12-24-12 - Maybe the Mayans meant December 21, 2013

Whattya know, the world didn't end! It was pretty hilarious here, exactly like I expected. The people were all a lot more willing to listen to us on the 20th and the 21st, but I think when they realized that the world wasn't actually going to end, they were like "Oh, good, I have a lot more time to repent." Darn.


A creepily large amount of different people have told us that NASA has predicted that, because of the alignment of the planets, there are going to be three days of darkness. I have no idea how true that is, but

"And it came to pass that there was thick darkness upon all the face of the land, insomuch that the inhabitants thereof who had not fallen could feel the vapor of darkness; And there could be no light, because of the darkness, neither candles, neither torches; neither could there be fire kindled with their fine and exceedingly dry wood, so that there could not be any light at all. And there was not any light seen, neither fire, nor glimmer, neither the sun, nor the moon, nor the stars, for so great were the mists of darkness which were upon the face of the land. And it came to pass that it did last for the space of three days that there was no light seen; and there was great mourning and howling and weeping among all the people continually; yea, great were the groanings of the people, because of the darkness and the great destruction which had come upon them."

-3 Nephi 8:20-23

Right after that is when Jesus comes to visit the Nephites.....ahh! Somebody please investigate and tell me how true the darkness-for three-days thing is.....

 

There have been a lot of people that are thoroughly freaked out about the end of the world.

 

(I got this from UrbanLegends.about.com regarding this: Analysis: False. NASA has predicted no such thing. There will be no three-day blackout in December 2012. Indeed, the phrases used above — "total blackout of planet," "alignment of the universe," "shift from the current third dimension to zero dimension," etc. — are not only undefined, but meaningless. It's pseudo-scientific nonsense. The "alignment" to which our unknown authors apparently refer is the passing of the sun, as seen from earth, across the approximate center of our galaxy on December 21, 2012 (the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere). This happens every year at about the same time and portends nothing in terms of earthly events, good or ill, given that the galactic center is some 28,000 light years (165,000 trillion miles) away. It's a cosmic non-event.)

 

However, this week has been amazing finding people, and not just because of 2012.

We were walking through one of the subdivisions in our area, Villa Bonita, and we had nothing to do. We had made a bunch of plans and stuff, but everything had fallen and nobody was home. When we were just about to give up, a guy stopped us and called us Elders. Not just any person calls us Elders, so we stopped and talked to him. He was super excited about the gospel. HE asked US if he could get baptized. We said yes (obviously). He couldn't go to church this week but he really wants to go. His name's Omar.


We have lots of investigators that are really awesome right now. The only problem is that disappointingly few people want to hear about Jesus at Christmastime. Everyone's worried about the family and the food and the presents that they totally forget why we celebrate it at all!  It's kind of funny, but mostly just sad.


This Sunday (yesterday) was really nice. It was very Christmas-y. For the first time in a year and a half, someone asked me to do a special musical number with them! I wasn't expecting much, like maybe we'd all sing the melody like always, but they asked me to sing tenor! WOO! It was so nice to sing with a group again. =) We sang "O Little Town of Bethlehem". They are really cool, random family. (I say random because the mom speaks Japanese and the dad speaks English, and they have a band. what? They definitely aren't the most Mexican Mexicans I have met down here. They mostly eat Japanese food!)


We have had lots of miracles. LOTS. Probably the biggest of which is a woman named Maricruz who is the friend of a member and who has been in every religion she could find. AND, in church on Sunday, she said she felt "something amazing". She's really amazing! I'm so excited to go teach her (Thursday)!

Christmas.....when everyone gets overly sentimental and emotional. Especially me. My family will get the gist of this in my phone call, but to all the rest of you, I sure love you. Thanks for being such amazing people and supporting me and reading this! =) Even though I won't be watching "A Christmas Story" or wrapping presents with Heather this year, I'll be thinking about you. See you in 2013!


Elder Crabb!

Merry Christmas!

Tis the season to send yule tide greetings!  Cody would love some extra Christmas emails...if you have time in the next few minutes send him a quick line!  cody.crabb@myldsmail.net

12-17-12 American Engle, Giant Beans, and Note Cards‏

 I DID recieve my boxes--all three! I opened them, but I did NOT open my presents yet. I put them all under my tiny little TREE!! =) Thank you guys so much! I'm going to thank you a little better when I actually talk to you. I tried the carmels and fudge (SO good), "Christmas crack" (Also extremely good) and my Skittles (they don't have those in Mexico!). Ahh.....Like I said, I didn't open my presents yet, but I sure enjoyed the stuff I did see.

As for the Christmas call, we're going to do it ON Christmas!  Don't forget--the time zone here in Culiacan and there in Salt Lake are the same. It's gonna be really fun to talk! Fa-la-la-la-laaaa.....

In all the excitement of last week's email, I forgot to mention that transfers were today! I stayed in Nueva Galicia, but I have a new companion. His name is.....oh, how embarrassing. I forgot his name. I'm going to try to sneak a peek at his nametag............

Nope. Couldn't see it. It'll have to wait.

But he seems cool. He just finished his training, and he's 26 YEARS OLD! I was worried when I heard that that he would be a "Hey, I don't need a senior companion--I'm 26!" kind of guy, but he's not like that at all.

For this week, we had a baptism. The granddaughter of the first counselor, who has always gone to church, is now a member!

 

It was a fantastic service. There were about ten people there total but the spirit was SO strong.

Oh, and also....remember how I said the sister missionaries were going to baptize and she asked if I'd do it? Well, I did!

 

I messed up the ordinance big time haha. The first time I said "By the authority of the Melchize.....wha?" Oops. THEN, I did it again. I said it right the second time, but I didn't submerge her the whole way. Now, I was kind of embarrassed....but I did it right after that. Funny. She'll remember it for sure! She was so excited and she was feeling the spirit big time. She said the prayer at the end and she was just crying and crying....what an amazing spirit there was there.

Also this week was the ward Christmas party.

 

There was so much food. For evidence, please see the ENORMOUS pot of beans. 

 

They were all dancing and karaoke-ing. It wasn't the best environment for missionaries, so we left. But not before stealing a LOT of those beans.=)

 

This has nothing to do with anything, but look how funny this is....pirated name brands!

 

 

Basically this week was a few big events, but apart from that we didn't do much else. There was a lot of time spent preparing for the big things, but apart from that there wasn't anything too big.

Let me just say that I love this mission, and this gospel. There are a lot of reasons. I keep finding new ones every day. Just saying.

I have been thinking a lot lot lot about Christmas. What it is, WHY it is, what's it all for, everything.

And I've come to the conclusion that we have gotten kind of off topic.

If you ask anyone what the "real meaning of Christmas" is, they'll tell you "To celebrate the birth of Jesus". Excuse me, but I expressly disagree. Just being born wasn't that important. Jesus did what was impossible for all of us. I have included here a story that touches my heart every time I read it. I'm sure that most of you have heard this story. I myself have read it various times. But I have never read it with the perspective of the Atonement that I now have, as a missionary. I Hope you can all take a little bit of time to read this and remember the TRUE "true meaning of Christmas".

"The Room"

In that place between wakefulness and dreams, I found myself in the room. There were no distinguishing features save for the one wall covered with small index-card files. They were like the ones in libraries that list titles by author or subject in alphabetical order. But these files, which stretched from floor to ceiling and seemingly endlessly in either direction, had very different headings. As I drew near the wall of files, the first to catch my attention was one that read "Girls I Have Liked." I opened it and began flipping through the cards. I quickly shut it, shocked to realize that I recognized the names written on each one. And then without being told, I knew exactly where I was. This lifeless room with its small files was a crude catalog system for my life. Here were written the actions of my every moment, big and small, in a detail my memory couldn't match. A sense of wonder and curiosity, coupled with horror, stirred within me as I began randomly opening files and exploring their content. Some brought joy and sweet memories; others a sense of shame and regret so intense that I would look over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching. A file named "Friends" was next to one marked "Friends I Have Betrayed." The titles ranged from the mundane to the outright weird. "Books I Have Read," "Lies I Have Told," "Comfort I Have Given," "Jokes I Have Laughed At." Some were almost hilarious in their exactness: "Things I've Yelled at My Brothers." Others I couldn't laugh at: "Things I Have Done in My Anger," "Things I Have Muttered Under My Breath at My Parents." I never ceased to be surprised by the contents. Often there were many more cards than I expected. Sometimes fewer than I hoped. I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the life I had lived. Could it be possible that I had the time in my 20 years to write each of these thousands or even millions of cards? But each card confirmed this truth. Each was written in my own handwriting. Each signed with my signature. When I pulled out the file marked "Songs I Have Listened To," I realized the files grew to contain their contents. The cards were packed tightly, and yet after two or three yards, I hadn't found the end of the file. I shut it, shamed, not so much by the quality of music, but more by the vast amount of time I knew that file represented. When I came to a file marked "Lustful Thoughts," I felt a chill run through my body. I pulled the file out only an inch, not willing to test its size, and drew out a card. I shuddered at its detailed content. I felt sick to think that such a moment had been recorded. An almost animal rage broke on me. One thought dominated my mind: "No one must ever see these cards! No one must ever see this room! I have to destroy them!" In an insane frenzy I yanked the file out. Its size didn't matter now. I had to empty it and burn the cards. But as I took it at one end and began pounding it on the floor, I could not dislodge a single card. I became desperate and pulled out a card, only to find it as strong as steel when I tried to tear it. Defeated and utterly helpless, I returned the file to its slot. Leaning my forehead against the wall, I let out a long, self-pitying sigh. And then I saw it. The title bore "People I Have Shared the Gospel With." The handle was brighter than those around it, newer, almost unused. I pulled on its handle and a small box not more than three inches long fell into my hands. I could count the cards it contained on one hand. And then the tears came. I began to weep. Sobs so deep that they hurt started in my stomach and shook through me. I fell on my knees and cried. I cried out of shame, from the overwhelming shame of it all. The rows of file shelves swirled in my tear-filled eyes. No one must ever, ever know of this room. I must lock it up and hide the key. But then as I pushed away the tears, I saw Him. No, please not Him. Not here. Oh, anyone but Jesus. I watched helplessly as He began to open the files and read the cards. I couldn't bear to watch His response. And in the moments I could bring myself to look at His face, I saw a sorrow deeper than my own. He seemed to intuitively go to the worst boxes. Why did He have to read every one? Finally He turned and looked at me from across the room. He looked at me with pity in His eyes. But this was a pity that didn't anger me. I dropped my head, covered my face with my hands and began to cry again. He walked over and put His arm around me. He could have said so many things. But He didn't say a word. He just cried with me. Then He got up and walked back to the wall of files. Starting at one end of the room, He took out a file and, one by one, began to sign His name over mine on each card. "No!" I shouted rushing to Him. All I could find to say was "No, no," as I pulled the card from Him. His name shouldn't be on these cards. But there it was, written in red so rich, so dark, so alive. The name of Jesus covered mine. It was written with His blood. He gently took the card back. He smiled a sad smile and began to sign the cards. I don't think I'll ever understand how He did it so quickly, but the next instant it seemed I heard Him close the last file and walk back to my side. He placed His hand on my shoulder and said, "It is finished." I stood up, and He led me out of the room. There was no lock on its door. There were still cards to be written.

 

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas. I have a lot to write next week!

Love,

Elder Crabb

12-10-12 Hey! Write me! And tell other people to write me!

Well, the days are getting supposedly longer and longer, but it sure doesn't feel like it!

Hello again family, friends, and strangers. It's been another great week in missionary world. Remember how last week I said that we were having some problems finding new people to teach? Yeah. Not a problem anymore. And I also have a renewed testimony of the fast!

Before this week, we were stuck. We had been talking to everybody and trying to ask everyone for referrals, but NObody was giving us the time of day. It was pretty frustrating. It got to the point where I went to the scriptures for help. I came across 1 Kings 21:9:

"And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast..."

 

Hmmm.......

 

So, we did. We fasted. We prayed with all the faith that we could muster that we could find some new people to teach. Shortly after having started our fast, our ward mission leader gave us four referrals. Then, we found a new family. Then, the mission offices called us and gave us TWELVE referrals! Shortly following that, we had a couple of members tell us that they had some pending referrals for us. By the end of the week we had 18 new referrals, two new families, and someone who came to church by herself. It was a HUGE testimony for me this week! Miracles CAN and DO happen when we make our sacrifices.

 

 

I hope you all know how maddeningly difficult it is for me to write these letters in English. It's the only English I "speak" all week most times! All five of the other missionaries are Mexican in my district.

 

 

This week we have "our" baptism (the little 8 year old girl, Alejandra, who has gone to church all her life but technically her baptism counts for us because her parents aren't members...). That'll be nice. Oh! And the sister missionaries in my district are going to baptize this week, and the people I interviewed said they wanted me to be the one who baptized them! That'll be pretty neat. The lady said "When I shook your hand I knew that you were the right one to baptize me." I don't really know what that means, but cool!

As we're getting closer to Christmas, you can actually see it in the way people are. It's like that everywhere, I imagine. You know what I'm talking about, that attitude of "Hey, c'mon man, it's Christmas!" It's really awesome. I kinda wish that everyone was a little more like that all the time.

Not too much other than that this week! We're still progressing here, there's a TON of work now, trying to contact all these people.

 

 I love you guys, and thanks for being amazingly supportive. Hey! Write me! And tell other people to write me! Thanks! =)

 

 

Elder Crabbbbbbbbb

 

 

Funny mirror pictures!

 

12-3-12 Investigators....Get your free investigators....

Hello again. (I really need to think of some more creative ways to start my emails.)

First off, I was SO sad to hear about Russ McBride! That was totally unexpected. He'll definitely be missed.

Those Deep Thoughts are totally awesome. I have told some of those to my Mexican companions and they do NOT understand them at all. I also loved that picture of Piper sitting there on the couch--I almost died laughing! That's so awesome....it's good to know you're all well.

BUT, since I'm the one who lives in a foreign country and who is on a mission and having amazing once-in-a-lifetime adventures, I'm going to selfishly write more about ME. =) Any objections?

So this week has been really interesting. First of all, we baptized this week! Remember Anthony? Cristal's son? Well, he got baptized! It was so great. Cristal was there and so was Karely (who both cried). I told you already, but just so you remember, Cristal has some personal problems to resolve before she can get baptized, so that she can live the commandments. She has already told us that she would LOVE to get baptized. She's really great....and really pregnant (she's due in February. She's progressing well. She's what I like to call a "Dry Member" (just add water!). Really spiritual, really knowledgeable, always reading the scriptures, but not baptized.

We've been struggling the last little bit trying to find new investigators. We've been asking for referrals, contacting in the street, all kinds of stuff, but without new investigators. That's been frustrating me, but I'm doing the best I can, so I'm just praying and studying and leaving the rest to God. The good news is, he's been listening. New people have been coming out of the woodwork out of nowhere. One guy, Jaime, asked US if we wanted to talk to him, and he basically had a heart attack when we told him about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith (but in a good way: "I've never heard of that before! That makes total sense! Where can I buy one of those books?") We'll be coming back. Another great one is a family with about ten kids who want to change really bad. They live kind of far from the church but they've been reading the Book of Mormon and stuff. They told us they couldn't go to church this Sunday because of work, but they told us they'd go this coming Sunday.

Probably the biggest miracle of all is what they just barely told me. The first counselor of the bishop called us and told us that we have a baptism. I was kind of caught off guard, but he went on to explain that it's his granddaughter who has gone to church for her whole life and is going to turn 8. She said she's counting the days until her baptism. Cool! Probably the best part is that nobody in her family is a member except her grandpa, the first counselor. Free baptism AND a new family of investigators. WOO!

I came to kind of a profound realization this week. Life will change no matter what. That's unavoidable. And if you don't go on a mission, your life changes little by little, one thing at a time. But if you do go on a mission, your life changes and does a backflip and a somersalt. It changes all at once. Your priorities get totally flipped and renewed. That's why I love this place. My life has changed....and I don't think I'll ever be quite the same. In a lot of things.

I love you guys. You're all amazing supporters. Keep praying for me!! I sure need it...

Love,

Elder Crabb

Here are some photos of Anthony's baptism and of today's trip to the Culiacan Botanical Gardens. It's SUCH a cool place. There are plants from the whole world there. It also has some cool weird art sculptures. Enjoy the photos!

Oh yeah, and I heard from Elder Tingey this week, which was super weird! He's just plain old "Spencer" now...

11-26-12 Christmas Crack? I love you guys! And "Dadis lot of kundy!"

Just so you all know, I DID get my boxes, and I enjoyed every minute of it! You guys win first place with missionary boxes! The gold medal goes to whoever found that mustache that goes "Well, hello there...". I pretty much died laughing. Seeing a foreigner try to understand our family's humor was also fantastic. "Why does your family write so much in greeting cards?" "Do you really like mustaches or something?" And Thaaaaaaannnnnkkkk yyyyyyoooooouuuuu for the clothes. I was in desperate need of new stuff. Is it just me, or did you guy the pants a lot smaller? Don't get me wrong, they still fit, but holy cow, after having such giant "Elder Clown" pants I feel like I'm wearing leather pants.

When we actually got home and opened the boxes, my companion who is still very new at English said (in English, of course) "Dadis lot of kundy!" I said "It sure is, pal."

 

I sure did miss Thanksgiving this week. The lady who fed us on Thanksgiving said "Oh, today's Thanksgiving, so I made chicken so that you don't miss your home too much." (??) Cranberry relish and stuffing are nowhere to be found down here. I am DEFINITELY looking forward to Thanksgiving 2013.

We had a few failures this week with some people, but Karely came to church!! We were so excited, but we were trying really hard to make sure she was comfortable in church. It wasn't hard, because Cristal was there. BUT.....all of a sudden, she said "I have to leave, but I didn't want to tell Karely because I knew she wouldn't stay if I did." Oh no! Karely was nervous and so we didn't tell her that Cristal left. She kept asking us and we kept saying "Who knows?" At the end we told her that Cristal left and she said "Thank you for not telling me. I wouldn't have stayed." Yes!! The coolest part was the lesson we had last night, though.

After so much time of her reading the Book of Mormon and living the commandments, we hadn't even taught Karely about the Restoration, so we decided to watch the movie ("The Restoration"). Long story short, we got the DVD player all hooked up and everything, but we realized there was no way to switch the language to Spanish, because they didn't have a remote. I started panicking, but then something told me to just pause it and tell her I was going to translate. I was nervous, because I had never even tried to do that before, but I said a quick prayer for the gift of tongues and started the movie. I started translating as they were talking and I was surprised by how much of the movie I didn't even have to translate--I just remembered what they said in Spanish. Then the First Vision part came. All of a sudden, when Joseph Smith actually says his prayer and the music gets louder, the Spirit hit all three of us like a ton of bricks. I didn't start crying, though, until I had to translate the words of Joseph ("I saw a pillar of light, exactly over my head....") by the end of the First Vision Karely started to cry too. It was so strong. I don't think I'll ever forget that moment. I felt just like Joseph Smith. Anyway, she loved the movie. She told us she felt the same way in church and she was so glad that she didn't leave, because she felt really good. We hadn't seen but she also had felt the spirit so strong during the sacrament hymn she cried. That woman is really sensitive to the spirit. Anyway, we bore our testimonies and she said she knows it's true too.

Anthony is extremely excited to get baptized. We pass him every day as we leave to go teach people and he says "Hey! Ten more days!" "Hey! Eight more days!" He's so cool. And that'll help his mom (Cristal) be more committed for sure.

We're teaching a 19-year-old guy named Victor and his 16 year old girlfriend Gladys.They're so awesome, but we're going to give them one more week to come to church. Victor said he had to work, so he couldn't come to church, but Gladys said she'd come (and she didn't...) So we'll see what's going on. I'm pretty sure it's just because she doesn't want to go alone, not knowing anybody but us.

In other words, we are cruisin. I'm so lucky to have the mission, the companion, the area, the friends, the family, and most of all the love that I have from all of you. Thanks for all your support and for the things you help me accomplish spiritually!

Love,

Elder Craffp

11/19/12 - Today is Mexican Black Friday. It's called "Buen Fin". Even the FOOD is cheaper!

Oye!

Hey, family. This week, I had a sudden, really crazy realization. Usually, when people ask me how much time I have in the mission, I say "Like a year", so they won't think "oh, he's already gone..." (or be like "Hey, he should speak better Spanish by now....") But yesterday, someone from one of my old areas, Amistad, came to visit a family member. It was cool to see him, we were talking about my converts (Lexzaida, Rosibel, Lionel) who are ALL still active! WOO! But that wasn't the crazy part. He asked me how long I had left on my mission, and I decided to tell him since he's not in my current ward. I had to think about it because I always tell people a year haha. But that's when I realized that I almost have 18 months in the mission! That totally freaked me out. I'm not a "year and a half" class missionary! Anyway...whoa...

Other than that, this week was pretty much awesome! A lot of really memorable things happened.

To be able to explain last P-day, I need to explain The Toledo. There's a bus here that's really famous, called the Toledo. It's famous because it always drives really crazy, there's always super loud music, and there's all kinds of stickers and lights and weird things on the inside. (If you're familiar with Arthur, I refer you to "the crazy bus"!) It's always super full and somehow I always end up really awkwardly pressed up against someone.

Suffice it to say, I really hate taking the Toledo.

So, after emailing last Monday, we were going to go to Centro (downtown) to mail a package for my companion. Like I said, I was feeling a little nauseous and everything, but it wasn't going to stop me from doing "my stuff", so we went. Of course, to get to Centro we have to take a Toledo. The whole time the bus was going from one side to the other, and I just felt worse and worse. By the time we got to Centro, I was totally sick. Like I said, they gave me medicine and everything. But that sickness wiped me out from Monday until Wednesday! So that was incredible. However, I feel excellent now. =)

(Side note: There is NO sign of Thanksgiving down here....)

We were going to have a baptism on Saturday, but I have to explain the surrounding situation as to why it didn't happen. I told you about our really cool investigator Cristal, right? We have been going there a lot to try and help her get an answer. And this week, she had a really cool, really direct experience that totally gave her a testimony! She said "I'm converted. I know the church is true!" We were SO happy!! Happy doesn't even begin to describe it. As we were talking about the baptismal interview, we suddenly realized something awful. Due to a really personal, really unfortunate situation completely out of Cristal's control, she can't get baptized just yet. She's still working toward it, but she has to make an extremely difficult decision. However, she said she will keep going to church forever. "Just because I'm not baptized doesn't mean I'm not going to go to church!" Awesome. Her son, Anthony, however, had no problems and was super excited to get baptized. We called the Zone Leaders to come and do the interview, and all seemed to be well. BUT. They finished with the interview and they said "He can't get baptized yet." I thought something along these lines: "Hahaha....ohh....riiiight.............um.......are you serious?" There is a new rule, directly from President Cantu, that those who want to get baptized need to be living the Word of Wisdom or the Law of Chastity for 30 prior to their baptism. We did NOT know that, and Anthony drank coffee two weeks ago. Aw.....so he was really sad about that. But we explained to him that he could still get baptized and that maybe he could even get baptized with his mom and his mom's friend Karely, then he was fine.

So, Karely. She lives with Cristal. She's actually the reason that Cristal started listening to us in the first place, because she called us over jokingly. Cristal has always told us that she's super rude, she swears like a sailor and that she yells at her kids. We started talking a little bit with her, and we realized that Cristal was right! But Karely told us that she's really been wanting to change and get better. She's been reading the Book of Mormon and praying to know if it's true (she ABHORS reading), and, also this week, she said God answered her through a dream and she said she knows we're the true church.

I've been living so many really powerful experiences in this area, whether it's finding new people, being in the right place at the right time, teaching the right thing, answered prayers, or testimonies through the Spirit. I love this work! It's so amazing. Sometimes I feel so incredibly small here in this big old world, trying to convert everyone, but I know that we're doing the best we can! =) I love you all and I'm so glad to be here. Thanks so much for your support, making it such an easy decision to come out here. Thank you for writing me so often and giving me encouragement. Your words have been a huge help to me many times, and for those who write me every week (you know who you are), many times something you say answers my prayers.

I guess, to sum up how I feel this Thanksgiving season,

THANKS. =)

Elder Crabb

 

 

11-12-12 - Skype, "I'm God!", and Being Sick For Real

Ey!  The pictures are officially lost. I'm working with a member here to see if we can recover them, but it doesn't seem likely. =(

We have a really cool option this year. For our Christmas phone call, we can either talk by phone like normal for two hours, or by Skype for 1 hour! It's your choice, let me know which one you want to do so we can start getting ready for it.

Also, cool news. I will NOT be coming home from my mission on June 1st. They are making some adjustments to the time. I will be coming home three weeks later. I believe that will make my returning date June 26th. Just so you can prepare for that.....in more than six months....

Now, down to the "needy greedy".

Last Monday, we met a guy in Soriana (Mexican Smith's) that told us he was God, and that he needed Bibles to pass out to the people. I told him that I was sorry, but we don't carry Bibles to give away. How strange. I also found out that day that one of the sisters in my district (yes, I have sisters in my district), Hermana Tejeda, is 38 years old! Whoa!

This week I've been getting used to the new study schedule. Now that I'm training, we study for two hours as companions instead of just one. Training is fun. Especially when your trainee only has a little bit of time in the church, because you have to be the one to say "Yes, Joseph Smith WAS a Mason..." It's funny sometimes.

One of our coolest investigators right now is named Cristal. She's a single mom who is also pregnant. That being so, she walks the huge hill every Sunday, just her and her son, to get to church! THAT'S a testimony. Her and her son are going to get baptized this weekend. She's so great.

I don't know if I told you this before, but they have now told us that we can't "tract", meaning basically that we can't knock on a door without knowing who lives there. I don't usually do that too much anyway, but when it means that you CAN'T do it even when all your plans fall is really frustrating.

Thursday, we had a really cool experience in the church. Thursday is when they have mutual in this ward. We had had a meeting with the bishop, and I wanted to meet some of the young men and young women, so we went outside to see who was there. Keep in mind that this was my first week in the area and I didn't know anybody! I had met about five members by Thursday. We walked outside and saw there were a bunch of young people playing soccer. I didn't know why but I had the distinct impression to talk to a girl that was sitting, watching them. I introduced myself, and she said her name was Melissa. I don't really know why I asked, not knowing anybody, but I asked if she was a member of the church, to which she replied "No." She said that she wanted to hear our message in her house, and best of all, she lives on the street in front of the church! It was really a testimony to me about the power of the Spirit. Who knows what people God has prepared to hear the gospel.

Friday was a Multi-Zone Conference. It was pretty wacky, because two members of the Presidency of the Seventy came to Los Mochis to visit, so President Cantù was going nuts trying to finish on time. As usual, it was an amazing converence and I learned a ton. I took like six pages of notes! That took about the whole day. When we got back, it was like 5, so we asked for more and more and more referrals....we're going to do that a whole lot more often.

In other news, I've been totally sick. It was just yesterday and today, but MAN I'm feeling like garbage. We went to the doctor, and she said "Wow, you look horrible!" (not exactly what you want to hear when you go to the doctor...) She said I have an ear infection, a throat infection, tonsilitis, and the stomach flu. She asked me "How'd you manage to fit all of that in your body all at once?" Haha.....i've got medicine, so I'm going to go back home and sleep it off.

Love you guys. Thanks for your mountains of support like always. You guys are awesome, keep praying for us! Especially for my sickness so we can get working again. See ya!

Love,

Elder Crabb

11/05/12 - My pictures are gone! And Nuevas Oportunidades in Nueva Galicia‏

First things first....HAPPY BIRTHDAY SYDNEY!! I hope you had a great one! And may I throw in a little happy birthday greeting for my awesome friend Korinne. Keep on being awesome (and writing Elder Crabb...)

Alright, well this week was totally nuts for lots of reasons.

Well, as I'm sure you have all been wondering, I am no longer in El Carrizo! I have gone BACK to Culiacan. I love this place! It's great to be in a city again after so much time in the middle of nowhere. My new area's called Nueva Galicia. It's sort of where I was before in Amistad, just a little closer to downtown (which is the BEST!). My new companion's name is Elder Damian. He's super nice and we seem to have a little more in common with me than Elder Lazaro. He tells me we've got some great potential investigators, and the members are really nice too. Cool! Remember my old companion Elder Peterson? He's going to take my place in El Carrizo! That'll be cool.

So last Monday, we were traveling back from the district meeting and, while we were waiting for the bus, I saw a young girl (maybe 20) sit down, looking sad. I thought "I'm going to contact her." It was a good plan, but as a missionary I get freaked out talking to girls my age! So I sat next to her and I waited til the perfect moment, then we started to talk to her. Her name's Nuria, she lives in El Carrizo's area. It turns out that while she was in the station, she thought "I wanna talk to those guys." We took down her address and phone number and put an appointment. COOL! Too bad I'll never get to see what happens to her while I'm there. We'll see.

On Wednesday, I did three baptismal interviews for Elder Pearson, who is going to leave for Riverton tomorrow. Weird! But that was fun. While we were there, he almost gagged on the food that the member gave us. Haha....sad. But hilarious.

On Thursday we had an activity in the cemetary planned, which was going to be really cool. All of the members were going to give a short message about the plan of salvation while standing up in the back of a truck! It was going to be awesome. But, the day came, and one by one, all the members started dropping off like flies. Everyone was leaving town or had to work or had SOMEthing, the point is that we were going to have to do it all by ourselves. As fun as that sounded, I thought it might be better to put it off a day. So, we did.

On Friday, when we really did it, we still only had a few members there, so we were trying to figure out the best way to talk to lots of people at a time. It ocurred to me that we could do something less-than-orthodox. I literally preached to multitudes with a Bible in my hand. Check one off the missionary bucket list. It was really cool, and I think some people really felt the spirit. The downside is that we didn't have a good chance to get addresses, so hopefully lots of people come to the church!

I got lots of learnin' of the area to do! It's going to be really fun and I'm excited to meet the investigators. So far I love everything about this place--even my companion! I have lots of new ideas and things I'm going to do to get better.

Oh! The WORST THING EVER happened this week! My camera's memory card got a virus, and every picture I have taken for the last six months is now gone. I was totally devastated....but luckily, we have Facebook, and most of the pictures I had, my companions will have also. Hopefully I can find a way to recover my pictures....but I'm seriously doubting it by now. Darn it! I have almost no pictures of my whole darn mission! Just what I've sent home...sigh. It's hard to send pictures home too because they are HUGE (in pixels, that is).

I'm just learning so so much. I'm so excited to get going here. I feel like there were some challenges that I in particular couldn't defeat in that last area. I'm excited to not let anything get in my way here.....I'm so pumped!

Loves!

Elder

 

These are all from our activity in the cemetery on the Day of the Dead. It was super fun preaching like that!

 

10/29/12 - Don't like change? Go on a misson--you'll get over it!

First, a couple of things....

a) my shoes are fine (for now). We'll see how long they last! Luckily we have a hose in the back of our house so I just sprayed them off the best I could and used a rag to wipe them down. I'd be lying if I said it didn't take me forever...

b) Congratulations, McAlisters!! Holy cow, another niece! Where did you find the name Piper? I have to admit, I think that name is totally awesome. "Sounds like 'viper'...." I'm so glad to hear that everything went well.

c) Despite the subject line, I'm not going anywhere just yet. Transfers are next Monday, and seeing as I've been here in El Carrizo for 6 months, I'm probably getting out of here.

d) as for my "Christmas box", I have but two requests. Both food. Remember those soft peppermint candies that we became addicts to? I want some of those! And some Wint-o-Green mints too! (I wouldn't complain if you threw in some caramels and fudge too!) Basically, all I want is food. =) I love you guys.

Okay, so "Dia de los Muertos" (day of the dead) is this week, on Thursday. It's not what everyone thinks it is! I used to think it was like Mexican Halloween, but it's completely different. Basically, it's like Memorial Day, but a whole lot cooler. There's lots of great traditions and good food, and everyone's at home and has the day off....but unfortunately, that also translates to a lot of alcohol and partying.

To offset that, we as a branch are going to go to the cemetary together on Thursday, and do some contacting! I'm literally going to preach to a crowd, something that I have always wanted to do! We're going to talk to lots of people and get lots of missionary references.

This should be fun though. Everyone says "Do you guys go hide in your houses on Halloween in America?" .....What? Everyone thinks it's super dangerous and satanic and whatever, but what I tell them is that all Halloween really is is a bunch of kids dressed as Spider-Man asking for candy. But they DO make us go to our apartments early on Halloween just in case there's any weirdness.

I mentioned that I have been having a few disagreements with my companion. This week, I decided that if he thought his ideas were so much better than mine, we could just see! So I told him that HE had to plan and decide where to go and what to do. He was all about that, seeing as he complained about every plan I had! So we started this week at full blast. I have to admit, we did some great stuff. We visited a whole ton on inactive families (there are more than 90 here in my area...) and looked for some new investigators. After three days, however, Elder Lazaro started to get frustrated because he had nothing to plan. I told him that he had to stick it out....so he did. By the end of the week he was begging me to plan and take the lead, that he wouldn't complain.

Too bad I waited until the very last week to do this!

Basically, it solved all our problems. Hooray!

Also this week, I had the opportunity to do a baptismal interview with a kid from Constancia (Alejandro, the kid in the picture), which is in my district. He was really cool, and after the interview he asked if I could baptize him! I was totally flattered but I had to go to my area. There was no way to do it. I told him thanks so much but that I couldn't....oh well. But he got baptized. Rosales, the other area in my district, is going to baptize NINE PEOPLE this week! I have to do nine interviews on the same day! I'm not complaining, I love doing interviews, but I've never even done two in a row haha. So that'll be an adventure.

I have even LESS time than usual! It's a miracle I wrote this much. But I know the church is true, and that families are forever, and all that stuff! I'll be more inspiring next week. =)

Keep the Faith!

Elder Crabb

 

 

10/22/12 - Imminent Wedding, Newlyweds, and President Mud‏

Aaaaayyyyy!

 

As for this week, that couple I told you about has been progressing like crazy! They're getting ready to get married. They don't have a ton of money, so it's likely that they won't have a party or anything, just sign some papers. It's going to be awesome....maybe I'll get to be a witness! As soon as they get married, they can be baptized. I'm so excited for them. Honestly, Jesus has rescued his life from the pits of death. He was this close to death several times, for different reasons. But I know he's still here for a reason--THIS reason!

A couple of weeks ago, we were hitchhiking on the way back from El Fuerte, and this 23-ish-year-old guy named Eduardo gave us a ride. He said that he lived in Alaska for about two years (climate shock, right?), and every once in a while he would be coming back from getting groceries or something, FREEZING cold, and two young guys in shirts and ties would come give him a ride. He was so thankful for that, but they never said what church they were from (whoops). We explained who we are and why we're here in Mexico, and he invited us to his house.

We looked EVERYWHERE for his house, which is in Poblado 7, but we couldn't find it anywhere. He gave us his number too, but I had written it down wrong (whoops again) so we couldn't get a hold of him. Then, one day we were walking down the street, and I heard (in English, mind you): "Hey, Crabb! How ya doin?" It was him! He invited us in, and we met his wife, Diana. It didn't take me long to realize they were newlyweds. There were new dishes, about 30 pictures of them together on the walls, and one of the pictures was them making a big heart with their arms on the beach (oh brother), But I ran with it, and they are so in love. We talked about the Plan of Salvation and how families can be eternal. That greatly interested Diana, but she said "What's the difference between baptism in the Catholic church and your church?

Here we go...

That's a dangerous question, but a very critical one. If you answer badly, they will get offended and not want to hear more. But them asking shows their interest, so you have to ask. Basically, from there we explained about Joseph Smith and the Restoration. We gave them each a Book of Mormon and they committed to read it and to pray about it (together, of course).

It makes me really grateful sometimes that we're not a "lukewarm" church. I've said this before, but we're either completely true or hopelessly confused. How wonderful! It makes it so much easier that way! Like I say to investigators-- 2 plus 2 is "about 4". Haha....does that even make sense? Why would religion be any different?

I know that this work is SO important. I thank you for your prayers. Hey, you guys can be missionaries too--go to the temple!

Love you all!

Elder Crabb

PS. I'm going to make a special request. I'm going to ask every person that reads this that they can kneel and say a prayer to help us find the people that God has prepared for us. We need it!

 

 

Fotos!

My companion made a little mud figurine of "a mission president". He called him "President Mud" ("Presidente Lodo").

My poor, poor shoes. It rained a LOT this week.

Are their sunsets like this in the United States?!

10/15/12 - Cake face, throwin' out my smokes, and "Who I'm Going to Marry!"

Sorry, I don't know how I get so far behind all the time!  You miss a week and then you turn around and it's three!  It's a crazy busy week but I will get Cody's blog updated, I promise!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, here we are again. I've been trying to think of more creative ways to start letters....

This week has been eventful for sure! On Monday I bought a really cool t-shirt that has a Mayan eagle on it. I've been really interested in all that stuff, now that I'm realizing "Mayan" actually means "Nephite". We've been getting the most out of our P'days recently. Like I said, El Carrizo is like a little ranch town, so every P'day we go to Los Mochis, a nearby city, to buy stuff and hang out ("nearby" isn't very accurate. It's about as far as Provo.)

On Tuesday, we had divisions with the zone leaders. I stayed here with Elder Mortensen and my companion went to El Fuerte with Elder Hernandez. It was kind of a joke on our part; by the time we got back to my area, it was like 7 pm. It was really fun to talk to him though. He reminded me a lot of my trainer Elder Tingey. They're both going to end their missions in three weeks!

Due to the announcement by President Monson, we told a 19 year old girl in our branch who has been thinking about serving a mission that she now could serve. She looked a little shocked and said "I'm not ready...." we talked for a while and she said she'd pray about it.

Oh, and this was the day that something hilarious happened in my study! We were about to start companionship study, but my companion was writing something so he asked me to wait like 5 minutes. So, while I was waiting, I had a funny idea. I prayed that I could open my scriptures and find a verse that would say who I'm going to marry (why not?). I opened my Bible to Ecclesiastes 3:1.... needless to say, He put me in my place. I'm just going to pray about my investigators from now on!

Also this week, we had a really cool experience with a guy named Jesus who we're teaching. I don't know if I told you about him. But anyway, he has a lot of tough things in his life economically, physically, pretty much in everything. But he is progressing like you wouldn't believe. We taught the Law of Chastity (him and his "wife" aren't actually married) last week. When we said "To get baptized, you two need to be married." He looked over at his wife and said "Will you marry me?" It was SO awesome! Then, this week we taught the Word of Wisdom. Right after we told him about cigarettes, he took out his smokes and tore them to pieces.

 

 He is SO awesome....but he doesn't go to church. We can't figure out why exactly but he's so willing to change. We're on it.

Anyway, I love you all so much, you know that? I miss you guys, but only a couple of you speak Spanish, so it'll be hard to come back. =) Keep the faith!

Elder Crabb

An amazing (real) picture of two horses drinking out of a mountain stream...almost corny, right?

 

When a guy in our ward smashed Maricela's face into her own birthday cake. He tricked her into getting close by saying "This cake smells weird..."

 

<sorry picture would not upload!?>

 

 

The offending cake.

 

10-8-12 The Second Worst Letter. =)

Hey! First things first, HAPPY BIRTHDAY,MOM!

Guess what? Just because you're a missionary does NOT automatically mean that you get to see General Conference. Exhibit A....Elder Crabb! I saw about ten minutes of it total! But that's okay. It's all available to us later in the conference Liahona, which they give us as missonaries.

I will say, though, that I don't have much time to write right now because I wrote a REALLY long letter to President Cantu. Sorry.

I got your box!! WOO! Best box EVER! From the cool water bottle to the starburst jellybeans to the pencil pens, I enjoyed that box from beginning to end! (And I ate some of those Wint-O-Green mints at 6, Saturday night. Miss you, Shawn!) Thank you so so much! My companion and I are enjoying the candy and all the fun church stuff a whole lot. I've already given out some "HLJ" rings! =)

Above all, thank you SO much for that mp3 player. I have been dying to hear a little Eric Whitacre or classical music. My companion only had Enya.....so that was a welcome change.

I would tell you about how we helped this branch see general conference, but frankly, it's a very long, complicated story that will be better when I tell it in person!

I love trials. Is that weird? I mean, I don't love trials. Nobody does. But I sure love what they do to us. There's a great talk by D. Todd Christofferson where he talks about that. He said there was a currant bush that was growing so big it looked like a tree, and it had no fruit. So the gardener came down and hacked it to pieces, until it was just a little stump. He said he could imagine it thinking "Why would you do this to me? I was a big beautiful tree, now I'm just a stump!" (The part I loved) the gardener thought to himself "Well, you're NOT a tree. That's not what I have in mind for you. You're a currant bush! One day, when you have fruit, you'll thank me."

I love that! I hope we all remember that, even though we go through difficult things, it's because God is shaping us!

I love you! I'll write better next week!

Elder Crabb

10-1-12 ¡Lazaro, ven fuera!

This week has sure been a doozy! This was the first week of my new companion, Elder Lazaro. First off, before you read any further, I want you all to look at the photo I've attached of the desks.

Guess which one is Elder Crabb's desk? You guessed it! Elder Lazaro is a great guy, but BOY are we sure different. We're pretty much opposite in everything. He's had some problems here in the mission with attitude things and all that, but he says he's ready to put all that aside and start over. I'm all for that.

Well, since I'm in the same area, my investigators didn't change yet. We didn't find many new people at all this week, but I owe that to "It's my first week here" syndrome, trying to get settled in (not MY first week....this week was my 19th week here....). We've been working hard, but something is missing. I'm trying to pinpoint exactly what it is...

One highlight of this week happened today on the way to Los Mochis on the bus. Remember Orlando? He's the guy from Poblado 7 that almost got baptized. He knows it's true, but he didn't do it, then he got a job that made him work on Sundays...anyway. Today on the bus, I recognized his brother, Fernando, when he got on. Orlando always told me he was a "science" guy, that he believed in God but he didn't like religions, and that he would never talk to us. I realized that this could be a really cool opportunity to talk to him. I said a quick prayer that God would give me the chance to talk to him. He looked for a seat, walked past several empty seats and sat down right next to me. I said "Hey, you're Orlando's brother, right?" He said yes and we started talking. We talked about various things, but the gist of the conversation was "I don't like listening to missionaries because everyone says the same thing: 'We have the truth, listen to us!'" Excitedly realizing this opportunity, I said, "A real answer would have to come from God, right?" He paused and said "Well....yeah." I explained to him that all we do is invite people to learn the doctrine and ask God if it's true (John 7:17). He was kind of surprised, and he threw that surprise right back at me by saying "I'm gonna give your religion a chance, and just one chance." He said he'll read the Book of Mormon, go to church, and take the missionary lessons. WHOA! That totally came out of nowhere, but awesome!

("that I am very engry because for my mission,I am luser and I dont working".....I stepped away from my computer for a second and Elder Hernandez wrote that...haha) 
 {-side note this made me LAUGH SO HARD!!  I am a LUSER!! haha Good for your Elder Hernandez!}

Also, Elder Lazaro got sick this week, so for one day and a half we were in the house with nothing to do. It was a really good time for self-reflection, so I prayed for direction and started reading the Book of Mormon.I opened up to Ether 12:27. I suddenly felt like, "Whoa! I need to ask got what my weaknesses are!" So that's what I did. I kneeled down and asked him what I need to get better on. This was Tuesday. Wednesday morning was when I found out that Elder Lazaro and I are polar opposites. Wednesday afternoon was when President Cantu's wife called me about his attitude problem. It was pretty obvious to me that God put everything how he put it just so I could learn my weakness.....which seems to be "putting my foot down". Anyone who knows me will tell you that I'm kind of a layed back kind of guy. In situations where a lot of people would get frustrated and lose their temper, I just....don't. The thing that I need to work on is saying NO, or doing something that is contrary to the will of my companion. I haven't been like that before, but it's obvious to me that I have to be like that now.

This week was district conference in El Fuerte. That basically means that instead of being in El Carrizo we had to rent a bus to get us all there together. After a big old ordeal we finally got it all worked out. It was a fantastic conference. President Cantu and his wife spoke, the district president and a couple of others. NOW, we're getting ready for GENERAL CONFERENCE this week!! Man, I never thought I would be so excited to see general conference. I feel like a little kid at Christmas. One more week until conference! Six more days! Honestly, I know it sounds funny, but who else in the WORLD has a chance like this? Every six months we can hear exactly what God wants us to do in those six months. Frankly, that's awesome! We have a few people that are really excited to see the conference, like Lupita, Ismael, and a few others.

I LOVE MY MISSION.....I think that says it all. The church is true. Watch general conference. You Utahns don't realize how lucky you have it! If you don't have Internet here you have to drive to a stake center, which is more than an hour and a half away! Remember to watch it especially because you can watch it in your jammies in the comfort of your own living room.

Bye!
Elder Crabb

9-24-12 The Worst Letter You Will Get In Two Years‏

Well, this letter is going to be really really short.....sorry. I'm sure I'll have more to write about next week, but basically here's the deal for this week:

 

 

• I am indeed staying in El Carrizo. Pretty uncharacteristic for this mission to stay in an area for six months, but if someone's gotta be outside the norm, why not Elder Crabb.
• My new companion's name is Elder Lazaro. I don't know absolutely anything about him, just that he's tall! So that'll be an adventure.
• My investigators are the same ones as usual...Iveth, Lupita, Ismael, Eva...They're all progressing.
• President Franco is really getting excited to be the branch president. He's brought like five inactives to church!

Wow....that subject line is really true. Sorry! Next week will be better, I promise. We're writing in a cyber cafè in Los Mochis and we have a lot of stuff to do! I love you so much!

Love, Elder Crabb

9-17-12 Elder Crabb and the Punctual President‏

Hola. Pues, esta semana ha sido una semana de......oh, sorry.

*ahem*

Hello. Well, this week has been a week of answered prayers, surprises, and unexpected progress. It sounds like a novel (hence the subject line).

First of all, the most exciting news.....I am no longer a branch president! The transfers aren't until next week and I didn't go anywhere. Remember a while ago when I said Hermano Franco was potentially going to be the new branch president? Well, after lots of calls to the mission presidency, interviews, recommends and lots of other stuff, he was sustained yesterday! President Guevara, the first counselor of the mission, came to our branch yesterday (unannounced, I might add) and did the interview. He hasn't been set apart yet, and won't be for a week or so yet, but it's all official. He's super excited.

Honestly, if I do end up leaving this transfer, I'm going to be so sad. We've all heard a million times that when you serve someone, you love them. I never really understood that until I was a branch president. Now I get it. You just can't help it! Even the lumpy old grouchy guy who falls asleep in the lessons--I love that guy! Not to say I'm leaving for sure or anything. I just imagine that's how it'll be. I would absolutely love to stay here for a little while longer though!

The biggest miracle happened yesterday at church. But I'll explain a couple of things first.

We've been teaching a lady named Lupita. Remember her? She's the woman with the creepy black dog story. When we first knocked on her door a few weeks ago, she came to the window and started to talk to us. She put on a very defensive front, like "I know what you guys believe and I'll have no part of it!". Well, we talked about a few things, but I felt like we should share the story of the Restoration. So that's what we did. I told about Joseph Smith and Elder Osorio talked about the Book of Mormon, right there on her front porch. She looked totally shocked. She invited us to come back, so we did. She made us food (that was the creepy dog night). After that happened, she was a little more receptive to what we had to say, and she opened up a lot. She told us that she dreams the future a lot, and that she's always dreaming stuff. She is VERY involved in her religion (doesn't wear makeup, wears a skirt, wears a veil when she prays....that sort of stuff) and she knows a lot about the Bible. I don't want to brag, but it's kind of on me because Elder Osorio's knowledge is mostly in the Book of Mormon. That's nerve wracking when she asks us things about the Lost Tribes of Israel or the Law of Moses....

At first, it was more like, "Let's see what you guys believe." But now, she's starting to understand and ask questions. Even though there are still some things she won't budge on (that God, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost are one person, more than anything) she's softening a little bit.

Okay. Now I can explain the miracle. So, last week we were in her house teaching her, and Elder Osorio started to invite her to church. My little Elder Crabb mind started racing, wondering how it was going to work. How was she going to answer? Is she going to get freaked out? She is very involved in her church, what if she can't go? To my surprise, she said "Okay, sounds good." That did surprise me, but everyone says they'll go. What REALLY surprised me was that she actually went!! WOW! (One of our biggest challenges in this area is getting people to go to church.) She seemed to enjoy the talks, and during the closing hymn ("I Believe in Christ") she cried. In a big ol' ward with a talented organist and a congregation that sounds like a choir, that's not too hard. But in a tiny congregation of 24, without piano, that really means something.

Next, she passed to the Sunday School class, which I gave. It was about symbols. I explained about how the Exodus of Moses and the Israelites can be compared to our life on Earth (Egypt, Red Sea, pillar of fire, wilderness, Mount Sinai = The World, Baptism, Holy Ghost, Endure to the End, the Temple), about Jonah and the Whale, and Abraham and Isaac and all the symbolism there. It was the perfect lesson for her. She was totally captivated. If that wasn't good enough, a few women from the district came to visit for Relief Society. The Relief Society President taught lesson 21 from the George Albert Smith book (the real lesson was 17) but God knows everything. Lesson 21 is all about how to raise your family and help your kids grow and everything. She was talking and giving lots of opinions and reading right along with everyone. That's when President Guevara from the mission presidency got there. He asked me, pointing at Lupita, "Wow, she's really powerful. How long has she been a member?" I told him, smiling, that not only was she not a member, it was her first Sunday. He was totally surprised! Anyway, at the end of the class she asked if she could borrow the George Albert Smith manual to read next week's lesson before Sunday. I talked to the Relief Society president after church and she said that God had put her in the perfect Sacrament meeting. The sisters from the district were there, the lessons were tailored directly to her, just everything worked out perfectly. She said she'll be there next week without fail.

If you'd have asked me the day we found her what I thought her chances were of getting baptized, I would have laughed. Now? I wouldn't doubt if she was a member before November. I believe in miracles. =)

I know now more than ever that God is aware of every single person on this planet. He knows what they pray for and he wants the best for them. It seems impossible, because there's so many of us. But it's true. Everyone has the right to get to know their Father, but he already knows us.

Love you all. Keep Lupita in your prayers. Pray that she gets an answer about the Book of Mormon. I know she's praying about it, and I want her to get baptized SO much!

Have a fantastic week!

Elder Crabb

PS This Saturday was Independence day. Obviously nothing too crazy happened, because I didn't even mention it once. But just so you know. We had to go home an hour early, but just as a precaution. Next week: Wild Tarantula Photo?! Stay tuned!

9-10-12 She lived on our street the WHOLE TIME! Plus, "Something Embarrassing

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEN AND TIFFANY!

I was walking down the street the other day, and a local pharmacy had a big ol' speaker outside blasting music to advertise their store (something very common down here). The song changed, and it was the Andy Griffith song. No background or anything, but it was just the guy whistling. Then, pretty much the last thing I could have expected happened: the song "Single Ladies" started. It was a mash up!! I was dying laughing...who could even think of something like that?! I know how much you love that song (and Andy Griffith?), so you've got to look it up. I'm sure it's on "The Youtube" somewhere.

This time, the less serious things come first.

It seems that, even with my modified choice of shampoo, the way hath not been prepared for my escape from the grasp of this awful monster, yea, that monster, premature baldness, which I call the death of the roots, and also the death of the self-confidence. Yes, I am already balding. It's nothing too bad as of yet, just the bald spot at the back is thinning, but WOW, a whole lot of my hair falls out! I don't know why I would think I could escape going bald looking at pictures of Dad! Don't worry though, it's not too noticeable as of yet. Or at least that's what they tell me....

As for the other part of the subject line, we found this girl the other day who is totally awesome. Her name is Iveth. She's 17 years old. We found her because she asked me for help on her English homework haha. She surprised us because she asked us for help like this: "Hey Elder! Can you help me with this really fast?" (without seeing our nametags or anything). What? So we talked to her, and, as it turns out, her mom is an inactive member! I asked her why she never got baptized, and she said "I dunno, but I sure would like to!" Holy cow! And the best part is, she lives about three houses down from us. I tell ya, some of my biggest miracles have come when I least expect it. We'll have more about her this week.

Also, there's this guy we found named Eduardo. At first, we thought he was severely handicapped because he was in a wheelchair and he wasn't talking, but talking to a lady there we found out that he's only been like that for about a month. Before, he was 100% fine. That kind of blew my mind because he couldn't even shake our hands and it cost him a lot of work just to talk. A member had offered him a blessing, so we gave him one. Then, later that week we decided to fast for him. His wife fasted with us! It was really cool, and they're progressing. They've said they'll go to church this week.

Elder Osorio and I have decided to start from scratch. We have had a lot of "iffy" people lately who just want scripture study classes. They invite us back but they have no intention of reading the Book of Mormon or going to church, much less getting baptized. There are a few religions here (without mentioning names...) that go door to door, giving Bible study classes. That's swell and all, but not really what we're about. So we've been letting people know what our expectations are. If they don't want to read, that's fine, but what we really want is that God can answer your prayers, so if you don't want that we can't really help you. I've been a little bolder than normal recently, for that reason haha. I said to one lady, "There's really no point in talking to us if you don't read the Book of Mormon." So she said, "Then there's really no point in coming back, because I'm not going to read it!"

That's something that's been on my mind. The Book of Mormon. That's the beauty of our religion, isn't it? It's not ever iffy. It's 100% true, or 100% false. With other churches, you could say that you can never really know 100% because there's nothing "yes or no", if that makes sense. The Book of Mormon is either an inspired book of scripture, or a genius albeit completely false book written by a total liar. I think that makes a lot of sense. It has to be that way, because in a lot of circumstances, we have to walk ONLY by faith. We can say, "If this is true, everything is." How cool is that? I'm so grateful I don't have to preach something "because I think it's the truth". We have the evidence. I love it.

It's getting colder. But my testimony sure isn't!

Love,

Elder Crabb