3-24-14 Faithful Readers

Elder Minnich who helped Mike add umph to is hymn playing.

Not sure what to say about this.

If you know Mike you know he loves Carne.

Well hello family, friends, faithful readers. I am running out of witty ways to start off my letters and titles to place in the subject line, so sometimes I just throw something in there, so you will have to bear with me on that one. It was a good week. On Tuesday, we started teaching Juanita. She is a members cousin, and has been exposed to the church off and on since she was a teenager. She is like
in her 40's now. She loves reading in the Book of Mormon, and would be baptized, but she is living with an illegal Mexican (and has been for about fifteen years) and is scared that if she tries to marry him that he will get deported. Anyone have any tips? We taught her about faith in Jesus Christ, and from 1 Nephi 3:7 where it says that The Lord doesn't give us any commandment that we can't fulfill. If The Lord wants Juanita to be married, which she knows that he does, then He will provide a way for her. Maybe it won't be clear from the beginning. Maybe she will have to take a step into the darkness for a little bit, but as we show to The Lord that we are willing to act, He gives us the way. We should pray like it all depends on Him, then go and work like it all depends on us. That was the sentiment of our lesson. We asked how she felt afterwards, and she said she felt hope! That is a start. We are super excited for her progress. We will keep you posted on that!

We had a stake priesthood meeting on Saturday night in Reading. The stake presidency talked all about Christ and about His attributes and how we can apply them in our lives. I was called on at the last second to translate, which I did. I love translating. Ok, if any of you are ever giving a talk that is being translated, PLEASE state your scripture references or give a copy of them to the translator. We only have so many scripture references memorized. In the meeting, they showed several of the Bible videos put out by the church. Those are awesome. We use those in our teaching a lot. Then after a clip was shown, they asked you to speak with the people around you about how Christ showed a certain attribute, among which were Christian Courage, the way He treated women and children, and others. It was super edifying. I didn't get to take notes because I was translating, but what impressed me was how courageous Christ was. He had several chances to get out, to sugar coat things, to seek the honor of men rather than please His Father, but He never did. I'm trying to be more like that.

President Anderson told me in my interview that he wasn't gonna let me go home in August. Haha I love that guy. He is super funny. Gives awesome counsel too. Gave me some super good advice. Love him.

I love playing the piano and organ. I play in sacrament meeting and I played at a minutes notice at a baptism. One of my favorite things is to play prelude. I have gotten way better at doing medleys of hymns and jazzing them up. Elder Minnich taught me that. I saw him at the stake priesthood meeting. Love my boy. Pictures forthcoming. Thanks for making me practice and all that stuff mom. I was a butthead about it sometimes, but I am super grateful for it, and so are the people in Allentown, Norristown, and Bridgeton.

We are excited to see things happening in this branch. Our branch president and I went to someone's house on Wednesday and gave three blessings to a mother and her two daughters. One daughter just had a baby last week and the other had been in the hospital for a week with pneumonia. The mom was developing pneumonia. We gave them all blessings, and the Spirit was so strong you could have cut it with a knife. It was so cool. They are all getting a lot better. They were all at church and brought a friend! They didn't have a car, so they asked one of their neighbors to take them to church, and now the neighbor, after coming to church, is now interested in the gospel. You see how challenges can be made into awesome missionary opportunities and blessings? Look for opportunities to serve! When trials come, that's good! It makes us humble and lets us see The Lord in our lives.

Those are the highlights of my week. Good job in being in the play Marcus. You're a boss. Keep listening to country music and being like me. But more than anything prepare to serve! The time flies like crazy. Love you all. This is the work of The Lord. Heavenly Father wants us to serve Him, and we only deprive ourselves of the blessings when we refrain from doing so. Love ya!

 Elder Dial

Writing home at Luis' home

St. Patty's Day Festive

Shoes are starting to look a little worn

Ok everyone get ready. It's Elder Dial's letter. Get excited. Some cool things happened this week. We are teaching these two investigators, Lilian and Angel. Lilian is Super Dominican and is one of the biggest sweethearts I have ever met in my life. Her sancocho is delicious. She has been meeting on and off with the missionaries since she was a teenager. Talk about not giving up. She is super nice and we are seeing if she shows signs of interest and keeping commitments so that she can know that the Gospel is true. She literally calls us "Mis Hijos." We sometimes call her mamá in response. We just helped her move last week to a different house. Yesterday we had a super awesome lesson with her. The Spirit was there. We taught about baptism, and how we can know that the Gospel is true. She says she believes that Joseph Smith saw what he said he saw, and we are trying to help her to
take the next steps to make that covenant with God so that she can experience those blessings that come thereby. We are super excited tosee how it will turn out and to see how The Lord had prepared her up to this point. Her husband/boyfriend, Ángel, doesn't know a whole lot about religion, but we are working with him as well so that he can feel the Spirit and become converted. These are exciting times for them. We are blessed to be able to teach them.

I am speaking in church next Sunday about charity. Our branch sometimes has a little problem about gossiping and about talking bad about each other. Maybe it is Hispanic culture, but it has been a
problem wherever I have served! Hopefully I will be inspired to say a few words about how we can love our fellow men, and about how it is a commandment that we have charity. We can't say that we love Christ and are one of His disciples if we don't have charity. Mormon says that God has given charity to all that are true believers of His Son, Jesus Christ. Hopefully I will be able to help out our active members to be a little kinder and to show love to others here.

Well apparently the Puerto Ricans here are boycotting St. Patrick's day. Interesting, isn't it. I am rockin my socks and tie that I was sent. I am looking stylin. I just need a sweater or coat that is green to even better exemplify that Irishman that isn't in me.

We have interviews coming up this week. Those should be a good time. I love interviews. President always gives awesome counsel to us on how we can improve. Being on my mission has made me a lot more open to correction and counsel from other people. Being a Spanish elder helps a lot with that. You are humbled the second you don't know what anyone is saying!

Well, that's pretty much the nitty gritty for this week. Thanks for your love and support. I'm super excited for this next week coming up. It's gonna be a good one. Gonna preach with all me heart, might, mind, and strength the message of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love testifying of  Him. I love testifying that we have a prophet on earth today that we get to hear in two and a half weeks! Get excited! Love you all!

 Elder Dial

March 10, 2014

Sweet week. We had our branch conference yesterday. They announced that we officially have the numbers to become a ward! The requirement is 15 active Melchezidek priesthood holders who pay a full tithe. We have those, and we had about 60ish at church yesterday. It was super cool. Now we are just lacking on the spiritual preparation to become a ward. That's the most important part. During the leadership meeting with members of the stake leadership, we talked about unity, love, and what else we need to be able to have a ward that The Lord would be proud of and of which he could trust. It was an awesome Sunday. We are super excited. I am speaking in church next Sunday about charity in an effort to help people in the branch to stop gossiping about each other and to help them to recognize and show love one towards another. Luckily I have been in wards and branches where love is shown and where the Spirit of The Lord is in great abundance. I am excited to do all that I am able to help our branch progress numerically, but more importantly, spiritually.

Here is a Bruce R. McConkie quote I came across this week. A little long, but it hit me hard.

"But when contrasted with spiritual endowments, they are of but slight and passing worth. From an eternal perspective what each of us needs is a Ph.D. in faith and righteousness. The things that will profit us everlastingly are not the power to reason, but the ability to receive revelation; not the truths learned by study, but the knowledge gained by faith; not what we know about the things of the world, but our knowledge of God and his laws.

"Joseph Smith said that a man could learn more about the things of God by looking into heaven for five minutes than by reading all the books ever written upon the subject of religion. Religion is something which must be experienced.

"I know people who can talk endlessly about religion but who have never had a religious experience. I know people who have written books about religion but who have about as much spirituality as a cedar post. Their interest in gospel doctrine is to defend their own speculative views rather than to find out what the Lord thinks about whatever is involved. Their conversations and their writings are in the realm of reason and the intellect; the Spirit of God has not touched their souls; they have not been born again and become new creatures of the Holy Ghost; they have not received revelation."

Hopefully we have more spirituality than cedar posts. Knowing the doctrine isn't enough! We have to live it and experience it, and thereby we gain a testimony. There are some things that someone who
has never lived the Gospel cannot know. They cannot know the peace that living the Gospel brings to the soul. I am a witness of that peace. I see a lack of it in people that we teach, and I wish I could
share it with them, but they can only experience it if they do the Lord's will. If you don't have quite the testimony at you want to have, live more fully the commandments and the teachings in the
scriptures and of modern day prophets. That is how we gain he knowledge that we seek.

Well not too much to speak on this week. You got my rant. You're welcome. Pictures will follow. Love you all. Get excited for General Conference! Less than a month!

Elder Dial

Solid Week!

I went on a couple exchanges with my District Leader and Zone Leader and learned some awesome things. We are doing our best to work with these members and to get them stoked on loving each other. There is a bit of a problem of gossip in our branch. People wonder why nobody is there for them because they receive no visits from their home teachers, visiting teachers, or whoever else, but it hasn't entered into their head to do their own visiting assignments. Ugh. It is obnoxious. Luckily I was raised by a Dad that showed me a super good example of always being diligent in his Home Teaching. I was a butt head about it sometimes, but now I realize how important it is! It isn't about us. It is about someone being there for the families that we are supposed to be there for. In our branch, we have a ton of single sisters that need priesthood leaders present. The home teachers can and should be that source of help. We are working with the branch and stake leaders to figure out how to get people stoked on doing it.

We had a good lesson with the Figueroa family. They are a family that was semi active when I was here last year, and then went less active. They have a daughter that is about 15 months old, and they want to be active in the church to have a good environment for her, but are just being a bit lazy about it. We taught them about the temple and about how no sacrifice is too great to be able to get there. We took the approach of teaching them about what their potential really is. They understood it completely, and we really are hoping and praying that they are able to step out of their comfort zone and do the necessary things at the expense of their own comfort to be able to qualify for a current temple recommend. I have a testimony of the temple. It is the house of The Lord. We should go often and do all we can to be able to understand more about what goes on there. We are working very tightly with them, and it is paying off because they gave us two solid referrals yesterday! So we are stoked.

This week I will be having my first Skype lesson! I have been taking with an online referral that lives in Mexico City. We are excited to be able teach him face to face and to invite him to come unto Christ. Gonna be a great time.

We play basketball every Saturday and sometimes with the youth on Thursdays. I am getting way better. Better look out when I get back Matt....

Well we are having a great time. You know that. Crazy things are happening in the world, but if we are obedient, diligent, and faithful, we don't ever need to worry. That's my testimony!

Elder Dial