Dec. 8, 2008

"Monday don’t quiet remember what we did Monday. I think it was the Night we met with our Investigator Jack. Jack is 15 and loves what we’re teaching on Monday night I believe we set his baptismal date for the 27th of December but now it has to be later because he didn’t come to church yesterday. We taught him then it ended up being 9. We are supposed to be in our apt at 9 unless we are teaching a lesson. We had walked to his house and it took 45 minutes. So we could briskly walk back home or try otherwise. So we began hitch hiking! =) No one would stop…then one guy stopped and asked where we needed to go and we told him and he said sorry don’t have time to take you there. So we kept walking and about a third of the way home someone finally stopped. We found out he is the nephew of a member and that’s why he stopped. He recognized us. We got home late but much sooner than we would have otherwise. We had a member lined up to go with us that night but cancelled an hour before and we couldn’t find anyone else. It is really hard here working with the members. They just don’t have time or don’t seem to understand how important this work is. Like I have said before I feel so bad for the leaders because they are the only ones that we call anymore.

Tuesday we had our District meeting and our CAR meeting with the ward council. That was good. My companion made me explain a little about our investigators and it scared me to death but wasn’t too bad. Then after he was said “elder ellis I’m going to talk with Hermano Morales you need to talk with Hermano Maldonado” So I did it. I was terrified but I understood almost every word he said which was great! I felt like I had been giving help in the moment I needed it. Then Wednesday we started our exchange for this transfer. Elder Luna one of the Zone leaders went with my companion and I went with Elder schaeffer the other Zone leader. I learned a lot about making the lessons simple and like mindy told me before I left that I should teach everyone as if they are a child. We did that and it was so much better than previous lessons. I learned so much about enjoying my mission working with members more and learned more about the culture and how to make rice =) Elder schaeffer is a great elder! His parent sent him a package with a present for every day of December and one for his companion as well! That’s a neat idea especially for elders with companions from mexico like mine or like his. Because it costs more money to send things from there. So they don’t get mail very often. I feel like a baby complaining about not getting letters when my companion hasn’t gotten mail in a few transfers. But I got a Planner calendar thing and a bag of cinnamon bears! =) reminded me of you dad.

Then on Friday we went back to our companions and worked. On Saturday we met with Manuel the man we were trying to get to stop smoking. Man that is a hard task. Especially when people have smoked for over 40 years. He has smoked since his was a kid and has tried many times before to quit. I wish there was just a way to get people to stop smoking. Well there is! One week 7 days and he is now a non smoker!!! It is so exciting! He bore his testimony in church yesterday and said that the first 4 days were the hardest days of his life but with prayer and help from the lord he did it! He completed his goal and is now smoke free! Coffee free as well. This program requires that they stop drinking coffee for the week as well and he said that now he has no desire to drink coffee. It is so wonderful to see the miracles in our lives. The lord can give us so much more strength! He stopped smoking! He did it. And on Saturday he asked us if he could had to be baptized to wear a white shirt and tie. His love for this gospel is amazing! He has now attended church 5 times. We really have been working hard and fasting for him to make the decision to obey the law of chastity. Please keep him in your prayers.Then we were teaching another lady and she was paying us no attention! I was so frustrated but we were teaching and I was asking questions to her and she wasn’t answering so I thought I was saying something wrong and she still didn’t answer so I looked at my companion hoping he would take over. He didn’t just sat there looking at me. So there were a few seconds…felt like a minute or two of silence because I had no idea what to say and my companion wasn’t helping me. So finally after enough silence I walked her through my question and taught the rest of the lesson without my companion. Not what I should have done but I didn’t want to be there anymore. She has no desire to change. She knows that it is true. She does. She has told us. But she doesn’t want to change. Her daughter is 6 and loves when we teach. Always asking questions always volunteering to read and everything else. It is so sad to see the love she has for the gospel. She knows prophets are called of god and are on the earth to guide us. But her mom has no desire to follow the promptings. I pray that she will be able to find the gospel and missionaries will continue to work with her when she is older.That has been my week. Not too eventful…no it was very eventful. But yeah this morning we were cleaning and I went on our balcony to get a bucket and we had 2 buckets stacked on the balcony I picked up the first one and in the bottom one was a nice little frog! Woohoo! I Love the animals here. It’s so funny to walk or ride my bike on the sidewalk and you hear all this rustling in the grass. Lizards everywhere. And don’t worry. Tails are nothing =)

Tranfers are Christmas eve and I don’t know what is going to happen yet. I should know next week. We have interviews with the president tomorrow.

Last night we got to watch the Christmas devotional. I love the Christmas season and I love Idaho and Utah! This feels nothing of the sort. We put up Christmas lights for a sister in the ward Saturday but when it is 80 degrees it just doesn’t feel like Christmas. I miss home and I miss the cold weather. HOT HOT HOT. I checked my Thermometer last night on my clock and I go to bed in 80 degree weather in our bedroom. Wonderful isn’t it! =) I love listening to President monson and his counselors as well. I know they are men called of god and I know that they have the authority to direct us. I am excited that in just about 2 weeks I will get to call you! Woohoo! I hope I get to go to a different area this next transfer. My companion is great but I’m ready for change. But who knows I will most likely be humbled.

Service service service. Wonderful key to happiness.

This morning I was studying in doctrine and covenants section 101 and I had never realized before that there were parables in Doctrine and covenants as well. 101 has a wonderful parable and help me realize the importance of obedience and I also read a story in my little missionary quote book about a Platoon leader; he had received specific instructions to arrive at the locations at 0200 hours and wait until 0210 hours. He arrived as planned and saw the enemy sleeping tanks dismounted and everything tranquil. He thought that the instructions were wrong and sent his men for attack at 0200 hours. They attacked and then in a matter of seconds the air was filled with artillery and everyone was dead. The platoon leader sitting up on his perch watched it all happen. At 0210 hours silence and the platoon leader thought “if only I knew what the general knew”This sections is very similar. We are giving instructions in our lives. Commandments that don’t necessarily make sense. But we need to follow them. Other wise the enemy can attack. We won’t be strong and we wont be able to do what we have been called to. The parable in this section is a Olive Tree and the Owner of the trees wanted them to be protected and commanded towers be built. The people building them didn’t uinderstand the purpose of the towers and didn’t fulfill the commands. Then the enemy attacked and all was lost. Life is so similar. We must obey with Exactness. As a missionary we are required to live with exactness and have been told we won’t be able to teach if we’re not. Wow.

I Love The Scriptures!
I Love My Family!
I Love My Mission!

With tons of love,
Elder Ellis"