It is COLD!! (11/23/2010)

It has progressively gotten colder this week. It has been kind of fun to walk around in the cold weather surprisingly. I have definitely put my big heavy jacket to good use this week. And it seems as though I will be needing it for a while. It snowed last night and it is supposed to snow again soon. The forecast for the low on Wednesday morning is -1° F not C. I couldn't believe it. That is just down right chilly. It has been kind of fun though.

Well we have some very exciting news. Edgar and Lilian are going to get baptized on the 4th of December. They came to church again yesterday and stayed for the whole three hours. Which is awesome. They have always wanted to but with their son Justin being autistic they were always worried. He did pretty well for about one and a half meetings and then his dad had to take him outside. The other day we went over there and Lilian asked if the church married people and we said yes and we found out that they are not married and they said they want to get married and what not. So we told them to get their license and everything and the branch president will marry them. They got excited and said they would. We then asked them after they got married if they would follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized and before we could finish, he said, "Yeah, I mean no body has told me this is true, like God didn't come down and tell me but I just know that it is. I just have this feeling that it is the right thing to do". It was awesome. He said well for me at least I don't know about Lilian. And she said Yeah I want to do it too. It was awesome.

So we are working on getting them married for this week so they can be baptized on the 4th of December. It should be awesome. Last night we went over the second lesson which is the plan of salvation. The Plan of Salvation is absolutely beautiful and when understood is amazing. But at times, can be very hard to understand. So we were going through the second lesson and Edgar just kept saying it makes sense. It makes sense that we lived with God before this life. It makes sense that we don't remember it because then there would be no test in this life. It makes sense we want to return with God and live with him. It was amazing. She is just happy and giddy all the time. She understands a lot as well, but more importantly she knows this will bless her family. She told us that they have gone through a lot of missionaries but they haven't felt anything until now. They always liked them coming over, they just didn't feel it. We told her that God has timing for everything and this just must have been their time. I also told her that ever since I have met them, when I knew they had an autistic son, I was very interested. To me, it is a very interesting disability. Plus, Alex has it and I just knew a little bit about it. Not a lot but I understand it. So Sometimes, God just puts us in places that will benefit everyone involved.

Well that’s about it. We have been doing a lot of tracting of late trying to find new people to teach. Please remember Edgar and Lilian in your prayers. Keep doing what your doing because your doing really swell. I love you all, Happy Thanksgiving!

From the windy city (11/16/2010)

It has been very windy here in Pasco the past couple of days. I mean extremely windy. This morning, driving to the library, there were a few signs and trees that had fallen down yesterday. It was pretty exciting.

So we actually had an extra baptism that we weren't expecting this week. Gerardo decided to get baptized on Sunday rather than wait for next Saturday. So he was baptized on Saturday and he will be confirmed next Sunday. He really is a good guy. He understands a lot and has really opened up lately. He has gone through a lot of trials in his life that have been difficult but he has really changed. He will be confirmed on Sunday and will probably receive the priesthood on the same day.

The baptism of Karen and Daniela went really well. I got the privilege of baptizing Karen and Elder Tom baptized Daniela. It was really neat. There weren’t very many people there but it was still very spiritual. Then on Sunday Elder Tom and I switched. I confirmed Daniel and Elder Tom confirmed Karen. They are doing really well

Erika's baptism went awesome as well. I was also privileged to baptize Erika. It was really cool. Once she walked out of the font, she just stopped and started crying. It was really neat. She was confirmed by a member in the branch at her baptism because she had to work on Sunday. Well then she showed up to work on Sunday. They gave her the day off because it wasn't very busy and they knew that she wanted to go to church so she was very happy. She is really progressing well and has been reading and praying every day which is awesome.

Edgar and Lillian came to church again on Sunday. They are doing awesome. We are working with them still. Lilian wants to get baptized but Edgar wants to know 100% so he is really searching. We will be patient with him. There is no need to rush. But they are still doing really well.

Anyway, that’s about all I have. Thanks again for everything.

(11/09/2010)

So Karen and Daniela are getting baptized tomorrow. (Karen is Edubijes I suppose that Edubijes is just a nickname....don't ask me). Then Erika is going to get baptized on Saturday. It should be awesome.

We also have a new family that is starting to progress. Their name is Edgar and Lilian. They have two kids, Justin (8) and Ashley (5). Justin is severely autistic. They are an awesome family. They have been taught off and on for about a year and half now. They are a family that seems that they would always let the Elders in and always wanted to be taught, but, at the same time, had never been to church and never really wanted to act. Well they came to church on Sunday. They said that one of their biggest fears has always been their son. He isn't very good at sitting still. Well on Sunday, it was testimony meeting as you know and so sacrament meeting ran for about an hour and a half and he stayed still the whole time. They just kept saying how surprised they were. They said it just seemed like something was holding him back. We then talked about baptism. They said if they found out these things were true then they would get baptized. They said they are going to earnestly pray tonight to find out if these things are true. They are a great family.

Gerardo is doing really well. Gerardo is a really really quiet guy and he is really starting to open up. He stayed for all three hours this week. He is making a lot of friends and you can just tell that he is changing. He is a great guy and is set for baptism on the 19th.

I don't know if you remember Carolina or not but she is back on date. She is on date for December 4th. She is a cool girl. I can tell the adversary really doesn't want her to get baptized (just like he didn't want any of us to get baptized) because it seems like every Sunday there is something new. Like this week her daughter was sick. It is frustrating but it is so comforting to know that the adversary will NEVER win.

Well the leaves are really starting to change here. It is really pretty but it sure makes for a big miss, but they are fun to walk on. I am really excited for these baptisms to come up this week. They should be awesome and a really spiritual experience. Erika is a really cool girl. She fasted on Sunday, which is amazing. She also said she wants to go to General Conference in April so she can see a living prophet. She is cool. I ask that you keep her in your prayers this week that she will be able to find a new job. She just started working at Taco Bell but they won’t give her Sundays off, she can come to church but she has to work the rest of the day. So she is looking for a new job.

I love you all. I appreciate you. God loves you more importantly. Imagine if everyone truly understood how much God loved them.

Have a great week.

Qustionaire (11/08/2010)

We recently sent Matthew a questionnaire (in bold). His responses are italicized.
1. What do people do for work in Pasco? They work in the fields
2. Is it a very big city? The population is about 55,000
3. Is there anything like a college there? Yes, there is a community college called Columbia Basin Community College
4. Is there an airport there? Yes, Tri-cities airport
5. Do the Spanish speaking people seem to live in a certain area or are they all over the city? They are concentrated in one area but they live all over.
6. Are there areas that the signs are in Spanish and every one seems to be speaking Spanish? Yes, the downtown area is pure Spanish
7. What is the weather like? Cold in the mornings and goes up to the high 50s during the day.
8. How many members are in the ward? There are about 160 active members. I don’t know how many there are in total.
9. Is the ward totally Spanish? Yes
10. What is the family like that you are living with? He is the Branch president. They met on their missions in Guatemala. They have three kids, one married and one on a mission.
11. Do they have children at home? One boy
12. What do they do for work? He is a chemical engineer and she is a teacher.
13. Have they been members for very long? Yes, she is the daughter of the the family I lived with in Connell.
14. What are your living conditions like? Separate area of the house, different level, things like that. We live in the basement. We have our own room and bathroom. We go upstairs for the kitchen.
15. Are high school or college sports big in Pasco? High school sports are pretty big.
16. Which area of your mission has been your favorite so far? Why? Probably Yakima because I was there the longest and so I got to know the people the best there.
17. Do the members feed you every night and what kind of food? Yes, usually they ask and I say tacos. But, if not, we get pazole (soup/stew), mole (sauce), caldo (soup), you know the usual.

I suppose the greatest thing I have learned on my mission is my testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know he lives. I know he loves us. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I know it is the most correct book out there. That is what I have learned.

Hey (11/2/2010)

Hey everyone. Things are going well here in Pasco. We are working hard and we are being blessed in many ways.

Joel is still doing well. He received the priesthood on Sunday and was just elated. He has been trying to share the gospel with others and get their addresses so we can go over. He is really a great guy and is going to make a great member.

Edubijes and Daniella are still doing well. Their baptism has been pushed back once again due to work. They are going to get baptized on the 10th which is next Wednesday. They still want to get baptized it is just that their mother has to work at that time.

Erika is doing awesome! She is on date for baptism for the 13th and she is really excited. The date may be changed because the father of her children is coming back sometime at the end of the month from Mexico and she wants him to be there to see it. She is still REALLY excited to get baptized and she is soaking up everything we are teaching her. In this branch they have “Noches de Hogar”, or family home evenings just about every day, actually, Sunday, Monday, Thursday and Friday to be exact. It is more like a Family Home Week but that is beside the point. Erica has been going to all of them and is really making a lot of friends with members of the branch. She is awesome. She will get baptized, we just don't know exactly when, but very soon.

Joel's Mom's name is Consuelo. She is an awesome lady. She really doesn't understand anything; she just wants to get baptized. We don't know when it will happen because Joel's dad is being a little stubborn. But it will be soon.

Gerardo is also on date. He too has been going to the Family Home Weeks. He also came to church for the first time on Sunday. He is awesome. He is on date for the 20th. The only struggle with him is that he works a lot so it is hard to meet with him but work should be slowing down here soon.

That's about all I have. Things are going really well. The weather is cooling off, Thanksgiving is on the horizon. I am grateful for a family that is supporting me on this mission. Many people thank me for the sacrifice but, it is you guys with the greater sacrifice. I get to be out here sharing the gospel. You just have to be home and think about what is going on here. Anyways thanks again.

I love you all. God Bless