Week 57 - Stay Focused on the Temple

Did I ever tell you I love Mondays? It's P Day!

Well we cleaned the house today it was great. Thanks for thinking about me on your way to work. That makes me feel good. I'm glad you like my emails and the photos I send. I probably won't be able to send photos today because my camera died. I left the charger for the batteries in Villa Gorgona. And well the other elders haven't sent me my charger yet. I guess I'll have to start buying batteries again, I really don't want to. They are expensive.

Thanks for letting me know about Grandma Pead. I hope she gets better. Tell her I love her and I am praying for her.

That's cool you got tickets to go to General conference. There are so many people here who would kill to go to conference.

That is cool that you are painting Jarrett's room.
Wait, I have a question are you going to be painting his room or my room? Because Jarrett is in my room right now. I'm so confused. I just want to know what color my room will be.

My companion is sitting right here next to me bugging me. He is from Peru but he acts like he's from Mexico. He is cool.

I was reading  your email. You said, enjoy the time I have left in my mission. I was like dad I have so much time left why are you telling me to make sure to enjoy it? Every day I am enjoying it. Please stop saying things like that. Really I am having lots of fun. And yes I will keep smiling.

Yes, my district consists of my companion and I and the sister training leaders. Everyone in my district is cool. One of the sisters is from Mexico and the other is from Bolivia. The sister from Bolivia, Hermana Limachi, always stops and talks to everyone she sees. If a couple walks by, she talks to them.  If a family walks by she talks to them. When we are going to church or to a meeting with them we never get there on time because she always stops and talks. That is a good thing though. I told her that she taught me a lesson without even speaking to me. I need to do better at talking to people I see.

In the district I was in before there were 8 total missionaries. There was always something to do, small problems to try to help with. Here in this district I call the sisters to get their reports and they tell me  " we are good, we're sister training missionaries were always fine". We are helping The sisters with one of their investigators. And we are trying to get our area to progress along.

I have learned super much these past two weeks.  No dad, I didn't find any long-lost relatives at the zoo.

I told you last week about Elder Uceda. He taught us a lot of good stuff and got us working even better. I am really happy to be a missionary right now, in this time. I have been focusing a lot on my study and the Scriptures. And yes dad, I am reading the Scriptures in Spanish. I only look up certain words in the English scriptures for point of reference of translation. Elder Uceda told all of the Latin missionaries to study in English. Because English is the language of the restoration and there are certain words that don't translate as correctly in other languages. And you can understand more of the doctrine that way.

I have been studying Moisah chapter 2. In the past I would study and read quickly and get through the chapters. But this week I have been focusing really hard to study more in depth. In one week I haven't even finished the chapter yet. It's weird to see how much I've been studying. There are things I have learned in this chapter that are very essential. They have impacted me with my study, with my testimony, and how I teach. When we teach the people to know about these things, I think about the experiences I've had. And I can feel the spirit in me. And I can tell them that I can feel the spirit that they are feeling the spirit. I can feel the spirit inside of me coming out and it's not me talking.

I have felt the spirit many times during my mission but during these past weeks I have felt it so much more. And I know and understand how essential it is to teach with the spirit.  Without the spirit we don't have success. If we don't have success we cannot help other people be baptized and come unto Christ.

This chapter is so great it talks about families, it talks about the prophets, about who they are. It talks about leaders, it talks about service. It just talks about everything. I just keep reading and reading and reading and learning great things.  One of the great things I love is in verse 36,37 and 38.  It's hard to describe how I feel when I read this.  What I learned from this is that if we need to obey the things that King Benjamin spoke about.  We need to obey the commandments. If we don't we will feel anguish and hurt like a fire that cannot be put out. This taught me a lot. I can look back when I was younger a few years ago and I understand feelings I had when I didn't do the things that I should have. And I understand why it is so important keep the commandments. I find it so cool that I am not just telling people and teaching them that they need to keep the commandments , but  that I know and understand why it is so important to keep them.

I love studying the Scriptures I wish we had more time than just one hour to study. This week has changed me a lot. I can't believe I'm learning all this great stuff. I love how this chapter talks about how the people pitched their tents with the doors facing the temple. We need to apply this in our lives and always need to have our focus on the temple. We need to keep the temple in sight. The things that we do, we need to ask will they help us get to the temple or will they help us stray from the temple.

There are so many things that I've learned this week. I have like five pages of notes. It helps so much when we teach because I know these things for fact.  They are things that I have learned and not something that I've only read out of a book.

We always need to learn and study and do better. I am so happy and excited to work.

I love all you guys a lot like a lot.

Remember families can be together forever.

Have a great week.

Elder Pead

Week 56- Great Meeting with Area President and Visit to the Zoo

So this week, we had the great opportunity to hear from Elder Uceda.
he is the Area President and well, what can I say.  It was the best experience.

Our mission is the best in the area of finding people, but the people don't commit, we use good techniques and all, but we really did fault in something.  It was like, news to my ears. We talked a lot about preach my gospel and how it really helps, because if we are the best with using techniques, great but if we can't help people with their problems, they will not change.

So the mission will change.  Again.  But this time, it's for a reason. I'm so excited. Like dramatically excited.

This week my companion and I have been trying to work on our faith.  How it works with contacting and during the lessons. We have had miracles happen, things that are just amazing.

We have felt the spirit and I just want it with us en every lesson we can have.

I'm so sorry my English is crap and my spelling horrid.(Good thing his Dad corrects all the mistakes before putting on the blog.)

We are putting to test the promises made by Elder Uceda, and we will see the results this week.

We are still finding people, and the people we find are well, different, all with different problems. So we need to study every day, every chance we have until we know how to help them.

This letter is really kind of here and there, but I know that I'm just really really excited to see how this week goes. We have a lot to do, and well, I'm just happy.

Its weird, sometimes it's really just how our attitude is and how we want to deal with things that counts. If we deal with it well, we will do well. You know give up the bad things and do the good things.

love you all.

Elder Pead

ps. lots of fotos de zoo





Click on Video above or on Link below.


Link to video

District Activity at the Zoo

Never was good at using a map

Meeting with Elder Uceda

Week 55 - Surprise Transfer

Questions from Mom:

Did you like the Missionary figures she sent?
Yes I liked them.
mama, porque el negro misionero es Misionero numero 2 y el gringo misionero es Misionero numero 1. eso es racista!!! jaja chiste chiste.  (Mom, why is the darker missionary, Missionary number 2 and the lighter skined one Missionary number 1?  That is racist.  Just kidding)


What did your companion think of what she sent him?
My companion is loved the letter. and the gift.
El gritó ¨MUCHO HERMANA PEAD¨

Glad you enjoyed the Kool-Aid. What was your favorite flavor?
My favorite flavor was The blue ice lemonade, tropical blue punch and the  purplesaurus rex.

What was your reaction to the Lego T-shirt?
I DIED WHEN I SAW THE LEGO SHIRT.
Todo es increíble!!(everything is awesome)

Have you written your grandparents in Venezuela it yet?
I have sent the letter. Don't worry


Where are you getting your skinny pants from?  
oh the baptismal pants are not mine. the sister missionaries had a baptism that week and the young man asked me to baptize him. So we went to Elder Parvina's house and he was the only one who had pants.  He is skinny.

Question from Dad.

Do you still hate me because my feet stink? (Long running joke)
and no dad I do not hate you because your feet stink.
... because now my feet stink too.




Letter

Jarrett and his mustache. dang Looking good . Yeahhhh Austin is legal. Go buy some Dry Ice by yourself and show that ID and let's make root beer... I miss that a lot.

Dad, preach my gospel says that when you have a testimony, share it. so you better bear your testimony about BYU football. You have too. haha.(I told Dallin, I was going to get up in testimony meeting and express how the church has to be true because BYU football has won two "miracle" games.)

Well, the food I have been eating lately is Good. I just love the juice.  I can't handle when I come home I will not have all the exotic fruits to drink.

I'm not the only Lego nerd in the Mission. But in my zone I believe I am.
...
So this week... on Friday after a great activity where we had over 7 investigators come the stake center to watch Meet the Mormons and also a bus full of members from Villa Gorgona, I got a call at 9:40 in the night.
I got a informal transfer. extra oficial.
So I'm now in Cali. Apparently a few missionaries have been real pitiado(done some stupid things) aqui and well,  transfers were needed. so I'm in Cali, the heart of the mission.
I'm the district leader here and have the Hermanas Entrenadoras de Cali (Sister Training Missionaries of Cali, in my district)...
Tenas.
Lots to live up to haha.

We went to KFC today, to help me get out of the ¨extraoficiales¨ sadness I had.
The mission is really different here in Cali. It's hard. But that's where the miracles come in.
...
I love you guys so much.
A lot.
I hope you all have a good week.
Oh yeah, my comp is Elder Sanchez from Peru.
Oh and mom, I met a sister missionary from Venezuela!!

Love you guys.

Elder Pead

Saying Goodbye

Killer Dog

This is used to defend yourself from the dog

Bus Ride to Meet the Mormons

Sad about Transfer News

Saying Goodbye

Packing up all those belongings 

The Bartman welcomes Elder Pead to Cali

Elder Sanchez

A little KFC to perk you up

Loving the Popcorn Chicken

Zone Conference from a few weeks ago.

Week 54- Everything is Awesome

Hey,

So I got the package... everything is awesome. Thank you so much. My district and I loved it. We ate all the candy and drank all the kool aid, it's so great. haha. The best part was the shirt of course.

This week was great, we still have a lot of stuff to do. Our two investigators Monica and Sergio had a little bit of a setback. But we are working with them and they are excited to continue to progress towards baptism. Everything is fine here. We are doing really good. We had a few changes in the district. The mission shut down Sebas 3. Now your son has a Guatemalan companion. I am in a trio with Elder Mendez and Elder Tovar. He is cool. And he is "dying". He only has about six weeks or five weeks left in the mission. So I will have my first companion who "I will kill". You know as in I'll be their last companion. There is another trio in our district. We have a new sister missionary with us. Sister Garcia was transferred. She is a great missionary, I'm sad she is leaving. Her companion, Sister Zárate will be training a brand-new missionary.

In two weeks we will have a activity. We are going to the meeting house for Barrio Las Américas. It is the largest meeting House in Cali.  We are going to listen to the president of the 70 of this area. He has a new way of teaching he wants to show us.  It should be great.

I'm glad you guys had fun with your barbecue for Labor Day. I saw your pictures. Uncle Darren looks like a wild man with his beard. Bowen looks really tall.

That's about it for this week, we are doing great. We found this great less active family. They are really cool. It looks like we will be able to get them back to church and possibly baptize the father.

Thank you guys so much. Thanks for the package. It was great.

One of the great things about the mission is you get to see the world and how it is. And how it affects people who don't have the gospel, and how it affects those who don't live the principles of the Gospel once they have it.

I love all you guys and hope you have a great week.

Elder Pead

Week 53 - Don't Stress

Hey Mom and Dad,

Hopefully the photos will load up today. Last week they didn't want to load up to dropbox.  They were taking forever. When that happens I have to kind of start over. It's a long story and I really don't want to think about it.

Things are going good here, we are still looking for more people to teach. It's kind of stressful sometimes. We're working hard but a lot of times people just don't want to listen, they're doing their thing. "oh we are really busy, oh sorry don't have time". We do have our investigator ready to be baptized. We are really happy about that. But a big part of the work is always trying to find new people. That's where we get stressed out sometimes.  Sometimes this mission seems very different. Sometimes it feels like it is all about the stats. It is like sometimes they want us to improve every second. Always have to do better. What can I tell you?  We will continue to work hard. We will continue to improve.  We must do it.  We will do it.

Oh dad, thanks for reminding me again to obey the mission rules it's always good to be reminded and as a district leader I must be a very good example. I'm seeing a difference of how I do things now. My companion is very different and he has taught me a lot of good things. He keeps reminding me that we must always do our best and be happy and not stress out about so many little things. He has noticed a lot of the missionaries that have been good in the past seem to be getting stressed out and because of that they start to fall off a little bit. I understand now why sometimes we need to just take a minute to breathe and relax a little bit. But we must continue to work hard and then relax a little.

I'm glad you guys are doing fine. And yes I will tell the secretaries in the mission office that you are very disappointed in them for not getting my package out to me in a timely manner. I guess I will get it someday, I don't know when.  Everything is good and I am happy.

Be sure and tell Jarrett I love him. Mom you're so great, I love you. I'm sad to report that with the little conflict that Venezuela is having with the Colombians in The border town of Cúcuta, I have had to not tell people that my mother is from Venezuela. I had a guy yell at me and was very upset. So I just tell them that I have a gringo father and I have a Latin mother.

I love you guys superduper much. I hope you have a great week. Wow still hard to believe that I have one year down in the mission. It still feels like I've only been out for like six months. Super weird. Talk to you guys next week hopefully I won't be transferred. Hopefully hopefully.

Love,

Elder Pead