Six Months!!!

He did it!! Six months of the mission down, and Elder Liljenquist is loving every second of it!

 Email from 6-17-13

Well, we hit 6 months in the mission!! It has gone by so fast! SO crazy!

This past week was probably one of the coolest experiencing weeks that I have had on my mission! We started out the week just as usual! Most of our appointments had fallen through and so we have really just been searching for new investigators to begin to teach. We went to go visit this family that is less active. They have 4 daughters that are less active that haven't been to church in a long time! So ,we sat down with them and began to have a lesson. One of the daughters is married and her husband isnt a member. So we had a really good lesson with them about the importance of going to church and the blessing that it brings to our lives! We really focused a lot of our questions on Pedro, who is the husband. He seemed really interested in our religion, especially because his wife is a member and the rest of the family. So at the end of our lesson, we asked him to be baptized and he accepted! So we put him on date for the 7 of july! What was even better is that he and all the sisters came to church yesterday!! We talked to him after church and he said that he loved it, that he felt a peace and a different feeling inside the church! So our goal is to reactivate that family and baptize him!

  Friday this past week, we did splits with our district leader and his companion. His comp is still in training and only has been  3 weeks in Mexico!! The district leader told me that I would be going to his area for the day to serve with him! I was kinda nervous in the beginning. So we got to his area and we to help one of their members cut down this massive tree in their yard!! haha. and there  we were hacking at it with machetes! Well about 2 hours in the heat, I called it good enough!! haha. Still didn't fall but the blisters on my hand were starting to bleed!! haha. So we went back to their house, dropped off our stuff,  and went to our first appoinment! It went so well!! I loved it!! Being able to lead the teaching, I could feel the spirit helping me through! Usually the words that I would forget, just flowed out of my mouth! The gift of tongues is real!! During the whole day, I could feel it! Around five o'clock that day, we got a call from one of the members asking us to go to their house and give a blessing to one of their family members that has cancer terribly and I guess is close to death. So we got to his house and I realized that I've never given a blessing in Spanish yet! And I looked at the elder that had just got here, haha, he said you better not ask me to do it!! Haha. So I gave him a blessing, I dont think that I have felt the spirit stronger on my mission. It was one of the best experiences that I have had. When we finished the blessing, we began to talk to the family. I started to think back and try to remember what I had said, I could only remember a few words or so. I know that the spirit of our Heavenly Father was speaking though me! I am so thankful for the Priesthood that we have in this world, all the blessings it has brought into my life, for a Dad who has blessed our family with it! I know that its real!! Love and miss all of you guys!!

Elder Liljenquist

 Email from 6-24-13

Que Tal Familia!!

Well another week down here in La Venta, Tabasco!! It was another pretty good week! Seems to go by faster and faster every week!! Nothin really big happend this week. We started out the week by going to have a zone conference with our Mission President and his family that are going to end their mission this Saturday! He is an amazing guy! Some of his examples of how we need to use the spirit to teach were unreal!! It wouldn't surpise me if you hear his name to be called as a 70 or something like that pretty soon! He has been so cool to have as our mission president. He has taught me alot about the mission and how it will shape the rest of your life! So this Saturday, our new mission president will be coming down from the states! President Morales! Excited to be able to begin working with him and see the changes that he has for the mission!

So this past week has been a week of learning and patience. Just really being patient with our investigators and especially with myself! This area is really hard! It is a really small town and the people have a different personality here. haha. They are really racist!! haha,. Some of the people here hate the people from the United States!! It's just hard to keep my cool in those situations and not have a bad attitude at them. I've  just got to remember that it's not my work. The Lord said that everyone will have the chance to hear the Gospel, either in this life or the next. Cant wait to see them again and say ( haha i came to your door!!, but you said no!) kidding haha kidding!! my companion says that all the time though! I just know that everyone has their own time! I have been studying hard to try and learn the Bible! Gosh, it's so confusing! But I have learned so much! Really knowing and learning the scriptures has been a goal of mine here in the mission! It is pure bible country down here! So really studying and knowing all the scriptures in the bible to back up our only true Gospel is super important. It has been really good!! Some of the scriptures in there scream that this is the only true church!! haha... and people still have their ways to go around it! So crazy how big the apostasy really was!

We have been really focusing on finding people to teach this past week! Almost everyone that we see out in there yard or even in there house, we try and talk to them! We have had some success but still we need more investigators!! Just really being diligent in all that you do and in every moment is the best way to do anything!! We are promised the Lord's blessings if we do these things! We have had some pretty good lessons this past week though! We have 2 investigators that are going to be baptized within the next 2 weeks. We are really excited for them! Ulicess baptism is going to be this Saturday! What's even better is that he is even more excited for it than we are! Everyday he asks us about it! Yesterday we heard the conference talk to all the missionaries! It was really good! I was glad that our members were able to go and hear it! haha cause not gonna lie, they don't do anything to help us! In our ward council, haha, I get the biggest head aches of listening to them complain and whine that they don't have time or they don't want to do their calling! It gets pretty bad sometimes and just ends up frustrating me! haha. But I think that the Church leaders have made it pretty clear about how it is supposed to be done! So crazy to see all the missionaries that were there!! It is so cool to see all of them and how big missionary work has become!! Pray that we have a better week here!! I love all of you guys and miss you so much!!

 Another shout out to my bro Karsen for making the All Poly All Star Team. Dude, you're going D1. I know it. Love ya.

Elder Liljenquist