Monday, November 28, 2011

Mexico Week 44: Baptism of Mary and Learning A Lot

Hey there everyone!!


Thank you for writing me. I love you all and love your letters. 


Well this is going to be a short letter for time and lack of dinero hahaha. This past week we had another Baptism of the girl, Hna Mary, and it was a kind of a disappointment. The members were loud and walking in and out of the Baptism and it was hard for me to feel the Spirit. I was a little upset but the good thing is that Mary`s mom is not a member and she felt the Spirit somehow and was crying and really liked the Baptism. I hope that means that she will be willing to listen and accept Baptism too. Other than that Baptism we have just been working really hard with our investigators so that they go to Church and get Baptized. We still have not been able to start a Branch but we hope to have success here soon and we are really going to focus on reactiving more than Baptizing now so that we can get that started!


Things have been really good in the mission and I have learned a lot and keep learning tons. I really hope that the Lord is blessing you all. I love you all and can't wait to see you in one year and spend a little time with you all! You are all in my prayers and I know that I am in yours :) Have a great week!!


Love,
Elder Brady Lester 
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Monday, November 21, 2011

Mexico Week 43: Baptism of Alicia and Mastering the Language

Dear family and friends,

Thank you very much for all your letters and sweet words :) First of all I would like to wish a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my Grandma :) I love you tons!! I love you all! Kolby you are awesome!! Even though you didn't make the team you are staying positive and know that there is something that you need to work on. Find out what it is and work on it!! Ask your Father in Heaven to help you prepare and fix what you need to fix so that you make the team. We are taught in 2 Nephi 32:9 that we must pray before everything that we do. I think that includes basketball too :) Kasey are you going to try out for the high school team? Brinkley sounds like you are a busy bee!! Keep it up! Braxley, hahaha well you just like to read...keep reading but I hope that you are reading in the BOM too :) Mom I love you so much! You are the best Mom in the world. Thank you for sending the packages.  

Papá te felicito por cumplir con tu proceso en el arrepentimiento. Es dificil pero hay muchas bendiciones y es algo bonito. Sigue asi y haz lo bueno y acuerdate lo que el Señor hizo por ti. Él te ama y tu familia. Utiliza la expiacion en tu vida cada dia. 

Well this past week I have really understood and realized that it's not easy for me to talk or write in English hahaha. I have to really think about the words and sometimes I forget words in English so I have to look online or in the dictionary to be able to talk...and I only have 1 year!!! My goal actually is to go home speaking very little English hahaha. I really want to master this language. I really would like to learn more languages after the mission and continue studying Spanish. Hopefully Travis will help me with my Portugese hahaha. Oh just so that you know Alex Helvig is almost done with his mission!! It went by fast! He goes home on the 20th of December. His president is sending him home a little early so that he can be home for Christmas cool huh! Well just to let you all know...they don't celebrate Thanksgiving here in Mexico :( But on Thursday the sister told us that she was going to make us mole with turkey so I guess you could say that I will still be a little connected with the turkey and all :) 

Well in this past week we got a ton of references from the members!! It was awesome!! We got 8 and usually here we only get like 1-2 each week hahaha. We taught and got alot of new investigators which is what we were needing because they are all getting Baptized hahaha!! This past week Hna Alicia talked with a counselor of the Mission President (I love President Reeves) and she was considered repentative for what she did in her past and she got Baptized on Saturday!!!! The Bishop Baptized her and it was a sweet service. She was so happy after and is just loving being a member of the Church. On Sunday she got Confirmed. She is a great lady and has so much in store for her. Also yesterday in Church I taught the future missionaries in our ward with a former missionary and it was sweet. The Bishop wants me to teach that class and my companion to teach the class with the investigators. It's really cool. I have alot of sweet plans for the class. I want to invite members to be investigators so that they can teach. I want to go out and knock doors with them instead of being in the class. I am really excited. I love this area and ward. I really want to stay here for a long time hahahaaha. 

Well things with the Baptisms that fell through look alright. The crazy girl is never home during the week only really late at night and on the weekends so we don't have much time to meet with them. The other Baptisms will happen, it's just a matter of time. They will progress :) I know that they will.  

I would like to give my Testimony in Spanish. Se que la obra misional es la obra del Señor. Él nos ayuda a los misioneros todos los dias por medio de Su espiritu. La guia es maravillosa. Se que el Libro de Mormon es verdadero y no solo es la clave de nuestra religion pero la clave de la obra misional. Ninguna persona puede conocer a Jesucristo a menos que lea en el Libro de Mormon. Testifica de Su divinidad en cada hoja. El Libro de Mormon es el fudamento de nuestro testimonio. Se que Jesucristo murío por nosotros. Es nuestro Salvador y Redentor. Pero como representante de Él...testifico que Él vive y que nos ama. 

I gotta go but I love you all and can't wait to talk with you on Christmas Eve :) Have a great week!! 

Elder Brady Lester

Thursday, November 17, 2011

One AÑO!

Today is Elder Lester's ONE YEAR mark in the Mission Field! 

I can't believe how fast the time has flown by. I can see clearly what we were doing before he left and it truly doesn't seem that a whole year has gone by. Brady has learned much this past year. It's evident in his letters. He is an Obedient Missionary with a great heart and love for the people of Puebla Mexico. He really loves the people. I have seen him strengthen in Testimony, Love, Patience, Charity, Knowledge

October 2010
A year later...a little thinner, hair is blonder from walking in the sun all day, and so Happy! 

Monday, November 14, 2011

Missionary Week 42: 1 AÑO‏ this Week!

Hello Everyone!!


Thank you everyone for your letters and kind uplifting words. I always love reading your emails. Well this week was a very interesting week and I was thinking alot about what was going to happen today with me hahaha. I cried alot yesterday in church because I really love the members in Castillotla and wanted to stay really bad. I have prayed like crazy so that I would stay....and God answered my prayers hahaha. I stayed in Castillotla with Elder Escamilla!!! Hahahaha we are together again for another 6 weeks so we have changes on Christmas! I am so happy hahaha and shocked! I had no idea that I was staying. My district leader called me and told me that I had changes and I was expecting that so all I said was ok. After he told me that it was a joke and that we were both staying, my comp and I. Really Elder Escamilla and I jumped for joy!! I really think we are going to keep doing good here :)


Well not alot happened this past week. We had 6 baptisms planned and they all fell!! All of them!! One investigator, Hna Alicia, had her interview and didn't pass. Apparently she did something really bad in her life so she couldn't get Baptized and has to wait to talk with President or his counselors. Well this week she has an interview with them and so we really hope that she can get Baptized. She is a sweet spirit and really wants to get Baptized. Another Baptism, Hna Maria who is 12 years old, fell. She wants to get Baptized but her mom wants to listen to us first so that she knows what we do and teach, so we planned her Baptism, and Baptism for her mom in 15 days hahaha. It kinda turned out better. Our other investigator, Hna Gabriela who is 18 and wants to get Baptized, went to the doctors and they told her that she was crazy and that she needed help haha so she had no time this past week to talk and so we had to cancel her Baptism. Another family that we have been teaching for about a week just moved to a new house and has not had time to go to church so we had to cancel their Baptism for a while but they will get Baptized :) We think we could Baptize 7 in this month even though our goal is 5. We are really working hard and things are going good.


This past week we have been trying to find ways to improve the work here in Castillotla. We have been thinking of ideas of contacting and finding more people and we have been trying to work with the priests in our ward and want to put up a stand on a corner with a bunch of pamphlets and Book of Mormons. The young men's president in our ward really wants us to start working tons with the young men so we are trying to find ways to work with them. We are also getting really close to opening up a branch in this little village that we have in our area hahaha and we have permision and everything. We are just wanting to wait a bit more so that we can get the work started up really good. I feel that things will take more than one change and I might not be here but I will try my hardest to keep the work going here. I really want to see my vision that I had when I got here come to life.


Well honestly I have nothing else going on so I will just have to wrap up hahaha. I am grateful for all your love and support and I hope things are going well for you all!! I will be completing 1 year in the mission this week and the time has just passed by flying!!!


Love,
Elder Brady Lester
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Monday, November 7, 2011

Mexico Week 41: Changes and Miracles

Dear Family and Friends,

Thank you for all your wonderful letters. I love reading your letters each week because they always make me happy and ready for the week. Just want to let you know that I love you all even though I dont write much to each of you. I know that some of you are concerned about that, but I have 1 1/2 hours to write and I try to write everyone but never have the chance to. I am always busy writting letters to my converts as well, but please know that I love you all and hope that you all understand that you are in my prayers always.

Well this next Monday we might have transfers. I kinda feel like I am going but I hope not. I do have 6 months in this area but I would like 3 more. I have really fallen in love with this area. We are having alot of success and I just know that we will have more here pretty soon. I have grown to love Elder Escamilla like a brother, and really he is a great example and is the best Missionary in the Mission. I would love to continue working with him but we will see what the Lord wants from me. Some of my converts are sad and really don't want me to go. Hahahaha, Hermano Euloterio said that he doesn't want to go to Church and not see me, so he doesn't want to go, but I had to talk to him and let him know that I would see him again in one year and that he needs to stay strong in the Church. Hermana Cony opened up a hair cutting place and she wanted me to pick out the name (Cony`s Great Clips), and she dedicated the place to me hahahaha. So sweet. It made me cry.  

Well this past week on Wednesday, Elder Escamilla and I had the great opportunity of working with the Mission President in our area all day, hahaha!! How crazy!! It was a great experience and we learned alot. It was kinda scary at first but I loved the experience and the things that we learned. He really taught us the importance of working with the members. It really inspired me to keep working hard and with the members because that is how the investigators will progress more. Also we talked about how we could split the Ward and the importance of having Priesthood in the Ward. We took that to thought and we really want to start reactivating Priesthood and Baptizing men, hahaha so we are going to try and focus on that.

One lesson we taught with him was to one of our investigators, Hna Gabriela, and her family. We knocked on the door and the mom, Hna Gabriela, and her sister were all crying, yelling, and fighting. Well we started to just listen and it was about money and financial problems. We listened and listened and finally I opened my mouth and started talking about the Atonement and the importance of that in their lives. My companion testified of what I said, but Hna Gabriela said that she didn't want God in her life anymore and that He can't help her with her problems. Well when she said that the President spoked with power and really loud and testified as a Representative of Jesus Christ that they needed the Atonement, and that no one should put down that importance of Christ`s suffering in our lives. He started talking about happiness and the blessings that one can receive as they live according to the Atonement. When he spoke the Spirit was so strong. They all stopped crying, yelling, and fighting, and started listening. We ended with a prayer. The next day we talked with Hna Gabriela and she accepted a Baptism date. It was a great lesson. Today we have another lesson with her and we hope that all goes well with her and her family. 

This past week on Saturday, my companion started having stomach pains in the morning. In the afternoon we went and ate with a member and the pain was worse and he was screaming almost. He called the mission doctor and he told him to take medicine and only drink water and gatorade. Well he did that, and later the sister with whom we ate asked for a blessing. We gave her a blessing and when we left the house, my comp could hardly walk, so we walked quickly to a members house, Familia Ferrusca, because the sister is a nurse. We got there and he was screaming and crying with this pain, and so she sent him to a doctor in the pharmacy. They took us there in their car and the doctor said that it was really bad and gave him an oil shot in the butt, hahaha, and said that we needed to go to the hospital. I called the President and he told us which hospital to go. The good thing was that it was close to us. The members took us in their car and as we were driving I gave my companion a blessing and it was a wonderful experience. I knew that for his Faith, he would be alright. I also had a little mini vision of what he is going to do in the Mission. The Lord gave me that opportunity. Elder Escamilla really is going to do alot of good and work miracles here in Puebla. I just know it. Well we got to the hospital and we were there for 5 hours, and they would not let me in so I was all alone for 5 hours, hahaha. It was a little weird. I had to keep calling the President and my Bishop to let them know how things were. The doctors told me that we would have to spend the night and I was really worried for my comp and was crying for a bit for reals. I said a prayer and one hour later he walked out. I was so happy when I saw him and know that God really showed His hand in our lives.

I love my companion and really don't want anything to happen to him. After, we started walking around for a bit because my comp wanted to walk and I saw a Krispy Kreme!!!!!! In Puebla!!!!! I went running and bought myself 6 donuts and ate them all!!!! Hahahaha I love Krispy Kreme. 

Well I gotta go now! I love you all and hope you all have a great week!!   
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