Hey Everyone!
As the title of my email says (in Spanish), Irene Gonzalez was
baptized yesterday! The service was absolutely wonderful and very
spiritual! Our mission president, Presidente Villanueva, also came to
the baptismal service; it was the first time that he met the Azusa
Ward, and everyone was commenting on how humble of a man he is. It was
a great experience, and Irene even invited a friend that came to the
baptism (unfortunately, she got lost on the way to the building and
missed the baptismal ordinance itself by less than thirty seconds;
however, she saw the love from the ward, the sense of family that the
Church shows and the happiness that Irene was feeling after being
baptized). It has been a week of beginning to understand the
importance of "The One" better.
Tuesday, October 7th, 2014:
Because Oscar Peralta was unavailable, Elder Crane and I used our
extra time to begin using Facebook a little more effectively. We have
been trying to be more obedient by having the faith that Facebook will
actually help us in our area; it is hard to use when we don't really
know the "how" of using Facebook effectively, even if we understand
the "why" and the "what" behind social media. We later went to Paula
Lopez's house to follow up with General Conference, and I was very
pleasantly surprised to hear how much she was able to get out of it.
We have been teaching Jose Garcia the classes needed as preparation
for receiving the Melchizadek Priesthood, so we followed up and taught
him a few more of the principles needed; we should be able to finish
all of it by next week. He had done all of the "homework" that we left
him with, and he even went above and beyond by taking nearly twenty
pages of notes on what he had studied. Seeing someone have the desire
to learn and grow is truly inspiring and humbling. Arturo Rayas came
out with us in the afternoon to teach a few lessons, but a few
appointments fell through. We went to visit Richie Rios and shared a
Mormon Message video with him that illustrates the importance of
leaving bad friends behind, no matter how difficult the circumstances.
He loved the video and understood better the importance of continuing
to eliminate each and every temptation that he may face in life, which
often stem from the actions of peers. Elder Crane and I finished our
day by going up to the church for correlation meeting with Hermano
Torres. He shared a very touching experience about never giving up on
anyone that we teach. No matter if we recently stopped teaching them
or if they haven't been taught for a substantial amount of time, we
still need to ensure that they are happy and well. If our job involves
helping people come unto Christ, we need to serve as Christ would
serve and love unconditionally.
Wednesday, October 8th, 2014:
We had our monthly zone meeting in Covina today and split up into
zones at the building; the Covina West Zone went into the Relief
Society room, and the Covina East Zone, of which I am a part, went
into the Primary room. This is my seventh transfer total in the Covina
East Zone, which is nearly half of my time in the mission field. Zone
meeting was interesting because the zone leaders took an interesting
twist on what they normally talk about and role play. We focused on
the importance of having a personal vision of where we want to be at
when we are finishing our mission; we then planned what steps we need
to take and what traits we need to develop so that we can be better
instruments in the hands of the Lord in helping others come unto
Christ. We must continually look inward to bring about an outward
result; we cannot help convert to the Gospel of Jesus Christ beyond
the point of our own conversion. After zone meeting ended, both zones
met up in the chapel to watch "Meet the Mormons." All of the
missionaries in the United States watched the movie before the
scheduled release date so that we could be able to answer any
questions that people may have, even though we are instructed not to
actively use it as a proselyting tool. The movie is not intended to
convey our doctrines, nor is it intended to preach about our church;
rather, "Meet the Mormons" is a documentary of six families and their
individual stories, in addition to the contributions they have made to
society based on their faith in Christ. It was an excellent movie and
will entertain any viewer, as well as shed new light on who we are as
people. Plus, if you are trying to decide whether you want to watch it
or not, all of the proceeds go to the American Red Cross, so you will
be donating to charity by entertaining yourself with a great movie!
Additionally, for anyone who likes David Archuleta, he sings a song at
the end of the movie. During the evening, Elder Crane and I taught
Rafael Hernandez about the Plan of Salvation, but it became quite
apparent that we should have taught about the Restoration of the
Gospel. We were trying to discern a need and teach accordingly, but we
should have focused on understanding the need that we found a little
better. We finished our day by eating dinner with Hermano Torres, who
took us out to dinner at a small restaurant called Max's. I ate some
chiles rellenos, and they were delicious!
Thursday, October 9th, 2014:
Today was one of the most successful days that Elder Crane and I have
had together in quite some time. We were able to teach a total of five
lessons today, and we had the potential to teach even more. We began
our day by talking with Richie Rios about the nature of godly sorrow
as it relates to the repentance process. We then went to talk to Paula
Lopez about service in the Church through church callings. Elder Crane
and I spent a few minutes talking to her granddaughter, Marlene, about
what we do as missionaries and a little about what we believe. She
seemed to open up to us, so we will see if we can begin working with
her in the future. It is wonderful to see the conversion of the recent
converts in our area. We then went to help Alex Serrano with his AP
Statistics homework. He is improving immensely, and I am grateful that
I have the ability to be able to help tutor. It is a truism when
people say that all of our talents and experiences before the mission
will come to help us and aid us as missionaries; I have come to gain a
testimony of that principle recently. Elder Crane and I later taught
Nicasio about the Restoration and finished the whole Restoration at
long last. We were extremely bold with him in talking about the Church
being restored and the implications of Priesthood authority. Our
calling gives us the right and places the responsibility upon our
shoulders to proclaim the truth; however, we must have the
companionship of the Spirit if we are to receive the power that comes
from our authority as missionaries -- we cannot teach without the
Spirit. During the evening, Hermana Magana came with us to help teach
a new investigator named Virginia. We wanted to begin teaching the
whole family, but they were unavailable. We established our
expectations and purpose as missionaries, so we will see how open she
is when we return to teach the family together. To conclude the day,
Elder Crane and I finished off everything that we needed to teach
Irene before her baptism, specifically about service. She is extremely
converted and is ready for her baptism.
Friday, October 10th, 2014:
Before beginning weekly planning, Elder Crane and I were able to teach
Oscar Peralta about the Gospel of Jesus Christ with a huge emphasis on
the blessings that come through attending church and partaking of the
Sacrament. It was one of the better lessons that Elder Crane and I
have taught, and the Spirit testified to Oscar of the need to come to
church. During weekly planning, we focused the majority of our
attention on planning the baptismal service for Irene Gonzalez on
Sunday. I'm very optimistic that all will go well and that it will be
an unforgettable event for her. Upon finishing weekly planning, the
zone leaders came to do exchanges; I went to Pomona - East to be with
Elder Merrill and Elder Crawford, and Elder Crane stayed in Azusa -
East to be with Elder Perez. We began the evening by going to eat
dinner with the Meza family. They were a very nice family and
expressed their desire for me to come to Pomona in the future! We read
in 1 Nephi 1 with the whole family, including the nonmember father and
grandfather. Elder Merrill, Elder Crawford and I then went to teach a
girl named Erika and help her with her SAT preparation for the test
the following day. It didn't seem like a coincidence that we did
exchanges today because I was able to tutor once again in the area of
mathematics. We ended the evening by visiting a recent convert family
named the Lopez family who have gone less-active. We read in the Book
of Mormon with Fatima, the daughter, and with Hugo, the son. The
parents weren't home, but we were able to help Fatima and Hugo see the
necessity to read in the scriptures each and every day to have the
Holy Ghost with them. I love working with Elder Merrill and Elder
Crawford because all three of us focus so much on trying to follow the
Spirit in our teaching; as a result, we focus more on teaching people,
not lessons.
Saturday, October 11th, 2014:
We didn't exchange back until just prior to dinner, so I was able to
spend a fair amount of the day in Pomona with Elder Merrill and Elder
Crawford. We started out the day by visiting their recent convert,
Sara. She has been really struggling to resolve the situation with her
son and was noticeably upset with some words that Elder Perez had said
to correct some of her behaviors the past time that they went to teach
her. We had done a role play of the lesson during companionship study
during the morning, and we executed the lesson itself absolutely
perfectly. Sara opened up and began crying because of the love and the
Spirit that she could feel. It was a very moving experience and made
me grateful for the opportunity to do exchanges today. We then taught
her son, Luis, who has a baptismal date for the 26th of this month but
is working on overcoming his drinking problem. We talked about the
"For the Strength of Youth" pamphlet and began helping him understand
the importance of staying spiritually clean. It was another wonderful
lesson that was guided by the Spirit. When we put in the effort in the
mornings to do the role plays and receive the revelation for our
investigators, we are entitled to the guidance of the Spirit when we
teach the actual lesson. I loved teaching with Elder Merrill and Elder
Crawford because of how driven they are to teach the people, not the
lessons. All three of us then went to the Pomona building to attend
correlation meeting. It was my first time ever attending a correlation
meeting for a different ward than my own, but it was interesting to
see how they ran it. I am grateful for Hermano Torres, our ward
mission leader, because he seems to be helping the work in Azusa much
more than Pomona is receiving help from its ward mission leader.
Everyone learned a great deal from the exchange, and Elder Crane and I
got right to work once we exchanged back. We taught the Restoration to
a man named Jose Correa, but it was much more of teaching a lesson
rather than teaching the person. I was able to observe the
juxtaposition of the lessons in Pomona with the very first lesson that
we taught here in Azusa after the exchange; the Spirit makes all the
difference in teaching, and listening is the first step. We concluded
our evening by sharing "The Will of God" Mormon Message video with
Irene Gonzalez and talked about following the Lord's will through
being baptized and expecting trials to come in the future to help her
grow. She is ready for her baptism, and I am very excited for
tomorrow!
Sunday, October 12th, 2014:
Church was wonderful today, and the attendance was much higher than
normal. I can't stop being grateful for the difference in the
atmosphere here; there is a distinct difference in the attitude of the
people because everyone wants to work now and help the work progress.
After church ended, Elder Crane and I had to head over to Covina to
begin filling up the baptismal font and preparing for the baptism. We
were able to get everything ready, and we had a huge turnout from the
ward! We were also very privileged to have Presidente Villanueva and
his wife attend the baptism today! It was the first time that they
came to any Azusa-related activity, so they were able to meet the
ward. The baptismal service may have been the very best baptism that I
have ever been to. Irene Gonzalez was baptized by Hermano Magana, and
the service was extremely powerful. Irene came up out of the water as
a new individual; there is a symbolism of Christ's death and
resurrection explained in Romans 6 as we are baptized by immersion,
just like Christ in the Jordan River. After her baptism, Irene stated
that it was the greatest day of her life and that the trip we made to
the Temple Visitors' Center really helped her gain the testimony that
this was the path that God wanted her to take. She said that she felt
happier than any other time in her whole life. It was absolutely
wonderful, and we, as missionaries, live for the opportunities to
watch others change their lives through making covenants, just like
today. Irene Gonzalez will now be ready to receive the Holy Ghost next
week! She even invited one of her friends to the baptism! Her friend
showed up late (just after the baptism ended, unfortunately) because
she got lost, but she was able to hear Irene's testimony and see the
love of the whole ward. True conversion prompts us to help others
achieve the same goal. Elder Crane and I were unable to find a number
of different people that we tried visiting after the baptism and ended
our evening by stopping by the Magana family. They said that they are
and will be eternally grateful to Elder Crane, Elder Wandry and I for
helping them come back to church and help others come into the Church.
I love their family, and I feel like I am now part of their family.
It has been an absolutely wonderful week, and I am loving the
opportunity to serve here in Azusa! I look forward to seeing more and
more of the growth in this ward! Today, we spent the day at our house
celebrating Elder Nielsen's birthday by hanging out here at the house
and enjoying each other's company. Elder Nielsen turned 20 today and
is from Sammamish, Washington, which is part of the Redmond Washington
Stake where I grew up for a number of years. Elder Nielsen, Elder
Nelson and I also all left for the mission at the same time. I love
our district; it is a privilege and honor to be able to serve with
them. I hope everyone has had a fantastic week and that this week is
even better than the last! Thank you for all of your love and support!
I won't have my P-Day until next Wednesday because it is our day to
attend the temple!
Love,
Elder Gabriel Valley
This is a picture of Irene's baptism with my mission president:
As the title of my email says (in Spanish), Irene Gonzalez was
baptized yesterday! The service was absolutely wonderful and very
spiritual! Our mission president, Presidente Villanueva, also came to
the baptismal service; it was the first time that he met the Azusa
Ward, and everyone was commenting on how humble of a man he is. It was
a great experience, and Irene even invited a friend that came to the
baptism (unfortunately, she got lost on the way to the building and
missed the baptismal ordinance itself by less than thirty seconds;
however, she saw the love from the ward, the sense of family that the
Church shows and the happiness that Irene was feeling after being
baptized). It has been a week of beginning to understand the
importance of "The One" better.
Tuesday, October 7th, 2014:
Because Oscar Peralta was unavailable, Elder Crane and I used our
extra time to begin using Facebook a little more effectively. We have
been trying to be more obedient by having the faith that Facebook will
actually help us in our area; it is hard to use when we don't really
know the "how" of using Facebook effectively, even if we understand
the "why" and the "what" behind social media. We later went to Paula
Lopez's house to follow up with General Conference, and I was very
pleasantly surprised to hear how much she was able to get out of it.
We have been teaching Jose Garcia the classes needed as preparation
for receiving the Melchizadek Priesthood, so we followed up and taught
him a few more of the principles needed; we should be able to finish
all of it by next week. He had done all of the "homework" that we left
him with, and he even went above and beyond by taking nearly twenty
pages of notes on what he had studied. Seeing someone have the desire
to learn and grow is truly inspiring and humbling. Arturo Rayas came
out with us in the afternoon to teach a few lessons, but a few
appointments fell through. We went to visit Richie Rios and shared a
Mormon Message video with him that illustrates the importance of
leaving bad friends behind, no matter how difficult the circumstances.
He loved the video and understood better the importance of continuing
to eliminate each and every temptation that he may face in life, which
often stem from the actions of peers. Elder Crane and I finished our
day by going up to the church for correlation meeting with Hermano
Torres. He shared a very touching experience about never giving up on
anyone that we teach. No matter if we recently stopped teaching them
or if they haven't been taught for a substantial amount of time, we
still need to ensure that they are happy and well. If our job involves
helping people come unto Christ, we need to serve as Christ would
serve and love unconditionally.
Wednesday, October 8th, 2014:
We had our monthly zone meeting in Covina today and split up into
zones at the building; the Covina West Zone went into the Relief
Society room, and the Covina East Zone, of which I am a part, went
into the Primary room. This is my seventh transfer total in the Covina
East Zone, which is nearly half of my time in the mission field. Zone
meeting was interesting because the zone leaders took an interesting
twist on what they normally talk about and role play. We focused on
the importance of having a personal vision of where we want to be at
when we are finishing our mission; we then planned what steps we need
to take and what traits we need to develop so that we can be better
instruments in the hands of the Lord in helping others come unto
Christ. We must continually look inward to bring about an outward
result; we cannot help convert to the Gospel of Jesus Christ beyond
the point of our own conversion. After zone meeting ended, both zones
met up in the chapel to watch "Meet the Mormons." All of the
missionaries in the United States watched the movie before the
scheduled release date so that we could be able to answer any
questions that people may have, even though we are instructed not to
actively use it as a proselyting tool. The movie is not intended to
convey our doctrines, nor is it intended to preach about our church;
rather, "Meet the Mormons" is a documentary of six families and their
individual stories, in addition to the contributions they have made to
society based on their faith in Christ. It was an excellent movie and
will entertain any viewer, as well as shed new light on who we are as
people. Plus, if you are trying to decide whether you want to watch it
or not, all of the proceeds go to the American Red Cross, so you will
be donating to charity by entertaining yourself with a great movie!
Additionally, for anyone who likes David Archuleta, he sings a song at
the end of the movie. During the evening, Elder Crane and I taught
Rafael Hernandez about the Plan of Salvation, but it became quite
apparent that we should have taught about the Restoration of the
Gospel. We were trying to discern a need and teach accordingly, but we
should have focused on understanding the need that we found a little
better. We finished our day by eating dinner with Hermano Torres, who
took us out to dinner at a small restaurant called Max's. I ate some
chiles rellenos, and they were delicious!
Thursday, October 9th, 2014:
Today was one of the most successful days that Elder Crane and I have
had together in quite some time. We were able to teach a total of five
lessons today, and we had the potential to teach even more. We began
our day by talking with Richie Rios about the nature of godly sorrow
as it relates to the repentance process. We then went to talk to Paula
Lopez about service in the Church through church callings. Elder Crane
and I spent a few minutes talking to her granddaughter, Marlene, about
what we do as missionaries and a little about what we believe. She
seemed to open up to us, so we will see if we can begin working with
her in the future. It is wonderful to see the conversion of the recent
converts in our area. We then went to help Alex Serrano with his AP
Statistics homework. He is improving immensely, and I am grateful that
I have the ability to be able to help tutor. It is a truism when
people say that all of our talents and experiences before the mission
will come to help us and aid us as missionaries; I have come to gain a
testimony of that principle recently. Elder Crane and I later taught
Nicasio about the Restoration and finished the whole Restoration at
long last. We were extremely bold with him in talking about the Church
being restored and the implications of Priesthood authority. Our
calling gives us the right and places the responsibility upon our
shoulders to proclaim the truth; however, we must have the
companionship of the Spirit if we are to receive the power that comes
from our authority as missionaries -- we cannot teach without the
Spirit. During the evening, Hermana Magana came with us to help teach
a new investigator named Virginia. We wanted to begin teaching the
whole family, but they were unavailable. We established our
expectations and purpose as missionaries, so we will see how open she
is when we return to teach the family together. To conclude the day,
Elder Crane and I finished off everything that we needed to teach
Irene before her baptism, specifically about service. She is extremely
converted and is ready for her baptism.
Friday, October 10th, 2014:
Before beginning weekly planning, Elder Crane and I were able to teach
Oscar Peralta about the Gospel of Jesus Christ with a huge emphasis on
the blessings that come through attending church and partaking of the
Sacrament. It was one of the better lessons that Elder Crane and I
have taught, and the Spirit testified to Oscar of the need to come to
church. During weekly planning, we focused the majority of our
attention on planning the baptismal service for Irene Gonzalez on
Sunday. I'm very optimistic that all will go well and that it will be
an unforgettable event for her. Upon finishing weekly planning, the
zone leaders came to do exchanges; I went to Pomona - East to be with
Elder Merrill and Elder Crawford, and Elder Crane stayed in Azusa -
East to be with Elder Perez. We began the evening by going to eat
dinner with the Meza family. They were a very nice family and
expressed their desire for me to come to Pomona in the future! We read
in 1 Nephi 1 with the whole family, including the nonmember father and
grandfather. Elder Merrill, Elder Crawford and I then went to teach a
girl named Erika and help her with her SAT preparation for the test
the following day. It didn't seem like a coincidence that we did
exchanges today because I was able to tutor once again in the area of
mathematics. We ended the evening by visiting a recent convert family
named the Lopez family who have gone less-active. We read in the Book
of Mormon with Fatima, the daughter, and with Hugo, the son. The
parents weren't home, but we were able to help Fatima and Hugo see the
necessity to read in the scriptures each and every day to have the
Holy Ghost with them. I love working with Elder Merrill and Elder
Crawford because all three of us focus so much on trying to follow the
Spirit in our teaching; as a result, we focus more on teaching people,
not lessons.
Saturday, October 11th, 2014:
We didn't exchange back until just prior to dinner, so I was able to
spend a fair amount of the day in Pomona with Elder Merrill and Elder
Crawford. We started out the day by visiting their recent convert,
Sara. She has been really struggling to resolve the situation with her
son and was noticeably upset with some words that Elder Perez had said
to correct some of her behaviors the past time that they went to teach
her. We had done a role play of the lesson during companionship study
during the morning, and we executed the lesson itself absolutely
perfectly. Sara opened up and began crying because of the love and the
Spirit that she could feel. It was a very moving experience and made
me grateful for the opportunity to do exchanges today. We then taught
her son, Luis, who has a baptismal date for the 26th of this month but
is working on overcoming his drinking problem. We talked about the
"For the Strength of Youth" pamphlet and began helping him understand
the importance of staying spiritually clean. It was another wonderful
lesson that was guided by the Spirit. When we put in the effort in the
mornings to do the role plays and receive the revelation for our
investigators, we are entitled to the guidance of the Spirit when we
teach the actual lesson. I loved teaching with Elder Merrill and Elder
Crawford because of how driven they are to teach the people, not the
lessons. All three of us then went to the Pomona building to attend
correlation meeting. It was my first time ever attending a correlation
meeting for a different ward than my own, but it was interesting to
see how they ran it. I am grateful for Hermano Torres, our ward
mission leader, because he seems to be helping the work in Azusa much
more than Pomona is receiving help from its ward mission leader.
Everyone learned a great deal from the exchange, and Elder Crane and I
got right to work once we exchanged back. We taught the Restoration to
a man named Jose Correa, but it was much more of teaching a lesson
rather than teaching the person. I was able to observe the
juxtaposition of the lessons in Pomona with the very first lesson that
we taught here in Azusa after the exchange; the Spirit makes all the
difference in teaching, and listening is the first step. We concluded
our evening by sharing "The Will of God" Mormon Message video with
Irene Gonzalez and talked about following the Lord's will through
being baptized and expecting trials to come in the future to help her
grow. She is ready for her baptism, and I am very excited for
tomorrow!
Sunday, October 12th, 2014:
Church was wonderful today, and the attendance was much higher than
normal. I can't stop being grateful for the difference in the
atmosphere here; there is a distinct difference in the attitude of the
people because everyone wants to work now and help the work progress.
After church ended, Elder Crane and I had to head over to Covina to
begin filling up the baptismal font and preparing for the baptism. We
were able to get everything ready, and we had a huge turnout from the
ward! We were also very privileged to have Presidente Villanueva and
his wife attend the baptism today! It was the first time that they
came to any Azusa-related activity, so they were able to meet the
ward. The baptismal service may have been the very best baptism that I
have ever been to. Irene Gonzalez was baptized by Hermano Magana, and
the service was extremely powerful. Irene came up out of the water as
a new individual; there is a symbolism of Christ's death and
resurrection explained in Romans 6 as we are baptized by immersion,
just like Christ in the Jordan River. After her baptism, Irene stated
that it was the greatest day of her life and that the trip we made to
the Temple Visitors' Center really helped her gain the testimony that
this was the path that God wanted her to take. She said that she felt
happier than any other time in her whole life. It was absolutely
wonderful, and we, as missionaries, live for the opportunities to
watch others change their lives through making covenants, just like
today. Irene Gonzalez will now be ready to receive the Holy Ghost next
week! She even invited one of her friends to the baptism! Her friend
showed up late (just after the baptism ended, unfortunately) because
she got lost, but she was able to hear Irene's testimony and see the
love of the whole ward. True conversion prompts us to help others
achieve the same goal. Elder Crane and I were unable to find a number
of different people that we tried visiting after the baptism and ended
our evening by stopping by the Magana family. They said that they are
and will be eternally grateful to Elder Crane, Elder Wandry and I for
helping them come back to church and help others come into the Church.
I love their family, and I feel like I am now part of their family.
It has been an absolutely wonderful week, and I am loving the
opportunity to serve here in Azusa! I look forward to seeing more and
more of the growth in this ward! Today, we spent the day at our house
celebrating Elder Nielsen's birthday by hanging out here at the house
and enjoying each other's company. Elder Nielsen turned 20 today and
is from Sammamish, Washington, which is part of the Redmond Washington
Stake where I grew up for a number of years. Elder Nielsen, Elder
Nelson and I also all left for the mission at the same time. I love
our district; it is a privilege and honor to be able to serve with
them. I hope everyone has had a fantastic week and that this week is
even better than the last! Thank you for all of your love and support!
I won't have my P-Day until next Wednesday because it is our day to
attend the temple!
Love,
Elder Gabriel Valley
This is a picture of Irene's baptism with my mission president:
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