HOLA MUCHACHOS

This week has been really busy like the last, but I'm lovin' it.

Elder Reyes and I are doing awesome! We are getting a ton of new investigators that are mostly references from members and family of less active members. Yesterday we had our first three investigators in church for the first time in about a month so I'm feeling energized and ready to work hard for these people who really want to learn about the restored Gospel. Now that we have lots of new people to teach the problem now is finding time to teach them all. It's been hard for us to not get carried away in lessons and go overtime so that we dont arrive late to our next appointment. It's especially hard when people are feeling the spirit and speaking from their hearts and you have to wrap it up without cutting them off, but I'm thinking it will come with practice.

Last night we had a pretty sweet family home evening. We brought a piñata (only in Mexico) and filled it with Candy and pictures of Christ. Everybody (even the old sisters) had fun breaking it open and after we shared a message about the Atonement. We asked how many of them realized that the pictures of Christ fell on the ground until after they gathered the candy. We explained how our Savior suffered for every single one of us so that we can have joy in this life. I felt like everyone learned more about the power of the Atonement and are for sure going to remember the crazy missionaries who related a piñata to the Gospel haha. It was also really cool to do it at night outside.

 No news on the misión split except its going to be in July. President Salinas got called as a Seventy of Mexico though which is pretty cool and makes me feel lucky to have him as a misión president right now. Elder Reyes is pretty chill. He understands a lot of English and likes a lot of the same music I do. The thing is, that its hard for him to stop singing songs other than hymns ha. He's from D.F. like Elder Gutiérrez and has the same amount of time on the misión as me.

 

WELL thats all for now!

 

SHOUT OUT for everyone who gave me my HUGE Easter package full of jellybeans and pretty much everything I love! (foodwise) haha YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE.

 

Also thank you everyone who's writing me emails! Keep em comin'!

 

Love,

        Elder Shurtliff

HAPPY CONFERENCE EVERYBODY!!!

This one is going to be really short, but I hope everyone had the best conference weekend and got pumped up by the pure Word of God. I know I did!

 

I had a lot of favorites, but I loved a lot of the talks from the Saturday morning session like Elder Ballard's and Elder Eyring's. I also loved President Monson's and Kristofferson's. It was cool to see the trend of topics like Obedience and Standing Firm in the Light of Christ and His Gospel. Conference goes by so fast as a missionary! I feel like the people in the Book of Mormon in 3 Nephi who were so sad when Jesús said he was going to go when President Monson gave his last talk.

 

SHOUT OUTS

Happy Birthday Melissa and Gaven! I hope you both had the best birthdays ever!

Thank you so much to the Shurtliff family who sent me the best Easter card and to Brother and Sister Henretty who gave me an awesome little package full of Easter candy like STARBURST JELLYBEANS! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

 

Nicole Wills also sent me a pretty sweet letter which I was surprised to get and a big SHOUT OUT to Robbie because I always get compliments when I wear the tie he sent me. Also THANK YOU Jill Shurtliff for all the choose the right wristbands. Everyone loves them and wears them 24/7.

BEST FOR LAST...

Thank you so much everyone for all your prayers, love, and support!

 

THE CHURCH IS TRUE

Love,

        Elder Adam Shurtliff

Feliz Pascua!!!

So for Easter yesterday nobody really recognized it which was kinda a bummer. We didn't have talks in church about the Atonement or the Resurrection or anything, but Elder Cromwell gave a farewell talk. Just as good! Ha ya the only Easter stuff that happened was the Easter egg hunt activity us missionaries organized last Sunday. We got all the makeshift Mexican egg painting supplies and I showed them the tradition and explained the symbols of the eggs and rabbits and everything. The members really loved looking for the eggs outside of the church and I got to use some of the supplies my mom sent me to give for prizes like pictures of Christ and pencils that say I'm a Child of God in Spanish. After the hunt we talked about the Atonement and watched the movie, Finding Faith in Christ, and had horchata and empenadas after. I felt like everyone loved it and felt the Spirit. It was also just really fun to have an activity all together with the ward so they can sense the unity we have as members of the church. We all love and care about each other and that is one of the things I love most about the church. There's no other place like it.

Elder Cromwell left this morning so it's just me and Elder Reyes right now which is a relief. I'm going to like having someone with less experience so we can have more unity in learning things together instead of the teacher student companionships I have had before.
I'm so excited for General Conference this weekend! It makes me think about my last one in the MTC. I can't believe that was six months ago! There's a rule though, that we can't go watch the Saturday sessions at the church unless we bring investigators. If that's not some good motivation I don't know what is!

SHOUT OUTS FOR EVERYONE WHO WROTE ME A EMAIL THIS WEEK like Sarah and Tommy! Sorry if I didnt get to answer this week, but I'll try the best I can to get to it next time.

ANOTHER SHOUT OUT FOR MY BROTHER ROBBIE WHO HAS A DATE TO PROM! Haha I'm proud of you hermano!

Everyone have a Happy Conference! Take some notes!

Love,

       Elder Adam Shurtliff

Hola Amigos!

 The trio is really different and is hard at times to make sure everybody agrees on planning and gets the same amount of time to teach in the lessons, but I'm learning to be more humble and flexible because of it. Elder Reyes has the same amount of time in the mission as me, but has been in the field longer because he was only in the MTC for three weeks so we are a couple of noobs when Elder Cromwell leaves next week. Its going to be challenging, but I'm up for it and ready to have a comp that might not leave me so soon this time ha.

So last night we had an Easter activity for our ward that us missionaries planned which was awesome because we painted eggs, had an Easter egg hunt, and taught about the Atonement. I was pretty much in charge of it too, being part of my training, and it was a lot of work to plan and get everything going. It went really well and I could tell everyone liked learning about our American traditions for Easter and to learn about all the symbolism of the eggs and stuff. I really feel like everyone felt the Spirit. We can always learn more about the Atonement and remember the sacrifice our Savior Jesus Christ made for us so we can return to live with Him and our Heavenly Father and our families forever.

I'll send pics of the activity next week!

SHOUT OUT for Miss Sarahenretty for her two letters this week! YOU DA BEST

BIG NEWS I can now write more than just family by email now so send me all your email addresses! (adam.shurtliff@myldsmail.net)

Mom here: I will add Adam’s email address to the sidebar as soon as I remember his login so I can make the change. Feel free to send him emails. He has specified that he doesn’t have email addresses for Lyn, Mitch, Landon, Natalie, and Tommy.

A couple of things to keep in mind:

1.  He can only check email on Mondays. He has a very limited amount of time on the computer and with the email he receives, he will likely only get to scan quickly and make a very quick reply. Because of this, he may miss things that you say and won’t adequately respond to your questions. (Speaking from experience on this one.)
2. Snail mail and dearelders are still needed. He will be able to review/refer to these hard copy letters throughout the week. The will lift him when he’s having a hard day and may provide needed inspiration.

And Sarah, you’d better watch out, he warns that your email may explode.

HOLA HERMANOS Y HERMANAS

I dedicate this blog to the best dog in the world, Rascal, who passed away this week. ALL DOGS GO TO HEAVEN!

 Like I say every week, this week flew! My comp had to go to a couple meetings this week so I got to do divisions with another American that has the same amount of experience as me. For a couple days we were running around Mexico, trying to find houses, and speak Spanish by ourselves. Ha. By the end of the day we were dead tired and proud of ourselves so we ordered a pizza. I love teaching with other missionaries so I can see their unique teaching styles and we can learn from each other.

 

 So they don't have most of the American holidays here, but I have fun trying to explain all of our American traditions to the members here ha. 

Things were going really well with me and my comp until we had our biggest fight yet, which felt like it came out of nowhere. Ha. Let's just say we let out a lot of steam at each other, but now that its over I think we are as good as ever. Funny how things work out sometimes. Today we got a new addition to our companionship too since transfers were yesterday. Elder Reyes from D.F. Mexico is our new comp and so we are going to be in a trio until Hermano C. leaves. Ha. It's going to be different, but I'm up for it.

SHOUT OUTS for my mom and THE Sarah Henretty because I finally got their amazing package which made all of the other missionaries really jealous. Actually...you made them break one of the Ten Commandments soooo HOW COULD YOU?! Haha Thank you! ALSO, SHOUT OUT for Mr. Tommy Gilmore for sending me a letter that I got this week! Woohoo! Thanks bud! I'm trying my best to write everyone back as soon as I can. OH and for my brother Aaron for writing me his first email.

Thank you everyone for reading my blog! I included some pics on request from my dad so everyone could see more views of Mexico like one of the many Tortillerias and little stores around the city.

THE CHURCH IS TRUE!

LOVE,

          Elder Adam Shurtliff

This week...

The back of the Patriarch's bakery

HI everyone! so funny story, I get back from a long bus trip from Merida one day and my comp tells me we are at war with North Korea...WHAT? Ha whats going on? I dont have a lot of time this week, but something cool that happened is we had our Stake Conference, but I'll talk about that next week.

My comp and I are doing a lot better. Its kinda weird to me how we can have a big argument and then ten minutes later we are studying and teaching the Gospel like it never happened. Thats the power of the Spirit! Of course we shouldnt be arguing in the first place, but we are both pretty stubborn. ha Let's just say I'm learning a lot more patience and humility. I know having him as a companion is a challenge, but it's an even greater blessing. He's got just about three weeks left and I'm hoping I actually get a comp that stays with me a little while longer than a transfer before I start training.

We are making a lot of progress in our ward and helping out a lot of less active members trying to find references. Almost every inactive member I teach misses the church and having the Spirit in their lives, but they just need that special motivation to spark their will to return. Thats where the members come in. So make sure you are always looking for ways to help out the less active members in your ward, because you could be an answer to their prayer.

Stay safe from North Koreans!

Love,
Elder Shurtliff


Elders from my MTC district that I ran into
















Mom here: Just a note for you in case you are sending Adam a package and don't know what food treats he likes. He doesn't have peanut butter in Mexico. He wouldn't mind honey roasted peanuts or trail mix (we usually buy the Mountain Trail Mix from Walmart). He is missing Reeses Puffs too. Mexico chocolate is very different from what we are used to and is missing snickers or other chocolate candy, but I must warn you that customs has chocolate on their "not allowed to send" list. When asking other Mexico moms about it, it seems that most have sent it anyway and listed it on the customs form as 'confections'. All has arrived safely and no missionaries have done time in Mexican jails for being mailed chocolate as far as I can tell, so do what you feel is best, but I have let you know.... Of course, we all know Adam's affection for Starburst jellybeans, Cadbury carmel eggs, and other Easter treats. I have already stocked up on jellybeans this year so that I can send some with every package throughout the year. If interested, you may want to do something similar. If you haven't sent him a package yet and do not know, it is EXTREMELY expensive. I am not advocating that you send him stuff and really, he doesn't NEED anything, but in case you are interested, I wanted to pass the info along.

HOLA EVERYONE!!!

Snow White pic for SARAH

I hope everyone had an awesome fast Sunday!

This week has flown by which means I'm keeping busy, but its been a little hard lately. It's a little harder to get along with my new comp. He likes using his authority and whatever he says goes so it's something I'm going to have to get used to. It's making me have to learn obedience and humility so I can always listen to his advice no matter how much it sounds like his own opinion. It's been a little hard to find more people to teach and I'm always trying people to talk to from taxi drivers to people off the street, but the key is to work with the members. We are definitely in a growing period and trying to get the support for the leaders of the ward so we can get some firm references.

I'm still doing awesome here enjoying the weather and learning a ton everyday. A lot having to do with planning. I never knew how important it is to have a plan before the mission. (Take note Robbie and the rest of you.)

SHOUT OUTS this week for my Grandma Due and Aunt Lynlee!!! Thank you so much for you handwritten letters! They were one of the highlights of my week!

I wouldn't call my story for this week fun and exciting (I'll let you know when I have a good one of those), but last week we went to the weekly ward sports activity and found a funeral. Funerals here are the same exact day the person dies, because they can't preserve the body for long...a little fun fact for ya. The ward leader asked me and my comp to take part in the service since we were there and so I led the music while my comp gave a talk about the Plan of Salvation. I would have given a talk too but I was only backup if the person who actually had the assignment didn't show up. The funeral service was full of nonmembers though and it was really something to see them all learning about the hope and brightness for the future we have as members of the true church of God. It really got me thinking about how blessed we are to know about God's plan for us so we dont have to be so depressed when something like that happens in our lives. The Gospel blesses us more than we can possibly imagine.

THE CHURCH IS TRUE! Share it with somebody and change their life!

Love,

        Elder Shurtliff

More people ride/drive motorcycles to church than cars.

My 1st/original District