March 26, 2012

Dear Family,

Great things are happening in the vineyard of the Lord. This past week we were able to teach the friend of a member, Joseph. He is 82 years old and although his parents are from Lebanon and Damascus he was born in Columbia and so Spanish is his preferred language. He has already read the entire Gospel Principles manual but is still very excited to learn more. Our first lesson was a very sweet experience. Before we even started teaching he asked, "So when can I get baptized?" As we shared the experience of the First Vision, he leaned forward in his chair listening very intently. Afterwards, he fed us some hummus, good stuff. He is very excited for his baptism on the 7th of April and hopes that his wife will consent to come. Joseph has been of testimony that even those who come in the 11th hour will receive the same as those of us who have been around for awhile. The gospel is true and if we learn it, live it, and love it we will be happy.  I hope y'all have a great week!

Love, Elder Cooley

My Dearly Beloved Family,

Happy Birthday Mom!!

Things are going great here in the land of Texas.  This past Saturday and Sunday Melba was baptized and confirmed; this time it was done in one dunk and the water was warm. Jose, our amigo venezolano, and Edgar, our amigo uruguayo, both came to church this past week for the first time and the lesson in Gospel Principles was about the scriptures. Afterwards they wanted a Triple so that they could read D&C and the Pearl of Great Price.  Jose has read up to 1 Nefi 17 and loves every bit of it.  He is progressing towards baptism and can't wait to feel clean.  

I love this area so much; there are so many people to talk to!  This past week we received a call from a member who lives outside of the mission but who has a friend who lives in our area.  The friend wants us to come over and teach him so we will be visiting him this Wednesday.

Tell Craig that he needs to write me, porfa. Anywho, the work is going great, time is flying by and I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Love, Elder Cooley

Howdy,

So, this past week was amazing!  We were able to teach a lot of people and see many miracles.  About a week back, as we were rushing to make it home on time, we were stopped by Jose, a man in our apartment complex.  One of the first things he said was "Quiero que me ensenen".  After setting up a few appointments and him not being there for them we began to give up hope.  But as we were trying to get an investigator to an investigator fireside yesterday we walked by his door and he was outside, we invited him and he accepted.  We were able to get him a ride and he loved it.  We still haven't taught him so he has a lot of questions about Jose Smith and the Book of Mormon but he definitely felt the Spirit which is the most important part.  Also at the fireside, Moises Gomez, shared his conversion story.  It was awesome to see him and hear how he's doing.  He has received the priesthood and just turned 16 so he will soon start blessing the sacrament.

We had a great lesson with Melba; she was postponing baptism because of her arthritis and she feels that her bones were really weak.  We then asked her how she was doing with the Word of Wisdom and admitted that she was still drinking coffee.  We then read through parts of D&C 89 and focused on how even the weakest of saints can do it and then testified of the blessings, including marrow in the bones and those were the blessings she needed.

There were 2 instances in which after talking to people on the street we set up appointments for the next day.  We taught them and they accepted baptismal dates. Also, we taught Adan, a 15 year old who recently came from Guatemala and who is living with his sister and brother in law.  He said he's not really sure why he came here, he liked it back in Guatemala, he was going to a nice school and everything but he feels that God has him here for a reason.  Afterwards I was reminded of the scripture in the Book of Mormon that talks about how no one will be brought here save it be by the hand of the Lord.  I feel privileged to serve among those who have been brought here by the hand of the Lord and I have seen that scripture be true many times throughout my mission.  As for Adan, he is a really smart kid and has already come to church several times and has a baptismal date.  

There certainly has been "an abundance of rain"(1 Kings 18:41) this past week, in terms of literal rain and blessings that the Lord has poured out upon us.  This gospel is true and it makes eternal changes in the lives of all who accept it with full purpose of heart.

Love, Elder Cooley

Buenas,

How's it going?  As for the bike/car thing, our area got cut in half so we didn't need the car anymore and I was thankful for that.  I prefer bike areas over car areas.  As for Ashlee getting called to Scotland/Ireland, that is fantastic!  Hopefully she likes haggis.

So as for this past week, it was absolutely amazing!  President called for "a return to greatness", in terms of more diligent striving to meet our goals and focus on our purpose.  As such, we set out to talk to everyone and not waste a minute.  I was reminded of my time back in Galveston with Elder Jensen and how hard we strove to reach our goals, how much success we had, and the Spirit that filled my life and raised my faith as we did so.  We saw many blessings.  

As we were biking home one night to get picked up by a member, we stopped and offered help to a couple carrying things; they were both deaf and accepted our help. After helping them, we were able to get their information and will get it to the ASL elders.  

Countless other blessings; we needed 3 investigator lessons on Sunday and we had 3 lessons scheduled but 2 fell through.  We talked to someone on the street and he asked if we could teach him right then, so we went to a nearby park and taught him.  Upon ending that lesson, another man walked by and we talked to him; he told us how he had talked to missionaries before but they never came by.  So we walked with him to his apartment and taught him.  He was a humble man from Guatemala and he showed us pictures of his family who are still in Guatemala, and then I pulled out my wallet family picture and showed him my family.  This past weekend has been unforgettable.  There is nothing more satisfying than work!

About a month back, Lilian dropped us, saying that she needed more time.  Then this past weekend, her and her boyfriend got in a car accident.  He passed away but she is in the hospital and hopefully gets well soon.  It was a witness of how sometimes the time we ask for doesn't exist, that's why it's so important to not procrastinate the day of our repentance.  That relationship was one of the things keeping her from baptism so hopefully this can work for her good.  Pues, La Iglesia es verdadera y El Libro es azul.

Que Dios los bendiga y que tengan siempre trabajo y salud!

Con un abrazo,

Elder Cooley

Dear Family,

How are things?  Hopefully Dad continues to get better!  That's awesome about all the missionary experiences you've been having, keep it up!  Sadly in Texas there are no such things as Navajo tacos, or Indian fry bread.  Maybe if you send me a recipe I could teach them and let them enjoy of such blessings also.

So this past Saturday, Elder Christofferson came to our mission and spoke.  We got to shake his hand and he invoked some apostolic blessings upon the missionaries through their faithfulness. President Saylin said, “What a remarkable experience we had together with Elder D. Todd Christofferson at the missionary devotional!  I was particularly moved by the blessings he bestowed upon us as missionaries.  Did you catch those at the end?  I wrote as fast as I could in attempt to record them.  He blessed us with greater light and understanding -- revelation -- as we study the scriptures in personal study and companion study.  He promised us that the gospel will be "unfolded" unto us.  He also blessed us with a solemn witness of the Savior, along with a true knowledge that we have been forgiven of our sins and sanctified from the stains of sins.  Wow!  If we had just been there to receive those blessings from the hand of an apostle it would have been worth all of the effort to be there.  Let us not forget the things the Spirit whispered to us as we sat at the feet of one of the prophets. Remember -- the fulfillment of these blessings comes through our faith and doing those things we have been asked to do." It was a day never to be forgotten.

So we will be having a baptism this weekend for Melba Romero.  She's already been baptized back in El Salvador, but her records were lost and so she gets another chance so that it'll be recorded on earth, and in heaven :)  Tonight we are having a Noche de Hogar con la familia del Obispo y la familia Ramos.  We have planned to teach about the Atonement, one of my favorite things to teach.  They are reading together from the Book of Mormon nightly and have come to church for the past month and a half.  Also, this next week is stake conference and Elder Flukeger is coming!  We found a family from Cuba that we were able to teach yesterday and they were really interested in the Book of Mormon.  We got to do a lot of biking around in the rain this past week, I love the gospel. Y'all are great!

Love, Elder Cooley

P.S. Thanks Dad for everything, I was able to fix the shower in our apartment due to one time that you did it for someone else and you made me come along with you, haha. And also every time I'm walking in front of my companion I think of the advice you gave me to always walk side by side and I quickly correct it.

Dear Family,

What a wonderful week to be a servant of the Lord. For P-day we went to Williams Tower and went up to the 64th floor. It's the closest thing to a mountain they have around so we got a nice view of Houston.

We are going to start teaching one of the sisters' investigator. The reason we get to teach him is because he proposed to one of the sisters... We also had some cool experiences of talking to everyone. We found a part member family that recently moved from Georgia and we were able to teach them. Yesterday we had an awesome investigator fireside to which Sofia attended, and at the same time there was a baptism going on for Leoncia Guzman (one of my investigators back in Mo City) and I was able to see many of the members from that ward that I miss so dearly.

There were several opportunities this past week to give unplanned service - we helped an older couple with their yard, helped an old lady take out the trash, and helped a man with a bad back move into his new apartment upstairs.

I know that the Lord is so very close to this work and as we pay attention to the spirit we are led to do what he would want us do. I know that the more we strive for a consecrated life the more companionship of the Holy Ghost we'll have.  I hope Dad gets feeling better soon and that the family continues doing well.

Love, Elder Cooley

Dear Family,

It sure was good to hear from y'all. Things are going great in the area, we are teaching the wife of a member and she is just super legit. For the first time I can remember in my mission (I think it might have happened before but I've forgotten), when we came back for the 2nd visit she had answered all the questions that were at the back of the Restoration pamphlet that we had left with her. She also signed up during Relief Society to do Visiting Teaching and is doing awesome. We gave them a Houston Temple picture to hang up in their apartment and they are excited to go there someday to be sealed for time and all eternity.

I sure love being a missionary and all the things I have learned, I am reminded of Mosiah 5:13 which says,"For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?" We come to know the Master as we serve Him with all our heart, might, mind, and strength, and as we keep Him close to the thoughts and intents of our hearts. Keep being awesome and living the gospel!

Love, Elder Cooley