JOY IN EVERY MOMENT

Lots of food because it was Father's Day in Italy last Sunday

Hello everyone and happy SPRING!! I have been waiting for this day for a while. I love spring for tons of reasons. Mainly because it means that the cold is over.

 Well this week was definitely one of the most hectic weeks of my mission. We got to pick up the new arriving missionaries from the airport! That is always such a blast to see the new missionaries that are about to start the best adventure of their lives. We also woke up very early to take the finishing missionaries to the airport. That is sad for me because I say goodbye to some good friends that I have made in the mission. In the mix off all the craziness, Anziano Simmons and I were still able to escape and meet with some people in Lodi. We finally got our order of 5000 english flyers and we and handed tons out! Our goal is to make our english class humungous, because it is so much fun and we find lots of great people through it.

Office glasses day

 A couple weeks ago we met a 74 year old man named Angelo. He has been inviting us over ever since because he wants to learn more about the church. He is such a nice old man, but he can barely walk and he lives on the 3rd floor of his building. We love meeting with him and helping him walk up his stairs when we can. It is pretty awesome how although we only have a few hours each day to do our meeting and teaching, we still manage to find time to help people learn and come to church. Its not an easy feat but we are definitely blessed to have found and teach the people we teach.

 

Trying to be studious

 There is amazing talk by Elder Nelson called "Joy and Spiritual Survival". After reading it and sharing it with a few people, I have reflected a lot at the fact that it really is possible to be happy and
have joy in even the most difficult of times. He explained that it all comes down to what we make our focus in life. 'Joy is powerful, and focusing on joy brings God's power into our lives. As in all things, Jesus Christ is our ultimate exemplar, '"Who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross .'" Think of that! In order for Him to endure the most excruciating experience ever on the earth, our Savior focused on the joy!' If we focus on Jesus Christ, and in the positives in all things, we can always have joy.

 I love you all! Have an awesome week.

A car that says "Laguna" on it!!

March 18, 2017

Hello everyone!

I hope you all had an awesome week! For us, this week was super great because we had 2 baptisms. Choice and Charles were baptized last Thursday night and everything went really well. These two guys are like brothers and it was so cool to see them grow as much as they have. It is pretty hard to juggle office work and missionary work but Anziano Simmons and I have been able to as much as possible. This is the first baptism for Lodi since more than a year so we are super happy. Great news is that we should have another baptisms in April for a 9 year old boy named Presley. We are honestly so grateful to have missionary work to do because when office life gets you feeling down, you have appointments with amazing people to look forward to.

P-day Bowling

 This week in the office was great as usual. I have been able to design new stickers and other things to order for the mission. Each day is full of helping out missionaries and taking care of business. I made a massive order of the new 2017 Easter pass along cards which look super cool! We prepared for the new transfers this week which is always fun because we get to find out where everyone is going a few days before the mission knows. Serving with President and Sorella Allen, along with the other people in the office is probably one of the most enjoyable things about my mission. They are such happy, fun, loving, people that always try to lift you up.

Amazing Peruvian Food!

 Yesterday we taught a really nice 21 year old who hasn't been to church in a pretty long time. We ended up talking for a really long time about receiving answers and gaining a testimony of the truth. At one point, he looked at me and Anziano Simmons and asked why we are members of the church. It was a question that people don't ask me as much as I expect them to. I looked at him and told him exactly why I am a member of the church.  I was able to tell him with such a strong conviction because I really did know the reason why. I am so glad that I know why I am serving a mission, why I am dedicating such an important time of my life to this work, and why I continue to be a faithful member despite all the opposition. I know this church is true. In no other place or time of my life have I been happier.

 

Baptism for Choice and Charles!

I love you all. I hope you have a great week!