Heart: A symbol of the mind and will of man; the figurative source of all emotions and feelings.

Dear Family and Friends,

It has been such a crazy and eventful week, and I can definitely say that I have been at the highs of highs and the lows of lows! However, the Gospel is true no matter what and it makes me so happy and grateful! I have been comforted and blessed as I serve with all my heart! By the way, speaking of heart, it is something I invite you do do. Ponder what it means to feel with your heart and how it can control you! It is something that really helped me in this week!

And Happy Birthday to Ethan! I love you and thank you for all that you do!

Take care of my sister!:)

Week October 10th - 16th 2016

Monday:

Today was quite the day and probably a day I will not forget at all!

So I guess to start it off we had a really fun and good day where we went shopping and then to the church to relax, and as we were there we were playing basketball and I was on the team of a big missionary named Elder Bott. As he went up for the lay up, I was under the hoop for the rebound, but he came down on me and he swung his arm which hit across my face making me go blind for a few seconds and I noticed I had some stuttered speech! I had a bit of a head ache for a while, and one of my eyes was very blood shot. So as I came out to keep playing volleyball I was super shaky and just dealt with it, but later in he evening I realized I was just super foggy minded. So as we were talking with some members and they noticed my eyes were very different sizes dilated I decided to call Sister Bergeson, the mission nurse, and she said it would be smart just for safety to get a check up, so we went to the ER last night at about 9 and they did a simple physical test on touching my nose and holding my hands up, and then I got a Cat Scan of my head. As I came out they said they could not see anything to crazy different and said that I just needed to go home and rest. Also the nurse, Whitney, said that I could have post symptoms of a concussion, meaning that the CAT scan didn't show anything, but I could start showing symptoms later, and I needed to be watched. So it is a god thing I have a companion! So other than that I don't know how to explain my day, except for I feel like a baby going to the ER without any issues apparently.

Tuesday:

Well I felt amazing today as I went on exchange with Elder Poll, a new missionary being trained by one of my companions, Elder Lewis. We had a very wonderful day where we started the day off busy with some wonderful studies, and then out to biking! We were able to bike a very long distance and we were also able to speak with everyone we saw! I think my favorite part of the whole day was two lessons we had! The first one was very focused on one of their investigators named Eduardo. We taught him L2, the plan of Salvation, and I loved it so much that it the end of the lesson he just looked with tears in his eyes and said, "Wow, that was amazing!"as we taught him we just were able to feel the spirit so strong and he both understand that we would invite him to be baptized and he also wants to come to church as well! Then as we were leaving he played his Ukulele for us! Then our other wonderful lesson was when we went wi a member of the bishopric, Hno. Dávila to teach a member who just moved here for work, and  we found out that the member had been doing a lot of missionary work within his family and he has 3 adult aunts that are wanting to come to church with him this Sunday! It was just a wonderful experience, but as we came in the house tonight I realized just how tired I was and even how sore I was! Man I love my mission, and Elder Poll is a very good missionary not afraid to work at all!

Wednesday: 

It is crazy how fast the day has gone, but man it was a really good and busy day! So we were able to finish our exchange and even go to a Zone Council in Fort Worth to see how everyone is doing, and it was a very good opportunity. As we were there everyone just seemed so down and like missionary work was hard and not worth doing. As they finished up they asked if there was anything that we wanted to add that was missed or any comments from the both of us, and I was able to talk to everyone and tell them how important enjoying their missions was, and as I did that everyone began to smile and just try to make the best of it. I think it is so sad when missionaries begin to endure the mission like it is hard, instead of enjoying the mission!

So as we finished at the meeting and headed home we got busy and went by to teach an active family at a dinner appointment, and in he process we found out that their 30 year old son is a member and living with them, but inactive, and all the missionaries that have gone by never let us know, so we were a little upset that missionaries were not passing on he information. Then our next lesson was with Hno. Pablo Martinez, where we just talked again about our purpose and told him we would invite him to be baptized, and as we did that he agreed and said that he would start working on that as a goal. I hope and pray that he does! Then to end the night we had a super powerful lesson with a man named Manuel Valdez, a husband of a member as well, and we taught him the rest of lesson one and tried to set a date with him, and he was super pushy about not setting a date, so we explained it is just a goal that we set to see what we need to teach you, and his whole thoughts changed about it, so we invited him to pray about it and come with an answer in Church on Sunday! It was a really cool lesson and made me super happy to know that he was willing!! Today was a wonderful day! 

Quote for the day, 

"Knowing that the gospel is true is the essence of a testimony. Consistently being true to the gospel is the essence of conversion."-David A. Bednar

Thursday:

What an amazing day where I was blown away by the most simple Doctrine taught by a servant of the Lord. So today Elder Kim B. Clark from the Seventy came to our mission and taught us in the North Zones from 9 to 5, and it was the most powerful time I have had in quite a long time! He was the Dean at Harvard for a while, and is so very genuine and loving, but within all of that is very good at inviting all including me to repent! So today our main focus in our training was how we can be converted to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and his Gospel, and I feel that I learned so much that I now must apply! It teaches us in D&C 59:4 that as we are obedient then God gives us more Commandments/Assignments to strengthen us and help us to become like him. I also learned a lot about the Doctrine of Christ taught in many places, actually everywhere in the Church material! Many people feel like they are not cleaned from sins because they can still remember them, but God never tells us that we will forget them, but he tells us he will remember them no more. (D&C 58:42) The last comment that I loved a lot was by President Whitney who said, "Many of us are marvelous teachers of repentance, but we do not know how to repent ourselves!"

All of these simple quotes or thoughts are super important to me, because they are simple things I am working on to become a Convert of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that his church is true, because I saw the application of this meeting in a lesson tonight with members, and they were so spirit filled and had stories that they were crying through to tell.we have a prophet here today to guide us, and he has the priesthood of God. If you question any of this I invite you again to Read the Book of Mormon in Prayer, and I can promise you will receive a prompting from God through the spirit!

Friday:

This week has been a week full of meetings, and today I was blessed to learn so much in my Zone Council. It amazes me how I was in Mission Leadership Council where we discussed all of these amazing topics, and how I can come here and have another council with my zone that is very focused down onus specifically, and I received answers o how to help the people in my area to progress more. So I would say one of the main things I learned today was this,

"Planning is an Eternal Principle!"

"Even God created a plan! So why don't we plan?"

"If we loves those we teach why do we hate weekly planning?"

D&C 59:4

"They that are faithful and diligent before me shall also be crowned with blessings from above, yea, and with Commandments/Assignments not a few, and with revelations in their time." (Revised to my needs)

As I learned more about planning and really what I am doing, I grew a deeper desire to play and talk about my investigators openly with my companion. So today we had a wonderful chance to share a message after dinner with the Alonzo family, an older couple in the ward who has a 15 year old daughter named Abby. She is all about sports, and was fun to connect with! So we taught about how we need to always do good without ceasing, and the we had a lesson wit AG and Samira. As we taught them we came to the main concern of Samira, and it is that her parents are very forceful, and she is very confused because she felt something, but when she reads the Book of Mormon, and prays about it she doesn't feel anything. So she kind of felt attacked having us there, so we just bore our testimonies and invited her to again begin to read and pray about it for herself, and she didn't really want to do it for her, but to make us feel good. I felt so sad, because there is nothing I can do other than invite, and she just isn't acting accordingly. Agency is such a necessary part of this plan!

Saturday: 

A day of Elder Clark Mission Leadership Council/Baptism

So today we had the opportunity to having a second Mission Leadership Council in this month, but this time with Elder Clark, and it was amazing to have him there where for 3 and a half hours him and President Whitney did a question and answer session and everyone asked so many questions, and it amazed me to see that every question was answered with scripture! I learned even more that the Church is true, because everything can and is answered in Scripture! So I want to type out a few questions and answers that were very uplifting and to me even mind blowing!

• What is a pre-mortal Covenant- Moses 4:1-2

God always tells us what we need to do and we must accept it by our acting on an ordinance. So God laid out his plan, or covenant, and then asked, "whom shall I send?"

Satan didn't want to accept the terms of the covenant, but change it completely, and Christ accepted it and God chose him! Then a Great War in Heaven broke out where everyone was free to chose to make a covenant with God, or Follow Satan. The war was not easy at all and many were struggling spiritually to chose the right, but it says in Revelation 12:7-11 (Those who chose Christ overcame Satan by the Blood of the Lamb. And by word of Testimony.) The Atonement of Jesus Christ even played effect in the pre mortal realm, and even Testimony was necessary!

• What is the difference between Satan and the Natural man, and how was Satan tempted to go against God? 

In the Pre-Earth life there was not 2 plans. It was the fathers plan. "But if you study more heavily on the Natural man, I was say he followed it fully!" Even Satan worked with fear there and we had emotion. Then God set up this life for us with opposition already included with the Natural man, so having Satan fall didn't change much of the fact that there would be opposition. The Natural man would have been enough, but because Satan chose freely he was added to that plan. 

I wish I had time to type all the answers and questions, but these ones really hit me! I know that Elder Clark is called of God and I loved hearing him speak so clearly! 

So today after the meeting we had a few lessons that we went to the baptism of our wonderful investigator and friend Rey Castillo. He was there more than early and was just so excited and happy about his decision! It was so wonderful to see a son of God so happy to make this covenant, and even more amazing was seeing the support we had in our ward! The primary room had a good amount of members, and it turned out so wonderful. And to our surprise, right about the time it started, President and Sister Whitney showed up and sat down, and it really made me happy! They not only made my day, but they made the day of Rey and he felt so special. I love the Whitney's so much and am so glad I have them as my examples forever! I can testify that a baptism calms the soul and helps to bring you back to the true identity that you have. You are a son and daughter of God. You already committed to him once in the pre-earth life to live his Gospel, so being baptized just shows your striving to follow him even more! I didn't want to leave Rey's side, but the time came and he left until tomorrow! And we ended the night off by talking to a recent convert in the church that is really struggling in life with her daughter, work, housing, school and relationships. As we visited I was able to really see where my responsibility stopped and where he bishop came into play, and it made me so happy! Today was a day where I know there was a party in Heaven for this Great man who has such a great spirit! Rey Castillo really has changed my life!

Sunday:

So today was such a special day! Not only was Rey able to be confirmed a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the Holy Ghost, but he was also ordained with the Aaronic Priesthood in he office of a Priest, and it was just a very spiritual day! As I sat with him all day Rey couldn't get his giant smile off his face, and it is more than contagious! And after receiving the Holy Ghost I remember him telling me as I was hugging him. "I am so happy!" However, the moment that touched me the most is when he said to me after being ordained the Priesthood, "Hno. today has been the best day of my life. I feel so much love from God!" And it hit me. He could feel God so much in his life! Even more importantly, he made such a big decision and that decision just changed his life completely in one day! As we were getting out of church I loved to see how the members just began to include him in everything they were doing and I know he feels life he has a family here, and it just touched me a lot! So this evening we didn't stop. We just kept passing by families and teaching lessons and the whole time went by so fast, because of how much I am coming to love the members and people here! I am a full believer in the phrase in PMG that says, "I have often said one of the greatest secrets of missionary work is work! If a missionaries works, he will get the spirit; if he gets the spirit, he will teach by the spirit; if he teaches by the spirit, he will touch the hearts of the people and he will be happy. There will be no homesickness, no worrying about families, for all time and talents and interests are centered on the work of the ministry. Work, Work, Work-there is no satisfactory substitute, especially in missionary work." -Ezra Taft Benson

I am so grateful for y'all and hope that you loved my email! I love y'all so much! Have a great week!

Con Amor,

Elder Spendlove

De la Misión de Texas Fort Worth