thanks for the package and for the little spiritual thought, it really is a big part of the missionary work, gossip and judging others. when i was receiving mi hijo on tuesday, president said that it has been really spreading fast throughout the mission, and we need to stop it. i was actually pretty shocked to hear it, but when i thought about it, he is right. missionaries are sometimes like little 15 year old girls (no offense tara) jaja!
everything is going really good right now. me and elder wilding are doing really good. he is from springville utah (who would have guessed) he played goalie for rangers many years ago and knows all the friends like trevor parker tyler josh carlos etc. also he played for springville high, and we both remember playing against each other. jaja! he is pretty tall and skinny, he makes me get up and run in the morning most days, but sadly i havent seen much difference in my weight. i weigh 71 kilos..... tell me what that is in lbs please..... we had a very progressive week ,but sadly no baptism. we will have a little tougher time getting things moving, but i think all will be good. we are planning a ward activity to help get more references, and also the presidents of the ward are really excited because it will also help them get their home teaching and visiting teaching organized better. i really cant describe how excited i am to have ward council! jaja. the zone chilpancingo completed the goal of 37 baptisms in the month of october with 37, i think almost everyone completed their area goals, we did.
we are doing pretty good, but had our first argument about working. i handled the situation like elder snyder, but sadly it really frustrated my companion. i dont want to work like that, but like he showed me, it is the most effective way that my companion will learn. later i explained to him why i did it, and he understood, and was actually grateful. i have really thought alot about what elder snyder has taught me , and all the things i have applied to teaching my son. like emily oneill just wrote me, elder snyder taught me things that i wont forget for my entire mission. i will definately teach elder wilding every thing i can. we are both really happy toghether, the only problem is that he is comparing here to idaho a ton. he was on a visa waiting mission for two months there. he liked the way they did it there, but for every area, it will be a different way to approach things. we have learned pretty good, and will keep improving. sorry i dont have a ton of time to write today, we are running a little late, i have really been realizing the importance of working hard here, and i wish i would have learned that in the high school or college time. studying is super important, in all aspects, and never under estimating what will come. dont get prideful and think you are prepared, because that is the time the lord will test you in the hardest way he can. always stay humble,(the best you can) and OBEY MOM AND DAD! it sounds cheesy, but its actually super true. i really feel bad that i made mom and dad worry themselves about me and my rebellious time in high school. dont follow in my bad footsteps. i love you all still!
but if you could please pray for yelitza, franklin, patricia, gustavo, mari, fernanda, galvino, crisanto, and arumi it is gratefully appreciated. if everyone could at least take a name or two and pray, we would really like your help. love you all, and i keep praying for you
elder facer
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Elder Facer Went Through 2 Companions This Week
well alot has happened in these two weeks. we had our interviews with president this week, but sadly my package didnt arrive in time... ever since monday night, elder cardenas had been sick, but we continued working. when we had interviews, president spannaus said that he needed to stay in bed for three days and sleep, so i got put with an {hermano local) its just that a member goes with me on splits. i dont know what its called in inglish haha. the good thing is that he was actually willing and wanted to work! he is preparing for his papers and not doing anything with his life right now, so he came with me. we did a lot of contacting, and had some appointments, but not many. i really enjoyed my interview, we talked about the companionship, obedience, experience, the area, and then about my questions. it was funny, because president knew right away that i had more questions to ask him. i like to go to him with some of my questions about how to improve, or doctrinal questions. we talked about making scripture study better, and understanding them better through prayer, more reading, meditation, and fasting. the first two are easy, but the last two are tough to do, i wish elder snyder was still here to help me meditate. haha. i will definately try to apply those things. also we talked about the atonement, and he gave me a little homework to do in mosiah 12-17. i really enjoyed it, and think it was the most descriptive i have read about the atonement. i felt bad, because i have read that part many times, but never got anything out of it.
we have sadly struggled to find people willing in this area, but its tough. we really need the help of the members. later in the week, we started to get some, thankfully. it has been unusually hot this week too. we havent had any rain in about a month, and because of that, there is a ton of dust everywhere.
yesterday, sunday, we had a great baptism of a girl named yajaira. she was so excited and ready to be baptized, we jsut needed to help her family get excited also. all of her family are members except her and another brother. her parents were sealed in the temple with the family, but sadly becasue of work, went inactive. one daughter got married in the temple to the bishops son, and really helped us out a lot. the mom and sister of yajaira are excited and really want the brother to start listening to us also, i think he will be willing also, because he looked interested and curious in the baptism. she also got confirmed in sacrament meeting. the only problem is that she lives like 45 mins away...... i am sending the photo and a few others right now, i hope alyssa or someone has been able to put them on my blog. i havent seen it, so i hope it is going well!
so yesterday after church, during our dinner appointment we got a phone call to say that elder cardenas is going on special changes monday moring for cuautla morelos to be zone leader. its funny because he was there before this area, and will now return to be a leader. he didnt want it too much, because it means he has be been an example, but i know it will be super good for him, and his companion is elder klein who is an excelent missionary. i will stay here and receive mi hijo.......! my first son. my family in the mission is almost all dead. my brother is zone leader in iguala, and my uncle is my zone leader right now, they are the only family i have alive, so i am happy i can keep the family alive! also they will die soon. i dont know anything about my kid, just that he is american and is coming directly from the US. i am super worried to have a lot of responsibility with him to train him right, but i think i have had sufficient preparation. i realized that most of everything i learned, and that i do, is because of my dad, elder snyder. also by my dad Gary(most importantly) of course! i jsut hope i can be all that he needs, but i realize that the lord does everything for a reason, and that everything will be good. i think it will be good.... i go to get him tomorrow in the morning in cuernavaca.
i was very sad to hear that tara lost the soccer game, but she is right, it was a good experience and she will have other chances. i dont think i ever won anything with my soccer teams except my senior year we won region(tied) but still won! haha. so keep your head up and give it all you got! to counteract the sadness, jeff is getting his call! congratulations bro! im so excited to hear where you are going, and my guess will be new hampshire.(dont worry, it was revelation) youll do great. haha jk. i love you all, and am so grateful for your example and influence! stay strong and stay on the winning side of the battle! im still happy, still excited, and still sadly a little fat( thanks mom for telling me....) but i will drop it when i can!
elder facer
we have sadly struggled to find people willing in this area, but its tough. we really need the help of the members. later in the week, we started to get some, thankfully. it has been unusually hot this week too. we havent had any rain in about a month, and because of that, there is a ton of dust everywhere.
yesterday, sunday, we had a great baptism of a girl named yajaira. she was so excited and ready to be baptized, we jsut needed to help her family get excited also. all of her family are members except her and another brother. her parents were sealed in the temple with the family, but sadly becasue of work, went inactive. one daughter got married in the temple to the bishops son, and really helped us out a lot. the mom and sister of yajaira are excited and really want the brother to start listening to us also, i think he will be willing also, because he looked interested and curious in the baptism. she also got confirmed in sacrament meeting. the only problem is that she lives like 45 mins away...... i am sending the photo and a few others right now, i hope alyssa or someone has been able to put them on my blog. i havent seen it, so i hope it is going well!
so yesterday after church, during our dinner appointment we got a phone call to say that elder cardenas is going on special changes monday moring for cuautla morelos to be zone leader. its funny because he was there before this area, and will now return to be a leader. he didnt want it too much, because it means he has be been an example, but i know it will be super good for him, and his companion is elder klein who is an excelent missionary. i will stay here and receive mi hijo.......! my first son. my family in the mission is almost all dead. my brother is zone leader in iguala, and my uncle is my zone leader right now, they are the only family i have alive, so i am happy i can keep the family alive! also they will die soon. i dont know anything about my kid, just that he is american and is coming directly from the US. i am super worried to have a lot of responsibility with him to train him right, but i think i have had sufficient preparation. i realized that most of everything i learned, and that i do, is because of my dad, elder snyder. also by my dad Gary(most importantly) of course! i jsut hope i can be all that he needs, but i realize that the lord does everything for a reason, and that everything will be good. i think it will be good.... i go to get him tomorrow in the morning in cuernavaca.
i was very sad to hear that tara lost the soccer game, but she is right, it was a good experience and she will have other chances. i dont think i ever won anything with my soccer teams except my senior year we won region(tied) but still won! haha. so keep your head up and give it all you got! to counteract the sadness, jeff is getting his call! congratulations bro! im so excited to hear where you are going, and my guess will be new hampshire.(dont worry, it was revelation) youll do great. haha jk. i love you all, and am so grateful for your example and influence! stay strong and stay on the winning side of the battle! im still happy, still excited, and still sadly a little fat( thanks mom for telling me....) but i will drop it when i can!
elder facer
Monday, October 18, 2010
A Plea From Chilpancingo
hey sorry about last week that i wasnt able to write, everything has been pretty crazy recently. we have had a lot of work, and not a ton of success. thankfully we are still baptizing every week. this week we had the baptism of pablo and his son antonio. they are so great. just a month ago, his other son angel was baptized by elder cardenas and his other companion, and at that time, pablo was still completely against joining. but when we talked about living together as a family forever, he really started to pay attention. his wife has been a member for over 20 years, but sadly has never really stayed active because no one in the ward helped her to remain. for that i challenge all of you that read this letter: IF YOU SEE ANYONE IN YOUR WARD THAT IS NEW, AT LEAST GO AND SAY HI AND FIND OUT WHO THEY ARE. OFFER SERVICE IF YOU CAN. president hinckley said every convert needs a friend. and you are that friend he is talking about! but at least they have all returned to the church and are so excited for their goal to go to the temple on October 17, 2011. i am so excited for them, i know they will go places. they are all super smart and actually are super rich also. that doesnt happen very often in mexico..... jaja.
i wanted to tell you all thanks for your letters and support in all that you do! it really means a lot to still have your support during this dificult time. everything just hasnt been going the same as it was before in anenecuilco, and i guess im just not adapting super well to it. we arent finding enough new investigators every week, and we dont have many appointments every day. there really is absolutely no one here in the morning. we dedicate the entire morning to contacting, because we cant contact members for references, no one is there for an appointment, and its just really a downer to not be finding success like we did in my first area. if we are lucky, we will find 2 or 3 everyday, and very few of them progress. we really need the help of members. and that is my second challenge to all you that read this: YOU MUST GIVE REFERENCES OF FRIENDS OR FAMILY MEMBERS, CO-WORKERS ETC TO THE MISSIONARIES. WE NEED YOUR HELP, IT REALLY IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DO IT ON OUR OWN. i thought about this yesterday. of all my baptisms that i have had, all but one have been member referrals. thats saying something. remember: if you are willing to talk to your friend and share your thoughts about our church, live the standards, etc the lord will help you in the situation. he knows whats best for your friend, which is salvation, which only comes by one baptism, by one authority of God, and there isnt another church that can do that. Your friends need their salvation, and it should be important to you as well as us as missionaries. please help in whatever way you can.
something really scary happened this last thursday. while i was on divisions in another area, my companion and the exchange elder arevalo almost got assaulted. there were some guys driving in a truck, and they yelled some things at them, but the elders ignored it, and the guys later yelled, ya well lets see how you react to this then! and pulled out a gun and cocked it in front of the elders and two sisters that they were talking to. luckily nothing happened, but this area is starting to get a little dangerous. also the day before i came to Guerrero, 4 mob boss/drug bosses were shot and they killed 4 mexican soldiers almost right in front of our meeting house. its because this is the only way into acapulco is through chilpancingo. so the police and military try to cut them off before they get into acapulco. the drug dealers( narcos) are too powerful in acapulco, and the national military cant take them down yet, so they are trying little by little.
we are really going to need a miracle for a baptism this week. we are preparing yesenia and her daughter melanie, but we sadly havent seen them all last week, so we dont know how this is going to work out. please pray for them, yajaira, and gustavo. sadly we dont have a ton of people prepared, but we are still moving little by little.
i hope everything is well for all of you, my friends and family. i pray for you all everyday, and hope that you are able to turn to the lord in every trial that you face. i am a witness that he really blesses us, just for talking to him in prayer. he loves you, and knows what you need, but first you need to ask. i have been studying d&c a little this past week, and i really like the popular scripture of study it out in your mind and in your heart, then ask Him. also how many times the lord says if you desire to be a great means among the children of men. we all have the potential to do it, we just need to put forth our faith into works! i love you all tons and miss you. until next week....God speed
elder facer
NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.
i wanted to tell you all thanks for your letters and support in all that you do! it really means a lot to still have your support during this dificult time. everything just hasnt been going the same as it was before in anenecuilco, and i guess im just not adapting super well to it. we arent finding enough new investigators every week, and we dont have many appointments every day. there really is absolutely no one here in the morning. we dedicate the entire morning to contacting, because we cant contact members for references, no one is there for an appointment, and its just really a downer to not be finding success like we did in my first area. if we are lucky, we will find 2 or 3 everyday, and very few of them progress. we really need the help of members. and that is my second challenge to all you that read this: YOU MUST GIVE REFERENCES OF FRIENDS OR FAMILY MEMBERS, CO-WORKERS ETC TO THE MISSIONARIES. WE NEED YOUR HELP, IT REALLY IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DO IT ON OUR OWN. i thought about this yesterday. of all my baptisms that i have had, all but one have been member referrals. thats saying something. remember: if you are willing to talk to your friend and share your thoughts about our church, live the standards, etc the lord will help you in the situation. he knows whats best for your friend, which is salvation, which only comes by one baptism, by one authority of God, and there isnt another church that can do that. Your friends need their salvation, and it should be important to you as well as us as missionaries. please help in whatever way you can.
something really scary happened this last thursday. while i was on divisions in another area, my companion and the exchange elder arevalo almost got assaulted. there were some guys driving in a truck, and they yelled some things at them, but the elders ignored it, and the guys later yelled, ya well lets see how you react to this then! and pulled out a gun and cocked it in front of the elders and two sisters that they were talking to. luckily nothing happened, but this area is starting to get a little dangerous. also the day before i came to Guerrero, 4 mob boss/drug bosses were shot and they killed 4 mexican soldiers almost right in front of our meeting house. its because this is the only way into acapulco is through chilpancingo. so the police and military try to cut them off before they get into acapulco. the drug dealers( narcos) are too powerful in acapulco, and the national military cant take them down yet, so they are trying little by little.
we are really going to need a miracle for a baptism this week. we are preparing yesenia and her daughter melanie, but we sadly havent seen them all last week, so we dont know how this is going to work out. please pray for them, yajaira, and gustavo. sadly we dont have a ton of people prepared, but we are still moving little by little.
i hope everything is well for all of you, my friends and family. i pray for you all everyday, and hope that you are able to turn to the lord in every trial that you face. i am a witness that he really blesses us, just for talking to him in prayer. he loves you, and knows what you need, but first you need to ask. i have been studying d&c a little this past week, and i really like the popular scripture of study it out in your mind and in your heart, then ask Him. also how many times the lord says if you desire to be a great means among the children of men. we all have the potential to do it, we just need to put forth our faith into works! i love you all tons and miss you. until next week....God speed
elder facer
NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
A chat through email...
Today was pday; we played soccer and ate with a member for breakfast. Hope you enjoy the pictures. i know its so sad that i have gotten fat.... i still work out almost every night doing 100 pushups, and 20 pull ups, but it just isnt enough to conquer the tortillas. elder cardenas has a little device that i only need my memory card and it attaches into the usb port so I’m finally able to send pictures. i know, finally when you send my camera cord, i get another way. our house is shockingly nice. the first counselor in our ward is an architect and its his house construction. we pay 1500 pesos, and the ration is 11 pesos to 1 dollar. do the math. we could get up every morning to run, but we are lazy, i usually write in my journal that time too. ok sorry, its not that i am a lazy missionary, but just that i use that time for something else, and do my workout at night, so i am tired. i am definitely not a lazy missionary, dont worry. also if you notice in the last picture, i have new shoes. sadly they are brown. but one of our investigators is really rich, and he owns four shoe stores, and had an extra pair of boots that he didnt like. they are way comfortable, but its bad because i dont have a ton for brown. i would like to wear them more, but its ok, they should last my entire mission. elder cardenas has some boots, and he has had them his whole mission. im sorry that i wasnt able to write a weekly letter today, i was really busy with the pictures and i had to write president. i will be sure to include everything next week and our great baptisms. if you could please pray for yesenia, melanie, pablo and antonio. they are all great and preparing for this week, also a little girl that is the niece of the bishop, and wants to get baptized, so we will get her done this week too. thanks for everything, i love you so much mom. well talk next week!
elder facer
elder facer
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Moving Forward
well another good week. we had another baptism of a 17 yr old boy named camilo. he was so prepared, he received everything and did everything we asked, he also lives in an apartment complex with a solid memeber who has given us a ton of references, a recent convert named mario received the priesthood last week, and baptized camilo this week, they are really good friends.
conference was really good, but also really hard to understand. first of all they wouldnt let me watch it in english, mostly because they were lazy, and the signal was really bad. so sunday in the afternoon i didnt see the first half of conference. did elder bednar speak? i didnt get to hear him. elder holland and elder christofferson were really good, but i was most impressed with elder uchtdorf and elder eyring in priesthood. i would really appreiciate it if you could send me a copy of conference, because it isnt completely sure that we will get the conference issue. and that it might also be in spanish. also in conference there was this guy that came up to us, and started confessing his whole life to us, and that he want to go to the temple. he was baptized in 1996, and hasnt gone to church, but has been reading the book of mormon and reads it to his dad. he lived in the us(before his baptism) and was a bigtime drug trafficer. he went, and got sent back three times, and the third time he talked with barrack obama or some thing like that and had to make some deals with him that he wouldnt come back. he hasnt done drugs in a long time, but is still pretty crazy from doing them before.. and because he speaks poor english and wants to practice, he tried to talk to me almost the whole day.............
me and elder cardenas have talked a lot and have come to a few conclusions about how we work and all. we really do get along well, its just that he is lazy and has had bad examples his whole mission. we talked and we are going to work harder and try to be more obedient, especially with the girls... but he is improving and i think we will see some changes in the next few weeks. by the way, if you can tell dan that elder dominguez, his companion in acapulco, is my zone leader and is so great. he talks alot about dan and his example to a lot of the elders. his companion is elder ramon. haha. we have received a lot of love from the members, everyone is willing to help us and give us all the food they have, its crazy, and its hard because they want to give it all, but cant.
not a whole lot is happening here, we are having good weather and not too much rain. everything is super green still and from the roof of our house you can see almost all of chilpancingo. and we are just preparing for a few baptisms to come. please pray for the bravo family, xochilt(socheel for all you gringos) lupita, yesenia and melanie. they are progressing but all have a few problems that they arent completely willing to give up yet, so we heed some help. the next time i will receive packages is the 20th of november. so if anyone would like to send letters or packages, that is the time to send it. it takes about 2 1/2 weeks to get here, so plan ahead. thank you all for everything, for your prayers and support. every member a missionary!!! do your part to talk to friends and i promise you, you will be able to see the blessings the Lord had prepared for you. this isnt my plea, but the plea of the prophets, do your part, so that we can do ours. i love you all so much and am so greatful for all you do.
take care family and friends. until next time.....
elder facer
conference was really good, but also really hard to understand. first of all they wouldnt let me watch it in english, mostly because they were lazy, and the signal was really bad. so sunday in the afternoon i didnt see the first half of conference. did elder bednar speak? i didnt get to hear him. elder holland and elder christofferson were really good, but i was most impressed with elder uchtdorf and elder eyring in priesthood. i would really appreiciate it if you could send me a copy of conference, because it isnt completely sure that we will get the conference issue. and that it might also be in spanish. also in conference there was this guy that came up to us, and started confessing his whole life to us, and that he want to go to the temple. he was baptized in 1996, and hasnt gone to church, but has been reading the book of mormon and reads it to his dad. he lived in the us(before his baptism) and was a bigtime drug trafficer. he went, and got sent back three times, and the third time he talked with barrack obama or some thing like that and had to make some deals with him that he wouldnt come back. he hasnt done drugs in a long time, but is still pretty crazy from doing them before.. and because he speaks poor english and wants to practice, he tried to talk to me almost the whole day.............
me and elder cardenas have talked a lot and have come to a few conclusions about how we work and all. we really do get along well, its just that he is lazy and has had bad examples his whole mission. we talked and we are going to work harder and try to be more obedient, especially with the girls... but he is improving and i think we will see some changes in the next few weeks. by the way, if you can tell dan that elder dominguez, his companion in acapulco, is my zone leader and is so great. he talks alot about dan and his example to a lot of the elders. his companion is elder ramon. haha. we have received a lot of love from the members, everyone is willing to help us and give us all the food they have, its crazy, and its hard because they want to give it all, but cant.
not a whole lot is happening here, we are having good weather and not too much rain. everything is super green still and from the roof of our house you can see almost all of chilpancingo. and we are just preparing for a few baptisms to come. please pray for the bravo family, xochilt(socheel for all you gringos) lupita, yesenia and melanie. they are progressing but all have a few problems that they arent completely willing to give up yet, so we heed some help. the next time i will receive packages is the 20th of november. so if anyone would like to send letters or packages, that is the time to send it. it takes about 2 1/2 weeks to get here, so plan ahead. thank you all for everything, for your prayers and support. every member a missionary!!! do your part to talk to friends and i promise you, you will be able to see the blessings the Lord had prepared for you. this isnt my plea, but the plea of the prophets, do your part, so that we can do ours. i love you all so much and am so greatful for all you do.
take care family and friends. until next time.....
elder facer
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Life in Chilpa
hey everyone. things are going really good here in chilpo. we had two baptisms yesterday of the daughters of the second counselor in the bishopric. somehow their records got lost and no one remembered who did the ordinance, the witnesses etc, so we baptized them again. and the zone for the third time in a row has completed its baptism goal. no other zone that i know of is completing right now. i heard from my old zone leaders, and they said that sadly cuautla is struggling pretty bad. the goal was 35 and they ended with like 20... we finished with 34 when our goal was 32! we also have baptisms planned for every week in october! this area is really blessed, and also we are doing good to work hard. in church yesterday i gave a brief introduction and shared my testimony with the ward. i think that is my favorite part. i like teaching and sharing thoughts on specific things, but i definately prefer to take 5 or 10 mins to share my testimony. also i have been having a lot of people tell me that my spanish is doing really good, and that i have a very good accent. take that joseph and alyssa that thought i would never get it down! haha jk.
the only bad thing really, is that elder cardenas is pretty tough to work with. we teach well together, and are good friends, but he is just really fried.... he goes to sleep with an ipod of who knows what music, wakes up around 715, studies a little, then makes breakfast during companionship study. his parents sent him an 8gb ipod touch, with some church music and some not, the bad thing is that it also has internet.... i have told him how i feel about that stuff, and that to receive the blessings, we need to try to be obedient. he agrees, but still isnt willing to give it up. elder snyder told me something, that you cant force obedience on your companions. you do all you can, get up at 630, teach short effective lessons, eat for only an hour, be home at 9/930 and in bed by 1030. but when it comes to your companion, all you can do is suggest, and be a good example. if you try to force it, it can really tear apart your companionship. D&C 88: 42? that is unrighteous dominion. and that is how you lose trust, and confidence from someone.
i still try to do what i can for him, to serve etc, but he just has bad influences, such as our district leader, and they talk a lot. sorry i dont mean to be a gossiper, but just if you have any more advice, it would be very appreciated.
we are still doing really good though. its mostly because we have an amazing ward. they want to help and give us references, and also they really prepare their friends etc to receive us, or to go to church. they are so friendly, and we have very good teachers in the classes that actually prepare lessons! man i am so excited. haha. everything is going really good, and i am enjoying the mission. i love moving houses too, because in every one, there are old ensigns. i have sadly never realized the gold that they are. i told myself that when i return, i will never let another home teaching appointment go by without being really prepared for every person. there is something in every ensign for every person. i especially love the conference editions. they are first come first serve, so when i come across one, i will gladly take it.
sadly we are still getting a lot of rain here, and parts of sun. in the morning its really cold, the midmorning its really hot, midday very comfortable, midafternoon rainy, and night very comfortable. but thanks to the rain, its so beautiful here, everything is so green and flourishing. even though a lot of it is city, there are a ton of mountains. its also very hard to find peopple in the morning, so we are going to have to be smart and diligent to get more new investigators. well sadly my time is up for today. i hope all is well for every one of you that are able to read my short message, and also for those of you who choose not to. but i love you all, and still pray for you all night and day. keep up the great work and get jeff and joseph out on missions!!!!!!!!!!! haha. but seriously.
love
elder facer
the only bad thing really, is that elder cardenas is pretty tough to work with. we teach well together, and are good friends, but he is just really fried.... he goes to sleep with an ipod of who knows what music, wakes up around 715, studies a little, then makes breakfast during companionship study. his parents sent him an 8gb ipod touch, with some church music and some not, the bad thing is that it also has internet.... i have told him how i feel about that stuff, and that to receive the blessings, we need to try to be obedient. he agrees, but still isnt willing to give it up. elder snyder told me something, that you cant force obedience on your companions. you do all you can, get up at 630, teach short effective lessons, eat for only an hour, be home at 9/930 and in bed by 1030. but when it comes to your companion, all you can do is suggest, and be a good example. if you try to force it, it can really tear apart your companionship. D&C 88: 42? that is unrighteous dominion. and that is how you lose trust, and confidence from someone.
i still try to do what i can for him, to serve etc, but he just has bad influences, such as our district leader, and they talk a lot. sorry i dont mean to be a gossiper, but just if you have any more advice, it would be very appreciated.
we are still doing really good though. its mostly because we have an amazing ward. they want to help and give us references, and also they really prepare their friends etc to receive us, or to go to church. they are so friendly, and we have very good teachers in the classes that actually prepare lessons! man i am so excited. haha. everything is going really good, and i am enjoying the mission. i love moving houses too, because in every one, there are old ensigns. i have sadly never realized the gold that they are. i told myself that when i return, i will never let another home teaching appointment go by without being really prepared for every person. there is something in every ensign for every person. i especially love the conference editions. they are first come first serve, so when i come across one, i will gladly take it.
sadly we are still getting a lot of rain here, and parts of sun. in the morning its really cold, the midmorning its really hot, midday very comfortable, midafternoon rainy, and night very comfortable. but thanks to the rain, its so beautiful here, everything is so green and flourishing. even though a lot of it is city, there are a ton of mountains. its also very hard to find peopple in the morning, so we are going to have to be smart and diligent to get more new investigators. well sadly my time is up for today. i hope all is well for every one of you that are able to read my short message, and also for those of you who choose not to. but i love you all, and still pray for you all night and day. keep up the great work and get jeff and joseph out on missions!!!!!!!!!!! haha. but seriously.
love
elder facer
Monday, September 20, 2010
Adios to Anencuilco
you wouldnt believe what a great week we had! the last few weeks, me and elder leyva have really struggled to find new people to teach and get them to church, but our zone leaders promised us that it would pay off if we kept working hard and trusting in the lord. and wow were they right. we found 34 nuevos and got 10 investigators in church. it was incredible. there is one family we taught that had received missionaries before, but never were really interested. well they had a big family problem, and went to a life long friend who is a strong member in the church, hermana isabel. she directed them to us, and we have been teaching them for this past week. there are about 35 people in this family over the age of 8. and the other 15 or 20 are under. they are all willing to do whatever we ask, because they really feel diferent when we come and teach. we gave three blessings to their family, and they are so willing to do whatevery we ask. so far we have only taught 20 of these 35.
well today i am writing late, because i am now in guerrero, chilpancingo Guerrero. it is kinda the capital of guerrero and it is so awesome! i was incredibly sad to leave elder leyva after only 4 weeks, but president and the lord know what goes on. i actually just arrived, unpacked and went to write. i am with elder cardenas, he was in zone cuautla with me, and i went on exchanges with him once before, so we knew eachother a little bit before. he has been here for 3 months, and has 6 months left in his mission. i am excited to be with him, and our house is sweet!!°!!! when i can, i will take lots of pictures of our house, the area, and my comp and me. once again, i have a huge area, we will be working almost all of it, because there are members in all parts. there is a member in the centro that has an indoor soccr field, and the missionaries play there every monday for free! like the ones at timpanogos indoor! also elder leyva was right next to my area before he came to anenecuilco, and so he filled me in on a lot of what goes on, and the climate, etc. its really almost the same as anenecuilco, except everything is in hills, big hills! but i am accustomed to it. i hope.....we have an active ward of 160 and usually bring 10 investigators every week. its also a brand new chapel. every thing is way green, and its really windy which keeps everything a little cooler, and also everyone says chilpa is the best zone in the mission. they have great support, great area, weather, leaders, etc the only bad thing is that elder cardenas might be a little fried, but with me on his side, we will be fuerte trabajadores! or really excellent tools in the lord's hands. i am really excited to be here, but also sad to leave my first area, i only had 4 months there. speaking of time, can you believe 1/4 of my mission is gone! i feel like i havent done near enough in this short time. today in the morning, i talked with elder harley, he was in my district in the mtc. he was also in the same area and ward as elder smith and nelson, the other missionaries from my district in this mission. he filled me in on how they are doing, and i guess everything is good. i also talked with the old executive secretary of the mission, and he told me a little about the visa problem, i guess its because every month you have to go to mexico city to renew your visa, and if not, deported...... elder harley was also in the mtc for 13 weeks, then a month in ogden for a visa waiting mission... but he said everything was good, and that he was one of the last few to get his visa to mexico. its sad, but also they are trying to keep mexicans in mexico, and get rid of some americans. sadly, i will be one of the last americans in mexico i think.
if you want, the next zone conference for me is in november, so if you would like to prepare a package, with a little help of elder snyder, that would be wonderful, also be sure to include my camera cord to attach to the computer so i can send pictures faster. as of right now, i am happy and still working hard, and a little tired and hungry. in a little bit, the whole district is going to eat with a member in the stake! haha i love you all tons, and when i find out more about my area and companion etc i will write. until next time, i love you all, and keep praying for yourselves. final quote:elder bednar, generalconference of may 2009 (or 2008 i dont remember) pray with faith. dont pray for me to find people to teach. its your job to find the people for the missionaries, and pray for the opportunity and strength to open your mouth to a friend, neighbor, coworker etc. i would recommend reading the real thing, because i probably slaughtered it, but you all understand what im trying to say. haha love you tons!
elder facer
well today i am writing late, because i am now in guerrero, chilpancingo Guerrero. it is kinda the capital of guerrero and it is so awesome! i was incredibly sad to leave elder leyva after only 4 weeks, but president and the lord know what goes on. i actually just arrived, unpacked and went to write. i am with elder cardenas, he was in zone cuautla with me, and i went on exchanges with him once before, so we knew eachother a little bit before. he has been here for 3 months, and has 6 months left in his mission. i am excited to be with him, and our house is sweet!!°!!! when i can, i will take lots of pictures of our house, the area, and my comp and me. once again, i have a huge area, we will be working almost all of it, because there are members in all parts. there is a member in the centro that has an indoor soccr field, and the missionaries play there every monday for free! like the ones at timpanogos indoor! also elder leyva was right next to my area before he came to anenecuilco, and so he filled me in on a lot of what goes on, and the climate, etc. its really almost the same as anenecuilco, except everything is in hills, big hills! but i am accustomed to it. i hope.....we have an active ward of 160 and usually bring 10 investigators every week. its also a brand new chapel. every thing is way green, and its really windy which keeps everything a little cooler, and also everyone says chilpa is the best zone in the mission. they have great support, great area, weather, leaders, etc the only bad thing is that elder cardenas might be a little fried, but with me on his side, we will be fuerte trabajadores! or really excellent tools in the lord's hands. i am really excited to be here, but also sad to leave my first area, i only had 4 months there. speaking of time, can you believe 1/4 of my mission is gone! i feel like i havent done near enough in this short time. today in the morning, i talked with elder harley, he was in my district in the mtc. he was also in the same area and ward as elder smith and nelson, the other missionaries from my district in this mission. he filled me in on how they are doing, and i guess everything is good. i also talked with the old executive secretary of the mission, and he told me a little about the visa problem, i guess its because every month you have to go to mexico city to renew your visa, and if not, deported...... elder harley was also in the mtc for 13 weeks, then a month in ogden for a visa waiting mission... but he said everything was good, and that he was one of the last few to get his visa to mexico. its sad, but also they are trying to keep mexicans in mexico, and get rid of some americans. sadly, i will be one of the last americans in mexico i think.
if you want, the next zone conference for me is in november, so if you would like to prepare a package, with a little help of elder snyder, that would be wonderful, also be sure to include my camera cord to attach to the computer so i can send pictures faster. as of right now, i am happy and still working hard, and a little tired and hungry. in a little bit, the whole district is going to eat with a member in the stake! haha i love you all tons, and when i find out more about my area and companion etc i will write. until next time, i love you all, and keep praying for yourselves. final quote:elder bednar, generalconference of may 2009 (or 2008 i dont remember) pray with faith. dont pray for me to find people to teach. its your job to find the people for the missionaries, and pray for the opportunity and strength to open your mouth to a friend, neighbor, coworker etc. i would recommend reading the real thing, because i probably slaughtered it, but you all understand what im trying to say. haha love you tons!
elder facer
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