December 30, 2013

Hey Hey, Everybody!!

It was great talking to all of you this past week on skype... I miss all of you like CRAZYY but at the same time I know that what I'm doin here is more important at the moment. Haha. I didn't even realize it was my birthday until like last night, a couple hours before we got home! And as far as the cake thing, Linds, ya that's a thing here in Mexico but none of the members knew that it was my birthday yesterday so no.... I didn't get my face shoved in some cake :(  But it's all good, the holidays are over which means its back to the normal grind!--It's always been the normal grind but just knowing that everyone back home was celebrating the holidays without us was the only hard part haha. But I'm glad to hear that you guys had a good time down in St. George! Can't wait 'til we can all head down there again as a family and enjoy some time together.

The teaching here in our area is getting better! It was slow for quite a while... but we've put a little extra effort in finding new people to teach lately, and it's paid off a little bit! We found this one lady named Irma as a reference from a member here in the ward. Right from the get go, Irma was super prepared to hear our message. You can tell when you run into someone that the Lord has prepared for you to meet. The first lesson with her was spirit-packed, and she accepted a baptismal date! She went to church yesterday and is preparing to be baptized on February 1st. She's golden, and I'm so thankful that we were able to be instruments in the Lord's hands to help her find the gospel in her life. Other than her, we have a couple other investigators but they aren't progressing nearly as well as she is. But we're gonna keep working on finding new people to teach and helping this ward progress a little bit!

 

Mom, I hope you had an outstanding day yesterday on our birthday (I´m sure it was better than mine ;)) I hope all of you remember the Christlike spirit of the Christmas season and really make an effort this year to be more Christlike. Also, I want to invite each one of you, everyone who reads this message, to think of someone who is maybe less active in the church, or just a non-member all together, and invite them to accept the gospel. I promise you that you will see more blessings in your life as you do so, and if you make an effort to do it, the Lord will help you find and talk to the people who need to hear the good news of the gospel. Love you all sooo much. Have a great week :)

Elder Webb

Dec. 16, 2013

Wassup Fam!!

First things first.... On Christmas Day, I'll be calling at about 1:10. Or 12:10 your time.Through skype. In all honesty I don't know how... haha like I'm pretty sure I need your information or something to be able to do it. So if you could send me that, that'd be sweet. Also, I received Grandma and Grandpa Garrick's package last week. And I already opened it--sorry :) Maybe Dad will understand, but it's wayyyy too hard for missionaries to keep a package unopened for more than maybe a day. Packages are sacred treasures, and when you get one, it's literally impossible to wait to open it. But it was great--I'm really appreciative of the packages that I've received! :) And the money from Grandma and Grandpa Webb has already gone to good use. I bought myself a sweet Mexican national soccer team collared polo shirt. It's way sweet :) haha. But thanks so much for all the support from back home this holiday season. In all honesty, it's a little tough around the holidays here but I'm hangin in there. Miss all you guys like crazy but I'll be fine don't worry about me :)

This week was pretty good! First week with my "son", Elder Delgado. (The mission is just like life... he was just barely born, I'm his Dad.... he's my son... stuff like that--haha it's funny) He's a stud from the Domincan Republic. We're starting to see a little bit of progress in our area! We're in a tough area but we're working hard and getting the members excited to help us out. We have like 2 investigators right now that aren't really going anywhere, but with time I think they could get baptized. We'll see.... but for now, not too much is goin down as far as our teaching goes. But we're starting to see improvements, even though we only had 25 people at church yesterday. (Ya, be thankful you're all in a ward of like 900 haha) But it's all good, life in Mexico is great. Life as district leader is busy, especially since I'm training at the same time, but I know that the Lord will qualify me if he wants me to be a leader in this mission.

Hope life is all good at home! Can't wait to talk to all of you on Christmas!! Haha I don't think I'll be writing next Monday because our P day will be on Wednesday, Christmas Day. But we'll see. Sorry the letter was a little short... I honestly don't have much to say this week. I'll have a lot more to say on Christmas don't worry :) Love you all! Thanks soo much for everything. Cuidanse mucho! Que tengan una muy muy Feliz Navidad :)

 

 

 

 

 

December 9, 2013

Hola, hola family!! You don't know how happy it makes me to hear that everything is going well back home. It sounds like we are really receiving blessings as a family! I know you guys already know this.... but never forget to be thankful to the Lord for all he has blessed us with as a family!

Im gonna apologize right now and just say that this email is gonna be way short... haha we had transfers today and I spent the whole day at the mission house because they are putting me to train! haha I already received my new comp.... he's a stud named Elder Delgado from the Dominican Republic... but ya I'm already training.... haha and on top of that, I'm gonna be district leader, too!! Good night man I think I just might die.... but I'll tell you what--I'm gonna be busy the next few weeks and months.

But life here is good! Missing the Chritsmas spirit back home but I'm hangin in there! haha. I love you all soooooo much and thank the Lord everyday for such a great family. Thank you guys so much for all the love and support. Love you all! Sorry again for the crappy letter but I only have like 15 minutes to write today.... love you all :)))

December 2, 2013

Heyyyyy family!!

Whats goin on?? I got the Christmas package already! I feel like it came way early... Thank you all soooo much for everything you sent me!! Haha the stocking is awesome, I love the calendar, and the ties are way cool, too!! I havn't read the letter yet... my comp was in a hurry to get out and write our families haha but I'm sure it's great, too. I'm gonna be honest, I didn't even remember that it was Thanksgiving. Never even crossed my mind this week! Obviously we don't do anything down here to celebrate it... but I'm glad you guys had a good time! And I'm glad that I didn't think abut Thanksgiving, otherwise I would have gotten homesick haha. I'll save the getting homesick part for Christmas :) By the way, I'll let you guys know abuot when I'm gonna call you and all that in the next coming weeks I still don't know anything.

Life here in Mexico is.... normal! Haha! This week flew by and not too much happened. We're reallly low on investigators at the moment... we have one, her name is Ana. She's super solid and accepted a baptismal date and everything, but she's living with and has had a kid with a guy shes not married to. Basically like everyone else in Mexico haha it's super normal to be like that... so we're trying to work with her on that but for the moment we're strugglin' to find people to teach. This week, we did a little bit more street contacting and asking for more references from some members and we had a little bit of success that way. We havn't taught any of those people but we're gonna go visit some of them this week so we'll see how that goes. All in all, it's a slow process. But I think we're improving little by little. This week, I went on divisions with an Elder Ellis. He's from Highland and went to Lone Peak. He's a stud! I think Lindsey might know him... His name is Bryce Ellis.  He did a lot of camera and filming stuff in high school... We had a lot of fun reliving a few things from high school. But other than all that, this week was pretty normal. My comp is going home in like 6 days, and he's starting to get a liiiiittle tiny bit trunky but I'm tryin to keep him goin haha. But he's a stud-- I love him.

Anyways, hope all is well with you back home. You gotta send me some pictures of the snow I'm dying I never thought I'd miss the snow that much! haha but I love you all soooo much and I thank you all immensely for your love and support :)

Elder Webb

November 18, 2013

Hey family!!

 

Glad things are going good back home and I hope you know that i love and miss you (as well as everyone else) a ton! Hope everyone is doin well back home and enjoying the snow... It's like 90 degrees today here.... this week tho it was a little cold. Like around 65 degrees... ha and you would have thought it was the ice age all over again judging by how the people were dressing and stuff haha but i was in short sleeves still and just loving it. I miss the cold weather in all honesty. also, this week i sent you guys a letter, it should get there sometime in this next week.

 

This week was a little boring..... it flew by.... but nothing really happened. haha we taught a few less active people this week, still tryin to find new investigators to teach, but still not having much success haha. But life's good! My companion and I get along fine. Also he's a super clean freak and we all know that i'm not exactly the most organized human in the world so sometimes he gets after me but haha its all good we're doin fine :)

 

This week the zone plan for us is to teach to some more active families about the blessings they've received from being members. As i've been studying this a little bit more, as i've seen in the lives of these people here, and as the scripture in doctrine and covenants states, all blessing come from being obedient to the laws and commandments of God. I hope, in this thanksgiving season (for you guys it's thanksgiving, theres no such thing here), that you really focus on the blessings you've received from our Heavenly Father. If you can't think of any right off the bat, think hard and ponder about it and you'll find that everything we have has come as a blessing from Heavenly Father and from being obedient to the things he has commanded us. Hope you all have a great week, and always remember how much i love and am thankful for each one of you. que Dios les bendiga

Elder Webb

November 25, 2013

Hey hey hey family!

I'm glad to hear that my letter got there and everything. haha and also, sorry for giving you a heart attack mom, but you know me i`m never gonna miss a chance to mess with you guys :) **(Jared wrote us a hand-written letter that said he had been bitten by a dog and that he had spent the night in the hospital getting stitched up from an 8-inch gash and being tested for rabies, etc. . . then told us he was just kidding about all that, but a dog HAD come after him and had torn his shirt.  Nearly gave his Mom a heart-attack . . .)** That's awesome to hear about all the mission calls and stuff from back home. and statler gets home in january??? what???? he just barely left i promise. and to answer your question about the piano mom, no, no one has asked me to play the piano for the ward or anything. But every chance i get i go over to the piano and play a little something or sight read the melody of the hymns and what not. And every time i do i think to myself...¨why did i ever stop practicing piano?¨ I hate to say it but.... mom..... you were right.

This week was pretty good.... really nothing special goin on. Haha i know you guys are all probably sick of me saying that in my emails but in all honesty this area is a little bit boring! ha it`s even worse than my last area, as far as teaching goes (which i didnt think was possible), and so we spend more than half of the day just walking around and getting shut down by the people we go to visit haha. But dont worry, we're not getting too down and i'm thankful to have a good companion who, even though he leaves in 2 weeks, is still willing to work hard. he`s a really good example to me of enduring to the end of the mission.

This week we did have a little experience that lifted my spirits a little bit. Like i said we dont really have many people to teach. But the other day, we finally got in contact with this less active lady that hasnt been to church in YEARS. She accepted us to go over there and talk with her. so we went! after listening to her tell her about her life and a little bit of why she hasnt been coming to church, somehow both me and my companion decided to settle on talking about faith. So we did, we taught a whole lesson about faith and trusting in the Lord and having faith to keep his commandments. At the end of the lesson, almost in tears, she was telling us how thankful she was for us and how she is now awakened to what she needs to do with her life. I learned a few things from this lesson.... One, that it's NEVER to late for someone to receive or re-receive the gospel. Two, we ALL need faith and to trust in the Lord in order to fulfil his commandments. and three, even though we arent having much success with anyone else, I know that i'm here in this area for a reason. The one thing that's bad about this whole situation is that we found out that the next day she left to go live with her husband in Monterrey.... so she wont be coming back to Tampico for at least another 3 or 4 months. Who knows if i'll ever see her again, but i hope and pray that we've been able to plant a seed of faith in her heart so that she can continue faithfully in the path of the Lord.

Quick thought for the week: i was reading in the Liahona this week, i dont remember which but i think it was from like 2008, we have a bunch of old ones here at our house. ha but i came across a quote by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin. and he says: ¨The most cherished and sacred moments of our lives are those filled with the spirit of love. The greater the measure of our love, the greater is our joy. In the end, the development of such love is the true measure of success in life.¨ I really liked that quote, and it made me think a lot about what exactly is important in our lives, as well as the key to receiving spiritual experiences. Love. Speaking of love, i love you all. Have a great thanksgiving! Gonna miss being around the table with you all but its alright, i`ll live :)

Elder Webb

November 12, 2013

Hey Hey Hey family!!

Mom, I just got your package today. Also, I realize that it´s Tuesday but we pushed p-day back a day so we could go to the temple today. The temple was awesome. It's a lot different when everything is in Spanish but I really enjoyed it. But thanks for the package! I'm gonna down the candy in no time flat. Haha.  And the baby pictures? Thanks... now all my companions will make fun of me forever. Thanks for the ties too! In this next package, could you send me more recent pics please? Haha and I have a million of us as a family, which is great, but I'd kinda like a few of my friends, too :) Thanks a bunchhh. Oh and Mom, I know what you mean when you say you are living on cold cereal (while Dad and Cam are gone). I feel your pain.

This week went prettyy well! Things are goin good with my companion and everything, and we just had the baptism on Friday! I'm gonna have to send you pics next week because somehow my adapter doesn't fit in the usb port on this computer... but the baptism went well! Hah--we were all wayy lucky to be baptized in warm water! There is no hot water tap here so the water was ice cold haha you should have see their faces when they were getting into the water!! But it was a great experience. And yes, my companion had been teaching them for a little while before I got here. I'm in an area called Nuevo Progreso, (or new progress).  I'm enjoying life in the city.

Thanks for all the love and support back home. You don't know how grateful I am for all the prayers. And I can promise you that I can feel the strength of the Lord helping me along, and I believe in many ways it comes from the prayers of support from back home. So thanks, to every one of you who will read this message. This week, I read the book "Our Pursuit of Happiness" by M. Russell Ballard. It was aweseome. If you havn't read it, I highly encourage you to read it. I was gonna share a quote with y'all from it but I left the book at the house, haha, but just know that it is an awesome book that outlines our basic doctrine, as well as some personal stories from Elder Ballard. Seriously read it!!--you'll love it, I promise. Right now I'm reading Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage.... And it may or may not be blowing my mind. Haha I'm learning tons. But anyways... Love you all tons! Keep on keepin' on.

--Elder Waypf (that's how people here pronounce my name.........ya, I don't get it, either.)

November 4, 2013

whats upppp family!!

 

Life here in the city is a lot different.... suppppper different. In my last area, we were knee deep in mud alll the time it seemed like but now we´re in concrete and civilization. Haha. And usually, the work here in the cities is a lot better.... but the ward I´m in is worse than the branch I was in out in my last area. Haha. Yesterday, we had 25 people show up to church..... and we're in a WAR--let's not forget that. Haha. But I got up and bore my testimony, too, Mom! I bore it about a cool experience I had this week that I´ll tell you guys about in a sec. Also, it´s cool to see how fast my Spanish has progressed and it´s fun for me now because I don't have trouble communicating with people. All in all, this area is a lot better than my last. We have a Walmart, Little Ceasars, Church´s Chicken (kinda like Popeye's).... so I´m content :) Haha. And my comp is way sweet. He´s out of here after this transfer but he´s been a real good example to me of sticking it out until the end because there´s a lot of missionaries that tank towards the end of their mission, haha. He´s funny-- I´ll have to send you a pic of him next week I don't have one this week of him.

 

But, like I said, I had a pretty cool experience this week.... we were walking down the street after visiting with a less active member, heading towards another appointment that we had. As we were walking, I looked to my left and saw a lady walking on the sidewalk, and I got this super strong impression to go and talk to her. I´ll never forget this promptin--it was so distinct. It wasn´t a voice, but a strong feeling in my heart that I couldn't deny. And trust me, I tried to shake it off because I hate contacting in the street haha. But I knew it was a prompting from the spirit that I had to follow. And I got super excited because we don´t have hardly any investigators and I thought that since I was receiving this prompting she´d be someone who was prepared to receive our message. So I got all excited haha. But so I go up to this lady, stick my hand out to introduce myself, and before I could finish asking how she was, she cut me off and said like, "Oh no sorry I can't.  I have another appointment to go to". And she started walking super fast to get ahead of us, and I was like, huh??? Didnt I just receive a prompting to talk to this lady about the gospel? Why doesn't she want to listen?? And as I sat there thinking more and more, I receive another distinct feeling of peace. And I knew it was the holy ghost tellin me that I did well. Ha--it was kinda a weird experience but in all honesty it was awesome for me, because I learned that no matter what, listening to and obeying the promptings of the spirit is always better than rejecting the promptings. I don't know what´s gonna come out of this situation, but I did learn that lesson.

 

Other than that, this week was pretty normal. I would say it´s harder in this area than it was in my first area. But we´re goig to have a baptism this weekend! We´re baptizing a family of 4. I´ll be sure to send pictures next week. Also, no, I havn't received the package yet, Mom. We´ll see when it gets her--haha. Love you guys!!! Have a greeeeeeat week!!!!

 

Elder Webb

Wasssupppp fam!!!!

Greetings from another great city in Mexico! I´m here with my new companion, Elder Marin! He´s a stud.... he´s from Mexico and is gonna leave after this transfer. We´re gonna have fun.... and now that I don´t have a problem with the language it´s much easier ;) but supposedly we´re in a hard area.... but I don´t care--we´re gonnna get down to work!!

Ok, ok, so I gotta tell you guys about Antolin´s baptism... So we were super pumped right? Because we had been teaching him for almost three months, and he was finally gonna get baptized. My last day in the area... a good way to go out right? So we had everything prepared... the baptism was gonna be at six last night. We had to move the baptism to Sunday because he was gonna be in Tampico for the weekend, but he told us he would be back an hour or two before. So everything´s ready, and half the branch shows up which was wayyy cool for us! And Antolin never showed up..... hhaha. We called him a million times, and he finally called us back at like 7 saying that they were still in Tampico and that they weren't gonna be able to make it. FREAAKKKKK!!!!!!! Hahaha--soo frustrating.... but whatever--he´s gonna get baptized this next week which is good... the only thing is that I´m not gonna get to see it . Haha---gooooood night!!

But other than that all is well. I´m doin' good....missin' the fall weather back home, but I´m hangin in there :) For a Christmas package, Mom, send me whatever. But one thing that I would really like is some new music. Pleeeease--I´m getting tired of mo tab and Daniel Beck all day long.

My spiritual thought for the week: Yesterday with the whole Atolin situation... obviously me and my comp Eder Gnzalez were super stressed out and what not. We were praying the whole afternoon, but we said a prayer together around 6 o clock or so, asking that he might be able to make it. And I received an answer that I thought was a little funny.... I heard a little voice, just as they say... still and small, say to me: my son, don´t worry. After that, I was chill. And we know that Antolin never showed up. So my testimony this week is that God does answer prayers, and that God has a will for everything, and there´s a reason that Antolin didn't get baptized yesterday. Though I´m not sure why.

 

I love you all.... thank you sooo much for the love and support!!! :) un abrazo!!

Elder Webb

 

October 21, 2013

Hola hola familia!!

Sounds like things are still good as ever back home.Mom, my package won´t be here any time soon really. Usually it takes a month or more for letters and packages to get here. But I´ll be expecting it! You don't know how much I miss being at home around fall time!! Hah--seriously though we're still sweating buckets here because it's so hot all the time. But almost more than anything about this time of year that I miss is going up to the ranch. Haha I think about it wayyyy too much haha but I don't let it get in the way of the work--don't worry. But I´m so glad that every one is doing well at home. And Lindsey has a boyfriend?!?!?! WHAT?!?! Now that's big news. I miss all of you guys terribly! But don't worry... I'm not coming home any time soon :) haha and Dad, I'm gonna tell you right now that the tacos here are not that much different than what they do in the taco bus. The taco bus is the real deal!! haha but I´ll tell you wha--there´s some unreal food here!!

This week here was pretty tough for us. We couldn't hardly do anything! I don't even know why... it was a little bit of everything. So we didn't have much success teaching this week... but Antolín is still getting ready for baptism!! It´s gonna be this Sunday so I´ll send you guys pics next week for sure. I can't figure out how to work this computer this week either.... sorry! But next week for sure. I´m an idiot with computers.... you guys know that.

Spritual thought for the week:

 

This week i´ve been Reading in Mosiah. I invite all of you to read King Benjamin's address again. It really is unreal!! In Mosiah 5, maybe 4 I can't remember... it talks about our covenant we made when we were baptized. Do we all remember what that covenant is? I hope we all take a minute to remember exactly what it is we COVENANTED to do when we got baptized. And always remember to Retain the name of Christ written in our hearts, as King Benjamin says. Love you all soooooooo muchh :)))

Elder Webb

October 14, 2013

Hey Everyone!!

I´m so happy to hear about Cam doing so well in the state tournament! Haha I brag about him all the time to some of the Elders here :) Love you, bro. And Mom, thanks for reminding me I´ve been out here for that long.... ha honestly I don´t really think about it. But it feels good I guess! Things are coming more easily and I feel right at home. Almost... :) but ya this week was crazy.... as you all know about the death of Elder Coons. I didn´t know the guy... he was almost brand new, only been here for about 3 weeks. But we found out on Thursday night and we had to hop on a bus that same night and go to Tampico because President was gonna talk to the whole mission. It was super somber and sad... Pretty crazy... no one imagines dying out here in the mission! It was a freak accident tho... it could have happened to anyone. But super sad, Apparently he was an awesome guy. But I'll tell you what, my testimony of the plan of salvation has grown immensely and my knowledge of it as well just from listening to Presidente. We are all part of God´s divine plan... and God has a divine purpose for each and every one of us. Elder Coons apparently had completed what he needed to. Simple as that!

Our teaching here is still normal as usual.... not very good. haha I don´t know if you guys get emails from Nathan (cousin) but he says that they get like 30 or more lessons in a week. I´m like, WHAT??? We´ve never had more than 18. It´s tough here! haha but we´re workin hard and, yes, Antolin is finally ready for baptism!! He had his interview the other day and his baptism will be the 26th. He´s so pumped, too, haha he´s like a little tiny kid! It´s so awesome to see someone light up with the gospel in their eyes from something that you´ve helped teach. It´s special stuff I´m tellin ya!!

Anyways I love you all and you are always in my prayers every night. I try not to think about home too much but sometimes it´s hard ;) but don´t worry about me, guys. Remember what Stake President said in my blessing? That if I was obedient, I´d be safe. And don´t worry--I´m obedient.........usually ;) nah just kidding. Hey send me pics of stuff back home if you can! I dunno, attach them to the email! Stuff of the deer club... I don't know--anything. I´ll try and send pics next week my computer today is terrible slow. Hasta luego! Love you all!!

Elder Webb

October 7, 2013

What's up, Fam!!

Real quick, Mom, if you want to send me a package, put a bunch of stickers of the Virgin Mary on it. Ha -- I´ve heard it works better that way.

 

But things are goin real good here! I hope you all paid close attention to Conference. We heard some amazing things. And President Monson said that this conferene was one of the best, most spiritual conferences in his memory.  It really was amazing... I brought 3 questions to the Conference, and all of them were answered, and in many different ways. Pretty cool how that works, huh?

Things are going pretty good here! Our investigators are doing good. We´re gonna have a baptism in a week and a half with Antolin! He´s had a baptismal date for 4 months now... and he´s finally ready! Our other investigators are doing good... slowly but surely.... but they´re coming along.

Things are good! Haha I don´t really have too much to say.... nothing´s really changed this week. Still lovin my companion, he´s awesome and I learn a ton from him. And I don´t know if you guys would believe me if I told you this but I can already communicate and understand almost everything that everyone says :) I´m tellin' you... the gift of tongues is an amazing thing. If the Lord calls you to speak a foreign language, you better believe that he´ll provide a way for you to speak it.

I hope everything is good with you all back home! Miss you guys every day but know that I couldn´t be more thankful for the support and the Love. In Conference, a lot of what they focused on was the family. I´m so thankful for my family. and for everything they do for me and ESPECIALLY that we are an eternal family and that we enjoy the blessings of this wonderful gospel together.

 

Thank you all so much! Love and miss you, Catch ya'll later :)

Elder Webb

September 30, 2013

hola familia como estan??

nice to hear that everything is going good back home once again!! I´m glad to hear that dad is staying busy with work and having a good time guiding hunts. Man i wish i was back home so we could go hunting dad!! but hey just wait in a couple of seasons we´ll go on that elk hunt! Wow that´s so nice of Grandma and Grandpa Garrick.... I´ll try and email them either this week or next week to tell them thanks! And Cam, things are sounding good! Is this Lauren girl you´re main squeeze or what?? Sad to hear my redskins are tankin.... but what else is new. Hows Rg3 doin? Has byu begun basketball yet?

alright mom.... hear ya go.

In the package... i´m good on food. but ties... ya. If you can. I´m always game to have more ties. more than anything i want pictures. pictures of us, pictures of me.... who knows. just a bunch of pictures. ha because i want to be able to see them but also a lot of the people we teach like to see stuff like that too.

In all honesty... we don´t have many ¨families¨ that we´re teaching. We do have one... kinda... that began as a reference from the branch pres. This lady, sonia, is a less active member... like super... and when we passed by the first time she didnt want anything. but we persisted, and slowly but surely, she´s become more open to the gospel. and after we had taught her for a while, she introduced us to her daughter, lesly. not a member, but after we taught her once, she was super excited and wanted to know more and accepted a date for baptism! and THEN, last night we went to teach lesly for the third time i think, and she introduced us to hear brother! haha and he´s all in as well.... wants to grow closer to God, and wants to learn more. Pretty cool how all that works huh?

we´re going to watch General Conference in a city an hour away from here at their chapel.

(Dinners) we have a ¨comida¨ every day with a member. but it´s at 2 o clock in the afternoon. other than that, we´re on our own. usually at nights i eat a pb&j sandwich :) but they usually feed us good stuff at the comidas. not anything too special... just your average beans, rice, meat, and tortillas. sometimes its weird stuff like pig stomach or sardines with skin still on them but the food is good i really like it.

well... spiritual thought for the week! yesterday we taught this guy named Antonio. He lives in hardly anything... basically a big tent with mud floors, one lightbulb, a bed, and random stuff thrown every which way. thats how his house looks... but he said something to me that really struck me. he said, ¨ i got my bed, my light, my water, and my little bit of food. what else do i need? the lord has blessed me with life.¨ I hope we all take a minute to realize how good we really have it and never miss a day without thanking the Lord for EVERYTHING that we have. Love you all!! Cuidanse mucho!

Elder Webb

Sept. 22, 2013

Hey fammmmmm!

answers to mom´s questions:

 

(How did you clean you apartment of all that water?)

1. Not sure, it took forever. we had a bunch of help from members though.

(How are your shoes holding up?)

2. Shoes are a okkk

 

(Tell us about the people you are teaching!)

3. We teach a lot of less actives... nothin too special. Just trying to reactivate them. But they´re stubborn for the most part and don´t follow through with commitments. But we´re starting to have more success!! We had more people at church this week than we´ve had since I've been here. 56 :) but this week we had a lot of success with investigators too. We had one guy, Antolin, who´s way solid and already had a date for baptism, but this week we were able to add 3 other baptismal dates! No one knows how... my whole time here we havn't been able to put 1!!

 

(Why are you "famous" there, as you said?)

4. I don´t know if we´re actually famous or what but one missionary told us that President talks about us all the time and how we´re resurecting this part of the mission. Ha I don't know... but it´s true a little bit, things have really changed for the better here! It was kinda dead before...

 

(Have you had to help a lot of people clean up after the hurricane?)

5. Ya

Ha well there ya go. Anything else?? Nah but life is good here. Starting to have more success, and working hard every day!!  Wat else is new back home? Sports?? Somebody update me about the Redskins, Lone Peak, and anything else!!

CAMERON´S OLD ENOUGH TO DATE!!!!!!!!!! haha ahh man I remember my first high school dance. Enjoy it bro. It´s fun stuff. Also keep it up in golf! It only matters how you finish. Remember that!! Send me pics please of stuff... like Cameron´s dance, and whatever else you want.

Spiritual thought for the week: did Adam and Eve have belly buttons?? ........... serious questions of the soul.

 

Nah but seriously my spiritual thought for the week is Jacob 1:19. I think.... can't remember very well but it´s about magnifying the Priesthood. Read it . . .love you all :):)

 

Elder Webb

 

Sept. 16, 2013

Hola Familia! yes, all is well here in mexico, don´t worry too much Mom :) But ya it´s been CRAZY with this hurricane! Especially yesterday. Yesterday our house flooded about 7 inches, and our whole neighborhood was about 3 feet under water. Cars were halfway submerged.... it was crazy stuff. But everything´s alright! We didnt damage any of our stuff when the house flooded and we´ve got it all cleaned up and undercontrol for now! And sorry this letter is coming on Wednesday... mission pres changed everything because of the hurricane and because we were supposed to have changes on Monday. So we had changes today, and I´m staying with my comp for another six weeks! But everything´s a ok here in Mexico.

 Yes, I´m keeping up with all my friends. They´re doin great! Awesome news about Cam and getting ordained a priest! And Cam, keep thinkin about why you´re in this church. It´s a good thing to question things! Question everything, and then search the scriptures and stuff of the church and you´ll be amazed how you can find the answer to everything. Keep it up in golf, don´t get sidetracked with attention or whatever, and don´t get over pysched for state. Stay focused, and you´ll be alright.

Love you all so much, thanks for all the prayers and support. It means sooooo much to me! Email me stuff you want to know about my area, work, whatever. Haha I have to write fast so I don´t have much time to think of things goin on. But we´re starting to have success! And apparently we´re ¨famous¨ in the mission because we´re resurrecting this area! This area is known to be like the worst Haha. But things are great! Love you all!

Elder Webb

Knee-deep in water

Hola a Todos!!

 Thanks for all the updates! I love it so much to hear from all of you. But glad to hear everything is good at home! All is well here in Mexico!

This week was pretty crazy... we had to take 3 trips to Tampico, like an hour and a half bus ride, to do random stuff but it really threw off our teaching rythym. So we didn´t get a whole lot done this week! On top of that, It´s been raining here. Haha and I have to laugh when I hear about the rains back home because here, the whole city is under water. Ha k not really but almost!! On Friday, the whole day we were wading in 6 inches of water through the streets. and sometimes, it was up to your knees. Crazy! I´m gonna send you guys a picture.

All in all, we´re still strugglin here with the work. The area we´re in is supposedly the hardest in the mission.... I don´t know. I don´t want to make excuses, but it´s freakin hard to get people to do anything! Haha. But it´s all good--we´re gonna continue to work hard and not give up on the people here. Because God wants every single one of his children to return to Him, not just a few.

My message for this week for ya´ll is one of misisonary work. Right now, the way we do missionary work is different. It´s all about the members helping us find new people. Also, it´s focused on less actives and reactivating them. So I invite all of you to be a missionary in any way that you can! Because in reality, the missionaries can´t do it alone. And there is SO much that the members can do that missionaries just can´t! We can´t really be the friend that they need. We can be there to help and stuff and ya we can be friends, but we have to help everyone and teach, too! So do it! Be a misisonary. And remember D&C 18: ¨How great will be your joy if you bring but one soul unto me.¨

Love you all! Thanks for all the support!!

Les quiero mucho!!

Elder Webb

Sept. 2, 2013

buenas dias familia!

first off let me start off by saying this mom.... the reason that i don´t go through and capitalize and punctuate everything correctly is because it would take way too much time! and i don´t have a ton of time... But everything sounds great at home!! Other than the death of Alta... She really was a great lady and I´m sure she´s in a better place! Everything´s good out here in Mexico! Yesterday we had more people show up to church than we´ve had in months apparently! 50 people!!! haha needless to say it was a great day for us :) Last week, we had a random lady show up to church telling us she wanted to be baptised! what a blessing.... because we can´t find anyone here that wants to do anything!! It´ll be a while before we can baptize her... but we taught her yesterday and hopefully she keeps progressing!! i got up and bore my testimony in sacrament meeting yesterday! broken spanish and everything. i really felt like i had to... and after i was done, i felt the spirit very strongly testify to me that I did what i needed to do! it was a pretty cool experience. i don´t know who needed to hear my testimony... but i believe someone did.

We´ve been working hard this last week and fasting and such to find new people to teach. And i truly believe the Lord is blessing us in this. and i want to let you all know that the power of fasting is real. and if we want blessings from the Lord, we can´t sit around and wait for them. That´s not how he works. ¨God cannot steer a parked car¨. Love you all and hope you have a great week!! thanks for all the support!! and i still havnt heard how cam has done in his tournaments! i´m dying here!!

 

 

Elder Webb and Elder Gonzalez

Doing well--even in the rain~

Buenas dias, familia!! Glad to hear everything is well at home. Mom, thanks for the spiritual thoughts and such every week. I love to hear them :) Dad, I´m doin just fine! haha the conditions here really aren't too bad. At least where we live, we have it pretty good compared to most people. But other than that I´m doin good! I´m feelin healthy, havn't been sick yet, and all in all just doin great. If I need it, I have access to all the little things I need. I´m in a decent sized city with stores and stuff. My mission president is the bomb... he´s such and awesome guy. He´s been out here for a year so he will leave to go home the same time I do! All is wellllllll. Also, no one told me what Cam shot in the tournament this week. What is this??? Tell Lindsey I´m proud of her for getting a job finally ;)

Mom wants me to tell y'all about people that we teach. So here it goes: we teach a ton of less active people. We only have like 3 investigators, and only 1 of them is really progressing. We have to teach about faith ALL the time, too.... because people don´t understand that in order to have faith, we need to have both parts: a belief, and an action. This week we had kinda a cool experience! So it´s been raining here... today it's been terrible and when it rains, the streets are like rivers, not kidding. Ha. And the dirt roads that we walk on a lot--forget about it. But anyways we had to hurry home the other night so we took a shortcut on a dirt road. No one knows how, but we found this little tiny beat up cell phone in the mud, in the pitch black of night. Anyways we ended up contacting the guy that owned it and we planned to meet him the next morning. So we did, his name is Samuel. Super cool guy, but he´s kinda strugglin right now in his life. And he was super encouraged when we told him who we were, and what we had to offer. So we have an appointment with him this Saturday! Hope it goes well. But I am starting to see that God has prepared people to receive His gospel, and often He will provide us the means to share and help them. Thanks for all the support!  I love you all so much and am so glad to hear all is well at home. Mucho Amor :)

Elder Webb

Week Two in the Bag!

 

 

Que pasa mi familia!! Man.... life´s pretty good here in Mexico!

 

Dad wanted me to tell you all specifics so here it goes: my companion's name is Elder Gonzalez, a 23 year old guy from Uruguay. He´s a freakin stud! We walk EVERYwhere, I´ve got some pretty nasty blisters. Haha and I sweat like crazy. The branch we are in is tiny! Like 40 people show up to church every week. The people here are hard to work with man... super nice, super friendly, but just sooooo lazy!! They don't wanna do anything! We´ll be like, "so you believe in God right?" They´ll say... "Of course" and we´ll say "So then you want to keep his commandments right?" And they´ll say "No! what for?" Haha it's so hard!!! But I know I´m here for a reason and we do have a few progressing less actives and investigators that I really feel good about. My spanish is getting better! It´s coming really fast... even tho most of the time I feel completely lost still... but having a native comp really helps a ton!

 

Not too much interesting has happened this week... we´ve had a rough time teaching this week. but I´m loving the mission life! And I loooove to hear how everything is going at home! Cam, you have no idea how proud I am of you. A little advice for golf, but it can also be applied for everything else in life: 1. As good as you´re doing, you can ALWAYS do better.  2. Never be satisfied, and never compare yourself to others. ALWAYS work hard to be the best you can be and NEVER be satisfied with how well your doing now. 3. ALWAYS be humble. Remember who gave you you´re talent, and He deserves all the glory. Thank him every day for everything you have, especially your talents.       4. And remember that talents are meant to help build his kingdom here on earth. Remember Him in all you do.

 

Love you all!! glad to hear everything is going well. I´m doing great and hopefully I´ll have more stories next week :) Dad, keep me updated on the ranch too :) Hasta la huego!!

First Week in the Books!

ahhh man. mexico is the bomb!! my spanish is.... terrible. but my comp is awesome he kinda takes the reins during lessons and stuff. it's super hot.... super humid.... i drink a ton of soda and no one here drinks from the tap. there is no hot water, at least where we live so i have to take a cold shower and the only setting is jet stream. haha but i love it! ive seen some crazy weird things, eaten some weird things (and good things dont get me wrong) and met some weird people. but its alllllll good. as far as our investigators and stuff, we dont have much success. if you guys didnt already know, missionary work is different now. its all about working with members and reactivating less actives and receiving referrals for new investigators through members or less actives. no street contacts, no door knocking, we try to be more efficient i guess. but the work is kinda hard but.... it's alright we're still workin at it! some weird stuff i've seen, eaten, or done so far:

lady cutting her lawn with a machete

man who owns a taco shop hangs the carcasses of animals that he uses for the meat for the tacos right outside his shop, where he'll go, take a piece off, and cook it for the customer.

this morning, we went and got our haircut and a ladies house and she made us breakfast. she made us pork hooves with tortillas. a bowl of stew like sauce or whatever, with a big pork hoof in the middle with torillas on the side. 

i'm trying to remember what else.... but i cant.... all in all its just way different here! 

but life is good. i'm doin fine! i'm loving it. love all of you!! 

buenas tardes

elder webb

Estoy Aquí!

hola everyone!! i don't have much time to write a long message but just wanted to let you all know that i got here safely! it is so freakin hot.... and the most humid place you can imagine. it's crazy we just met up with the misión pres and the rest of the elders in this city and we're about to have dinner! all is well.... i can already tell i'm gonna love it here. pictures soon!

love you all! hope all is well at home!

--Elder Webb

Consulate and the Priesthood

Aug. 1, 2013

Mi Familia!--

So, like I've said in my many emails, I'm leaving on Monday . . . bluh, bluh, bluh . . . I'm gonna call you guys around 9.  You know what's goin' on.  But, so today we went up to Salt Lake to get our Visas.  It was pretty sweet.  We got tot take Front Runner from Provo to Murray and then Trax over into South Salt Lake. 

So, we went to the Mexican Consolate right next to the Bees Stadium to pick up our Visas.  Anyways, that all went fine, I guess we haven't got Visas yet. technically, but they expect them to come tomorrow or something.  But, so I wanted to tell you about an experience we had while we were on our way back to the train!  Keep in mind we are in a sketchy part of Salt Lake---ghetto, just your stereotypical inner-city.  (I didn't know that side of Utah existed!)  Anyways, so we are walking back and we see this guy park his bike a little ways in front of us.  He takes off his shirt and yells to us, "Missionaries!  Missionaries!  I need you to give me a blessing!"  Ha.  There are like ten of us walking down the street, and we were all like:  uhh . . . . . and it was funny cuz he was right in front of me so I had to answer to him.  He begins to tell us how he's possessed with demons and how he's battling drug addictions.  But he looked just awful.  And so he kneels down in the midst of us and is just like, "Please bless me!"  He gets down right in front of me . . . and I'm feeling weird about this the whole time.  (Also, keep in mind that we are right by Main Street--tons of traffic and tons of foot traffic).  So, we're like, "Uh, right here?  Right now?  It's pretty public right here."  And he just says, "Ya! The more public the better!" So, we explained to him how it was sacred and it needs to be done more privately, and he was totally understanding.  So, we walk over to these trees around by the gas station, all the while talking with the other elders and they they all felt the same way:  that we probably shouldn't give him a blessing there.  But, we decided that we should just leave him with a prayer.  So, we did, and we prayed for him that according to his faith he would receive strength and comfort and a knowledge that he is a a child of God.  And I felt the Spirit way strongly. 

Afterwards, he just says, "Thank you guys so much.  I know you guys do great things and have the priesthood power of God! I know I'm a child of God, but I'm just so lost right now! But, thank you so much--I feel strength to change."  And he left.  Oh, my, it was such a cool experience!  Missionary work is gettin' real!!  I'm so excited to get out there . . . just wanted to share that with you all!! Love you guys so much.  Thanks for all the love and support.  --Elder Webb

 

Nada Mucho

hola mi familia! como estan?? Nothin goin on too new here at the mtc. ha i'm loving it, but at the same time i'm ready to get out of here and move on to the field! my spanish is actually pretty good... i understand a lot of it, although i can't speak it that well yet. most of my friends are starting to head out to the field. Talon headed out a week ago, jake and bitters headed out yesterday, and dawson just got his visa so he heads out on monday straight to australia! it's weird, i feel like i just got here!! time flies in the mtc... it really does. 

I'm starting to see the importance of teaching and living in correspondance with the spirit. as missionaries, they tell us basically daily that it's not us that converts people, it's the spirit. i always believed that, but now that i'm out here and i see all the miracles that can be brought forth from faith, my perspective has changed a bit. like i've told you all, we have investigators even here in the mtc. our teachers play the role of an investigator in the field so even though they arent the actual person, they represent the actual and do a really good job of playing the part of an investigator. i can't tell you how many times i've just gone into a lesson and the lesson plan has completely changed and i just relied on the spirit. you can feel it so strongly when you just have faith to open your mouth! it really is pretty cool... sometimes during lessons i catch myself and think, "how on earth are we having this full on 40 minute discussion in nothing but spanish?" there's no way on my own i could ever do that in the small amount of time i've been here. it really is a miracle and the gift of tongues is real if you put in the work on your part for it. 

this week has gone by pretty fast.... i don't know if i'm ready for the field or not! haha but its alright the mtc gets reeeeallly old after about 2 weeks of exactly the same thing every day. me and elder pedersen (dawson) basically just hang out all the time its sooo fun. without him the mtc would be soo boring. don't worry mom, i'm still working really hard :) i think i've gained like 7 pounds since i've been here.... haha the food isnt even good but there is soooo much of it. anyways, lifes good, hope all is well back home, love you all! te quirre mucho!

 

con amor,

 

--elder webb

A Send-Off and More Pictures

hola mi familia--

buenos dias! hope all is well at home! life at the mtc is... you guessed it... good. haha i know you're all getting sick of my uneventful emails and mail but in all honesty it's just busy work around here most of the time! so i have a hard time finding things to share. but i'll do my best!

 

This week was a good one.... it just flew by! i can't believe i've already been here 3 weeks.... isn't that crazy?? so this week my favorite district in our zone left. the last of them left tuesday morning. it's weird how you can become such good friends with people you've only known for just less than three weeks. honestly, i was soo close to at least 4 of those elders. so it kinda sucked having to send them off but we had a ton of fun with them before we sent them off. Yesterday was rough because i was soooo tired like the whole day. because the night before, a few of us elders hung out in dawson's room with elder jensen, probably my best friend from the leaving district. we stayed up talking and telling stories until like 12:30 in the morning. it was crazy. i know i know mom.... lights out and 10:30. for the record, the lights were out and we were just talking in the dark ;) nah i'm kidding but it's nights like those that i'm gonna remember for the rest of my life! sorry i don't have more to say.... haha if you want to know more specifics ask me but nothings really coming to my mind to tell you! i'm learning a ton... feeling the spirit stronger than i ever have....my testimony is growing immensely.... esta bien :) love you all. thanks for all of your love, prayers, and support. you're the best :)

 

mucho amo

 

--Elder Webb

Here's mi testimonio en espanol:

Yo se que El Libro de Mormon es verdadero. Estoy muy muy agradecido por eso conocimiento. El Libro de Mormon ha bendice me vida tanto, y yo amo El Libro de Mormon

Yo se que las familias puede vive por eternidad con Dios. estoy mur agradecido por mi familia y sus amo para mi.

Del Don de linguas is real. es ha bendice mi en la CCM tanto y yo no aprender mucho espanol sin del don de linguas.

El Senor jesucristo es nuestros salvador, y su Expiacion es muy muy importante por todos la gente de la tierra si quieremos regresar vivir con Dios.

yo se que Dios ha bendice me por servido un mision, y El continualmente bendice me, y estoy muy muy agradecido por Dios in mi vida.

en el nombre de Jesucristo, amen.

 

 

translation:

 

hello, i want to testify about the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

 

i know that the book of mormon is true. i am very very grateful for this knowledge. the book of mormon has blessed my life so much, and i love the book of mormon.

i know that families can live forever with God. i am very grateful for my family and their love for me.

the gift of tongues is real. it has blessed me in the MTC so much and i would not learn much spanish without the gift of tongues.

the Lord Jesus Christ is our savior, and his atonement is so very important for all the people of the earth if we want to return to live with God.

i know that God has blessed me for serving a mission, and he continually blesses me, and i am so so grateful for God in my life.

in the name of jesus christ, amen.

On our temple walk the other day, there were a few evangelical protesters. it was kinda weird, but pretty funny to see.

The whole zone!

Me, Dawson, and Elders Jensen and Packer. That's at four in the morning dropping them off at the travel office. Elder Packer is the great grandson of Boyd K.

Elder Jensen!

PICS (cont.)

The classic tie-tuck

Language training

The Flea Market & PICS!

July 10, 2013

Hey family!

lifes gooood here at the mtc. You probably know that, because thats the only thing i ever tell you when i write but its getting better and better each day. this week has flown by... class time gets really boring but hanging out and doing weird things with my zone after the day's over makes everything alright :) we trade ties almost every night.... ha we take it very seriously. its like a flea market not even kidding! i've already traded for a couple of really good ones. i think because ties are the only sort of style we can have, the only way to express ourselves around here, that everyone all of a sudden has this itching for new ties. so we trade! all the time. i traded one of dad's ties... oh ya sorry dad i stole one of your ties.... but, luckily i was able to trade for it back so now dad you can sleep at night knowing that your tie will return safely in 2 years :) we do a lot of fun and weird stuff as a zone at night, we do this activity we call "bonding". i'm not gonna tell you what it is. but mom dont worry, it's nothing that will get me sent home :) haha. i love my zone i've already made a bunch of great friends. we have a professional volleyball player from austrailia, a highly recruited football player from idaho, and a whole bunch of weird and funny guys. it's a great time. 

its also very spiritual around here, dont get me wrong. next week i'll go into better detail about what i've learned but right now i don't have a ton of time to write this. but my testimony has increased exponentially and i can't wait to continue to learn more. I finally figured out how to attach pictures! i'll send you a few now, and in a couple of other emails today. love you all! continue to WRITE me, i love to read mail at night :) Hasta la huego!!

--Elder Webb

Jared's companion

Jared's district

Jared and Elder Jensen, a good friend from his zone

District again!

July 3, 2013

July 3, 2013

Hola, Familia!  So . . . I've already been here for a week now.  Not quite sure where the time went, but I'm enjoying it so far.  Tuesday night we had a devotional at the Marriot Center and Brother Richardson of the General Sunday School Presidency came and spoke to us.  It was awesome!  He spoke to us about the importance of  being a "real missionary" and "acting well our part".  I really liked it. 

I'm starting to pick up on Spanish pretty well . . . I can understand quite a bit when someone speaks to me, but I'm not great at speaking it yet.  We've been teaching an "investigator" this week (not a real one . . . one of the teachers plays the part of an investigator).  The first couple of times I didn't stray from my notes really at all, but this last time I really tried to speak from memory.  I learned that I knew a lot more than I thought and that the gift of tongues is real.

I see my friends all the time here . . . I think I told you Dawson is in my zone and Gavin is right next door, but I see Mac, Jake, Austin Bitters, and Talon all the time, too.  It's like I never left.  Haha.  Have I told you about Elder Pond?  He rooms with us, super tall country boy.  Dad and Cam would get a kick out of him. 

Anyways, love you guys!  Thanks for the Dear Elders . . . I enjoy reading mail every night.  Tell people to write to me!--it gives me something to do when I get back at night :)

Love you!

--Elder Webb

Hola, Mi Familia!

La CCM es muy bueno!  As you can tell, my Spanish is already coming along pretty well!  10 1/2 hours a day in class will do that to you.  I'm having a lot of fun here.  My zone is awesome.  I think I already told you about my companion and my district, but my zone is just as awesome.  Dawson is in my zone and Cayson Renshaw is one of my Zone Leaders!  Cayson is the Renshaw's nephew . . . and even though he's not in my zone, Gavin is in the room right next door!  It's like high school around here . . . I see Dawson, Talon Shumway, Gavin, Jake Stout, Braxton Barnes, James Lee, John Lee, Gabe Wood, Bowcut and Mac . . . all friends of high school.  Ha ha!  It's crazy.  But, I'm liking it.  It's hard work, but I'm getting into the flow of everything and I'm excited to keep working.  Love you all.  Miss you a ton! Esta bien! --Elder Webb

Quick first letter home

Hey guys! Life at the MTC is pretty nuts... running back and forth all day long, sitting in a classroom for hours... it gets pretty boring but also gets pretty hectic. But I'm liking it so far! My companion is awesome. His name is Elder Olsen and he's from Mona. The other companionship that is in our room is way cool too! Elder Pond and Elder Hallman. Elder Pond is like 21 years old and from Honeyville Utah. He's super tall and just a total farm boy... twang and everything. But I love him! And Elder Hallman and I have already become really good friends and he's a real funny dude. Miss you guys already... it's been really hard to say goodbye to you and everyone else the last couple days but I know that this is where I need to be and I'm excited to get on my feet and start running.

Love you!
--Elder Webb