Hi Everybody!
I've been keeping pretty busy this week, what with a new companion and everything. We've been trying to go through all of the contacts in our areabook, attempting everything within our means to find new people to teach. Rumor is, things here might start opening up soon, but until then, all we've got is a phone, and a Facebook account. We do our best. :P
Either way, this week was pretty great. What with all the phone calls we were making, as well as all the appointments scheduled, it felt very productive, even if not too many people answered the phone. The only thing we can really do is do our best, and trust that God will bring us to the people he has prepared to accept His gospel. Hard work brings blessings!
Hard work also brings an appetite, and that brings me to my favorite part of the email! And this time, it's even better, because, thanks to the divine goodness and mercy of God, my new companion can cook! Hence the title. We've been having a little bit of a friendly competition, where everyone wins, because we both get to eat great food! ;) So far on the menu: Breakfast burritos with homemade tortillas and guacamole, French toast with nutella and fresh bananas, Chicken with a chipotle sauce, pasta with mushrooms, chicken wings with Buffalo sauce, Beef lo mein, chicken fried rice, and Hielitos, which are kind of like ice cream? You make a tres leche, blend up some oreos, mix it all together, and freeze it. They're delicious. So yeah, needless to say, I've been eating good this week. :)
Moving on from the food (I'm sorry, I know that's what you came here for), I wanted to share a really cool spiritual thought that was given in our District Council yesterday. So, a long time ago, this Spanish guy named Cortez and a couple hundred soldiers came in some boats to conquer all of the land for Spain. They landed, and when they discovered how many people were actually living over here, his men all got scared, and wanted to retreat to the boats and leave. So Cortez, in a move that seems rather insane, ordered his men to burn their boats, effectively cutting off any means of escape.
What was his plan, you may ask? Well, he was aware that if his men knew there was a way out, they wouldn't fight as hard to win. Once he removed that option, they were ready to give it their all, because there was nothing holding them back. And thus, he conquered the entire continent with a few hundred men.
Now, what does that story have anything to do with a spiritual thought, I hear you asking. Well, allow me to enlighten you. If you will, recall the story of the Anti-Nephi-Lehis, who made a covenant with the Lord to never shed blood again, and then "buried their weapons of rebellion". They made sure that there was nothing holding them back from serving the Lord. And that's the message here. What are, metaphorically speaking, our weapons of rebellion, and our boats of escape? It's often small things, maybe a commandment you'd rather ignore, maybe it's being just a little bit prideful.
Whatever it may be, those things hold us back from being fully on the Lord's side. So, starting today, I'd like to encourage you all to take some time to think about what you have holding you back from serving the Lord with *all* your heart, might, mind, and strength. It's not the easiest thing in the world. Believe me, I know. But I promise that you will see an increase in blessings, and the hand of the Lord will be made manifest in your lives as you strive to follow Him.
Alrighty, that's a wrap folks. As always, thanks for listening in, and I'll be back next week with more tales from Mexico! Stay tuned. :)
- Elder Blankenbiller
Pictures:
1: Alitas con salsa Buffalo
2: Tostada Francesa
3: Cita con Hermanos Mario y Carolina
4: If you know, you know
5: My companion does a lawnmower impression
6: I don't care if you are a bunch of 18-25 year olds living alone in Mexico. You can still eat good food!
Either way, this week was pretty great. What with all the phone calls we were making, as well as all the appointments scheduled, it felt very productive, even if not too many people answered the phone. The only thing we can really do is do our best, and trust that God will bring us to the people he has prepared to accept His gospel. Hard work brings blessings!
Hard work also brings an appetite, and that brings me to my favorite part of the email! And this time, it's even better, because, thanks to the divine goodness and mercy of God, my new companion can cook! Hence the title. We've been having a little bit of a friendly competition, where everyone wins, because we both get to eat great food! ;) So far on the menu: Breakfast burritos with homemade tortillas and guacamole, French toast with nutella and fresh bananas, Chicken with a chipotle sauce, pasta with mushrooms, chicken wings with Buffalo sauce, Beef lo mein, chicken fried rice, and Hielitos, which are kind of like ice cream? You make a tres leche, blend up some oreos, mix it all together, and freeze it. They're delicious. So yeah, needless to say, I've been eating good this week. :)
Moving on from the food (I'm sorry, I know that's what you came here for), I wanted to share a really cool spiritual thought that was given in our District Council yesterday. So, a long time ago, this Spanish guy named Cortez and a couple hundred soldiers came in some boats to conquer all of the land for Spain. They landed, and when they discovered how many people were actually living over here, his men all got scared, and wanted to retreat to the boats and leave. So Cortez, in a move that seems rather insane, ordered his men to burn their boats, effectively cutting off any means of escape.
What was his plan, you may ask? Well, he was aware that if his men knew there was a way out, they wouldn't fight as hard to win. Once he removed that option, they were ready to give it their all, because there was nothing holding them back. And thus, he conquered the entire continent with a few hundred men.
Now, what does that story have anything to do with a spiritual thought, I hear you asking. Well, allow me to enlighten you. If you will, recall the story of the Anti-Nephi-Lehis, who made a covenant with the Lord to never shed blood again, and then "buried their weapons of rebellion". They made sure that there was nothing holding them back from serving the Lord. And that's the message here. What are, metaphorically speaking, our weapons of rebellion, and our boats of escape? It's often small things, maybe a commandment you'd rather ignore, maybe it's being just a little bit prideful.
Whatever it may be, those things hold us back from being fully on the Lord's side. So, starting today, I'd like to encourage you all to take some time to think about what you have holding you back from serving the Lord with *all* your heart, might, mind, and strength. It's not the easiest thing in the world. Believe me, I know. But I promise that you will see an increase in blessings, and the hand of the Lord will be made manifest in your lives as you strive to follow Him.
Alrighty, that's a wrap folks. As always, thanks for listening in, and I'll be back next week with more tales from Mexico! Stay tuned. :)
- Elder Blankenbiller
Pictures:
1: Alitas con salsa Buffalo
2: Tostada Francesa
3: Cita con Hermanos Mario y Carolina
4: If you know, you know
5: My companion does a lawnmower impression
6: I don't care if you are a bunch of 18-25 year olds living alone in Mexico. You can still eat good food!
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