it's an elder!

Hello, amados amigos míos. I have a story to tell about this picture. There's an hermana from my generation (arrived in the field the same time as me) and we both ended up at the same meeting one time and we were talking and she asked me how much time in the mission I had and I just looked at her like "seriously bro???" I told her that we were from the same generation and she said "oh no le reconocí porque se ha engordado tanto!" (Oh I did not recognize you because you have gained so much weight) Which was not very cool. So today she took this picture of me and Elder Bradley, we were joking about pregnancy pictures or whatever and at some point Elder Bradley just yells "it's an elder!!!" I thought it was pretty hilarious so I thought I'd share. Elder Bradley is the definition of amor puro de cristo. He literally is the most loving man I have ever met in my life. I couldn't stand it at first tbh but he's probably one of my favorite people ever. Elder Christensen is in gray and Elder Bradley in green....they're my beloved zone leaders.

Today we had this zone activity where we had a clue hunt kind of thing....something like that. We had scriptures and had to find the stations according to the scripture and then do something dumb. Some eamples are: make a torta and then eat it, act out something funny from the past change, water a tree with a water balloon, make two baskets with a basketball, make three trashkets, sing a song in English on the piano, dance with your companion, wash your companions feet (this was hillarious), make shaving cream beards, build a tower out of chairs, and a few other things that weren't as cool but it was actually fun! Then we got to play soccer which was pretty cool.

I'm really starting to miss soccer. You'd think we play it all the time but we don't. I did play my first game of real soccer with real Mexicans on Saturday, like not missionaries. The elders quorum had an activity and an investigator came so I got to ball out. It was pretty fun to ball out in full proselyting clothing, I felt like a real missionary in that moment. I also realized how out of shape I am.

My favorite word in Spanish is"porfa", If you can't tell what porfa is...it's just por favor and it's just a shortened way to say please. IDK why but I just love to say it so much. So basically in any situation I can (when its appropriate) I use it...lol. It's pretty great.

This past week was a week of puras conferencias. For three days straight almost all day Elder Bennion and I went to all the zone conferences in the mission, organizing things and making sure things were going smoothly. For the first two days it was kinda hard being so close to the temple and not being able to enter while everyone else was, but finally on Thursday morning President said we could go, and I was so stoked. Also really nervous because I hadn't been in for a while but more so excited. As we walked into the room the missoinary in front of me sits in the very last seat, and I thought I might have to wait. But then the temple worker took me to the very front where there was an empty seat and I got to sit in the front row. I viewed that as such a tender mercy for me to be able to have that seat. I loved being able to sit up front which meant that I was the first missionary to enter the celestial room and just sit there.

​I sat down in the chair on the back wall on the very right, and just sat and thought. I really thought about why in the world I was in Mexico, why I was a missionary, why I decided to do this....I was just trying to find out why. And I felt more strongly than ever the love that our Heavenly Father has for us. In that moment, I felt it for me, but as I reflect on it I know that every single one of us can feel that love. I have a friend that wrote me late one night this week, telling me that he had been talking with God, and he completely decided to change his major, and what he was going to pursue in his life. That's because God loves us, wants to hear from us, and when we talk, he's going to hear and he's going to respond. I reflected on the vision Lehi had that's talked about in 1 Nephi 8 in the Book of Mormon, and how the fruit represents the love of God, that it was most desirable above all things. Right after Lehi partook of it he desired that his family tambien partake. That's why I'm here. I've "partaken" of this fruit, and now I desire that everyone else partakes of it too. 

I know without a single doubt in my heart that this church is the true church. There is absolutely no way in heaven or earth or any part of the universe that I would leave my family and my closest friends for two years to Mexico to get robbed and yelled at and spit on to share something that isn't true, and that can't change peoples lives. I can testify with every fiber of my being that Jesus Christ is the living son of God and that he loves us so immensely that he died for us, so that we can repent and return to live with our Father in heaven once again with our families. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, that he saw Christ and the Father and that through him, Jesus Christ restored his true church to the earth. I know that the Book of Mormon is the convincing and perfectly true evidence of this and that no one can say that this church is not true, no one can deny it, without having read that book. If you will read that book with sincere intent and ask God if it's true, you won't be able to deny it. I know that and I promise you all that. I invite you all to read the Book of Mormon. It doesn't matter if you're a member of this church or not, just read it as you would read any other book. I know it will bless your lives. I've seen it in these past 6 months, and in my own life. I don't know where I would be without it's teachings, and it's testimony of Jesus Christ.

I love you all so much, and I miss you! Don't forget my birthday is in a month. :)

cuidense, les amo mucho

-Elder Jones