7.6.15 - Yo no les compre esta comida, Dios se la compro

Happy 4th of July! I love to be in the United States. My mission has given me a passion to see the success and preservation of our great country. It was inspired, organized and founded by men led of God to set forth principles of religious freedom by which the restoration of the gospel of jesus christ could commence and flood the earth. I will serve and protect our country, our rights, and our freedom.

 

We ate with the valdez family on the 4th. We didn't think anything special would happen because no one gets very worked up about the 4th of July in our ward, especially in comparison to 5 de mayo. For some reason we all woke up with brisket in our eyes and it carried in our conversation the whole day, how much we wanted some good texas barbeque. To our amazement, the valdez family made some of the best sausage, ribs, pork chops, steak I've ever had in texas. They served it up with mexican soda, tortillas and some home made salsa. That's good eating. He told as we were leaving that while he was driving home from a trip he saw a bunch of paper flying around in the area. When he pulled over there was nearly 300 dollars flying around in the middle of nowhere. So he snatched it up, and vary charitably put it toward making us a tex-mex barbeque. It was all meat. Not a single veggie in that entire meal. MMM.

We went to MLC on thursday and it had a powerful impact on me. Missions are going home this week that i've looked up to as examples for a long time. There is a tradition of departing missionaries giving a departing testimony, and 3 of theirs inspired me to know what more I could do to magnify my call, and make it a change that could endure the test of time. I was so grateful that day, for the clarity of thought that came as I prayed and acted on the prompting. My testimony became more meaningful, and it seems to burn now within my bones. I've been caught with the fire of the restoration.

 

My study this morning was on the agency and faith. I thought, if faith is to rely wholly upon the merits mercy and grace of christ, how can I act without being commanded? If i'm relying then I can't move unless it be the will of God that I do so. The clarification comes from seeing we rely upon his merits, mercy and grace, and not on his impulses, or his daily guidance only. Second, when christ taught that we should let our good works show, he taught that his light was the light we should be showing unto all nations. The key comes from remembering agency is our ability to ascertain and make decisions according to the will of God, which we find studying his word. If we learn and apply true Doctrine, and found our decisions off of the light we've received, then we are relying upon God's will, or his Word. Acting in faith, or relying wholly upon Christ, means we make our decision according to true doctrine and the light we've attained, and it doesn't infringe our agency, it is the only way to exercise true agency. What an inspiring reason to search after, learn and apply true doctrine, so that we can live according to a higher light that enables us to more fully exercise our agency.

 

I love you very much!

Stay Salty!

 

Elder Tyler Meidell

6.29.15 - Su mision fue extendida?!

We had an emergency exchange this week. Elder Hilario went off with the assistants to deerfield and Elder Maters is my companion again!! What a great big lovable creature he is. We are in a trio with Elder Cruz who is teaching us tex mex. That sounds like this Oy compa, watchese. No chekeo el carro cuando salimos? It can be poorly understood in both languages.

 

I had an awesome opportunity to do transfer planning with president and the assistants. It took form 10 - 5 wednesday and thursday to go through all 207 missionaries and determine their next step in their development. It was a very spiritual experience. What I liked about the planning, was it followed the same principles when being guided by the spirit in mission work. We did all that we could by our own judgement, and as we got stuck we just moved on and whether it was logistics or extra knowlege that came in while we talked everything was able to fall into place until the spirit confirmed to us that what we had done was correct. Similarly while we're out working we plan according to our best judgement but often we'll get stuck no knowing the best thing to do. So we make a decision or just skip and either on the way, or as logistics work themselves out the right thing will happen. Sometimes the Lord just doesn't care which decision you make because their both good. So found yourself on true doctrine, especially on the words of the living apostles and then use your best judgment.

 

I love the Lord, I love you! My love for the Lord makes me more able to love you :)

 

Stay Salty,

 

Elder Tyler Meidell

6.22.15 - Noventa y cuatro anos!

We couldn't be more happy for Carmen Castro this week. What a big change we've seen in her since she received the light of gospel truth. She is full of life and energy. It may not look like it from the picture, but she is. Before she would be 24/7 glued to mindless TV programs. She spoke very little. In this last week we saw her playing with the dog, folding clothes, helping cook and avidly participating in the lesson. Her comely personality has come back to her. Her son-in-law brother martinez baptized her with the help of Elder Cruz who supported her back while she quite nimbly submerged into 3 feet of water.

Orlando came to the baptism and brought his wife! They are a prepared family ... if we could ever just teach them ...

Another investigator kept her commitment to read the introduction to the Book of Mormon. Already she's noticed a change in the tranquility in her home.

We met in President Slaughter's house again last night. Elder Hilario was called to be an Assistant, we counciled with a few of the lead sisters in the mission about some changes that needed to be made for exchanges this upcoming transfer and the mission study on the gathering of Israel. I read Genesis 40-41 this morning and I love that all of the house of israel had to  come to a gentile nation to find joseph and salvation during a time when famine was rampant. In our day a lack of the word of the living God was rampant as israel was scattered amongst all the gentile nations. Finally with the gospel restored in it's fulness the house of israel must come unto joseph, and like joseph of old who administered bread, joseph smith has the power to administer the ordinances of salvation. Praise to the man!

I went on exchanges with Elder Black, Elder Brough, Elder Hill and Elder Mcquinn this week.. I'm not very good at taking pictures, but i'll be better. It was busy because the exchanges fell on the same day as 2 zone conferences, and i just had the job of giving a little class on teaching with technology.

The blessing of being spanish called in the united states is you get to practice habits to develop new skills that you wouldn't if growth were demanded by the environment. We could go out to work every day without planning our time, and we could work as hard as we wanted all day, but by the end of the week we probably wouldn't have anyone at church because our efforts were not tailored to accomplishing that one goal. Similarly, if we want to develop a skill, the goal needs to be followed by a plan that is achievable, measurable, and is purpose filled. On exchanges we talk a lot about realistic goals that can be be completed by the end of one day, and breaking big tasks like learning a language into little bite size pieces we can manage day by day. The dedicated and intelligent effort made over not too long very quickly bring gratifying results.

I love you very much!
Stay Salty!

Elder Tyler Meidell

6.15.15 - 3 Intercambios

I feel very fulfilled after a week of hard work! I also see very clearly that the success we saw came when we were at a loss of what to do, and the grace of God supplied the needed answers.

Carmen was interviewed by elder hendricks and was given the Okay to be baptized. We're preparing the service for this coming Friday. Despite her short answers she was evidently about to bare her testimony of the divinity of the restored church, her willful desire to obey the commandments of God by being baptized, and showed fruit meet for repentance by giving up coffee after at least half a dozen decades of use. She's so sweet, i love that she lights up when she sees us and trusted us enough to let us practice baptizing her with 2 people. She's pretty active for being 94!

Elder Zelaya and Elder Cruz worked our area on bikes for 3 days this week because neither of them have current licenses. Elder Hilario and I had 3 exchanges. I'm sorry I forgot to bring my camera to provide pictures. It was faith building to see how much one Elder had grown since I'd seen him a year ago. He has really stepped outside of himself and has made the work all about giving glory to God and not the other way around. The happiness he has in his eyes and in the work is night and day. We taught together a family battling CPS for the right to take care of their own kids. Granted they aren't very healthy, play a lot of video games, don't clean the house too much, and i assume because of the stress CPS is putting on them because of their lack of steady work the heavy cigarette smoking, they still seem like pretty good people. I was just surprised how easily CPS could jump in and take someones kids away. Knowing the family is the way God ordained for his children to be taught and raised in this life, it unsettled me how much say that man made organization had. At the same time, how great that organization is for children who need to be relocated to a family that can provide the love and nurturing environment they need to thrive.

I've been studying the gathering of Israel. A little of what I know so far, is that to gather means to renew a descendent of jacob with the knowledge of their redeemer and the covenants God made with their ancestors. The gentiles receive the gospel first because those who were last will now be first and the tribe of Ephraim has the birthright to head that charge as descendents of Joseph. I am a son of Joseph, and my lineage traces to Abraham. I literally have his blood in my veins, and all of the earth has been touched through the scattering to claim those same blessings, if they will believe.

 I love our prophet Thomas S Monson. I love my mission president James Slaughter. Christ's will is revealed to me through them. God's word and his will, are taught to me through the spirit when I heed and follow their council.

I love you!

Stay Salty!

Elder Tyler Meidell

6.8.15 - Mensajes de texto

Well, what's not new?

We moved this week. We went to the temple on Friday. iPads were distributed to the entire mission and that involved a series of meetings. MLC was last Tuesday, and President took some time to help us practice using all of the tools in Gospel Library to study. I have really like making my own footnotes, and tags to organize my materials for lessons. I really like have an organized system to keep my studies ordered by themes.

We really only had evening hours to proselyte this week. Elder Hilario and I planned our exchanges for this transfer, it looks like we'll be doing about 13. We also needed to send out correction on everyone's spanish exam and set goals for a few missionaries that are having an especially difficult time learning. Our first priority was visiting the missionaries who have english companions and just helping them stay accountable to their study plans. I think the doctrine we're trying to get at is, progression is accelerated when it's measured and reported. Our lives will be most fully used if we can get into the habit of setting personal goals, measuring them, and holding ourselves accountable to them. If we get that process ingrained while we have a companion to help us remember what we're trying to accomplish we'll be able to do that in a less imposing way with an eternal companion. In a spanish and english companionship it will just be remembering to check up on how the other is progressing, in a spanish spanish companionship they will be much more involved in the actual learning of specific principles with their companion.

We send texts out to the mission once a day to test some commonly made mistakes.

We had about 4 hours to proselyte each day this week. After it all, we had a really great day at church this week! Carmen came to church again. She's 94. We taught her how to pray yesterday. We have to teach like we're talking to an 8 or 9 year old, except she's had 94 years of praying the "our father" every night before bed. We tried to give her a few examples of things she might say in her prayer, but she had a hard time saying anything not written. When she read the part, "We thank you," we just asked, why are you grateful to God? and then all of the sudden she paused, and some gears started to move, and said, because he is good, and gives us everything. So she understand, but has some traditions to work out of.

Orlando came to chruch too. He was a referral from las palmas. He's been studying from the Book of Mormon, he's been to several congregations and we're very excited to meet with him this week. I former investigator also came to church on her own named claudia, and a part member came to see the blessing of their daughter in sacrament meeting. Haha, so despite not talking to the majority of these people during the week, God is furthering his work.

I live with Elder Cruz, Zelaya (companion) and Hilario (other companion)

I love you!
Stay Salty!

Elder Tyler Meidell