Hello family!
First off, yes I got the package. And yes, about half of it is already in my belly :) Thanks so much! So how is life back to normal without lots of vacations to sunny beaches and Baltimore. I guess Baltimore wasn´t really a vacation, but it was something different and exciting. Things here are going really well. We just got transfers, which is the hardest, most time consuming part of the office, but it really did go smoothly. We worked hard and got finished at about 12:30 last night. A new record! And it was the biggest transfer ever! So basically we rocked it. So let me explain the camera. I lost the first one, the one with all the pictures from the first year of my mission :/ I haven´t found it. But after I lost that, an elder let me have an extra that he had. So now I am using that one. I left it in the car of the Castillos and forgot to tell them so they sent it to Cartagena with a missionary that had lost her camera thinking it was hers. So eventually I got that back from Cartagena so now I have my second camera back. I have no luck with cameras. But I´m just glad that my favorite pictures got sent to you. And I´m going to try to get a lot back from comps and stuff. And that is really the beauty of Facebook, I´ll be able to get back most of my mission there too :) So I probably have one more transfer left here in the office and then I´ll probably have one more area. That will be crazy. Time is flying by.
So a thought for this week. This last week we had a zone conference and the topic that president chose to talk on was obedience. One of the main purposed of the talk was to have us reflect on why it is that we obey. I have thought about that a lot. Obviously there are hundreds of reasons that we obey, good and bad. To list a few, there is fear, a feeling of duty, a desire for blessings, a knowledge of consequences (kinda like fear), a desire for acceptance or respect, and love. Fear is probably at the far end of the negative spectrum and love at the positive, but where do we fall. For me it kind of depends on the day. At times I obey because I´m supposed to, because I´m a missionary. At other times I obey because I know what will happen if I don´t and I don´t want that to happen, and at times I truly do obey because I love the Lord and want to make him happy. So how do we get to the point that we are always obeying for the right reason? How can we come to love the Lord so much that we always want to do his will? That´s a hard question. The primary answers are the base. Read the scriptures, pray, go to church, be kind to others, and things like that. Those are the fundamental things, but what else can we do? I think that obedience brings more obedience. When we do what we are supposed to we realize, wow, I feel good. And then we do it again and again. So just test it out. What else? (ps I haven´t really thought about this before just writing it so if it is dumb, it is not well thought out dumbness :) ) I feel like our relationships with God depend on how we see two people; ourselves and God. So how to we improve on that? Well we get to see God in a better light as we do the primary things. And how do we see ourselves in a better light? That one´s hard. I am my own worst judge. I know and see all my faults, to me they are public and open. So how can I see myself the way I need to? I have to look at myself with different eyes. With heaven´s eyes (just like the song says). That doesn´t just happen in one day, it takes time. It takes patience and above all it takes a lot of love. We just have to remember our potential and who we are. I mean we are children of the Almighty God. We have a whole world on inheritance from him to come, figure out who we are, deal with what we´re not, and find our way back to him. We need to stop spending so much time putting ourselves down and thinking that we aren´t enough. We ARE enough. We have always been enough. The question is if we are going to let ourselves believe that. And if we are going to live in a way that proves that. A king does not live like a thief or beggar and nor should we. Obviously I´m not talking about physical goods like a King, but we have been given so many spiritual goods and we should not waste them scrounging in the dirt for the pleasures and desires of the world. We are more than that. We are. We always have been. We need to stop saying, well I should be doing this, or I should be doing that, or I should be like this or I should be like that. As Elder Castillo would say, stop should-ing in yourself (say it out loud, I guarantee Logan will giggle). Don´t sit around say I should all day. Either get up and fix it, or realize that it isn´t as important as you are making it. Those are the only two options. I hope you all have a fantastic week and that you go out and do some amazing things (really, in my book you already are!)
Love you,
Elder Charlie Flint
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Sunday, March 23, 2014
pics
Hope the 13 pictures makes up for the lack of photos for a while!
Love you all!
Pie day in the office! (March 14, figure it out :) )
A big group of missionaries getting ready to hike to the bottom of the
bridge in Ronda.
The Castillos! I talk about them so much, I thought maybe you should
see who they are :)
Making our way down to the bottom.
Down at the bottom! Woohoo!
We went to a car museum and the next pictures are a few selections. The first one is one of the first Mercedes Benz.
The batmobile! Well almost, this car runs off of compressed
air.
Me and my compie with one of the first "racecars"
Hello family!
Just a preface to this post. Matt was in Baltimore for a conference from Tuesday to Saturday. I was complaining to Charlie about being a "single mom" this week. It wasn't easy taking care of all these kids by myself. I definitely learn to appreciate Matt more when he is not home. Anyway, you can see below the insights Charlie had. Missy
Hello family!
First off, HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRTHDDDDDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It´s a little late, but better late than never! So that stinks about the package. Lame service. I thought it was awesome, but twas not so. So dad´s in Baltimore. Random. But fun. I hope he is enjoying himself and his sure to be wonderfully exciting health conference. I´m glad Ammon caught my reference to Don´t Drink the Water. What scene are you doing? I almost did a scene from that show for Region, but we didn´t get it figured out beforehand so I just did a spur of the moment monologue instead. Is it the scene where the guy (can´t remember his name) tries to kiss the girl and falls and it´s super awkward afterward? That´s the one I almost did. Pretty funny stuff. About going to Disneyland for choir tour, Ammon. Hmm, just make sure you fastpass Splash Mountain right away and then go hit Indiana Jones. The lines for those two are always long. Oh, and no matter what you do, the food in and around Disneyland is super expensive. So my suggestion is splurge once and starve the rest of the time :) Just kidding. But don´t just go around the whole time looking for something cheap and easy, because there isn´t anything. And I loved the pictures, don´t stop sending them! And this week you actually get some too! What a miracle! So it sounds like things are going well. Well really you all didn´t say much about what is going on, but I assume no news is good news :) Things are going really well here. The office is crazy and we´ve been super busy, but no big deal. Things are always crazy here. But really nothing out of the ordinary.
So I was thinking a bit about your comment mom about being a single mom and it made me think of some conversations I have had with Elder Castillo lately, and of a lesson that we had with a part member family and a girl that is getting ready to serve her mission. As news has continued to come to me about dad´s cancer and stuff, I have begun to think a lot about the future. Really I´ve begun to worry about the future. Now let me stop you all right now, because I´m sure in your minds you are going, Ah! He´s not allowed to be worried! He has to have his mind 110% in the work! Let me assure you that I am not distracted, I don´t have time to be distracted. But I am not foolish either, and I am human. Of course I´m going to worry and be prepared for anything, that is natural, looking ahead me. But I think, really I know, that a part of me is worrying too much. I worry about how much responsibility I would have if something were to happen. I worry if I would be able to step up. But after talking a lot to Elder Castillo (who basically kept his family going from 14 years old and up, and who´s dad actually passed away while he was on his mission) I´ve realized something. Let me talk now about the lesson we had with this family. At the beginning of the lesson the daughter, who is preparing to serve a mission, says, Elders I´m really worried that I am not prepared to serve a mission. I don´t know the scriptures well enough and I just don´t know if I have what it takes. So I said something, that in retrospect was pretty profound and were definitely not my words. I said, we don´t get called on missions as missionaries, the mission MAKES us missionaries. And that´s the truth. Was I fully 100% prepared for every little part of the mission? Absolutely not. Is anyone? No. Then how do we get missionaries? Is it the MTC? Is it the scripture study? Is it the prayers? The fasting? The determination? The desire? Well, yes that´s important, but that´s not what really, really makes a missionary a missionary. What does that, or better said, who does that is the Lord. "If ye have desire to serve, ye are called to the work." We do all those things I listed and more and then the Lord sends us HIS spirit and qualifies us. He does not only call us, but he qualifies us. So what did Elder Castillo tell me about worrying about the future? Not to worry, because the Lord may send us a trial, but he qualifies us and strengthens us to handle it. And mom, would it be hard to be a single mother. Of course! Extremely. And are you strong enough now? I would say yes, but I´m pretty biased :) But maybe not. But would you be if you were called on to do it. Absolutely 100% yes! The Lord calls us in our weakness and makes us strong. And that brings me to my favorite scripture, Helaman 5:12. I love that scripture because to me it is a constant reminder that it´s the faith and trust in Christ that really keeps us going. The Lord has never once said that this life will be easy, and with good reason, because it isn´t! But what he tells us and what he promises us is that as long as we stick with Him, we´ll be okay. We have to constantly strengthen that foundation, that base that holds us tightly to safe ground. The storms will come. The shafts in the whirlwind, but they will not have power because we are on the right team. I love you all, I hope things are going really well and that you have a fantastic week. keep on moving forward!
Con amor,
Elder Flint
Hello family!
First off, HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRTHDDDDDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It´s a little late, but better late than never! So that stinks about the package. Lame service. I thought it was awesome, but twas not so. So dad´s in Baltimore. Random. But fun. I hope he is enjoying himself and his sure to be wonderfully exciting health conference. I´m glad Ammon caught my reference to Don´t Drink the Water. What scene are you doing? I almost did a scene from that show for Region, but we didn´t get it figured out beforehand so I just did a spur of the moment monologue instead. Is it the scene where the guy (can´t remember his name) tries to kiss the girl and falls and it´s super awkward afterward? That´s the one I almost did. Pretty funny stuff. About going to Disneyland for choir tour, Ammon. Hmm, just make sure you fastpass Splash Mountain right away and then go hit Indiana Jones. The lines for those two are always long. Oh, and no matter what you do, the food in and around Disneyland is super expensive. So my suggestion is splurge once and starve the rest of the time :) Just kidding. But don´t just go around the whole time looking for something cheap and easy, because there isn´t anything. And I loved the pictures, don´t stop sending them! And this week you actually get some too! What a miracle! So it sounds like things are going well. Well really you all didn´t say much about what is going on, but I assume no news is good news :) Things are going really well here. The office is crazy and we´ve been super busy, but no big deal. Things are always crazy here. But really nothing out of the ordinary.
So I was thinking a bit about your comment mom about being a single mom and it made me think of some conversations I have had with Elder Castillo lately, and of a lesson that we had with a part member family and a girl that is getting ready to serve her mission. As news has continued to come to me about dad´s cancer and stuff, I have begun to think a lot about the future. Really I´ve begun to worry about the future. Now let me stop you all right now, because I´m sure in your minds you are going, Ah! He´s not allowed to be worried! He has to have his mind 110% in the work! Let me assure you that I am not distracted, I don´t have time to be distracted. But I am not foolish either, and I am human. Of course I´m going to worry and be prepared for anything, that is natural, looking ahead me. But I think, really I know, that a part of me is worrying too much. I worry about how much responsibility I would have if something were to happen. I worry if I would be able to step up. But after talking a lot to Elder Castillo (who basically kept his family going from 14 years old and up, and who´s dad actually passed away while he was on his mission) I´ve realized something. Let me talk now about the lesson we had with this family. At the beginning of the lesson the daughter, who is preparing to serve a mission, says, Elders I´m really worried that I am not prepared to serve a mission. I don´t know the scriptures well enough and I just don´t know if I have what it takes. So I said something, that in retrospect was pretty profound and were definitely not my words. I said, we don´t get called on missions as missionaries, the mission MAKES us missionaries. And that´s the truth. Was I fully 100% prepared for every little part of the mission? Absolutely not. Is anyone? No. Then how do we get missionaries? Is it the MTC? Is it the scripture study? Is it the prayers? The fasting? The determination? The desire? Well, yes that´s important, but that´s not what really, really makes a missionary a missionary. What does that, or better said, who does that is the Lord. "If ye have desire to serve, ye are called to the work." We do all those things I listed and more and then the Lord sends us HIS spirit and qualifies us. He does not only call us, but he qualifies us. So what did Elder Castillo tell me about worrying about the future? Not to worry, because the Lord may send us a trial, but he qualifies us and strengthens us to handle it. And mom, would it be hard to be a single mother. Of course! Extremely. And are you strong enough now? I would say yes, but I´m pretty biased :) But maybe not. But would you be if you were called on to do it. Absolutely 100% yes! The Lord calls us in our weakness and makes us strong. And that brings me to my favorite scripture, Helaman 5:12. I love that scripture because to me it is a constant reminder that it´s the faith and trust in Christ that really keeps us going. The Lord has never once said that this life will be easy, and with good reason, because it isn´t! But what he tells us and what he promises us is that as long as we stick with Him, we´ll be okay. We have to constantly strengthen that foundation, that base that holds us tightly to safe ground. The storms will come. The shafts in the whirlwind, but they will not have power because we are on the right team. I love you all, I hope things are going really well and that you have a fantastic week. keep on moving forward!
Con amor,
Elder Flint
Saturday, March 15, 2014
double email
Date: March 8, 2014 10:02:59 AM MST
Hello Family!
So you guys are probably just starting to get ready for the big trip to MEXICO!!!! Eat some delicious food for me, okay? Good! And yes I am in the Spanish Coast and you guys will be in dirty Mexico. But then again, the tourist areas are probably really nice and honestly Spain isn´t that clean :P Oh well. You all will have so much fun! I´m excited for you! Send me lots and lots of pictures! So just thinking about some things that I want in the package. Honestly I don´t really know...The one thing I do know is that I want Jif Peanut Butter. Lots of it. Some other things, PB candy, Cool aid packages, Doritos (the original kind), Lucky Charms, Ohs cereal. (these are just things I can think of that I miss, you don´t have to send them all...unless you want to :) )
Sounds like you all have been doing lots of fun things. Seeing miracles and strengthening your testimonies and making wedding plans...I hope I do have a bit of say about my own wedding when I get back but I do trust the both of you, so good luck! :) As for the BYU stuff. For right now, I´m not sure what I need to do. Coming back in Winter 2015, I don´t think I can even register yet. What I am going to do is make a 4 year plan with Elder Castillo. He has helped lots of missionaries and has a lot of experience with helping high school kids sign up for school and is really just very knowledgeable about all of that, so he said he would help me out. Once it is time for me to sign up for classes, I believe President Deere gives us permission to do that online. So the only things I can really think assistance wise is to check up on my Harris Family Choir Scholarship (was it the Harris Family? I don´t remember) the BYU half tuition is probably okay, but the Choir one, I´m not sure where it would have gone. I mean, the world´s not over if I loose it, but it would be helpful. Oh and the Regent Scholarship, not sure where that would be either or how I would get it back. Also when do I need to apply for FAFSA? That would be a good thing to find out. Oh and taxes. Do I need to do any taxes? I mean I had a job and other missionaries (such as my comp) are getting tax returns and stuff. As long as I don´t get thrown into federal prison I´m happy, but I´d be even more happy with a nice tax return, even if it only is 10 dollars. Those are the only things I can think of that you could help me out with, not too much right ;)
So Dad asked some questions. Really he always asks questions, but today I´m actually going to answer some :) My life is good. Normal missionary life, minus the normal. We are in the office the better part of the day. Honestly with 220 missionaries, 100 apartments, 100 phones, 220 credit cards, and lots and lots of money that comes through the mission, I have enough work that two people could probably work full time and not get it all done. Instead I just work double normal working hours and still don´t get it done. But our goal is usually to get out for the very very least one appointment a day. And when I say appointment I mean any type of missionary work. Whether that means knocking doors (which yes we do) or looking up old investigators or just handing out Spanish/English class flyers we try to do it every day. And honestly it´s really hard. It´s hard to know where the line is of when we have things we need to do in the office and when it is time for us to put it aside for a moment and get out to work. We are here to keep the mission running. We sacrifice some of our proselyting time so that the 218 other missionaries don´t lose any of theirs. So in the end, the work we are doing is just as important as any other job in the mission, it is just hard to feel like a missionary at moments. It becomes more of a job. A job that we get very good at, but a job. But really, I wouldn´t trade it for anything. It is exactly what I needed when I needed it. The Lord knew that rough times were up ahead, so he put me in the place and with the people I needed to be with to handle it. Honestly, I´ve never had less time in my mission to think or worry about myself and my own problems. Granted outside the office there isn´t much time either, but here in the office I wake up, get ready, study, then we´re off until lunch. Then we eat, and then we´re back working again. Then we pros, and then either come back to the office or go to bed. Then we wake up and do it again. It´s exhausting, but often very enjoyable and fun, and we get a lot done. This week we were cleaning the computers of old files that had been restored after a crash so we could get a new hardware and I went through probably close to 5000 documents on the computer deciding what we should keep and what we should dump. It was crazy. But I did it! Things like that, those little victories that seem meaningless take so much more meaning when it means that things are going to be running more smoothly so we have less bumps and the missionaries have more time to work and in that time will find someone to teach the gospel that will get baptized, go to the temple, and gain eternal salvation. That makes it all worth it. I hope you all have a fantastic week and that everything goes swimmingly on your cruise :) Don´t eat too much, don´t get seasick, DON¨T DRINK THE WATER (.02€ if anyone catches my reference) and have fun!
Lots of love,
Elder Charlie Flint
March 15, 2014
Man! It looks like you all had a great time!
Lucky ducks :) So first off. The only other request I have for the package is American deodorant. The weird crystal stuff is just kinda not working as well as I would like and I´m a stinky guy! Not really, but still I would like good ol American deodorant. Other than that I really can´t think of anything. Hey, I did notice that Logan is wearing my swimsuit though! What the!? No biggie I guess, just make sure you clean it really well before I get back :) And Micah, you get a smile on yo face boy! You´re in Mexico! And you´ve got a big brother who loves you! I really do, I love you all. I miss you sometimes, did you know that? Not very often, but every once in a while ;) So I definitely don´t want the camera. I would lose it with my luck! I should have one coming back to me soon. Let me tell you the story. I left the new one in the Castillos car and kinda forgot about it. Well another Hermana had lost her camera and the Castillos thought the one they found in their car was hers, so they sent it to her. Oops. Probably should have said something. But hopefully someday I´ll get it back.
So I have very little time to write today. I just wanted to say one or two things about hope today. We had a concilio the other week and Hermana Deere gave a talk about hope. I really liked it and learned a lot. It is so important for us to keep that hope. At times things seem so dark, so hopeless, but there is always a little light to hold on to. As she was talking a thought came into my head. When the Savior was in the Garden of Gethsemane and suffering on the cross, what gave him hope. Obviously hope is a Christlike attribute so he had to have it somewhere right? But what is it that he could have hope in in a time so dark and so difficult. He knew that he would suffer and have to drink of the cup, so where was his hope. Now there are probably a few answers but the one I heard, and the one I felt was this. He had hope in us. He had hope in me, and in every single one of you. He had hope that we would use that sacrifice, he had hope that we would become whole through his stripes. He saw each of our faces and he gave his all because he hoped, with all his heart that we would do all we could to be with him again. He loves you, I love you and don´t you forget it.
Con amor,
Elder Charlie Flint
Hello Family!
So you guys are probably just starting to get ready for the big trip to MEXICO!!!! Eat some delicious food for me, okay? Good! And yes I am in the Spanish Coast and you guys will be in dirty Mexico. But then again, the tourist areas are probably really nice and honestly Spain isn´t that clean :P Oh well. You all will have so much fun! I´m excited for you! Send me lots and lots of pictures! So just thinking about some things that I want in the package. Honestly I don´t really know...The one thing I do know is that I want Jif Peanut Butter. Lots of it. Some other things, PB candy, Cool aid packages, Doritos (the original kind), Lucky Charms, Ohs cereal. (these are just things I can think of that I miss, you don´t have to send them all...unless you want to :) )
Sounds like you all have been doing lots of fun things. Seeing miracles and strengthening your testimonies and making wedding plans...I hope I do have a bit of say about my own wedding when I get back but I do trust the both of you, so good luck! :) As for the BYU stuff. For right now, I´m not sure what I need to do. Coming back in Winter 2015, I don´t think I can even register yet. What I am going to do is make a 4 year plan with Elder Castillo. He has helped lots of missionaries and has a lot of experience with helping high school kids sign up for school and is really just very knowledgeable about all of that, so he said he would help me out. Once it is time for me to sign up for classes, I believe President Deere gives us permission to do that online. So the only things I can really think assistance wise is to check up on my Harris Family Choir Scholarship (was it the Harris Family? I don´t remember) the BYU half tuition is probably okay, but the Choir one, I´m not sure where it would have gone. I mean, the world´s not over if I loose it, but it would be helpful. Oh and the Regent Scholarship, not sure where that would be either or how I would get it back. Also when do I need to apply for FAFSA? That would be a good thing to find out. Oh and taxes. Do I need to do any taxes? I mean I had a job and other missionaries (such as my comp) are getting tax returns and stuff. As long as I don´t get thrown into federal prison I´m happy, but I´d be even more happy with a nice tax return, even if it only is 10 dollars. Those are the only things I can think of that you could help me out with, not too much right ;)
So Dad asked some questions. Really he always asks questions, but today I´m actually going to answer some :) My life is good. Normal missionary life, minus the normal. We are in the office the better part of the day. Honestly with 220 missionaries, 100 apartments, 100 phones, 220 credit cards, and lots and lots of money that comes through the mission, I have enough work that two people could probably work full time and not get it all done. Instead I just work double normal working hours and still don´t get it done. But our goal is usually to get out for the very very least one appointment a day. And when I say appointment I mean any type of missionary work. Whether that means knocking doors (which yes we do) or looking up old investigators or just handing out Spanish/English class flyers we try to do it every day. And honestly it´s really hard. It´s hard to know where the line is of when we have things we need to do in the office and when it is time for us to put it aside for a moment and get out to work. We are here to keep the mission running. We sacrifice some of our proselyting time so that the 218 other missionaries don´t lose any of theirs. So in the end, the work we are doing is just as important as any other job in the mission, it is just hard to feel like a missionary at moments. It becomes more of a job. A job that we get very good at, but a job. But really, I wouldn´t trade it for anything. It is exactly what I needed when I needed it. The Lord knew that rough times were up ahead, so he put me in the place and with the people I needed to be with to handle it. Honestly, I´ve never had less time in my mission to think or worry about myself and my own problems. Granted outside the office there isn´t much time either, but here in the office I wake up, get ready, study, then we´re off until lunch. Then we eat, and then we´re back working again. Then we pros, and then either come back to the office or go to bed. Then we wake up and do it again. It´s exhausting, but often very enjoyable and fun, and we get a lot done. This week we were cleaning the computers of old files that had been restored after a crash so we could get a new hardware and I went through probably close to 5000 documents on the computer deciding what we should keep and what we should dump. It was crazy. But I did it! Things like that, those little victories that seem meaningless take so much more meaning when it means that things are going to be running more smoothly so we have less bumps and the missionaries have more time to work and in that time will find someone to teach the gospel that will get baptized, go to the temple, and gain eternal salvation. That makes it all worth it. I hope you all have a fantastic week and that everything goes swimmingly on your cruise :) Don´t eat too much, don´t get seasick, DON¨T DRINK THE WATER (.02€ if anyone catches my reference) and have fun!
Lots of love,
Elder Charlie Flint
March 15, 2014
Man! It looks like you all had a great time!
Lucky ducks :) So first off. The only other request I have for the package is American deodorant. The weird crystal stuff is just kinda not working as well as I would like and I´m a stinky guy! Not really, but still I would like good ol American deodorant. Other than that I really can´t think of anything. Hey, I did notice that Logan is wearing my swimsuit though! What the!? No biggie I guess, just make sure you clean it really well before I get back :) And Micah, you get a smile on yo face boy! You´re in Mexico! And you´ve got a big brother who loves you! I really do, I love you all. I miss you sometimes, did you know that? Not very often, but every once in a while ;) So I definitely don´t want the camera. I would lose it with my luck! I should have one coming back to me soon. Let me tell you the story. I left the new one in the Castillos car and kinda forgot about it. Well another Hermana had lost her camera and the Castillos thought the one they found in their car was hers, so they sent it to her. Oops. Probably should have said something. But hopefully someday I´ll get it back.
So I have very little time to write today. I just wanted to say one or two things about hope today. We had a concilio the other week and Hermana Deere gave a talk about hope. I really liked it and learned a lot. It is so important for us to keep that hope. At times things seem so dark, so hopeless, but there is always a little light to hold on to. As she was talking a thought came into my head. When the Savior was in the Garden of Gethsemane and suffering on the cross, what gave him hope. Obviously hope is a Christlike attribute so he had to have it somewhere right? But what is it that he could have hope in in a time so dark and so difficult. He knew that he would suffer and have to drink of the cup, so where was his hope. Now there are probably a few answers but the one I heard, and the one I felt was this. He had hope in us. He had hope in me, and in every single one of you. He had hope that we would use that sacrifice, he had hope that we would become whole through his stripes. He saw each of our faces and he gave his all because he hoped, with all his heart that we would do all we could to be with him again. He loves you, I love you and don´t you forget it.
Con amor,
Elder Charlie Flint
Saturday, March 1, 2014
Hey there guys!
Hey there guys!
So...you decided to go on a cruise...nice. Well I guess I can´t really complain, I´m living on the Costa del Sol of the Mediterranean Sea. I guess I have it pretty good :) But really, no worries, you can just send me a package to make up for it ;) But if you do use mymissionaryshipping.com okay? You would get amazing deals! But have fun! And take lots of pictures. Just remember, in Mexico they say Que Padre! To say cool. And if you don´t understand what they are saying say ¿Mande? And eat lots of mexican food for me, that´s really the one type of food that you can´t really find here. At least not good Mexican. So mom, I don´t know how I´m going to be able to keep up with you in school. You are setting an incredibly high standard. I am going to study my bum off to keep up :) So Pride and Prejudice was a success! Great! Send me some pics! And Savannah and Sophie are adorable. I am going to have to fight off all the boys with sticks when they get old enough :)
So my week here has been pretty normal. Got some good things done here in the office (ps I´ve been here for about 14 weeks and will be here for probably another 10 weeks.) It´s a different kind of missionary work. Elder Castillo said today that there are some missionaries that come out to just be a good missionary and get lots of baptisms and stuff, and there are others that come out to keep the mission functioning. That may not baptize as much but keep things steady and moving forward so others can come and baptize afterwards. I feel like I´m one of those missionaries. I haven´t had lots and lots of baptisms, I´ve had relatively few, even for Spain. But when people hear where I serve, they say, Eesh! That´s tough. But I have seen it as a blessing. I haven´t built large gorgeous buildings, but I´ve sure poured a lot of foundations :) That´s the incredible thing about the gospel, everyone plays a part. And not just an unimportant part, but a vital one. No matter what your calling is, or you position or influence, you are making changes in the lives of others. And to the Lord, every little thing matters.
So a thought for the week (kinda already gave a thought, but I´m the missionary so you have to listen anyway :) ) You know I don´t really know what to write about, so I´m just going to go with whatever pops into my head. I´m really going back and forth between a few things, but one thing that I´m thinking about right now is humility. In 1 Nefi (sorry Nephi) an angel asks Nephi if he understands the condescension of God. And Nefi goes, hmm...no, but I know that he loves us! And that he does. But it is interesting how closely related are the question and the answer. Through study we come to know that the condescension of God is the fact that Jesus Christ, the Almighty Creator of the universe, Alpha and Omega, the Jehovah of the Old Testament, would come down in the form of a weak, frail, human baby to save us. If that is not an example of love I don´t know what is. He came, knowing full well what he was to go through, yet He pressed forward with faith and hope, knowing that through his own stripes, we would be made whole. It is incredible to think that. It is also incredibly to think that we would chose to come also. I look at the trials that we face, that we are facing and I think at times, this isn´t fair! I didn´t choose this! But didn´t I? Didn´t we know full well what we would be facing? Didn´t we know full well that coming to earth wouldn´t just be a cocktail party of assorted games and pleasantries? We CHOSE to come. We knew that it would be hard. But we had faith, and trust, and HUMILITY to accept the things we knew would make us stronger. We cannot see the end of the tunnel during our trials (many times the is because we are looking down at our feet though) but when we open our eyes and try to see us as God sees us, we can understand that there is a higher purpose. And as Nephi we don´t have to understand it all, we just have to know that our Father in Heaven loves us, as does our brother Jesus Christ. I love you. I truly do. And I hope you all have a fantastic week and cruise!
With love,
Elder Charlie Flint
So...you decided to go on a cruise...nice. Well I guess I can´t really complain, I´m living on the Costa del Sol of the Mediterranean Sea. I guess I have it pretty good :) But really, no worries, you can just send me a package to make up for it ;) But if you do use mymissionaryshipping.com okay? You would get amazing deals! But have fun! And take lots of pictures. Just remember, in Mexico they say Que Padre! To say cool. And if you don´t understand what they are saying say ¿Mande? And eat lots of mexican food for me, that´s really the one type of food that you can´t really find here. At least not good Mexican. So mom, I don´t know how I´m going to be able to keep up with you in school. You are setting an incredibly high standard. I am going to study my bum off to keep up :) So Pride and Prejudice was a success! Great! Send me some pics! And Savannah and Sophie are adorable. I am going to have to fight off all the boys with sticks when they get old enough :)
So my week here has been pretty normal. Got some good things done here in the office (ps I´ve been here for about 14 weeks and will be here for probably another 10 weeks.) It´s a different kind of missionary work. Elder Castillo said today that there are some missionaries that come out to just be a good missionary and get lots of baptisms and stuff, and there are others that come out to keep the mission functioning. That may not baptize as much but keep things steady and moving forward so others can come and baptize afterwards. I feel like I´m one of those missionaries. I haven´t had lots and lots of baptisms, I´ve had relatively few, even for Spain. But when people hear where I serve, they say, Eesh! That´s tough. But I have seen it as a blessing. I haven´t built large gorgeous buildings, but I´ve sure poured a lot of foundations :) That´s the incredible thing about the gospel, everyone plays a part. And not just an unimportant part, but a vital one. No matter what your calling is, or you position or influence, you are making changes in the lives of others. And to the Lord, every little thing matters.
So a thought for the week (kinda already gave a thought, but I´m the missionary so you have to listen anyway :) ) You know I don´t really know what to write about, so I´m just going to go with whatever pops into my head. I´m really going back and forth between a few things, but one thing that I´m thinking about right now is humility. In 1 Nefi (sorry Nephi) an angel asks Nephi if he understands the condescension of God. And Nefi goes, hmm...no, but I know that he loves us! And that he does. But it is interesting how closely related are the question and the answer. Through study we come to know that the condescension of God is the fact that Jesus Christ, the Almighty Creator of the universe, Alpha and Omega, the Jehovah of the Old Testament, would come down in the form of a weak, frail, human baby to save us. If that is not an example of love I don´t know what is. He came, knowing full well what he was to go through, yet He pressed forward with faith and hope, knowing that through his own stripes, we would be made whole. It is incredible to think that. It is also incredibly to think that we would chose to come also. I look at the trials that we face, that we are facing and I think at times, this isn´t fair! I didn´t choose this! But didn´t I? Didn´t we know full well what we would be facing? Didn´t we know full well that coming to earth wouldn´t just be a cocktail party of assorted games and pleasantries? We CHOSE to come. We knew that it would be hard. But we had faith, and trust, and HUMILITY to accept the things we knew would make us stronger. We cannot see the end of the tunnel during our trials (many times the is because we are looking down at our feet though) but when we open our eyes and try to see us as God sees us, we can understand that there is a higher purpose. And as Nephi we don´t have to understand it all, we just have to know that our Father in Heaven loves us, as does our brother Jesus Christ. I love you. I truly do. And I hope you all have a fantastic week and cruise!
With love,
Elder Charlie Flint
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