November 24, 2014 misionguerros

What's up my people?? Happy Thanksgiving!! I am grateful for all of you!

•We had our first baptism here for Elder Walker and I in the Las Palmas Ward.  It was the wife of a member. Her name is Stephanie McArthur. She was a pretty golden investigator.  She grew up in Wyoming with a town of 60% LDS and always said to her boyfriend and now husband that she needed to wait.  Well she was finally ready and her husband baptized her! All of the missionaries came back that taught her and it was great. (see pics)

 

every missionary that has been involved with teaching Stephanie McArthur

 •we are teaching this awesome guy named Shawn. He is 18 and a senior in HS (see pics).  He loves being taught by us.  Last time we left he said, "thank you so much for sharing this knowledge with me!" He just randomly showed up in a different ward one day because he was looking for a church and the missionaries there referred him to us.  He is the most humble, nicest guy.  He is getting baptized in December!

 

my man shawn

•I was reading in Alma this week in the Book of Mormon in my personal study and I love 5:26 where Alma asks the people after have been in the church for a while and everything seems to be going good, "Can ye feel so now?"  It made me think to myself and reevaluate myself.  Am I constantly thinking the thoughts, saying the words, and doing the things so that we still can "feel so now" and always be close to God?  We need to constantly be having spiritual experiences and they won't just fall right into our path, we have to work for them.

•In District Council this week we had an awesome discussion on "Sustainership."  It's something President Snow has been pushing with our mission, to sustain all of our leaders.  This is a life-long skill that we all need to learn. We have to always remember that leaders are inspired.  We can't let ourselves get offended or not think something is wrong with our leaders.  We are all imperfect humans and have to realize that.  We also talked about in the last days, we will have to defend the not only the modern day prophet but also Joseph Smith.  I talk to at least one person on the street a day that cusses us out or is rude because of some false thing they have read about Joseph Smith.  We also talked about why it is easier to sustain President Snow than other leaders.  We came to the conclusion that it's because our mission president, President Snow, is consistent with his character and that people sustained Christ because he was the perfect example of consistent, perfect character.  Consistency is a Christ-like attribute that we all need to try and attain in whatever thing we are doing, spiritually or temporally.  

the warm spring early morning sports crew

•The nephew of the great Craig Booth, Randy Booth gave a talk with his wife in sacrament meeting in the Silverado Ward.  Let's reminisce back to the last time we heard a Booth speak, which would be at Grandpa Ross’ funeral.  Booth was going on and on which is something that Grandpa Ross would not have liked and so that's when Great-Grandma Terry pipes in with a "This guy's putting me to sleep!"  Well Craig’s nephew’s talk was very funny and didn't put me to sleep.  Since they are new in the ward he told the story of how they met. Here are some funny quotes from his talk...

"Well Thanksgiving is the only holiday I haven't spoke on so if there was a Pokemon of sacrament meeting talks I would have caught them all."

"I first met my wife at a young-single adult activity cliff jumping at Lake Mead. She was the cutest girl there.  This happened to just be when I finished the whole P90X workout so it was pretty much game over when I took my shirt off."

"I did some flips off the cliff but I lost count of how many while I was in the air."

"After, she asked me to marry her but we went on a couple dates first."

"all of that was true except I asked her on a date"

•The Las Palmas sacrament meeting was all about music and of course they had a violin trio play "I know that my Redeemer Lives" and I lost it.  I could feel the Savior right there with me, serving a mission along side of me.  On a mission you have a special opportunity to have experiences like that where you know without a doubt that this is His work.  I know Jesus Christ is our Redeemer and knows each one of us personally.  He wants the absolute best for us which we CAN have by living His gospel as conspicuously as possible. 

ps Abby practice your violin.

I love you friends and family! you guys are amazing and I am thankful for the support I receive on my mission and all of the prayers I receive.  I am most grateful for the knowledge that the truth has been restored again to this earth. 
 

Love,

Elder Faldmo

November 10, 2014... It's still warm in Warm Springs

Still warm in Warm Springs

hello fam and friends!

first off, shoutout to my coolest little brother Sammy John for turning 10 tomorrow. you're a stud Sam! you've been my catch buddy and rebounder since you were born.

another shoutout to my cousin Will Clark! that dude is a stud! 

elder walker thought you use dishsoap in the dishwasher... #missionaryprobs

the members here in warm springs are second to none.  our 2 ward mission leaders are Brother Thatcher and Brother Browne.  Brother Thatcher sent his son on a mission right as we got to the area.  he is in the Billings Montana mission which is the same mission that Elder Walker is from.  Brother Thatcher is a convert and is awesome.  he is so excited about missionary work.   he told us that missionaries like us have been "an answer to his fasting and prayers" 

There is the Haycock Family in the Las Palmas ward and Sister Haycock was really good friends with my mom's cousin Tiffany Merchant and she was a bridesmaid in her wedding! Also on Sunday in the Las Palmas ward there was a guy visiting who lives in the same neighborhood as Uncle Jared and Elizabeth used to live I think.  He told me he played golf with Grandpa Ross and knows Jason and "has shopped at Hurst and Ben Franklin for 40 years" 

So we are just about teaching these 3 UNLV baseball players.  They are really nice guys.  They said they would get some bands from their clubhouse so I can do my arm and back exercises.  One of them is a left-handed pitcher and tops out at 94 mph.  When we went last time, he had just got a letter from the Pittsburg Pirates.  Hopefully we can teach them lesson 1 this week!  A ton of our apartment complex is UNLV students.  

So this week we had exchanges with our DL and his comp.  I went with our DL Elder Gilstrap. (biking area woot woot) We were on our way to Subway for dinner and we stop and try to talk to this guy on the street and at the end he told us that we made his night and that he is going to come to church on Sunday.  Then we go off and bike ahead and we get to Subway and as we are about to order the same guy walks in and says "I got it, thank you guys" and puts a $20 on the counter and walks out.  Then later that night we are biking to the mission office and right before we get there this lady and her 2 toddler boys are on the sidewalk and we talk to them.  She told us that she has been praying to find a new church.  So since we were right by the church, which is the mission office, she gets to meet President Snow and we give her a church tour.  When we were about to walk in, she sees the picture of Jesus and says "I like this already"

Highlight of the week was definitely having Elder Foster from the Seventy and his wife come and talk to us.  They gave us training on how we can use family history to share the gospel.  One of my favorite quotes from him is.. "you should have the mindset every morning of 'you gotta be kidding me, i get to do this today again?'" He explained how these 2 years are so short of a time.  We have amazing leaders.  Our senior couples in the office deserve a prize or something.   They work so hard to get us what we need in order to succeed.  Nevada Las Vegas Mission is #1 sorry everyone else. 

Hope y'all had a great week and have an even better one this week! 

Love, 

Elder Faldmo

yes!!! they have these in vegas.  this is what grandma julie and grandpa ross always have for me at their house!

October 20, 2014

Hello friends and family!! Happy P-Day!

 

-So this week was absent from Brother Loveland who had probably a rough week on vacation in Lake Tahoe. He stayed at the same timeshare that we stayed at for the Faldmo Family Reunion a few years back! This week during lunch we get a call and he tells us, "Remember how about a month ago when I went to Idaho and I left that box of snacks for you guys?.... I've don't it again!"  hahaha so we were taken care of this week still even though he wasn't here #spoiledmissionaries.  also, on Thursday, all four of us received post cards that he sent us from Lake Tahoe! Brother Loveland is the man.

 

-Interviews with President Snow this week!!! If you all didn't hear yet, we have the greatest mission President ever.  We did a little scripture study first with him and then he shared some really amazing things from his SW Area Mission President's Training.  Presiding at it was Elder Quintin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles who told them, "I feel impressed to share that the SW Area of North America is the most important part of North America." (for the work)  Then President Snow told us, "Since being in the military a lot of my life, I know that you don't send your 2nd string troops to your most important battle." and that the Nevada Las Vegas Mission by far exceeds all of the other missions in the SW region.  He said, "it is sobering to think of all of the places I could've been sent, I was sent here."  After hearing that, it made me more motivated to work even harder.  My interview with the President was amazing.  He is such a kind and loving man.  He asked about all of my family and really cares about all of his missionaries. 

 

-Elder Taylor (in my district in MTC) and his companion Elder Anderson are in an area right next to ours called Los Feliz.  One of their investigators named Maria recently moved right near the LoveShack down the road.  She is amazing.  He had to move because her husband was very cruel to her and so all four of us missionaries went to help her move out and her husband would barely let her take anything.  He started cussing us out in Spanish.  So now she is a single mom, raising 4 children all under the age of 8. Our ward is so amazing.  One family brought them some food and another is going to give them some clothes.  Only her oldest daughter would go to Primary yesterday so she was wrestling with the 3 others in Gospel Principles.  She is in a very tough situation but is putting so much faith in Jesus Christ and His church to get through it.  She is going to be baptized this Thursday!!!!

 

-Hermano Quezada is the man.  He gets us Slurpees from 7/11 after every time he goes out with us.  His son, Baru, just left for his mission in Long Beach!

 

-It's always nice when a member comes up to you after night church and says, "get in my car I will go with you to visit people until the end of the night."  last night, we found 4 new investigators and had 2 lessons with him in 40 minutes! Hermano Suarez is the man. He told me he wants to move to St. George one time on splits and i'm like, me too me too.

 

-this is the last week of this transfer! On Saturday I will see if I am staying here and Rivas is going, or vise versa, or if we are both staying or going. I really hope to stay here! I love El Rancho!

 

Love you family and friends! Wherever you are, we are all connected by having the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ on the Earth.

 

con amor,

Elder Faldmo

conference week baby! October 6, 2014

Hello Family and Friends! 

It really is the most wonderful time of the year... CONFERENCE WEEKEND!

We were taught, comforted, uplifted, edified, and warned by the words of the prophets and apostles and other general authorities this past weekend.

Conference seems a much bigger of a deal on your mission.  This was the first time I have really paid attention to every single talk given during conference weekend.  We were taught about the Atonement of Jesus Christ by one of the best-- President Boyd K. Packer.  We were asked the thought-provoking question "Which way do you face?" and told not to fear the reproach of men by Lynn G. Robbins of the Seventy.  I couldn't help but think of my dad as we were counseled to start the "Recue Mission" starting with the ward council by Chi Hong Wong of the Seventy.  Dad is one of the best at that.  President Uchtdorf told us to find out the truth for ourselves now through studying the scriptures and pondering and praying to our Heavenly Father.  He told us that gaining a personal testimony is the most valuable thing to have in this life. 

 

I felt one common theme throughout conference was really sustaining the prophet and apostles and also Joseph Smith.  I know that the Prophet and the Apostles are men of God and will never lead us astray.  Neil L. Anderson gave us warning that the Angel Moroni was indeed serious that Joseph's name will be had for good and evil.  He said that the negative deception about the Prophet Joseph Smith and negative talk will not diminish as we come closer to the 2nd Coming.  It is our job to develop a testimony that Joseph Smith was the prophet the Lord used to establish the Church of Jesus Christ back on the earth.  Remember that "millions shall know Brother Joseph again."

 

We need to heed to the counsel of President Thomas S. Monson and "walk as Jesus walked."  That talk on Sunday morning helped me understand the Atonement more.  This is because Jesus really does know what each of us is going through, whatever it is, on a day to day basis.  We need to walk as Jesus walked because he really did walk the path that we walk.  He experienced disappointment, temptation (with which he responded "get thee hence Satan"), agony, and suffering which was more than we can even comprehend.  I also loved M. Russell Ballard's talk on "staying in the boat." We all have our own "rapids" in our river of mortality but with the help of our "river guides" who are parents, prophets, and other leaders we can get through all of our rapids as long as we wear the "life jacket" of scripture study and prayer.   Last but not least, David A. Bednar's talk at the end inviting everyone not of our faith to "come and see" was amazing! It was perfect for our investigators and those searching for truth.  If you're not a member of our faith, just come and see how the faith that you already have can grow even more!

 

Conference is legit. 

 

The work this week was pretty awesome too.  I led our area for the first time on exchanges last Tuesday and Elder Fort (a zone leader) is an English missionary so it was a good learning experience for me to be able to have to talk the whole time during the day except street contacts in English.  I had one street contact with Elder Fort where this lady said "i've seen you guys riding your bikes before and i really want to meet that black missionary I have never seen one before!" hahahahaha she was referring to Elder Rivas my companion.  So yeah, being in Vegas, we meet some pretty interesting people.

 

S/o to my brother Sam for a great football game with 10 tackles last week!

 

I hope you guys have a great week!  Other people will be touched by Jesus Christ through his servants who can be any of us as we look for opportunites to serve everyone around us! First observe, then serve!

 

Love,

Elder Faldmo

september 22, 2014 Dia del Espanidad!

Buenos dias famila!

●Shoutout to Abby for being a stud at HC this week! the last ground-breaking i was apart of was at the Winter Quarters Temple. 

●Another shoutout to Sam for being a stud on the football field!

●Cougars are 4-0 say what? Don't ask how I know that.

●We had a wedding this week! Juan Gomez and Angelica got married on Saturday.  They are the deaf couple that we teach with a translator, Brother O'Brien.  It was awesome! Angelica has already been baptized but was less-active and now they are both active and amazing and Juan is getting baptized this Saturday! Teaching them has been one of the cooler experiences on my mission.  I will send pictures later today when I am at the Stake Center.

●We struggled helping people get to church this week.  The same thing happens a lot where they say they are coming and then for some reason Sunday at 1:00 or at 7:00 means they have a million other things to do. 

●Friday was the ward "Dia del Espanidad" party. (video will be sent later today) It is where all of the Spanish cultures have their own day of celebration together.

●This random couple stopped us on the street one day and asked us if we knew of a minister who could marry them.  They asked how much we wanted and we said how the church does it for free and all they have to pay for is for the legal marriage license and they got really excited. 

●We got a new missionary from Miami this week in our ward.  His name is Elder Rincon.  He slept on the same bed i did at the CCM so we have a bond haha. He is an awesome guy.  He made a trio with Elder Monreal and Elder Branham. 

●So yes, all is well here in Sin City. The rule Elder Rivas and I have at night on some streets is that we have to keep moving cause these 3 guys almost mugged us one night haha but we are fast bikers so don’t worry. 

●We usually get 2 flat tires a week cause there is glass everywhere here on the street sides.

How is the work coming in the Siouxland Area? Thats awesome to hear that Abby had some people come to church last Sunday!

I love you guys! Hope you have a great week!

Con Amor,

Elder Faldmo

Un mes en el campo‏ september 8, 2014

Hi Family!

for service this week, we set up the Loveman's patio set.  As it starts to cool down in the morning we do personal study out here. so yeah the service was for the benefit of us too but don't judge :)

●First of all, shoutout to my Cougars! Brother Loveland told me the score Saturday night :) #perksoflivingwithamember.  I'm sure Uncle Jason is so proud. 

●For our Zone Training this week, we had one training all about the song "Brightly Beams our Fathers Mercy" and as you know this is my favorite hymn.  About 2 weeks ago—prior to this zone training, while I was on an exchange with our DL Elder Monreal, I explained to him about the meaning of the song like my mom and Grandpa Ross had taught me.  So after the training he said "Elder Faldmo already gave me that training 2 weeks ago on exchanges."

●Miracle this week: Rosa Flores (investigator) got a job and is working now to make her own income because her boyfriend won't marry her.  After she gets a sufficient amount to provide for she and her 3 kids, she will kick him out unless he changes.  She set a goal for December to be baptized.  Her boyfriend is the one that stayed in the bathroom the whole lesson one time when we were there.  

●Missionary Shopping Motto:  if it's not GreatValue, don't buy it.

●Thursday was the best day this week for Elder Rivas and I.  We met TEN new investigators and had 4 lessons with a member.  One was a family of 8.  We had an awesome lesson with them and a couple that just got sealed in the temple was with us.  They shared how the gospel has blessed their family.  

●Well, I blinked and I have been out for 1 month.  I am starting to get a hang of the area and I know where almost all of the streets are now.  I love it here and I love the people.  Thank you so much for all of your emails, letters, and packages.  I love them so much!

Viva Las Vegas

Love,

Elder Faldmo

Meet the Saballos Family. They are hilarious. they are the type of people that when they are giving a talk in church last week and would sometimes say in english "know what im sayin?"

these are the El Rancho ward's missionaries with Able (right of Elder Rivas) who just got back a couple months ago from his mission in Brazil and is leaving this thursday for BYU-I.  He has been awesome coming out with us a few times a week.  He is amazing!

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isaac's mission

Isaac has made the decision to serve a two year mission for our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. He has been called to serve in the Nevada, Las Vegas mission, speaking Spanish. He enters the Missionary Training Center in Mexico City, Mexico on June 25th, 2014 to learn how to teach others in the Spanish language. He will be there for 6 weeks and then goes on to teach and serve the people of Las Vegas.