Mexico Week 89: Conferences, Learning and Spiritual Feeding

Hey Family, 

Well again I don't have much time to sit down and write a legit letter. I have been in and out of the offices all day everyday. Last night we didn't get home until 11:00pm. We are working hard getting ready for the changes that we have on Tuesday. We have sent two more Elders home too so it's been very crazy here. We have been working hard and we feel like we are behind but I believe that we are more ready for these changes than the last time. We have a lot of new things going down. We are splitting a Zone into two Zones. Now every Stake in the Mission will have their own Zone and Zone Leaders which makes things a lot easier. We have been working hard to think about how to do the changes for the next change because my generation is going home a week early. Things just have been really crazy. 

Last week though we really had a great week. A lot of Conferences but a lot of Learning and Spiritual feeding. My topics went great. In the Leadership Training meeting I talked about judging righteously in our callings and correcting disobedience. It went very well. I share the example of Lehi in 1 Nephi 8:37-38 and how we need to judge righteously like Lehi did to his sons. I shared another example in D&C 101:2-5 as well. In the regular Zone Conference I talked about the Atonement and Gossip. It went very well and I have learned a lot about the Atonement while studying my topic. It has been great. I have really looked into the Scriptures and notice that the Atonement is on every page of the BoM. One example would be 1 Nephi 3:31 when Nephi and Sam are beaten by his brothers and then the angel comes. It's very interesting to see how it is talking about the Atonement. 

The Conferences have been great and we have been able to teach the Elders a lot of things. We really hit the importance of being Obedient and Repenting because we need to get onto other things in the Mission and not always talk about the Obedience issue that we have. The President has said that if we are not willing to live in a Mission of Obedience, we can go home. 

Well we have started to talk about other things. On Friday we had our ZL conference and we talked about a lot of things. We talked about Numbers of Excellence that my companion and I have been wanting to have. They are great numbers and really high norms for us. It really is going to change the Mission. Yesterday we saw how excited the Mission is as we went to a couple Zone Training meetings. The new culture is being placed and everyone is excited! 

Well I don't have much time. Hope everyone is doing just great! Love you all and hope that you all have a great week! 

Con Amor,

Mexico Week 88: Crazy busy week!

Hey! 

Well I have no time to write but I feel bad because I have not been able to. Just want to write a quick message saying that everything is going great here. We are making some big leaps in the work here in Puebla! I hope that it continues that way. I know it will. President Christensen is a great President and what I love about him is that he teaches us how important the Mission is for our future and what we have to learn in the Mission in order to have a successful future. He is an inspired man and I know that he was called of God. 

Want you all to know that I love ya all and that I miss you :) We have had a busy week this week with Zone Conferences and Zone Leader Council and now it will be General Conference. It's been crazy and it's just going to get more crazy!! Have a great week!

Con Amor,

Mexico Week 79: For the Temple is a House of God

Hola Familia!! 

Thank you for writing me :) I always love to read your letters. That stinks about your leg Kasey. Hope that it heals up soon!  Sounds like everything has just been going great.  I am doing great!!  My new comp is Awesome!  His name is Elder Lopez and is from Ecuador. He is a great worker and sooooo cool hahahahaha. I hope that everything goes great in this change. I feel like we will have alot of success. That is awesome that the boys are going to get some merit badges this weekend! I hope that they have a great time. I hope that you are all ready for school and stuff hahaha.  

Well I will just get to the point of my email...and why I put down that subject for the email. On Saturday, a family that I Baptized in Haulcaltzingo went to the Mexico City Temple and got Sealed.  The sister, Lorena got her Endowment. It was great news!!! Even better news is that my comp and I got to go!!!! Hahahahahahha it was so sweet! We got permission to go to Mexcio City and go to the Temple to see my converts get married and Sealed to each other and their little baby boy. It was such an experience. I wanted to send pics but of course there is not a place to put in my memory card so I can’t :(  I don’t like the internet here hahaha. It was so awesome!! The Spirit was so strong and I felt like I recharged myself spiritually!  It was the best day of the Mission.  I could not help but cry as I saw Hermana Lorena and Hermano Pedro get Sealed and especially to their little son. I was so happy.  

 Baptism of Lorena & Pedro in Haulcaltzingo

 México City México Temple

 After we left the Temple...around 5ish we went to eat tortas. After we ate we went in a bus to the station and I counted my money and we did not have enough to get home. We were a little worried but I said a prayer in my heart as well as my companion and we felt so sure that we were going to get home. We got to the bus station and we checked our mission credit cards...nothing. I checked my card from home....nothing hahaha. We started walking...more worried and we heard a man yell behind us "Mormones" hahahahahaha. We turned around and it was a brother from here in Tlaxcala in our stake and we know him. He asked us about why we were in Mexico and we told him that we went to the Temple. He was walking with a bag carrier and told us to contact him hahaha, and as we contacted him the brother left to buy his ticket, but our prayers were answered and he bought us tickets as well!!  We got back to Puebla and he bought us pizza as well and him and his wife drove us all the way home. My comp and I were so surprised and we gave so much thanks in our prayers to Heavenly Father. It was amazing.

I don’t know how in the world we found a brother in the biggest city in the world, from the smallest state in Mexico, from our stake who knew us and who has money.  All I can say is that God loves us and watches out for us. I know that He answers every prayer. I am so grateful to Him. 

Our investigators are doing great.  The Familia Minor is just doing great. They still have not gone to Church but they have the desire to be Baptized and pray and read to know. We have been visiting alot of people and doing alot of teaching. We are having alot of progress and we hope to Baptize soon again. Everything has been going just great. This week we have to go to Puebla for the Zone Leader Council. That is going to be sweet like always. I am excited for the work.

It’s going to be hard to go home but I know that God will help me to be able to keep working in His work as long as I am faithful. This is a Church of workers not a museum of Saints who just go on Sundays.  We have alot of work to do...in our wards, stakes, and in the Temple to be able to help God finish His work and glory. The most important work we do is with our families.  I am dedicated to love and cherish my future family so that God can work miracles through us. 

I hope you all have a great week!! I love and miss you tons!! 

Love, 

Elder Lester

 

Mexico Week 76: Zone Leader Conference & More Rain

Hey Family!!

Thank you all for writing. I love your letters.  Really Kasey...you broke my heart with that Steve Nash news but I am happy that he is going to be going to a team where he can win a championship. It will be fun to watch him play in LA.  Sounds like you boys are having a great time up in Utah camping and stuff. Sounds like a plan maggie...I will have to try those enchiladas and your pozole dad ;) Hahaha.  Thank you Mom and Grandma for the money. Tomorrow I will be buying my leather scripture cases.  Tomorrow we have a leadership training meeting in Puebla. Hahaha, we are traveling alot.  I am not a fan of the Zone Leader thing...I miss being a Branch President, hahahaha. 

Well the work has been good here. We got to go to the new mission home on Friday for the Zone Leader conference.  It’s really nice. The new president lives in the nicest neighborhood in Puebla. It looks like an American neighborhood but more modern. There is a golf course and everything there.  We got to eat breakfast.  Sister Christensen made us eggs, juice, and pancakes with whip cream!! I have not had whip cream for 20 months hahahaha. We had a great conference. I learned ALOT about A LOT, hahahahaha. Everything I learned really I can see how to apply it in my life after the mission and that is what President Christensen said that he wants.  Just so that you know the president a little more: 

He served a mission in California Spanish speaking.

He was the Vice President of Hallmark Cards (he is rich).

He quit his job because the First Presidency asked him to work as the Head Director of Finances of the Church (he is even more rich).

He had monthly meetings with the Twelve and the First Presidency. 

That is just a little background info about my new Mission President. I guess that I will have to have alot of money to be a Mission President someday, hahahaha.  In the conference he told us that Elder Bednar´s favorite scripture is 2 Nephi 2:14. Hahahahaha, all of us Zone Leaders just looked at each other like...wow...he knows the favorite scripture of an Apostle, hahahaha. He is very spiritual but he says things how they really are. On Friday we did something that I never thought that we would do. We started making the "culture" of this new Mission. We started talking about the Purpose, Processes, and Actions. We talked about how we could make sure that our Actions or Practices in the Mission are aligned with the Processes and the Purpose and throw out the bad Actions and Practices that have nothing to do with our Purpose. It was very cool.  Hahaha, then I think that I received revelation for my personal life in that moment. That formula is a great one to be able to start and better businesses (just a comment since you all know that I like business). Hahaha it was a great conference. I really felt the spirit and learned alot. 

Here in our area we have been working our tails off.  It has been raining like crazy and literally the rain has been up to our shins. We keep working hahaha. The other day we were working in the rain and it was just coming down and some members saw us and asked why we weren’t home since it was raining so hard. My comp just laughed and said...the work goes on. It’s true what he said. The work goes on. God keeps working and doesn’t rest if it’s raining. 

Today we played like 2-3 hours of basketball at the church with a team of a brother in our ward. They are real good. I had a great time but I have just lost all of my condition hahaha. I would just run up and down the court dying. It was really the best basketball that I have played in the Mission. 

Well I gotta go! I love you all and hope that you have a great week! Kasey I hope that you enjoy EFY! Miss you all tons!! OH!! Hahaha before I go I have some good news for you all. My date changed for going home. I was supposed to go home the 28th of November but President Christensen wants me to be home for Thanksgiving, so I will be going home the 20th of November, so you will all have me home a week early hahahaha. Love ya!!

 Elder Lester

Mexico Week 75: July, Peña Nieto, President Christensen‏

Hey there family!

Well things have been very delightful in the Mission. I notice how old I am now because it hurts just to walk uphill everyday to our house. I am not excited to be 21, hahaha. As you all know Peña Nieto will be the new president of Mexico in January. Hahaha, I am happy that he won, I would have voted for him. I helped out some when I was in Chignahuapan, hahaha so good thing that it was worth it.

Today I am in Puebla, the center. The sweet thing about being a Zone Leader is I get to go anywhere I want in the whole mission, hahahahahaha. My comp and I have just been visiting some places and looking at some things. I am looking at gifts that I would like to buy for the family as well just before I go home. We also ate burritos today :) They were delicious, just like home hahaha.  It’s been a great P-day so far.

There was also a march going on with all the people who didn’t want Peña to win but hahaha he won so it doesn’t matter. Peña will fight against all the drug lords except for one, Chappo, who is the famous one. He is the number 1 on the wanted list in Mexico and the US but they won’t do anything to him unless he goes to the US or Mexico. He lives in Europe I think. Peña won’t fight him, but the good thing is that he will kill all the other ones. Things have been interesting though, hahaha.  

Well I don’t know that family Mom, but I will keep my eye out for them. Hahaha, were they visiting over there in Arizona?  That’s sweet!

Ouch! I am sorry for Brink.  I guess I was lucky when they took mine out. Braces, that will be nice :) Well Kolby, that is going to be great that now you are going to high school! You are getting big hahaha.  Hahaha, sounds like the family reunion of Maggie was fun with lots of food! I need to try your pozole dad and see how good it really is or if you just talk it up. Hahahaha, well it will be the 4th of July in 2 days. I think I will celebrate by teaching 3 lessons with a member and 2 others, and buy a nice cold Coke after, hahahahaha.

Well we have been working real hard.  I love Elder Nuncio.  He is so awesome!  He is really a good friend. We have been working hard and now we are seeing blessings. We are happy because we are going to have at least 3 Baptisms this month and hopefully 2 more, but if not, the other 2 will be in August. We have been working really hard with Elvia, Andres, and Andres, hahaha. They are great investigators and they are ready for Baptism. Andres who is an adult, has been waiting for 10 years to be Baptized! Andres is a 13 year old boy and has been waiting for over a year to be Baptized, and Elvia has been listening to the Missionaries for 7 months, hahahahahaha. We are trying to harvest the seeds that have been planted! The field is white for sure! :)

Well as you all know Peña Nieto is not the only new president in Mexico. There is another who has been called by a Prophet and not the people. We had a great Zone Conference Saturday with him in Puebla.  President Christensen is from Utah and talks way good in Spanish!! His wife talks pretty good.  She is learning real quick like Sister Reeves.  In the conference we learned alot from the President about Charity and Obedience. He totally taught us a life lesson about obedience. Usually they say to us in the Mission that we need to be obedient because we are Servants of the Lord. That is true but he also taught us that we need to have a goal first. For example, Return with Honor. That would be the goal, and to achieve it, we need to be obedient. So I learned that we should place goals first and not be obedient just to be obedient. Pretty sweet haha.

This week on Friday my comp and I will be coming again to Puebla for the Zone Leader Conference so I will let you all know how that goes. I am excited. Things are going to be great with him and I am excited to have about 5 months to work with him. It’s going to be a blessing.

Well that’s about it for now. I just want to let you know that I will not be able to send pics home. I am getting very inpatient with Picasa which does not work very well for me. If there is something else we can do, awesome, but I will keep all my pics on the camera for now. I hope that you all have a great week. I love you all and pray for you each day. Love ya!!

Love,

Elder Brady Lester

Mexico Week 74: Rain & Clothing

Hey Everyone,

Well things are going great here and I am just loving the Mission. Hahahaha, I have not been much in my area this past week since I have been in exchanges with all of the District Leaders in the Zone, and today I am in a place called San Martin where I will be working for the next two days. Things are going great. I will be honest, I miss being a Branch President or even a District Leader. Hahahaha, it’s very different being a Zone Leader and I am not sure what I think about it yet.

That stinks that the Heat won the championship. I was routing for the Thunder, haha!
 
Well it’s raining again over here in the Mission. I am lucky to have one of those areas where the streets look live rivers, hahaha. My other pair of shoes are just thrashed and so I think I am going to be working alot more in my "Sunday" ones to finish off the Mission. While we are talking about clothes I will just let you all know how my clothing is hahaha. Like I said, I am pretty much down to one pair of shoes. I have one good belt, hahaha. I am also loving my garments, hahaha. They are grey and with holes, and sometimes it’s hard to get those stains out from behind, hahaha, it’s awesome. I think that my shirts are yellowish now. They seem white but when I am with other Missionaries who have less time in the Mission their shirts are way white, hahaha.  My pants are just different colors. My grey ones look like some ugly brown and my blue ones look like they are turning colors like if I was washing with bleach.  My socks are just...well let’s just say bad.  Thank you for the socks Mom!  Hahaha I think that is the best present a Missionary could get....and hot fries hahaha.  My blue suit is just a sad mess. I think that I am going to leave it behind when it’s time for me to go home, hahaha.  I really won’t use it after.  My ties....wow my ties. Let’s just say I need to learn how to eat better, hahahaha.  I am just looking back at all the money that we spent and it’s just going all down the drain, hahaha.  I love it.  The good thing is that I still have one good suit, that I will have to tailor again to my size. My hush puppies are still good.  And I have one good belt and a pair of good jeans that I bought here because I got paint all over my other ones, hahaha.
 
Just to let you know Mom, I think that it would be better to save up the money to come as a family here next year instead of coming for me in November.  The Church does pay for the ticket so don’t worry about that.  They will probably buy my ticket soon. I think I am going to ask the President if they could fly me out of Mexico City instead of Puebla so that I could go to the Temple before I go home.
 
Things are just great!  I really love my companion and we are getting alot done.  We are trying to help the Zone be more obedient because we have had problems in that, so we are trying to be the best examples.  We are teaching a bit but we need to find new investigators because we are dropping some and are we are hoping to Baptize soon.  We put the goal to go eat seafood if we Baptize, hahaha.  It’s rare to eat that here. I am going to work hard so that I can buy myself some shrimp.

The other day I ordered some leather scripture cases from a brother in Castillotla.  He is going to make them and I am going to pay and get them in like a week or two when I go to Puebla. We are getting ready for our Zone Conference this Friday. The new President is going to be here so it’s going to be exciting.
 
Well I hope that all continues to go well back at home. I feel sorry for Brink and her wisdom teeth. Hope that you feel better soon. You are all in my prayers I and love you all tons!

 

Love,
Elder Brady Lester

Mexico Week 64: Elder Bednar

Hi Family!!

Well this past week was a joyful week. Thank you for all writing me. I love you all so very much and I appreciate your love and support towards me. I have a testimony that an Elder in the Mission sees many blessings in the Mission just for the love and support of a family. I am grateful to have a loving family and I pray that you will always support me in my decisions, especially in the future because I will be staring my life very soon. Grandma, I send my love and prayers and congrats to Kelly!! That is wonderful!!! That is sweet that the Suns and Dbacks are all doing great. Kasey, congrats on wearing a suit!!!!!!! And for blessing the sacrament. It is such a blessing.

As you all know Elder Bednar came on Saturday to Puebla. It was a great learning and spiritual experience. I was able to feel such a Spirit as he and his wife, as well as other General Authorities talked to us. It was a SWEET conference. He didn’t talk to us, but rather it was a conversation between him and us. It was awesome. I also got to shake his hand and look him into the eyes. Hahahahaha, the first thing that he told us was "I hope that you don’t take notes of what I say. I have given up on adults. The rising generation is the hope of this world. Adults writing notes in conferences is so silly." Hahahahaha, when he said that I couldn’t help but laugh. I loved it! He also taught us something so true about agency. Agency is the will to choose but not right from wrong. Agency is choosing God. We don’t have the option he told us. We MUST choose God and nothing else. When we rebel and don’t choose God, we lose our agency because we can’t choose our consequences. When we choose God we choose our consequences. It is so true and it really taught me alot.

We stayed 3 days in Puebla which was sweet and we stayed with Elder Riggin!!!! It was a blast! Hahahaha, we didn’t sleep much because we talked a ton, but it was fun. After the conference with Elder Bednar, my comp and I went with Elder Escamilla and his comp to Applebees. It was soooooooooo good, hahahahha. Just to let you know, I forgot my camera so I will have to send photos next week sorry.

I love you all and I am grateful to be a Missionary and to have a Testimony of the Gospel. I love this Church with all my heart.

Love,

Elder Lester

Mexico Week 51: 14 Months

Hey there everyone!


Well tomorrow I will officially have14 months in the mission. I am loving the mission, even though it's really hard, but I am getting excited to go home. I will keep working hard so that the time will pass by fast, hahaha. If I don't work it will be very slow. Thank you for all your letters. Mom and Grandma, thank you. Grandma, that last sentence of your email really helped me because something that has been hard for me is seeing the blessings here in the mission for the work that I am doing. Mom, your letter really helped as well. Things have been really hard and I feel like the Lord is really giving it to me hard. I have learned alot in the mission but my faith is being tried and has been tried for 14 months. Sometimes I feel like I am not good enough to do this work. Well I am not, its the Lord's work. It's just hard to see the talents and gifts that I have to do this work of the Lord.


Well this past week we had a Zone Conference and it was very inspiring. Elder Tate totally planched us on going prepared to listen and learn from the Spirit, not from really good leaders who talk pretty. Hahahaha I think we all repented in that moment as Missionaries, hahaha. Then President Reeves talked about teaching with the spirit and the importance of it. He said that an Elder who teaches well but without the Spirit could Baptize 100's in his mission, and an Elder who teaches with the Spirit only 10. The difference is that there are 10 converts not just 10 baptisms. He really wants us to learn how to teach and do the work the Lord's way. He also said that my gift was teaching and talking. He said that I was one of the best teachers in the mission. That made me feel good for a moment but then I repented for feeling like that. Elder Riggin talked about sharing the gospel and being happy about it. That really hit me and I never really thought about that before. Hahahaha, he said that I was the one that gave him the advice. He was having a hard week and something that Riggin is really good at is being a hard working and OBEDIENT Missionary. He feels like he is doing good but just does not have alot of success in his Misson. I told him something that came to my heart that is so true. "If you want personal revelation about the work, don't go to presidePt or come to me as your DL, talk with your companion." He did it and said that he received very usefull revelation. I love Elder Riggin. He is the best missionary here. I talked about doing splits with the Missionaries and the importance of them. It was a short topic not to big.


Well this past week I finally ate some new food. I ate cow tongue and sheep head. It was very good actually as a taco with some salsa...it's so delicious, hahaha. Also a sister here is going to teach me how to make my favorite food, Pozole, so that I can make it when I get home. Well just to let you know I have pictures but picasa over here is really weird so I don't know how to upload pictures. Just to let you in on some things that we do here - we send our clothes to a laundry place and the sister there washes our clothes for free. We do our shopping in a place called Soriana. It's like a Mexican Walmart hahahahaha its cool.


Well that's all I got this week. It was a slow and hard week. We didn't find any new investigators and we didn't teach much. Actually we found out that an investigator, a dad, is having sexual realations with his 12 year old daughter so the President has to call the Church lawyers in Mexico and this dude might go to jail and can't get the Holy Ghost because he was Baptized a while ago but didn't get the Holy Ghost. He is pretty much screwed hahaha. Well that's it for this week. I love you all and hope that you have a great week.


Love,
Elder Brady Lester

Mexico Week 38: 11 Months and Baptisms of Reina and Karina

Hey there everyone!!

Well first off I want to wish a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my wonderful Mother!! I really hope you have a great special day today ma and I love you tons!! Thank you everyone for you letters and emails :) I always love Mondays to be able to read them and write :) Well this past week was just a great week and I have been having alot of fun and the Lord really is blessing me. This past week we had a zone conference and I learned alot! I really learned how to listen to the Spirit and help our investigators feel it as well. I also saw Elder Rojas hahahaha, and he looks the same poor dude. I really hope that he gets things done! I have pictures to upload but forgot my camera to upload them so we will just have to wait till next week :(

Well yesterday two more daughters of God entered into His presence as they were Baptized yesterday! Hermana Reina and Hna Karina both got Baptized!! It was a wonderful day. In the morning when I woke up yesterday I had this feeling that I should give my chance to Baptize Hna Reina to someone else hahaha. Crazy I thought and I just shrugged it off. But all morning it was bugging me. Well I got to the church and I saw a young man, Jasiel, who is in our ward and again the impression came to me. Well I talked to Hna Reina and told her my feelings and asked her if it was alright that this young man Baptized her. She hesitated because really wanted me to do it but she finally said yes, so Jasiel Baptized her and my comp Baptized Hna Karina. It was a wonderful service and the Spirit was so strong. I almost cried hahaha because I really love them. I really love my investigators. They are like best friends or family.  This upcoming Saturday the husband of Cony and her daughter are going to be Baptized too!! I am so happy that finally they are going to be a united family in the church. Hermano Euloterio is his name, and all he wants to do is be sealed in the Temple with his family. He has told us that that is his goal and nobody is going to stop him!! Right now we are just working with our other investigators and we want to see some weddings here soon!! 

I am really loving the work here and we are so busy. I need to finish this letter because we have appointments but the work is great. I love missionary work. I love being here in Mexico serving the people and children of God. I know that this is the true church. The Book of Mormon is true and nobody can tell me other wise. I have such a testimony of that book. President Reeves just challenged us to read it by Christmas so if you want to join me that would be awesome! I know that we can learn so much from that book :) It is a blessing that we have it. I gotta go but I love you all. I am thankful for your support and I pray that the Lord will always bless you as long as you are obedient :) 

Love, 

Elder Brady Lester 

Mexico Week 30: A Joke and a Trainer/Senior Companion!

Hey there everyone!!

Well I have a lot to tell you all from the past week but I am going to start with some news that came from our district leader this past district meeting on Wednesday. So we had our normal district meeting but after he had an anouncement for us from the First Presidency. China just opened up!! It opened and all new Missionaries and future Missionaries are being called to go there! So for us the the First Presidency has given us the invitation to extend our Missions. We have four choices...go home after 2 years, extend 6 months, extend 1 year, or extend 2 years. Well we had to give our decisiones that same day. I was overwhelmed and really wanted some time to think and pray. I had the chance to do that and the Spirit just came over me that I should serve longer. Well I decided to serve two years more mom and dad which would make me have 4 years in the Mission. Well this ended up just being a joke from our district leader to get us to understand the importance of our calling, but I want to let you guys know...I have my answer hahaha and if I have the oportunity to extend my Mission...I will be staying for as long as the Lord will let me. But we will just see here in a year :)

Well now I will get on with the other stuff. I had transfers today!!! I am with an Elder from Sonora.  Elder Escamilla is my companion and he seems just great :) The news is that today is his first day in the Mission, so I got the calling last night to be a Trainer in the Mission hahaha! I am a dad!! This morning I had to go to the Mission offices and be trained with other Elders who were going to be trainers too. It was a 5 hour training!! I learned alot, but the cool thing was that when I first saw the new missionaries I looked at him and just new that he was going to be my companion. It was cool :)  It has been a good 2 hours with him so far. He really seems excited about the work and just obedient. He is going to whip me into shape I think hahaha!! I am only here to help him out because he his prepared!! It's going to be a great 2 changes with him :) I just know that we will have success!!

Well this past week Elder Rojas did not want to go work again so pretty much we had divisions all week with Elder Lamb and Elder Riggin. I went with Lamb one day and Riggin two days. Elder Riggin and I on Friday had a great day and lived some great experiences. The first one was when we taught Hna Sandra. It had been about 2 weeks since the last time we taught her so we passed by her house and she let us in. We started talking about the Book of Mormon and she said that she had not been reading it so I taught the importance of reading and how the BOM teaches us what to do. Well after Elder Riggin taught about Baptism and how that is what the book teaches us. After, I invited her to be Baptized on the 27th of August and after 3 months of denying a date she finally accepted it!! It was great but when she accpeted I really was filled with the Spirit and it told me to tell her that she would find a job and that one day she will she her husband and son sealed to her in the Temple. It was a cool experience!

The other one was with Hna Alejandra and her two sons. She has two cute little boys who are not Baptized and that want to get Baptized. Hna Alejandra wants that too. The thing is, she is inactive and doesn't want to come back to Church because she has a sickness and can't be in a building with alot of people. Well Elder Riggin and I were teaching about the importance of coming to Church and having Faith. It was going really well but she didn't accept to come to Church with us this past week. Well her 9 year old son started to pray quietly during the lesson, so after a while I asked him if he had anything to say, and he told his mom that he prayed that everytime that she touched the BOM she would feel better and be healed. It was so sweet and she started to cry. Well she didn't touch the book so Elder Riggin told her to touch it and when she did the Spirit was so strong and she even said that she felt better. She accepted to come to church. It was a great experience!! What killed it though is that she didn't come on Sunday!! So tomorrow we are going to figure out what happened.

That was it for the week. We did have a zone conference Thursday with Elder de Hoyos from the 70 but he told us that we can't tell anyone, including our families, what happened during that conference. Lets just say that angeles litterally came down and ministered to us. It was a great experience and I am glad that I was there to live it.

I miss and love you all!! I got my Birthday package this week and thank you so much!! My favorite thing is the T-shirt and the pillow case :) Well until next week!!

Love,
Elder Brady Lester

Mexico Week 24: Conversion to Missionary Work

Hey there!!

Well this past week started off great as we got to know President Reeves on Tuesday! Last Tuesday we had a multi-zone meeting in the mission offices and got to meet President Reeves, his wife, and his 17 year old son Bryan. It was cool to meet them and they said that they have been waiting to meet me which was nice to hear. His son Bryan went to Mesquite High and knows a bit of people who went to Highland. That conference was nice as we learned how to convert ourselves to Missionary work and being better Missionaries. We also learned how to work better with the members in our wards and branches. Also selected Missionaries gave there testimonies and it was nice to feel the Spirit there with us during that meeting :) That day I got my package, so thank you mom and kids for that :) I have nothing left from it hahahahahaha since I ate all the food :)

Well I didn't have transfers yesterday so Elder Rojas is still with me which is a big surprise to everyone! He really doesn't want to be here with me but I told him last night that we are together for a reason. I really just told him all my feelings about the last change and how I felt like we did very little and he was mad, but today has been a little better....but it is Pday hahaha. If things don't get better then I will call President, but I just feel like things are going to be hard in this change. He told me that he doesn't want to be my friend or comp. I will try my hardest with him though. I have decided that I am going to be really really hard with him. I just really hope that we work good together and have success. 

Well the past week was a hard week. I didn't really work with my companion at all because we had divisions with young boys in our ward because my comp did not want to work with me. We also did have divisions with the DL too which went well. His name is Elder Riggin and is from Washington. I learned alot from him this past transfer! He is a great missionary!!

Well in the past week we had to drop two of our investigators because they were not progressing which is always sad. Hermana Imelda we dropped because she told us that she feels that her Catholic ways are the truth and I really thought she was going to get Baptized!! This week, hopefully Saturday though, we will be Baptizing a little 11 year old girl Karla. She is the daughter of Hermana Isabel who just got Baptized! Today we are going to visit her and ask her to be Baptized on this date :)

Not much else happened this past week so I don't have more hahaha. I am glad you boys are doing great!! Kasey please be careful and take it easy if you are having trouble breathing. You are in my prayers! Ask for a Priesthood blessing :)  Brinkley thank you for your letter :) Hahahaha the pictures of Daisy were cute! I can't believe she is 1 years old!! That is crazy! Well I gotta go! Love you tons!! Stay safe and have fun!

Love,
Elder Brady Lester