This Is the Truth!!

Week number Four!! WOOT WOOT!! It's been a ton of fun to be in the MTC over these past few weeks. It's hard work but every moment is worth it!! As I have been preparing to enter the mission field, I have thought a lot about Mathew 4:19. It says "And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." As I have thought about this scripture again and again, I continually find the same principle, if you choose to follow me, you can help others do the same. I am so grateful to know that my Redeemer has given me the chance to be a Fisher of men by serving this mission. I am so grateful for the people of Mexico and I can't wait to meet and serve them. I can't wait to teach them the very same principles that Christ taught during his earthly ministry. 

I know that Jesus Christ came to this earth to give us the chance and opportunity to return back to the presence of our Father in Heaven. He did this through his everlasting atonement which I am eternally grateful for. I know that He lives and loves each one of us perfectly. I know that He revealed the fullness of the everlasting gospel to a boy named Joseph Smith. I testify that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God and that He really did see a vision in a grove of trees as an answer to a prayer. I furthermore testify that the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ and because of it, we have knowledge of the fullness of this everlasting Gospel of the earth today. I am proud to share the truth, that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to everyone who is willing to listen. I know that if we each take the time to ask, in sincere prayer, if this is true with trusting and believing that it is, you will know for yourself that it is true just as I have. I also testify that if we take the time to read the book of mormon, and take Moroni's challenge and "ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, He will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." Moroni 10:4–5

I can't wait to help others see the love that this Gospel brings to everyone. This is the Gospel of Joy! I testify these things to be true, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. 

Thank You everyone for your amazing support, and I can't wait for another week!!

WOOT WOOT!! WEEK THREE!!

This week has been amazing! I have been able to have many opportunities to teach and help my family and friends over this past week more than I have ever before! My companion and I had the opportunity to teach about our Father in Heaven's love for his children to an investigator. I KNOW!! Already teaching investigators!! (Little nerve racking but really awesome). I know that we were receiving additional help from our Heavenly Father while we were teaching, and man it was amazing! 

On a different note, I have the best Mom. My Mom Mandy has decided to write me a letter everyday of my mission and I can’t explain how much of a blessing it has been. Now these letters are extremely important to me, but I thought I'd share with you something that she said. She said “ The lord has so many people for whom he protects from evil and every single person is equally important to him.”. This reminds me of a talk by the Elder Uchtdorf titled, you Matter to Him. Go listen to it if you have a moment, I promise that it will be worth your while. 

But as I was saying, you are so important to our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. As a missionary, I can't even explain how important this principal really is, and I just want you to know that he really does love each one of us personally and he really knows about our struggles and problems. But I can only tell so many people, soooo… I challenge you, over this next week, to find someone who needs to be reminded that they are important and that they matter to Him. I promise that you will feel an increased love for that person and an increased understanding of God's love for you and for them. I Know this will be a huge blessing in your life and in the life of the person you are helping. Thank you for your love and support, and I can't wait for another week!! It's gonna be AWESOME!!

P.S. Here is a link to Elder Uchtdorf's talk. YOUR GONNA LOVE IT!! 

(This is from the night I was set apart as a full time missionary. My sweet mom is on the far right.)

Social Media Missionary

Over this past week, I have thought alot about how lucky I am to be serving a mission. And boy, what an amazing gift! Our world can be pretty crazy sometimes and because of this, we need some stability. The opportunity of Serving a mission has given me the privilege to hear all about how the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ has helped people all around the world find stability in an unstable world. How cool is that! From all around the world! Talk about Gathering Israel! Now, I didn't travel all around the world to talk to these people, it was more along the lines of they bore their testimony and then shared it across social media. Now, anyone who knows me, knows that I literally don't know anything about how to use social media. Which is fine, until I learned that social media is used all the time in missionary work. WHAT?? I know, kinda crazy. Maybe it's just crazy to me, but the point is that social media is one of the most powerful forms of missionary service today, and I don't have any idea how to use it(yet). BUT I WILL LEARN!! This is still so cool to me to think that we can instantaneously share a message with thousands of people with a click of a button. Wish me luck! I know that my heavenly father gave me the opportunity to serve a mission at this time to help others all around the world recognize their importance and feel his love for them! I can't wait to learn more and to teach others about him. What an amazing week, and I can't wait to start another!! 

And just for fun, since you're reading this feel free to leave a comment and tell me where you're from/where you live. I'd love to know!

Elder Neeley and I Playing with the Zoom Filters

¡Hola mis queridos hermanos y hermanas!

Here we are! Week one and my goodness what a week. I have spent the past week at home immersing myself in the Spanish language. This immersive environment has been a very different experience than anything I have ever been a part of before. I for a while felt as though my mouth wasn’t made to speak spanish, but, like all hard things in life, we can rely on the lord to help us through it and I'm happy to say that after many hours of prayer and stacks and stacks of flashcards, I have begun to understand and appreciate this beautiful language. Likewise, I have recognized the power of prayer. Prayer is one of the most powerful tools Heavenly Fathers give to us here in mortality. Prayer helps us reach out to God and receive divine help and companionship through the storms of life. And the best part about it is that when we ask, through our faithfulness, we shall receive. This blessing of ask and ye shall find is something I have focused on for a large portion of my week. I have found myself praying nonstop for the lord to direct my heart to him and help me combat this seemingly impossible challenge with faith. 

What an amazing opportunity it is to serve a mission. I know that these next few weeks of online MTC training will help me grow closer to my Father in Heaven and help me recognize his impact in my life. I am excited to help the people of Mexico, and I can't wait to get started. I promise and testify, that as each one of us strive each and every day to help our Heavenly Fathers children grow closer to him by serving them, we can and will feel an increased amount of joy and feel his love for us and for them. Week two, here we come!!