Living the Good Life

Hola mi familia y mis amigos,

Unfortunately I only have 45 minutes of email time today and spent most of it emailing my family.  Everything has been going wonderful up here in Layton.  We're teaching 15+ lessons a week (which is a lot for Layton) and having so much fun.  I love this Gospel and love what I'm doing. 

Love ya'll,

-Elder Colton

"Maybe White People Aren't Half Bad"

Hola mi familia y mis amigos,

This past week has been another wonderful one.  We're teaching many people and having such a great time (maybe white people aren't half bad). 

One of the reasons that its been so great is because every Thursday evening at 7:00, our stake holds an open house that stake members invite their friends to.  Each week we have less-active members of our stake and people of other faiths joining us for presentations on the different organizations in the Church. Its legit. One ward "sponsors" the open house each week and we're just about done with the opening round and will start back at the first ward again. 

People are genuinely curious on what goes on in a Mormon church or what its like (or at least they are here in Utah...and I imagine its the same everywhere else). 

One of the families that we've grown close to is a mother and father with their two kids.  The parents have had rough lives and in the past years have been getting out of drugs.  The mom has been going to church for a month or so trying to make sure they keep the changes they've already made.  And her 14 year old super rebellious son came to church this past week (we nearly passed out we were so surprised).  On Saturday morning she is getting baptized at 10:00.  We're very excited.

Love ya'll,

-Elder Colton

Heaven on Earth

Hola mi familia y mis amigos,

I am in heaven.  We must have one of the most missionary minded stakes in the entire world.  The people here are incredible and we're teaching a ton.

But I am going to be "that" missionary this week and not write anything.  We've been super busy and I just don't have time this week.  Sorry.

Love ya'll,

-Elder Colton

"The Work of the Lord is Hastening"

Hola mi familia y mis amigos,

Well...surprise: I was already transferred, and on Wednesday will be transferred again.  Last Monday night at 9:00, our missionary president, President Hansen, called me and told me that Tuesday morning I would be leaving Glendale and heading up to Farmington to serve as an English missionary.  So right now I'm serving in Farmington.  I went from covering half of a spanish branch (congregation) to covering three english stakes (which is the equivalent of 25 congregations).  A little bit different.  Glendale is sort of the ghetto of Salt Lake and Farmington is the Johns Creek.  Basically like going from downtown Atlanta to Johns Creek. 

But its been a great change.  I've loved it with all my heart up here. (And on that note, don't send any letters for a week or so until you get my new address).  My last companions promised to forward any letters that were already sent. 

And on Wednesday, I'll be moving up to Layton to serving with Elder Thevenin again (I served with a year ago in South Salt Lake).  And I'm staying in English, which is exactly what I've been hoping and praying for.  We've had some great experiences.

On Saturday night, a member from one of the wards called us and asked us to come to his house for dinner at 7:00 on Sunday.  He told us that his sister-in-law wanted to meet with us. 

When we got there, we met Nate and Jordan (a young couple from the ward), along with Jordan's little sister, Kinsie.  Jordan grew up here in Utah and was baptized three years ago when a friend invited her to church on the pretense that there were cute guys there.  Nate is a returned missionary who served in El Salvador.  Kinsie is a senior in high school and hasn't grown up in really any religion but has always believed in God.  Her sister had shared a lot with her about hte Gospel.  And she is legit.  She had already decided she wants to be baptized and basically just asked us to help her get ready. 

As we share the Gospel with our friends and invite them to learn more, they will accept that invitation.  Pray about how to share with specific people and God will answer you.  Ask the missionaries for ideas.  If they are good missionaries, they will help you invite your friends, not try to go around you to reach your friends.  Ask me for suggestions if you have any questions.  The work of the Lord is hastening.  I see it everyday and I hope you can see it to. 

Love ya'll,

-Elder Colton

Ivan is Alive!!!

Hola mi familia y mis amigos,

This past week has been one of the best of my mission for so many reasons, but I'll just share one.  The first Sunday of every month at my church is what we call "Fast and Testimony Meeting" during our main worship service (aka...sacrament meeting).  The "fast" refers to our practice of fasting (abstaining from food and water) on the first Sunday of each month, and the "testimony" refers to our sacrament meeting becoming an opportunity for everyone to share their thoughts and feelings about the Savior, the gospel, the Restoration, and life from the pulpit. 

So on Sunday I went up to the pulpit and shared my feelings about the Savior.  Earlier in the meeting I had noticed a middle-aged Mexican man walk in and he looked familiar.  When I was up front, I recognized him.  His name was Ivan Cid Martinez.  He was a man who I baptized nearly a year and a half ago when I was in my first area (Rose Park).  Two weeks after his baptism, he went back to Mexico because his mom was sick.  His brother, who still lived in Rose Park, told us he hadn't heard anything for 4 months and they had accepted that he died during the crossing.  So for the past year I have just assumed that Ivan Cid was dead.  Surprise!!

He lives in my new area and for the past few months has been coming to church on each Sunday that he didn't have to work.  We had a happy reunion and he is planning on making a few visits with us in the coming weeks.  A very, very happy day for both of us. 

 

Heavenly Father knows us so perfectly that it truly amazes me.  Ivan is at the perfect moment in his life to progress even further in the Gospel, and no-one except God Himself has more of an interest in his progress than me.  I love this Gospel so much.  I'm so grateful for what I have learned over these past 20 months. 

Love ya'll,

-Elder Colton

ps. If you have any General Conference tickets they would be most appreciated.

20 Months Down and Going Strong

Hola mi familia y mis amigos,

Life continues splendidly here in Salt Lake City. Today I realized I have almost exactly four months left. These 20 months have undoubtedly been the fastest of my entire life. Missions seem to be God's little play ground with time. For some missionaries it goes by at a snail's pace, for others it seems normal, and for others it goes by in the blink of an eye. 

I have a special request for everyone who is reading this email this week. One of my companions name is Elder Luke Morgan. He is from Springville, Utah, a whooping 45 minute drive from our current area. He has been waiting since February to leave to his assigned mission in Argentina, but hasn't heard anything at all about his visa. If you could please pray for him that he will get his visa soon it would be most appreciated. This coming Sunday we will be fasting for his visa (he has worked hard here in Salt Lake and is a great missionary, but there isn't such thing as a visa-waiting who deep down inside doesn't really want to be in his assigned mission, especially if he is waiting in Salt Lake City). I can't ask you to fast for him, but I also can't ask you not to :)

Right now we are teaching one of the greatest couples on the planet. Viate is a 75ish year old women who hasn't been able to walk since birth. Her husband, Genaro, is a crazy 75ish year old guy who is almost continually drunk (we're working on that part with him). Viate is going to be baptized in 2 or 3 weeks and yesterday they came to church for the first time. As Genaro walked into sacrament meeting (15 minutes late), he dropped to his knees and offered a short Catholic prayer. We nearly lost it laughing. No disrespect to him or the Catholic Church. I truly love and respect both. But to watch a 75 year old man walk in a Mormon Church and drop to his knees in the middle of the service was simple hysterical. During Sunday School he interrupted a few times and went on a few minute rant about honesty. I'll let you know what happens next week.

Love ya'll,

-Elder Colton

Life. Is. Good.

Hola mi familia y mis amigos,

Life is good. That just about sums up everything right now. I love this Gospel. I love Jesus Christ. I love life.

This past week was a great (and interesting one):

Right now we're teaching the Guasin family (well...really only the father so far) and they are an interesting bunch. The father, Hector, has met with missionaries off and on for many years, but something has clicked recently and he is now reading and praying about the Book of Mormon. He basically wants to know if it is true because he realizes that if it is, then everything will change for him. His wife (who we've only met once and whose name I can't remember) has two sisters who were baptized as teenagers and are sealed in the temple to RM's (which is mormon slang for "returned missionary," or someone who served a mission).

Something has recently touched Hector's heart and he really wants all of this to be true. He and his wife have both asked us about what being married in a temple means. He is going to pray for a way to go to church (he has worked every Sunday for years). If ya'll could pray for him to have a way to go to church then it would be most appreciated.

This past week also brought another interesting event:

I saw my whole family (minus my slacker little brother who wasn't allowed to leave West Point to come). My older brother was married in the Salt Lake Temple on Friday, so I was able to meet up with all my family for a few hours and join them. Mama Colton didn't even cry when she saw me. Talk about disappointments ;)

It was the first time I had ever been to a temple wedding. And it made me realize that I should explain something:

A lot of people who aren't members of our church know this about weddings in "Mormon" temples: that they can't go. Sometimes there will be a ring ceremony or something of the sort at a local chapel, but the actual ceremony that takes place in the temple is only open for active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. More than likely there were friends and family of Jared and Eden who weren't able to be there. I recognize that there will be friends and family of mine that won't be able to be at my own wedding. Many couples in which the boyfriend or girlfriend is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ break up because the one who is a member says something to the effect of "I want to be married in the Temple." That makes a lot of people angry, and I don't blame them one bit. But I want to explain a little bit about that.

Temples are sacred places. They are places where the Spirit of God is felt powerfully, as anyone who has ever been to an open house just prior to the dedication of a temple can tell you. Going to the temple isn't a hobby or just another "thing we do." We go to temples to worship God, learn of His ways, and promise Him that we will follow the commandments that He has given us.

Just as when we are baptized we promise that we take upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ and promise to follow Him, in the temple we make similar promises. And just as no-one would step into a filled baptismal font in one of our local chapels "just to see what its like", no-one goes into our temples "just to see what its like." Until people are ready to be baptized, you won't find them in a baptismal fonts. And until people are ready to make more promises with God, you won't find them in a temple.

I hope that helps clear up a few concerns. I personally know for myself that temples are a place where we can bring ourselves closer to God. I know that on Friday, Jared and Eden started a family that will be eternal as long as they continue following in Christ's path. I hope everyone I know and love can have that same opportunity one day.

Love ya'll,

-Elder Colton