Hey Family!

This last week was a really normal week of work, it was a good week just nothing special happened. One thing that Elder Rodrigues and I did was that we made a game plan for our second change together. Our end goal is to be really diligent. We used the definition of diligent from the scriptures and from Preach My Gospel. We then defined the different words that describe diligence. Next, we put goals for how we are going to work with more diligence and with more animo! Animo is just working with more enthusiasm. We are already putting it in action and we are seeing the results.

INFORMATION ABOUT CHRISTMAS:
We are going to be doing the video call by skype on Christmas day, we will be doing the call at 11 o’clock our time, so nine o’clock your time. I am looking forward to being able to call and talk with you guys. For Mother’s Day we only had 40 minutes but this time, for Christmas, we have one hour. I’m not sure where everyone will be for Christmas day but, it would be sweet to be able to talk with everyone, like we did for Mother’s Day.

I am writing later today because this morning we went to Monjas, which is about 45 minutes away to be able to go to a lake. I will send some pictures and video.

I loved getting the emails from you all! I am so happy that Scareboxes did so well during the months of November and December! It is also kinda nice that you guys can chill a little bit now and think about and do other things. That is crazy dad that you bought those new tools! They are going to help with the process so much! I think it is a really good idea to have grandpa help with the mechanisms. That would also be amazing if the CNC place can help with the wires and they do not try to take you do the cleaners.

I love the insight about the difference between Wisdom and Knowledge! Lots of times we have the knowledge required to make a decision, but we are not sure what the right decision is. When we ask of God, He can give us the answer through the Holy Ghost (Espiritu Santo).

I love hearing about some of the stuff that is going on at home, and the reminder about some of those little things that always happen. Like looking left, and watching out for the crazy neighbors.

I don’t think I have gotten any taller in the mission, it’s just that everybody is really really short! :)

I know that president likes leaving people in areas a little longer but I feel that 2 areas in a year is a little uncommon. I didn’t know that you only had four areas in your mission also.

I love the saying, "Never Get Bored with Consistency!" I would love to get a picture of that as well as some from inside the house and of the snow, and whatever pictures that have been taken of the family.

Thank you, Kylie and Dad, for buying the flowers for mom, it made me really happy to hear that.

Elder Fogg and I will be going to the sealing this Saturday, we thought it was usually a year process, but somebody told us that it is normally a year but if the bishop feels that they are ready it can be six months. I do not know if that is true or not, but this Saturday is the day that they gave us.

Well Dad, I feel frustrated for you that the plow has a couple of problems! That is honestly so classic, it just would not be right if everything went smooth the first time. Hopefully the guy who calls to help is not too much of a dweeb.

I love you all so much and hope that you all enjoy your last week before Christmas!

Love, your brother and son,
Elder Marks

Hey Family!

What an original way to start the email. This last week was a great week! I also cannot believe how fast the time is passing, I hit 11 months on Monday. We also had changes yesterday, I will be here in Porvenir another change to finish the training of Elder Rodriguez. I will also be here for Christmas and I will hit my one year mark while I am here, that means I will reach one year in just two areas.

This last week we went to the temple with the Gonzales family. That is the family of Jose Gonzales, it was a great experience, but Elder Rodriguez and I paid for it all. We went last Friday with Jose and his “wife” Tere. We had a great experience, it is such a huge blessing to be able to take investigators to the temple and that they can enter in to be able to pray and feel the spirit of the temple. After we came out of the temple we asked them how they’re feeling about the 22nd, which is the goal that they have for baptism. Jose said that he wants to be baptized and that he knows that these things are true! Tere was not quite as gung-ho but was still happy and said that she felt a great peace in the temple. The only holdback is that she is a little hard of heart about the whole marriage thing. I believe that they will be married this month and baptized the next. The temple this time of year is really beautiful, so I took some pictures and a quick video to show you (sorry about the English in the video!).

I went to the doctor again last week for a check up on my toe, luckily everything is growing how it should, so I should not have any more problems. This time I went with Elder Fogg because he had to go to get a wart removed. It was kinda funny because he passes out super easy when he can hear what somebody else is doing to him, so he passed out twice.

I came across a quote this last week from President Gordon B. Hinckley which I really like. It says, The major work of the world is not done by geniuses. It is done by ordinary people, with balance in their lives, who have learned to work in an extraordinary manner. I love this quote! And it is a great reminder that we do not have to be the world’s smartest person to accomplish something or do something amazing. We are all sons and daughters of God. Learning how to harness our power, put our mind to a task, and then work, work, work. We can all be extraordinary and accomplish our goals, whether they be physical or spiritual.

Also, another scripture that jumped out to me this week is in Proverbs 4:7 which goes great with all of the study of scriptures that you guys have been doing. It says, Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Doing something like studying the scriptures and not just reading them is seeking wisdom, and when we obtain wisdom our eyes can be opened and we gain understanding of the things of God.

I hope that this next week is an extraordinary week for you all! That you can make the choices necessary to make things happen. (let’s get this happening, ok Tony Beats!) I love you all so much!

Love, your brother and son,
Elder Marks

Hey family!

This last week was a really great week. We were able to get some great things done and we had lots of fun while doing it. A couple of weeks ago we had a muli-zone conference and part of the conference was talking about the safeness of the house in which we were living and how private the houses were. It was clear that we had to move again. As luck would have it, there was a house that has had the same people living in it for quite some time that is super close to the church. They moved out and we moved in. We like this house a lot more, even though it does not look as nice and there are more bugs, it is much more enjoyable to live here.

We had interview’s this last week with President Shumway, as part of the interview we talked about Jose Gonzales and his family, and how we want to take them to the temple but the ward is not going until the next month because the ward does not have the money to go this month. He talked about how we cannot give money to people but that using money to take somebody to the temple is well worth it. So, this Friday we are going to be taking Jose and his "wife" Tere to the temple. We are hoping and praying that the spirit will touch her heart and that she will be willing to be married. Please keep them in your prayers specifically as well. Thanks! The power of prayer can work some great milagros.

Two weeks ago Elder Fogg, my companion, and I bought some machetes and then took them to a member who has a leather shop and he made some cases for them. We got the machetes back this week, let’s just say we had some fun.

Do you guys remember Rodolfo? A non-member whose "wife" is a member. Well we have not visited him for about three weeks because he had stopped progressing much. However, he has gone to church about three times in the last month and a half. So we visited him again this last week to see if his heart had changed. And sure enough, it did. He told us that in his time living with Leslie, his "wife", she has always been his right hand and he wanted to honor that help that she has been for him. He also told us that he has always tried to do the right thing and that now is not an exception, and that he wants to learn more about temple sealing. They are both going to be on break at the end of this year and the beginning of next year, so we are going to try to take them to the temple when we go as a ward next month. They now seem so much happier and I feel he and his two kids will be able to be baptized by the end of next month.

I got the package yesterday! Everything is great, the socks are exactly what I was imagining, the backpack is great, the umbrella is from the flippin’ future! But really, that umbrella will be super nice to have. More myoplex will help me get ripped out of my mind, and the candy will help me keep just enough fat on the bones to keep warm this time of year. But we will not open the Christmas package until Christmas. Although I was tempted. Thank you so much for the package, its perfect!

So, as a zone every month we do something called que and como, or what and how. This change our what is, "give all of ourselves to the Lord this Christmas by wanting it as bad as you want to breathe." (*Side nore, I told President about the motivation video about wanting it as bad as you want to breathe and he gave me permission to go on YouTube on P-day and send him the video). Our como, or how is, "1. align our will to the Lord’s, 2. Work with the members in order to have home evenings powerful and unforgettable, 3. Galatas 6: 6-9." I will leave you guys to read the scripture, but the gist of it is, you reap what you sow, if you sow by the spirit you will reap eternal life. This scripture applies to so many aspects of life, no matter what our goals are, whether it be spiritually speaking of physically speaking, we cannot do one thing and expect to get another thing. You cannot plant potatoes and expect to get pumpkins. I love you all so much and hope that you have a great week!

Love, your brother and son,
Elder Marks

Hey Family!

Well honestly there is not all that much to tell you guys this week... It was quite lame just sitting in the house not doing much. We were still able to do a little work but not that much. One of things that I did get done was something with my scriptures. Since the beginning of the mission I have been using the quadruple. I really like the size but I wanted to have the Bible and the Book of Mormon separate. So, I bought new leather, zippers and the string that people use to make shoes and I ripped my old fake leather cover off the quad and cut it in half! Crazy right. I then made new covers for the two scriptures and sewed the zipper in so now I have the Bible and the BOM separate and have cool handmade zipper closing cases.

Do you guys remember those Eccos that I bought before my mission? Well the sole finally blew out after 10 months, there were some big cracks and then a hole in the bottom also, so I took them to a place that re-does shoes and they are going to put a new sole on for me.

We went to the temple again with Gladis. The sisters in the temple gave a great lesson and then she entered the temple. She said that she would be willing to be baptized at the end of the year even if she does not have the support of her family.

Today there are some videos attached below and a couple of pictures of the church and where we live and stuff like that, so that should give you guys a little better of an idea of where I'm at. The bishop’s name is Eddy Gonzalez.

One of the scriptures that I feel like we use a fair amount is in D&C 130:20-21 which  says, "There is a law irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundation of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated. When we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated." There are so many times that people just do not want to do their own part, they just want the blessings. I think we have all felt that before. :) But there is a law in heaven and every time that we obey a commandment we are blessed. If we obtain any blessing from God it is by obedience to the commandments. As we continue to better follow the commandments with a willing and loving heart, we will all be richly blessed. In our family I feel that we are so blessed from God. I love you all so much and pray for you all, that you might be safe physically and spiritually. Looking forward to talking to you next month. :)
 
Love, your brother and son,
Elder Marks