¡Tan Rapido el Tiempo!

Que Honda cuates!?

My mind is playing tricks on me holy crap. I literally just wrote home yesterday. Time is on a whole different dimension here in the mission field. I'm already almost half way done with my kid. I hope everything is going great back at home! The fires sound pretty sketchy but hey at least they make for good sunsets.

This week was pretty insane, but we were also blessed with quite a bit of success! On Tuesday, my kid and I went down to Pachuca for the meeting with all trainers and trainees. I was there just 6 weeks ago! Towards the end of the meeting, Pres was telling us about how there is no schedule for leadership. He then mentioned that there are two trainers in the room that have 6 weeks in the field. He got emotional as he talked about how he calls them when theyre ready, and that they are callings from the Lord. It meant at lot to hear those words and feel the revelation behind the decision that he made to have me train.

Im not gonna lie, Wednesday was rough. I'll spare y'all the details but the two main things were that we had an eternally long zone meeting due to some disobedience of missionaries in our mission (and now our music rules are a lot more strict), and my kid dropped and lost our phone in a combi. This phone had hundreds of important contacts. And to this day we havent been able to communicate with anyone including investigators. We're blessed with amazing neighbors that have helped us with a few important calls but we just need a working phone back! I didnt realize how important the phone is as a part of work. Especially with an area as big as ours. We picked up a new phone after a zone conference that we had on Friday but we{re still waiting for signal to come. It's really trying my patience haha but I know everything will be ok.

This week I contacted this girl named Adriana in a combi and after about 10 minutes of talking, she let us get off the combi with her to go teach a lesson to her family! The lesson went really well and they already accepted a baptismal date! It{s the best feeling getting great new investigators. I'm so grateful we were able to find them.

During the combined zone conference (four zones) on Friday, Pres said "We have seen a companionship opening an area, and in the first week having 6 with a date, 5 in sacrament meeting, and 16 new investigators" as I look at my kid and give him a fist bump. Hahaha it{s not the numbers that matter but Its nice to have your hard work recognized by President.

Saturday night, we helped some of our investigators move some appliances from their house. We moved a bed, a couch, huge dressers, and a closet (dont worry dad, I lifted with my legs, not my back haha) but it started getting dark while we were working and we didnt notice a huge storm coming. Long story short, my kid and I had to bike home for about 30 minutes with POURING RAIN and no light. It was a nightmare. Everything got completely drenched and our clothes got wrecked with mud stains. But wow this experience was a miracle. We made it home safely, nothing was damaged too bad, and for some reason we were just so happy when we arrrived at home. I was hating my life while we were biking but as soon as we got home, we just celebrated and made the best of the situation. Of course it stopped raining the instant that we got home, but we just laughed it off. We ordered pizza and blasted some EFY music to turn the terrible situation into such a fun memory. I'm grateful for my kid and his constant good attitude.

Yesterday we found some golden new investigators! A lady at church told us that her friend wanted to meet us at 6 o clock so she took us there and this family is a gem. They have been through a lot of rough times but they told us that they want to learn and do everything we ask them to do. They said that as soon as we walked in, they felt peace, happiness, and hope that they have never felt before. We were all able to feel the spirit really strong in our lesson, and I'm so excited to see their progress throughout our next lessons. You better believe we{re gonna put them on a date this Wednesday haha.

Right now, the investigators that the old Elders had are giving us a hard time. All of the situatiosn are kids that need and want to get baptized but the parents have problems or want to wait longer or wont give permission. We{re working really hard and I think they'll all be able to get baptized soon but its been frustrating when they keep on asking to postpone because of the smallest details. This just gives us even more motivation, though, to find new investigators that are ready for the message and ready to act on their feelings. We have been blessed for our efforst and things are rolling amazingly here in Ojo de Agua!

Matthew 18:20 says "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." what a cool scripture! We can apply this to missionary companionships, church, temples, and in our families! It is so important to stand in holy places and be with good people! God will be in the midst of us when we do our part to spend time with good people, and in good places. We should always strive to have the holy spirit with us because we can't withstand the trials of this day without the help of God. 

I love you all, and I pray for you all every day! 

Cuidense!

Elder Millard

Ojo de Agua!!

Que tal familia y amigos!

Espero que todo ha sido bien chido en Orem! Im jealous of the beautiful fall weather over there, its still blistering hot here haha. We're getting there though, little by little.

What an amazing first week here in Ojo de Agua! We had a lot of success and a lot of fun. We met with all of the investigators from the previous Elders, and there are about four that could be baptized really soon! We also found some really cool people that have a lot of potential! Im excited to see how they progress. There is a lot of work to be done here in Ojo but wow things are already going so good.

It looks like Elder Molina is only going to be with me for one cycle because his visa is coming along pretty fast. Hes gonna have to go to Mexico City for a little interview soon and then we{ll know soon after that when he{s leaving exactly. But I{ll most likely have five more weeks with him. Guys im not even kidding, my companion is literally Moses from prince of Egypt hahahaha he has the exact same face. He is honestly so funny but wow we has a unique personality. Ill enjoy my time with him though, he does good in lessons he just needs to take more initiative and be more confident. Thats why he's in his training though, so he can learn good habits and use them his whole mish!

Ojo de Agua is honestly so amazing. There's a Walmart, Coppel, Little Ceasars, Dominos, home depot, and a place called Chedraui super close so basically we have everything we need. We have been studying our maps like the bible because our area is basically half of Mexico I swear. I'm honestly gonna have to start using my own money because of how many "combis" we have to take haha. But it's been a miracle because we haven't even got lost yet haha! And I guess we'll never have to worry about running out of houses to contact lol. It's kind of hard though because a lot of the different areas have a lot of "privadas" which our gated off communities which most of the time are very closed off to the missionaries, and sometimes they don't let us contact haha. So we just have to find the good spots with the people that will listen to us.

Feliz 15 de Septiembre!! Dia de independencia! We had a "Noche Mexicana" as a stake in Tecamac and it was honestly so fun haha. There were soooo many people there, and the music and dancing was just classic Mexican culture. We even got new investigators that just came to the party with their friend! Pres and Hna Kimball came to the party DECKED out in Mexican atire haha and everyone absolutely loved it. The party was on the 14th and on the actually 15th we had to be home at 7pm because it's too dangerous for Americans to be on the streets after that haha. I'm not gonna lie though, I thought people would be a little more patriotic. I barely saw any flags or decorations or anything but I think its because everything happens at night time when were already in the house haha. Theres a "grita" where everyone gathers in the center of every city in Mexico at 12 am and they all shout "VIVA MEXICO" repeatedly for a long time, I wish I could go, maybe after the mish when I'm allowed to see the number 12am on the clock.

We are being kept nice and busy here in Ojo. We're teaching english, teaching lessons, meeting members, and finding the people who are ready for the gospel! This ward is honestly so legit. They have an amazing program for the youth and every thursday night for mutual it is literally a full out party with food, activities and music and so many people! The chapel is literally just party central and it makes it easy to want to invite investigators to because we know they'll have fun! I'm not gonna lie, the youth get along so much better here than back at home because they meet all of their friends at church and it makes them all want to spend time with each other! The ward leaders are amazing and have already made us feel so welcome. There are about 150 people who assist every church every week so this is definitely one of the stronger wards in the mission but it could also be because our ward boundaries are so huge haha. Unfortunately there are a lot of inactives, but we're doing our best to try and find and reactivate them.

Yesterday was a pretty crazy sunday Im not gonna lie. First off, Elder Molina and I were biking to church in the morning. We turned the corner onto Boulevard Ojo de Agua which is the main street, after a few seconds I looked back and Elder Molina was gone! I waited a little to see if he just got stuck in the traffic or something but he never came so I turned around to go see what happened. Long story short, MY KID GOT HIT BY A CAR. Don't worry, it wasn't too serious but the guy didn't even get out to help my comp, he just kept on driving. I need to track him down, nobody messes with my kid. The front of his bike got wrecked but he only got like two minor bruises. I didnt see any of it happen but Im just glad it wasnt worse. There have been some pretty bike stories here in Mexico. I think thats one of the reasons why we are one of the only two missions in Mexico that has bikes. But its not really dangerous as long as we're careful and drive defensively haha. Second off, we get to church and after we welcomed our investigators, I went to go play some quick prelude for sacrament meeting. Then an hermana came up to me and told me that the hermana who was going to play piano for the primary program didnt show up. So I ended up playing all the songs for the primary program and it was soooo fun! It was honestly an amazing program and even though I had to sight read some of the songs for the first time, it went really well and it was so fun! Theres nothing better than hearing the tesimonies of 5 year old Mexicans who cant even roll their R's or anything yet haha. Third off, we get home yesterday night, walk through the gate and the alarm goes off! This crazy loud alarm that went on for like 10 minutes before we got a hold of our house owner that showed us how to turn it off haha. If it wouldve kept on going for longer, the police wouldve showed up and it wouldve been a lot more complicated of a situation haha. What a sunday haha.

Today we had a zone activity in the center of Tecamac, and it was super fun! We played soccer against another zone and holy crap it was a blast. Soccer is really starting to grow on me. It was super fin because at the end, all of gringos played all the latinos and we won!! It was honestly a miracle haha. It was fun to hang out with the other missionaries. I even found out that the father of one of the Elders in my zone created Fortnight!! Haha super crazy.

One of the common beliefs here in Mexico, especially with the Catholics, is that all we have to do is believe and then we are saved. It doesnt matter what we do during this life, as long as we believe and pray to God, we will be saved. What a sad way to think, honestly. We have a purpose here on Earth. We have things we have to do, a gospel to follow, and our Heavenly Father's will to submit to. Matthew 7:21 says "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my father which is in heaven." Verse 14 talks about the path of the gospel and it says "few there be that find it". We are all so blessed that we have found this path. Now we just need to focus on sticking with it, and doing the will of the Father. The Lord promises eternal blessings to those that will put him first. I love you all! Have a great week!

VIVA MEXICO,

Elder Millard

WHATTT (transfers)

How are my friends and family doing?? Transfer news came, and Im just gonna get straight to the point. Yall are not going to believe this. I AM ENDING MY TRAINING 6 WEEKS EARLY AND I AM GOING TO TRAIN A BRAND NEW MISSIONARY. Haha yeah I don{t know how exactly that happened haha. That has never happened in the history of the mission. There are 25 new missionaries which are coming this cycle which is the most the mission has ever had, so me and Elder Bolanos (my columbian roomate from the ccm) are going to be trainers for two of the nuevos haha. But guys thats not all. Ready_ IM OPENING AN AREA TOO....ummmmm this is about to be the hardest thing Ive ever done in my life. And the area is called "Ojo de Agua" in the zone "Tecamac" in the state of Mexico! Its close to Mexico City and lets just say its a little bit of a crazier area. My specific area is more rich and safe so Im super excited. As soon as I got the news, I could just feel the people that Im going to meet, and the experiences that Im going to have with my "hijo". Hijo means "son" by the way haha because Im his trainer. I am unbelievably excited but also super nervous, Im about to be praying real hard.

Pres called me Friday night at 10:30 and said "Im about to ask you a question I have never asked before. Are you ready to cut your training in half and train a brand new missionary?" haha I knew it was a possibility because he had mentioned the crazy cycle that was coming but I didnt think itd actually happen. He said that he hates to split me and Elder Howell up because we were just starting to get rolling in Mixquiahuala but he said he really needs and trusts both of us. Pres has been kind of stressed out with this coming cycle because there are 10 new areas being opened which means ten new houses and everything inside the houses too. He has been a busy man. But I am so grateful for this opportunity I have in front of me to help him out and train a brand new missionary. I cant imagine what it will be like in his first interview with Pres. "So uhhh your trainer has a whopppin six weeks in the field" hahahah

Saying goodbye to Mixquiahuala was so hard. I will miss our converts Claudia and Maria, the family Reyes that will be baptized next week, and all of the dope members, especially the family I talked about last week. Lalo, abuelita Cholita, Miguel, Carenia, and everyone else are definitely people I will be coming back to visit. Its hard to leave this place right when I was starting to know the place and the people really good. Elder Howell and his hijo are going to baptize about seven people in the next three weeks because of the work me and Elder Howell did. Everyone thought Elder Howell was gonna go up to be an assistant but he was called as a trainer again. So he will stay here with his new hijo thats coming from Brazil haha. It{ll be hard to miss the results that were awaiting us but I know there is a plan for me to go to Ojo de Agua. Something bigger and better is waiting for me there.

My dad Elder Howell is going to be missed. I learned a lot from him and weve already planned to go to Jazz games tomorrow. We have a super close relationship and I find it unlikely that Ill have that kind of relationship with any of my other companions. Hes my brother. Ill have all of my different companions for a reason but truly Elder Howell was special and we had such a blast in Mixquiahual. Ill never forget my birthplace and all the experiences I had there.

My hijos name is Elder Molina and he is from Ciudad Juarez in Chihuaha! He is super cool and Im excited to work with him. He has really really good enlgish and he can speak french too! He kind of has a different personality but that just means that as a companionship we can relate to a greater spectrum of people! His mission call is actually to California Carlsbad so hes only gonna be here until his visa is figured out. So who knows how long Ill be training him. Im excited to see if he can take the initiative and contact. We were waiting in the chapel for about 10 hours yesterday as president was doing the interviews for a all of the new missionaries. So me and my hijo got to our house at about 10:30 pm.

We both know basically nothing about this place but Ive already seen how great the support is from the members here, so Im not too worried about it. I did this in Mixquiahuala too its just that now im the trainer and not the trainee! Im super excited to get to work here. It looks like we dont have much to start out with but once again thats what happened in Mixquiahuala so we just need to get out and start working!

One of our dope members gave us a little tour of our area today and I'm pretty sure there is not a bigger area than this one in the history of all of the missions in the world. HOLY CRAP. hahahaha there are a bunch of little "fraccionamientos" and each of them are basically a city. It takes 45 minutes to drive in a car from one end of the area to the other. We are going to die on bikes. Theres also little van things called "combis" that are super common for transport that we're gonna have to start using more. I'm just gonna focus on the areas a little closer to the actual colonia "ojo de agua" for now so I dont get us lost for a few days hahaha.

I love you all so much, and I'm so grateful for all of your support. I'm not gonna lie, I'm pretty nervous about this area, there's a lot of pressure laying on me. But I'm definitely more excited than nervous. The hard experiences are the best ones right? 

Cuidense familia y amigos!

Elder Millard

TULA!!

Helloooooo my amazing family and friends!!

This week I had to say goodbye to my tadpole and parasite friends. It was quite the hard goodbye but it was time for them to go. On Friday we cleaned out our "tanke" which is the tank on top of the house that holds all our water. Turns out that there wasn't even anything covering it and the water was nice and dark green with dirt and the parasites and tadpole buddies that I was talking about. It was actually pretty dangerous that we were bathing and doing dishes with that water, so I'm glad we were able to see the little tadpoles or else we never would{ve known haha. We spent four hours getting that thing nice and squeaky clean with the help of our amazing mission leader and bishop. Now our problem is that everything smells like Chlorine haha. 

The doctor for the Mixquiahuala missionaries is a champion. She is part of the family Contreras Candeleria. This family is literally my favorite part of being here in Mixqui. Pres Kimball has all of his trust in this woman, and she definitely has all my trust too. But she had me and Elder Howell go get blood tests done to make sure we're ok. Turns out we both have salmonella poisoning. It wasn't from the water but it's because all the vegetables in this zone have salmonella and most people don't wash them well enough. Weirdly enough, Elder Howell is the one that got sick even though he's been here longer. He's been having a lot of digestive issues but guys for some reason I haven't really had any problems! Sure I have had my moments with diarreah but that's nothing new here in Mexico haha. I do have salmonella but I have prescripted medicine that will get the job done before I start having symptoms.

Guys. The family Contreras Candelaria. I am in love. Seriously we are so grateful to have their love and support as missionaries. There are three families that live in the same little complex with different little houses. All of them come from abuelita Cholita. Guys Cholita is a true homie. She's the woman in the background of the pic of me and Elder Howell eating chicken feet haha. I have officially adopted her as one of my grandmas and now I'm an honorary grandon. Her grandson is our misison leader, Lalo, who is just the best person on the planet. Cholita's daughter is the doctor I was talking about. And one of Cholita's grand daughter's name is Alondra. Alondra has Leukemia, but has such a strong spirit. She is such a light in the family and in the ward. We all really look up to her because despite all of the intense chemo and radiation she's going through, she is always perfectly happy. But guys this family is just so humble. They have a tiny little store that's connected to their house and they all take their little shifts as a family. You can tell they don't have very much money (except for the daughter that's a doctor haha) but they are all always perfectly happy. They also have a parrot named lorito that is almost thirty years old. The parrot always says "hola" and "que paso" or "como estas?" and it's just the funniest thing haha. Apparently he sings too but he gets nervous in front of us haha. He had a friend that died a while ago and it's hilarious because now he legit hates the daughter that's a doctor because he thinks that she killed his friend. He always runs away from her hahaha. That little bird brain never ceases to amaze me. This family is definitely one I want to come back to visit when I come home from the mish.

This week wasn't quite as successful as the others. It's hard to have every week as good as the past couple weeks. Lily is a 9 year old girl who was going to get baptized today but her dad didn't let her go to church last week and he is starting to doubt letting her get baptized. And a lot of our investigators with potential have kind of died off and become more flaky. With those let downs, and the fact the Elder Howell got sick pretty bad this past week, made it hard to have as much success and progress as we've been having. We're still doing really well in general. We're  on track on baptize two-five people this coming week, and we still have some good progressing investigators but we definitely have a lot of work to do if we're going to continue the success. We'll never be satisfied haha

The family that is going to be baptized this week is named the Reyes family. The mom and one of the daughters are basically set for this saturday but the other two daughters still aren't sure. This is the family that literally contacted us and asked for more lessons. Miracle. One of my favorite parts of the mission so far is when the investigators learn something new and their eyes just light up. The Reyes family has learned a lot and they have had so much more joy because of it. Yesterday in fast and testimony meeting, the mom and daughter bore their testimonies about how they have felt since the message of the gospel came into their lives. We're grateful they found us and we're hopeful to clear up the doubts of the two other daughter and eventually get to the father too! 

Next email I will know if Elder Howell and I are staying together. I really hope we do because we're on a roll here and we have a lot to do still but president told us that this cycle there are 25 new missionaries coming. That's more than any other cycle in the history of of the mission Mexico Pachuca. Because of this, president isn{t afraid to make some crazy decisions and changes to accomodate for all the trainers that will be needed. Training is supposed to be 12 weeks and I'm only at 6 but we'll see what happens for this next cycle. Hopefully I'll stay here in Mixqui! I love this place. But I know I'll love wherever I am sent.

Today for pday, Elder Howell and I, and the Progreso elders went with Lalo and his younger brother miguel to the ruins in Tula!! You have to get at least two baptisms in a cycle in order for president to let you go because its actually outside of our mission haha. We all just piled into the back of the truck and road tripped to Tula! Guys this place is so cool!! This is the place that has been speculated to be occupied by the Jaredites. All of the pyramids and buildings were used for sacred ceremonies and rituals. And the statues seem to be wearing ancient temple clothing. Tula was so dope. It was one of the biggest cities and civilazations in ancient Mexico, and it was so so beautiful. Next up I need to go to Teotihuacan, which could very well be where Christ visited the Americas. I love literally living in the Book of Mormon. 

This week I want to share a thought about how soon we, as humans, forget about the spiritual moments in our lives, and how we forget about when we{ve seen the hand of God. Alma 9:8-9 says "how have ye forgotten the tradition of your fathers? yea, how soon ye have forgotten the commandments of God. Do ye not remember that our father, Lehi, was brought out of Jerusalem by the hand of God? Do ye not remember that they were all led by him through the wilderness?". Guys this is why it is so important to read the scriptures, pray, and live the gospel every day. We forget so soon about how great God has been to us. I want to ask you questions just as Alma did. Do you not remember that you have the opportunity to live because God gave it to you? Do you not remember that God has supplied you with strength during your hard times? Do you not remember that Jesus Christ atoned for our sins, and that through him, we can repent and live forever? Family and friends, please think often in the times that you've seen the hand of God. Maybe keep a journal of how you've seen blessings from God in your life. Find a way to learn from this example in the scriptures and remember your savior and your God in every moment. They are everything. And all they ask us to do is keep the commandments and live the gospel. If we can do that, we will be blessed forever. This life is the time to prove to our creator that we love him, and we will obey him.

Les amo a todos de ustedes! Siempre recuerden y sigan su redentor y padre celestial!

Elder Millard

WEEK 11!

Que dice familia y amigos_!

I hope things are going great in Orem, and I hope it isnt as hot as it is here haha.

We had a great week here in Mixqui! Claudia and Maria got baptized on Friday and it was such a cool experience! The spirit was so strong, especially hearing Claudias testimony at the end of the program. I was able to sing (Yo se que vive mi Senor) which I think most of you are able to translate into English without my help haha. But it all went really well! I picked and played the other hymns for the service and I picked How Great Thou Art for the first hymn and the next day Claudia told me that that is her all time favorite song and she almost started to cry when we started singing it! She is going to be such a strong member, she has a great testimony. They both just looked different after the baptism, they were so happy! All of the people she knows have been telling her she has more of a light in her eyes and that she looks different. And most of those people dont even know she was baptized. Baptism is truly a door we all need to enter in to be in the straight and narrow path of the gospel that leads to eternal life!

I've been teaching quite a bit of piano lately! I'm the only one in both the wards in the city that knows piano haha. A lot different from Utah thats for sure haha. But it was so fun to teach all of them! The goal is to have them each play a simplified hymn for the primary program coming up! I was kind of thrown off at first though because piano is spanish is actually a little different! The piano notes are in solfege instead of the alphabet letters haha. So I had to relearn the piano notes in solfege and then teach them all the notes haha. But it{s super fun, and it gives time for some of the young men in the ward to do splits with Elder Howell while I{m teaching.

Guys we have the coolest stake president on the planet. Hands down. President Lozano is super smart, and kind and has quite the background. He used to work for the government, and then he realized all of the corruption that was there. They started ordering him to scam people for money and do other illegal or inappropriate things. He refused to do them and so they send him to jail. Guys this jail was two blocks from his house but he was in there for 20 months before he was proven innocent! In Mexico you have your trial after you spend a lot of time in prison. It{s backwards and its so unfair, and corrupt. But he made the best of the situation and he befriended all the inmates and taught some how to read and some others about the gospel. And get this, he bought a cake for one of the inmates every week. They all loved him! The government ended up offering a lot of money to the inmates if they would kill President Lozano, but nobody would do it because they all loved him! Cake literally might have saved his life. There is no order or rules in some of the Mexico prisons and for that reason they are super dangerous. But Pres Lozano was just telling us how much he learned from his experience. He grew closer to Jospeh Smith and what he went through in jail. I look up to that man so much and his ability to look on the bright side and endure his afflictions. I can't imgagine how hard that would be, especially for his family. And since that experience, he had seen the tv series Prison Break so we talked about our bud Michael Scofield together haha.

We have found a lot of new people this week so every day we are stacked with several lessons and barely any time to contact! But thats a good problem to have haha. Yesterday we had an appointment fall through (Whats new?) but I think it was for a reason because we met a girl named Alicia who is so amazing. She said shes been looking for someone to help her with English for her test coming up, and she also just had one of her family members pass away. God truly sent us in her path so he could help her through our hands. Our first little lesson with her was so spiritual and she has so much potential to be baptized! 

I already feel so blessed here in the mission. Especially with the language. Guys the gift of tongues is real. My comp told me I have better spanish than some of the missionaries with more than 9 months in the mission. He tells me every day how amazing it is that I can already speak about 80% fluent (which I definitely think is too high of a percentage haha) but let me tell you guys, it isnt me! I feel like I've done my part with studying the grammar and practicing as much as I can but God has made up the difference and now all of a sudden I can actually talk really well with these people! I still have soooo much more to learn but I have been so blessed and for that I am very grateful.

Don't get me wrong, the mission is not easy. It gets hard at times. Especially at 6:30 AM haha. But theres nothing The Climb by Miley Cyrus and some solid street tacos can't fix.

Elder Howell and I have been blessed for our efforts. Every sunday theres a miracle with church attendance for our investigators! In order for someone to get baptized, they have to assist the church at least three times so we really like when our investigators attend haha. We had an army of 10 come yesterday which isnt including Claudia and Maria who are now members! Sure, most of the people we invited didnt come, but thats normal here because people are legit so flaky haha. The Reyes family were touched by one of the talks in sacrament meeting and now most of them are set to be baptized on the 8th! We also had a woman named Vicki come! We{ve taught her about three times now and she is so awesome. But we didnt think she was gonna come to church because she always tells us she has her other church! Today she came with two of her kids which really surprised us! After the meeting and after Vicki left, the bishop and another member came up to me and told me about how big of a deal it is that Vicki came to the meeting. Apparently she had been a leader of the (Espiritualistas) and a lot of people know her and look up to her. Her husband was also the president of Mixquihuala and they are LOADED with money and they{re low key famous. Haha I had no idea! But I{m so glad she came, hopefully she can feel the truth of these things during our upcoming lessons!

Mosiah 2:41 teaches us that those who keep the commandments of God will be blessed both temporally and spiritually. It tells us to remember the blessed and happy state of those who keep the commandments. I have seen these blessings in my life and in my mission. If we have faith that God will bless us, if we follow the gospel of Jesus Christ, then we will receive those blessings. Strive every day to learn more about what we can do to follow and become more like Christ, then, as the scripture says, we will dwell with God in a state of never ending happiness. I love you all!

Les quiero muchisimo,

Elder Millard

Week 10!!!

Aug 20 at 2:50 PM

Que honda familia e amigos!_

I hope al lis well in O’Town. It's crazy to think some of my best friends are about to start their senior year and I'm just chillin in Mixquiahuala haha. I hope all the best for good ole MV this year. I miss my second home haha. Once a bruin always a bruin. Amen.

Wow things are so good here in Mixqui!! Elder Howell and I are having a freakin blast out here, and we are working so hard. We've met so many people that have so much potential! God has placed us in the path of so many people that want to hear the message of the gospel. Elder Howell and I now have about 9 people with a baptisimal date! And so many more that are progressing! I've really been banking on the promise in my mission call that I looked back on recently that says "As you serve with all your heart, might, and strength, the Lord will lead you to those who are prepared to be baptized."

This past Thursday, Elder Howell and I had another meeting with Claudia and Maria and we were planning on asking them how they were feeling about their baptisimal date that is coming up. Now understand that we had been pretty nervous to see what their thoughts are because they have had a lot of doubts. But then CLAUDIA TOLD US SHE DIDN’T WANT HER WATER TOO HIGH IN THE FONT FOR HER BAPTISM. Hahaha I've never been happier to hear those words. Claudia and Maria were already planning for their baptism! Haha we were so stoked the entire rest of that night. They are going to be my first baptism! They will be baptized this coming Friday! We're so excited for them!

We have been teaching a little girl named Lily and she is just a little champion. She is eight years old but knows literally everything and she's just so cute haha. Her mom and grandma have been inactive for 15 years but they came to church the past week and we have had great lessons with all of them where they have felt the spirit strongly! Long story short they are basically active again and Lily accepted to be baptized! Since her mom is technically a member, and she is 8 years old, she is actually under the jurisdiction of the ward to get baptized which makes it complicated for us to baptize her. But the last lesson, when we proposed a date for Lily's baptism, Lily's mom told us they can't because they'll be out of town for HER 9^THBIRTHDAY!! Haha this means that since she is turning nine, she'll technically be a "convert" which means we can be in charge of baptizing her! She's planning on getting baptized on her birthday on Sept 3^rd!! We're so glad to have contacted her grandma on the street!

We had exchanges again this week, but this time I stayed in Mixqui and another Elder came to take Elder Howell's spot. This means that I was the leader, and had to schedule everything and know where everything was. A little nervewracking but I was able to do it! It was nice to be able to see the things I need to work on personally since I didn't have my trainor to help me out with things.

It's absolutely insane that it's already week four of this cycle. And yesterday was my two month mark! It's weird because it feels like it has been an eternity but it has also flown by haha. Especially in the field, time basically doesn't exist anymore haha. But things are really good out here. The people are so kind, the food has been legit incredible (well other than the pig skin I had this week haha), and we haven't even been robbed yet! Haha but Elder Howell and I were saying it's gonna be really hard to leave this area when the time comes, even though we do have tadpoles in our water hahaha. It's just such a cute little town with such amazing people, and a center that's always bumpin with different activities. Reminds me of the Orem summerfest haha. Gotta love Mixquiahuala.

This week at church we had an army of 12 investigators come! We were running with our heads chopped off trying to show them all their classes haha and it didn't help that I had to play piano for the Progreso sacrament meeting during the other meetings of our church haha. But we were so happy! Also 10 minutes before the meeting started, bishop told me I had a 15 minute talk on missionary work. Hahaha so I had five minutes to prepare the talk and I felt pretty jipped haha but I guess he had sent us a text, we just didnt get it. But its ok! It went really well and Im grateful for the opportunity!

I want to share some knowledge that we have in the church that I'm super grateful for. This knowledge  can be used as our motivation during our hardships and trials. Romans 8 says "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God; And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together." WOW what a cool scripture. Guys if we bear with patience our afflictions, and endure to the end, we will become joint-heirs with Christ which means we will have everything that Christ has. What an amazing opportunity. Don't take this life for granted, we need to better ourselves everyday and serve our fellow people always.

I love you all, and I'm so grateful for your example and support in my life. Enjoy your hot showers, clean water, and washing machines because I sure miss them haha. Our house has been having serious issues but hopefully we'll get at least our boiler going again soon haha. Have a great week!

Que les vaya muy bien!

Elder Millard

This is our drunk friend who doesn't know his name and says that he has an extra body at his house for when his current one runs out haha

Week #9

hola familia e amigos!

How are you all doing_ I love hearing from home, you guys seem to be killing it. Also not a big deal but MY SISTER JUST GOT MARRIED!!! Congrats best  friend, I love you so much. Best of luck to you Maddi and Jarrad!

Things are great here in Mixqui! We  had exchanges on Wednesday because my comp is zone leader so I went to Progreso with Elder Javier and it went really well! It reminded me of my Latin district in the CCM where I couldnt speak a word of English haha but the day went really well. We went to a place called Moreno which was way up in the mountains. Pachuca is already 8000ft elevation but this place was even higher and it was gorgeous. At the end of one of the little lessons we had, I was saying goodbye when I noticed the lady sneaked a picture of me hahahaha. She was trying to be so sly but I definitely caught her. Didnt say anything but I thought it was so funny, I dont think shes ever had a guerito like me visit her house. At the end of the day, Elder Javier told me about his time in the Mexican army. He told me about how committed he was to his leaders in the army and about how now he is completely committed to the Lord. I really respect him, and I{m glad I got to spend the day with him.  Let me just say though, I was excited to get back with my comp. Elder Howell teaches and contacts so well, and I'm glad I have small little exchanges to help me realize how good of a trainer and missionary he is. I really need to  take advantage of my time with him.

Here are some other highlights of the week. One day, Elder Howell and I were walking back from a little pueblo called Taxquahda (the names of towns are legit all insane, imagine how hard it is to write down directions of houses lol) and next thing you know this huge water balloon smashed right beside us and got us a little wet. We looked up and saw a girl hide behind the roof. She barely missed us but it caught us off guard, and it was so frickin funny. We walked to the other side of the street to get a better view of her and she just kept on peeking to see if we had left yet. I cant imagine if the balloon wouldve actually hit us hahaha. 

There are so many drunk men who tell us to go back to $%&#$ America, and sometimes theyll try and pick a little fight haha but dont worry we are always smart enough to just get out of those situations.

Guys soccer is life here. In fact, Soccer in Central America originated in and near Pachuca! E Howell and I have played with a bunch of little kids and they are always so fetchin cute. I always look forward to times we get to play with them. 

The food has been sooo good so far and I've been adjusting really well! Some Elders have gotten sick and have been throwing up so I{m knocking on wood. But we eat so many different foods. We have a lot of [tuna[ which is the fruit from cactus and its super good! We also had some chickin feet called [patas[ and those I wasnt the biggest fan of haha but maybe not as bad as youd think. Just not the biggest fan of the sound of the cruch of the toes when you bite them off haha. Its a no for me haha. But guys the churros, tacos, bread, and tamales are hands down the best things Ive ever tasted. Unbeatable. I love Mexico haha.

We have watched the restoration movie three separate times this week. It really is a great tool to teach the restoration and our investigators have loved it! I love to use the videos and media of the church but here in Mixquiahuala most people dont have phones-internet. When/if I'm in Pachuca, everyone will have them so it will be a lot easier to show stuff haha.

So we have some pretty bomb investigators. Claudia and Maria have a date to be baptized on the 25th of August! We have faith that theyll be able to be prepared for that date, theyre progressing super well! This past saturday they came to a  baptism with us, and we all felt the spirit super strong. I had the opportunity to play the hymns but also sing a musical number for the baptism! It went really well, and I think they have a greater desire to be baptized now! We started teaching them about the plan of salvation and when we showed her the scripture in the bible and taught her about the kingdoms of glory, she lit up and started laughing from joy and said that she understood. I loved to see that immediate joy from this amazing knowledg that we have. In our last lesson she started crying when talking about how she felt when taking the sacrament. They could very well be my first baptisms, and it'd be way cool because they were actually my very first lesson in the field as well! 

We have an investigator named Bryan who we almost dropped because he hasnt been home and hasnt been answering but I felt that we should call him one more time. We called him and he told us we could come over right then and there to teach him! We went over and taught him and his mom and aunt. The spirit was so stronng and him and his mom started to cry. There are no  coincidences and I'm so glad we were able to get a hold of them and teach them in this time. Bryan has had some serious problems with drugs and so we gave him a blessing and he has been able to start taking less and less. He is progressing very well and we have good hope for him and his mom!

We feel so blessed here in Mixqui. We started off with nothing guys. But God has blessed us and now we have mas o menos 20 progressing investigators and many other contacts with potential! Things are rolling here in Mixqui! We have been working so hard to find the people that are ready for this great message. I{m so grateful for this gospel and all that it teaches us. We  have so much knowledge and hope that some people havent been blessed with quite yet. Thats why we are here as missionaries.

I love a talk from Elder Holland that talks about the difficulty of missions. He said, and I'm paraphrasing, missionaries often have questions such as, why is this so hard president_ Why is everyone rejecting us president_ We know our message is true so why doesnt everyone just flock to the font_ Why is this so hard president_ Then he saidÑ Why did we ever think this was going to be easy_ This life, and this work, is not easy and will never be easy because salvation is not easy. Salvation is not an cheap experience. Christ suffered for our sins. It was never easy for Christ, so why did we ever think it would be easy for us_ Sometimes we may ask ourselves if there is another way but Pres Holland testified that someone much greater and much better already asked that question. But Jesus after asking, said that his fathers will, not his will, should be done. We, likewise, need to do not our will, but the will of him who sent us. We have to feel at least the smallest token of what Christ felt in order to appreciate and understand the atonement better. But take peace in knowing that during the hard times, we are standing side by side with Christ, because he already went through our trials. He is there for us, and by him, we can do anything.

3 Nephi 27:33 says Enter ye in at the strait gate; for strait is the gate, and narrow is the way that leads to life, and few there be that find it. Guys we need to realize that we are an elect people. It is hard to follow the path but wow it is well worth it. Keep being strong in the gospel and share it with everyone!

I love my mission. I don't know how many times I'm going to say that throughout my mission haha but it's true. My testimony is growing ever day. We forget so often about the grace and beauty of God and I'm blessed to be able to live in the midst of it every day. I know that the Book of Mormon is true, and that Jesus Christ lives. Study his life, search for him, live like him, and you will be become perfect like him one day. This is our goal and our purpose. This is what will give us joy.

Que esten bien mi familia e amigos, !les amo muchisimo!

Elder Millard