June 23, 2014

Buenas Tardes!

Well week one of this transfer is now in the books, and it was a very successful week. Full of good work done, some crazy experiences, and playing chauffeur a little bit as well. But things turned out to be a
super good week and we are super excited for this week.

I am sure you are all curious about my new companion verdad? My companion is Elder Smyer, he is from Burley Idaho, he started his mission in Mexico close to the border of Mexico and Guatemala but was
only there for about 6 months and came here due to some problems with his kidneys. He has 23 months in the mission and has about 3 weeks left. He is a super hard worker and is really helping me up my game to
help our investigators. He actually has served in this ward before for about 8 months but in a different area. He actually gave a talk on Sunday and immediately the members came up to him excited to see him
again. I am excited for the little bit of time I have to work with Elder Smyer and I have already learned a lot from him within this week.

So we have a car now for our companionship because Elder Smyer sold his bike, and I am the designated driver. Por eso I said I have been playing chauffeur. Helping Elders close to our area get from place to
place every once and a while, and picking them up for dinner appointments. Plus on friday we got a flat tire because we ran over a screw so we had to go get that fixed. So those few details had impeded our work a little bit, mostly in the mornings and the afternoons. But it has helped us get around our area a little bit faster and get to lessons faster. So I think it is a win situation.

That is cool that you met Sydney Blaser. I agree that is a crazy coincidental that things worked out that way. You will have to tell her I say hi and to be careful with eye surgeries ;) Haha I bet she
will have a good time working at the clinic and she probably does better with blood :)

Glad to hear that things went well with your trip to Washington. I was super happy to hear that the Spirit was super strong at the meeting. That has always been a thing I have recognized in Steve. His ability to follow the Spirit and do the things to bless his family and others. Definitely a Christlike Example. I know that their family is a good example for our family and for Nicolle's side as well. It really does strengthen one's testimony that when we center the Gospel in our families the more unified we will be, and more happy we will be. I have really seen that on my mission and it does motivate missionaries to bring that Gospel into the homes of a family.

Well we are super excited for this week and the plans and goals we have set. Like I said earlier Elder Smyer has already taught me alot of good things to help me be a better missionary and help our investigators progress. I know we are going to have a super good week and the Lord will guide us in His work.

Love you all! Enjoy the World Cup for this week!

Elder Roberts

June 16, 2014

Hi everyone,

I have never had such a huge desire to watch soccer than this week. Dad will understand what I am talking about. So the World Cup started on Thursday, and pretty much our work has slowed down dramatically.
EVERYONE and I mean EVERYONE is watching the games. Streets are empty, nobody wants to open their doors, and when they do they have a game going and tell us to come back later. President Tew has told us that if we can teach, teach. But if not we can go to members or investigators and visit with them even if there is a game going on. So yeah I have seen a couple games this week. I haven't seen a complete
90 minute game, but I have seen 20-30 minutes of a couple games. I feel bad that we are allowed to do so, but if it means we can visit with members and investigators I guess we will go with it. It is funny
because before the mission I did not like soccer, playing it or watching it. Now I find it super fun to watch and we play it every p-day. Crazy what the mission does to ya.

So I am sure you all are curious about what happened with transfer calls on Saturday. Well I will tell ya that something crazy has happened again. Like you all know my current companion Elder Lloyd has
been in this area for 5 transfers (7 months) and was ready for a change. Well he got it and will be going to the best ward in the mission, La Esperanza. He actually will be working in part of my last area that got dissolved. So he is excited for that change.

As for me things are a little bit more crazy. My new companion is Elder Smyer, but I will be companions with him for only 3 weeks. After that Elder Smyer will be going home, and I don't know what will happen
after that. Some say that I will get a native greenie, others say I will work in a trio for the rest of the transfer, or others say that our area will be dissolved and I will leave with Elder Smyer. To be honest I have no idea what will happen and am super curious what will happen. I am excited to work with Elder Smyer; he actually started in Mexico and due to some health problems was reassigned to this mission. I hear he is a super hard worker, his spanish is perfect, and I will have a good time working with him. So ya stay tuned for what will
happen in 3 weeks.

Well to be completely honest that is the highlights of the week. Hope dad had a super good father's day. I was going to buy you something, but decided you gift will be me coming home being able to speak
spanish with you ;) Oh ya one other highlight. I got to speak in our ward sacrament meeting yesterday. The 2nd counselor ask me to speak last week and asked that I take 10-15 minutes about fathers. So I
spent the entire week to prepare a talk, that was 15 minutes long roughly, about the responsibilities of the Father. I used a talk by Elder Perry to help me narrow down the top responsibilities.

There were 3 other speakers along with me and they all did great, plus we had a rest hymn. Well by the time it was my time to speak, the bishop told me that I had 5-7 minutes to give my talk. So I was cutting stuff out like crazy trying to share the most important parts. In the end I was praying that the Spirit guide me so I could share what our Heavenly Father wanted me to share. So ya that was fun. I was pretty nervous but not as nervous as other times I have given a talk. Plus I only used an outline instead of going word for word and it went super well. Guess it is a good sign that I am improving.

Ok well that is all the highlights. Like I said stay tuned for next week for my adventures with Elder Smyer. I know the Lord is leading and guiding this work, He has a perfect plan for His work. I am grateful for this time to be an instrument in His hands to help His children receive the Restored Gospel.

Love you all,

Elder Roberts

June 9, 2014

Hi guys,

Wow what a week huh? To be honest I had no idea how this week was going to play out. Obviously a lot of emotions for starting the mission on year ago, and desire to work even harder this next year. It really hit me how fast this past year has flown by on Thursday and was a good time to reflect on what has happened this past year. But now my desire to work has definitely increased. A good example would be the
sons of Mosiah when hey had the desire "that salvation should be declared to every creature" (Mosiah 28:3). So ya this next year is going to crazy, and alot of good hard work will be done.

Thank you so much for the package you sent me. I had to laugh when I saw the two shirts on top. I told Elder Lloyd that white shirts are like a Hydra: You burn one, and two more replace it. Thank you for
everything else that you included in it I enjoyed everything. I especially enjoyed the snacks you included and already feel like I am eating more healthy with them. Definitely will have to buy more of them in the future. Also we have a member who gave us some ideas for some quick, healthy lunch ideas. So maybe this next year I might be able to drop a few pounds ;)

So this week we did a really good job applying the mission standards our mission president has established for us. We taught almost every single night this week which was awesome, we found a new investigators
and she came to church, and we talked to more people this week. It has been amazing to see how much more successful I felt this week when we met these standards, and helped me realize that these standards are to help us work more effectively. I definitely felt more effective in this work and a lot more happy. This week I will be focusing on teaching simple truths, talk with everyone, and obedience.

Well that is pretty much a good summary for the week. This is the last week for this transfer. I really think I will be getting a new companion due to that Elder Lloyd has been in this area for 5 transfers and is ready for a change of scenery. I am actually super excited for this next transfer and already have several good goals set
to help me work more effectively and efficiently. Like I said earlier I really want to raise my voice so that everyone can receive the Restored Gospel.

Love you all,

Elder Roberts

I think the only thing I need to explain is about the Pinata. So we

have a recent convert in our ward who loves to make pinatas. So Elder

Gonzalez, an Elder who has the same amount of time as I do, asked her

if she could make a pinata so we could celebrate our 1 year mark. So

she did and ya that is is :) It was so much fun until someone secretly

put in chili powder packets and they exploded when the pinata broke.

Haha everyone was sneezing and coughing when they exploded :) But ya

then after words Elder Awerkamp, a former companion of mine, and I

burnt our shirt to celebrate our year mark. It was so much fun! Enjoy

the photos!

June 2, 2014

Buenas Tardes,

Man sounds like this past week a lot happened. You have to love those crazy packed weeks right? Just means that the week will pass by even faster and faster to P-day to send/read emails right? Haha it is good
to know mom is more "Trunky" than I am. Haha Trunky is a word we use for missionaries who are super excited, and counting the days until they return home. Honestly I don't have a specific countdown like Mom
has :) But ya that milestone will come this Thursday. Yes I will be burning a shirt on Thursday but don't worry I will not be burning it in our apartment. There are about 4 or 5 of us who will be completing
1 year in the mission. So we will be doing it right after our zone meeting on Thursday at the Church. Haha one Elder said we should be sure no one is is watching so they don't think we are doing sacrifices
as in the Bible. Haha I thought that was funny. But ya that will be a good day.

So like I said in my call home, on Saturday Elder Ballard visited our mission. He was accompanied by Elder Schwitzer of the 70 and Elder Acosta our Area 70. It was such a great experience and such a great
opportunity to be taught by an Apostle of the Lord. Than on Sunday Elder Schwitzer visited our Stake so we had a special Stake Conference for that. Elder Schwitzer gave some simple suggestions about teaching
the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our homes. He gave 3 great places to do so: 1) The refrigerator. Putting up scriptures, quotes, and other items to help focus our thoughts on Christ. 2) The dinner table. When
the family eats dinner together, it is a great time to mingle together and strengthen family relations. To be honest this is something I do miss while being on the mission. 3) the walls of our homes. Kinda the
same concept with the refrigerator, we are more likely to remember things when we see them visually. Then he gave some great ideas about teaching simply so all can understand. It was such a great conference and overall a super spiritually packed weekend.

This week was pretty good. It has gotten hot again which makes it difficult to stay focused on the work. But overall it was super good. We had some good solid lessons with Manuel, Jenny and Nick and Manuel
and Jenny came to church on Sunday and loved it. We tried committing them to baptism but they expressed desire to continue reading and learning more about the church. I know that they have true desire to
learn more about the Church and the blessings it has for us as children of God.

Well to be completely honest that is most of our week. This transfer is starting to wrap up which means it is crunch time to finish strong. This is going to be a good week with all the activities we have planned to do. So expect a little bigger email next week.

Love ya,

Elder Roberts

May 26th, 2014

Hi guys,

Well here we are again, another Monday has arrived and we are writing emails. Super crazy isn't it? It literally felt like we just barely did this about 4 days ago. This week flew by super fast I don't know
where it went. We had a super good week really applying the mission standard into our area and letting the Lord work through us to find those prepared.

Hey FYI I did get the package from you with the Ensign and Liahona. However when I receive it, it was already opened and there was no flash drive in it. I think it might have got lost in the shipping
process. I checked our zone leaders car and the office and there was no flash drive. Thank you for the magazines! Don't worry to much about the flash drive, you can send it with the next package.

Sounds like everything went well with you talk in Church. Such a great topic; Elder Ballard has really given some great talks about missionary work, and the blessings that come from Missionary Work. I
hope you shared some good experiences about me and nothing to crazy ;)

Well this is going to be a short email because I don't have a lot of time. This week we had a really good week. We did a better job talking with everyone, and we found 3 new investigators. Two of them, Manuel
and Nate, are super bomb and super prepared. Manuel es de Quayaquil Ecuador (Maybe Dad first contacted him in his mission....), and his son Nate was born here in the US. Both of them have been going through some super hard times and really want a greater peace in their life. So we shared John 14:27 and promised that peace. Later when we visit them again Manuel actually asked us for a copy of the Book of Mormon because he remembered the missionaries in Ecuador talking about it. So we taught the Restoration and committed him to read. We are super excited for him and Nate and will be working really hard to help them find that peace in their life.

So ya that was pretty much the highlight of the week. We worked super hard and in turn had a very successful week. We are really starting to see the blessings that come from following the counsel of our Mission President, and it really is strengthening my testimony that God does inspire His chosen servants. I am grateful for President Tew and for his great service as Mission President.

Well I need to end here. Sorry for the short email this week. All the libraries are closed so we are on a tight schedule at the family history center. Thank you for all you do and for you love. Hope you have a good week and we will talk to ya next week.

Love,

Elder Roberts

May 19, 2014

Buenos Dias,
Man I cannot believe it is P-day already. It literally felt like I was
here only a couple days ago emailing you guys. This week passed by so
fast looking back on it now. During the week it didn't feel so, but it
really did fly by. I think it felt like if went by slow because it was
super hot. We hit temperatures in the low 100's for 3 straight days
and it was super hard. But we endured through and now the week is
over.

Sounds like you guys did have a super crazy weekend. I agree with mom
it is awesome to see how smooth the transition is between church
leaders. It was super cool reading how it all works in dad's email, it
definitely is a revelatory experience and amazing to see how the Lord
directs His church. I am with mom, I really don't know President Price
or President Diderickson. But I am super excited for President Godderidge, he is an awesome leader and will do a lot of great things a
the first counselor.

Thanks for the updates for track. Kyler told me that Tyson beat my 800
record. Sounds like it was super competitive this year which is
awesome. I don't have Tyson's email address so you will have to send
him a congrats through my facebook or something. Thanks for sending
that stuff so fast, I wasn't expecting it to soon, but thanks :) To
answer your question my companion and I don't have a car, but if I do
get to use a car soon I will have the thumb drive to listen to music
and talks as well. It is just weird that we can use thumb drives but
not iPods.... Quien sabe.

So this week like I said was just super hot and was very hard to stay
focused on the work. It started off a little slow, but like always it
picked up after Thursday. A theme we have as a zone this transfer it
talking with everyone that the Lord puts into our path. The past few
district meetings and zone meetings have been about this. To be honest
this has been one of my biggest weaknesses on the mission. But slowly
I have been getting better. I have been studying Chapter 9 of Preach
my Gospel pretty thoroughly and it has helped my increase my faith
that God is preparing His children to receive the Restored Gospel.
I did exchanges with our District Leader Elder Gonzalez on Saturday
and we made it a goal to focus on contacting during our exchange. It
started off with a super good personal study in the morning in Preach
my Gospel and the Scriptures. Two scriptures stuck out to me: D&C
24:12 and D&C 60:2,7. Both really just opened my eyes that it is a
commandment that as missionaries we need to talk to EVERYONE, and how
God will give us the strength, courage, and words to share with His
children. After that we went out and started working, passing by a few
potentials and members. Well in just 2 hours we talked with 11 people!
By the end of the exchange we had talked with 15 people that day. It
really increased my faith that there are people waiting to receive the
Gospel and how they are truly searching for the truth, and that is why
I am here: To bring the Restored Gospel to those searching for the
truth.

I know that this is God's work in the Earth. I am so grateful for His
guidance in this work and the help I receive every day. I am so
grateful that He is helping me overcome my weaknesses and I strive to
improve and do my part to improve as well. I know that it would be
very difficult to make such changes without His help and the help of
my leaders. I am so grateful for Elder Gonzalez and his love, and
desire, to help others improve.
Thank you for everything you do for me. Hope you all have a good weekend!
Love,
Elder Roberts


P.S
I was going to put this into my other email, but forgot.
While on Exchanges Elder Gonzalez and I contacted a family doing some
yard work, so we stopped to offer help and ask for some water. Later
we saw that they had a giant turtle just wandering their yard. So we
got a couple pictures with it.

I was going through my pictures and found a few more that people
might enjoy.

Picture 1.
This is what happens when you get 8 missionaries together after our
missionary correlation meeting. We stuff ourselves into a 2013 Toyota
Corolla

Picture 2.

Ya that's right we contacted a Pirate :)

May 12, 2014

Hi everyone,

I won't lie it is kinda hard to know what to write about after we call
home. I had the same problem when I called home for Christmas, the
following p-day I had no idea what to say. But I will try to mumble
off a few paragraphs. Forgive me if I just start rambling with no
purpose.

Well this week was kinda full of ups and downs. The week started a
little slow, and I know why which I will explain later, but after a
super bomb zone meeting and weekly planning session Thursday, things
just took off. Overall we found 3 new investigators and found several
of our less-actives in our area. It was a super good week, and I
really learned a lot about myself and this great work in which I am so
grateful to be apart of. The biggest fundamental of the Gospel that I
learned this week was Obedience brings Blessings (D&C 130 20-21).

So to start this week I was having some pain in my shins due to
breaking in new shoes. So I decided I would just take a week off from
running and exercise in the apartment doing body weight exercises.
Well Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday morning came and I stayed in bed
for an extra 30 minutes after the alarm went off. I did not get up to
exercise and I was just groggy, and tired for the entire day. Even
worse I was disobeying mission rules, constantly thinking about how
tired I was, and was not entirely focused on the work. Due to this I
know we weren't working as effective as we could have and I felt super
guilty.

Well like I said, after our zone meeting and weekly planning session
Thursday things just turned around. We made some specific goals to
work as hard as we could, and to be exactly obedient to every rule
including exercising in the morning. As we started to act on our goals
the Lord truly did guide us in the work. It was then when we found 3
new investigators, found several other people interested in the
Gospel, and overall I felt much better. I felt like I was more guided
in our planing, in what to say to the people we contacted, and more
happy.

I know that obedience and sacrifice brings the blessings of heaven.
Sometimes we might not understand exactly why we need to be obedient
to the smallest rules. But I know that is how we exercise our faith in
our Heavenly Father, put our trust in Him and our Savior Jesus Christ,
and push forward with faith in this life. I know that God will bless
us for our obedience, He will give us the strength to be obedient, and
help us understand the "whys" of His commandments. I am grateful for
all the blessings our Heavenly Father has blessed me with, and for the
experiences and trials He has given me.

Well I am going to end here. Thank you all for your love, support, and
prayers. I know the Lord is blessing you; keep seeking Him by being
obedient to His commandments as given through His prophets. His Gospel
has been Restored! I know it, I live it, I love it.

Love you all,

Elder Roberts