I Now Live Under a Penthouse‏

Because now I am working in the offices, so I live with the Assistants and the house has to be giant for all the Elders that are going home. So that's cool. We've got an oven, washing machine, drier, dish washer, two floors, 3.5 bathrooms, tons of beds. We've also got; Costco, Subway, and other cools little things like that. And I think a Carl's Jr.

This also means I'm back in the big city and that's why I'm writing on a Saturday because now is when we've got our P-Days. So don't go around thinking that Elder Newman turned apostate!

I hope I don't make any of those "oops" as financial secretary. I've got a lot of tasks to do, including taking care of the less active people here in the ward(s) as well as our investigators. We're going to baptize three people tomorrow.

I think the $100 was for either A. That awful medicine (Vartalon Compositum, as it is called) or my cool jacket. I'm going to think it was the medicine, since it costs about 750 MXN (pesos) to buy. I'm learning currency codes.

On Tuesday I trained the newcoming missionaries in the magical arts of sending in one's reimbursements. That was fun, but I think I'm going to make a powerpoint to get that going better.

I forgot my camera in the house. Sorry. ...I hope I left it in there. It should be in there.

Well, on Sunday Elder Riveros and I saw a huge miracle. The guy from Acambay didn't want to get confirmed but then I called him and the Spirit guided me to say the right things and then he got confirmed and I was like "what did I even say to get him to say yes to coming to church from a pueblo 2 hours away to get confirmed?" and I was like "Oh well, miracles are fantastic!"

Anyways, I've learned a lot of things out here already. Like about repenting and things like that. Really, if we're not repenting every day, life's a whole lot harder. 'Cause Satan gets his little chains in and then more and more and we need to be constantly fighting off those chains because then they're going to get huge and hard to take off. So that's what I've learned recently, and honestly, without repentance, where would the world be?

...I think we'd probably all be fishes or something like that.

Also the chapel is fantastic and we've got an English-speaking ward out here. We go to that one sometimes, too.

Well, thanks for all your support, work, and love and little things like that! It really helps me out a ton in my life. Thanks for all your help!

Anyways, I've got like 20 e'mails or something like that to respond to, as well as Jacob's. So... yeah.

¡Nos vemos!

With Missionary-style love,

Elder Newman

We got only one email this Monday...

• I'll Write You Saturday‏

Because I'm Secretary now and that's when I have P-Day *Little jingle song*

Love you tons!

Love, Elder Newman

Well

There's not much more to say right now. Except that I was reading in "True to the Faith" the other day, and I read that in order to make a branch, the minimum requirements are two families in an area and at least one worthy Melchisedek Priesthood Holder or one worthy Priest. Well, Acambay has just about... all of that stuff, so what's the problem? Well, the ward itself needs to be a little stronger. We don't want to make a division if it's going to weaken the ward too much, right?

Right.

Also the thing I'm most excited about right now is that my brother, Jacob, got his mission call so the El Salvador, San Salvador Este mission. Interesting, he's in the East mission and I'm on the West of Mexico city...

Things are going good here. With enough work and miracles, we should be able to see 2 or three baptisms here this week, which would be very nice.

There's still two changes left before May (more or less) and in May I'll have to get my visa renewed, so who knows what'll happen. I doubt I'll still be out here in Altacomulco by that time - in fact, I kinda feel like, with the changes that are coming this week, I'll be headed back to the big, ugly I mean pretty city. La verdad, I prefer the pueblos.

One of the things I almost always think about is "Am I being as good an example for my brothers (and the ward and everyone else) as I can?" So I'm basically using that as my motivation to become a better missionary. This week, for like, the millionth time, I'm going to try to stop drawing non-Gospel things during the week. So that's my main goal, and try to be more diligent as well.

Well, that's about it for right now. Thanks for your e'mail and example, Dad! Tell Jacob I said congrats (again) and help Mom out with her Spanish.

Well, I'm out of time, so this ends here!

...I hate it when the busses have movies playing, especially if the'yre sci-fi and I've never seen it before and it sounds interesting.

Love as a missionary does,

Elder Newman

© 2014 Microsoft Terms Privacy Developers English (United

2/3/14

I'm doing more exercise in the mornings, I'm forgetting more English (calling clothes "rope" because clothing in Spanish is "ropa" - "I need to put on some new rope...  I mean clothes"), continuing to grow spiritually, and trying to figure out some things that I've forgotten. 

Last week wasn't really all that interesting, sadly. BUT IT IS ALL GOOD (except it really isn't 'cause now we've got to find a whole lot more people to teach).

Keep reading them scriptures and General Conference talks because you never know what you're going to find!

Love, Elder Newman

THE FIRST THREE BAPTISMS OF ACAMBAY: ACHIEVED!‏

(A lovely picture of a family with 2 children was here)

The father was a last-second miracle, really. He was dressed in his street clothes up until the moment when we were going to do the baptism, after the testimony of the ordinance by a member. He asked, "Can I go get changed?" The mother broke into tears; Elder Riveros and I had a small Vaudeville routine as we rushed to get him baptismal clothes (we ran into each other), and some of the investigators that the sister missionaries had brought were greatly impacted as a result. There are so many things about this baptism that were miraculous, which is fantastic, because the last week was probably one of the hardest I've had in a very long time. Basically put, it felt like, as Elder Rogers put it in "The Best Two Years", an Ensign story. Anyways, over the last week I was kept afloat due to a large increase in faith, hope, and charity, the primary being faith. I love the mission; I shall not let that change.

Anyways, about other things... I'm finally going to make those peanut butter cookies, I've been teaching the missionary English class, and I've been practicing on the violin more; and Elder Riveros and I are preparing a special number to play in the ward. So that's going to be fun and exciting. And when we get bored with the special number, we practice something just for the fun of it (Paradise). So that's nice and fun, something other than drawing to help me cool down after a week of really hard work. I love it though, that hard work.

I say "in a year is scary" because I never thought that the first year would past by so fast - and everyone keeps telling me that after the first year, it only goes faster... and faster... and faster...

Last things: this family was a result of a member, and I love this work with all my heart. If you've drifted from the Church, come back, and if you've never joined, look into it seriously.

I thank you all for your support and love,

Elder Newman

The Hand of the Lord in a Pueblo almost nobody has ever heard of

I AM SUPËR EXCITED RIGHT NOW!

Well, I'm sure that you remember the goal I said about the Acambay (if not, I want to see a branch over there in that pueblo real soon), and I'm super happy to say that the Bishopric has the EXACT SAME GOAL AS I DO. The best part - Neither Elder Riveros nor I mentioned this goal to the bishopric. We went to a Family Home Evening over there and the Bishop said, "Well, welcome to the first meeting of the Acambay Family Group (Which comes before a Branch)!" He said it somewhat jokingly, but then in Ward Council, he mentioned that by the end of 2014 (preferably sooner), the Bishopric wants Acambay and Atlacomulco to be strong enough to be able to divide.

It's going to happen.

On Thursday, one of the assistants (Elder Emch, my old companion) and Zone Leaders came to help out the area. I went with Elder Emch, and we went over to Acambay. We did a lot of good things over there - taught and contacted some people, helped them out a bit, and when it came time to end the divisions (or splits, where companionships switch for a day) Elder Emch and I went over to the downtown to look for a less active member over there. As we were walking, a lady stops us and says, "I was baptized into the Church." She wanted to present us to all her family, and so we arranged that all up. The thing is, when we found her, we were supposed to be in that FHE. Were it not for the seemingly unplanned divisions that day, it probably would've taken a much longer time to find the sister. She brought her aunt and her cousin to Church on Sunday; she has more family over there that may be interested as well.

There's also a family of three that we're going to baptize up there - and, according to the members in Acambay, they will be the first people in Acambay baptized in the history of the Church there. This is going to get them just as, if not more than, excited am.

This and other miracles in Acambay that we've experienced, that we're experiencing, and will experience. I'm just super happy to be a part of this.

I love the mission so much right now. I have less than a year left now - in fact, a year from tomorrow, I might be landing in snowy Idaho. A scary thought, to be honest - but I know that this next coming year is going to be the best out of the two. I'm getting more into my stride, and I'm finding myself improving, if just a little bit, every day. More sensitivity to the Spirit, more ability to follow Him, more hope, more faith, more desire - I think I've finally met the missionary I want to be. I just need to be sure that I continue to know him better and assimilate him into me. Prayer, fasting, faith, study, and all that will help me out. I'm looking for the small things that I might not be doing best - maybe some small obedience issue (keeping my desk clean) (taking out the trash) (things like that) that will affect the bigger things. Studying the Book of Mormon (looking for references to Christ) or other scriptures on the busses rather than lazing around (letting my mind wander) (sleeping's okay; I need it). Exercising in the morning. Sleeping on time. Staying focused. All things that I'm working on, and things I'm progressing on as well. I'm improving, I see progress, and that makes me happy!

I studied Hope today, with the... well, hope that it'd help me develop that attribute. I then realized, "Silly you, you're just a bright ball of hope!" And then I thought, well, time to look for something else and keep my hope up.

Well, I've got my other e'mails to write, so I hope all goes well for all of you and we'll see each other soon! Thanks for your support!

Elder Newman

Acambay

A few months-ish ago, I said that I wanted to see a lot of progress in a small town called Acambay. Well, we've got a really good family of 3 that we're teaching up there, and on top of that, we're getting a lot more work done up there! But as we were teaching someone in a small town called Ganzda, it occurred to me that some people won't be able to make it to Atlacomulco due to the economy or time. As I thought about it, it occured to me that we needed a branch up there.

Then on Saturday, we went to the doctor to check my knees (nothing serious; I just got to keep my posture good and do leg excercises oh English y u so hard?) and Elder M was there for his back! If any of you remember or if I even shared that experience, he no longer needs to wear his back brace. Anyways, he knows a lot about church leadership, so I asked about the requirements to make a branch. He told me, and I began to think.

"Well," I thought, "it looks like we're really close to having a branch out there!" We could very well have one up there in two months, and this is our goal. On top of that, the assistance in Atlacomulco had been very low recently, low enough that even if there were enough baptisms in Acambay, we wouldn't have enough people to split the ward. On Sunday, a "staggering" 108 people showed up! It's amazing because it'd had only been lowering for a while.

Things can only get better!

Well, thanks for all your support, and we'll see each other in more or less a year!

Elder Newman