheep we can get there. There will be more joy for 1 repented soul than 99 of have no need of repentance. And how great we be our joy if it is through us that that lost sheep finds his flock again. (FYI I really struggled writing this in English haha). I really loved this part of the conference. Something that Elder Valenzuela told us is that we must always now begin with the end in mind. We don't have the goal to baptize, but to help people receive those ordenanzas, baptism only being one step of that process. 

On Sunday we went to the visitors center with Martha and Jose and that was really awesome. Jose said, "I love being Mormon!" haha it was funny. They are such great converts, and are on their way to the temple in 1 year. 

Work was hard this week with all the conferences and distractions and what not. We only taught 34 lessons, I don't think I have taught so few for a year. haha. But its all good, the lessons we had were really great. 

Today we had our zone activity. I was thinking about what we learned in the conference and our zone lacks faith and miracles. So we watched 17 miracles to show them all the miracles really do exist. We also had some Panda Express delivered to the capilla (that's how we do things in Elder Elgans zone :)). And played volleyball. It was fun! The APs came and 2 hermanas from the visitors center that the other hermanas invited came. Everyone wants to be in the best zone of the mission. Estrella! Estrella is Spanish for star in case y'all wanted to know haha. 

Sounds like you all had a great week! Mom and Dad it looked like you sure enjoyed being kids again running around Florida. Loved the pics! I want a vacation but oh well, one day. . . Dad good luck in NYC and in England this week. The vacations just never stop for you. Loved all the pics that everyone sent me! Keep um up, I like to see how thing look back at home. A home I feel like I don't even know. haha. Guess what! I call in 6 weeks! That's exciting. And when I call I'll only have 7 months and a bit left! Crazy! 

Well I love you all and hope you have a super great week!

Con mucho Amor,

Elder Elgan

Happy November!

 I finally made special K bars! :D

Well Hello Again!

Well this week went by pretty darn fast, as they all do, and it was a pretty good one. Halloween and Day of the Dead here was just a blast, not really. haha They have developed a lot of the American traditions here but the main holiday is the 1 of November, when everyone goes trick or treating. This country is just wicked and almost every single costume I saw was of the devil, or wife of the devil, or little kids with knives and blood, it was just pleasant. I just wanted to see a cute little kid in a pumpkin, but no they even had babies dressed up as Chucky. The big Mexican tradition for day of the dead is they always put out pics of their dead family members and friends and put out all the things they liked as an offering and they come back from it. So everyones' tables are always full of food and good stuff but nope I can't eat it cuz its for the dead people. The work was a little difficult this weekend due to all the partying that was going on, but oh well we made it through. 

I went on divisions with a new elder in our zone that just got here 2 weeks ago, Elder Guerra. The new missionaries are always so excited and ready to work I love it. It seems like yesterday that was me, crazy I have less than 9 months left. 

We did a lot of contacting this week which was good, and we found various new investigators. I still don't like contacting that much, but I'm getting better and more comfortable with it as time goes on. 

We had our leadership council thing with all the zone leaders again and it was really good. They are long trainings but there are always so many new things to learn. All the ZLs and Sister coordinators we are going to make a choir for when they turn on all the Christmas lights on the temple the 30 of Nov. So we practiced a bit and that was fun. 

Yesterday we had a good lesson with an atheist. 99.9% of the people we teach say that they already believe in God and in Jesus Christ, so I like it when we find those people to teach. It really is a test of your own faith to teach that God exists to someone who denies it. I can't imagine a life without a faith and hope in God and Christ. If we didn't have one, there would be no reason to live. When we know it we know that we are here for a reason, to be tested, and if we do all that God has commanded us to do we will return to live with him and our families for all eternity. And he has given us the blessing to be able to pray, talk with him, not just to him in any moment. He hears, answers, and blesses those with the faith enough to put it to the test. I am SO grateful for the life I have had in this gospel and the faith I have developed in God and in Christ, who knows where I would be or what I would be without it. 

To answer your questions Dad there are 11 zones in my mission, 9 stakes. When I was talking about changes I was talking about that Elder Chacon will have changes. And now that I'm thinking about it, my pday the week of changes will be on Wednesday, not Monday. It will be that way for the rest of the mission, but just on the changes weeks, just FYI I will write on the 26, not the 24.

Sounds like everything is going good at home, Mom and Dad hope your having fun in Florida! Halloween sounded fun, but I want to see pics not just words! haha. But that should just about do it, I love you all and hope you have a super great week!

Love,

Elder Elgan