La Misión: June 2010

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

WEEK - 72 Neza/Pantitlan Zone (Senior ZL)

31 de mayo de 2010

Hola! Elder Galindo and I had a great week. It sounds like things were pretty exciting with Trent heading out and everything. That’s awesome that he could go with the Udalls! What an exciting week for everyone. I know Trent – I mean Elder Rasmussen, will do awesome! The MTC was a big part of my mission.

Well last Tuesday we had our District meeting, ate, and then went to the Mission Home for the zone leaders counsel. It was so awesome! It was the last zone leaders counsel for President Bulloch. We got there with the other zone leaders at exactly 8 pm. We got there and ate pizza, then we studied the scriptures with President Bulloch- that was a great experience. Then on Wednesday we got up early, and Sis. Bulloch had quiche ready for us to eat! It was great. After breakfast we started the counsel. At 1 President announced that it was time for lunch and you’ll never guess what we ate! We ate Taco salad!! It was so good! It was kind of funny though, because for us that’s “Mexican food” right?? Not one Mexican Elder knew what it was!! They were like “ensalada de taco, que es eso?!” It was so yummy.

After lunch we finished with our trainings, and then President Bulloch spoke to us. It was really sad to hear him say good bye. He has been such an example to me. As we heard him say that he wants to reach the goal running and finish strong, I felt the Spirit testify to me that our mission President has done just that- and that I should do the same. I want to be just like that. I’ve had great examples of finishing strong all my life- Dad, Grandpa, Uncle George- I’m so thankful for you. I have that desire and want to completely pay my “tithing on my life”.

President Bulloch told us that Mexico is taking a long time with the visas, and that President Hicken hasn’t received his y et! So we are doing what we did in the MTC- praying!! The whole mission is praying for him so he and Sis. Hicken can get here on time. Pres. Bulloch also told us what is going to be happening in this cycle. This Wed. we’re going to have our LAST interviews with him, then the 22 we are having our last zone conference with them. Two days after, Elder Tanner, Elder Howard, Elder Winters, Elder Miller, Elder Draper, and about 9 other missionaries are heading home! The next week Pres. Bulloch will be here for the cambios meeting, and then on the 1^st , as Pres. Bulloch said, “President Hicken is the man!”

Dad asked some questions- There weren’t any transfers in our zone, except for one companionship. We have a new Assistant now, his name is Elder Rhoten he’s a good Elder and will help us out a lot as a mission.

- In the Neza/Pantitlan Zone we have 9 companionships. The Neza Stake has 4 companionships, and the Pantitlan Stake has 5 companionships. Our goal each week as a zone is 10 baptisms.

- Responsibilities as a zone leader are that we have to take the baptismal records ever week to the temple where the secretaries have their district class. We are in charge of making sure the districts are doing well. It feels a lot different being a zone leader because you¡’re in charge of so many Elders!

Hope that helps dad. We’re working in the colonia Arenal right now. You can look it up and you’ll see a big “fraccionamiento” of colored houses, we live in the brown ones right next to the school. It’s a nice house, I’ll have to take pictures.

Well we have to take off right now. Things are going great here in Arenal. Elder Galindo and I baptized Elizabeth’s son yesterday, and this Sunday we are going to baptize her daughter. The Lord is really blessing us, appreaciate your prayers! Love you.

-Elder Rasmussen

WEEK - 71 Neza/Pantitlan Zone (Senior ZL)

24de Mayo del 2010

The meeting with Elder Bednar last week was just great. We learned so much, it was such a great experience to sit there and learn from an Apostle of the Lord. Our mission has really been blessed! On Tuesday we had the “cambios” meeting, there were a lot of changes! Elder Tanner is training in Tecamac, Elder Christensen is training as well. They are going to be great trainers! After the cambios meeting we went back for some investigators and then went back to the Stake center for a special fireside with Bishop McMullin. We took Dulirsa, and Seyka with her daughter Elizabeth and her kids. They really really liked it. Bishop McMullin gave a great talk to the new members, investigators, and inactive members. They all talked about after how they felt the Spirit. I think the conference really helped them!

Yesterday we baptized Elizabeth, Seyka’s daughter. The computers here don’t have a memory card port so I’ll keep looking for an internet that does. Elizabeth is awesome! She used to smoke a whole box of cigarettes every day but now she doesn’t smoke at all. She is a real example of how the Atonement has a powerful effect in the lives of the investigators. Her kids names are Yurlisa, Adolfo, and Victor. Adolfo was baptized a long time ago, but his siblings weren’t. They want to be baptized too, but haven’t gone to Church yet. So they’ll be baptized within two or three weeks.

It sounds like the Temple dedication was great! I wish I could’ve seen it. Arizona is really being blessed with Temples! I can’t wait for the Gilbert Temple!

Trent’s last week at home! WOW! I can’t believe it! Sounds like you were all really busy getting ready for the open house. Trent is going to be a great missionary! It seems like he received his call forever ago! I bet he’s ready to get out there and show España what Elder Rasmussen has got! I’m excited to talk to Trent in Spanish! Haha that’ll be fun. Mom I know you can do it without us there! Everyone here says “oh your poor mom!!” I know you can do it Mom! I’m praying for you.

The weather reminds me a lot of Arizona…or maybe I haven’t been in the heat for so long that a little heat makes it feel like a lot! It has been really hot lately, in our house it gets up to 90 degrees! (We have a clock/thermometer) And there is no air conditioning and the house is made of block so it gets pretty toasty, even at night. In about a month the rainy season is going to start, and if I thought it rained a lot in Pachuca, it rains even more here in the DF. I’ll be getting good use out of those boots.

Elder Galindo and I are doing great. This last week was a little hard though. Almost everyone told us “No” or they either lied to us about their address or they just weren’t there. We found a really cool family but on Sunday the mom lied and said that her family wasn’t there when we knew they were. Elder Galindo is a great positive Elder. We decided that even though we’re obeying and being diligent and giving it our all sometimes the Lord is going to try our faith and we just need to learn from that and grow.

President Bulloch is such a great leader for us. In his letter today he said he wants to reach the goal running! He has been here for three years, that’s a long time! I want to be a missionary like that- a missionary that runs to the goal! He has set the example for the mission, and he’s truly prepared us for the change of mission president. Everyone in the mission understands that President Hicken is the man God has chosen to be the mission president in the East, and we will sustain him wholeheartedly. What a blessing it has been to serve with some of the greatest leaders. I am so thankful that I was sent to the MME, and I know it was for a reason. This is the greatest work ever!

I love you family, and hope all is well!

Con mucho amor,

Elder Ras

PS- MAKE A MISSIONARYS DAY- GIVE A REFERRAL!!

WEEK - 70 Neza/Pantitlan Zone (Senior ZL)

24de Mayo del 2010

It sounds like the Temple dedication was great! I wish I could’ve seen it. Arizona is really being blessed with Temples! I can’t wait for the Gilbert Temple!

I love you family, and hope all is well!

Con mucho amor,

Elder Ras

PS- MAKE A MISSIONARYS DAY- GIVE A REFERRAL!!

WEEK - 69 Neza/Pantitlan Zone (Senior ZL)

5/17/10

WOW! Where do I start?!

Well Mom, Grandma, don't worry! We did get there on time! We met up with our zone in the Pantitlan metro station and headed to Aragon. We got there plenty early, we had to be there at 9. We got there at 9, and President Bulloch started by talking to ALL of us. He told us that this was a very special moment that the Lord was sending to the MME. He told us that we should remember this day forever and especially remember what Elder Bednar told us.

We entered in as a mission to the MTC. We sat down and waited for a while, and when Elder Bednar walked in we all stood up. We sang "Called to Serve" to start, and then Sister Bednar stood up to speak. The first thing she did was call Elder Bertin up to the stand so that she could give him something his mom had sent him. Elder Bertin was Elder Bednar's home teacher before the mission. When Elder Bednar saw him he gave him a big hug and so did Sister Bednar. She told Elder Bertin to think of the biggest lesson that his mother had taught him. He said obedience is the key. He said that his mom always taught him to be obedient. Then Sister Bednar told us we should always be the kind of missionary our mothers thinkwe are. She talked to us about the importance of personal and companionship study. At the end she bore powerful testimony of Elder Bednar's Apostolic calling. There was a special Spirit there right from the start! She read D&C 84:87-88 and told us to imagine out mothers with us reading that with us. She did that with her son before he left and she testified that this scripture is true.

Elder Bednar stood up after Sister Bednar. He started talking by telling us about the silly things that we do as members sometimes. He told us that we as members as soon as we see someone on the stand we think we have to write every single thing they say because if we don't we're not going to learn something. He said that we are so worried about writing that down that we don't let the Spirit into our hearts to testify of the things we are hearing. So he said there was only one thing he wanted us to learn and to quit doing and that was to stop trying to write down everything. (I was going to record his talk, but the I remembered that in the MTC I saw a recorded talk by him and he said that was the only rule. Before he got I remembered that and turned my camera off!)

Then he talked to us about how we as members sometimes pray but don't act. He asked us if we've ever heard a prayer like this..."..help all the people that aren't here this week to come next week...." .He told us that if we pray like that we aren't praying in faith or acting. He said the prayers should be "Heavenly Father, there are some people here missing today. We are going to go and do everything we can to get them here next week. We are going to do everything Father, we just need one thing- help us to be inspired so we don't all go to the same house!" As missionaries sometimes we say "send us success! We're going to stand on this corner and contact, send them to us!" That was when Elder Bednar started to go into agency. WOW! He taught us that there are things to act and those to be acted upon. If we say a prayer like that as missionaries, we are aren't agents unto ourselves but we are waiting to be acted upon.

He went on to say that we also do something in the Church where we as teachers ask a question trying to get a person to guess the answer in our head. He said that that person no longer has the opportunity to act and is no longer an agent utno themselves. He applied this to us as missionaries. We must get them to act so that they can come to the conclusion that the gospel is real. Nothing, NOTHING we say will get them to be baptized. If they are baptized for what we say they will not stay in the church.

After Elder Bednar talked for a little bit, he passed the time over to Bishop McMullin. He spoke to us and answered a few missionarie's questions. They asnwered questions for a little bit and then we finsihed with the testimony of the Bishop and his wife, and Elder and Sister Bednar. The power of the Spirit in the room was amazing. It was overwhelming. The Spirit was there, and taught us! I hope and encourage everyone to read the talks that we were assigned to study beforehand. Listen to the Spirit, let the Spirit guide you in your daily life. President Johnson the area president said that THAT is the most important lesson a missionary can take home.

Elder Bednar told us that the meeting we had today was the most important meeting in all of Mexico. I know that is true, and I know I heard an official representative of Christ today. I testify and give my witness as a representative of Christ that this is the true Church. That God does live. That there is a Prophet on the earth today, even Thomas S. Monson. I love this work, and I love the Lord. I'm so blessed to be here!

Love you all,

-Elder Rasmussen

WEEK - 68 Neza/Pantitlan Zone (Senior ZL)

5/10/10

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY- IN MEXICO! Today is official Mother's day in Mexico. So from Mexico City, FELIZ DIA DE LAS MADRES!

It was great talking to everyone last night! I'm so glad we could finally get everything worked out. We got to the baptism on time, and it was great! Seyka was sooo excited! It's exciting for us to see an investigator so excited to be baptized. She told all her family about it. Her daughter and grandsons went, and they really liked church and the baptismal service. We're going to work with them a little bit to see if they want to progress.

Everyone is growing up! It's hard to believe! Maegan sounds so old, Maddie too! Seth set the record for the Eagle! Sounds awesome! I can't believe Trent is leaving so soon. Trent, I hope you like your badge. When I went to the MTC I know I would'0ve liked to have a badge on! I'm a missionary, I should've had a badge. Could you get me Sam's email address?

Elder Bednar is coming!! Elder Bertin told me that he knew he would be coming sometime while we were here. We are so excited. We are in charge to make sure everyone in the zone gets there on time. It will be a great time to be with this special witness of Christ and learn from him. We are so blessed! President Bulloch started our zone conference off by saying that the MME (Mexico City East Mission) is being richly blessed. When he announced that Elder Bednar invited OUR mission to go, he told us that this is such a huge blessing for us. He said that HE never got to see an Apostle on his mission, and that his sons didn't either. It will be a great experience!

Zone Conference was great. Something funny I forgot t tell you about. An Elder in our zone, Elder Pastrana, had his appendix taken out about a week ago. He was feeling kind of bad, and he was on a diet. President told him " I hope you feel better, becasue we're going to be eating tacos "Del Guero"!!" He went to the doctor the day before the zone conference, and the doctor cleared him to eat whatever he wanted, even fatty al pastor tacos! President in the zone conference said that Elder Pastrana had been blessed!! haha, I told you they're good tacos, and that everyone likes them! Apart from that, the spirit was strong in the conference and I know the missionaries felt that special spirit there. We baptized 12 children of our Heavenly Father as a Zone this week! We are 8 companionships, so that means we did more than what we're expected to do. I hope the missionaries can remember how it feels to have success, and strive to achieve it every week.

Well I really don't have much else to write you. I recorded for you, but the internet we're at doesn't have connections for cameras.I'm glad everything is going well at home, thank you for your love and support- this is the best time of my life and I'm so thankful to be here in the best mission in the world. We have a great opportunity to learn from Elder Bednar this coming week- I am going to take advantage of it and learn and apply all I can.
Con mucho amor,
Elder Rasmussen