1. Where are you serving?
Spain, Madrid mission aka the best mission in the world (sorry Jordan)
2. How long have you been serving in your current area? How long in your mission in total?
I've been in the Madrid 1st ward for a little over three months now and I've been out for 15 months total.
3. Did you have to learn a 2nd language? If so, what blessings and challenges have you had with speaking?
Yeah I had to learn Chinese and I still have no clue how to speak it. Nah, only joking I learned Spanish. Lucky for me, I had taken a few classes in high school, so I knew the grammar I could speak somewhat well, but understanding native speakers was a WHOLE nother story. Overall, I think it took about 6 months until I could speak really comfortably with everyone around me. I mentioned this in an update a month or two ago, but now I feel like I have a seperate, more spiritual personality. It's as if the best version of myself is when I speak Spanish now.
4. What are some different or favorite local foods or customs you've come across?
Something awesome about Spain, especially Madrid, is that there are so many different cultures. I've tried foods from pretty much any Latino country you can think of as well as some bomb Spanish food as well. Paella is probably the most typical dish here in Spain. It's a rice dish with seafood that's quite delicious. If you have any more questions about it, Brother Hammer can let you know. He made it for us one of my first weeks in Brentwood actually. Other cultural notes include staying up really late, taking a nap during Mediodia, not having carpet ANYWHERE, and not cleaning up after their dogs in the street hahaha.
5. Please share any special experiences or friendships you've had with Ward members or working with less active members.
There was a less active family that we were working with quite a bit in my first area, Valladolid - the Martinez family. We were teaching Xavier, who is 12 and was baptized a week after I left the area. Xavier is the son of Mario, who used to be a strong member, but stopped coming due to his job. And now his mom is receiving the lessons from the missionaries. As far as other members go, I can say with no doubt at all, that missionary work is so much more efficient when members are involved. Whether it be in the teaching process, or finding new people to teach, members are key. I've had at least one member family from each area that I'll be in contact with for the rest of my life. So, my biggest suggestion to all of you at home, is that if you don't know the missionaries, go over and say hi. Also, we really like meal appointments.
6. Please share any special experiences you've had with investigators or recently converted members you've worked with.
I think the person most prepared to hear the gospel I've ever met in my life was Yocasta who I met here in this area. She was baptized about a month ago and is completely 100% committed. Even before she was baptized, she was talking to all her friends about the church and inviting them to meet with us. She was just called as secretary to the Primary in the ward and is super excited to learn even though she told us she has no idea what she's doing. The thing that impacted me the most about her though is something she said the first time she met with us. She told us we had something. She wasn't sure what it was, but she wanted it. She saw peace and happiness, something we can all have as members of the church if we live the principles set for us. It really showed me how important our examples are to other people. If we live in the way that the Lord wants us to live, people are going to take notice and are going to ask questions like "Why are you Mormons so happy all the time?" - one of my personal favorite questions to receive, because it's the truth.
7. What is a favorite scripture story or verse and why?
It's changes a lot, but for now I'll go with two different scriptures/stories that have been on my mind lately, Romans 1:1 and Acts 5. The verse in Romans reads...
"For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek."
This scripture teaches us two things that help us so much. First of all, we have no reason at all to be ashamed because we follow Jesus Christ. I talked about it in my update last week, but Peter and John's examples of this in Acts 5 is phenomenal. They were arrested, beaten, and told to stop preaching the gospel. Instead of obeying what the governers of the land had told them, they said "We ought to obey God rather than men," and didn't cease to share the glorious message of Jesus Christ. In fact, they "[rejoiced] that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name." We shouldn't be ashamed because we are a little different compared to other people. We should rejoice that we get the chance to share the gospel with them. And that brings us to the last part of the scripture. The last part of the scripture in Romans says the Gospel "is the power of God... to EVERY ONE that believeth." Peter and John understood that, and that's the reason they were so willing to suffer shame to share the gospel with others. We need to know that we invite ALL people to come unto Christ and learn of his gospel.
8. Please share a challenging experience and how did you overcome it with the Lord's help? What did you learn?
The beginning of my mission, like any other mission, was pretty rough. I struggled with the language, talking to people on the street, and being able to love the work. Luckily, I had an awesome older brother who was on a mission in Cape Verde, who had been through the same thing. He sent me a lot of tips and advice. I'm not sure he knows, but he helped me a lot. I'd probably have a very different mission experience if not for him. Above all, he said the most important thing to do is CHOOSE to love the mission. And, yes, it is a choice. He helped me to understand that if you manage to do that, everything else will turn out fine. So for the first time in my life, I started truly trying to rely on the Lord to help me enjoy the work and love it. It didn't come immediately that's for sure, but when it did come, missionary work turned into the best, most important thing that I could do with my time. Before, I thought two years was a sacrifice, but through this experience, I learned that it isn't. After all, Eternity is a lot longer.
9. Please share any message you'd like with the ward.
I guess I can just share probably the two things that I've seen to be most useful while I've been here.
FIRST, those who put their trust in the Lord will prosper. I've seen so many examples of this. People who want to follow the Lord, but can't put their trust in him to keep all the commandments and strive to be like him, don't see nearly as many blessings as those who put their trust completely in Him. You have to be all in.
SECOND, I've seen just how vital it is to read the Book of Mormon daily. Once you gain a testimony of its truthfulness, you can't stop there. You have to keep strengthening it. I learned about an instance where Elder Bednar met with some people who had left the church because of some sort of doubts. They had a discussion and at the end, Elder Bednar asked one simple question: "When was the last time you read in the Book of Mormon?" None of them could answer, because they hadn't. We learn that if we aren't reading daily, we're losing our testimonies and becoming more susceptible to leaving the church all together. I've seen the blessings personally of reading every day and I know it's not as easy back there at home, but I want to promise you all that it really does make a difference.
