Nov 2, 2015

To my dear friends and family,

Only 1 week left in this transfer! It's crazy how fast this time has flown by! Things have been going well down here in Juarez, And Halloween was a blast! No, we didn't actually do anything for Halloween, but we pass by a lot of kids with fun costumes!  This year I was dressed up as a Mormon! During the night, a few cars drove by and we could hear the kids yelling out "Look! Mormons!", so I think I nailed my costume too :)

This week the thought on my mind has been about our trials and our faith. I was reading a quote that I had in my scriptures (one of those nifty little things that you get in seminary) and it was talking about such trials. It more or less said, "When we are struck by an extremely difficult trial, we will find out what it is that we truly believe. And these beliefs are what either anchor us, or betray us."  So pray. Read the scriptures. We know that trials will come, they always do, but how will we prepare ourselves? Will we be able to respond with an increase of faith? Or will our faith diminish eventually fade away?

So I hope you all had a wonderful holiday, and I hope that all will remember me while eating your Halloween candy.
Sed de buen animo! Dios provera.
Elder David Phillips

First off, let's talk about all them rules!

1) That's difficult, because I'm not trying to sell off my sister. I just have a photo in my wallet and when the other missionaries see it, they suddenly decide that after the mission they want to visit Boise. Honest, I don't even have to try. 

And yup. That's it. But oh well. I guess i just won't show off photos of my wonderful family :'(

Haha, ok. And yes, we have our Zone meeting this Monday (not today, but the 8th i think). 

It is super sad that Sister Nettles passed away this week. I'm glad that you're helping take care of Kate and I hope that everything goes well for them!

Thanks for the photos too! It's crazy how fast everyone is getting married! I've only been gone a few months but everyone's getting hitched! And happy Halloween! Did you know that here on the border they celebrate Halloween too? It isn't nearly as big, and it's a lot more dangerous, but you can still see groups of people going door to door in their costumes. I love the pumpkins and all the costumes this year, they're super awesome! And tell the girls that they look super adorable in their outfits! 

And a bit of bad news. We did not have a baptism. It is difficult when this happens. We've been trying to help this family so much, but It's time for us to let them go for a while. They still have problems that they need to sort out, but in time, I hope that we will be able to help them again.

Wish Katie and Connor andTom and Kelsey the best of luck for me!

I Love you mom! Thanks for all your help and support! 

Elder Phillips

Heyyo Daddyo!

It is a real downer. But I'm kinda glad. Not in a mean or rude way or anything, but because she's not suffering anymore. And like you said, there are some good things coming out of it too. Parker learning more about the church, Hunter going to the BSU Ward. I'm glad that they're looking towards Christ in these difficult times for them. I remember going with you one time to give Margi a blessing too. It was a very spiritual experience. I am glad that she is now resting.

And Halloween! This year I was dressed up as a Mormon! During the night, a few cars drove by and we could hear the kids yelling out "Look! Mormons!", so I think I nailed my costume too :)

That family sounds awesome! I'm glad to hear that ours isn't the only nerdy family out there :)

This box of yours sounds pretty amazing too! But unfortunately, it has not arrived yet :( I believe that it may be here already, but I won't get it until next monday at our zone meeting. I Can't Wait!!

Also, Our mission president gave us permission to grow out a mustache this past week. So Here's a picture of your son: An official fat mexican.

I Love You!

Elder Phillips

On Sun, Nov 1, 2015 at 9:19 PM, Dave Phillips <boisedwp@gmail.com> wrote:

So this has been s tough week. Margi nettles finally passed away. It has been a long time in the making. I think that it was a year and a half ago that I first went over there to help Greg give her a blessing. I still remember it. The spirit was so strong. Unfortunately she never got better. Just last Thursday Greg asked me again to come over and give her a blessing one last time. She actually looked pretty good. She was weak and had lost a lot of weight, but she looked good and was talkative and had some energy.  I blessed her to be comforted , able to sleep, able to rest, and have peace.  It is crazy that less than 5 days later she had passed.

During the past year or two Greg and I have met for lunch many times while Margi has been fighting the cancer. It has been known for some time that she would not get better. Many times he cried and we would just talk about things that are really important. It is crazy to think now that he has kids to raise by himself. We try to help all we can. Kate and Tadman come over a lot. It is great to have them here.

A few good things are already happening though, Parker has asked to take the discussions to learn more about the church. And hunter has asked for when and where the BSU student wards meet. I hope they come back. That would be great. Also, Greg has never been stronger in the gospel than he is right now. He is a great guy.

Sorry for all that stuff. Kind of a downer. The important take away is that it is only through our savior Jesus Christ that we are able to return to our Heavenly Father, be forgiven, and be together as families forever. This is all so much more real now after watching the nettles go thru this trial.

Now for a change of pace:

Halloween was great. I dressed up as a middle-aged curmudgeon. Yup, I nailed it!!  The buckners had us and others over for chili and then we hung out in the saints driveway with a campfire while we gave free candy to all the beggars that stumbled by. There were a lot this year. It was a good time. There was one family that came by with 3 little girls. They were like 6, 4, and 1 year old. The 6 year old was dressed and Dr Who, the 4 year old was a Dalek, and the 1 year old was an Adipose baby!  They were AWESOME. After the 4 year old got candy from mom, here mother said, "and what do you say?"  Her reply: "EXTERMINATE,". It was the best ever.

So it was about a week and a half ago that I shipped a box to you. Has it arrived?  There is lots of good stuff in it that will be tasty. Be sure to let me know what specific stuff you want:  I do take requests!

Have a great week. Keep up the great work. You are awesome!

David Phillips