But all is well

Haha, I have made great progress concerning my classes. However, I won´t give you a list until next week due to time constraints and other real world complications. But all is well.

So by the way, we got hurricane rain over here. The winds didn´t hit us at all and it didn´t rain that hard, but it did rain a lot and you could tell that those were not normal storm clouds. I´m pretty sure the fact that we´re comfortably nestled in a valley in the shadow of a volcano helped with that.

Have I todl you about Alma and her family? We found Alma about a month ago searching for someone who gave us a fake address, but it turns out that Alma lived in that house and she told us that she was a member. As we started to visit her we found that her daughter Alejandra used to love church and that her husband Francisco had a great interest in coming closer to God. Alejandra was baptized this week, but will have to wait until next week to be confirmed.

We filled up the font by bucket again, but this time it was even more complicated because first we had to EMPTY the font by bucket and then we had to clean it and fill it up again. Lots and lots and lots of buckets, and now my back is sore. We managed to do all of that in an hour and a half and had everything ready for the baptism on time, it was a fantastic and spiritual experience.

José María blessed the sacrament this week wearing a tie I gave him, and Irving passed the sacrament too. Next week Augustin will bless, and I´m super excited to see it. Things are coming along here, although its obvious that we don´t live in a magical fairy land full of cotton candy and where you can eat your soup right out of the ash trays if you wanna. It takes work, and we´re going to work even harder this week. So far Elder Vergara has been able to keep up. Time to pick up the pace.

We found a lot of new investigators this week as well. Some had seen us pass by and had alwayswondered what we do, and others had listened to the missionaries years ago but had never been baptized and asked us why there are so many churches. The trick is to find the time to teach them, help the converts pass into the hands of the local members, organize the long-promised house of prayer, and lots of other stuff. Totally right up my alley.

Gotta run, say hi to Chris for me.

Love you!

Wake me up when September ends.

So it was a crazy week. It started with the activity that we won (we got 2nd place this week by the way...the sister missionaries will be having a baptismal service for eight people this week). District class was done in our house of prayer which I rented. Then we went and sealed the deal for our new house and signed the contract...and had one of our investigators (José María) help us move. We were also running all over the place trying to visit everyone and invite them to conference.

Conference, by the way, is a thousand times cooler when you`re a missionary. I loved it. I found a precious treasure in almost every talk and actually recognized a good number of the seventies. Some of my favorites include President Eyring`s talk on training priesthood bearers, Elder Waddell`s talk about learning from a mission, and Elder Cornish`s talk on prayers, among many others. Also, what`s that about a temple in Paris? I thought that would never happen.

There was an overall spirit of progress and the importance of our work in the conference, which ties directly into our duty in preaching the gospel. We`re doing great and important things here, and every member of the church has that duty to carry the name and gospel of Jesus Christ unto every ear and every nation.

On Sunday morning José María was baptized and his family was there to see it. It was a very spiritual experience, and he`s very excited not only to grow in the gospel but also to serve. He wants to help people find the blessings God has ready for them. We`ll be working closely with him. This next weekend Augustin and his sons Irving and Kevin have their baptism planned as well. Everything went well with Augustin`s stay in the hospital and he should be all set. Please pray for them as we visit them and prepare them to take such an important step.

I`m progressing and growing and organizing priorities, and my companion is starting to fill in his shoes (and lose the weight he gained at the MTC). We`re working well together and he`s awesome. Say hi to everybody.

Gotta run.

Love you, Elder Lund

PS Is David getting my emails?

We won by a landslide.

Hello again!

So Kenia and Leslie were confirmed on Sunday, which was great. There will be more to come as well. We´ve been having a lot of success finding people and helping people that are hungry for the truth and that love Christ. Some have had greater trials than others, but they´re all fighting and we are doing all we can think of to help our friends.

We have the keys to the house of prayer, so now we´re just waiting to start having services a week or two after general conference down here. I´m really excited to see and help be a part of this new branch that is being organized. We´re really a part of church history here and these people really are and will be pioneers. It´s electrifying.

So tomorrow there are interviews with the President and house revisions. That means everything needs to be spotless, and that means taking apart and cleaning fans along with everything else. For that same reason last Monday the Zone Leaders decided that there was going to be a competition among the missionaries to see who worked the hardest, and the whole zone was going to go clean the house of the companionship that one and pay for their pizza. The plan was also to spend the afternoon in that companionship´s area and contact for them.

We won by a landslide.

So I´m excited to keep pushing and working harder. We´ll probably be changing houses tomorrow (that´s the second time I´ve found and rented a house in Mexico), so the timing is perfect. We´ll leave our current house squeaky clean and everything will be packed and set to go today. We´re also planning an activity to celebrate the inaguration of the house of prayer, which will help the members to get to know each other, be familiarized with the location, and so that we all are inspired to work hard to help build up God´s kingdom here and invite friends to be a part of the change.

Elder Vergara is doing great and working hard. He´s very willing to learn and the extra study time with the PMG videos is also a great learning tool for him. He was able to get along okay when we had to do divisions on Saturday to make it to all of our lessons and visit the references we had received.

I would enthusiastically accept the bowling ball. I remember bowling with Joe and our group of friends and those are some of my good memories, although I may not be the best bowler. He will not be forgotten, and I´ll probably keep up the sport.

I´m way excited for General Conference and want to invite lots of people to listen to living prophets this weekend (and Holley´s birthday too!). It´s probably not a good idea to do so through my facebook (because it would look bad), but you guys should invite everybody I know to check out the conference videos. It´s a huge opportunity to share what we love and what they´re looking for.

So what are the Christmas plans?

Love,
Elder Lund

I´ll let you know how it goes!

Hey! So there were transfers. That´s why I´m writing a day late.

First of all it was a better week. Elder Escamilla and I worked hard and tried to help people come unto Christ, which should be obvious. Some weren´t receptive, some were, and it turned out pretty well. Efraín, who we met last Sunday night in the FHE, went to church and enjoyed himself. We´ll see him soon.

Sunday night we were coming home from our last appointment of the day and found the ZLs waiting in front of our house with a truck and a member. Elder Escamilla had to pack all of his things because he was being transfered. I had to pack things to spend the night at the ZLs house and travel to Guadalajara on Monday and pick up...a recently unpacked missionary! I´m training again! :D I get to go out in style. I´ll spend three months training Elder Vergara and then I´ll be coming home.

I arrived at President´s house early on Monday (I had hardly slept) and it was nice to be back in Providencia, if only for a day. We trainers were given some specific instructions from President and then there was a brief orientation with the new missionaries. President interviewed each new missionary and assigned them to us...and then they shipped us back to our areas. Oh, and they fed us lunch!

The missionary training program is very different from before. It´s very comprehensive and at the end of 12 weeks he will have learned more than in all his time in the Mexico MTC (CCM). Our companionship study is now 2 hours long, they gave me a DVD player and the Preach My Gospel DVDs, and a booklet with instructions on what should be taught and reviewed each week. Lots to do, but I´m super excited. This is what I was hoping for.

Elder Vergara is from Tampico, Tamaulipas. He´s really cool. Very humble and very spiritual, but with a hunger to learn. That´s just the way it should be. We are going to tear it up here. It´s also strange to know that the last Elder I trained (Elder Ramirez) has been in the mission for more than a year now!

So all is well as I start the final chapter of this mission. Please take care of yourselves and work hard to build up the Kingdom and the family. I´ll be seeing you soon enough.

Love,
Elder Lund


So life is great down here in the middle of nowhere way far away from the rest of the city. No, seriously. We´re having a great time. Elder Vergara is very willing to learn and to work hard, and we´ve been contacting with boldness and we´ve been inviting people to baptism in the first visit. The most incredible is that they´ve accepted. The lessons have been powerful and spiritual, but I know that things don´t end here. There is much that must be done to help these people and there´s a lot of searching, studying, and praying that must be done. The very good part is that they understand our purpose and what they´re searching for and WHY they´re doing it right from the start.

We met a lady called Petra the other day in front of her house, contacted her, and went back to visit a few days later. She had been praying to find the truth last week. Also, she´s seen us in the streets many times when she´s been on the bus. She said she knew that we would find her house. It was a little surprising, but it´s an example of how the Lord prepares people and is working here with us.

Manuel Antonio and José Maria are the two who went to church for the first time and really enjoyed it. José Maria has been saying his prayers and studying, and Manuel Antonio is determined to continue on. They´re both great guys. There´s more people, but I haven´t the time to write about them all. We´re not doing perfect nor has it been a perfect cakewalk, but we are certainly being blessed in the work. Also, we may be opening up the house of prayer that we want over here soon!

The biggest news is that Kenia and Leslie Araiza were baptized on Sunday after church, and both Manuel Antonio and José Maria were present to see it. It was a good service and I´m very happy for the girls. This is a big and important step for Sister Araiza, who is doing all she can to choose the right. Pictures forthcoming. I´m going to miss that family.

So those are the main details. You can really feel the power of the work when two missionaries work diligently and obediently with all their hearts centered in the work. We´re not superheros in any aspect. What´s happening is that the Lord is blessing us and is able to bless us more freely. Without His help, we can do nothing, but with Him all things are possible. Never forget that, and never forget the authority and power and right to blessings and revelation you have over yourself and the people whom you are responsible for.

Anything is fantastic in a package, as long as it won´t add much weight to my luggage coming back home. I´ve got to get on that because I´ve got a lot of stuff. Still haven´t been able to send the package and we can´t today because we´re in the middle of a house-change (contracts, deposits, photos and approval from the mission, finding out when to do the move, etc.) but the mostly likely is next week. Haven´t found a guitar yet either, but I¨m still on the lookout.

We´ll be doing divisions with our district leader tonight and tomorrow. Should be interesting and fun. I´ll let you know how it goes!

Love,
Elder Lund

I´ve seen much worse.

Last monday the mission leaders talked a lot about the importance of having lots and lots of contacts (people we´ve invited to hear the gospel in the streets, on the bus, on their doorstep, etc.) So we decided that since we´ve been having a mediocre time with what we´re doing, we were going to give it a try. We almost tripled our number of contacts and we´ve been running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to visit them all. Some other Elders also ended up contacting a lot of people that live in our area, so we´ve been trying to find them too.

One of these new people is Oscar, who had a rough life but decided to leave it all behind and try to find God. He´s been confused though because he´s searching for a true church and he always finds things he doesn´t agree with in the churches he visits. We talked to him a lot about the Book of Mormon and he´s very interested. There was also a small miracle that helped us see him in our second appointment. He had completely forgotten about the appointment and was driving around with his family on the other side of the city, and before going to visit his mother-in-law (who lives way over there) he decided he needed to stop by the house. When he got out of the car, his wife asked him "why are we here?" and he responded "umm...I don´t know. Let me just drink some water and we´ll head out again." In the next five seconds we arrived. It turned out to be a great lesson, by the way.

Another girl we met is Monica, who went to church for the first time in LA, but then moved down here to Tepic six years ago. Her sister was baptized in that time, but she wasn´t. She wants to visit again. She has special light and excitement in her eyes when she talks about the church. We´ll see what happens.

It was a little rough though because at the end of the week nobody ended up going to church, for one reason or another. We tried to visit people and make phone calls but nothing turned out. That´s always rough as a missionary, but we decided to keep moving. After sacrament we took off early to go look for the people who didn´t come to church.

One of those families are the Araiza, who are trying to be reactivated. Their two daughters have not been baptized but have expressed that they want to. We talked with them and said a prayer and the whole family agrees that they should be baptized on the 18th of September. SO that´s a good sign. We´ve got lots more to do, but that´s a start. We have to find a new house and move because our house is falling apart, btw, but that´s a minor detail. I´ve seen much worse.

ALso, there was a family home evening we planned with our ward mission leader. He invited his neighbors and we watched the D&C movies about WIlford Woodruff and Parley P. Pratt. The neighbor couple (Efraín and Patricia) were very interested and were asking us why there are so many churches and how they can find the truth. It was a very good lesson and we´ll be seeing them again soon. They want to investigate and believe that God can answer their prayers and guide them to the truth.

So lots of good things are happening around here. Gotta run, but take care. Say hi to everyone. I want to do lots of cool stuff with the family when I get home. One other thing I´ve learned is that I really need a good agenda system to help keep myself organized. I´m a billion times more productive when I plan my goals like that. Plus I don´t forget stuff as easily.

I think of you often and pray for you always.

Love you,
Elder Lund

We got stomach infections...

Monday we went to another area to help them search for new investigators. We found four or five people who were interested and gave the addresses and phone numbers to the Elders from that area so that they can visit them.

Augustin was coming along. He`s been reading and praying a lot. It seemed things were going well. He didn`t make it to church though. We think it`s because he was feeling sick on Saturday, but we haven`t seen him yet and without a phone there`s no other way to find out. He`s been searching for his answer. We`re praying for him.

There`s been some complications though. We got stomach infections from lunch on Thursday, and then my companion was diagnosed with a severe tonsil infection. Basically ate up Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We should be good now though. He`s just got to get injected in the rear every day for a few days but we can work.

Today I bought some Huichol things for the family, from actual natives who come into the city to sell their goods. A necklace, a bag, and a few other things. I might get some more next week before sending it home, but I`ll let you know when I shoot off the package. I`ve now finally found a reliable place where I can send packages. Should be soon unless their are special transfers or something. Still looking for the guitar.

Well I`ve gotta run. I think my most important letter this week is to David, who asked me how he can be a good missionary. I`m sure he`s going to be greater than all of us. Thank you for your support and your prayers. They make us stronger every day and work miracles. I know we`re on the brink of one right now. Count on it.

Love you,
Elder Lund

I'm in that process

So we started teaching (or trying to teach) a family this week that is Cora and does not speak much Spanish. Its been quite difficult, but its kinda fun as well. Im not sure how interested they are, but they have mentioned both baptism and healings through the power of God, so theres something there. They´re a really good family. Not sure how we´re going to learn the language, but I love a challenge.

There was a bus assigned by the stake to pick up the members here and take them to church and back. The only trouble was that it wasn´t where they said it would be. My companion panicked and sent everyone off in taxis before it got too late, but upon heading a little ways down the road I saw the bus. Next week things will be more straightforward. We also found a house that would work as the house of prayer and the stake is planning on paying to reserve the house today as well. We´ll see how that goes.

We´ve mostly been bogged down with those sorts of things. Lots of families trying to become active again, and we´re trying to balance that with actual missionary work since that´s what we´ve been called to do. I´m sure everything will turn out okay. There´s other stuff I´ll have to tell you about later, but here we are plugging alog as always! :D

Floating around in the major thing, but I{ve hammered out somethings about classes. I´ll write you a list when I´ve got everything straightened out. I don´t like having to take time to do all this junk when we´ve got souls to save, but I understand its important. We´ll see what I can do.

I love you all and miss you all. Trying to be the best missionary I can and prepare myself to be the best return missionary I can be. Havent sent anything off yet but I´m in that process

Love you!
Elder Lund

Well there´s lots to tell.

Lots and lots.

Gabriel is coming along just fine. He should have his new job soon and also be able to find a better and safer apartment as well. His baptism should be this Saturday. Too bad I won´t get to see it though.

I was transfered, and am finally outside of Guadalajara. I´m also officially retired from the leadership of the mission. Missionaries don´t finish as leaders here, but rather finish training or helping other young Elders. Since no new missionaries arrived this transfer, I am doing the latter. My companion is Elder Escamilla, from Ixmiquilpan, Hidalgo. Yes, that´s where Elder Cruz is from. They never met before the mission though, because my companion was baptized in February of 2010. Yes, that´s right. I have a companion who wasn´t a member when I started the mission. He´s 25. Pretty cool guy. We´re working hard here.

I´m in Tepic, which is the capital of the state of Nayarit. Here there are still native communities of Coras and Huicholes, although I haven´t run into any so far here in the city. The area is Fresnos 3, which makes us the third companionship in a rather large ward. We´re on the far edge of the city, where there are seven or eight new developments of cheap houses that have been built. It´s growing like crazy out here. It turns out that there are a lot of members, and every day it seems we find another member who just moved here and doesn´t know where the church is. It´s a challenge because the chapel is rather far away, and really expensive to go by bus (which is how most Mexicans get around), so those who don´t have a car have to really sacrifice in order to get to church with their families. The Elders had been organizing trucks to come around and help pick up the members, but there were so many this time that we needed a second truck. That second truck driver fell through Saturday in the afternoon, leaving us with nothing. We didn´t have any phone credit either to call people, so we were running around on foot all day (and later that night we got a member to help drive us around) searching for someone with a truck that could help us out. Nothing. We were fasting as well for a miracle and for the area. We got to the house really late Saturdy night and we had nothing and nobody to help, and hadn´t a clue how we were going to pick up all those people and drive them so far away. We went to bed basically leaving it in God´s hands. We had done everything we could think of.

But Sunday morning a member arrived who is almost never in town (they live in the woods, I think) and her husband has a truck. We ran out to see them and they were more than willing to help out. I lead one truck that picked up 24 people, and my companion lead another that picked up 22, and we got them all to church on time. That was just among investigators and less actives without the resources to travel to church every week. Aside from that the active members went and we ended up being about 70 people from our part of the ward. There had been hopes for a house of prayer out here for some time now, but the Stake President wanted to see if there were really enough members to justify it. He was certainly surprised to see so many people just from our area in church, and agreed to give it the green light. Tomorrow he will be asking the Area President (who is already informed about the situation) for a unit number, and Wednesday we have a meeting with him about it. It´s very possible that we could have our own branch by the end of the month. Another gigantic miracle after a difficult trial of faith. We owe God so much for providing transportation and preparing the way. We´re also working with two families that are very excited about the gospel and are working out the details with their marriages.

In other news, the President tells me that the extention has been approved, and I have permission to do whatever is necessary to take care of finances, housing, and classes for school. So I´ll be writing you about that soon. Gotta run for now. Take care and make sure to say hi to all my RHS friends and especially Joe´s family for me. I miss you and love you all, but I know that will just make it all the more worth it to work hard now and really enjoy my time with you when I get home.

Love you,
Elder Lund

l know i will see him again.

To the Ramos family:

I had the privilege of meeting Joe in High School. We shared a few classes and I think I was his TA in one. He was always very intelligent and witty, but also had a big heart. We got along well, and became good friends. We esepcially spent a lot of time together in the summer of 2009 before I started the mission, playing videogames, board games, and watching anime with our group of friends. Sometimes we talked about the deeper and more important things of the universe as well.

I'm glad joe had the chance to know the gospel and to live it for a time. I know he was not very active in the church, and from what I remember it had to do with a few youth who were not exactly the best example for him and did not treat him very well. I've felt sorry about that many times, even though we still hadn`t moved to Florida when it happened. Throughout the time we knew eachother, I always maintained the hope of being able to help him return...to help the whole family. I stopped by your house a few times in hopes of being able to share a short message about families, but I don't remember having been able to tell you about it. Please receive my parents in my place. I hope they'll be able to help your family in ways that I wasn't able to. I know that God lives, that Christ loves you and that He has prepared the way for you to see Joe again...and I hope to see him as well.

"Now, concerning the astate of the soul between bdeath and the resurrectionBehold, it has been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them life. And then shall it come to pass, that the spirits of those who are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care, and sorrow." (Alma 40:11-12)

I testify as a representative of Jesus Christ that it is possible for your family to be eternal; it's possible to be with him again. God has provided the way through the His Gospel and His Priesthood. Your family, through the sealing ordinance, can be eternal. But it all depeneds on your willingnes to sacrifice the world and live worthy of that promise. My parents will be there to help you in anything you need. I'm absolutely sure of it. They won`t fail you.

Please forgive me the times I have not been there for Joe, the times he has been sad and I haven't been able to cheer him up, and the times I couldn`t help him overcome his challenges. I did my best and I'll always remember him. He is a special child of God and he loves you. He is thinking about you and wants the best for you. Remember that the commandments are the bridge between you always. When I return from Mexico, I will be at your disposition for anything you need. One thing I'm learning to do hear is love God with all my heart and to love others as myself. Please take care.

With all sincerity,

Elder Lund

So all I can report from this week is that we took Gabriel to the church employment center and helped him search for a job, and we also put him in contact with the ward employment person (or whatever that calling is called). Her name is Matilde and she does a fantastic job. They'll be visiting a mechanic today to see if he can help Gabriel out, because he doesn`t want to work on Sundays anymore. Please pray for him.

We also sent the missionaries to find his family in Indiana this week. His family has had some hard times, especially because his brother needed help. Apparently his whole family went to church this week. He's ecstatic.

Other than that we're simply forming ideas to help the zone and the ward, but I'll tell you more about them once we've got things moving. Just know that we have many, many plans and we're being very innovative. You gotta do everything you can to make a difference.

Transfers are today. As always, we'll see what happens. I'm going to talk to the President about how much I can do to decide my classes, housing, and how to take care of that application. I'll let you know when I find out what can be done.

Love,

Elder Lund

P.S. Song of the day:

I'm sorry, I heard about the bad news today. A crowd of people around you Telling you it's okay And everything happens for a reason

When you lose a part of your self To somebody you know It takes a lot to let go Every breath that you remember Pictures fade away but memory is forever

An empty chair at all the tables And I'll be seeing you when all my days boil down But it's better where you're going anyway

I'm sorry I heard about the bad news today It's really hard to get through Tough times and long days But it really just depends on the season

For now we'll say goodbye We know it's not the last time I've lost the best part of my day But it's better where you're going anyway

This is the last thing I will remember It's better where you're going anyway

New Found Gory -"Sonny"

I know I'll see him again someday.

Where to start today?

Well we´re teaching Gabriel, a security guard at a store called Bodega Aurrera who said he admired us and what we do , and he´s progressing rapidly. He´s reading the Book of Mormon, went to church, is searching for a job that lets him keep the sabbath day holy, and has accepted a baptismal date for the 13th of August. Fantastic! He´s a great guy. He´s living here alone because he was deported after living for 15 years or so in the states.

We also got to eat in a place called Karne Garibaldi, which is delicious "carne en su jugo" and has the guiness world record for fastest restaurant in the world. It´s actually just a couple blocks from the house, and we ate there with some members because our lunch appointment fell through. It was quite the experience. Tasty food, and fast. I mean REALLY fast.

We had interviews with the President and we also worked with him this week. He came with us to our area and participated as if he was any other missionary or junior companion. I actually rather enjoyed it, even though that was a particularly rough day where the appointments fell through and the people in the streets and whose doors we knocked wanted nothing to do with us. But we were still positive, and the next day is when we had out fantastic appointment with Gabriel.

The President´s son Mahonri, who recently returned home from his mission, also introduced us to a friend of his (supposedly not his girlfriend) and we taught her a few things and gave her a Book of Mormon. She lives kinda far away though so anything that comes out of it will be passed to the Elders who work where she lives.

We´re in the middle of planning a huge Plan of Salvation activity like the one they did back home in the stake. We´ll see how we can adapt it to the leadership and the membership here in Providencia. Just one week left until transfers, so I know I probably won´t see the fruits of these efforts, but that´s not what´s important. We´re also trying to get some materials put together to try a different way of street marketing. THere are a LOT of people in the streets in our area all the time, so it´s a great way to get the message out . More flyers and posters and things like that can help make things interesting. I´ve done similar things before.

And now we come to the big thing. I love you all very much and have come to appreciate you even more over the course of the mission. I´m excited to continue progressing in life and find new ways to serve the Lord with my time once I get home. I´ll love seeing how much David has grown, how much of an adult Holley is becoming, and what sort of schennanigans Ashley has been up to. However, I´ve been thinking very seriously about extending the mission a transfer. I know there is a lot of good I could do here in an extra six weeks.

As Holley explained it so clearly when I was set apart, this isn´t just MY mission. It´s the FAMILY´s mission, and the family should help make the decision. Thank you for your prayers, fasting, words of support, and missionary efforts up until this point. You´ve been a big part of my success and my mission.

I love you all very much and await your reply. Take care.

Love,
Elder Lund

It´s infectious

Haven´t worked with President yet, but perhaps it´ll happen tomorrow. We´re having interviews in 24 hours anyways.

So it´s been a rough week, but I´m still positive. Every single investigator we had (except Nadia) fell through this week. Some told us they wouldn`t like us to come back, others canceled the appointments and told us that they´d called us, etc., so by Wednesday there was nothing...and the people we meet in the streets and whose doors we knocked were not the most friendly either. Yikes. Some of these people had baptismal dates for this week or next week, and many had been coming to church. The only recent convert who came on Sunday was Iran.

So there was a little frustration precisely Wednesday, but we prayed and read some scriptures and found some motivational phrases and we´re good now. We´ve got a pretty positive outlook on things and everything will turn out okay. The trick is to always find solutions and not worry about problems. I´ve had worse experiences.

On a much brighter side, Iran´s family is doing fantastic, and there´s two other families who have started coming back. We´re seeing actual changes in their lives, attitudes, and family harmony. It´s amazing to see it happen. I´ll never stop feeling the "thrill of flying", as Elder Uchtdorf calls it.

So Elder Wilde goes home today. Sort of a mix of feelings there. He´s an awesome missionary and he´ll kick trash at home too. In his place arrives Elder Newman from my generation. He´s from Vegas and is pretty cool. It´s strange to know he probably just arrived in his last area.

Don`t worry about Elder Hernandez and I, we´ll be cheerily working hard, trying to find solutions and having a positive spirit about everything. It´s infectious. It´s hard to be frustrated when you think about all that God has given us, and it´s hard to complain about Friday when you know that Sunday will come...that Christ has gone through all of this and much more.

"It´s funny how you find you enjoy your life when you´re happy to be alive" - High of 75 - Relient K

Love,
Elder Lund

Go, Go Power Rangers!!

We were attacked by the Power Rangers this week!

There´s a district whose only responsibility is to go from zone to zone and spend a week with a companionship (each member of this special district) helping them out and measuring their progress. They´re all former zone leaders, and after some amount of time they will become zone leaders again. They showed up to the zone last monday, so that was interesting. I think it helped out a lot, but we´ll have to see. But I started calling them the Power Rangers when they were first created and the name has kinda stuck. They even have colors now. There was no Ranger with my companion and I, but we´ll work one day with the President, supposedly.

A less active also planned an ambush for us. She called us and asked us if we could go over to her house "right now", and supposedly it was something really important. Her phone credit was running out so I couldn`t ask any questions and had to make a split second decision. We headed over there and apparently the 18-24 year old friends of this lady´s daughter (who we have been teaching because she isn`t member) were going to come over to pick her up and go hang out. The mom decided it would be a fantastic idea to force them to listen to the missionaries before they could go anywhere...and the girls didn`t know until they showed up. Kinda awkward from her daughter´s point of view, I´m sure.

However, they reacted very well and seemed fairly interested. We´ll have another appointment with the whole group on Tuesday, and we´ll be sure to prepare well beforehand and see what happens. A number of other members have introduced us to their friends, and we´ll be visiting them this next week, including a lady named Corina from Chile. Saturday, a lady talked to us on the bus and asked us where our church was. We quickly gave her the address, exchanged phone numbers, and left her a pamphlet before she got off (there was standing room only). She said she was looking for a church. She came with us Sunday and seemed to enjoy it and learn a lot. The name is Berenice and she´s a very nice lady in a sincere search for a way to follow God.

We´ve been able to feel the spirit very strongly in a number of the lessons, and I must give credit to my companion´s faith. Yesterday we were teaching a man who was very stubborn in not wanting to leave behind his traditions nor his iniquity, and who was sure he wouldn`t know where the truth was until he died. I don´t remember what exactly we said, but at some point he completely changed his attitude. Later he expressed that he had felt something special that caused him to pay more attention and open up more. We recognize that none of that would have happened without the spirit. Our actual words can do absolutely NOTHING by themselves. We rely on a greater force to do our work.

So I´m getting ready to mail some stuff home, and I dunno when it will get there honestly, but we´ll see how it goes. Aside from some souvenirs for the family I need to lighten the load of things I´d like to keep but that I don`t need to use here in the mission. Also, on an interesting note, our ward mission leader (who just got back from the states) was an MTC teacher. His name is Rob Davis. Cool guy, actually, and works hard. He highly recommends teaching at the MTC since I´ll be back in BYU. Speaking of which, how is that going for J Tyler?

Finishing D&C this week and starting up the New Testament, while reading the BoM as always.

Love you!
Elder Lund

Woo! 4th of July!

Woo! 4th of July! Elder Black and I have been singing patriotic songs on the top of our lungs all morning. Our companions think its funny. The plan to celebrate this fantastic day is to eat a whole lot of food...the American way. That´s all we´ll have time for anyways since we need to go to the offices. We had to stop by the hospital as well so my companion could get the results from an exam. It seems he will need an operation in his throat to take out a gland that has died. Please pray for him...he´s fantastic, and he´s facing all this with a lot of optimism. There was a scare of possibly having to send him home, but it doesn´t seem like it´ll be that extreme.

So Iran Rojas was baptized on Saturday. It was a great service, and Nadia was there as well. The family is doing great and they´re all coming together and trying to do things right. Nadia is just waiting for some paperwork in order to get married and then baptized. SHe´s loving the Book of Mormon and she and Sinuhe have changed a lot. There´s a number of others who are coming along as well. Seven investigators in church, and about ten less actives as well. Honestly, I´m having a great time. I´m always exhausted and there´s never enough time for all that needs to be done. That´s part of what makes it the best time of my mission. I´m working harder than ever at a time when most missionaries start to slow down, and every moment is worth it.

Putting first things first, you say?

Honestly, you´ll never get anywhere if you don`t have your priorities straight, and it comes from a basic principle: God can make far more out of our lives and talents than we can. Living righteously and living to serve allow God to open the windows of heaven and bless us in all that we do. He´s more than willing to bless us with the talents and abilities we need if we´re willing to dedicate all we are to Him and His work. The scriptures are full of those promises. I know I will have success in whatever I decide to do, because I´ve decided to use my time and talents to serve The Lord. I don´t doubt it at all.

"Whoever shall lose his life for my sake..." fill in the blanks. It really is that simple. And if anyone doubts it, I dare them to try it. Iran Rojas was baptized because we sacrificed p-day and sleeping time in order to visit his uncle one day. We were tired and had things to do (we had no food for the week), but we agreed to visit Brother Rojas as he had asked us. That caused a chain reaction which led to two families coming back to the church, Iran´s baptism, and soon Nadia´s baptism as well. There´s lots of tiny examples like that which, while they seem insignificant at first, lead to great things.

Also, being here in the mission is completely changing my life. That´s a little miracle in and of itself. God always gives us back 100x what we invest in Him or thanking Him.

Well, gotta run. Love you!

wahakalugie

Actually, the package (which was FANTASTIC btw) was awesome, and got me thinking. Is there any way I can get a list of majors at BYU? I´m moving towards NASA stuff again (perhaps just because of the awesome shirt and the blanket). It´s been an interest all my life, and perhaps there´s something behind that. It´s kinda hard to gather thoughts together though, espcially because I´m in the middle of so many other things. The space blanket is super cool though, and super warm. The only downside is that it crinkles and makes noise that scares the snot out of my comp sometimes. But eh, that´s cool. ;P

So speaking of which, I´m still in providencia and my comp is Elder Hernandez from Santo Domingo Ingenio, the state of Oaxaca (can you prounounce that? Say it with me: "wa-ha-ka"...or "wahakalugie") Cool place with lots of native culture, unlike Guadalajara, which can trace most of its influnces to the Spaniards and things that have been invented since Mexican Independence. GDL is a modern city though.

So Mayte was baptized on saturday! It was a good service, and her friends from another ward came. Also with her was her mom, who felt the spirit and seemed very proud of her daugher. We´ll see what we can do there in the future. It´s always such a good feeling to start to change families step by step. mayte is already super active and ready though...I mean, she was doing visiting teaching before she was baptized! Friday she went to a multi-stake dance too. Ready to roll, and help change things in her own home and strengthen her family.

People to pray for: Nadia and Sinuhe, who are doing beter. Also Sinuhe´s nephew Iran, whose family is reactivating and preparing for his baptism. The thing is, Iran is sick. i don´t know what he´s got (some weird named disease without a cure...it has to do with swelling organs and stuf), but it´s not deathly dangerous. The only thing is that he´ll have to stay in bed or sitting around for about a month. The dad is sure that he can be okay for this Saturday, but that´s something they are gonna consult with the doctor today to see if he´s physically able to do that. Hopefully everything turns out alright.

Say hi and send my thanks to Richard Krenz, Tyler McCombs, and Kevin Habenicht, the three people who have sent me letters! They´re all awesome. I´ll see how I can get letters back, because its rather complicated...but I´ll see what I can do. Tell them thanks for me, and also especial thanks to the family, for always thinking about me and setting a good example for others. Thank you for enjoying life too!

Well, gotta run...We´ll be giving district class today.

Love yoU!
Elder Lund

they gave me a tie.

Thank you!!!!! My birthday was cool. Also, I´ll see what I can do about a guitar once transfers blow over. I´m sure I´m staying, but there´s always lots to organize within the zone. There´s leadership conference again tomorrow and wednesday.

So on my birthday we had lunch with the bishop, and they attacked me with confetti and made me brownies w/ ice cream. Also, they gave me a tie. Other than that, I worked as if it was a normal day. In the morning Elder Perez made me breakfast. Yay!

Nadia couldn`t be baptized even though she was ready in all other aspects because she and her couple couldn`t resolve whether or not they´re getting married. Now the trick is getting the process taken care of, but it shouldn`t take long because his family is full of lawyers. She´s still excited, from what we can tell.

Mayte, the girl who has been going to various other wards before finally finding out that she belongs here in Providencia and who we´ve been teaching, is planning to be baptized on the 25th. She´s excited, spiritual, and learns quickly. She´s a 24 year old photography major as well.

I got to do three baptismal interviews this week as well (a good sign, besides) and it was and always is a great experience. You have the opportunity to see someone sharing their testimony for perhaps the first time in their life. You have the privilege of being there with someone as they express their desires to follow the Lord. It´s wonderful. Only two were able to be baptized this week, but it was a good experience with all three.

Well, have lots of fun in the keys. Take lots of pictures, and I´ll try to take more too. Elder Novoa goes home in six weeks, and I´ll be home in eighteen. I´m 21 and have lots to do with the time I have left.

But obviously, my service will only just be beginning when I land in the Orlando Airport. This is just the start of things.

Love you!
Elder Lund

"count your many blessings"

Well this week was an interesting experience. It was actually a rollercoaster. We now have a LOT of people to visit...from contacts, references, and people who just show up to church or seek us out. I was super exited to visit them all and see miracles this week. However, blessings always seem to come after the trial of faith. It was a difficult week as I was still recovering from two consecutive sicknesses and almost ALL of our appointments fell through and we spent a few days running from appointment to appointment without really being able to visit the majority of the people we wanted to see. I´ll admit, I was ungrateful and a little frustrated.

One of these days we stopped by a less active family (The Segoviano family) because everything else had fallen through and it was almost time to head home. We sang them "count your many blessings" and I think the hymn helped me more than it helped them. I´ve tried to be more grateful since then, and was patient in working hard and trying to preach the gospel and help people.

On Sunday I had reverted to frustrated because out of so many seemingly fantastic people only the one we brought to church with us (our neighbor Cristina actually...she´s fantastic) was there. We also had to run around draining and cleaning out the font that had not been taken care of properly because ending stake conference there was going to be a baptism in a different area. When I finally got to sit down I was praying a lot to figure out what has been going wrong, because I felt that my efforts for a long time have not been proportionate with the "success". Very foolish, isn´t it?

That´s what I felt, actually. A need to be more grateful. That impression filled me and I´ve made it more a part of me since that moment. As it turns out 5 investigators finally showed up for church from our area, and the zone brought a total of 28 investigators (we´re a zone of 6 areas). Every area has a baptism planned for this weekend. Nadia is working her way there. Please pray for her, so that she´ll be ready on time. She´s fantastic and has been trying so hard, but she has to make a big decision about her family before she can be baptized. Please pray for her and her spouse Sinuhe.

Thank you for all of your prayers I can feel miracles coming, and soon. This is a huge difference here, and Independencia is doing fantastic now. Things are changing, and the Lord is working miracles.

Gotta run quickly, and I can´t write everyone today. Sorry! I´ll write the rest next week. Love you, and I´m so glad you´re home together!

Love,
Elder Lund

Well you know...nerd.

Sometimes ideas come from other activities, which I modify to meet the situation, and sometimes we create them from scratch. The trick is to just think about what needs to be accomplished, and everything else just comes. This Sunday, there were seven or eight members who promised us references, and we´ll be running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to contact them all in addition to the ones we already have. CRAZY. It will take lots of careful planning.

So Angel is sick. He ate come chicken cordon-bleu thingamajig and he´s been throwing up like there´s no tomorrow. He couldn´t make it to church to receive the priesthood and he´s spent the last while in bed. Hopefully everything turns out okay.

Lots of investigators in church this week, five to be specific. One is our neighbor, a member of the "Luz del Mundo" church, which has its headquarters here in GDL and is mildly interesting. She had a great time though and is reading the BoM. Also, Andrea, one of the kids from the big family that used to come to church without their parents, showed up as well. We stopped visiting the family because the adults didn`t do squat and so the kids couldn`t progress, but Andrea hunted down a primary teacher and got a ride to church. Persistent little girl. She also got a hold of my hymnbook and wrote her name in big letters on it a month ago. She´s only 10 years old.

I almost lost my voice this week, and I haven`t a clue why. I find it really strange because I just felt tired and could hardly talk, but I didn`t really have any other symptoms this week. I´m fine now though, which is good, but I don`t know what I had. I hope it isn´t insanely contageous.

Also, the heat has been picking up quite a bit. Two weeks ago it was hotter here than in the desert south of Arizona (Sonora) and supposedly broke some heat records. 41 degrees celsius. Now it´s a little cooler. Heat doesn`t affect us too much though, we´re used to it by now. I don`t know if its hotter here than at home right now.

We ate with a half Japanese half Mexican family this week, and they fed us homemade hamburgers. They had some church books in Japanese, and I thought that was pretty darn cool. Well you know...nerd.

Well we´re off to Tala. There´s some things to take care of and clean up, although this district is doing much better than the other one. We had to deal with an Elder who wanted to go home not too long ago, but he´s doing much better now. Always lots to do. I´ll tell you how goes the food this coming week. Take a picture of the family together and send it to me please! It´s awesome that everyones getting back together.

Love,
Elder Lund

100000000 words per minute

Zone conference was good. There was lots of talk about what happened with Peter between the crucifixion and when the Lord appeared to him on the shores of Galilee, and how he really obtained his testimony...and changed completely. It was good. Also, the practices were lots of fun, spiritual, and productive. President said they were the best practices he had seen. I don`t know if that´s entirely true, but I do know I enjoyed them.

Our ward mission activity was also this week (this thing has been inthe pipes for about a month). We taught the members how to share the gospel and answer simple questions about our faith. We started everyone out together and President Saucedo gave an introduction (pro of having him in our ward), and afterwards we divided the members in groupos. Each church organization was assigned a specific theme with common questions, and the groups went through each room/station and spent about 10 minutes learning about the theme and practicing how to explain it to a nonmember in simple words and with the spirit. The themes were Book of Mormon, the Restoration, Baptism, Temples, Traditions, and the Purpose of Life. The members had a great time, and at the end they grabbed materials to give away and also a card we designed (with a member who is good in graphic design) that had scriptures to answer common questions like "why don`t you use crosses in your church?". The bishop also commited the members to bring a new friend to church next week. We´ll be praying and working for that.

We helped out with two baptismal services that weren´t ours this week as well. One was for another area (I did the baptismal interview and conducted the service) and the other was for a child of record from our ward. It was good though because through the other area we found out that the members of that ward have a few references they want to give us with people who were going to church in Utah and are hanging out with the YSA. Also, the other baptism gave us lots of contact with the Rojas family, and that´s a big family where not all of them are members. They like us a lot and there´s actually a baptismal date planned for the 18th with the wife of one of the Rojas brothers. More details later!

Well I´ve gotta run, as usual. Love you much, and take care. Say hi to everyone I don`t manage to write to even though I´m writinga t atl ike 100000000 words per minute to try to get everything in.

Love,
Elder Lund

I know it for myself.

It´s interesting how much I´ve learned about the importance of doing things from the heart lately. There have been so many experiences with people who don´t do things for the right reasons, and its been something we´ve been fighting against a lot. There´s a member (we´ll call him Carlos for privacy´s sake) who is in the middle of getting divorced. He´s well off and has a successful business, but he´s not happy and he´s not completing with the commandments. We talked to him about things and got to the core of it. He never received a testimony. He is convinced that missionaries are sent from God, he was baptized, and he completed with his responsibilities for a time, but he never prayed and asked God with sincerity of heart if it was all true.

You can´t live that way.

So we explained how he was a "miembro de cascaron", or in other words that he wasn´t doing things from the heart. Something that must be understood, and something we´ve been explaining to all the investigators and members (active and inactive), is that you need to honestly humble yourself before God, trust Him more than you trust yourself, and ask Him if it´s all true. You have to be willing to sacrifice ANYTHING that may be necessary to follow whatever the answer is. It doesn´t just apply to the truth of the church, but to all things. Is tithing really a commandment? Will my family truly be protected if I keep the sabbath day holy? Does living the law of chastity really lead to true and lasting love and happiness? How important is it to share the gospel with others?

People who don`t know need to get down on their knees and plead for revelation that can only come from above. That´s what we told this member. That´s what we told an investigator who was considering dropping everything because he´s not sure if its worth it to live the commandments. That´s what we told the members when we gave talks in church this week. And why is this so important?

"When true doctrine is really understood, attitude and behavior changes" - Boyd K. Packer

There is only one reason why people don`t live up to what they can be...the way God sees them and what their infinite potential really is. And all of this, everything I teach here is true and the only really way to find true happiness and salvation. The message I teach is the most important message people will ever hear.

I know it for myself.

So that was my week. This week is zone conference, and I´ll be leading the practices. I think you have an idea of what I´ll be focusing on.

Love you!
Elder Lund

they look like brains

Here I am, still in Providencia with Elder Novoa, and we´re all set for another transfer of hard work. The members asked President to let us stay, and as it turns out we were the only companionship of ZLs that didn`t have transfers. We´re working a lot to change the mentality of the ward. They´re all willing to come with us to appointments and help bring people to church, but our problem is that its been rather difficult to find investigators. We need people to teach before the members can help us with them, so we´ve been working a lot on that and helping the members understand that they can help search for people to teach, and that it´s actually their responsibility. They think we´re awesome. I just hope the results and miracles come soon. They did a good job helping out Angel, after all, and Angel is awesome.

Tuesday and Wednesday were leadership conference. I`m the second oldest ZL now, but I still learn a lot and have a great time every time we go to these conferences. Actually, do you know why Preach My Gospel was created? It was created to strengthen missionaries, not investigators. It was to change the system, so that the missionary is converted, and then is able to help other people be converted, whereas beforehand the lessons jumped right to the investigator since they were pre-written. Everything has to come from the heart now. It´s fantastic, and that´s the way it should be.

There´s a tasty fruit here that´s called pitaya (or something like that). They´re like cactus bulbs, and you have to peel them carefuly or it burns the skin. Once opened though they´re tasty, even though they look like brains. It´s interesting how many fruits they have here that aren´t in the states, huh? Of course, all the apples here are imported, but still.

Saturday we´ll be eating American style Mexican food with a Canadian, Brother Parry, who just got married to a girl from Sinaloa a month and a half ago. He´s a cool guy. Well I gottsa run! I´ve got all engines running at full speed, trying to make the most of what time I have left. Take care of the family. I´m praying for you all, and for your missionary opportunities. Thank you for helping the work.

Love you!
Elder Lund

HAPPY MOTHERS DAYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I´ll be sending more pictures than words today, if thats okay. It was fantastic to talk to you. I love you all so much and miss you. And I have no idea how I failed to mention it because I was thinking it but HAPPY MOTHERS DAYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You´ve done such a great job. I mean honestly, there aren´t words to describe it. All set for the home stretch!! Here´s some pictures from Angel´s baptism, and some other stuff around town. I´ll send my photo of a picture of me that Elder Flores drew two months ago as well.

Love you!
Elder Lund

Also (and you should put this on the site) I recommend the song "I´m Not Alright" by Sanctus Real. It has nothing to do with my current life, but perhaps it could cheer someone up.

Take care :)

only six months left

Hey, its been a crazy week. We´ve been running all over the place trying to find new investigators and help out the ones we´ve got. Angel is getting baptized this weekend. He´s super awesome, lessons are always super spiritual, and he´s been reading a lot. He´s also gone to activities with the young single adults and done service as well. That´s the good news.

The bad news has to do with his dad, who he came here to take care of because of his health situation. We gave his dad a blessing on Friday, and his breathing immediately improved. However, he was completely bedridden and they couldn´t move him to the hospital. Saturday at 8:55 he passed away. It was rough for Angel, but his uncle was with him. The bishop also made an appearence to help him out. We saw him last night and he´s doing okay now, and we prayed together and left him some things to read that can help him out and keep his mind on better things.

Andrea and all the little kids came to church with one of the primary teachers who picked them up, but Betsy and Patty (the mom) were no-shows again. It´s frustrating because Andrea and Adriana are constantly asking us when they can get baptized and yesterday asked for us to show them the baptismal font. It´s fantastic that they have such love and desires to do the right thing, but we´re stuck between a rock and a hard place because there´s not much adult support.

We also accompanied Juan Carlos to church, a 23 year old who is separated from his daughter and is friends with Guillermo, who is from Guadalajara and is serving in the Mission Cuernavaca. He´s progressing fast as well and wants to set things right with his family and with God.

In total there were 6 people in church as far as our counting is concerned, but with small children and less actives there were about 12. It was a miracle week, as forces outside of our control helped us find these people and help them in the right moments and prepared them to come to chuch and have a great experience.

There´s more to tell, but there isn´t enough time, sadly. I´ve written it all in my journal, because it´s been a crazy week, but those are the basics. President was thinking about taking us out of Providencia, but I´m pretty sure he´s changed his mind now.

That´s awesome that you helped out the sisters....that sort of help is so important and so useful. For us transfers are passed (they tell us) Monday night at like 9pm and we must be on our way to our new areas (directly) by 8am the next morning. Bus or taxi, depending on what´s going on, and zone leaders have to make sure no missionaries are stranded without companions for any given time, unless they´re traveling from city to city by bus.

yikes, there´s only six months left, and waaay too much to do.

Love you!
Elder Lund

Bus rides!

Hey! Today we´re going to Tala for district class. Bus rides!

There´s a family we´re teaching with lady named Patty whose kids are named Betsy (28), Enedina (23ish), Patty (11), Andrea (10), and Salvador (4). Betsy has two kids named Thomas (7) and Adriana (9), and Enedina has two kids named Irving (5) and Regina (2). They all live in the same house and there are no husbands. They have had lots of problems and trials, and are trying to straighten things out. The kids have all really noticed that when they read and pray and go to church and anything like that things get better. Also, Andrea is basically the boss of the group and takes care of all the little kids while the adults wander off in the store they run and things like that. She gets everyone up on Sunday morning and gets them ready for church, and she´s only 10! She´s totally willing to get baptized...we just have to make sure she´ll have the support of her family.

There´s also a 23 year old from LA named Angel who came to church with his uncle too. He seems pretty excited, so we´ll go visit him tomorrow and let you know what happens.

In general this week has been a lot of searching and praying hard, because we don`t have very many people to teach. We´ve been contacting and setting up appointments and getting references, but very few people (actually, almost nobody) has been there for the appointments when we come by. We´re working hard with faith though, and I know God will bless us with success. We just have to be patient and diligent.

We´ve been reading the missionary reference library this week, and I´ve learned a lot more about the pioneers. I´ve been thinking about the family history and whatnot a lot more too. It´s really cool, and it makes me feel closer to them and closer to the work.

Gotta go, Love you!

Say hi to everyone for me.

Hey, can´t write much for having to write a lot of other things, sorry :7

This week we found some families that seem great. There´s a lady named Maria de Jesus who was going to get baptized like a year ago but something happened and she had to go to the states, and says she feels like it wasn´t her time then but now it might be. There´s another girl as well (college student) named Lisset who loved the church on Sunday and has read everything we´ve given her. She even called us on thursday morning to ask for advice because she was in a debate about whether or not religion was necessary in order to follow God, and she told us later that everything turned out fantastic. The only downside is that she´s going back to Sonora tomorrow and she´ll be there for a month. We´re seeing what we can do to keep her progressing while she´s away.

We´ve found a number of other really interested people, but they don`t belong to our area. That´s okay though, because what´s important is that they hear the message. We´re really focusing a lot on finding people and helping out this one family of investigators (and one inactive) because the grandma (head of the family) was sent into the hospital Saturday and is getting surgery today, and so they´re having some hard times. We really are looking for ways to help them out. We´ve already helped them with other problems beforehand, and they have desires to know and do more. They recognize the need to change the way things are in their home.

Well that´s all I can share for now. Thank you so much for writing so frequently. It strengthens a missionary a lot to get news from home. Keep working hard in what you´re doing and praying hard as well. Search for missionary and service opportunities always, and keep faith in the Lord. Say hi to everyone for me.

Love,
Elder Lund

New area!

My companion is named Elder Novoa, and he´s from Hermosillo, Sonora. I´ve known him since I started the mission. When I had dengue, he leant me his suit coat because I was shivering to death when I went to the mission offices for my visa (more than a year ago!). He´s cool and we´re working hard in this new area. The zone is called Unión, and the area is Providencia. I`m still in Guadalajara. Actually, Providencia is to the west of my previous zone and directly beneath Belenes. I totally know this entire half of the city now. My zone also includes certain pueblos that are outside the city, like Tala, Ameca, and the famous and terribly apostate Tequila. Also, the mission president and his family live in our ward.

Actually, Elder Wilde is in Ameca, and his companion is Elder Barbosa (who I know from Independencia). Elder Guzmán is in Tala. Elder Cruz is here in the city in the area known as Estancia. I know everybody!...which makes me feel old.

Oh yeah, and I ate a grasshopper this week.

So general conference was awesome, and I have lots of ideas I want to put in practice in the zone and the area. It´s basically in the same position Independencia was in when I showed up in that it´s a very unsuccessful zone, but if The Lord did it once He can do it again. The plan is to build this zone into one of the best. We have the resources to do it, it just depends on how much we want it. Pray for that, please.

Time is out. We´re leaving the city and going to the district class in Tala today, which should be an adventure.

A couple thoughts: When do I need to register for classes? Also, I hear they are looking for people to be part of the Mystborn movies. Do you know anything about that? I hear it´s a good series and the author is a professor at BYU.

I love you all very much, and am trying my best to make the most of what feels like the apex of my mission here. I need to put everything I´ve learned into practice and spend a lot of time on my knees. There´s not much time left, and I want to do as much as I can.

Love you,
Elder Lund

...I plan on dusting off my hammock!

Well now we know everyones transfers except mine. There´s a new way of doing things, and I won`t be told where I`m going until Zone Leader Council tomorrow, where all the ZLs will be told their transfers at the same time. All I know is that I`m packing my bags. Crazy, no?

This week there were no baptisms, although we came close. There´s a kid named Ruben who is the boyfriend of a member and has been coming to church for the last year more or less (including seminary), but he`s never gotten baptized. We´ve been talking to him, helping him out with some things he needs to change, and answering his questions. He liked the idea of getting baptized this Saturday, but while we were confirming everything another member (who is rather troublesome) showed up and started mocking him, telling him that he doesn`t recommend it, and things like that, including that he´s glad he never went on a mission. Yeah, that was super lame, and that guy has caused other problems before (and continues causing problems). There is a baptismal date for this Saturday though.

Her name is Maria José, and she´s the daughter of Margarita, who is also our investigator. We´re teaching the family together, but Margarita doesn´t feel ready to be baptized yet although she wants to do it (because she`s an angry person), but Maria José is sure. She´s also excited about what she´s learned about chastity and the importance of having a temple, eternal marriage. For a 13 year old, she´s looking very far ahead. This family now has a number of friends in the ward and they´ve already changed a lot. It really amazes me how the gospel changes people. I`m sure the whole family will take the incredibly important step of baptism, the sad part is just that I won`t be here to see it. There´s also another investigator, Dahiam, who is super excited and will be baptized soon (she´s the granddaughter of another member and she´s 19 years old). At least I know I`m leaving the area and the zone in good hands.

We had a meeting yesterday to review how to fill out baptismal records (because apparently there´s been a problem with that) which was really long and detailed, but I learned a thing or two from it. We also cleaned up all the existing record problems in the zone yesterday. All set for the next transfer. There´s so much I`ve learned here, and so much that I`ve done and tried to do. Although it has been by far the hardest part of my mission, I`m very glad that I got to be here in this area and this zone. It´s amazing how God works that way, no?...and how often he forces us to mature and grow. There´s not much else to say for now, and I´ve gotta run...

...but I plan on dusting off my hammock!

Love,
Elder Lund

But have no fear! Elder Lund is here.

Writing a day late (with permission from the President) because we didn`t have time yesterday. We had to shoot down to the offices, the class went long for some things we had to resolve, and we had appointments at night. But have no fear! Elder Lund is here.

So Carlos was baptized on Monday. It was a fantastic baptismal service with lots of people and the spirit was felt very strongly. His wife was also there and she seemed very proud of him. He was confirmed on Sunday. All has been okay on his end. I´ll get pictures to you soon.

Transfers are next week. They still haven`t been finished, or so I`ve been told, but I`ll put my money on going to Puerto Vallarta. I`m usually bad at guessing things like this, but who knows. It`d be nice to get the hammock out again. Here in the area we´re working with the ward mission leader, trying to plan a mini MTC for the ward with mission calls and everything. There´s also a movie night activity for the stake planned for this weekend.

Oh, and EFY is coming to Guadalajara for the first time. Crazy, no? We´re trying to get some investigators signed up for that. We´ll see how that goes...it should be awesome for them. There´s also some sort of single adult EFY. That would be cool to do coming home. Also, oh snap. I don´t like talking about home to people anymore because it´s not that far away! Yikes!

I´m super sore from working out too...Elder Flores is a beast. We´ll see if I can keep it up and inflate these little plastic arms a bit.

So I`m thinking about mathematics with respect to career choices. I don`t know too much about the requirements in the field of computers, but I´ve always had lots of ideas about programs and ideas about how to make the most out of the internet, since its an obscenely powerful tool with a lot of potential that the majority of us don`t make the most of. I think the church is doing a lot of good things with technology and the internet, but I`ve thought of a lot more ideas lately.

No time to write much more since we have an appointment and I still need to register one of our investigators for EFY, but take care and know that I love you. I`m super excited for all the changes that are happening and will be happening soon.

Love,
Elder Lund

P.S. Hopefully those who I can`t really write or who I have no contact with are in possession of my address, so that they can send me stuff (err...I mean....stay in contact with me?). I got the package yesterday (THANK YOUUu!!!!!!!) and will fill out the paperwork ASAP.

God is the one who changes things.

It`s actually fantastic to know that our family is blessed with a strong history of faith on both sides. I´ve wanted to learn more about my family history for some time now.

Tuesday and wednesday of last week were leadership conference. This time there was less watching J Tyler and more practices. My companion and I were asked beforehand to give a demonstration of how to introduce someone to the Book of Mormon. I had a great time, recognized a good number of things I want to change in the way I work, and we also got to go to the temple. I learned some important things about how to help out the zone and the area (since our job is to turn it around). Honestly, God is the one who changes things and works miracles, but we`re putting a lot of faith into the work and trying really hard to do things right, and we`re seeing progress. There were baptisms this week and within a month I really believe there will be baptisms every week. These are the Lord`s people and He is preparing them. We simply need to have faith and do our part, praying for His help, and He takes care of the rest.

Take Carlos for example. He`s an older man of 68 years who has been smoking and drinking all his life. Yesterday and last week, however, he came to church in a white shirt, well shaven and with his hair combed, and had a great time at church for the second time. He will be baptized today. Britanny was baptized at last on the 5th. I`ll try to send some pictures. It was a beautiful service and it really has helped strengthen that family, which has been through a lot. She`s acting different too...more mature, actually.

Tomorrow is zone conference, and I`m in charge of it. I have to give two themes (prayer and the BoM) as well as run and organize everything. It`s crazy, but also crazy fun. That`s what I`ll be spending all of today doing (and getting ready for the baptism).

In other news, one of our investigators, Yuri, just had her baby and is now on bedrest for 40 days. They´re super excited and happy, even though it`s a lot of work. I can`t believe I have friends approaching that stage. Crazy. Also, there`s a young man who is the only member of his family who we`ve taken under our wing and comes with us to lots of appointments all week. He wasn`t planning on going on a mission and his friends are bad influences, but he`s changing a lot. His name is Toño.

Well I`ve gotta run. Love you lots, and take care!
Elder Lund

We threw a baby shower!

This week things have really started rolling. I do think it`s possible that we`ll be able to get to the point fo baptizing every week if we really concentrate on it and spend a lot of time on our knees and in our books. There are three baptismal dates this weekend for the zone, and one of them is the long-awaited Britany. Her dad is able to walk a little, but still won`t be able to baptize her, so they`ve given us the official green light to organize everything. It will be Saturday at 5, along with the baptism of her 8 year old cousin (who also wants me to perform the ordinance since his dad can`t either). We`re starting to bury (or more correctly God is starting to bury) the reputation this zone has had for a long time and change things, and hopefully it continues. The missionaries are good and trust in the Lord, so honestly I can`t take much credit for the success.

I spent Wednesday in divisions with Elder Cruz (a different one), who is one of our new district leaders. He has only been on the mission for six months, but is doing a great job. We talked a lot and he had a lot of questions about how to be a good district leader. It`s humbling that he asks me those types of questions, because honestly I wasn`t a particularly good one.

Thursday, we threw a baby shower for Yuri, one of our investigators who is about to give birth. She and her significant other had a good time and were really able to break the ice with the members. They also spent an evening at the house of our ward mission leader and they had a great chat for hours. We need to go see if we can find them though, because they didn`t make it to church Sunday and I`m pretty sure because the baby came. Exciting! Also, she`ll be getting married to her boyfriend soon as well. I`ll let you know as things progress.

That same day an older man called out to us on the street, and said he wanted us to help him get baptized. He visited the church 30 years ago in Tijuana, and he ran into the missionaries not too long ago and they gave him a pamphlet. We brought him to church, he loved it, and he wants to be baptized on the 14th. Super exciting. We still need to pray a lot for him though, because we need to help him stop smoking.

Friday was our big "Flag Day" activity, where we mixed the themes of the Mexican Flag and the Title of Liberty. There was a rally, a flag-making base, a vido, and some games of volleyball. Margarita, one of our investigators who really wants to change but is rather shy, went to the activity with her son and they had a blast. A less-active named Maribel brought her kids and also had a great time. We´re really trying to help these people out on all fronts. More than anything we need to pray for them, so that God can work in their hearts, minds, and lives the things we simply are not able to do or sometimes fail to do.

Pleas pray for our investigator named Sofi. She really wants to go to church and change her life and family by coming unto Christ (she even wants her son to be a missionary), but she needs to find a different job. Her plan was to quit her job today and start searching for work. We´re praying that she finds a good one that will help her provide for her family and at the same time be able to spend time with the family and dedicate Sundays to God.

In other news, zone leader council is tomorrow and wednesday, and we`ll also be going to the temple. Super excited! Also, the asistents asked me how long I`m willing to stay in Arquitectura. Perhaps I`ll be here quite a while longer. I`m ok with that though, because I`m finally figuring out how to focus the missionary work here. Elder Flores is learning a lot and coming a long jsut fine. He`s a very happy guy and gets along well with people.

Well gotta run. Love you all lots!

Elder Lund

I´m still here in Arquitectura

I´m still here in Arquitectura, but now I´m training Elder Flores as a zone leader. I saw him start the mission in Colima. He´s a fantastic artist, actually, and we are composing a few songs together as well. We´re both super excited for this transfer, and so is the whole zone. There were three baptisms in the zone on Saturday and everybody is excited and ready to work hard. Things feel like they´re changing here.

We had a good meeting with our new ward mission leader and worked out some detailed plans and now he´s getting to work on his part. The Elder´s quorum president worked with us all day yesterday as well, which was pretty cool. We´ve been having some trouble getting people to come to church, but we´re putting even more into assuring that they´ll be comfortable there and that they have transportation and everything else we can think of. We´re also trying to find new, good investigators every day.

I plan on keeping in touch with a good number of the friends I´ve made here, and it won´t be that hard either. Many are going to (or planning on going to) BYU, and everyone in the world seems to have a facebook now. It won´t be awfully difficult. I have indeed changed a lot as well, and a word that comes to mind is "temperance". Everything has a balance and must be put in its proper place and at its proper time, with what God asks of us leading the parade. That extends even to my future, as I learn to sort talents and interests into the little slots where they all belong in order to become and do what I want, and what God wants. It´s all about perspectives and priorities.

So here I am, doing my best to preach the gospel, help my new companion, and take care of the zone. I´m feeling pretty good. I´ll let you know how things are going with the investigators as things develop. For now I´ll recommend that you look up the artist Phil Wickham. He has some good stuff, from what I´ve heard. You´ll have to let me know what you think.

Love,
Elder Lund

So let's see...

Happy Valentines Day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It´s so crazy to think that I´m on the downhill slope and will be seeing you all before too long. Thanks so much for teaching me all that I know and helping me become who I am.

So let´s see...transfers are tomorrow. They´ll tell us what´s going on tonight at 6PM, but right now I still don`t have a clue if I`m staying or going. The good news is that the ward finally has a ward mission leader and the sacrament attendance is going up. Things are starting to stabilize. We´ve also found a lot of people to teach and who want to listen to us...but the trick is getting them to church. So far nobody has kept their promise to come. We plan on reexplaining the importance of the sabbath day, making it as easy as possible for them to go (getting rides, passing by for them in the morning, etc.) and seeing if they change. If not, we´ll have to keep looking for more people and let them go. There has been a big focus on searching for the elect, as in those who hear the voice of the Lord and do not reject it (which means keeping their commitments). I´m sure we can find many, we just need to have faith and do our best to find them.

So remember Elder Talbot? He´s Assistant right now, and we did divisions on Friday. I went with him to his area, and Elder Gutierrez (his companion who is from Ecuador) stayed in Arquitectura with Elder Cruz. It was a difficult day because almost all the appointments fell through, but the two lessons that didn´t fall through were good ones and it was a good experience to work with Elder Talbot again. We´ve changed so much since we were greenies living in the same house in Colima.

Britany´s dad is back in the hospital. He´s not doing so well, but at least he´s stable. The baptism has been put off by the family until he´s well enough to at least be present and see it happen...I don`t know when that will be, but for now we´ll have to help them out in what we can and focus more time on other investigators.

Today we´ve organized a carne asada with the zone (including the missionary couple that arrived not too long ago) in a park overlooking the barranca (the same place as last time) which will serve as a good way to destress the missionaries who are working hard but having a hard time, and say goodbye to two really good elders (Elder Sorensen and Elder Thomas) who are going home tomorrow. After that we´ll have district class and get to work.

I haven´t gotten any mail yet, but it only comes every once in a while anyways. It all gets sent to the offices, and then when the secretaries or the president have a special reason to see the zone leaders, they give them the mail for their zone. We still haven´t seen anything yet, but they are probably waiting for transfers before sending everything out, so as to not send letters to the wrong places. I did get a letter from Uncle Shaun not too long ago though (well, about a month ago), as well as the Bragonjes and Brother Lindsay. I haven`t been able to thank them for their cards, but it´s always good for a missionary to get mail.

Well, at least the missionaries who have no fear of getting a "Dear John", right?

Well, it´s time to run. Take care, behave yourself, and thank you so much for the scriptures and talk. I´ll look into them as soon as possible. Love the pictures too. Take care.

Love,
Elder Lund