Jesus is Awesome

 Hello, Homies. This week was loquito otra vez. I had Chick-fil-A sauce for the first time in nine months (wild), we got lost, and Jhonatan got baptized and confirmed! Basically the highlights of the email.

Enjoying the beauty of the town called Echaurri.

I'd love to come back here after my mission and go rock climbing.

I listened to a super good talk from way back when (the older the talk the better it is) and the apostle talked about "He made me mad" or "I lost my temper", that kinda thing. And he was talking about how those two phrases are impossible to be true! In fact, no one on earth has the power to make me mad. Why? Well, it is not hard to explain but it is hard to do. It is because all of God's children have agency, the power to choose between good and evil. We can choose the decision but we do not have the power to choose the consequence. So that's super cool and all but Elder Ditto why are you saying that? Well because as a missionary you deal with other people's agency all the time. As a parent you also do probably, idk, and as an employee or a teacher or a friend or grandparent. Sometimes I think it would be awesome to have all the people who say "Ya we will come to church!" Actually, come to church 100% of the time (we would all love that) But, people need to learn to use their agency wisely. 

Here's an example of the power of agency:

"During all of the taunting, the abuse, the scourging, and the final torture of crucifixion, the Lord remained silent and submissive. Except, that is, for one moment of intense drama which reveals the very essence of Christian doctrine. That moment came during the trial. Pilate, now afraid, said to Jesus: “Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?” (John 19:10). One can only imagine the quiet majesty when the Lord spoke. “Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above” (John 19:11). What happened thereafter did not come because Pilate had power to impose it, but because the Lord had the will to accept it. “I lay down my life,” the Lord said, “that I might take it again. “No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again” (John 10:17–18)."

I have ZERO power over our amigos/investigator's lives. Kinda sucks to say, but at the same time, I also have 100% power over my own life. Only I can make myself mad, is what I'm going for. 

Doctrine and Covenants 123:17

"Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."

My goal this week is to NOTGETMAD once. Anyways, cool week, gonna have to rely on my boy Jesus mucho. Happy Easter! 

Chik-fil-A sauce from USAAAAAa

Jhonatan the first time he came to church

Jhonatan before his baptism

Hanging out with the "causas"

Lost

Love, Elder Ditto

March Madness

I'm staying in Pamplona! 4th transfer here and we are all excited to keep working, none of the six missionaries here are leaving. Our district is getting Hermana misioneras in San Sebastián, which is a big WIN for the district. My day one boy, Élder Smith and I are parting ways for the first time in both of our missions which is actually wild. We have served in the same district for 9 months (almost). And he is gonna love it on the Canary Islands  Élder Miranda is going to train a new missionary in Madrid!

 Lil Fotita

Cumpleaños Feliz

I am 20 years old! So are Élder Cox y Élder Kemp! My cumple was super good, a normal missionary day but two Elders from Logroño had an exchange here so they celebrated with us as well as Betzabeth, Maryori, y Luana. My actual 2nd family fr (for real) The Peruvian version. 

New comp (Élder Eduardo)

Hornada (from Ecuardo, so good!)

A member named Eduardo got called as a ward missionary last week, he is a classic Spaniard grandfather and super awesome. For fun we did a compañionship study with him, that day he invited us to eat with him, then later he helped us in a lesson. I saw Élder Eduardo three times in one day jaja. Mucho. After Eduardo was like, "Hey, I'm done for the day haha" agreed. We are gonna buy him a name tag today. 

Miracle caught on camera

Milagro time: about the Holy Ghost

Two weeks ago during an exchange Élder Hill y Élder Smith had a lesson with an amiga in her house. We have half of her address so I told Elder Hill during daily planning that we were going to visit her and that he would need to use the Holy Ghost to remember, or guess. I don't even know if he knew which floor and room she lived in. So we got there and he thought about it for like 5 minutes then pressed 3D and boom...it was her! 1st try! She came out and we were able to talk to her for a few minutes pray with her, and set up a lesson. It's been a while since I physically went to an amigos house without a lesson plan, so that was a nice time for me to remember to be more bold and active.

Redbull Rampage

The weather is so prime right now, Mangas cortas, short sleeves baby. Been zooming around the ciudad on the biciletas, and eating yummy grub también. Trying to make District Councils more spiritual and helpful and bring more people to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I hope everyone prays for a miracle this week and can remember it when times get hard. Love y'all!

Tony Kroos signed mi pelota de fútbol (Real madrid played vs Osanuna (in Pamplona)

Elder Ditto

Church?

I have been studying why it is important to come to church on Sunday with the end goal of being able to testify and invite amiguitos with more power and authority. My boy Élder Smith also is focusing on that, so in our exchange #34 we practiced how to simply teach and invite EVERY SOUL to choich. 

My strat:

I used to do it like this, because idk why not?

-  "Queremos invitarle a orar y leer el Libro de Mormón y orar para saber si enseña la doctrina verdadera de Jesucristo, y venir a la capilla este domingo a las 10!"

It wasn't bringing many to church, so I simply switched up the order, helping them realize what invitation was the most important right now.

- "Queremos invitarle a venir a la capilla este domingo a las 10 para experimentar el evangelio restaurado. (Wait for answer, it'll be "sí" hopefully) Y leer el Libro de Mormón y orar para saber si lo que hemos enseñado es verdad!"

¿Lo ves? / Do you see it?

I was mind blown, all that happened was the order of pray, read, and church switched. And bam! It worked!!!! We had three little families pull up to choiiiiiiich. I know it wasn't actually for the words any missionary (including me) said; I think God was waiting to show us these families until we thought about the importance of going to church. Because they came, and now I understand way better what that means. God is good at his job.

If you are having trouble feeling that church is important for you to go to every Sunday, or if you don't usually look forward to Sundays, and everyone has felt like that before. I invite you to sit down and figure it out. Look up "sabbath day" or "sacrament" or "Sunday" and read all the scriptures and talks about it until you realize how important and maybe even hype going to church with the fellow saints is! 

Elder Hill is a wheely master!

Élder Hill is quite skilled on a bicicleta. He can wheelie (caballero) on a whim and bunny hop. He does a little of that Danny McCaskill stuff tambien. I shall learn both

Yummy potato and meatball soup I made!

Made from scratch!!!

Meanwhile, the lads are whipping up every day in the kitchen. Those pots and pans and ingredients are now my instruments. On Saturday night we cheffed up street tacos with homemade tortillas, sí, from scratch. They were a little thick and a little heavenly. The cheese was un poco melty and the meat was una poquita fiesta en la boca. I want to cook them again. Also, cooking chicken in the oven is a game changer, I never knew.

Joseph Smith

I am grateful for Joseph Smith. He was a normal kid with questions but he was different because he was a kid of his word and also he was chosen by God to be a prophet. So that's a big difference, but when you think about who he was, he was very normal. He had a massive purpose, to restore the church of Jesus!! And a lot of ignorant people hated him for that. One time while he was in jail, he asked God why he was suffering so much. God said,

"If thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.

 The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he? 

Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever."

How can this change your attitude?

Love, Elder Ditto