Another Baptism! August 10, 2015

It was another solid week this week! We are having a lot of success here out in this Pueblo, and I really do love being in a small branch. It gives us more of an opportunity to grow a small group of members into a ward some day. I am loving the challenge right now. 

We were able to baptize again this week. His name is Miguel. He is an 8 year old child, and was accepted very well by the Primary here, and he really enjoys going to church. He also wanted to be baptized by Iñaky who is a future missionary that enters into the MTC in 8 days, so that was a very cool experience for him. 

Baptizing a small child reminds of something that Jesus taught in Matthew 18: 3-5. It says, "And he said, verily verily I say unto you that if you do not become like little children, you will not enter into the kingdom of Heaven. Therefore, anyone that humbles himself like this child, this is the greatest in the kingdom of Heaven. And he that receives in my name a child such as this, he receiveth me." I translated that so sorry, but the lesson is the same: We need to be children of Christ. If we look at children, they pretty much love each other and get along no matter who the other child is. And why are we to be different? We may be grown up, but we all need to act and be children of Christ. No matter our differences, we need to love other people before we can help them. And as we become more and more like small children in Christ, we will reach the Kindgom of God. 

Completed a year this week! Also a pic of my companion that caught a bird in a house of prayer haha. 

Love you all,

Elder Andrews

The Power of a Future Resurrection: 3 August, 2015

Another great week here in the tiny little pueblo of Maravatío! It was kind of a crazy week with a ton of stuff going on, but we managed to make it into a great week.

I will just go to the highlight of the week. The baptism of María Agustina, a blind, one legged woman with diabetes. It was kind of a weird baptism trying to get her into and out of the font because there are almost no men in the ward, so we had to awkwardly not grab her but lift her up haha. However, at the end of things, she was able to get baptized. I loved it. I really was able to gain a testimony of the future ressurection that will happen to all of us.

In Alma 40:23 it talks about the ressurection. I am translating so bear with me, "The soul will be restored to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and all member and joint will be reestablished to its body, yea, not one hair of the head will be lost, but rather all will be reestablished to its proper and perfect form." 

We will all be ressurected to perfect bodies one day. I love this. María Agustina will one day have a perfect body. It is a gift from Christ for us. However, we need to take this perfect body and enter into the presence of God and stay there. We have a wonderful gift that we receive regardless from God because He loves us immensely. All we need to do is return that love, follow His commmandments, and we will have our perfect bodies in Heaven with our families and God one day. I know that this is true. I love the Plan of Salvation that was created for us. It is called the Plan of SALVATION because that is the point. Salvation means being with God, and that is His goal for us. We should want and strive for nothing else. 

I love you all so much, and always remember that God made this plan, earth and opportunity all for us, and because He loved us first, we love Him.

Elder Andrews

P.S My feet are so white!!!

Elder Andrews "still kinda got it"

 Mission President and his wife with Elder Andrews

¡Dos Milagros! 27 Julio, 2015

This week was a really frustrating but regarding week. We had had a lot of families that were going to go to church, but Satan worked hard to not make them go. My companion and I were pretty dissapointed, and then the baptism planned for this week had to leave town. However, we prayed to find a miracle family to bring to church or a baptism. 

We went to church on Sunday when all of the sudden we saw a few people that we did not recognize. I talked with the dad and everything was good when he said, "hey what do I need to do to get my daughter baptized?" I said that we would just have to teach her and they could get baptized. He then says that he is not a member because he has not been able to get married to his "wife" yet, but the daughter had gone to church in another ward for a while. We then go to meet the daughter and we ask, "Would you like to get baptized today maybe?" She gave a big yes haha and we taught her what she needed to know and already knew a lot when the dad says, "hey can you baptize my other daughter who is 11 too?" Shocked, we just kind of shouted, "¡Claro que sí!" (of course!)

It was a great little baptismal service and from this, I have learned that specific prayers and faith can really work miracles. If we pray with a purpose, we will receive answers. And as we have faith, we can see the miracles happen in our lives as well. 

I hope everyone is doing great, and always keep the faith. It can do anything.

Elder Andrews 

July 20, 2015 Found a New Family

We were really grateful to find a good family this week to bring to church for the first time. It is a little family of 3 named the Family Medina Ben-avidez. It is kind of weird bringing people to a little kind of run down house of prayer for church, but I am grateful to have a building. We will make this little branch into a ward.

Also this week please pray for María Agustina as she is the blind lady looking to get baptized this Sunday.

I will also be sending more pictures of the beautiful area out here and of the house of prayer with the sweet baptismal font in the back of concrete. I love it here in Mexico.

My message come from Doctrine and Covenants 105:38-41 this week. It says, "(38) And again I say unto you, sue for peace, not only to the people that have smitten you, but also to all people; (39) And lift up an ensign of peace and make a proclamation of peace unto the ends of the earth; (40) And make proposals for peace unto those who have smitten you, according to the voice of the Spirit which is in you, and all things shall work together for your good. (41) Therefore, be faithful; and behold, and lo, I am with you even unto the end. Even so. Amen. 

I love this scripture because although it says the word peace I like to also think of that as love. We need to be good with all others. There will be people that smite us and mock, but we need to respond with love. We love all people whether they are bad or good because we are all children of our Father in Heaven. And if we can love all people, as it says in verse 40, all things will work together to help us. And He will be with us unto the end ,or in other words, forever.

I love you all very much and I hope that we can all focus on what brought us to this world and that is love. And if we love everyone, we will have peace.

Elder Andrews

P.S Sorry that the pictures are so small. Accidentally didn't change the setting back on my camera 

July 13, 2015 First Week on Bikes!

So as you know, this was my first full week on bikes, and it was actually super fun. I will have to admit that my legs are super sore, and I will have to get used to it. However, I am looking forward to having some really strong legs in about a month. 

We have a few people here that are getting ready for baptism, and they are great. I have realized that we teach a lot of interesting people here haha. One lady that we are teaching is blind, has one leg with 6 toes, and 12 fingers. She is really awesome though, and her name is María Agustina. That is probably the most interesting person that we are teaching right now, but we do need to find a lot of new people to teach. We have faith that we can find these people that are searching the Gospel but do not yet know it. We will bring them the truth. 

My message this week comes from Doctrine and Covenants 101:59-62. It says, 

"59. And the servant said unto his lord: When shall these things be?

 

60. And he said unto his servant: When I will, go ye straightway, and do all things whatsoever I have commanded you,

61. And this shall be my seal and blessing upon you - a faithful and wise steward in the midst of mine house, a ruler in my kingdom.

62.  And his servant went straightway, and did all things whatsoever his lord commanded him, and after many days all things were fulfilled."

I really like this scripture because it teaches us 3 lessons. (1) First of all when we ask, "when shall these things be?" we need to realize that it is always in the Lord´s time. For that He says, "When I will." (2) We also need to do all the things that the Lord commands us because obedience is the first law of Heaven, and we need to prepare ourselves as such. However, for that obedience we will receive many blessings. (3) And last, we need to do the things that the Lord asks of us now or "straightway." As we fulfill the commandments and wait for the blessings patiently, "after many days (the blessings will be) fulfilled." All we need to do is do as the Lord asks and do it diligently. We need to forget everything else and serve Him. As we do this we will see the blessings, maybe not immediately, but after many days they will be fulfilled.

I love you all very much and hope you all have great weeks!

Elder Andrews

P.S We found and bought hammocks. Best idea ever. 

July 8, 2015 To Maravatío, Michoacan!

Well I am writing today on Wednesday because I moved across the entire mission to Maravatío, Michoacan. It is a small pueblo with a house of prayer because there is no church. I already really love it here, and there is like a sweet tourist plaza which is really different and cool. I am so glad to be away from the city and in clean air. And I also feel like a regular missionary now. Why? Because we have bikes haha. My new companion is named Elder Costello, and I had met him before. We already get along super well and joke around, so it should be a great change. 

I really was sad when I had to leave El Mirador because I had made some good friends there, and it is hard to leave behind people that have had dramatic changes with the gospel. However, a change is always nice. It is nice to say that I left that area with a baptismal date in that area for each Sunday for 4 weeks. I was kind of sad to not see them baptized, but them knowing the gospel is all that matters. 

A scripture that I really liked this week is in Ecclesiastes 8:12. It says, "Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him." I really like this scripture because no matter how much we mess up, we can always go back to God. We cannot sin purposefully, but we do occasionally make mistakes. And as long as we are always trying to improve, do our best, and fear God, we will be forgiven. As we do our best, everything will turn out well if we follow God.

I love you guys all very much, and I will have bike pictures next week!

Elder Andrews

P.S. A nice good head in the cake to say goodbye 

29 Junio, 2015

We had a pretty decent week this week, but it was quite busy. We were helping our zone leaders to get medical forms, so that they could marry people and running for all places. However, it ended up well.

We have been finding a lot of people to teach, and since we only have a week left and it is pretty sure that I am leaving this area, Elder Acosta will have a lot of work and success here next change. We have been trying to find families and also trying to strengthen our ward more and more. However, the highlight of the week was being able to have a baptism. His name is Marcelo, and it was great. We were finally able to get his trust back in the missionaries, and help him progress to this step. Before his baptism, he wife (who got baptized almost a year ago) bore her testimony and how happy she was that her husband was taking this step. She started crying, and then he cried and got baptized haha. It was a very spiritually rewarding moment. 

A scripture that I really like this week is in Doctrine and Covenants 84:75 and 76. In translation it says, "And this revelation and commandment given to you is in effect from this same hour in all the world; and the gospel is for all that have not received it. But I say unto all that have been given the kingdom. It is important that it is preached unto them from you, so that they repent of their wicked prior works." I love this scripture because it says that this gospel is for EVERYONE that has not yet received it. Not only for the people that are super ready, but rather for literally everyone. Everyone deserves to be in the Kingdom of God and not just us as we sometimes think. We were all sent here to return to our Father in Heaven. If we come up short, or if some of our fellow men come up short as well, we have not fulfilled the wishes of God. However, as we share the gospel with everyone, we will be able to save more and more of brothers and sisters that we knew before this life to make sure that we all return back to our God. 

I love you all, and I hope you are doing well.

Elder Andrews