April 10, 2017 - SIX MONTHS

WOW time is flying! This week I passed 6 months in the mission! I know that I still have a ton of experiences to be made and people to meet and by no means do I want it to go any faster. I am loving this time I have here and I know it just keeps getting faster and faster. SLOW DOWN! 

Well in this time I have learned a ton. One thing that I have really focused on learning is trying to see people through God's eyes. I know we can all silently judge at moments or have a little thought pop into our heads but when we always look at people and try to find the best in them, we always benefit. Especially here on the mission, if I make the judgement to not talk to someone because of their appearance or the way they go about things, I am not doing the Lord's will. I will not be able to have His power with me or be able to find the people that He has prepared. When we are outgoing and talk to everyone, literally everyone, we see the hand of God in the work that we are doing for His children. 

Another important thing that I have learned and that I have shared before is how important the scriptures are, especially The Book of Mormon. We have a guide to our lives in front of us and many times we are to selfish with our time and we don't even pick it up. I definatly was guilty of this before the time I have had here. I could have studied my scriptures much more and I could have gained so much more before the mission. I wasn't humble enough to read my scriptures and learn from the teachings of prophets, which are the same as the teachings of our Heavenly Father (D&C 1:38). Well now that I was kind of forced to leave my old lazy self behind I have learned and found out what I was missing all this time. I have come to know that The Book of Mormon is sacred scripture that can help in every way imaginable. All we have to do is pick it up every once in a while and actually read it! As President Monson said, "If you are not reading The Book of Mormon every day, please do so." 

Lastly, I have learned to solve a Rubiks cube. Just kidding, well I did learn that but another thing that has really helped me, like Bryan and Kevin have always said, has been loving the people. I have felt love for so many people in this short time that I have been here. From all the people that I got to know in Alta Vista and also now in Usulután, I have come to love every single one of them. When we have this love for everyone, it helps us on those hard days. I can always just think about the people that we are helping and it gives me the drive and desire to keep working hard and trusting in thhe Lord. Most importantly, we need to love our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ. Especially in this Easter season, we can reflect on what the sacrifice of Jesus really means. Are we humble enough to accept this gift of forgivenes? Are we too prideful to realize that we are in the wrong? I encourage every one to study Alma 7:11-13 and really think about what Christ did for you. 

Well this week has been an awesome one. We have focused on finding new people to teach and with the help of Heavenly Father and many prayers, we found some really amazing people. I hope your week was just as good and that you can have an amazing week this week full of oportunities to remember Christ and what He has done for you. I'm happy, healthy, and and loving my mission!

Love,

Elder Adams Jr.

P.S. If you haven't seen "Ephraim's Rescue" you're missing out. We only watched a part of it in a multi zone conference but from the 20 minutes that we watched, I could tell it is a sweet movie.

Mom and Dad

Elder Pacajá, the new comp

Well we celebrated a bit, 12 pupusas was a bit much

 Leaning tower of pupusas

April 3, 2017 - Usulutan

Fam,

So this week was another good one here in Usulután. I'm used to the area and my companion now but getting used to the heat is still taking its time. We have been lucky with it not being too hot but it still can be powerful. Kev I know that I have nothing to talk about. I'm sure Africa is 10x hotter haha. 

Well like you all know, this week was highlighted by conference. Conference here feels like Christmas at home :). There was so much counsel and teachings we could learn. In specific, a few talks really stood out and called my attention. First was a talk in the Saturday Afternoon Session by M. Russell Ballard. In this lesson he taught, we learned abut goal setting and how we need to set goals. Not only a goal is necessary, we need to come up with a plan to lead us to that goal. It really changed my perspective on the subject when he said that we have the perfect example of the Goal/Plan pattern. Heavenly Father's goal is "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." He has this goal that is not an easy one haha but He has created a perfect plan to accomplish His goal. The Plan of Salvation is the perfect plan to bring the children of God back to his presence in happiness. He added that we need to ask ourselves, how are we doing? I think we can all apply this to our lives and really set goals and more importantly, we can achieve them.

In the Priesthood Session, David A. Bednar talked about Missionary Work and what our focus should be in life as young Priesthood holders. He started out with the letter that every missionary receives to know where they will labor. The first sentence calls us to serve and the second calls us to labor. Everyone of us has been called to serve as missionaries. Maybe some of us have not had the opportunity to be assigned to labor but, like in D&C 80 says "...whether to the north or to the south, to the east or to the west, it mattereth not, for ye cannot go amiss." Every single one of us are called to the work. It doesn't matter if we are at home or on the mission, we "cannot go amiss". Full time missionaries or member missionaries, we always have work to be done. 

Well there were a ton of talks that really were awesome and helped change my view on certain aspects of the Gospel and on our lives. I could say a little something about every talk that I liked but it would bore you all to death. Hopefully you all already heard all these messages and are applying them! Conference is a huge blessing for us. We have the opportunity to listen to the living Prophet and his Apostles. We have the chance to receive guidance from our Father in Heaven through His holy servants. Now it is our turn to apply these teachings in our daily lives and live as servants of our Father also.

I am happy, healthy and loving my mission. Thank you all for your support and love. I pray for each and every one of you all the time. Have an awesome week and I'll talk to you all too soon!

Love,

Elder Adams Jr.

Sorry I didnt take many pics this week but heres a random one of parts of the new area. some places look like jungle and others like deserts haha its weird 

March 27, 2017 - Craziest Week Yet

So this week was the craziest one yet. After we wrote and were shopping last week I got a call that I had transfers and had to be ready wednesday morning. My first transfer. I had one day to say bye to all these people that I had been with for all this time. Luckily we are going as a mission to the temple soon and we can see all of our investigators and people if they go. Tuesday a a long and sad day. We still went around and taught lessons but I had to say bye to all these people. Like Kevin always says, the goodbyes are always the hardest. We spend so much time with these people, we see their lives change, we learn to love these people, and boom you got a day to say bye to them. Well I could tell you about all the people that we have met while being in Alta Vista, all the members, investigators, and drunk guys but, I'll just send some pics. 

Well wednesday morning we got up with all my bags packed and went to the bus terminal. After waiting for ever, not knowing where I was going, who was going to be my new companion, and what the new area was like, I got thrown on a bus with some other elders. We took a 4 hour bus ride to San Miguel which is on the east side of El Salvador. There they told us who our companions were going to be and where we were going from there. The new area is called Usulután and I am with another Elder from Guate named Elder Pacajá. Well just a little about the area, it is nothing like Alta Vista. We are in the "city" of Usulután but it is literally the middle of nowhere. We cove a part of the city but its pretty much a market and a few shops. It is sweet though, we get to experience it all haha. Well it is like 3x hotter here then in Alta Vista and we walk way more too haha. Besides that I am trying to get used to the way people talk here. They don't pronounce anything the same, its like a whole new language. 

Well I am just getting used to everything after my first transfer and settling in. I hope next week I'll hae something a little more spiritual to share. I love you all and miss you but I nee to be here in Usulután right now getting all sweaty and with heat exhaustion haha. I'll talk to you all way too soon... 

Love,

Elder Adams Jr.

Pics-

So pretty much all the pics are with a bunch of the people that I had to say bye to and the new area... yep I'm in the middle of nowhere.

March 20, 2017 - Apply His Teachings

Fam,

So im just going to say sorry before I start because this is going to be a little short and all over the place. So this week was a good week, didnt get sick,  had some investigators in church, and the work is progressing We didnt have too much out of the normal lessons and meetings. 

So this week I was studying the life of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and I realized that I can try a little harder to apply His teachings and His attributes in my daily life. One of the attributes of Christ that I focused on this week was patience. There are many times that we are too impatient with ourselves, others and most importantly with our Heavenly Father. I know that we all, me included, want blessings immediatly and we dont want to wait time for them to come. Often we give up on the things that we need because it is taking too long or we dont think that we will recieve it. This week i hvae tried to be patient with blessings and our Heavenly Father. He wants to bless us but as we learn in the scriptures, we need a trial of faith before we are going to see these miracles. Many people think that if we could see miracles they would be able to have faith. That is what the adversary wants us to think so we wont have faith. It is our Heavenly Father's plan to test our faith and then give the blessings.

Sorry its so short this week I had a whole letter written up and it got deleted:) Next week I hope I dont have the same luck. Well I love you all and hope and pray that each and every one of you is doing well and is loving the trials and blessings that our Heavenly Father gives us. 

Love,

Elder Adams Jr. 

Yes He really did turn 803 years old. 

The District just being nerds

Progress on the shack

Action shots with Elder Adams and Elder Vasquez

March 13, 2017 - Importance of Baptism

Mi Familia,

             So this week was another awesome week. We had a sweet experience that made me see the power of our Heavenly Father in practice when we put our faith in Him and work for our answer. So last week we baptized Sandra and her son Mario. From pretty much the beginning, they were set on getting baptized. However, the Dad in the family, Juan Antonio wasn’t very excited about it. He had the concern that he had already been baptized so he didn’t need to do it again. We had a date set for the family to get baptized together but, he didn’t come to church enough times, so we couldn’t have them the same day. We changed the date for the 11^th, the next week but he wasn’t super set on it. Last Sunday he came up to us and said that he didn’t want to get baptized right now and maybe in April. I talked to him during the whole 3^rd hour of church about the importance of baptism and how it is a commandment. After that he agreed to just delay it one week until the 18^th of March. Of course it was kind of a bummer because he was not super excited about this amazing covenant that we have the opportunity to make. Well we kept teaching and preparing him for baptism throughout the week.

              On Thursday we went to another investigators house who is Juan Antonio’s friend and he said that Juan wanted to talk to us about baptism. Of course the worst came to my mind first. I thought that he was going to tell us that he didn’t want to get baptized anymore or that he wanted to change the date again. We got to their house and the first thing he said (pretty much yelling) was “Hermanos, can I get baptized this Saturday?!?”It was Thursday. We made a ton of calls and got an interview scheduled for the next day, Friday. Long story short, we had his baptism this Saturday and it all went smooth. I know that because He was reading his scriptures, praying, and coming to church, he received his answer. He was super excited and he is even happier now. We now are teaching them about the things they have to do to be an eternal family. 

                I think one of the coolest parts for me was sharing his story with another investigator. This lady is married to a member and her daughter is a member but she just doesn’t want to commit to being baptized. She comes to church every Sunday and we teach them on a regular basis but she just doesn’t want to commit to anything. On Saturday after the baptism we went to their house and I shared the power of Heavenly Father in our conversion when we do the things that he asks of us. I shared Juan’s story and how he did a 180 degree turn from not wanting to be baptized to “Can you baptize me in 2 days? ”While sharing that I just had the best feeling and knew that she felt it too. We are doing our best with her and I know someday she will get in the water. 

                I know that was all over the place and I might have forgotten some things but to me it was a cool story and testimony that Heavenly Father works and only works on us when we are doing our part. I love these people, this area, El Salvador, all of you, and especially my Savior Jesus Christ and our Father in Heaven. 

                Have an awesome week and keep putting your faith in our Heavenly Father. He will bless you! Have an awesome week and stay safe. 

Love,

Elder Adams Jr.

P.S. Sorry not too many pictures. All I can say about them is I’m still trying to teach them how to smile 

March 6, 2017 - Answered Prayers

Just to start out, because Mom I know you are freaking out, I am all better without eye or skin problems haha. Still don't know what it was but its gone and I'm in El Salvador, you learn to just not ask. Sorry I don't have a ton of time so this might be a little short, maybe not if I get on a ramble. This week was an awesome and super fast. We had a mixed baptismal service with the homeboy Elder Junior. We had 2 baptisms and he did also. We baptised a mother named Sandra and her son thats 8 years old named Mario, and we have the dad planned for the 18th of March. They are an awesome family who is always in church and they are always very active. 

Well I learned more from our baptismal service then anything. So it was supposed to start at 5 in the afternoon and we thought that we had everything planned and ready. To start off it was a little hard to plan because it was with 2 different wards and we had to coordinate everything. We called a bunch of people Tuesday so it wouldn't be too late like the Bishop, President of Relief Society and Primary to be there to support them. Of course they all said of course they were going to be there. Then we talked to the Ward Mission Leader and asked him to write up the agenda and assign a 3 minute talk to someone. 

On Saturday we went to the house of Sandra and Mario to go to the church. We got there 30 minutes early and thought we had plenty of time. Of course the bus we needed to take didn't leave for 30 minutes and we were a half hour late to our own baptisms. That stressed me out a bunch and I was hoping that when we got there we could just start. We got there and only the Bishop was there and some other members. Our ward mission leader didn't show up or call us. Long story short, everything fell through and we planned the baptism in 5 minutes right before it started. So I was already stressed out a ton and I thought I was going to mix up their names. I said a little prayer right before that it would all run smooth. My prayer was answered and after all the stress, we had an awesome service with 4 baptisms.

I learned to trust in our Lord that He will help us through our hard times and that we can always count on Him. He will always answer our prayers and help us through our challenges. That was just a tiny little example of how our Heavenly Father has answered my prayers and has helped me during the mission. I am so thankful for Him and His Son Jesus Christ. I love our members, converts, investigators, and even the drunk guys passed out in the street. I love you all with that same love and I know Christ loves us even more. Thats about it for the week. Hope you all have another awesome week and always remember the things that really matter in this life. 

Love,

Elder Adams Jr.

P.S. Yesterday Salvador gave us 4 references, none of which are in our area, but that doesn't matter. 4 separate families, 1 family of 16 another of 5 and the other two of 4. This man is a reference machine! We are still waiting for his divorce to finalize but the lawyer told us that it should be done by the end of the month!

In the trunk of a taxi with my guys when I had to look like an FBI agent all day

Juan completing years

The master chef with that flow

We first taught them the Gospel, now its time to teach them how to smile

Baptizing brothers! (I promise I'm not getting that chubby my shirt is just big!)

February 27, 2017 - Trust In Him

Throughout the little bit of time I have on the mission, I have come to find out that we learn valuable lessons every single day. So this week I learned a very valuable lesson, that I hope you all can benefit from.  So Thursday morning I woke up with my eyes a little red and it just looked like I was tired, but as the day went on, they got a little bit worse. Friday morning it was worse and my eyes were a little more swollen so we decided to call the nurse. She told us what type of medicine to go get and then said that I needed to stay in the house and out of the sun. I was super bummed because we had a sweet day planned and we were going to visit some of our families that were really progressing. Because of this we lost our work time and couldnt do much to help our investigators progress. I called Elder Junior (he is our District Leader) to let him know that we couldnt work and I told him how I was upset because we couldnt got help people progress to their baptisms. He asked me one question, "Do you want baptisms or do you want converts?"I didnt think much about it and of course I said converts. He went on to say if one day of not visiting someone is goiing to change their testimony, they are just a baptism. If they can continue on and progress by themselves, they will be true converts. I have been pondering this thought the rest of the week and I have accepted this reality. At first I was mad that we couldnt go out and teach but now I learned to put my faith in the Lord. He will bless us when we truly trust in Him. This experience made me think of a family home evening that we have given a few times. We have one person put a tube up to their eye so they can only see a little circle. We then place an image in front of the tube so they can only see a little part and they have to say what the picture is. Of course no one can say what the big picture is. We then compare it to our lives and how we take on life. We can only see this little part of the great plan that God has for us. He can see all of the picture, the hard times, the blessings, and the challenges. We have to put our faith in God and trust that it is for our benefit. I had taught this lesson probably 6 or 7 times and I hadnt really learned the principle. This week and through this challenge, I have come to know that when we put our confidence in the Lord, it will all work out. Maybe a few of our investigators did fall throuugh the cracks, but it might not be their time right now. I hope you can all put your faith in practice and not just go through the motions. Before this week I feel like I was just going through the motions and not actually relying on our Heavenly Father.

I know that our Heavenly Father loves us and that everything happens for a reason. We havent seen many of the blessings from this challenge, but I know they will come. "Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to His will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in Him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to Him."(Nephi 7:12)

I love you all and I hope you all have an awesome week full of spiritual experiences! Put your faith in practice and you will see miracles, I promise you!

Love,

Elder Adams Jr.

Pics: 

Progress on the house. Its still coming along!