January 4 in Isla, pistols and parrots, pizza without sauce

Happy New Year! New Year's here in Mexico is crazy because people come out with their (illegal) pistols and they like to fire them into the air. So there's always the slight posibility of random deaths.... So we had to be home early! We got home and Elder Segovia and I promptly ordered the cheesiest pizza I've ever eaten. I'm not kidding, it was about an inch thick, with all cheese and no sauce. Actually, almost no pizzas here in Mexico have sauce, so I now eat my pizza like a Mexican. With ketchup. It's the only way. And sometimes with spicy chipotle sauce. 

There are no monkeys here in Isla, but parrota are everywhere. I like to play with them, but they're really vicious and their bites hurt like crazy. They sometimes shout bad words (fault of people). But the parrot that our convert, Patricia, has, lets me feed it, and scratch its head sometimes. 

We finally started to find some really good people to teach! Only to find out that they're moving! But that's okay. They'll find the gospel wherever they are. The important thing is that they find it, be it through me, or someone else. 

Changes have hit, and, as obvious, I'm staying here in Isla to finish the training of Elder Segovia. Sadly, everyone's favorite Chileno (he's from Chile and I don't know how to say that in English), Elder Gallardo, is leaving. But, Elder Andrus is coming! I met Elder Andrus this time last year in La Laguna, when he was just starting. He's pretty cool. That's one of the things about being an oldy in the mission, you know pretty much everybody, and everyone knows you. 

That's all for this week! Sorry I don't have much more, but more next week!

Elder Thompson

December 28 in Isla

¡Feliz Navidad! Espero que todos hayan pasado bien el día de navidad y que hayan tenido oportunidades de recordar a nuestro salvador y redentor Jesucristo y que es lo que Él hizo por nosotros. les quiero a todos y ¡que tengan un feliz fin del año!

Merry Christmas in Spanish. Please only use google translate as a last resort. haha

Well this week was really cool! We went caroling on Christmas Eve and on Christmas Day, and we got to help and serve a lot of people! 

In Mexico, Christmas Eve is a bigger deal than Christmas Day. Every one gets drunk and parties a ton on Christmas Eve, but on the day, they're all just hungover and sleep in. At least, that's Christmas in Isla. Fortunately we were able to REMEMBER (hahaha i hope you get the joke) things in a better manner: we preached the gospel. What better to do on Christmas Day? Or in this time of the year. 

I did have a really special experience this week. I finished the Book of Mormon again in Spanish. I've now read it several times in Spanish and every time I read it, it reinforces the truth of everything it says. One of the questions that many people ask here is, "Why do we need the Book of Mormon if we already have the Bible?" Another one is "Why doesn't the Bible mention the Book of Mormon?" Well, first of all, it does, several times. But I will explain all of this. The full title of the book is: The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

Who does the book talk about? You got that right, Jesus! Why's this important? What does the Bible say? One Lord, one Faith, one baptism. At various other moments it explains to us the narrowness of the way, the importance of correct doctrine, of authority, etc. Knowing this, how many different religions have the Bible? All of the ones that believe in Christ. So how do we know which is true? So we rely on the words of the various religious leaders and guides in a world of so much confusion? CAN we rely on them? Peter said that there would be many false teachers among us. How can we know which are false and which are true? Thankfully, Jesus gave us the answer. "By their fruits ye shall know them." The proclaimed fruit of the prophet Joseph Smith is the Book of Mormon. It is the test to see if he's a truthsayer or a liar, because he's either one or the other.

The Book of Mormon was written by many ancient prophets from the AMERICAN continent. It was written in a language impossible for us to understand. Joseph Smith received it from an angel and translated it by the power ands gift of God. If the book is true then Joseph Smith was a prophet of Jesus Christ and this is His restored church. The Book of Mormon is thus the key to the beliefs of all members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. But this is not all. The Book of Mormon also proves that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the world. How? Well, in a law case, one witness is evidence, but not proof. But two witnesses? That's a lot stronger. The Book of Mormon is that second witness that Jesus is the Christ, because it was written on a completely different continent, by a completely different people. If the book is true, then that means that two different nations, halfway across the world from each other, and with no means of communication, believed in and worshipped the EXACT SAME being in the EXACT SAME way. This isn't just "evidence" anymore. It's proof. 

Now the only thing left to do is ask God, as invited both in the Book of Mormon and the Bible (James 1:5, Mormon 10:3-5), and wait faithfully on the answer from God about the truthfulness of the book. 

Thats why members of this church believe in the Book of Mormon, and that's why it's the cornerstone of our faith, both in Jesus Christ and in His restored church. 

I know that the book is true. 

Talk to you all next week! Stay safe this week and don't go do anything stupid! 

Elder Thompson

December 21 in Isla

Wow sooo..... it's Christmas!!!!! Chirstmas in the mission is the best because, well, what else would Jesus want me to do for his birthday than to do what I'm doing? That makes it all awesome. 

The one sad part about Christmas is that here in Mexico nobody wants to listen to us. You would think it's the reverse, right? But it's not. Worship of the Virgen Guadalupe (she's not the Virgen Mary) intensifies here then.  Well, things are tough. They like hearing more of her and less of Jesus. But last night, we found the solution! Over time here in the mission I've learned to sing and I actually sing pretty good, if I do say so myself. And fortunately my district also sings! So what did we do last night? We went caroling! We just went to members' houses and stuff like that, but Thursday and Friday night we're going to do that instead of proselyte. We've got some really cool harmonies, and it all actually sounds REALLY good. The cool thing is that people DO open their doors in order to hear a few pretty songs about the Savior, and we're hoping that God has blessed us with this talent in singing right now so that we can maybe use that as a tool to bring more people to Him. We're going to walk around knocking on all the doors, and sing to other families, hoping to find people to teach! 

This week I basically had the worst week of my entire mission. Every single plan that we had fell through. We had to leave almost all the people that we are visiting. The people that we had that were close to baptism all fell through this week. I was actually quite certain that some of them were going to get baptized, but now, who knows. I was really disappointed because I wanted Elder Segovia to be able to have the experience of helping someone to baptism, because he's just starting and all, but that did not happen this week.

We had not a single investigator in the church again, and I thought all was lost. But then, a miracle happened. This Sunday, a young coupe came to church. They've gotta be between 20 and 25 years old. They moved here recently from Tamaulipas, a northern state. The wife is a member from birth, but had stopped going a few years ago. Her husband knows very little about the church, really only what she's said to him. She wants to come back to church now, and so he said, " Okay, well if you're gonna go, I wanna go with you and find out what all this is about." So he came and they're awesome! We're going to go teach them on Tuesday, and I'm super excited and hope to help them become an eternal family through baptism and temple covenants with the Lord. 

This I realized once again that there are lots of things I and this district can do better. It was another Ether 12: 27  experience: "and if men come unto me I will show unto them their weaknesses. I give unto men weaknesses that they may be humble, and my grace is sufficient for all those who humble themselves before me, that their weak things may be made strong." Sorry if that translation is a little off. I only have it memorized in Spanish, had to translate. But yeah so this week was like God showing me more of my weaknesses, and now I have the privilege of humbling myself before him, so that he can make my weak things strong through the grace of Jesus Christ! I'm super excited for this week and I know that this church is true!!! Love you guys talk to you next week!