Elder Ethan Crisp

See New Pictures!!

Good afternoon, my dear family and friends. I hope you have had a splendid week. I am happy to say that this week was really good. The problem is that I just can´t seem to remember an experience. I remember a missionary say that it really doesn´t matter WHAT we say, but the SPIRIT: Few people remember the words that made them be converted to the gospel--they remember the SPIRIT. That´s how this week went for me--i donñ´t remember WHAT, just that i felt the SPIRIT and that i´m content :) And i guess that´s what matters. I was really surprised when i read Mom´s letter telling me about the temple--that i was the first called missionary to be called as an ordinance worker. I was just flooded with so many memories about the temple when i read that--the experiences i´ve had. Man, i miss the temple so much. Just so you all know, that´s the first thing i want to do when i get home (don´t think that i´m thinking alot about that time--this is the only plan i got). June 6th, 2013--I´M GOING TO THE TEMPLE, BABY! I´m already excited. I´ve still got a ton of time left though--so that´s a bummer. But its all good--for every other possible reason its good that i´ve got a lot of time left. This week i was thinking a lot about stephen and the decision that he is going to have to make. He himself told me but its true--either way he is going to be blessed so much. E. Zufelt, my last companion told me that he wasnt going to see his brother for 4 years, but that his brother´s mission president in Canada gave him permission to work with his brother for a couple days. I´m not saying that is a possibility--in fact i seriously doubt it cause i´m in Sinaloa, Mexico (dad knows why the state i´m in is significant) and its a different language. The deal is there are worse things in the world than not seeing your brother for 4 years because we were serving missions. There are always pictures. If he´s gotta go, he´s gotta go, and that kind of stuff don´t matter. I think i would be cool if he left before and got called to here :) Then we´d see eachother. In La Paz i met a sister that went to the same mission as her sister--AND SHE GOT TRAINED BY HER. That would be cool :)

I was reading a little bit from 1 Nephi this week--from chapter 8, the tree of life. I remember a zone conference we had when the president´s wife talked about the classes of people that went along the rod of iron, and the results that came from that (you can also see the parable of the sower in the new testament):
21 And I saw numberless concourses of people, many of whom were apressing forward, that they might obtain the bpath which led unto the tree by which I stood.....
1) 22 And it came to pass that they did come forth, and commence in the path which led to the tree. 23 And it came to pass that there arose a amist of darkness; yea, even an exceedingly great mist of darkness, insomuch that they who had commenced in the path did lose their way, that they wandered off and were lost." It can be said that those who are converted and are lost.
2) 24 And it came to pass that I beheld others pressing forward, and they came forth and caught hold of the end of the rod of iron; and they did press forward through the mist of darkness, aclinging to the rod of iron, even until they did come forth and partake of the bfruit of the tree.25 And after they had partaken of the fruit of the tree they did cast their eyes about as if they were aashamed." These are those that are more concerned with what others say--AFTER they have partaken of the fruit. 3) 32 And it came to pass that many were drowned in the adepths of the bfountain; and many were lost from his view, wandering in strange roads." These are those who are taken over by the things of the world.
And finally 4)30 But, to be short in writing, behold, he saw other multitudes pressing forward; and they came and caught hold of the end of the arod of iron; and they did press their way forward, continually holding fast to the rod of iron, until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree." Those who keep tight to the rod, will get to the tree and will stay. Always remember that Satan has many ways of taking us down--but thats what the rod´s for--STUDY, PRAY, GO TO CHURCH. That is the formula! STudy chapter 8 of 1 nephi on your own this week--it´ll be fun, i promise! :)

Una pregunta para mi papá: ¿conociste a un Elder Hair en tu misión? Es que hay un Elder Hair que está en mi zona--su papá tiene 54 años, sirvió en Chile empezando a los 19. Como tú. Sería suave si fueran compañeros. jaja. Recuerdo bien ese día en el templo--todo ese tiempo de instruccion que tuve en la casa del Señor. Tambien espero que podamos ir despues y seguir disfrutando de esa gran escuela. Para que sepas, viendo el mapa, mi area esta de la calle principal--la independencia--para el sur. Todo al sur de la avenida es mi area--hay dos ramas aquí, aunque la nuestra esta batallando con liderazgo. Creemos que deben juntar las 2 de nuevo, porque el presidente de rama no sabe nada--estaba tratando de convencernos ayer que los del sacerdocio aaronico se sostienen en sus quorumes--por supuesto no tenía el manual. Eso es un problema.

Well i hope to hear of a very important decision this next week. when are they going to call the new stake presidency--this week? In that case i´m waiting for 2 very important decisions. Sorry that this letter is pretty short--the truth is i have to go to the bathroom REALLY BAD and there is no bathroom in this cyber cafe :/. So you can all understand that feeling.

¡Que tengan buena semana!

---Elder Crisp :P
See New Pictures!!

Wow. Being in Costa Rica, we couldnt go to the Saturday sessions--heck Sunday we had to take a bus to Culiacan (where i saw all the members i love from there :) ). So i didnt see the big news. Until now. Thats just crazy. I remembered hearing in the Sunday sessions that someone talked about a change that was announced but i never imagined that. Well here in Mexico that was already in effect because here if you start college you have to finish it--you cant leave and come back to it, but this is really going to affect the number of missionaries in the field. These are the kind of changes that really change the world. I already wrote Stephen a letter, but i hope we can all support him. There are many people waiting for him :) and maybe this change will let them have the gospel sooner. We´ll see what answer he gets :) Well this week was just awesome for feeling the spirit and receiving revelation. I left a copy of some of the notes from "Concilio" (Counsel), where Sister Cantu and President Cantu talked about conversion (like Elder Bednar--they were truly inspired) and about changing our character--it has a TON of scriptures that are just awesome so i put it in. We had made it for our zone, so its in spanish--Dad can translate it. I want to share one with you from Psalms 119: "104 Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. 105 Thy aword is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." We have now recieved the word--the most recent scriptures available were given to us yesterday and Saturday. Now is the time to put it all in practice. And when we do, we will really see the difference in our lives. From the Sunday session i learned sooooooo much. I took 7 pages of notes from those sessions of notes alone! And the pages are huge! I LOVED E. Holland´s talk. And its so true what he mentioned about returned missionaries--"Every missionary that has been in the baptismal faunt and has put his hand to the square and said ´having been commissioned of Jesus Christ,´ needs to remember that that commission is forever." That is sooooo true. I loved President Monson´s talk. I loved Elder Bednar´s talk about conversion. Like i said, we heard that in the concilio last tuesday too. I also liked Elder Daniel Johnson´s talk (by the way he´s the area president of Mexico and he speaks spanish PERFECTLY. He did he own translation and he sounds like a mexican--just thought youd like to know that :) ). I liked Elder Clarke´s talk about the sacrament. Its super important to take that time to ponder about the atonement--sometimes i get to worried about investigators being in church that i forget that important part about the sacrament.It was flat out solid. I hope that we can all study all the talks--i am looking forward to next week when i will be able to read the talks to study the ones that i could not see. I hope all of you can too :)

I´m going to leave behind the worldly stuff--so when the world series ends and i know the winner, can you stop telling me about it? I remember my trainer did the same thing--he told his family to stop telling him when he had 6 months left. When the world series ends, i will have 7 months left. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Thats crazy. Thank you for your cooperation (but remember, tell me all about the playoffs and then AFTER, stop :) Gracias) That stinks about the dodgers though. Next year. And wo wo wo wo-- The A´s beat out the Rangers??? That´s awesome. Ok thats all for the worldly stuff......My Cd player is doing fine. Just waiting for CDs :)... And i did NOT get letters from the YW. It takes awhile for letters to get here-- it takes longer for letters to arive than packages. So i´m sure they will get here-- i did get a letter from Nathan and i just sent one for him. It´ll arive in like 2 weeks (thats kinda ridiculous, i know).

Well i hope that you just have the most awesome-est (i am fully aware that that is not a word) week ever! ¡Que tengan buena semana todos!

--Elder Crisp :)

Well I hope that you all have had just a splendid week in school, work, or whatever other activities that you have had this week. You may notice that my English is wayyyy better than usual. Its because E. Johnson and i speak like 90% of the time in English. Its the first time that i have spoken so much english since my trainer left--MORE THAN A YEAR AGO! AHHHHHHHHHH! Thats a long time. And today I completed 16 months in the mission. I feel like i just finished up a year and 4 months have passed by. Its crazy. E. Johnson is pretty much a clone of Tucker--well his personality. Its so weird--HES EXACTLY LIKE HIM! But obviously for that reason we are getting along rather well. Here in Costa Rica we are having some difficulties--we have to find new people. There are two people that can be baptized in any moment but there just isnt time to find em. But we gotta check on that this week. We also have Zone Leader´s Counsel tomorrow so i am super excited. Really that is the best opportunity to see what i need to do better. The Spirit is always soooo strong that i get so pumped every time to just go out and sprint--like you said. Last night we had a long conversation about how lazy we were before the mission--E. Johnson has a disc with almost all the mormon messages on it--we watched one about a 13 year old kid that ran a triathalon with a kid in his quorum that had muscular disfunction (is that what its called ???). I had the opportunity to be deacons quorum president, teachers quorum president, and 1st assistant and i didnt do ANYTHING to help the members of the quorums. But i have changed a lot and like that quote from that missionary, Mom, i didnt even crawl spiritually, but now i´ve gotta sprint and keep sprinting. Last night i was reading a bit from 1 Nefi (last week i finished the Book of Mormon for the 3rd time in my mission. My count now goes on to 5 in my life :) ). I was reading in chapter 4, when Nephi kills Laban. But i learned a bit from the verses that explain how he killed him. Its a pattern about realizing the consequences of our actions--the positive consequences of obeying and the negative consequences of disobeying. Nephi starts off realizing what blessings he wants: "14 And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: aInasmuch as thy seed shall keep mybcommandments, they shall cprosper in the dland of promise." Thats the first step--we need to take the time to think "What do i want?" If i disobey right now, how will i lose that thing i want?. Next, Nephi thought of the negative consequences--how it would affect those blessings that were promised: "15 Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the alaw of Moses, save they should have the law. "16 And I also knew that the alaw was engraven upon the plates of brass." For us, we need to think of the negative consequences of our actions. "What will happen to me if i disobey?" Next, Nephi thought about the situation he was in: "17 And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause—that I might obtain the records according to his commandments." He realized that God had put him in that situation to help him reach the other promised blessings. We need to realize that too--God always gives us the means to get more blessings. I heard a quote that said something like, "I imagine that God gives us the maximum amounto of blessings for the smallest act of obedience." And its so true. And all that is left is TO DECIDE: "18 Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair of the head, and I smote off his head with his own asword." Nephi decided to obey. What will we decide?

To answer your emails...

Mom...Costa Rica isnt too small. Well compared to San Blas its huge. But i have been in the biggest city in the mission for 10 months in total so it does seem way different from what i am used too. And what that missionary says is pretty true--i still got a lot of time to go to learn to run faster but i have realized how much i´ve changed being here in the mission--i am a completely different person and i would be absolutely lost without the mission. Thats the truth--anyone who is thinking about going on a mission who has the great luck of reading this letter (haha) needs to know that. THE MISSION CHANGES LIVES. ITS ALLLLLLLLL WORTH IT. Two years is really nothing at all. NOTHING. But these two years are EVERYTHING. About the package, i need a container for oil--one of those ones they sell in Ensign books--nothin fancy. Also I want pictures from home. From a long time ago and one s that you have taken since i have been gone. Por favor :) Other than that there is nothing i really can think of that i need. And by the way we sang Called to Serve EVERY TIME we had a devotional :)

Dad...Las bendiciones de la tecnologia que hay son tan grandes--que tu puedes ver la conferencia en su ipad--siempre vale la pena ver la conferencia--uno siempre sale edificado, con varias preguntas contestadas. Estoy animado--vamos a tener que tomar camion para ir a verla en Culiacan. Pero todo esta bien :) Suerte con la escuela--hay que perseverar--las bendiciones que tendras--temporales y espirituales--seran muy grandes si perseveras en tus estudios. Siempre recuerda que te amo y que estoy agradecido contigo por lo que me has proveído en mi vida.

Well thats all i got--the letter was a little long--its just that i am on fire with the whole English thing right now. Have an awesome week this week! ¡Que tengan buena semana!

--Elder Crisp :)

Well today i left my home of the past 5 months. There were some huge changes that were made in the ward here--they put in new counselors and a new mission leader. Just in time for the change haha! But it was pretty tough to leave behind the people that ive had to love for the past 5 months. I am now in Costa Rica--you may ask "why the heck are you in costa rica--its like 1000s of miles from here?" But i´m in a little ranch like a half an hour out of culiacan thats called Costa Rica--me and Elder Johnson from Arizona are the zone leaders of the El Dorado Zone in the El Dorado District. We have a ton of investigators who are really prepared--we should have 2 baptisms this week. But i´m super excited to get down to work here in Costa Rica--everyone says the members here are super awesome. Of course its a little ranch so it´ll be different--i´ve been in the city for the past year (well La Paz was like city/ranch). But i´m ready to get down to business here and ready to speak a lot of english--E. Zufelt didnt like speaking english that much but E. Johnson has no problem with it :) Healthwise i´m good to go (i´ve been able to drink coke and eat bread without pain so thats good haha). This week E. Zufelt got sick too with a cold so we couldnt work as hard as normal, but oh well. I left with many desires to be better--to work harder and smarter. Hopefully i can do just that....

Thanks for the emails--they are always encouraging and help me to move on week by week. I really learned alot in these last 4 transfers. They were some of the toughest 5 months of my life--a lot of stress because of the assignment, and alot of struggles in the area but this area was my mountain. I got the chance on thursday to work in a ranch called Navolato in divisions--this past transfer was the first in 4 years that they had missionaries there--i worked with E. Larkin,who is now in his last transfer and i learned so much from him and his desires to serve until the end. He was branch president for a time in San Blas (where i started) and he called it "the getsemane of his mission--" when he struggled and when he became the missionary that he is now. I remember the scripture in Luke 22: "42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, aremove this cup from me: nevertheless not my bwill, but thine, be done. And there appeared an aangel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an aagony he prayed more earnestly: band his sweat was as it were great drops of cblood falling down to the ground." Christ recieved the help that he needed to keep going--because God knew that he was going to have to suffer a lot more. I feel that my time in Villa Verde was a Getsemane moment for me. I feel like my "suffering" here has helped me to move forward and i am ready to work here--as Christ did. I of course did not suffer what he did, nor will i do the things that he did but i have a mission and this time will be a time that i will look back on and say "I needed that to be what i am today." And i am grateful for that.

Well, thats all i got for ya´ll today. I´ll have some news on our investigators here in Costa Rica and all that next week--maybe with baptism photos :)

¡Que tengan buena semana!

--Elder Crisp :)

This week Elder Zufelt and i talked alot more in English so its a little easier for me to write and think in English. Ill start out answering some of your questions and commenting on your comments. Mom....its still really hot but i dont know if it is as hot as there--of course its differnt because here its super humid and its dry up there. But it should cool down going into October....i dont have any yellow stains in my armpits--my shirts are super white :) My shoes are still in perfect condition--theyll easily last me all my mission.One thing that i would like is a oil container--i lost mine a long time ago and i have a little bottle but it leaks a little bit. When you can (along with the CDs)....i have been able to play the guitar a little bit when theres one available--of course i cant play the guitar en sac meeting. I have been able to practice playing the piano and i have been perfecting a version of "Nearer my god to thee." Maybe someday i{ll record it with me camera and send it. I plan on studying a little bit of music when i get back--but theres a bunch of time to go....Papa....bautizaste a 26 en una semana??!! Esta loco eso. Tal vez el señor ahorita te esta preparando para tener un cargo en la estaca--no se si sea casualidad que te hayan relevado semanas antes que reemplacen cargos en la estaca. Todavia hace calor aqui pero no tanto--la verdad se quejan mucho aqui--hace calor pero no tienen que mencionarlo a cada rato--Aguantense pues! Me doy cuenta del calor pero no me quejo--estoy aqui por una razon, pero si estoy agradecido que ya se va el calor ahorita y que no tendre que aguantarlo otra vez aqui :)....Amy....I am glad to hear that you are happy. Thats always the point--if we are happy, it doesnt matter whats going on around us--cause were happy! Going to the temple was one of the greatest blessings that i have had--the chance to go every week for 5 hours every week was such a blessing and at the time i didnt even realize that i was recieving a promise from my patriarchal blessing! Go to the temple as often as you can. The logan temple is legit--its one that looks like a castle right?

Well we had the great blessing this week of having Joses baptism--FINALLY!!!! He didnt want it to be a big deal so he didnt invite anyone and we had like 6 people there--kinda lame but thats how he wanted it. E. Zufelt and i sang a specail muscial number--we sang "nearer my god to thee" the first 3 verses in english and the last one in spanish. It was pretty cool and i felt the spirit really strong--i hope everyone else did. We also got an awesome change in the ward here--they called new counselors in the bishopric--two of the most faithful brothers in the ward-- Brother Rosas and Bro. Lopez. Its going to change the ward here. Also they announced that here in Mexico they are going to put a new program in practice--that includes working with members more. WE WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO KNOCK DOORS. And if the ward doesnt work--they are going to pull out the missionaries in that ward. So they have to. They said its in practice in 7 stakes in Mexico and they have DOUBLED the number of baptisms along with a great amount of reactived members. It should change Mexico and maybe the work in all the world. Also a small bit of news--i got sick. Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have colitis--another sickness thatll never leave. Now i have two--typhoid and colitis. I am collecting sicknesses as souvenirs :) My stomach hurts a little bit but with the medicine its controlled. So dont worry. But for that really this week kinda sucked. Luis, "the boy from the bus" disappeared. He doesnt answer his phone and hes never home. Well see about him. The truth is we have lost a lot of the investigators that we have found in the past two weeks. But this week we are going to work our butts off the finish up this transfer--ITS ALREADY THE LAST WEEK OF THE TRANSFER! I am 99.99999% sure that i am going to leave but for that reason i am going to work as hard as i can right now so that i can deserve blessings in my new area.

Well i hope you have an awesome week and that you can read the scriptures everyday, pray everyday, and go to church on sunday. Thats the formula to happiness. I am excited for general conference and to hear about the new stake presidency. Tjhay told us in a zone conferecne alittle bit about the process of finding a stake president--they start with the current presidency, and if they dont find a new one, then bishops, and from there bishoprics, and high priests and from there they check everyone until they find a new stake president--and the two that are interviewing have to be 100% on board to call the stake president. So you can always know that its inspiration. Have an awesome week! ¡Que tengan buena semana!


See New Pictures

Well this week was really good. We didnt have the baptism because Jose got sick but this week for sure youll have your pictures. We had an awesome experience this week. Heres some background--Tuesday mornings we usually have to go downtown to send the reembursements in the zone. But this past Tues we had some appts in the morning so we put it after lunch. When we got on the bus, we saw a young man get on too. After a few minutes he called to us in english and told us to sit by him. He said his name was Luis and that he was from Arizona and that he had a little bit of time living with his grandma here in Culiacan. He told us that a couple hours earlier he had gotten a call from his mom in Arizona, and that she told him about a dream that she had had--that she had seen some missionaries. She told him "the next time you see mormons, you have to talk to them." Two hours later he saw us on that bus. He has been so prepared by the Lord. The only hard part about teaching him is that he obviously speaks better english than spanish so he talks to us in english--its sooooooo hard to speak in English! But that literally the only problem. Another problem is that i probably wont be here to see him get baptized. But life goes on. We also had stake conference this week. An area seventy came--Elder Obando from the domincan republic (i think). It was really good. President Cantu was also there and his message was really powerful--he started off by telling all the members to stop treating us missionaries like little kids--to stop giving us nicknames and to turn off the TV when we get there, etc. That was good, cause sometimes that bugs me. There are times that they talk to us in the "tu" form (Dad understands that concept) and so he also addressed that. I´ll explain that--the "tu" form is the intimate form of "you." Its like saying thee, though that form is no longer used. Its used to talk to children and close friends--for example we as missionaries are not allowed to use it EVER. But his point was that we should be more respected by the members and that they should use the "usted" form which is the form of respect. So thats your spanish lesson for the week :)

This week i read a part of Ether that talks about secret combinations: in chap 8: "18 And it came to pass that they formed a secret acombination, even as they of old; which combination is most abominable and wicked above all, in the sight of God;19 For the Lord worketh not in secret combinations, neither doth he will that man should shed blood, but in all things hath forbidden it, from the beginning of man.22 And whatsoever anation shall uphold such secret combinations, to get power and gain, until they shall spread over the nation, behold, they shall be destroyed; for the Lord will not suffer that the bblood of his saints, which shall be shed by them, shall always cry unto him from the ground for cvengeance upon them and yet he avenge them not.26 Wherefore, I, Moroni, am commanded to write these things that evil may be done away, and that the time may come that Satan may have ano power upon the hearts of the children of men, but that they may be bpersuaded to do good continually, that they may come unto the fountain of all crighteousness and be saved." I thought alot about this. It mentions there that secret combinatinos were the reason for the fall of the nephites and other nations, and i thought alot about Mexico--its full of secret combinations. The government is corrupt, the police are corrupt, there are a bunch of drug cartels (especially around here) and all that. And these combinations start with a sin--they are to cover sins and to keep sinning. Sometimes we make our own secret combinations--the classic "i wont tell if you dont tell." But that is not Gods way. He wants us to always be open and to repent openly of the things we do: "42 Behold, he who has arepented of his bsins, the same is cforgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more.43 By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins—behold, he will confess them and forsake them." We should always ponder that before we go and do something that we know is wrong or when we are tempted to cover up our sins. Because secret combinations are the downfall of nations, and right now they are ruining this nation that i am serving.

Anyway....yes its ridiculously hot here. Its like 115 degrees but it feels hotter. Supposedly it cools off in October--i hope it does casue it sucks haha. Mom...sad to hear about the missionares going to Mongolia. There is definitely a reason--God would never let something like that happen if there wasnt a reason--maybe they wont see the reason immediately but they´ll see it. I dont know if i shared this story with you about a japanese missionary that was called to serve in Colombia. He never learned to speak spanish well. But when he had 2 months left, he met a japanese man in the street who asked him to teach his "family." His family was a whole colony of Japanese people--80 in total. Every single one got baptized. It would never have happened if he hadnt endured even though he could barely speak. They might not recognize that reason, but there is one. Dad....those pictures are ancient! I was such a scardy pants when i was little haha.

Well i hope you have an awesome week. I sure will! ¡Que tengan buena semana todos!

--Elder Crisp :)

Well this week was a good one. We found a lot of new people and many of them accepted baptismal dates: Fausto, Alex, Oliver, and Jose--for this week. This time he was completely sure that this week is his week to be baptized. So we are looking into Friday or Saturday because this weekend is Stake Conference and there are some meetings Sat evening. So we´ll see what day but i´m 99.9999% sure that he be baptized this week. Finally!! We also had Zone Leader Counsel and it was really powerful. At the end, they opened up the floor to suggestions and one missionary mentioned that many missionaries felt that Pres. Cantu doesnt really care about them--that his weekly letters are just general. But he told us that normally mission presidents dont write weekly letters--most only answer specific questions but he takes the time to write to EVERYONE becuase hes the only member in his family and nobody wrote him on his mission. In tears he told us that he never wants ANYONE to feel the lonliness that he felt in his mission. It was really powerful and i felt so grateful that hes my mission president--and that i was able to be there in that room to feel the spirit that that explication. That the great blessing of being a Zone leader--i get to be there. I still feel like i there are other elders more deserving but i´m glad i can be there.

Mom...thats cool about the missionaries--we would never do that here. They start at 5! Thats way too early haha. They go to the teacher´s house (they just changed that--before it was in the church but not anymore.) Poor poor Stephen. i loved the picture :P. Amy...last week i wrote you a letter but i dont think it sent--sorry about that.

Oh and can ya tell Bishop Scott (i´m not used to that haha) thanks for sending the letter that he sent. Its always good to hear from people :)

I have been reading in the Old Testament and just started Exodus. I loved the part when the Lord calls Moses to deliver the children of Israel from Egypt. Moses says in chaper 3, "11 ¶And Moses said unto God, aWho am I, that I should go unto bPharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?12 And he said, Certainly I will be awith thee; and this shall be ba token unto thee, that I have csent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this dmountain." I have thought what Moses thought many times, but we always have the promise that God will be with us (read D&C 84:88). We will never be alone if we trust in teh Lord--"31 Who am I, saith the Lord, that have apromised and have not fulfilled? (D&C 58:31)" He doesnt lie--he always keeps his promises. :)

Well thats all i got for you. Hope you have an awesome week.

¡Que tengan buena semana! --Elder Crisp :)

Well this week was pretty good. This past couple weeks have been really tough. We havent been able to find new people to teach but i have been working really hard--i felt like i deserved something, someone to teach--that my work was enough to have SOME success. But this weeek i left tose thoughts and feelings behind and just went to work. We found many people this week including a woman named Noemi. We had been looking for a reference in her house, but they had given us the reference wrong and we found her. She was so interested, asking a bunch of questions and when we were talking about how theres a lving prophet she was so surprised and excited. It was a really special lesson and i felt the spirit so strong as we were talking to her. Hopefully she is not like almost all of the investigatros weve had--we teach em once and then they disappear from the face of the earth. Hopefully she is really ready. And found some other people that were really interested--we´ll see how much this week. In my studying of the scriptures, i have been reading one chapter from the BofM, one from the new testament and one from the old testament. This week i finished up Genesis and the story of Joseph. I really liked the story of Joseph and his example, and it has helped me in this weeks that i have been struggling even though i have been working. He was doing all he could and then he was accused of something he didnt do. He was in jail for 2 YEARS and then the Pharoah had his dream. When Joseph followed the spirit to interpret it, he recieved his reward. That reward was control of all Egypt--Pharoah let him do whatever he wanted. Because of that power he was able to help his family--the same brothers that sold him itno slavery, he helped. His patience and his faithfulness to God allowed him to enjoy those blessings and help him family to enjoy them too. In these past weeks i have felt as i am sure Joseph felt alot as he sat in jail--"what more do i have to do?" I told President Cantu of those feelings and he reminded me of the story of Abinadi. He did all he could to teach and to do what he knew was right and they killed him. He NEVER knew that Alma had been converted. I like to think that i have more converts than i know, but if not, at least i know that i have been working. But that also means that i have to KEEP working. And thats what i am going to do.

Awesome to hear about Mckenna, well Sister Snell. Who knows how you say Sister in Russian. Its probabley something like ajksdhfehiuaiueoij. And nice to hear about Grandmas birthday. Happy birthday to Katie too, and Kent. If you see em, tell em for me, Thanks. It was nice to hear from a few people today. And it was really nice to hear from Stephen last week. That now totals 4 times from Ben and Stephen. Progress!

(Worldly Alert) Robbie is a stud. Thats awesome that his family was there--i cant even imagine how special that would be. I have to say that i knew that Adrian Gonzalez was on the Dodgers--i saw a newspaper and i read it, but obviously i didnt read the article--i just saw it on the front. But Carl Crawford and Josh Beckett?!!! Thats awesome. In like 2 weeks youll see the difference. Its like when they got Manny. They didnt change immediately but in the long run they won the division. (End of worldly alert)

Oh last week iwas going to share an experience but in my struggles with english i forgot. Two weeks ago we went with a family--the mom served a mission but her husband isnt a member and shes got 3 kids--2 boys a 21 year old and a 17 year old who is going to turn 18(i dont know if you knew, but here in Mexico because of stupid college laws, they are allowed to leave on a mission when they turn 18). My comp started to talk to them about the mission (the sister said that neither wanted to go) and we started to share scriputres and all that. I left feelign the spirit, feeling that they would both serve a little later. But that sunday in the morning the sister called us and was really excited. She said "my son, Rodolfo (the 17 year old) decided to go on the mission, and its your fault (obviously she was kidding about it being our "fault"haha.)" it was super special--i wasa so glad that we were there to share that with him--hes going to help many people. A couple days later the older one decided he is giong to go too. They both are filling out their papers and are super excited. It was a really special experience. I dont think we said anything that made them make that decision, but we had the spirit and they were able to feel it through out words.

WEll thats all i got for you. This thursday weve got zone leader councel and i´m super pumped! Bowling and the spirit. There isnt a better combination. Have an awesome week everyone!

¡Que tengan buena semana! --Elder Crisp :)

Hola familia! How have y´all been? This week went pretty well. Its always an adjustment to have a new companion especially because i was will E. Cruz for 2 transfers. But here we are, 2 gringos from California. We speak spanish together--he has more time than me so he speaks well. We´ll see how long that lasts. In the zone there are a bunch of greenies--3 newbies fresh from the US--of course they dont speak any spanish. There is one who speaks well because he was waiting for his visa for 3 changes and so went to another mission and spoke some spanish. But the other two--NADA. It reminds me of my days in San Blas. I can´t believe that was a year ago. Can you believe that??!! This week we worked super hard. We had an awesome zone conference on thursday and i recieved a lot of personal revelation of what i need to do better. I put all into practice but i still havent been able to see the results. I have felt that Satan is putting a bunch of excuses in my little head-- this week i thought "this area is cursed. Everyone who gets here baptized a lot before and baptizes after but nobody baptizes here." In a way its true--its a sad truth. E. Sandoval was baptizing alot, he got here and baptized 1. He left and is baptizing like crazy again. But that doesnt mean its an excuse. I learned a lot from a story about Albert Einstein...
"There were two kids playing on a frozen river. In the course of their games, the ice broke and one of the children was tramped underneath the ice. The other child grabbed a branch nearby and broke the ice, allowing the child to escape. When the firemen arrived they asked how he had escaped. When the children answered, they didnt believe it--"You are far too weak to brake this ice with only a branch. How can it be possible?" Albert Einstein passed by in that moment and gave them the answer. He said, "He was able to do it, because nobody was around to tell him that he couldnt."" We are our own limit. If we forget what others say and focus on what God knows we can do, we can do anything (see Moroni 7:33). That story was really powerful and i felt the desire to change, even though i havent had so much success lately, i know that it can be done.

I hope you all have had an awesome week. (Worldly alert) Thats awesome about Robbie Brantley! Representin´ Chaparral! Thats so cool. I wish that that could be me haha but i doubt that it will ever happen--if you can believe it i have actually lost weight--like a couple pounds but still. Its absolutely impossible to gain weight--this week at one point it was like 115 degrees. Yeah its hot. Good for the Dodgers too--i am confident that they will win it. (end of worldly alert). Well, i hope that work and school and all other activities (other than dating....(Amy >:/)) have been going well and will continue to go well. I have to be completely honest--i am having a really tough time writing right now. Its really loud here in the cybercafe (thats what theyre called right?) and the truth is I am struggling to write in English. I hope that you can forgive me haha. I still have more than 9 months to go and i am sucking at writing in english. You all are going to make fun of me sooooo much. I think i´ll have to give my homecoming talk in spanish. If you dont speak spanish--oh well haha.

Well that all i got for ya´ll. Have an awesome week. ¡Que tengan buena semana!

--Elder Crisp :)

Well some news. I have a new companion: Elder Zufelt from the Sacramento area--hes my first american companion since my trainer--we will see if i learn english again. Despite the fact that i have a new companion, i am still in the same area. It was really unexpected--i was 99.99999% sure that i was out of here but no. Elder Cruz went to Guasave, a little city with a bunch of ranches all around. In other news, 17 new missionaries arrived today. Because of that some new areas opened up including one in our zone--Navolato. 4 years have gone by since there have been missionaries there--its a little ranch city like an hour from Culiacan. There should be some baptisms ready when the missionaries get there--there will be an ex-zone leader and his trainee. Even though i had completed expected to leave, i am excited. When this transfer ends, i will have exactly 5 months here--with 4 1/2 months in Aquiles here in Culiacan i will complete 9 1/2 months here in this zone. Thats a long time. Unfortunately Jose didnt get baptized this week--he said he felt pressured--i think by his family. They have been anxious to see what he does--thats probably where the pressure came from. Hopefully he can feel the need to do it this week. I will keep you updated on that situation.

I wanted to share a very important scripture with you all. My comp found it in his diligent searching of the scriptures in the new testament. It helps us to understand where we should put our priorities: In 2 timothy 4:8 it says, " For bodily exercise profiteth alittle: but bgodliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come." I put an empasis on the first part. Paul is telling us not to do exercise. Haha. No but seriously this one does talk about something important: 3 Nephi 13: 32 For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But aseek ye first the bkingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." I have been memorizing one scripture a day to help me to focus more on the work and to also put down my speed dial scriptures. Heavenly Father already knows our needs--he knows that nothing worldly is worth putting in front--even work. If we put the things of God ALWAYS in 1st place, we will have our temporal needs nourished as well.

(Speaking of worldly things) It was a huge deal here--Mexico won the gold in soccer. Every house we went to it was "did you see the game?" Even members who know that the answer is no. But it was funny. How awesome that the US got the most medals. I think Michael Phelps won more medals alone than Mexico. Isnt that something. I will enjoy my retirement., thank you haha. I also got a sneak peek at a newspaper with baseball standings and i was shocked to see that the Nationals have the best record in teh majors. That is something special isnt it? We will see what the Dodgers do. Papa...felicidades por la ordenacion como sumo sacerdote. Es otra oportunidad para ayudar y para servir. No estamos en la iglesia catolica ni ninguna otra entonces esos llamamientos no son para reconocimiento ni "status." Con estos cambios, me entro un pensamiento de lo que posiblemente viene despues--una palabra que empieza con la a (Asistente). Me da miedo pero si llego a estar alli, sabre que es otra oportunidad mas para servir y no como reconocimiento. A ver que pasa.

It has been ridiculously hot here lately. According to the peeps here its been like 46 degrees celcius (thats like 115 degrees fahrenheit). Who knows if thats true but all i know is that its been hot. We had to take care of a situation with an elder and a bad use of cell phone to chat with a girl. They sent him out of the area just in case, a situation REALLY similar to the one that sent me here 4 months ago. Its stressful and sad to have to deal with those types of situations. But its part of the gig. There are now 4 senior companions of the 8 in the zone that are training new missionaries. Now 7 of the 16 missionaries are americans. It should be a different transfer and i hope to share a lot of really spiritaual experiences in this transfer. :)

¡Que tengan buena semana!

--Elder Crisp :)