The Work Continues

Hey guys!!!

Well it sounds like every week you guys are getting busier and busier! But way to go Grant and Caden with those merit badges, and Kendall and Audrey with your dancing skills! Dad sent me the video but it won't let me watch it... so you guys should send it again! And I can't believe Grant turns 14 next week. That's crazy! You guys need to stop growing up so fast and wait for me to get home. Haha, but the hermana that we are teaching invited us to eat dinner with them on her birthday (the 28th) so it's ALMOST like i'll be celebrating his birthday too. So a few of you asked me this week in your letters about what advice i have as far as helping you guys use preach my gospel and how to better prepare the kids for future missions. And i think it's a greatttt idea to start using preach my gospel in family home evenings!! There's a lot of power in there and you guys will be able to find a lot of good ideas in there. There's a section that recently we have been using a lot to teach the members how to share the gospel and it's chapter 9, and there you'll be able to find easy ways to recognize opportunities to share the gospel and whatever fear or impediment you might have comes there too. And specifically the section called "The importance of Members". And as far as advice in helping you guys turn the home into the MTC as you were taught in the fireside, the first thing i would say is set goals!! Lots and lots of goals, as far as scripture study, Preach My Gospel study, giving Family Home Evening lessons, sharing the gospel with friends, inviting people to church. Everything! Goals will help a ton i feel like. And in chapter 8 of PMG there's a part specifically about that that's super helpful. So i hope this helps you guys a little bit!

Well this week was pretty interesting here in my area. There were a couple shootings nearby which was kinda intense, so there were a couple nights were we didn't get much sleep. But nothing has happened to us so that's good. Dad asked me if Monclova is safer than Saltillo and I would have to say that the situation here is worse.There's a lot of neighborhoods where the missionaries can't go in because of all the problems there.  I think it gets more dangerous the more north you go in our mission. And that sentence sounds ugly but idk how to change  it to make it sound better... Haha i was talking to Elder Lopez the other day that i am legitimately forgetting English now. But i'm still not completely fluent in Spanish either, so it's like i can't even communicate anymore... hahaha. It's not that extreme but it's kinda funny.  I think i've already told you guys this but i've started to dream in spanish now! Which is really cool! Weird... but cool. Again we had 7 investigators in church yesterday, the L family and then F. So that was pretty cool! They all have 4 times in church (except E who has 8) so technically they could be baptized next week. But they're still a little stubborn, so we gotta work with them a lot this week to help them with all the little doubts that they have. But I feel like soon they should be prepared and ready to take a baptism. And with F the problem is her mom, who doesn't like that she goes to church at all. So we have to talk with her more in order to get her blessing to baptize F, because F already wants to do it. So we have some pretty great investigators right now!!

Well that's all i got for you guys right now, but i'll try to respond to each of you individually!! Love you guy and i hope you have a great week!!!

Why Missionaries Leave for Two Years

Hey guys!!! Well from all the letters it sounds like you guys are all pretty much super stars and kick some trash in everything!! I'm glad i could pass along all of my soccer and scouting (and Dancing for Kendall) skills to all of you!:) And thanks a ton Dad for sending me my patriarchal blessing, i've been DYING to read it again so thanks a lot! And also i loved your letter! The little every day thing is really cool! Kendall does that to and i think it's sweet! And I was able to learn a lot reading about what you're teaching in seminary. And the pictures that mom sent me of Kendall and Audrey are the best! Audrey's too stinkin' cute. And Kendall... i guess you are too:) but i LOVE getting pictures and videos from you guys, just throwing that out there. The more pictures the better.

Well it's been another great week here in Monclova! On Tuesday, the week started off with divisions with Elder Harrington, we went to his area right after the Zone meeting and Elder Vera (our DL) went with Lopez in my area for the day. We had a lot of good lessons with the investigators in the area but Elder Harrington speaks basically no spanish at all so it was nice for once being the companion that knows more Spanish. Haha, then we met up with Lopez and Vera that night and as we were walking back a bunch of people were telling me and Elder Harrington congratulations, but we had no idea why... but comes to find out that the U.S beat Mexico in soccer! wooh!!!! Haha, but it was just funny because we were so confused as to why people kept congratulating us. But when Elder Lopez and I got back to the house guess what we found under his bed... a rat!!! But then it ran and hid somewhere in the room and we have yet to find it.... i'm just hoping it's not in my stuff anywhere. Haha, then Wednesday was another good day and we had a really good lesson with Emma and her family and also with a recent convert Ivan and his family who we are also teaching. And it was Ivan's birthday too, he turned 13 so he invited us over for cake and tamales. His dad doesn't really like us being there and so it's always a little awkward when we go over, but his mom and his sister and him all love us so i think for that reason his dad kinda has backed out a little bit. But his mom came to church yesterday for the first time so that was sweet!! So did Fer (the 14 year old who we are teaching through Lolita who is a recent convert) and the WHOLE family of Emma. So in total we had 9 investigators in church yesterday which was way cool! So now Emma has.. 7 times in the church, and her family 3. So hopefully ina few weeks they will choose to get baptized! But we don't want to push anything because they're a little stubborn in a few things. But they're a super super super cool family and they seriously love us! Now we're just trying to get them to love the gospel more, but they are progressing a ton, just need a little bit more work. And we still haven't gotten them to say anything to us about the fact they aren't married, so we are working on how to address that so we can help marry them. Because i think i already mentioned this but the family in who gave us the reference told us that they aren't married, but Emma's parents don't know that we know that... so that's the tricky part. But guys... this ward is seriously a little on the crazy side. I mean there's a lot of good people in the ward, but seriously every single class and lesson ends up in an argument! It gets pretty uncomfortable, like half the room will be arguing and then the younger half will be laughing because the others are arguing. It's seriously the most interesting ward i've ever been in. But yesterday it started to rain a tonnnn, and it still hasn't stopped! We actually had a little bit of water come in the house overnight but luckily none of our stuff got wet. But it's been nice with the rain because it's made the temperature drop a ton! 

Well yesterday we got to church and Bishop decided to assign us to talk! Haha, you always gotta be prepared on a mission. So I wasn't really sure what I wanted to talk about when i got up there but it actually ended up being really good! My best talk i've given here for sure. And i may or may have not cried a little bit... Haha it's because the ward choir sang 'A Child's prayer' before my talk, and that made me think of the little guys, and then in my talk i was talking about eternal families and yeah... so it's all your guys' fault!! Haha, but really I was thinking about you guys a ton this past week, like every other week. And the more I think about it the more I feel grateful for God's plan that he's given us to allow families to be together after death. Because it wouldn't make sense at all to live your life with them making you so happy just to have it end when we die... And that knowledge has been one of my biggest motivators in my mission. I feel like God has given me the opportunity to meet a lot of families who need this message specifically, who need the knowledge and hope of God's great plan. There's a quote that I heard in the MTC that I LOVE, that I can't remember if i've saidbefore or not... but it's 

''Missionaries leave their families for 2 years, so that other families can be together for eternity.'''

And that's been one of my biggest motivators for me in my mission so far, because there's not a day that i don't think about you guys, and for me it hasn't been all that easy to be away from you guys, because you guys are the best and i miss you guys a tonnnnn! But the knowledge that I can be an instrument for God to help other families have the same happiness and knowledge that we have has helped me so much. And being able to find the families that God has prepared for this has been an incredible miracle for me to see, and for all of them who now have a new hope and happiness in their life. And that makes EVERYTHING worth it.

Well i love you guys a ton!! And I hope you all have a great week!!!:)

Elder Bird

Diligence

Hey guys!!!!

So sorry about not writing a big letter last week, but this week's one will be so good it'll make up for last week:) So it seems like everyone's starting to get sick, and i am definitely not okay with that! You guys gotta get better fast. Also maybe someone did tell me and i completely missed it but i didn't know Dad was teaching the freshman sohphomore class instead of the senior class? But that would mean that next year Grant would be in his class which would be pretty sweet! So new discovery of the week: cockroaches? yep, they can fly. who knew?!? well.. we didn't! And there have been TONS of them in our house lately.. and you guys know how much i love bugs.

Well this week has been very eventful!! Yesterday we had stake conference here and we had 6 investigators in church! Which was way cool! It's the family of a girl we have been teaching, but it's cost us a little bit of work to get all of them interested but now they have 2 times in church while Emma, the girl already has 6. But the only problem right now is that Emma doesn't want to get baptized alone, and we can't baptize her family yet because they have to go atleast 5 times to church, AND the parents aren't legally married... but they don't know that we know that (Their member friends told us). So we have been trying to address that but we haven't been really sure how. But they have progressed a whole lot this week. But right now their biggest setback is they have trouble with the concept of faith, and they want to rely more on scientific facts. But we have made a plan to help them understand better how to have more faith. But they're a really really cool family and have been super awesome to us. This week we also had interviews with President Rodriguez, which is always great to see him. I always leave feeling more motivated and with a better understanding of how to serve more diligently. He gave me some great advice for us for our area and for me personally to be able to be better.

Well, something that I have been studying a lot this week is Diligence, and what Gods expects from us as his children. And there were a lot of cool things i found but what i was able to talk out of it was that God doesn't expect perfection, he knows we all have weaknesses, but what he does expect is Diligence. Or being everything you can be, the very best you can be, no matter what. And serving God, and the people around you, even when you feel like you can't. Something I've really tried to capture and become since i got here is someone who puts himself second. To always serve others and God first, no matter how tired you are. Because as a missionary I think there have been times where i have been more tired than i have ever been in my life... ha but it's been in these times where i've really understood what it means to be a SERVANT of Christ, and to always put His will before yours. And in the scriptures it promises us that we will be blessed for our diligence, but maybe not in the time that WE want, which is the hard part of it all. But i invite you guys to try to take that extra step and do maybe just a little bit more, even when you think you can't. And you'll be surprised at the results it brings:)

Well I  love you guys a lot!!! And i miss you even more! I hope you all have a great  week:)

Con mucho amor,

Elder Bird