From Juchitan to Huatulco pt. 2 - April 20, 2016

Hey Everyone! I am sorry that I havent been able to write up until now. We had a leadership conference in Juchitan this past week and it was such a great experience to be a part of that. It has been a while since I have wrote and it is hard to remember all that has happened in the last week and a half. But none the less it was another awesome week. Something that we have been stressing a ton in our lessons this past week is how we could have Charity in our lessons and for our investegators. We have had a hard time helping them to progress and make the necessary steps towards baptism in the past few weeks. I was a little frustrated with it and was saying to my companion that it was time for us to find new people to teach. He told me that to have Charity is to have a hope and a faith with a patience for each person that we meet and that it was something that we needed to find and apply in our lessons. We began to put that into practice with an investegator named Mirium this past week. She has been listening to the missionaries for a almost a year now and hasnt made a ton of progress. We got there and just listened to her and we were able to apply many principles to her concerns that she had. When Sunday came she came to church for the first time in 2 months. It was so awesome to see her there and for her to be able to experience Charity through the Holy Ghost. The other experience that we had was with an investegator named Omar. He has been listening for 4 months and had never gone to church before. We applied the same principle with him and he came for the first time ever by himself! It reminds me of this past conference where someone said "Charity really never fails" It is so true and we were able to see that promise really come true. The other great thing that happened this week was that we had District Conference. Me and another Elder Maldonado had an assignment to arrange 10 hymns for this conference. We worked hard on that for a month practicing with all the members. In the conference each leader that was there said that they had never felt a spirit like that before from a choir and that it was the greatest testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel that there was in the conference. Afterwards Sister Madsen came up to me and asked where we got the music and that it sounded like the arrangments from the Tabernacle Choir. We used a lot of their stuff but we figured it out ourselves, playing it and singing it from memory and by ear. I know that it all came from the power of Heavenly Father. I am so thankful for the opporunities that we have to share the gospel in many ways! Not just through our words! I know that this work is true! Elder Peterson

The conference

The bus ride

Huatulco District Conference - April 16-17, 2016

Missionaries working in the Huatulco District

The district choir

Members of the El Coyul branch who traveled to the conference in this truck.

The El Coyul Branch President and family and Sister Pineda and her children.

Zone Leader Mission Leadership Council - April 18, 2016

Council of leadership - Isthmus and Costa zones

Hey I am Back -- April 11, 2016

Hello Everyone, I am sorry for not being able to get a letter off last week. It was crazy with things that only happen in Oaxaca. We were waiting for 2 new elders to come to our zone and they got in a block off, where people who want to protest literally shut off the roads. Anyways we were trying to talk to them and get a hold of them and eventually at 12 am we found a place for them to stay and everything worked out good. But anyways the heat just keeps on rising. These past few weeks have been crazy as well. Elder Valadez finished his mission and it was sad to see him go. But I got an awesome companion from the state of Mexico named Elder Mora. He has 14 months in the mission and is a super hard worker. It is so awesome to be with him where we can just push each other to the max. Anyways in these past two weeks we had the chance to watch General Conference in the stake center in English. I loved each and every message and I could feel so strongly the love that the general athorities have for us. I am so grateful to be called by President Monson and his 12 apostles and to testify of them each and every day. I know that they are in direct communication with Jesus Christ. I know that they are the only ones who have the authority of him to lead and guide this church. And I sustain him with all that I am, that he is a prophet called of God. We have been making great progress with our investegator Eder, he has been participating in the District choir and he told us that it has helped him to know that this is the only true church in which he needs to be baptized. The power of music has a power to help people become converted to the Lord like it has with Eder. It really touched me to know that through all the stresses and difficulties and my mom always pushing me and forcing me to do everything in piano, that it has been the way that we helped Eder gain a testimony. This past week we have been out contacting and knocking on lots of doors trying to find new people to teach. It is hard and difficult work but it has helped me to realize what my purpose is here. We have changed the way we contact. It sounds harsh but when we knock on a door we simply say that we are missionaries and that our purpose is for them to repent and be baptized. We have had a ton of success with it and we have found the prepared of the Lord. I am loving the mission and am so thankful for each opportunity that I have to testify in these ways. Each of you have a great week!

Elder Mora and Elder Peterson

Watching conference in English

Teaching with President Madsen - March 26, 2016

Happy Easter!

Hallelujah - March 28, 2016

Hello Everyone! Wow it has been a crazy week here with all of the tourists that have come in. Yesterday in church I actually got to teach an English sunday school to all of the American tourists that came in and it was really wierd to teach in English again and harder than teaching in spanish for sure but it was so awesome as well. The time just keeps on flying. This next week Elder Valadez will be going back home and it has been so awesome to see how hard he has worked up until the end. I will miss him for sure and he has taught me a ton and given me so much on how to improve. Anyways it has been awesome this week to see how the Lord prepares people for us. We were walking in the street this week and there was a guy with a big long ponytail and dirty clothes walking down the road. We said hi to him and kept walking. But then he gave us one of the friendliest greetings we have heard. We felt like we should talk to him and we went back and he told us that he was feeling awesome in his life but that he was missing something in his life and he knew it was something spiritual. We set a date with him and are waiting for the chance to go back and teach him. Saturday President Madsen came and taught with us again. It was awesome to see the way he interacted with everyone we taught and to see his example for teaching. Something that is great that happened this week is that the District is having their district conference in a few weeks. They asked me to arrange their hymns for the choir and we are going to be doing 10 hymns for them. They are super excited to have a piano player for their choir this year. The weather keeps on getting hotter and more humid. It is sapping all the energy that we have but it is so awesome to be able to keep working like that. Anyways the work keeps on going forward and even though times get tough they are the times to be able to learn and grow to be stronger in the Lords hands for what he has in store for us in the future. Our weakness and trials are the ways for the Lord to have success and strengths in his work here on the Earth. I am so thankful for this opportunity to be an instrument in his hands no matter what I have to go through. The hardest of times allow for the greatest success. Thank you all for your great support and remember that Jesus Christ lives and loves us perfectly. Have a great Conference weekend!