Baptism, Farewell Tour

Greetings!
This week’s letter will be short, because this is the third time I have had to restart writing an email because dads laptop keeps doing weird things and deleting what I have written, the keyboard keeps on causing me to mess up, and I only have a few minutes.
Tuesday was my last normal day of the mission. We worked hard, talked to some new people, did a bunch of contacts, and then to end the night we had the baptismal service. She chose me to baptize her, so I had the privilege of performing it. She was so happy, and shared with me how clean she felt as she left the water. Many members attended, and have helped a ton in her conversion process. Her husband and convert of mine, was excited as well and told me that in 1 year, they will be sealed in the temple! I am so happy to see their deep conversion to the gospel.
Wednesday, I went to the mission office to have my final interview with Pte. Madariaga. We talked about what I had learned on the mission, and made goals and plans on what I will continue to do forever to stay strong. It was one of the highlights of my life. I also had the grand reunion with Dad, and to my great surprise, with Jake as well! I am sure you have all seen the video. It was so surprising! I could not believe it. It was really exciting. We went to the temple with all the “dying” missionaries, and had a fancy dinner.  A family who I had baptized early in my mission, attended the temple session with us, they are awesome.
Thursday up until today have been days dedicated to saying goodbye to converts, members and friends. I have gifted many things, and have been gifted even more things! It has been really exciting. We have all felt very very happy and positive in the farewells, which is what I was hoping for; I didn’t want it to be a “cry-fest”. I got permission from Pte. Madariaga to play a soccer game with the guys from Bella Vista. They are good and play rough, but my team won, and I scored a few sweet goals. Yesterday we attended church! Oh, what a special special day it turned out to be! Jake bore his testimony, which I translated for them into Spanish. Dad gave a small, powerful message. Alex, someone who I had baptized there, expressed his gratitude for me and the changes he has made due to finding the gospel. Then I closed the meeting with a simple message about happiness, missionary work, conversion, love and enduring to the end.  The Spirit was so strong in the tiny chapel there, with basically every seat occupied. I felt so much love for those sweet people, who I do consider some of my very dearest friends.
Today we got to see the Iguazu Falls, they are one of Gods many beautiful creations. We are heading into Asuncion tomorrow, then to Argentina until Sunday, when we arrive back home.
I feel like ending this letter with how the Book of Mormon ends. In Moroni 10:32 and 34, it says, “Come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourself of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny
yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then his grace is sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace in God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God. “And now I bid unto all, farewell. I soon go to rest in paradise of God, until my spirit and body shall again reunite, and I am brought forth riumphant through the air, to meet you before the pleasing bar of the great Jehovah, the Eternal Judge of both quick and dead. Amen.”
It’s message is simple: Do your best. Give it your all. Make and keep
covenants. Be perfected in Christ, and love Him and His Father with
all your heart. And if you do it, you will be perfected and cleansed
of your sins through the Atonement of the Only Begotten Son of the
Father. That is the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. That is
what it is really all about. Do your best, and live to see the
miracles and tender mercies of the Lord.
I am so sad my mission has ended, but I am looking forward with faith to the future, and cannot wait to see, meet, talk with, and serve each and every one of you. I love you all so much. I love this gospel, this mission, and my Lord and Savior. Keep us in your prayers.
- Elder Babcock

Until We Meet

Greetings-
Well...it looks like this will be my last official letter home as a
missionary in the field, so I will try to adequately share my thoughts,
experiences, and feelings from this last week.
First things first, we had a really hard working week. Elder Sorrell and I decided that for my last week we would try our best to achieve our daily goals for each daily key indicator, which in our mission is called 7/7.  After tons of miracles, smart planning, and hard work we were able to achieve it every day! It was one of those small miracles that made us feel really happy. It required a lot of diligence, including when I was pretty sick yesterday, and a lot of faith, but we did it!
On Saturday, a convert of Elder Colligan and I was married to his
girlfriend in the chapel! We ordered a special cake, and I lent him
my suit. They looked great. They were so happy. It was a special night. She has also come to know the truthfulness of the gospel, and will be baptized on Tuesday, my last night here! I feel so happy that I will be here to participate.
Yesterday was my last Sunday, and last minute I was asked to give a
talk/final testimony. As you all probably know, this has been another
very very special place for me. I felt so overwhelmed with feelings of
gratitude, happiness, and a little bit of sadness as well. I went up and
decided to share with them what has become my favorite missionary chapter from my favorite book, The Book of Mormon, in the 29th chapter of Alma.  Everyone near a Book of Mormon, pull it out and read it with me! Here, Alma  the Younger shares with us how he felt while serving the Lord, and repeatedly uses the work joy, which is one of the best descriptive words of the mission: joy!
For my last letter, I don't want to write some fancy big letter, nor something over the top. I just want to say that I feel exactly like Alma the Younger in saying that I feel so much joy..."*my soul is carried away, even to the separation of it from the body, as it were, so great is my joy." *(verse 16). Alma said it best. I really cannot describe how I feel...but I feel so happy. I am going to attach a letter that I wrote to give out to my Paraguayan brothers and sisters here. Thanks for all the support over these last 2 years. I am grateful for what the mission has been. I am nervous for the future, but I know that good things still lie ahead for me. I know that God lives, that Christ is our Savior, that the gospel is once again on earth.
Keep us in your prayers. Love you all!
Until we meet,
Elder Babcock

The Tongue of Angels

Greetings-

We had a great wedding this last Saturday. It was a smooth wedding, thank goodness! Many members of the branch attended, along with a few friends and investigators. They had an 11 kilo cake, fancy decorations, chicken and rice dinner, and even a little party afterwards. I lent him my black suit, along with a white shirt, sweet tie, belt and shoes. He looked great. Even though they were stressed beforehand, they were so happy during and afterwards. He is great friends with all the branch, especially the Branch President, so he baptized him. It was a very special Sunday.

Today we had our big Zone Training meeting here in Santaní, all the elders came and we talked a lot about our attitude as missionaries. We had assigned them to read two of my personal favorite talks before coming, which were "The Tongue of Angels" by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland as well as "Lift Where You Stand" by President Dieder F. Uchtdorf, and to come prepared to discuss what they had learned and what they could apply. The meeting was guided by the Holy Ghost, and we were all edified. Some of the highlights were that the Gospel is optimistic, it uplifts and inspires, never weighs us down, has negative feelings, etc. It is to be talked of with a smile! Also, that it does not matter what calling, assignment, responsibility, duty that the Lord calls us to do, all we are asked to do is to do our part as best as we can, and the work of the Lord will go forth powerfully. I encourage all of you to read those to talks, meditating what you have learned, how they can apply to your lives, and what you will change. I was able to set some great goals today on things to improve on in my last week here officially in the field, and what I can take with me into the post mission life.

I wanted to end today with a story of a great experience we had today. Even though it is P-day, we had some appointments of people to teach, and we went to teach one of our investigators who has attended church these last two weeks. She is progressing towards baptism and is loving the message. We got there, and she said that she wanted us to teach her 20 year old daughter, who showed very little interest before. So we got to know her, and she shared a little bit about how she feels really angry, depressed, sad, lonely, and that she has no purpose in her life. She said that she always fights with her mom, does not get along with anyone, and wonders if there is any hope for her future. She even expressed that she has a problem with cursing, yelling, and using fowl, harmful, hurtful language. I felt so happy to know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is exactly what would solve all her problems, resolve any conflicts, heal any wounds from the past, and would provide for her the "Tongue of Angles" of which Elder Holland had taught. We were able to build her trust and confidence, feel inspired to read in Mosiah 27 about Alma the Younger, and apply coincidentally what we had learned that morning in our conference, which is found in 2 Nephi 31:13, where as we are baptized and confirmed upon us the Gift of the Holy Ghost, the Lord blesses us with a new tongue, even the tongue of angels. We felt inspired to promise her that if she would learn more of the Savior, read and pray about our message, and prepare to be baptized, that in this whole process she would be blessed to overcome the obstacle of harmful language, as well as forgiveness of past sins and a renewed outlook on her wonderful future ahead of her. I felt so happy to be a missionary, and for the opportunity I had in that moment to see the Spirit working in her and in us, and seeing the change in her from the beginning of the visit to the end.

Well, this will be my last week as a missionary, and I plan on giving it all I have, working even harder and harder, and finding more investigators, so that it can continue like it is right now...exploding! I want you all to know how much this mission continues to mean to me. Pray for me and for the people here.

Love you all! Until next week,

Elder Babcock

True Happiness

Greetings-

This week was, just like every week, fantastic! Maria was baptized on Saturday and then on Sunday confirmed the newest member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She chose me to baptize her, so I felt honored to perform the ordinance. The service went pretty well, I decided to take a risk by having everyone sing "Whenever I am baptized" from the Primary, but it backfired because nobody knew it, and I just played it on the piano...so that was a little awkward, but it all worked out. As I was changing into dry clothing after the baptism, I pondered about the true miracle that finding, teaching and baptizing someone is! Maria, in a little neighborhood in a tiny city was able to come in contact with true representatives of Jesus Christ, feel the Spirit testify to hear of the truthfulness of the gospel, be baptized, and become a member of the Lords church. I cannot describe in words really the profoundness of the thoughts I had, but they made me feel so happy to thing that the Lord knows all of us and guides us to the truth, we just need to open our hearts and trust in Him.

So I am 21 now, I feel...the same haha. A family gave us some chicken and rice for lunch, and a recent convert prepared me a HUGE bowl full of delicious fruit salad. The members here are so awesome and always look out for us. I am thankful for the great relationship I have with them, and for all they do for the missionaries!

Speaking of that, this last week, ALL of our new investigators this last week came from member referrals! And 3 of them came to church for the first time on Sunday and were accompanied by members! The work in this area has just beyond exploded with tons of people to teach. And the cool part is that many of them have expressed desires to be baptized, even before we invite them! I feel so blessed for being able to be the one to teach them and help them in their own spiritual journies.

Yesterday was a day of many mixed feelings. It was my last Zone Leader Council, and therefore all the Elders going home this change gave what is called their "Final Testimonies." I was there with Elder Colligan, Elder Miner, Elder Richins all from my MTC District. The growth in all of us has been incredible. As I heard Elder Colligan talk about his mission experience, it made me feel so thankful that we were blessed to be here together. He truly has become a powerful, strong, inspiring example of faith, testimony, and love. I love him for all he has done for me. After him I went up and bore my humble testimony. I am not someone with an eloquent, fancy testimony, I simply like to share what I know to be true. I am also not a crier. Therefore, as I started to talk about us and the growth we have seen in ourselves and the love I have for my mission experience, for the people I have been blessed to serve, the changes in the lives of others and my own, I felt so overwhelmed with gratitude that I could not hold it back. I want everyone at home to know that I know that God lives. Jesus Christ is the living Son of God, our Savior. Joseph Smith was and is a prophet of God, President Thomas S. Monson holds the keys to guide us to heaven. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the kingdom of the Lord on earth. The Book of Mormon is the word of God, and has become the keystone of my testimony of all of these things. I feel so happy to know that as I have served others, I have also served the Lord. I have never, ever, ever felt more happy in all of my life. The soccer highlights, playing guitar, going to concerts, playing super smash brothers on nintendo 64, all of that is really nothing in comparison to the happiness I have felt here in in my mission. For all of you out there needing to hear this message, whether your testimony is fragile, or you have not decided to serve a mission, or just are confused about anything in life, trust in Moroni's Promise: "And by the power of the Holy Ghost, ye shall know the truth of all things". Follow the Spirit you have felt and then go forward with faith.

I love you all, and wish you all a great week. I had many other noteworthy events this week, that I will tell you all at home someday. Keep us in your prayers.

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

Go and do, because you know!

Greetings!

You know that you have had a great week when you have been in the same building as an Apostle of the Lord. This weekend was truly a special one. We traveled on Friday and stayed in a hotel Friday night to be well rested for our conference with Elder Bednar in Asuncion. The hotel experience was awesome, it was the best shower I have had in a very very long time, along with the rest in the hotel room. I wanted to share with you some of the highlights from the conference.

He started off telling us that the meeting would be different, that it would be purely guided by the Holy Ghost. He shared what in his opinion were a few "false traditions" we have in the church. One was that of taking notes. He said that we waste a lot of time writing and lose time feeling the Spirit, and that we usually never read them again or if we do, over time we lose them. However, Spiritual promptings are rarely forgotten and are more powerful. He also talked a lot about not being prideful as missionaries. He pretty much said, "you are all about 19, barely speak the language, honestly cannot teach that well, and you think that because of YOUR talents you are going to be able to convert people. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? GIVE ME A BREAK!" It just hit us all like a ton of bricks. He said, "help them learn from the Spirit, and not from you." I really liked that quote, sometimes i would get worried about ME too much, instead of just trying to be the instrument of the Spirit. We changed our mode of teaching to be more spiritual and are seeing great results.

Another quote I liked was that he said "Go and do, because you know" talking about spiritual promptings. He said not to worry so much, just be obedient, be a good boy, and to follow what the Spirit indicates, like Nephi. He also talked a lot about discerning, and that we are to observe, listen and discern, that is "the Lords pattern". "The Pride Pattern" is to talk, talk, talk and talk. So we are seeing a big difference in our teachings by just listening and trying to really ask inspired questions that are sparked by the Holy Ghost, and not talking and presenting information. I learned so much this weekend, it was incredible to feel the power that comes from an Apostle. I know that Elder Bednar is a prophet seer and revelator and that this church is really guided by authority of God.

We were able to bring a few investigators to church this weekend. The work is growing quickly here, I feel very humbled by all the blessings being poured upon this area. We are just trying to be "good boys" and be the worthy conduits of the Spirit, so that all those that are ready to find the truth can find it! I love this mission, and am sad it is coming to an end. I am just giving my all these last few weeks so that I can go home and know that I gave it my all.

Love you all! Pray for us here. Until next week,

Elder Babcock

When ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God

Greetings! (hehe)
Yes, I am in an old area of mine today, doing a division with one of the Elders here. The bus ride was a long one, standing from 2:30AM to 4:30 but hey, whats new? It is great to be back, I have already ran into a few friends, and am excited to stay tomorrow as well.
There was a huge rainstorm this last week that we ended up having to walk through a few miles to our house. I think it would have to go down as the biggest one yet of the mission. Lets just say that my baptismal clothing was more dry in one day than my companions boots in 6 days. The weather has been all over the place, but generally hot.
I had one of the best experiences of following the Spirit last night. We were hurrying down to our last visit of the night at about 8:15PM when I noticed a couple on the side of the road next to their motorcycle. I felt a very strong impression to stop and offer help. Well, I was not sure if it was just me telling myself, or the Spirit, so I gave them a wave and continued on. We continued to walk, and were about 20 feet ahead of them when I felt an undeniable impression to turn around and offer help. So I turned and gave a weak "Do you need help?", to which they replied, "No, all is well!" After hearing that I then started to turn, but then again felt impressed to offer again to help! By this point, I felt like I might have been annoying them, which of course was what Satan wanted me to think, but I asked them again, "are you sure?", to which they replied, "Well, we are looking for something." So we went and started talking, and what do you know, they had been walking for more than 2 hours pushing their motorcycle, because the tire had gone flat, and no one offered help, nor could they find a pump. We started calling members who lead us to one place, and another, and another, and we could not find anyone who had a pump! In addition, it was Sunday, and nothing was open. We ended up carrying their helmets, bags and walked with them as we pushed the bike up the hill, where he got in touch with his brother-in-law, who knew what to do. We were able to talk and realize that they were very interested in our message about eternal happiness, and accepted to receive the missionaries in their house in Asuncion. They kept on saying how thankful they were for our help. I really cannot explain to you all how great I felt after. I had been a part of a first hand following-the-Spirit experience. I understood what King Benjamin said when he taught that when we are in the service of others, we are only in the service of our God. My companion and I got to talking about the effect that one little experience can have like that, especially in the life of someone in need. Who knows, maybe they will never talk to missionaries again. Maybe they will find the truth, be baptized, sealed in the temple, and endure to the end to obtain eternal life. Maybe they will greet Elder Sorrell and I on the other side of the veil and say, "Remember us? Remember, we were in need of help, and you helped us! You led us to happiness we had never known was available! Remember us? How glorious will the day be when it all comes together, and all of those small acts of kindness we do are all found out and added up, and we can all rejoice together. Like Elder Holland said, that surely the thing God loves most about being God is being merciful, especially to those who don't expect it, or may not be worthy of it. I feel so thankful for being here in the mission and for the experience I have had and continue to have daily.
Love you all!
Elder Babcock

Visits with the Mission President

Greetings from Paraguay!

This week I officially started what will be my last transfer of my mission. It has brought up many mixed emotions, most of them being sadness and also excitement to endure to the end and work as hard as I can to end with a bang. We had an awesome week, the members are incredible, especially our Ward Mission Leader. He went out with us 2 different days to visit our progressing investigators, and it had a huge influence! Yesterday in Fast and Testimony Meeting, he bore his testimony of the joy that he feels working with us missionaries, and encouraged everyone there to find people for us to teach. I feel so thankful for members of the church like him who understand the doctrine of missionary work being a duty of everyone in the church. One of my favorite quotes has always been: "After all that's been said, the greatest and most important duty is to preach the gospel" by the Prophet Joseph Smith. We had more lessons with member present this week than any other week I have had here, and we saw the success when Sunday came along and 6 of our investigators all showed up, all of which had been visited by us this last week with a member present.

We got a surprise call from President Madariaga telling us that he would be in town Sunday night to do visits with us! We went with him to visit a few investigators and less active members. We also had interviews with him, and mine was very spiritual.

My spiritual thought from this week comes from a lesson we had with a Family. 1 year ago, the mother of a Hermana passed away, and so the visit before we went with President, we left them with Alma 40:11-13 to read, which talks about the Spirit World. As we opened our scriptures to read it with them, I was anxious and ready to read the scripture, teach the doctrine, etc. But, wisely, President takes a second to ask, "Tell me Sister, what was your mother like?" Hermana sits there for a second, and responds by saying that when her mom was younger, she was really doubtful about God, religion, etc. Then, she was diagnosed with cancer, which proved fatal. But before she died, she started receiving the missionaries, felt in her heart that the church was true, and wanted to be baptized. Due to health problems, she was unable to be baptized, but had desired to be baptized up until she passed away. At that point, I felt so humbled and thankful for the wonderful example of President Madariaga. Because he followed the Spirit and asked an inspired question, we were able to understand exactly what portion of the gospel she needed to hear. He then explained that because of her change and faithfulness, and because of vicarious ordinances in the Holy Temple, she could receive baptism and other saving ordinances, and also receive a glorious resurrection with her whole family. Hermana felt peace in her heart as she heard the news. She committed to go to the temple in December with her mothers information, to be able to perform baptism for her deceased mother. I am thankful for temples, and give my testimony that the power does exist today to save those who have passed away. I am thankful for the example of my family members from home who write me and weekly tell me of experiences they have had while in the temple this last week. I know that families can be together forever, through the sealing power of the Priesthood.

I love you all. Keep us in your prayers! Elder Bednar is coming to visit us on the 27th of October, we are all excited!

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

Sweat and Scars

Greetings!
Ok, before starting, I am letting you know that I had my whole letter written, then my computer broke down and it all erased...So this will be the summary.

The heat has officially arrived, and it is caused my companion and I to by sweet sombrero hats which we proselyte in. We look awesome. This week has been a very fatiguing one, given that we have had only 1 normal night of sleep due to traveling, exchanges, and daylight savings time. But I have come to realize that it is like that here, we have the biggest zone in our mission, the other areas are all between 2-5 hours away. But I love it, its great to be here. We are in the middle of nowhere, and it is a privilege to preach the gospel among my beloved Paraguayos.

Conference was great! It is like the Superbowl of the mission. We were able to bring a few investigators to see it. 2 of them are progressing really well towards baptism right now. They were a referral from our recent convert. They are getting mixed in with the members well, they were telling everyone about their baptism, so that was really cool. It is always a good sign that investigators like the church when that happens. Another investigator that attend is the 17 year old niece of an active member family who is now living with them. She has a very limited understanding of Christ, but feels good at church and also is progressing towards baptism. We continue to work with the boyfriend of a less active member. We went to teach him last week, and felt inspired to teach him about the Book of Mormon, something we had already taught him. As we finished reading the Introduction, we came to the last paragraph, which basically explains what the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon means: that Jesus Christ is the Savior, that Joseph Smith is a true Prophet, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Kingdom of the Lord on earth. As we read it, I felt a strong impression to ask him if he had come to know that Joseph Smith was a Prophet. He is a timid guy, so I did not expect anything big, which might have been a lack of faith on my part. He responded by explaining that when we watched the Joseph Smith movie, he felt a peace in his heart that he had never felt before. He bore testimony to me of the truthfulness of our church. Wow, what a powerful thing to hear! What would have happened if we would have never followed up on the video we saw? We followed that by reading Mosiah 18 about the baptismal covenant, and committed him to be baptized. It was a testimony builder to me that the Lord, by the Spirit, works miracles. Be it the miracle of being inspired to ask a question, or answering someone about the truthfulness of this work, it is by that same Spirit, and is the only way to learn spiritual truths.

Crazy story of the week goes to my companion, who while leaving a lesson, had his head down and ran into a wire fence, which gashed his eye very badly. We were far from the hospital and it was way hot, so we had to make a huge walk to the hospital to get it checked out. I felt so bad, because the sweat from his forehead would enter into his cut, and he would say how bad it hurt. It is healing slowly but surely. I consoled him by saying that it would be a cool scar (because I love scars), to which he responded, "Ya I'm not a fan of face scars" ha ha he has a great attitude. He always seems to be able to laugh off the tough things. I am learning a lot from him.

I did a division with Elder Miner, my MTC companion. It was great. Though Joseph would like to know, he says hi!

Today we had our Zone Training, Elder Sorrell and I taught our zone about teaching skills and diligence. I love Moroni 9:6, it has become one of my theme scriptures of my mission that keeps me going when I feel like I have nothing left. I invite you all to read it again and put goals to be more diligent and dedicated in whatever calling or responsibility you have as a member of the church.

I got transfers today, and I will be staying here with Elder Sorrell for my last transfer. Time is flying by. I am working hard and taking advantage of every opportunity I have to preach the gospel here in this short time as a full-time missionary. I loved Elder Hollands message from conference. The Lord needs us to serve him forever. He has asked us to "leave our nets" forever. I know that even though they say that the mission is 2 years, it is forever. I am excited to leave it all in the field and come home with nothing left. Because that is the only way to do it, any other way wouldn't be fair, would be right.

I love you all! Keep us in your prayers.

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

This week: Strengthen those in need of your strength!

Hello to all!
This email is arriving a day late, given that yesterday we had our big Zone Leader Council meeting with an Area Seventy, Elder Di Giovanni, and because of travel problems we were not able to email yesterday. It was a very powerful conference, we felt a lot of "Godly sorrow" about things we need to work on in the mission as leaders. It is good sorrow, because it leads to change, or in other words, repentance. Elder Di Giovanni's wife used a great example to start it off. She put a piece of paper on the pulpit that said "PIANO" and asked Elder Andreasen (who was pianist) to go up and play a hymn on the pulpit. He looked at the pulpit confused and said that it did not work because it obviously was not a piano. She then said, "but it says piano...are you sure it does not work?" She compared it to us as leaders and as missionaries. Are we really missionaries (leaders, members, etc)? Do we play the role or simply carry the title? It really hit me hard, and helped me realize that I can have a great influence on others for good, as long as I magnify the responsibility I have been given.
This last week was full of miracles. Our recent convert, has become the hardest working member ever! He gave us some referrals last week that we have been working with, and because of his help, 5 of them attended church this last Sunday, and 4 of them currently are progressing towards baptism for the 20th of October! He has been going out with us every other day, and not only has his testimony been strengthened, but also those investigators. We are seeing miracle after miracle because of the dedication of these great recent converts. We have also put the goal to literally talk with everyone! I was studying this last week about the principle of finding when we teach, and teaching when we find, which basically means that as missionaries we are 24/7 for 2 years in the process of finding as many people as we can to bring unto the true fold of the Lord. After that study, last Wednesday, I rededicated myself to talk to everyone, and we are finding many more people to teach. And as I did so, I felt a lot more positive, happy, etc. When we share the gospel with others, our lives our blessed.
A funny story from this week would have to come from church on Sunday. While I was teaching the Gospel Principles class, we were talking about the problems of our days, and the many temptations around us. A pretty Evangelic guy decided to attend our church and he commented on that subject. He started to raise and raise his voice, until he was practically yelling, which of course made the Spirit go flying out of the room. Our investigator sitting right next to him politely told him to speak a little softer. His response was, "No, that's the Holy Ghost!" I find it interesting how mistaken people can be about how the Holy Ghost really feels. For those who read the Bible and understand it, it clearly states that they are feelings of peace, happiness, joy, love, long suffering, patience, gentleness, kindness, etc. For that reason it is also called the Comforter. And screaming, yelling, fighting, debating are all exactly what the Lord has said is NOT His doctrine (see 3 Nephi 11:29-30). The Spirit and its comforting feelings are what have guided me through my life and mission, to know what to do, what to say, where to go. They have never given me desires to do anything along the lines of raising my voice. I know that if the Spirit is with us, we will be able to feel comfort and peace in hard times.
My spiritual thought comes from a scripture I read the other day in Doctrine and Covenants 84:106. We learn here that those that are strong in the gospel have the responsibility to help those who are weak, and to lift them up so that they are also strong. We have been sharing that with our active members, and are inviting them to do the same. We leave them, and all of you out there, to think of someone who, for whatever reason, has fallen down, who needs your help. This week, find that person, and give them the support they need to be strong like you. I know that we all can make great differences in the lives of others, if we follow the example of the Savior, scripture heroes, and modern day examples and simply serve others. Love you all from home, keep us in your prayers.
Until next week,
Elder Babcock

The Mysterious Hospital Trip

Hello to all!
After I wrote my letter last week, I was able to go around for a little while, and I got to visit some of their investigators, as well as 2 very special families there. They were so excited to see me, as was I excited to see them. I shared about the temple with them, and they put a goal to enter into the temple, which will be practically my last day in the mission and will be the trip all the finishing elders do in the temple. It was a really special night. Then, we got a call from the Assistants that said that Elder Colligan would be getting special changed...It hit us pretty hard. I could not believe it. We then had to leave so that Elder Colligan could say goodbye to everyone. It was a sad day, we both were not too excited about the change, but that's how the mission is. We realized that even though we weren't given much time to be together, the time we had was full of great memories, moments, and success. It was a pleasure being his companion. Coincidentally, he got transferred to my last area. He is excited about that, because the members there give the greatest lunch appointments ever!
So I got a new companion!  He has been out for about 1 year 5 months, and is just recently becoming a Zone Leader, so he is technically my second Zone Leader child, since I am training him. He is a really good funny guy, pretty tall and skinny, into video games, rifle shooting, and supposedly gets a lot of packages from home, which is a big bonus haha. It is looking like he will be my last companion...weird! We have been working really hard, he has a good focus on achieving goals, and I really like that.
Funny story from this week would definitely have to come from Thursday morning. Ever since I got here, I have had terrible allergies just about every other day. I was supposed to go to the hospital last week to get it checked out, but for lack of time, we were not able to go. Thursday came along, and I was sneezing so badly that I could not live another day without figuring out what was wrong with me. I was pretty scared to go in, because this is a tiny poor town with not much medical experience. I even called the Mission Presidents wife before going, and she said it would be alright. So I walk in, they take me to a room, and I start to explain what was going on. Then the lady tells the man nurse guy something, and all of a sudden I see him preparing a needle, ready to give a shot... I was like, "hold on a minute, I don't want a shot". She said that it would be alright, and that it would stop the sneezing. My companion then started to seem nervous about it too, so we called the Mission Presidents wife again to ask if it would be alright, and she said it would. So, I said a silent prayer, and went to sit down on the patient chair to get my first shot in Paraguay. The nurse man comes over to me and tells me to lay down, which initially seemed weird..why would I need to lay down to get a shot in my arm? I lay down and then he tells me to turn over, and says, "nalgas". That's about when I got nervous again...Nalgas? That is, butt-cheeks? Am I about to get a shot in my behind? Long story short, I got a shot in my rear end, and even though I was super nervous, it all turned out alright. I was instantly cured. However, I hope to never again enter into a hospital here.
Our branch went to the temple last week, and they all loved it of course.
The work is rolling along slowly but surely. After the baptism, things have been a little tough, we have TONS of possible people to be baptized, but they all have some sort of doubt or impediment that has prevented them from progressing. We are hopeful and are working hard to see some miracles. Love you all, keep us in your prayers.
Until next week,
Elder Babcock

Greetings!

I am here in my ever-so-special land! Elder Colligan and I came back up here today to attend the District Meetings of a few of the Elders in our Zone. I am here for tonight and for tomorrow to do a division, and I am so excited. I have already ran into a few people I had taught and we were all excited to see each other. We even got to play a soccer game with all the Elders today, and it was great. It feels great to be back!

We had a great week, especially in finding new investigators. We have been working a lot with our Recent Converts and trying to find through referrals from them. We were in a lesson out in a really poor part of our area when some lady out of nowhere came over to listen during the middle of a lesson with her neighbor. We ended up setting a return visit to meet her specific family in her house. We went there on Saturday and they are a golden couple! Right of the bat they asked 2 great questions: 1. When is church? We want to go. 2. How does one prepare to be baptized in your church? Then Sunday morning came along and we a recent convert to walk with them to church in the blazing heat and they walked all the way there (about 40 minute walk) carrying 2 of their 3 kids! It was a testimony builder for me that not only does the Lord prepare his children to receive the gospel, but he even blesses them with the strength to do it! They are preparing for baptism for the 13th of October.

I did a division this week with a really great young missionary in a little tiny farming town. The church is very small there, they have meetings in the house of the missionaries, and have basically no members. It was interesting being again around the language of Portuguese. It was a great division. He taught me how to make french toast, and so we have been cooking it a ton here, especially with the maple extract the ward sent me last Christmas.

Yesterday was a really special day, because we had a special district conference, broad casted from Salt Lake! Elder Walter Gonzalez, Elder Neal L. Anderson, and President Thomas S. Monson all gave talks inspired for only Paraguay and Uruguay. I really loved the topics they talked about: Rescuing the less active members, tithing, convert baptisms, prospective elders, temple work...ALL big problems here in Paraguay that urgently need to be fixed. I was very edified, and the investigators all were excited when we explained that they had heard a message from Gods living Prophet.

Elder Colligan and I are having the time of our lives, we are seeing miracle after miracle.  We have been genuinely trying to love everyone, and it has made all the difference in the work here. We feed well off each other when we teach, we enjoy the work we are doing, and we are seeing so many small successes that have been adding up to miracles. I am thankful that the Lord placed us together at this time of our missions.

Love you all! Keep us in your prayers.

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

Thoughts on Baptism

Hello to all!

This week had some great highlights! We had been working with a man and also with his 8 year old daughter for a few weeks, and they progressed so fast! It was incredible to see their journey towards baptism. The members here helped out so much with phone calls, visits, meals, everything! They were baptized on Saturday. It was a great baptismal service. At the end of the baptism, he bore his testimony, and about his determination to serve God forever. He is such a great man, he will be a great leader here.

Our Ward Mission Leader was chosen to baptize them, and we love him so much. He is the most positive man on earth, always smiling and happy, even when nothing seems to be going well.   Coincidentally, last Saturday was the 21st Anniversary of his own baptism! After the baptism he pulled me aside, and thanked Elder Colligan and I for letting him do the baptism. He said, "You are special Elders for me. I have been Ward Mission Leader for so long, and you are the first elders that have ever let me do a baptism! I feel that it is my responsibility to make sure they stay on track, and I will do it until the end!" I felt so thankful for his great example of how members should always be with new investigators. It is relationships like these that make the work of the Lord progress.

Elder Colligan and I taught the class today for the Zone Training we do once a month. We talked about having the "Vision to Baptize", which is actually something written by Elder Corbridge of the Seventy. Our goal was to encourage all the Elders in our zone to be more diligent and direct about finding, teaching and baptizing. We invited them to see the people of Paraguay in white in the baptismal font, in the Temple, and in the Celestial Kingdom. We invited them to see them how God sees them. It was really spiritual, and our Zone seemed really receptive. As a missionary, my mentality towards sharing the gospels with others has increased, as I have better understood the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Once I understood that all the blessings of the Atonement are only available to those that have faith in Him, repent of their sins, are baptized and confirmed by Priesthood Authority, and endure to the end, my whole mentality on everything changed. I have been called to baptize converts. There are so many people on earth today that are looking for the truth, but are kept from it, only because they know not where to find it. And I have been called to teach the truth to the world. It is such a privilege. I love the mission, and as it is coming down to an end ever so quickly, my desires have only increase on doing this sacred work.

My love and prayers go out to my good friend Nate Short and his family in this tough time for all of us.

Love you all, pray for us here.

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

Meeting Americans

Hello to all!

Last Monday night we received the transfers, and Elder Colligan and I keep the streak alive and are staying together for our 2nd to last transfer! Wahoo! We are so excited. We have so many great ideas for the zone, and are really excited to continue in the hard work.

I wrote the other week about a golden investigator that we have. He has progressed so much! He continues to read, understands everything, has received a spiritual witness that the Book of Mormon is true, and is pretty much all set for this Saturday, the 8th, for baptism! We feel so humbled by the blessing it is to have found him and taught him. His daughter is 8 and should be getting baptized as well.  We will be giving it our all so that she can get baptized as well with him. The members are working well with him and his family, and has already been inviting all his extended family to come and see his baptism. It is going to be great.

Funny story of the week was when we were contacting around in a new neighborhood that we usually don't work in, and a teenage kid said that an American couple was living around the corner. Of course we were excited/nervous to hear that, and we went to the house and saw a couple sitting down drinking terere with a bunch of little kids playing soccer around them. The man came to us and presented himself by saying "Hey guys, hows it going?". It was the first time I had met anyone from the US in my entire mission. It was even the first time I have heard English without a weird accent. It was interesting. Turns out, they are from the Peace Corp, and because of that, are not allowed to receive us, but they seemed interested. The wife had grown up with many Mormon friends, and even had the Book of Mormon with her in English. We invited them to read it and pray about it, I hope they do so. I realized how difficult it was to express myself professionally in English! But it was a great experience, I gained a new respect for missionaries in the US, it hurts a lot more to the ears when they tell you they are not interested in your native language.

Elder Colligan and I had our Zone Leader Council meeting this morning, and we learned a lot on how to more effectively lead our zones by example, so that we can reach some of the mission goals we have. The meeting was followed by what Elder Colligan and I call a "Partidazo", or in other words, "huge soccer game". It was so hot, but great, I am low on hydration, have a huge headache, and actually need to get going so that we can catch our bus that is leaving soon.

Love you all so much! Pray for us here.

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

Hello to all!
Lets just say, this week was pure chaos, but one of the best ones of my life. Most of this week was spent and dedicated to preparing what turned out to be the most stressful but beautiful wedding Paraguay has ever seen! We had to set up everything for decorations in the chapel, clean the chapel (more than once, since some branch members got it dirty in between cleaning sessions), buy and take the cake to the chapel, make sure the couple and 4 witnesses had identifications for the ceremony, help prepare the chicken and rice for the dinner, figure out the music situation, deal with complaints from practically everyone, and meanwhile, trying to find and teach people about the wonderful message that I was called to teach to everyone. It was, for lack of better words, an insane week, but once Saturday night hit, it was all worth it.
The wedding went surprisingly smooth, our Branch President, along with other members, ended up helping quite a bit. We took many photos, everyone was really excited about the wedding, it ended up really uniting our branch quite a bit. One of the small miracles was that her parents are very inactive members. They hadn't been inside our church for over 20 years. She was worried that because we were doing the wedding in the chapel, that they wouldn't come. Well, they came, and loved it! The members welcomed them with smiles, hugs, kisses, and they seems very happy. As the missionaries, we decided to gift them a cake...and not just your average cake, but an 8 kilo, 2 story cake! We even bought a little couple thing to put on top of it. An of course, they were awestruck when they saw it. All the stress, preparations, headaches were all worth it when we saw the smiles on their faces, as they had one of the best nights of their lives.
Sunday morning came along, and before church, she was baptized by Elder Colligan. Many members came, in spite of the cold, overcast morning. We got there at 6:30 AM to boil water, because the hot water in the font doesn't work. The baptismal service was excellent, many great talks. As she got out of the water, you could see the joy in her eyes and in her countenance. She was a new lady, clean and pure. To conclude the service, she bore her testimony. She talked about the lesson we had with her about a month ago, when after reading in Mormon 9, we asked her if she believed in miracles, and she said that she did. We then asked her what a few miracles would be, and she said 3 things: that her husband would go to church tomorrow, that they would get married, and that she would get baptized. As we now know, all 3 of those miracles have been accomplished. She then said in her testimony, "God showed me that day that miracles exist. I am going to keep working until one day he can be baptized and we can be sealed in the temple". The Spirit was strongly present. It is moments like these that make it all worth it.
I love my mission so much. I love being here, I don't want it to ever end. It is such a great experience, being so involved in such a divine work. I love the people that I serve here. I know that the things that are taught in the church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) are true, and I know that by the power of the Holy Ghost.
Love you all! Pray for us here. Until next week,
Elder Babcock

Hello to all!

Last Monday, as you know, I wrote you from good one of my old areas. At night time, Elder Colligan and I went out with the Elders there and do some visits. I was able to pass by some of my dearest friends. Each one of them was going through a hard time, and the timing of being able to visit them was, in my opinion, divine. It felt great, as if I was going back "home". Each one of the lessons was very spiritual, with big commitments such as missions and temple sealings.

The bus ride home was killer, we got on the bus at 11 PM after a hectic, sweaty day. Then when 1:30 AM hit, the worker in the bus wakes us up and tells us that more people were getting on, and that we would have to stand, so from that time until about 3:30 AM we were standing on a crowded, freezing cold bus. The only thing that kept me motivated was that when we got off, I would be able to get into my comfortable bed and sleep...When we got home, to our surprise, the Elders were there laying in our beds, because they had missed their bus. I cannot even describe how heart broken I was. Lets just say that I am still trying to recover from the loss of sleep. I was even sick all week, so it was tough but I survived.

Well, our eternigator "eternal investigator", after much fasting, prayer, and diligence over the last 15-ish years, is finally getting married this Saturday, and baptized on Sunday morning! She is awesome. Elder Colligan and I have been working really hard with her and her husband, and we are really excited for this weekend.

I got to talk to one of my converts from my first area, who is leaving on his mission to Chile this Thursday! He is really excited and ready. On Tuesday, we are going for a Zone Conference, and I am hoping to meet up with him at the Mission Office to bid him farewell, and give him some things. He is a great guy, and will be an excellent servant of the Lord.

We were walking around in a super poor, far away part of our area, and I felt the Spirit prompt me to talk to a man who was sitting in front of his house, looking unoccupied. We started talking, and he let us sit down. It didn't seem that he understood us very well, due to the fact that he speaks mainly guarani. We taught him about repentance and baptism, and he accepted it well! We went back on Saturday with a member to teach him again, and he committed to go to church. Sunday morning came, and we went by his house to walk with him and his 2 young daughters, and he was there waiting! They loved church, and after church we went by to ask him about it, and he said that he felt very different, and close to God. He said that he loved being able to participate in the classes, something very different about our church. He accepted to be baptized along with his daughter. Elder Colligan and I felt very humbled by how much the Lord is willing to guide us to those who are waiting for us, as long as we follow the promptings of His Holy Spirit. It has given me more desires to talk to EVERYONE, because you never know who is being prepared to receive the gospel.

Love you all! Keep us in your prayers.

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

Greetings! I am totally in my old area, and it is just fantastic. We came up here today to do a Zone Training Meeting, which is a new once-a-month meeting that we teach to the zone about specific needs we have, and how we can better resolve them. I feel like it was a complete success. We were able to focus on our zone and our needs, and based most of it on practices. It was a great learning environment, the Elders really participated well, and we left very excited to improve the work in our areas. Even though it took quite a bit of preparation and time, it was well worth it. And after, we played a huge "partidazo" soccer game, our team did great.

Elder Colligan and I are really trying to take advantage of this great opportunity to be companions, and we are trying to be more creative and think outside of the box. We had been working with our investigator for a while, and he has come down to the conclusion that either our church is true, or the catholic. With our Mission Presidents permission, we decided to teach one more time about he could recognize an answer from the Holy Ghost, and offered to even attend his catholic mass on Sunday Night after attending ours, to "weigh the differences". After attending our meetings in the morning, we went to catholic mass! I feel like it really helped him out to see the love we have for him, and after mass, we taught him a lesson, and I think he is coming to see the many similarities, as well as the differences in ordinances. It was a very interesting experience. I gained a new respect for the Catholic faith, in the sense that those who attend seem to really be trying to follow God, just like us. They were all behaved very reverently, and even though the ordinances that were performed were not performed by Priesthood authority, and were different, it was a great opportunity to see how it all works. It also helped me to realize how nervous one must be going to our church for the first time, because Elder Colligan and I were super nervous. As of right now, he is progressing towards baptism for the last week of the month.

We are seeing miracles with our investigator! Her husband decided to marry her, which was huge news, something that not too long ago seemed impossible. Now, the obstacle is finding the money for the wedding, due to debt issues. Elder Colligan, ________, and I were able to do a fast together, and she called us last night with news about a possible source of money that would allow them for marriage this weekend! I know that when Satan puts everything in the way of a baptism (and in this case, a marriage), the Lord is willing to help out as well according to our diligence and faith, and we are seeing that abundantly. If it all works out, they will be married, and she will be baptized this Saturday.

Great news from this week was that a couple that I had baptized in my first area, were endowed and sealed in the temple this last week for time and all eternity! The bad news was that because I am far away from the city, President Madariaga said that I couldn't attend. It really hit me hard, I was just about sure that I would have been able to attend, and the news hurt me pretty bad. I had to take the news humbly and know that even though I wanted to be there, the work here in was what the Lord wanted me to do. I was able to talk to them on the phone before and after, and they had a great experience. Even though I was not able to attend, I felt as if I was with them, and am so proud of them.

Things are going great. I am going to teach some people tonight and am really excited. It is great to be with Elder Colligan, he is a great example to me. We are working really hard and are seeing great results. Keep us and the people here in your prayers!

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

Hello to all!

Greetings. We are here in the city, just finishing up a great P-day. We had our Zone Leader Council and it was incredible. President Madariaga always helps us to always leave meetings with him ready to change. He talked a lot on what we need to "become", not just "know and do". It was very special and feel even more dedicated to the work.

We had many investigators attend the baptismal service, one of them being our investigator that is awesome, super intelligent, but had many doubts. In the baptismal service, he said that he felt a strong impression that what was being performed was true. It made us feel so happy that not only he felt an answer from God, but that he regonized it! He still has many doubts, but we are working hard with him.

Elder Colligan and I are having a great time. We are learning to cook a lot better. Elder Colligan made some great sloppy joe things without even using any sloppy joe mix! Unfortunately it made me kind of sick, but hey, the effort was what counted.

This is a really special area. It has a lot of great history. Unfortunately, it also has some not-so-good-history, due to rumors, lies, and every other things Satan tries to put in the way of the Lords work. That has impeded many people from coming to church. We just got a new Branch President who is great and has helped with a lot of reactivation work. It is great to be here. I just wanted to make a quick passing comment on how important it is to support the leaders that the Lord has called in our wards, stakes, all the way up to the First Presidency and Quorom of the 12 Apostles. We must support them not just vocally or with the raise of the right hand, but sincerely in our hearts support them, pray for them, not talk bad about them, even when others are. I am reminded of my favorite lyric from one of my favorite songs. "Who am I to judge another, when I walk imperfectly? When the quiet heart is hidden sorrow that the eye cant see? Who am I to judge another, Lord, I would follow Thee." I always feel so humbled when I read those lyrics...Who are we to judge others, when we ourselves are imperfect as well. Think of how badly we plead for the Lord to forgive us for our mistakes, imperfections, and even more for our sins. Then think of when others are going through that tough process, or better yet, when WE ourselves are going through that process. Does it not feel great to receive a positive call from a loved one, a warm smile from a ward member, and handshake from a leader, saying "Hang in there. We love you. We appreciate your work." Or does it feel better to hear "Hey look at so-and-so, he is not doing his job. He does not keep commandments, he is such a bad example." It hurts me so badly to hear members complain about other members, about leadership, when they are just sitting there doing nothing. If we could all just change the "Look at all the things they are doing wrong attitude" to the "Hey, how can I better help them and show my love and support for them" attitude, the work of the Lord would significantly grow, branches and wards would be more united, nonmembers would look towards us as great examples, and the Lord Himself would look down on the members of His church, proud and pleased. Let us all be more kind, and support our leaders, they surely would appreciate it. I am so thankful for the leaders I have had in my life, such as my bishop, stake president, young men's leaders, mission president, family and friends, dad, grandparents, the list goes on! Thank you for what you do! Keep up the great work.

Love you all! Pray for us.

Elder Babcock

The Standard of Truth

Greetings !

Elder Colligan and I had a great week, full of hard work, laughs, and investigators finally committing to baptism! We are teaching an awesome family, and the dad is a member who has come back to activity with us and his 2 youngest daughters are planning on getting baptized tomorrow! They are super funny and love church. The branch has helped out tons in fellow shipping, and they have really received the teachings well. They help me with Guarani every visit too. They are awesome. Even their older sister who didn't really want to go to church, get baptized, etc went to church for the first time yesterday, and is hopefully going to get baptized in August. It has been a great miracle.

I have been study, practice, and working on my ability to speak Guaraní. It is really hard and confusing, and uses weird noises, but I have already seen a lot of progress. And when I speak in Guaraní instead of Spanish, the people are more interested and receptive to the teachings. I have gotten down the prayer pretty good, also basic contacts of the gospel. The members are helping me a lot as well. Keep praying for me to communicate well the message of the Restoration with my Paraguayan brothers and sisters!

We were literally in the middle of nowhere looking for a former investigator of past Elders, when we came across a lone house/farm, with about 40 bulls standing there. We decided to contact it, so I clapped at the gate. Right when I clapped, it triggered something in the cows, and they started to sprint, about 5 of them right at us. So we also turned and started to hurry away. I thought that for sure, we were not going to make it out alive, but we got lucky and beat them out of the path. It was an adventure.

We had been teaching a really cool guy. He has cooled off a little bit due to false information about the church and its origin. It has been really frustrating to see the eternal effect of rumors, lies, and false stories about the church. Just when he was about to be baptized, and was almost certain that the church was true, it all fell apart. I was reading in Mormon 8, and I decided that Moroni said it best in verses 13-22. He said that the records that he had written, and that his father Mormon had abridged would only come to pass in the latter-days by the power of God, and that the person called to do so (Joseph Smith) would be blessed by the Lord. It also warns all that seek to destroy the work (be it through actions, lies, theories, etc) is in danger to be hewn down and cast into the fire. Then in verse 22, "For the eternal purposes of the Lord shall roll on, until all his promises shall be fulfilled." It reminded me of one of my favorite quotes, by the Prophet Joseph Smith himself, "The Standard of Truth has been erected. No unhallowed hand can stop the work. Persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame. But the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and dependent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, until the purposes of God shall be accomplished and the Great Jehovah will say, `The work is done`". I know that it is true. Nobody but the Lord will ever be able to impede the work in which we have embarked. I love this work and I know it has been able to grow across the whole work only because it is a sacred, divine work of God.

Love you all! Pray for us!

Until next week,

Elder Babcock

Do you believe in miracles?

Hello to all!
Last week was transfer week, always scary. So we were waiting for the phone call to get changes from the Assistants, and they said all the changes, then did mine last. He goes, "alright, your mission is about to change forever." I was pretty nervous, of course. Then, he says, "I am only going to tell you once, and I promise I am not lying...You are going to _____ with Elder Colligan." I just about died! Lets just say I did scream...pretty loud haha. I felt like when the US Hockey Team beat Russia and the announcer says "DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES!" So ya, we are totally companions right now. I will get back to there.
I said my goodbyes to my very, very special area, and to one of my best friends/examples Elder Andreasen. It was sad to say goodbyes to all the great people I had been about to teach.
Since I don't need to say much about my new companion, because the majority of you guys know him, I will explain a little bit about my area.  It is a small city, well populated, very different. Everyone here speaks Guaraní, few speak Spanish, so Elder Colligan and I are dedicating to Guaraní. It has been tough but cool. We are in a good sized branch, the chapel is huge. It was great to come in at this time, we are teaching many great investigators.
I love the mission. It is so full of excitement, experiences, changes, love, faith, Spirit, power, and more than anything, miracles! I know that as we live worthy of the Lords blessings, He blesses us with miracles. They can be big like Elder Colligan and I being companions, etc. They are mostly always small, like seeing humble people learn to pray, helping young investigators feel comfortable at church, not messing up too much playing the piano in sacrament meeting, etc. I know that God is a God of miracles, and I can only imagine the joy He feels when He blesses us with them!
Love you all! Pray for us here.
Until next week,
Elder Babcock

Treasures in Heaven

Hello to all!
I am really enjoying my time reading in 3 Nephi. I love the chapters 12-14 (which are also in Matthew), and the counsel it gives to live the "higher law" that Christ taught. I read 3 Nephi 13:19-21 on Saturday morning in my personal study, and really loved it. It says "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and thieves break through and steal; But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." When I read it, it really hit me hard. This life is a long journey that we take step by step, collecting treasures daily. It is easy to fall into the trap of collecting the "treasures upon earth" which are essentially the things that do not matter much, like fancy cars, clothes, luxury, work, sports, music (yes, I said it, Dave Matthews Band may qualify as a treasure upon earth...I cant believe i said it), etc. We spend so much time worrying about those things, when the really reward comes from collecting "treasures in heaven", the things we can take with us, like our family, knowledge, friendships, personalities, testimonies, covenants, ordinances, and all the great things that God has given us to find real joy. It really hit me hard. We visited a member who was going through a hard time, and asked us how she could better balance her work stuff, family stuff, and church stuff. We shared this scripture, and she started crying. I love the scriptures, because they are a divine source of revelation. As we read them, we can and will find the answers we are looking for. I have seen that time after time, especially once I was called to serve. I invite all of you to know them more profoundly, and to apply their teachings in your lives. You will feel the Spirit stronger, your family relationships will improve, your strength to resist temptation will increase, your love for others will be more genuine, your testimony will be more firm, and your determination to reach eternal live with become "steadfast and immovable".
We will receive transfers tonight, it will be interesting to see what happens with my good friend Elder Andreasen and I. Love you all! Keep us in your prayers!
Elder Babcock