Oh The HUMANITY!!!!

Well as some of you may know a tornado has blown straight through the Fort Worth/Dallas Texas area and even though we were biking just as fast as we could to escape it...we still got swept up in the mess and I'm currently e-mailing from a local coffee shop in the middle of Kentucky. But on the real this has been quite a crazy week and I thought yall would enjoy hearing that as I'm catching the wave, I caught one of the mission's first 18 year olds. It's super crazy because out of all the people that came into the mission we only got two Spanish speakers even though about 16 left and it is absolutely insane! 

I just think it's funny that he is coming from the MTC where so many of my friends are kicking it. He actually reported on the same day as Jessicah. He's from the Land of Potatoes (I always mess with him about that...but it's in Spanish and he cant speak it yet so everyone just laughs, he thinks it's a good joke, everyone's happy :) and his name, ironically enough, was one of my slang words back home....Elder Duce! He's a cool kid but I'm not gonna lie...It's pretty tough training him since he has questions and comments on just about everything. And as gung-ho as I was about only 6 weeks in the MTC...I'm kinda re-thinking it looking at my experience with 9 weeks of Spanish and his with just 6...so it's a work in progress, but it is awesome to see him grow as I continue to put him in difficult situations--like surrounding him with 10 Mexicans and just biting my lip while he tries to remember something. You learn things pretty fast when you're stuck in situations like that and I'm not planning on easing him into the mission. 

I talked to him about goals he has for his mission the third night he was out as I was able to see how he worked, taught, and how his Spanish was. So I just gave it to him straight up that if he wants to accomplish those goals he's gonna have to work his behind off and that I'm just going to start him off running. After all, the first lesson I stuck him in was the Law Of Chastity haha not too many people can wave that flag! It scared me half to death when I saw him keeling over during the lesson due to a stomach cramp, and then I just remembered that I hadn't scheduled any time for us to eat and we were just on bikes, so I had to remember when I was in his position and get him some food, but I just want to make sure he learns everything I learned in the past year and can have a mission full of memorable, once in a lifetime experiences.  

 

I especially want to make him as bold as he can be since he's a short kid from Idaho that can't speak Spanish. So what we've been doing is really pushing the "contact everyone we see" and I even did something I've always wanted to try as we headed down to a training this Friday. We took DART down there, and since I was a trainer, I just thought I finally needed to do it and was determined to give it a try at least once. So as we got on the bus, Elder Duce quickly found a spot to sit down, but after swiping my card and boarding, I stood up in front of everyone and said, (this was how I planned it out...I don't remember if it came out exactly this way...but here it goes)  

 "Brothers and Sisters, we are Men of God and have received his promise in the scriptures that there are elect people in these last days that will accept a message about Modern Day Prophets, so we are going to go by each one of you and ask if you are one of the elect." I was scared outta my pants and the look on Elder Duce's face was priceless, but we were able to talk to some people and they anxiously asked us where our church was located and had all sorts of questions, so for all missionaries, it's a contacting idea I highly recommend! 

We were also able to have a baptism this Saturday from our work in Garland 1st, something which I was very Happy for Elder Duce to have since I didn't baptize anyone until my third transfer. I'm so grateful for everyone in the mission that was able to put me in the train of thought that "The Field Is White and Already to Harvest", because after a while here, I thought we'd have more luck panning for gold than baptizing anyone. But thanks to many, I have re-focused on the Lord's promise and we will have another baptism this week from some more work from the Garland 1st area. 

I'm also ingraining in his head that we invite everyone to baptism ASAP and that everyone we see is getting contacted and baptized! I remember when my mission started and "Hard Work" was planted in my head as "how many doors you've knocked", but I'm still going to give him the best I've got and make sure that he reaches his potential! Oh and by the way (I thought you'd enjoy this one Dad) I finally blew out the crotch in my black suit pants. After our baptism (which is quite a miraculous story that I'll share more about next week) I just started thinking, "Wow it feels like I've been out here a while...", and then I just started thinking, "Hmmmmm.....I wonder how long I've been out here....", and as I was thinking, I swung my leg over my bike as I was getting ready to ride and hear this loud "RRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!"

It was a blunt answer to my question. It looks like I've got quite a bit of sewing to do. Well we're going to work like baptizing missionaries and are on our way to clean the font for this Saturday! I love yall and thank you so much for your prayers and letters! They really  get me past the hard times which seem to come like a dime a dozen out here in the mission, but the blessings and the good times always out-weigh anything! 

Les Quiero Muchisimo!!!

Elder Wilson         

Estan Atrapando La Ola?!?! Por Su Puesto Estoy Atrapando La Ola!!!

Wow what a week it has been. Well sorry for the cliffhanger Mom but there has been so much stuff going on and it's been so crazy, but way way way successful and quite an eventful week. So last week President sent me on quick notice to open up a new area in Garland! It was pretty crazy and I'm not going to lie, I was way way bummed at first because we had 7 baptisms planned out in Plano as we had worked to get the area ready to blossom, but again, the key to missionary work is just work, so whenever I just work my heart out I get over whatever buggin me. At first It was tough getting started in a new area, but after putting our all into it, we were able to set 8 baptismal dates in a week, my mission high! We also set one during the weekend which puts us at 9 baptismal dates total and more coming up, which is way awesome because now we're leading the mission! Another awesome awesome experience was when we (Only the mission) got to meet with and shake the hands of Elder D. Todd Christopherson, Elder Donald L. Hailstorm, and three other members from the Second Presidency of the Seventy and Area Seventies. It was such an inspiring meeting and it was amazing to feel the apostolic power, messages, and to recieve the apostolic blessings he gave us as his "companions in the Apostolic commission to Preach the Gospel!" He's one of my favorite members of the Twelve because of his simple but profound messages and the perfect wave he has in that hair of his haha. Well Elder Hallstrom of the Presidency of the Seventy came to our Stake this Sunday and we got to introduce him to a bunch of our new investigators! It's like a guarantee to baptism if they meet and shake the hand of a general authority haha love it! We saw each other all the time before the meeting, after the meeting, and at the mission meeting the other day, so we're pretty much on a first name basis as he came u and started shadow boxing me haha. As we were just messing around with each other I was thinkin "I wonder what'll happen if I just call him 'Don'"...but I'll never loose
respect for our General Authorities haha so it was way fun spending all that time with him. He's so going Apostle, especially because of his completely perfect part in that regal hair of his haha, but it was definitely an awesome weekend that I wont forget. Well with all that,
I wanted to give yall a little slice of what brings me the most joy I've felt out here on the mission and give you some info on what's going on in the live's of my best friends here in Dallas! It has been one of the greatest parts of my life to help them learn and participate in the ordinances of the Eternally Saving Gospel of Jesus Christ!

Manuel Jara is already ordained an Elder and is, as far as I've heard it, the new Elder's Quorom Secretary. His family preparing to go through the Temple this September.

As some of yall may know, Jacobo has married an already Endowed sister in Carrollton, and will be recieving the Melckezidek Priesthood and going through the temple the 25 of August.

After teaching Adrian and Berenis Urena, their Father has noticed a change in them, especially after their baptism, and months and months after their baptism (and visits from us relentless missionaries :), he has finally met with the bishop to set up a time in which he can be baptized.

Erika Martinez is happily living the Gospel and is teaching everything we've taught her to her mother and other members of her family! Their baptisms will be approaching very very soon and Erika is preparing her children to serve missions. And to the surprise of many doctors, her child that we blessed at 10 days old is still living, and was somehow miraculously healed from the previously diagnosed heart conditions.

Karina, the mother of David and Henry Arbaiza, is finally working things out to marry Carl! After teaching him for so long as the first family I found in my mission, he'll finally be able to get baptized.

My main homie from Greenville, Jason Walker, has quite some interesting coincidences with me. He was released from the Georgia mission on September 19, 1992. Shortly after his mission...some events happened and he left activity from the church until Elder Larson and I started working with him in his hometown ward of Greenville. A few weeks ago, he was able to go to the temple for the first time in 20 years, and after living a single life, will finally be able to marry the love of his life from back in High School and be sealed for time and all eternity this summer.

Just as we expected, Brittany and Carlos Riveroll are not only diligently dragging their Mom to church with them, but also their Dad! He was far from interested before their conversion, but they are helping their family prepare to someday enter the Temple. Carlos also has been ordained with the Aaronic preisthood and is always helping the Deacons in the sacred ordinance of the sacrament. I won't be surprised when he becomes Deacon's Quorum President anytime soon.

I recently recieved a letter from Tommy and Jaime Phillips explaining how happy they are as an active couple in the Gospel and Church of Jesus Christ! Tommy (Previously Jehovah's Witness) has done the Temple baptism for his father and many other family members. They said, "We are so excited to see you at our Temple sealing this October!"

Well, life can be tough at times, but I can testify that the cure to anything is being employed in the service of the Lord.

And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father! And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!

Well, all I gotta say is..."He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it."