Week 86: A Day that I Will Never Forget!!!

8/19/2013
Hey no time today! We have to go pick up the new missionaries and have the day with them...we might find time later to shoot a quick email. Sorry! Love y'all!

Con amor y respeto

Elder Erickson

Hey family! 

We just picked up the new missionaries and had a lunch and presentation with them. They were up at 1:00 this morning to fly in from Mexico and Provo so we planned a little nap time in the day so we snuck off to get some email time in. So we only have a few minutes because we have to get back but we probably won't find time later either.

Saturday was the most amazing experience of my mission. Being able to be inside the temple and seeing the Ortega family walk around the corner was unlike anything I've ever felt! I imagine it is much the same feeling for parents seeing their children enter the temple! It was different doing a session in Spanish but I liked it a lot! Still the old video but we will get to go again this Wednesday with the departing missionaries!, one of the perks to being the AP!  

I wish I could explain the feelings of being in the temple with the Ortegas but there isn't words that even come close!! We were able to go to the sealing with them as well! While sitting in the Celestial room talking with them, both were crying and saying how strong the feeling was and how they never thought it would be so strong! While we were talking a temple worker came up and was looking for "Elder Erickson" I had no idea why but she pulled me and Hno Velazquez (now Obispo) out of the room and guided us to another room. She sat us down with the sealer and He talked with us and how the Ortegas asked for us to be witnesses!!! We had a good talk with them all is Spanish and he told us how we need to make sure they attend often and support them in the gospel! After we went to the sealing room and it was such a spiritual time for me and for everyone! Elder Cope and Elder Walser were able to come with us and also some other members from the Galena Park Ward were also going through for the first time, one of which was Elder Mallard's convert. So he and his companion were able to come as well. And to top it off Elder Viitanen was put with them so he was able to come! That is one day I will never forget!!! The temple is amazing and should be the goal for everyone! Those who haven't gone yet should do everything they can to prepare to enter and those who have better be going often! I know the temple is the Lord's House! To feel His presence strongest, we must go to His house. 

8/20/2013

Life has been pretty crazy for the past couple days! Today is Tuesday and we are sitting in the Mission home with the departing missionaries they are making things for a scrapbook that sister Crawford has and I'm just chilling with writing y'all on a laptop. So I don't have a whole ton of time! There have been so much going on and I would love to tell you about life now but I'm going to have to pick and choose so I'm going to share an amazing miracle story and dedicate it to PaPa! After the craziness of the new missionaries and preparing for everything we were about to start the meeting and Elder Brown came up to me and told me that they were in the store the other day and a man came up to them and said that he has a friend that is a member of the church. He said it was one of his best friends that he met in the Navy. These Elders were serving out in the country part of the mission in an area called Buna. The man said that his good friend from the navy has a grandson serving in Texas!! It was Papa's friend from the Navy he told me to find! I've never made it out that way but I've always remembered that Papa has a friend out there! So with God's help he found us! They got his info and address and now the sisters that cover that area are going to visit him! I'm going talk to President and look for every excuse when we are out that way to go and visit him! I was super happy when I heard that! 

I've really enjoyed my new assignment working with President and all the office staff. It's different, super different, but I like it still, I get to see a whole new side of missionary work. I will miss knocking into drunk Mexicans in the 100 degree sun but I'm excited to get to work with all the missionaries in the mission!!

Con amor y respeto

Elder Erickson

Week 85: My Mission Just Changed 100%

Hey Family!

Well to start off...I Love all of you so much!

second...I Have Cancer....haha 

I kid. I kid. 

Really though I do Love y'all but it doesn't take a moment like that to make me realize it! 

I have Great news though! The Ortega's will be going through the Temple this Saturday!!!!!!!!!!!! the 17th at 9am! And I will be able to go!!!!!!!!!! I am so stoked!!!! Baptisms are great but I don't think anything will compare to this! I was able to talk to the the other day! We dropped off some Elders in our zone at their house because they were having some problems with stuff so we had to take them to the police station and drop them off again. Luckily their next appointment was with the Ortegas so I was able to talk with them! 

We had a miracle this week as well that was a real testimony builder to me of acting on impressions. We were driving away from an appointment and didn't really have a plan since that was already our backup plan and I was thinking where to go and Elder Viitanen was just driving....he still doesn't know the area! haha but he drove us into a dead end so I got out to (help us) back up and as I did I saw two really big...tatted...mean looking Mexicans working on their truck. Something said to me "go talk to him" I thought...I already look like a dork backing this mini van in the middle of the road, but oh well...I guess I should talk to them even if I have to fly solo. So I went and started talking about his truck...I don't know too much about cars so it was pointless but anyways I started to say I was a missionary and he cut me off. He said "Yeah, LDS. I know. I'm a member!" It was amazing! He still has a testimony, parents are real strong in the chruch, they live somewhere else, he moved here and works Sundays so hasn't been able to go to church, his wife and kids are catholics, been to church a few times with him but never had any missionaries over! He asked us if we need food or anything to eat and sadly we had a dinner in a bit but we set up another time to go see him! It was a legit experience for me to see how the spirit helped me to go talk to them.

Dallin and Jamie... you are now free to release that story and E-mail! I'm no longer in that apartment!  (see email below)

Also I made some purchases....I had to buy new pants, and a watch that actually works. So there are some charges. I needed to look more professional now. I got moved. I'm not in the Ghetto anymore. I'm working with President and Elder Walser now. I'm the new AP ;) MIX FEELINGS!

Address ( mission Office)

 2815 West Lake Houston Parkway

Kingwood, TX  77339

Con amor y respeto!

Elder Erickson

From: Ethan Erickson 

Subject: Pinche Chinches

Date: July 29, 2013 11:30:10 AM MDT

To: Dallin Erickson, Jamie Heslop

proque ya saben, Les voy and contar algo....

Its probably one of the funniest stories...mixed with a horror story. Make sure you have your visual thinking caps on and that you aren't around other family members because i don't want them to know until we are all the way in the clear. 

So Day by day:

Saturday I woke up and saw a few blood stains on my sheets...i was scared but tried to just tell myself it came from a scab or something

Sunday morning: woke up and saw more blood. And a couple bigger spots, a huge blood smear and a dead bed bug on my sheets so now i was scared but didn't know what to do. 

Monday: Slept on the couch and everything was fine. 

- called sister crawford and she "wanted to be sure" so she told me to sleep in my bed then to wake up in the middle of the night and to grab a light and hurry and turn in on and look and see if i could see any bed bugs. 

-2 o clock i woke up just on my own before the alarm. I grabbed the light, turned it on, Tons of FREAKING BEDBUGS were all over me...a couple of them were mid gulp of my precious blood! I freaked out and started killing some of them...but then i was just smearing blood. So i went and got a water bottle and started catching them. Then i checked under my mattress and a long it and there were tons o i just gave up, got in the shower and then unrolled my yoga mat and slept on the freezing tile. our whole apt. is just tile. It was the worst night sleep ever but i was so freaked out that i couldnt even go close to were they might be. 

Tuesday: They fumigated the room. We were out working all day and they told us we had to wash ALL OUR CLOTHES, EVERYTHING i dropped like $15 just in laundry. we ended up teaching until 8:30. we had to make sure Teresa was ready! so we get our laundry done at like 10:30...then we had to vacuum everything too!!!!!! so we were vacuuming (keep in mind that all of this is happening and i cant speak and english! which i went the whole week without! haha) while cleaning the box spring we found a whole colony of chinches! so me being super baby and scared. We just hucked it outside...haha and then we found more in Elder V's Boxspring...so we hucked that too....this is about 1 in the morning. Then the frames were next. Then our Rug we have in our room...and then the vacuum because they were crawling all over that...we bleach mopped the floor. bleach scrubbed the mattress. got to bed by 3. 

We had all our clothes in trash bags for a few days...we froze our backpacks and all our ties! dry cleaned our suits. we had nothing left but mattresses in our dang room! haha 

Good news though! no bites or blood since then!...just super tired!!!! haha 

Love you! hope that made you laugh!...keep this email cuz ill probably never get time to write it in my journal...but after a few weeks ill send it to the public. VIP ONLY NOW.

Week 84: SALVATION IS NOT CHEAP

Hey family!!!!!

This week!....well...It was a week of missionary work! haha

We spent a lot of our time doing things for Zone meeting and driving up to the mission office and we had a meeting there about how we can better help our Zones and what are the problems we are having, and boy are there a lot of them ;) 

Some advice I would like to direct to all those who are planning on going on a mission, Make sure you prepare for it! A mission is thee greatest time of your life, IF you give your all to it and are willing to work. If you are not willing to sacrifice things and work hard, you then become a burden to those who are willing to. My testimony has never been stronger and my knowledge of the gospel is where I didn't even imagine it getting, granted I'm still a baby in this stuff...before I was just a embryo. I've learned so many people skills and spiritual skills that I know will help me throughout my life! and I hope that everyone has the chance to have this same learning experience that I have had. Just please be preparing before! :) read, pray and understand that it's not a trip. Elder Holland said something along the lines of this regarding missionaries who don't understand why baptisms don't come easier, he said that These things should not be easy because SALVATION WAS NEVER EASY FOR HIM, SALVATION IS NOT CHEAP.  If Christ had to go through such a hard time to bring salvation to us then it shouldn't be a cheap thing to us!. That quote (I wish I knew it word for word, but the idea behind it has really helped me through my mission (when) it has been hard! and people don't want to listen to us. I wish I would have been more prepared and many of the new missionaries are thinking the same thing! This is the work of salvation! Its a big deal :)

But sounds like y'all had a blast at Bear lake! Thanks so much for sending those pictures!!!! I'm sure you took a lot! I would love to see more! haha...Eli is so tall...I can't believe it! You look like a stud! just hit the gym! ;) you and Dallin! haha just kidding! ....BUT I was most shocked when I saw this beautiful young girl...in a dress...and her hair was done? she was standing admits my family...in the big family photo...white and blue stripped?  Who is that? 

I Hope Miles enjoyed his first trip up there! Even if he didn't love the water yet, I'm sure he will learn to!  

As for my pants...well they are fine! I think we found a member of the ward to take care of them and she said she will sow them up! so I'll try that first...if it doesn't work I'll probably go buy some new ones at Ross or something! 

 Last Monday Teresa's Father fell and hit his head and passed away....its really messed up how the low blows Satan troughs at people right after their baptism! It was a super hard for her....she was strong but it really beat her up....she went out of town to Austin yesterday to get away from everyone...they do the Mexican style funeral....aka "party and drink beer for a week, on the tab (of the) family who had the death"...it was pretty messed up...no joke there were guys out in her yard for the entire week drinking! When the Relief Society went by to offer help all she asked for was someone to get rid of the pile of trash bags full of beer bottles and cans! 

Hugo is doing good... probably going to have to push his date back because he is a heavier smoker than we thought!

We had a new lady come to a baptism this Saturday!....Mariluz Carrillo! she is such a sweet humble lady! Her husband doesn't like the church and seems abusive so we are taking things slow...but she is down to get baptized and pay tithing...she really wants to pay tithing but doesn't have a job...so she wants to get a job to be able to pay because her husband wont give money of his for tithing...She has amazing faith!

Love y'all dearly!

Con amor y respeto!

Elder Erickson

Week 83: Teresa Rodriguez, The newest member de la Iglesia de Jesucristo de Los Santo de Los Ultimo Dias!

Hey family! 

Glad to hear that no one is being lame at Bear Lake and that you are all enjoying the time up there! I wish I could be there! Make some plans for next year! haha 

This past week was a great week!! First off Teresa's Baptism went amazing!!!!!!!! is was such a good baptism! I was so happy! We were pretty nervous about how is was going to go because no one form the ward ever shows up to them but there were a few that came so it was good! It was one of the most spiritual baptism on my mission though! This was something she has been wanting for a Very VERY long time! I felt the spirit very strong as I watched her be baptized! She also brought her son and daughter to the baptism. They felt the spirit too, her daughter was crying and I was talking to her son after and jokingly I told him he was next. He just kinda looked and me and said "yeah, I would like to get baptized" so more seriously we talked to him about it! He came to church the next day and said he "got a few spiritual slaps", but (it) was "what he needed to hear".

We taught him that afternoon and set the date for the 17 of August!! It was so amazing to see the change in him! Just looking at his picture is a good idea of him. ;)  I got to confirm her and it was also a great experience for (me) to be able to assist in giving someone such an important gift!

That Saturday we also had splits with the assistants. Elder Cope came with us. He has been one of my best bros. on the mission. He is a big soccer player and he actually played on a team with Zach Read and Phill Neworth so we know some people in common. But Elder Viitanen, Cope and I are like the three amigos in the mission! It was so fun to all be together for an exchange. We were chatting how it was almost unreal how it happened haha!

Another awesome investigator that he have is Hugo Garcia...sadly not the Garcia family. His wife and kids left him shortly after we started teaching them....it was sad. He jokingly said "ah its because y'all started coming over" but I don't think he was 100% joking. But ni modo he is still down to work double shifts Saturday night to come to church on 2 hours of sleep! he is so awesome! I wish we could have taught his whole family but I'm glad he now has the gospel to help him out. We also have a date with him for the 17 of August! Yesterday in church he was cracking jokes in priesthood and just going around talking to people like he is already a member. He smokes so as of right now that is his hold up. But things are looking bright. 

Con amor y respeto

Elder Erickson

Teresa's Baptism

Elder Viitanen, Teresa Rodriguez, Elder Erickson

The Three Amigos

Elder Erickson,  Elder Cope,  Elder Viitanen

Week 82: Repentance Works

Que tal familia!?

Hope all is well for you in your preparations for Bear Lake! I'm pretty jealous! I miss that place so much! It's the best place ever, no doubt. Being with family, a chill environment, water front, open beach, awesome food! all that is missing is me! haha 

This week in our area we have some really good things going on! We have so much potential. We have made a plan and set our goals for the transfer of what we to have by the end and how we are going to get them and doing everything we can to reach those goals. One of which was to find a family and this transfer. We have found a family of 4 already! La familia Garcia. The husband came to church and in 5 days has already read 30 pages of The Book of Mormon. When he read the part of the "whore of the whole earth" he said he was really confused and decided to pray. He said after he prayed he had the thought come to him that it isn't talking of a person or any one thing but of the temptation of the devil and all the evil in the world. It was so amazing to see how he is already understanding personal revelation! He is good friends with some converts of about 1 year! we have set the date with them for the 17 of Aug. Its going to take some divine help but when you are on the Lord's mandato you get the Lord's ayuda! 

With Teresa Rodriguez, she has had one of the craziest lives I have ever heard of. She has been so humbled and has so much faith. She is over coming so much. She is a really strong women. She told us a story of how she was going to a church in Mexico and she stopped going and someone told her she wouldn't see the next Sunday and that week someone shot her in the leg and she still has part of the bullet in her leg! its crazy! She has had so much other stuff happen with deaths in the family and what not but those pains are what cause her to smoke. We told her to call us whenever she had the desire to smoke and we would talk to her. She called us last night at 11:45! We talked to her for a bit and she just told us stories and we told her a few to try and get her mind off of it, then read some scriptures! It was funny, felt like I was in Jr. high again talking on the phone with my crush into the wee hours of the night. 

She also came to a baptism this weekend! She sat front row and after the baptism she was crying! When we asked her how she felt she said "mi corazon destapo'" she said how when he went under (the water) then came up she felt like her heart was unclogged and all the pain and guilt just exploded out and was gone for a second.   We are going to give her a blessing today at a members house. I have learned so much from her and how repentance works and the blessing it is to all of us! I can't imagine life without it! make sure you use it! The only thing more stupid than sinning, is not repenting! 

Con amor y respeto

Elder Erickson

ps we had another mini-missionary...he was different (he just came from cheer camp) but we still worked hard! haha

Elder Erickson, Elder Viitanen and mini-missionary

Week 81: Brothers Reunited

Well Elder E and Elder V are REUNITED! haha yeah!

I'm pumped! 

Elder Viitanen is my new comp! Its so great, none of this awkward first week trying to figure out how things are going to work out between the two missionaries and learn each others life! We just jumped right into it! We are great friends and that makes the missionary work so much more fun! A lot has changed since we were together, we were both pretty young missionaries, now we got a little more time under our belts and things are going great! 

We've been doing a lot more work in getting the members with us and it's making a big difference with our relationship with the ward. This week was quite eventful though. On Saturday we had a pretty big lesson with Teresa, She is a lady who has been through A LOT in her life. She is a crazy tough women and could really use the gospel. Missionaries have been finding her where ever she goes. When we started teaching her things would not sink in, at all...we would teach one point at a time of the plan of salvation and then review it. By the next time we saw her she'd forgotten it. But just recently she read Lehi's dream and could describe and give the interpretation of it! It was an amazing change, It reminds me a lot of the change that we (Elder Vittanen and I) saw in Yaneth! She has come to church three weeks now! and every time is opening up more and more. But we had a lesson with her on Wed. about the word of wisdom because she is overcoming smoking. Elder Viitanen brought out a good thought about what's causing her to smoke and how she has some pain that (makes) wants her (want) to smoke, so we set up an atonement lesson and left her some scriptures to read. We planned a bomb lesson for her. So Sat. before the lesson Elder Viitanen gets sick and passes out and just drops on the porch of an appointment haha. He was so out of it...I think it was just Heat Exhaustion and dehydration but we made it home and had about an hour before the appointment. He was down to come and just sit there but it really wasn't a good idea since he couldn't remember the last half hour of his life. But we got some other elders who didn't have plans to come with us and we exchanged for the appointment. They were English elders but it was ok because we had some members! It was such a good lesson!!!! So spiritual! She will be getting baptized on the 27th! :) 

Con amor y Respeto

Elder Erickson

 After Elder  Levia left, the place was destroyed...then we came in dropped our stuff and Elder Viitanen pulled out what he needed and then we left and worked haha....after a couple days of working hard we needed to clean ;) we just couldn't find time

...but we finally did...its such a nice place now.

... a long with our working hard..this was our dinner! haha I'm eating 

yogurt...Elder Viitanen is eating beans! We had like 5 minutes or so ;) 

Week 80: God Is Love

Querido Familia,

First off an update on transfers...I'm not sure if I told you but this was Elder Leivas last transfer, so he is heading home to Chili ya. This week was a lot of saying good-byes and what not. It kinda made me think a little bit more in coming home than normal. Ever since I left Denver Harbor until now I haven't even really thought about it but now that I see him packing up it scares me for when that sad day comes my way. 

My new companion is very possibly Elder Erickson, or Elder Viitanen again! They both are going to be Zone Leaders so we'll see. I would love to be with Elder Viitanen again, we had so much fun together. 

I talked with the missionaries in DH and they said that Ortegas finished all the classes for the temple. Hno got his recommend but sadly Hna went to Mexico! so she will be back in a week or so then they will be going! So it should be really really soon! I'm so stoked! 

Our 4th of July was just a normal day. We had a grill session with our district for lunch, we still did hour of power. We had a miracle at 6:59! We had just got done talking to some guy who doesn't believe in God or anything, which I still can't wrap my head around, and we got a call from a wrong number we had dialed earlier in the day. We ended up contacting her and getting her address! Turns out she lived in the mission, even in the zone! We gave the referral to some Hermanas and they went and visited her on Saturday and said she is really great! 

That was Elder Leivas last contact in the Hour of Power. It was  pretty cool.

Other than that this week has been a lot of running around. We are getting 25 more missionaries. We have gotten between 20 and 30 every transfer since the first of this year. We will double the number of missionaries we had. We also had 3 scheduled baptisms that fell through and that is greatly our role as zone leaders to make sure that those things don't happen so we had a lot of things going on! It was a pretty stressful week. 

I just want you and everyone else to know that I love my mission! Houston is a great place and will always be holy ground for me! I've seen so many miracles and learned so much here. I know that it is because I have had divine help! I Know now more than ever that Jesus Christ is my Savior, Redeemer, and Brother! I Know I have a Heavenly Father that Loves me. I know God calls Prophets. And I Know God is LOVE

Con amor Y respeto

Elder Erickson