Being Transferred - Monday, July 29, 2013

Well, I have TONS to tell you, and OH so little time! So I'll get right to it!

The little road is called El Caminio de los Haitianos. 

Cuz only Haitians live there. Lots of tin huts. 7/22/13

On Monday night after sending off my last email, we walked El camino de los Hatianos out to the Clase Family's house. Hermana Clase cooked us some rice and beans with meatballs and fried Platano Maduro on the side. YUM! Then we had a family home evening about Obedience. Thanks to my devoted Grandma Mooney I have LOADS of scriptures and quotes about obedience, so the message was pretty easy to put together. :) Thanks Grandma!

Cool views in my area 7/22/13

Hamburgers and platano frito. YUM. 7/23/13

Tuesday I made Hamburgers and Fritos for lunch. ha. 

Our first appointment was with Karen (the former Jehovah's witness that I told you about last week)... We had a good discussion, and then she told us that she respected our opinions, but that from sharing with us she's realized that she was in the true church when she was a Jehovah's Witness... That was hard to hear... I really thought she was sincere in her desire to learn more. I think she's a great person, and according to her she is happy, so I suppose I should be happy for her too. She's smart, and she's trying to be open, so I'm sure she'll let the missionaries in next time they come around. :) Maybe the next Elders will know how to help her better. 

Wednesday we had some surprises... We walked over to the church for our district meeting, but when we got there the Zone Leaders called us and told us to come home. Elder and Sister Clawson came to inspect our house... Ha. Wasn't expecting that! But it's ok, cuz we had just super cleaned it on Monday. The only problem was that there was old pee in the toilet... I think I mentioned that we flush our toilet with a bucket, and seeing that water is scarce, unless there's a bigger issue (if you catch my drift) we just leave it unflushed with the lid down to conserve water... ha. So I ran up the stairs lickity split and flushed the toilet before they made through the front door. ha. They ended up complementing us on how clean our toilet was (thanks for teaching me to clean a bathroom dad! My skills still hold true in the DR!), and then gave us a talk about how keeping a clean house helps keep the Spirit with us! I AGREE!!!! Cleanliness is next to Godliness! Let's all be hygienic! 

After they left, the Zone Leaders told us we were doing an exchange with them, so Elder Meroño went with Elder Maldonado (his trainer... the mission is a small world. Let me tell ya.) and I stayed in our area with Elder Pittí. It was a good day. Elder Pittí is from Panama (where Steve Clarke is serving right now), so I asked him what it's like down there. Apparently it's a lot like the DR. Maybe I'll have to visit that place some day. :) Also, I learned a lot from him. He is full of good quotes and cool scriptures. He was very forward and open in his teaching, I was impressed with his testimony and the ease in which he shared it. In our lesson with Edward and Sandra in the evening we talked about Charity. Elder Pittí quoted CS Lewis, and William Shakespeare. ha. It was powerful. We helped them understand that we can show our love towards others and towards God through service. Then invited them to name 5 things they would do to serve each other this week! I have a pretty strong testimony about service. Being with the same person 24/7 (no matter how cool they are) gets tough sometimes... But as long as I keep the spirit of service in my heart, and think about my companion's comfort over my own, my life is lots smoother. :) 

Our district/house with the new toys we got from the office!
What the heck do you do with a Microwave?!?!  7/25/13 

Thursday we got another surprise... The APs stopped by in the morning and dropped off a new blender, a waffle iron, and a microwave!!!! What the what?!?! I guess Hermana Rodriguez has been requesting new appliances for all the mission houses for like 2 years, and they're finally here!!! Ha. Surprisingly enough... We don't actually know what to do with them... ha. My companion and I made waffles for lunch, and it took us like an hour... lol. We felt like cavemen huddled around recently-discovered technology. haha. We laughed. 

Friday after weekly planning, I made baked mac and cheese while simultaneously doing a load of laundry. Yup. I'm honing my mormon-housewife skills. ha. NBD. 

In the evening, we had great lesson with Edward and Sandra. They are still reading the Charity verses from Moroni 7 and praying together every night! They said that they have noticed a difference in the way they treat and love each other. :) Scripture power! 

Edward, Sandra and Juan Pablo 7/29/2013

Then we finished off the night with a SUPER great lesson at Soani and Braulio's. They are still having a rough time as far as finances go... But they are still strong! They started reading the Book of Mormon together from the beginning, and they had some doubts about Joseph Smith and the 11 Witnesses. So we repassed the restoration and talked about how Joseph Smith received the plates, and then helped them understand the history of the Book of Mormon a little better. After our talk they seemed satisfied with the answers, and they promised to pray about it all after we left. :) The church is true. :) They know it, and I know it. 

Saturday was UNREAL!!! So, remember how I told you last week that Oliva (from my first area) was getting baptized??? Well guess who got to go...? THIS GUY!!! Plus, Elder Meroño had a family in Los Girasoles (his last area) that was getting baptized and had asked him to be there. So we got President's permission to go to both baptisms. It worked out PERFECTLY!! The baptism in los Girasoles was at 4, and Oliva's was at 6. So we were able to go and spend some time with Elder Meroño's old ward, and then had the rest of the evening to see all my loved ones in Independencia! It was a happy, happy day! I miss those people lots and lots and lots. It was SO good to see them all again! Oliva squealed when I walked in. haha. Also, before hand, I had called Elder Pemberton (my trainer), and he was able to attend as well. :) :) It was SO great to be there!! We found her over a year ago! Two inexperienced, American kids... By some miracle Oliva understood us, and was able to feel the truthfulness of our message through the Holy Ghost. She spent a year battling against Satan, and finally made it though! She's the newest member of the Independencia ward, and she's SO happy! She's going to change lives!

Elder Pemberton, Oliva, Hermano and Hermana Bort, and me 7/27/13

The First Elders that found Oliva, and the Sisters that finally baptized her. Over a year later.

Me with Carlos (the kid that said "I feel full where I didn't know there was an emptiness.") 

Elder Meroño's baptism in los Girasoles.  

Yesterday was also great. :) I had a feeling that I would be leaving this transfer call, so I said most of my goodbyes at church, and took some pictures with the people I love. Then had a SOLID day in the field. I gave it my all, and tried my best to help everyone we met with understand their purpose here on this earth. We met with a family that we've been seeing for a couple weeks now, and talked about the Atonement. IT WAS AWESOME! We asked the kids how their mom reacted when they came in the house with muddy shoes right after she had cleaned it... ha. The response was obvious. Then we told them that Heavenly Father's house is just like their mom's house, cept it's clean ALL the time! And we can't go into His house if our shoes are all muddy! But it's ok, because Christ has offered His shoe shining services. We just have to accept Him, and let Him do His job. If we obey His commandments, and keep our shoes clean, we'll be welcomed into the house of our Father after we're all done playing in the mud. ha. The kids were really into the lesson, and the Spirit was really strong. :) I love my job. :)

Me, Soani, Braulio, and Ani. Last day with them at church. 7/28/13

Me with Sandro and Alexander

Bishop Colon and I    

My companion and I 

In the evening I had my last visit with my Montero Family. We talked about picking good friends, and about being good friends. I told them that they didn't realize it now, but that they've been blessed with so many siblings cuz God wanted them to have lots of best friends. :) Families are the bestest best friends! We all need to be good friends, and keep ourselves ready and worthy to lift our friends when they fall. We do that through obedience! We finished off our lesson with a family prayer and some hugs... and some tears... :( I'm gonna miss them a lot. 

My beloved Montero Family 7/29/2013

My companion and I with Santos, Nana, Violeta, Roller, Estefany, and the baby

Amparo 7/29/2013

Ani, Rafael, Jefery, and Adalin 7/29/2013

After a last lesson and a goodbye with Santos and his family, we came home to wait for transfer calls... Oh the suspense. ha. 

I'm headed out to the south. My new Zone is called Barahona, and I will be serving as Zone Leader with Elder Mendoza. He was my district leader in Ocoa, so we already know each other and have a good idea of how we work. He's from Nicaragua, and he's tall like me! His nick name is La Maquina, because he works like a machine! I'm excited to learn all that I can from him, and also to brush up on my Spanish. :) It'll be an adventure! :) 

My life in suitcases 7/29/2013

Today we woke up and cleaned our house, then came over to the Internet center early so we can use the rest of the day to run some errands for my companion in the capital and have a last huzzah! I'm gonna miss Elder Meroño. It's been a great 12 weeks. :) The Elder that will be taking my place is Elder Tuanama (I lived with him in Ocoa... I told you; in the mission, IT'S A SMALL WORLD!), so Elder Meroño will be on his own with three Latins. He's looking forward to the Spanish practice, but it's kinda a tough situation... Pray for him!

Anyway. We're gonna go have the best last day together, and kick off the rest of our missions. 

I love you all. I hope all is well! I love being a missionary!!!

Love,

Elder Cade Mooney

My lizard friend. I'm gonna miss him the most. He would always hang out 

with me while I did my laundry on the back patio. 7/23/13

Heralding from the DR! - Monday, July 22, 2013

Hey guys! 

Here's the update for the week!

On Tuesday we met with a young lady named Karen. I think I mentioned her last week as "the x-Jehovah's Witness." She's in her early twenties, was born a Jehovah's Witness, and then converted to an evangelical church after her parents separated. She spent a few years there, but eventually decided that they didn't have what she was looking for. Well. We contacted her a while back, and passed by when we said we would, but she wasn't home. So we passed by again, and she told us she was busy, so we made an appointment for another day. When we finally got in the door, she told us about her religious past, and accepted a return visit. :) We left the Plan of Salvation pamphlet with her in hopes that she'd read a couple pages. Well... She studied the whole thing! She has a solid religious background, so she understood everything, but had a lot of questions. It was cool to help her understand that we really did exist before this life, and that we have more than just Heaven or Hell awaiting us afterwards. Then she asked us about the Book of Mormon. She had come across it in her study of the pamphlet, and wanted to know more! Well, I happened to have an extra copy on hand that we were planning to give to an investigator later that afternoon. But I felt prompted to give it to her. So we left it, and the investigator we were supposed to give it to ended up not being home when we passed by! So it all worked out! I'm excited to see how Karen progresses! Sadly she's got a really busy schedule with work and school, but we're going back tomorrow to see what she thought about the Gospel of Jesus Christ! :) 

On Wednesday night, we came home and I got a call... It was Elder Fassett (my last companion)-- I don't know if I told you or not, but he went to the area right next door to my first area-- and guess what he told me?!?! Oliva is getting baptized!!!! Do you remember her?!?! She was the lady that my trainer and I found over a year ago! She didn't get baptized in my time there cuz of paper work problems, but now she's gonna take the plunge! :) I can't even tell you all how happy I am! She has pushed through ALL of the crap that Satan has thrown her way, and is SO devoted! She knows the church is true, and she wants nothing more than to be a part of the Lord's Fold! 

Thursday we met with a lady that we taught last week. The first time we taught her we talked about the need to attend church. We told her that one stick on its own is easier to break that a bunch of sticks together. She agreed and asked us to come back. Well, we went back and she wasn't home... So we passed by again when we had some extra time on Thursday afternoon and she told us that she had found a church to join! ha... I guess she misunderstood our stick metaphor... lol. She told us that we didn't need to pass by anymore cuz her church is closer and she's already sure it's the right one for her. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly Satan jumps in to confuse people... or to make their lives harder. I'm pretty sure he's got a legion of demons for every pair of missionaries, and their only instructions are to follow us around and ruin all the lives we touch. But hey. Who's on the Lord's side Who? WE ARE! And we will not fail! :)

Friday at lunch I made a cake for Elder Meroño's 21 month mark. :) (See Photo). Then in the evening we went to Edward and Sandra's house. We've been focusing on family prayers and family scripture study with them, so we had a rockin' "how to" scripture study with them! They are reading in 1 Nephi 3, so we talked about being like Nephi, and then helped them apply the story to themselves! We shared 1 Nephi 19:23 and explained to them that all the scriptures we have are to be applied to us personally. If we read them and don't apply them in our lives we might as well be reading bed time stories; they're easier to understand anyway, right? haha. Really though! Read your scriptures and then DO as they teach you to do! The Gospel is all about action! Live it! 

Saturday was a long day of knocking doors. Then in the evening we had a really great lesson with Pedro and Marisol. They're the inactive couple I told you about a while ago. They went inactive because of false accusations, and gossip. Well, I really like them. I think they're great! We talked about prayer, and the power it has. Neither of them has stopped praying even though they're inactive. They both shared powerful testimony of the effects prayer has in their lives. Marisol says she could never imagine leaving the house without praying for protection. She knows that the Lord is with her when she keeps Him close to her through prayer. Pedro testified of the Spiritual strength that comes from prayer. He feels a difference during the day if he forgets to pray. They also know through experience that unity and love come from praying as a companionship. They still say their prayers together every night! SO cool! Now we just have to help them realize that coming to church and reading their scriptures will make them feel EVEN CLOSER to their Heavenly Father! :) I'll keep you posted. 

Yesterday after church we visited with Sandra and Edward and had a talk about language. They aren't always respectful in the way that they treat one another, so we talked about how our words and actions are an outward representation of what's in our hearts. We should always treat one another with respect, and we should always choose our words with care. The tongue is the sharpest of all knives; wield it wisely. 

Anyway. I love you all. I hope you're all doing what's right! I know that if we do what the Prophets (old and modern day) have counseled us to do, we will be happy! The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the true Church with ALL the restored keys of the Priesthood. I'm a Mormon. I know it, I live it, I love it. 

Abul.

-Elder Cade Mooney

¿Que lo Que menores? - Monday, July 15, 2013

Guys. This week was a good one. ha. 

After I left your cyber presence on Monday evening, we made the rounds to pick up some members and some investigators to do a Family Home evening at Ani's house. They all told us that they were busy at the moment, but they'd meet up with us at Ani's house a little bit later... We had told them all about it in advance, but I guess they forgot. ha. Anyway. We went to Ani's and helped her with her English homework while we waited for everyone to come. Then it rained... So we kissed our hopes of seeing any guests goodbye, and had Family Night all by ourselves. haha. Dominicans REALLY don't like the rain. It's was a bummer that they didn't show, but it meant more hot chocolate and bread for us! :)

Tuesday we had a Zone Meeting. I was in charge of the spiritual thought, and decided to use an article from last month's Liahona about making our personal prayers more meaningful. I tied it into the famous, day-long prayer that Enos offered and talked about how we as missionaries should make an effort to make our prayers the MOST meaningful they've ever been; people's salvation is counting on them!

After the update on the new stuff from the ZLs, and some lunch, we headed out on an intercambio with the other two Elders in our district. I went with Elder De La Cruz (Dominican) to their side of the area, and Elder Meroño stayed on our side with Elder Bonilla (Honduran). It was really great! Elder De La Cruz has a way with people, and I think it helps that he comes from the same background as them. It was cool to watch him interact with his investigators, and learn some new ways to help my own! Intercambios are always good. They allow for a new perspective on the work, and often act as a breath of fresh air (sometimes being with the same person 24/7 gets a little stuffy, ha). 

While Elder De La Cruz and I were walking to an appointment we had a lady stop us in the street and introduce herself as Dorka, from San Geronimo. I guess she and her family moved here a few months ago and have been searching for the chapel in our area. They've been taking a 30 minute güa güa ride every Sunday morning to attend their old ward back in San Geronimo! Talk about devotion! But, thanks to some good timing on the Lord's part, we were able to sit down with her and her cousin (that was getting ready to be baptized right before they moved) and get things back on track to keep meeting with the missionaries, and to find the chapel MUCH closer to them! Tender Mercy!

Lots and Lots of agua. :) 7/10/13

Wednesday was LONG... Due to Hurricane Chantal we were told to stay in our house ALL day... I don't really know why they called it a hurricane, cuz there wasn't a whole lot of damage done... ha. We were kinda hoping for some service opportunities, ya know? Anyway. It ended up just being LOTS AND LOTS of rain with some hard core thunder claps (like set-off-car-alarms hard core). We felt like caged animals a little bit... But obviously we used our time wisely and studied like mad. I found The Miracle of Forgiveness in Spanish that another Elder left behind. I got over half of that read, along with the ENTIRE July Liahona and some other miscellaneous articles. Solid. I love being a missionary. 

On Thursday we were let out of the house to take in some much needed vitamin D. ha. In the afternoon we visited with a new lady that we played hit and miss with for a few weeks, but Elder Meroño and Elder Bonilla finally found her in her house on Tuesday during our intercambio. When we went back on Thursday she had read and taken notes on the whole Plan of Salvation pamphlet, AND finished the "additional study" at the back! SO AWESOME! We're always happy with investigators if they make the effort to read two or three pages... But to finish it ALL in two days, AND have questions ready for us is just unheard of! We spent like 45 minutes answering her questions and using the scriptures to help her understand the Plan of Happiness that the Lord has provided for us. :) We're going back to see her again tomorrow. We didn't have a Book of Mormon with us, so I left her with my copy so she can do the "additional study" from there as well. :) I'll let you know if she comes through. 

Later on that evening we met with Yojansen and went in depth on the scripture from 2 Nephi 2: 22-23 that says that without Misery we wouldn't know Joy. He's a smart kid. And he's got a solid Christian background. We explained the Fall the best we could, and then emphasised the need to pray. If he wants to know if it's true or not, he needs to talk to God about it. He promised he would, and we left it at that. :)

Friday was a little slow, because of the unexpected storm lock down we didn't have much planned. We visited with the people we failed because of the storm and then went over to Ani's house. As of late we haven't seen much progression from her. She still comes to church with us every week, but she hasn't been applying the gospel in her life and she's STILL living with her boyfriend. So we had a talk about the need to make some changes in her life and set an "ultimatum" baptismal date with her for the end of next month. If she doesn't make some changes before then, we're gonna have to let her go... :( But I have faith that she'll do what she needs to do. She knows what's right, and she has a strong desire to follow Jesus Christ. We'll just keep praying for her. 

Saturday was decent. :) We found a couple of new investigators that look promising. One is an x-Jehovah's Witness, and the other one is an "in house" Christian. I'll let you know if they progress. 

Later on, while we were walking between appointments, we ran into Elvis and Desereé, who were buying some paint for their apartment. Apparently the owner of their apartment building moved out of the BIGGER apartment across the hall from theirs, and seeing that Desereé's got a bun in the oven, they decided to make the move. ha. Here's the cool part: While we were planing the night before, we were looking for a member to visit to ask for references. We decided we'd pass by... ELVIS AND DESEREÉ! So we already had a time block marked out in our schedule to go help them move, even though we didn't even know they were moving!!! God is good! I love being a missionary! It's basically like being one of Santa's Elves, 'cept better! And I don't have to live in the North Pole! :) 

Yesterday was AWESOME! We had a great time in church, and a SUPER missionary afternoon! We're currently working on getting our members more involved with the missionary work in our ward, and it's finally coming around! Hermana Maira came out with us in the afternoon to visit with Sandra. We revisited Family History work with her, and then talked about Temples and Eternal Families. :) Hermana Maira bore a powerful testimony of the Spirit and peace felt in the House of the Lord. It was great! Members really do make the difference! It's one thing for our investigators to hear our testimonies, but for some reason, the testimony of a member (a NORMAL person that lives close by) is SO much more powerful! 

On top of that, we took the Bishop and his WHOLE family with us to visit the Montero Family. :) It was good for them to get to know each other in a less formal situation, and also, we were able to discuss the Temple Marriage goal and get the bishop onboard! :) 

With faith, prayers, and lots of work I'm sure we can keep strengthening our ward, and helping them catch the missionary fire! This area has SO much potential, and the members are all SO strong! They just have to get out there and share what they have! We all do!! We are so blessed to have the knowledge that we do! It's selfish to keep it to ourselves! Go talk to someone about it!!! 

After we sent the Bishop and his family on their way, we finished off our evening with a visit at Santos and his family's house. :) It was really good. :) I shared Helaman 16:17-20 and talked about how EVERY dispensation has had to "walk by faith" and "believe in things they couldn't see." We aren't the first Chosen People that are required to live by faith without murmuring. Some will say "this is a wicked tradition, which has been handed down unto us by our fathers, to cause us that we should believe in some great and marvelous thing which should come to pass, but not among us, but in a land which is far distant, a land which we know not; therefore they can keep us in ignorance, for we cannot witness with our own eyes that they are true." But really, it's all part of the test. I know that seeing isn't everything when it comes to believing. The trick is to believe, and act on that belief, and THEN God will illuminate our path, and it will all make sense. We just need to take that first step! Keep on believing!!! 

Today was relaxed. :) We super cleaned our apartment. Ha. I think I'm turning into my mother... My happiness depends on the cleanliness of my house. lol. There is a HUGE weight lifted off my shoulders when our apartment is finally clean on Monday mornings. 

Now I'm back to where I left you all a short week ago. I hope you all know how much I love you! Keep on keepin on!

Love, 

Elder Cade Mooney

HEEEYYYYY YOOUUUU GUUYYYSSS! - Monday, July 8, 2013

Whelp, I'm gonna cut right to the chase, and avoid all the chit chat. ha. 

Our week FLEW by! I was thinking to myself yesterday while we were contacting, "hmmm tomorrow's P-day.... WHAT?!? TOMORROW'S PDAY!!" haha. We've been working hard to keep our schedule FULL to the brim with appointments and back up plans. Being busy makes life go faster. I like being busy. :)

On Monday night we went over to Edward and Sandra's house. I think I mentioned last week that they were having some relationship problems..? Maybe I didn't. Well they were. We were a little bit nervous that our visit would turn into an argument where we would have to act as mediators. But, we started with a prayer, and it all worked out. They both expressed different reasons for being stressed: Sandra has been suffering from Gastritis for the last couple months, and because of their financial situation she hasn't been able to visit the doctor to get things resolved. Edward lost his job shortly after we started visiting them, so he feels like everything Sandra mentions about money, is an insult directed at him... Satan is really making things hard on this family... Luckily for us, the Holy Ghost is on our side, and with his help we were able to talk things out, and look at the situation from a Gospel perspective. We read from Moroni 7:44-48 about charity, and told them that Satan doesn't want them to be happy. He knows that the gospel will bring them the greatest happiness available to mankind, so he's gonna do EVERYTHING in his power to lead them away from it. And he ALWAYS starts by using pride and contention to break families apart. He knows that we're strongest when we're together, so he does all he can to get us alone! They committed to keep pressing forward, and to not give up. We gave them some tips on how to resolve contention in the house, and invited them to start praying as a couple to strengthen their relationship. :) We are SO blessed to have the gospel in our lives! 

On Tuesday we had a district meeting in the morning. District meetings are good things. Ha. It's kinda like a weekly meeting to resolve conflicts in a judge-free zone. We can all talk openly and then make goals to get better as individuals and as a district. It's like family counsel. :) I'd suggest you all implement it in your lives. We spend between an hour and an hour and a half on it, cuz we have to talk about our investigators as well. But you guys could spend like half an hour on Sunday afternoon and have it over with. I promise you'll see a difference in the house. :)

In the evening we had a great lesson with a new kid we've been meeting with named Yojansen (Johansen). He's a 19 year old kid with lots of questions! We originally contacted into his mom at the back door of their house. ha. We were contacting a street and went down an alley way and knocked on her bedroom door thinking it was the front door. haha. Anyway, we came back to visit her (but we entered through the FRONT door) and Yojansen was there too. He's got lots of good questions. Like "If Christ said that we should be hot or cold, and NOT lukewarm (Revelations 3:15-16), then why do the "lukewarm" people get to go to the Terrestrial Kingdom?" Haha. As you can see, he's a thinker! We explained it with the example of taking a test in school: If Yojansen scored 100%, my companion scored 70% and I scored 30% on our Biology final, we wouldn't all deserve the same grade. Yojansen would get an A, Elder Meroño would get a C, and I'd get an F... We told him that we believe in a JUST God, and testified that each one of us will get EXACTLY what we deserve. He accepted our answer with an open heart, and committed to pray about it. If any of you have any thoughts or other ideas to better answer his question, I'm all ears. :)

Wednesday was Interview day! :) We all met up at our chapel (cuz we have air conditioning! :)) in the morning, and before President started interviewing he shared a short message. He talked about Nephi building the boat. He likened it to us in that sometimes we arrive in a new area, and we are commanded to go out and "build a ship." But sometimes we feel like Nephi; lost in the wilderness without tools... How can we possibly be expected to build a boat from the ground up WITHOUT TOOLS?! He went on to say that we all need to be like Nephi, and choose to have a good attitude about our situation. Instead of murmuring and making the problems worse like Laman and Lemuel, we should do like Nephi did; ASK the Lord where to find the ore to make tools. Then, we've gotta strike those rocks together like we've been taught, make some fire, and get to work. If we put our best foot forward, with a prayer in our heart, the Lord will guide us every step of the way. We're on His side! He'll never let us down!

Then while President called us in one by one for interviews, Hermana Rodriguez taught us how to cook lentils with pork chops and white rice. She rocks! She told us that we should be using fresh vegetables as spices, and avoiding things like sopita and vegetable oil. I wanted to look at my companion and say something snobby, but I didn't because that would be prideful. haha. He's always complaining about my use of vegetables in the food I cook. (So did Elder Fassett. haha. So I would blend them up and mix them in as a liquid so he didn't have to see them. lol.) But now I have the word of Hermana Rodriguez to back me up! :) Now he has to eat all the grown up food I cook for him!

After her presentation she took our weight and blood pressure. I'm still healthy. :) No worries mom. :)

At like 5:30 p.m. it was finally my turn to be interviewed. The pro to having interviews held in your chapel is that you don't have to travel very far to get there. But the con is that President always interviews you last cuz he knows you don't have to go very far to get home. haha. Anyway. We had a good talk. I told him that I wouldn't mind staying here in my area with Elder Meroño for another transfer... ha. Seeing that I've been here for 4 transfers already it's not likely... But I can dream right?! 

Thursday!!! The 4th of July!!!!!! Also, my 15 month mark!!! Obviously we celebrated! We went to Carre Four (an American style super market with a food court) and ate Pizza Hut. :) Nothing more American than that, right? Man it was good! Sometimes I forget how tasty American food is. haha. 

My 15 month mark / 4th of July celebration. :) 7/4/13

In the evening we visited with Yojansen again. We talked about the pre earth life, and then he wrapped it all up with a General Authority style prayer. It was AMAZING! He definitely knows who he's talking to when he prays, and the way he talks is as if he's SURE the things that he's praying for will come to pass. SO legit. 

On Friday evening we had an INCREDIBLE lesson with Edward and Sandra. We read The Family: A Proclamation to the World with them, and discussed it paragraph by paragraph. The spirit was SO strong! We talked about the sanctity of marriage, and we talked some more about how hard Satan works to destroy families. When we talked about eternal marriage Sandra got really excited! They both have expressed that they want a family that will last longer than a few years. They want to make things work, and now that they know that through the power of the Priesthood they can be sealed together for eternity, THAT'S their goal! :) The Church is TRUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Saturday, after some Tangy Chicken and sweet potato fries, we started our fast. Usually Saturday afternoons are tough when we're fasting, but we made an effort to stay busy, and despite the rain, and the temptations of people offering us food, the day was pretty easy. ha. We made sure we were in someone's house the WHOLE day! It was great! :) Lots of new people accepted our visit, and I actually have some high hopes for a couple of them. :) I'll keep you all updated. 

Yesterday was GREEAAATTT! I taught a lesson on Charity in Sunday school, and EVERYONE participated! It was so cool to hear the opinions and experiences of these humble people. They live with basically nothing, but by nature are SO giving! Anything they have they share! If they bring home a bottle of juice, they pass it around and EVERYONE in the house gets a swig. If someone has a plate of food, and more people show up, they divide it up so that everyone can have some. I felt like such a looser giving a Charity lesson to the most humble, and charitable people on the planet. Ha. That's definitely a Christ-like Attribute that I can work on. :) 

In the evening, after knocking like 182736464782028 doors, we went down to the Montero Family's house. They are all doing well. :) Everyone but Esperanza came to church in the morning, and they all had something to report about! They are SO great! It's been so awesome to watch the gospel take root in their lives. They have made HUGE progress since I met them 5 months ago. :) They are definitely on the fast track to the temple, and no matter what's going on in my life at the time, I'm gonna be there with them! 

This morning we woke up, cleaned our nasty little apartment, and then went to a combined zone activity. It was good to see some familiar faces. :)Elder Maner (my companion from back in Independencia) was there. He goes home in 3 weeks! How nuts! Also, my trainer, Elder Pemberton, was there! I haven't seen him since he trained me a year ago! It was good to see them again. :) Plus, we're all still brothers in the Lord, so I couldn't be happier. Being a missionary is the best!

Soccer activity 7/8/13

Elder Suaste (The Mexican kid I took out on exchanges from the CCM in my third transfer) and I 

Elder Maner and me

Anyway. There's the report for the week. I hope you guys all realize how much you mean to me. Thank you for your love and support. I'm blessed. :) I know the Church is true. I'm more and more sure of it every day. Just do what is right, and it will all work out!

Love, 

Elder Cade Mooney 

Back to the Keyboard - Monday, July 1, 2013

Well... I just put Taylor's new address in the address line... It no longer reads taylor.reynolds@myldsmail.net. Weird. He's on the other side. And it's already been a week! Time will fly by, right? ha. 

Anyway. Our week went well!

We had over 40 lessons this week! Sadly, the members in our ward are a little slow on catching the vision so beautifully painted by the General Authorities last week, so only like 3 of those lessons had a member present. But we're working on it! With faith, nothing is impossible! 

On Monday night we went over to the Clase Family's house for dinner and FHE. Hermana Clase cooked a feast, as usual, and then we talked about service! Missionary service in particular. They have a boy out on a mission right now, so our subject choice touched close to home... Hermana Clase shared her gratitude for our service, and then she cried and talked about all the times during her day (in the car, at work, in the kitchen, etc) that she thinks and prays about Daryl. She promised our moms are doing the same... It made me sad to think about... I really hope you people don't think and cry that much about me... I realize I talk about missing you all a lot, and Taylor has been a recent subject of conversation, but that's cuz when I log on, all I think about is my family. But after I log off and go to work on Monday night, my mind is occupied with Dominican people, their problems, and Jesus. ha. I really don't think about you all that much! Obviously in my bed time prayers, but other than that, I save my "miss my family time" for Monday afternoons! Mom! Don't miss me! I'm happy, and healthy, and I'm right where I need to be! 

Tuesday I cooked Chicken Parmesan. Ha. It was delicious. You should all be extremely jealous of my companion. ;) 

In the afternoon we visited Wendy. She's a 19 year old girl we contacted into a week or so ago. She's been a member for 2 years or so, and has been inactive for the last 8ish months. Apparently gossipy girls chased her out of the church. I'm pretty sure I mentioned her last week. Well. We visited with her, and brought in the big guns (Helaman 3:34-35, along with some other scriptures), and told her that sometimes people suck, but that she's made a solemn promise to the Lord to be an active member for the rest of her life... Baptism is a big deal. We talked some more about how now that she's over 18, she can go to the young single adult class. I told her that I was fairly certain she'd enjoy her time with the YSAs more that the youth, and that she'd probably find them less gossipy. She thought about everything we said for a few minutes, and then told us to save her a seat on Sunday!! :) She says she's gonna give it a shot, and she's gonna brush off the stupid things people say. :) 

That evening we went over to Soani and Braulio's house. Soani was bummed... They've been working on the house they're trying to build for a long while now, and she's running low on her desire to wait and pray... She wants it done. They're behind on rent, and need to get out of their current house. Well... We did what missionaries do when someone's feeling down trodden. We pulled out the scriptures! We read from Ether 12, and talked about faith and miracles. Braulio was ALL for it! He kept commenting on faith, and he talked about having a good attitude through the trials. :) He's a good man. It's great to see them working so hard, and loving each other so much. 

Wednesday wasn't all that eventful. We had some lessons, and made sure we hit our contacting goal. 

Thursday was a rainy day... Luckily in the afternoon all of our appointments were really close together, so apart from the muddy streets, we didn't get all that wet or dirty. But then... We had to make our way out to the Montero family's house... We got wet. ha. Then got even more wet on our way back home... We came in the door and stripped before we even planned. Then I heated up some water for my bucket shower, SO nice! And then we crawled into bed. I think the rain is my least favorite part of missionary work. Squishy socks and wet scriptures... No fun. haha. 

Friday we had another great lesson with Soani and Braulio. We went over the whole Restoration, and answered all their questions! They are both SO accepting, and they are both sure they found the true church! They LOVE it! 

Saturday and Sunday were pretty normal. Wendy, Soani, Braulio, and Sandra all came to church! 

Also, yesterday Elder De La Cruz taught the lesson in Sunday school. He talked about being obedient to the commandments. He quoted/paraphrased President Monson and said that we shouldn't worry about what's gonna happen with us 40 years down the road. We can have a plan for the future, but it's best to focus on the now. We need to make a constant effort to keep the commandments TODAY. Cuz the next 40 years is made up of lots of todays, and if all of those todays are spent making good choices, in 40 years we'll find ourselves right where we want and, more importantly, where God wants us to be! I second that! Be obedient right now! My dad shared a quote with me a couple weeks ago that said, "The most important commandment to keep, is the one the Spirit is prompting you to keep RIGHT NOW!" Just do it! Don't stress about the future. You'll go crazy! Just be obedient, and live in the now. :)

Anyway. I know the church is true. I'm so grateful for the eternal road map of the gospel in my life. I've been born of goodly parents, and I've been taught what I need to know. Now I've gotta get out there and share it with everyone else! 

Until next week!

-Elder Cade Mooney. Forever. 

Life is Like a Rollercoaster - Monday, June 24, 2013

Man... It was quite the week. 

Cookin' dinner at Anni's 6/17/13

On Monday night, we went over to Anni's house to make spaghetti and fritos. She wasn't home yet when we got there, so we took over the kitchen. ha. We did the dishes and cooked dinner for the whole family. When Anni got home we were all but done frying the platanos, and she was surprised. :) She said she didn't even know what to do with herself! No one EVER makes her dinner! She's the mother of 4 boys, and the guy that lives with her doesn't do squat around the house, so it was nice for her to have the evening off mom duty. haha. Being a missionary rocks. 

Tuesday we said our goodbyes to Elder Melara (the kid from Honduras that I've been living with for the last 4 months) in the morning, and came home in the evening to a new house mate. haha. He's also from Honduras, his name is Elder Bonillo, and so far I'm extremely impressed with his forma de ser. Our other house mate Elder De La Cruz (the Dominican) is a decent individual as well. If things continue as they have so far, it will be a great transfer. :) 

Wednesday morning I made no bake cookies for my companion. He turned 20 months old... Remember when Taylor hit the 20 month mark?? Like yesterday, right? Ha. I keep telling my comp to focus on the moment at hand cuz he's runnin out of time!

In the afternoon we had an AWESOME lesson with Edward and Sandra. They are still progressing like gold, and they just keep eating up the things we leave with them. Edward (without a suggestion from us) has made a goal to read the WHOLE Book of Mormon!! They have both told us multiple times that they know this is the true church. Of all the different churches they have visited, NONE of their doctrines make as much sense as ours! We talked all about the Word of Wisdom. Edward has been down that road, and he's NEVER going back. They are both more than aware of the dangers of drugs and alcohol. The coffee and tea thing was new though... ha. They both drink coffee, but right when we told them that our Heavenly Father, through modern day prophets, has commanded us not to, they swore it off! We explained that God wants to keep us safe, and He uses prophets to keep us up to date on all of Satan's new tactics! Moses had no idea what a bong was! ha. We are SO blessed to have a Prophet to lead and guide us through these troubled times! 

Thursday things went downhill... I got up to work out, and could barely move... I had a fever and was achy all over. Elder Holland has advised us not to write you people about illnesses because the sniffles, after traveling 2000 miles over the airwaves, is often interpreted as pneumonia. haha. Mom, Aunt Wendy: I'M OK! ha. But I did spend the day in bed and/or on the toilet. ha. I got a blessing though, and took some meds along with ridiculous amounts of water. I live with worthy priesthood holders, and my companion is good to me. So really, don't worry! ha. 

Friday I woke up feeling about the same... But we had to go to a leadership meeting... So I got up and showered, and we slow walked to the ZL's chapel. It was a good meeting. Elder Pittí (replaced Elder Richardson as ZL) shared a scripture chain I really liked: D&C 132: 24 -- Knowing Christ is Eternal Life, Mosiah 5:13 -- We know Christ by serving Him, Mosiah 2:17 -- We serve Christ by serving others. :) SERVE!

After a nap in the afternoon we made our way out to work. I was pretty miserable the whole day... My fever wouldn't break for nothin! But I got lots of support from the Lord as I worked. I noticed that I got more out of our lessons because I was putting more into them. Usually it's just a day to day thing we do. But when I was sick as a dog, I had to make a sacrifice to be in the people's homes, and to testify of the truth. The Spirit was a lot stronger, and I felt like I was able to explain things clearly, and testify of it all with greater certainty. :) It was a cool experience. I related it to fasting. When we fast, we are putting our bodies under stress, and relying on our spirit to work through it. During the fast our spirit gets stronger, and our carnal cocoon is weakened, leaving raw spiritual power. I think that's why Heavenly Father revealed that Fast Sunday, and Testimony Meeting needed to be on the same day. :)  

Saturday was much better. The fever finally left, and the only symptoms that have stuck around are a runny nose and a cough. NBD. ha. In the evening we met with an inactive member named Wendy. She was baptized a few years ago, and was getting ready to put her mission papers in when gossip and harsh words chased her out of the church. She understands a TON! She had a small doubt about Baptisms for the Dead, but we cleared it up really easily. She is teachable, and humble, but doesn't want to go back to our ward... :( It makes me sad to see peoples progression halted because of the tactlessness of other members. Obviously Wendy gets to choose how she reacts to people's judgey comments, but seriously. Let's all make a goal to talk good about people! If you don't have something nice to say, DON'T SAY ANYTHING AT ALL! 

Yesterday was great! :) Church went really smoothly. Sandra and Edward came and brought their 6 year old, Juan Pablo. He sat with me during sacrament, and had me draw him pictures on the back pages of my Missionary Planner. Ha. It reminded me of when my Dad would draw us pictures to keep us quiet in Sacrament meeting, and then we would all try to draw like him! ha. Plus, Juan Pablo is like Creed, 'cept Dominican. After we sent him off to Primary, Edward and Sandra came with us to Gospel Principles class, and then Sandra went with Adrianna (Montero) to Relief Society. :) They LOVED it! We introduced them to lots of members, and Edward talked to a guy in our ward from his same line of work so he can keep his eye out for any job openings! I love the fact that ANYWHERE in the world you feel like going, there's always a ward family to take care of you! The church is TRUE!

As you all know, last night was the World Wide Leadership Broadcast! It blew my socks off! It is SO exciting to be a missionary right now! These are the last days! 

I liked when Elder Anderson said, "The Lord is with us when we give the Lord the Best of us." And I loved the interview with Elder Nelson and Sister Marriot. Just think, Brother Marriot got that incredible lady for a wife just because he had the courage to share the gospel! WORK WITH THE MISSIONARIES! YOU'LL RECEIVE BLESSINGS!! :) Love everyone, love is the key, and we come to love others through service! Just Do It! 

Now we're back to Monday. Another Pday come and gone. Next week I'll do it again. ha. Until then. 

-Elder Cade Mooney

P.S. For all of you that will be in the Airport tomorrow when Taylor comes home: Give him a great big hug for yourself, then release, and go back in for an even BIGGER hug for me! Tell him how much I love him and how proud of him I am!