happy cyber monday

Hello everyone! This week will be pretty short but here's a quick run down:

It was Thanksgiving. We ate enchiladas suizas. I also made pecan pie which turned out great and the members here LOVED it. So that was nice. Now I've just got to make some Texas barbecue this next week and show Mexicans how real barbecue is. Stay in tuned.

This past week I feel like I ate a lot of food. We went to a restaurant with some members on Saturday. It was delicious. If you come back to Mexico with me I'll take you to that restaurant. Let me tell you about this GINORMOUS plate of chilaquiles (chilaquiles are basically tortilla chips with salsa verde and cream and cheese all over it, and you can put meat on in too) it sounds gross but its delicious. I had never seen such a huge plate. here ya go:

​ I also ordered a gordita (the blue thing) but I could barely finish the chilaquiles. I was happy.

We also had stake conference this week which was DOPE. Elder Castañeda a seventy) and Pres Grossen and Pres Johnson (from the temple) spoke. It was really great and we had lots of people come. I got to talk to Elder Castañeda again (I met him in the ccm) and it was super cool.

This change I've really learned to love more and be more service minded. I like to bring breakfast to the missionaries in their conferences, or think more in my companion or the members than in myself. Tomorrow we told the hermanas to get to the meeting early so that we can cook them breakfast. It's just something that I've learned to enjoy, using what I have to bless the lives of others. It makes me super happy. As we give what we have to others we receive great blessings. And we're just happier. So that's the invitation this week. Think more in others this Christmas season and be super service minded! 

Go and watch the light the world video in mormon.org and share it on twitter or facebook or wherever! And then go do what it says. 

​ Have a great week! 

Your fav papucho, Elder Jones

it's Thanksgiving?

I literally wasn't sure if it already passed or if it was this week, but from what I understand, Thanksgiving is this coming Thursday. Anyway, I think I'm going to try and make a pecan pie so everyone wish me lots of luck. 

Today is the end of black Friday in Mexico (it started on Friday) so I bought myself a new jacket and a sweater to celebrate. (sorry parents I indulged). Also Carl's Jr exists in Mexico, in case you were wondering

Work was a little boring this week so I'm just going to answer the questions my mom put in her email for me:

I did not eat anything weird or new this week. We did eat some albondigas (meatballs?) which were delicious and ginormous. The hermana hard boiled eggs, and then covered them in meat and it was a chipotle sauce and it was DELICIOUS. Also we ate cream of squash flower (I think that's how it would be said in English) which is also delicious. **If you blend together a bunch of carrots with milk and some sweetened condensed milk and salt and pepper its delicious as a soup**

We are teaching the familia Chacon. The wife is less active and the husband and kids aren't members. They're super cool. Pray for them so that the hubs gets baptized. He deserves it because he's super cool.

My favorite part of the week was getting to talk yesterday in church. I talked about the great commandments in the law, marriage (how I'm going to find a pretty girl that smells good (inside joke if you wanna know you can ask), eternal families, and tied it all into missionary work. 

My worst part of the week was getting chased by dogs like every single day. There's something about dogs here: 1. There's a million all over the place and 2. they always chase bikes. So they always chase us when are on our bikes so we have to hit them with a rod or a rock or kick them. It's not too fun.

This week I studied in 1 Nephi. Every time I read the story in 1 Nephi again I just remember how great it is. In chapter 15 (I've probs shared this before sorry) there are these two verses:

26 And they said unto me: What meaneth the river of water which our father saw?

27 And I said unto them that the water which my father saw was filthiness; and so muchwas his mind swallowed up in other things that he beheld not the filthiness of the water

These verses are just super interesting to me. It says that so much his mind was swallowed up in other things that he beheld not the filthiness of the water. This can mean a lot of things, so I'll leave it up to you guys to think about it. But it's an interesting thought, that if our minds are absorbed with other things, we wont see the filthiness of the water. 

Love you guys!!! Have a great week!

Elder Jones

My compa and I after black Friday shopping, and the the with the fam Perez and hermana Alma

Life has been good this week, just the same old work but I've enjoyed it. Especially bc I found some scriptures, the first one is in d and c 58 2-4 that talk about tribulation, and they're super good that help me kinda maintain that perspective. The other day I was just on the bike in the street and it kinda hit me that I only have 10 months left, and that's a long time but still not super long! So I've really gotta start working hard. Also I really liked what you said about Sister XXXXXXX, I'm gonna start applying that more in my work. The family Puac are pretty cool they gave us pizza. haha but love you lots mom!!! Have a great week.

i've run out of sauce quotes

Well not much this week: basically we contacted a million people this week, just walking around and talking, and talking, and more talking and no one wants to listen to us. Some christian people starting to tell us how wrong we were and that we needed to ask God what the truth was and then one guy prayed for us in the street. I was content. No one had ever prayed for me before. My compa was a little upset but hey at least they're good people, believe in God, and are trying to help others to believe in the truth (even if it's the wrong truth). 

One exciting thing was that I stood up in front of an entire bus and just started to contact them. I just shared a message with everyone and then went to pass out cards and EVERY single person rejected me. But that's okay. I was happy with my efforts.

Sometimes missionary work is kinda tough and no one wants their soul to be saved. But God still loves them. And I still try to love them. And some day they'll change.

Elder Moore shared some life changing scriptures with me this week. the scriptures are found in Moroni 10:20-23.

20 Wherefore, there must be faith; and if there must be faith there must also be hope; and if there must be hope there must also be charity.

21 And except ye have charity ye can in nowise be saved in the kingdom of God; neither can ye be saved in the kingdom of God if ye have not faith; neither can ye if ye have no hope.

22 And if ye have no hope ye must needs be in despair; and despair cometh because of iniquity.

23 And Christ truly said unto our fathers: If ye have faith ye can do all things which are expedient unto me.

This scripture is awesome bc for those of you who don't know there was period in my life when I didn't believe in God (someday I can tell you the story), but after my change I really saw a huge difference in the happiness in my life before and after that change. A few weeks ago I made the connection between faith and hope, and how hope is the opposite of despair. So when Elder Moore shared this scripture with us it just blew my mind that it says it right there in the scriptures. I know that this is true. I believe that a belief in God is directly related to our happiness in the earth. If we have faith in him, we hope that He is there. And if we have hope, we don't have despair, and we can be happy. I know that God lives and loves us and that He's literally our father in heaven. He's our best friend and is always listening. He answers in mysterious ways but always answers. I love him and am grateful for all that he's given me.

Love you guys!!! Have a great week. Study your scriptures and be obedient. Learn something new!!

Elder Jones