MARCH 14, 2016

Awesome! What a crazy weekend! And David Johnson is the bishop now! 

Here on my end there hasn't been a lot of new stuff going on. Except the Transfers! That's right, Today is transfer day! Elder Kopsa will be heading off to Casas Grandes-Villa Hermosa to be the companion of Elder Ramirez, one of my ex-companions!  And I will be sticking around here in Mezquital and...Drum roll please.... Training Elder Madín! That's right! He's coming from Mexico City, Mexico. From a part called Cuautepec! He's coming in Green, straight from 2 weeks in the Mexico MTC! I'm feeling super excited to be training again and I can't wait to meet him!

This week we were walking and we found a tarantula wandering around. I wanted to get a picture, but he ran away pretty quickly and I didn't get the chance. We're out here on the edge of Juarez where it meets the Desert. They say that there're loads of them, but this was the first I've seen up close.

The weather down here's gotten really windy and dirty. There was so much dirt and sand getting blown around that for a few days it blocked out the sky! You could look up and just see brown. The sky was brown! It was crazy! They say that March is usually windy but that it'll be getting worse in the upcoming weeks. Wish me luck!

This last week we lost several families of investigators. It was rough. We had been visiting them for a long time now, up until this week when we determined that they really don't have a desire to repent (change their lifestyle) and be baptized.  A common mentality down here is: "My mother was a catholic. I was born and baptized Catholic. I will die Catholic." We invite them to ask God what he wants for them, but  they are blind. Here's one of our recent conversations at the end of a lesson: 

Us: "If God told you that you need to change, would you do it?"

Them: "Yes, of course"

Us: "Ok, so how can you ask him if you need to change?"

Them: "By praying"

Us: "Exactly! Would you like to know which church is true? Would you be willing to change if God tells you to?"

Them: "Yes and yes."

Us: "Great! Will you pray and ask God specifically if this is his church? Will you ask him tonight?"

Them: "Hmm... No. My church is the Catholic. I don't want to change."

Us: "....."😕😢

I swear they must be brainwashing them over there. We had been visiting that family for a few months now, we'd taught them about the Restoration several times, the necessity of the Priesthood, baptism, They believe that the Book of Mormon is true and all, The wife was even baptized when she was 8 (but their family then left the church and she went back to the Catholic)!

 

 The good news is that we learned from it. If you don´t tell them straight up that Baptism is our goal for them, they´ll have a much harder time being prepared for it. The same with the Restoration. We must explain these points to the people in the first visit or two to establish the expectations for our visits. If we don't, they'll never progress and they'll end up like those families this week.

I can truly testify to you that This is God's church. That this is the only way to have happiness and peace eternally. We can have the Spirit in our lives, a divine guide that comes directly from God! But only if we're willing to repent and change our lives. I testify of that, in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.

I Love you!

Elder Phillips

(John and I got to email back and forth a few times today, that is always fun! )

I'm glad to hear that Justin came to church! Tell him to write me! I'm not sure if he's got my Email Address, but he hasn't written me yet! Ever! I think I wrote him just about every week while he was gone, and now I'm getting kind of Cheesed off because he hasn't even written me once! But ewither way, I'm glad that he'll be going to school in BYU now. It'll be a good environment for him.

Are those pictures of the Meridian Temple? Or the one in Utah? it looks great! And beautifully cloudy too! 

Have a great week!

I Love You!

Elder Phillips