Hey hey!
I hope everyone has had another amazing week and that y’all are doing so well!! Another great week this week here, so I’ll go get started!
✨️ Highlights:
– Our bad dish washing habits let ants get into the sink, who knows from where. We finally discovered the little colony outside our door. We cleaned the sink deeply, and none of our odd Mexican cleaning chemicals seemed to repel them dang ants, so we very carefully took matters into our own hands with a lighter and an almost empty can of Axe body spray and took care of them. No more ant issue!
– The Vizuette family, who are recent converts, are the coolest people ever and were really sad when I took the last Elder’s place in the area because they missed him. But I think they’ve been warming up to me more and more and this week they gave me a capybara stuffed animal let’s gooo!!
– Holy cow, Thursday morning we got a phone call from a random number so I was like wait maybe its miracles! I answered the phone call, and all I hear is “hola, buen dia?” in a quiet little man voice before my companion reaches over and pounds the decline button, I was like why on earth did you do that!! He told me this story about how a random robot guy would call him everyday with a credit card scam, and somehow it got his name. They would block his number every time but he called with a new one every day. I did not believe him until this happened, and since then we’ve gotten calls at about 11:15 from an unsaved number every day. Favorite phone call of every day, sometimes my companion messes with the robot until it runs out of auto responses and cuts the call
– On Sunday our member meal canceled on us so we were like heck yeah let’s go grub it up in the house. We were like out of any complete meal ingredients, so we invented what is probably the best thing I’ve eaten in Mexico, the Meat Mac. Grill up some bacon in a pan, fry your burgers in the bacon fat, and later with the little bit off left over nummies, toast up your wheat bread. Put the useless end piece of bread that no one eats in between the patties, stack up some bacon, and slather it all in mayo, and you got the most filling and probably unhealthy thing I’ve eaten in awhile. If Jared West got a hand on one of these, McDonald’s would go out of business, let’s just say.
– We, along with apparently every other missionary in the greater Mexico City area, got a text from this guy who could only be described as a tie mogul. He has smoking deals so you best believe I’m going to buy some ties off this dude.
– We went to the temple today, and that really is just such a spiritually powerful place! Do everything you can to make it a priority in your life because the Spirit and inspiration that you can get there is so real and so powerful. And even if you don’t get a specific answer, there is always peace that come from being in the House of the Lord. Go to the temple!
– I got to give a blessing to a member in our ward who is actually an amazing person and I was so honored he would ask me. The Spirit really does work through us when we are worthy and seek to do His work. I’m definitely super imperfect, but it was really cool to feel the Lord magnify my efforts as I said things that I didn’t come from my head.
– Transfer calls will come in tomorrow night and we will have transfers on Thursday. I know I say this every time, but this was easily the fastest transfer I’ve had so far. I’m actually shocked it’s already come to an end. I reallyyyy really hope I get to stay here with Elder Warren because he is an amazing missionary and such a great guy, he has taught me tons of stuff and we have had so much fun and countless miracles. Amazing transfer! The mission just keeps going by faster and faster.
– We ordered Little Caesar’s on Uber Eats and got ripped off on our order of buffalo ranch. What the heck!! I love buffalo ranch.
Anyways, I absolutely love being a missionary and this week went by so quickly! I am so happy being here and constantly feel my Heavenly Father’s love for us and for the people we meet and it’s just been so cool.
📖 Spiritual Things:
Alright, I know I’ve most definitely shared this quote with you before, but I love it so much and it really stuck out to me particularly strong this week, so I’d thought I’d share it again! This is from Mere Christianity, by CS Lewis.
“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently he starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is He up to?”
Ain’t that the truth. Life is hard, and the world is a hard place to live. It’s hard to get up every day and get back at the chopping block to try and become a better person and follow all the things our Heavenly Father asks us to do. It probably often feels like we are being asked too much or that God is too strict on us–like the sermon on the mount where Jesus teaches to pluck out your eye if it offends you, and not to even think of the sin, because if you have, you have sinned enough already in your heart. So why does God give us so many ‘rules’?
“The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of–throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”
He does it to make us better people, better disciples of Jesus Christ, and especially to make us into beings that are worthy of living in His presence. He does all the things He does, permits all the things to happen that happen, because He loves, knows, and cares about us deeply enough that He will allow us some insignificant pain (eternally speaking) if it means an eternity of joy spent with Him and our families.
I think sometimes we imagine or paint God as someone who is way too harsh on us–a God who sends the imperfect to damnation and he’ll fire, or someone who will let us do whatever we want because He is love. I particularly love the talk Where Justice, Love, and Mercy Meet by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland because really, sometimes God is someone different than we would have Him be. He loves us perfectly and unconditially, yes, but He also expects that we love Him back, keep His commandments, and allow His will to become our will. The disobedient never lose an ounce of His love, but the faithful disciple will recognize it more often. God will push us because He knows we can grow and become as He is, but He also knows that won’t come without work and sacrafice.
I am so grateful for a Heavenly Father who knows and loves me perfectly, and for His Holy Son who sacraficed for me. He advocates for us with our Heavenly Father and understands our deepest pains and heartaches. He will run to our aid. I’m glad I have found joy in chopping away and trying to let my will align with God’s, so that He can have me grow and become who He knows that I eternally can become.
So, my invitation this week is to drop whatever it is that you have in life that is keeping you from aligning with God’s will. Quit standing in the lake waist deep and just jump in and get it over with already! Or, as Elder Christopherson put it, drop and bury whatever weapon of rebellion you have against God. I promise that obedience to His commandments opens your eyes to more blessings and love that He is pouring down, and that you will have the influence of His Holy Spirit with you. As King Benjamin’s people found, we will have no more desire to do evil, but to do good continually as we allow our will to become God’s will, and let Him make us into the people we can be.
Well, I sure do love you all a ton!! I’m always praying for you so keep on doing the good work and finding joy in life! Don’t forget to be a light to other people around you! Go have yourselves another amazing week, and make a Meat Mac. I even gave you the secret recipe.
I love you!! See you soon ✌️
– Elder Crockett ♡
