April 27, 2015 una pachanga‏

Hey y'all it was another great week in Vegas! I feel like I say that every week but it's cool right?

Shoutout to my cousin Christian for finishing his mission in Argentina this week!! I love you buddy!

Shoutout to Elder Thorne and Chambers who keep killing it up in the North Zone of Las Vegas!

Shoutout to my beautiful sister Abby so killed it at Prom last weekend!  #DV4lyfe 

Two exchanges and lots of more miracles this week! 

We found a couple of huge families this week.  One of them was golden and they are getting baptized on the 16th of May.  There's also a ward activity on that day so in Elders Quorum the dad of the family said, "I might not be able to make it to that activity since my family and I are getting baptized but I'll make it to the next one for sure!"  Elder Hoopes and I found them on exchanges when the dad was sitting outside their apartment and he let us right in and we taught them about the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and set them with a baptismal date.  Then the next day, they came to the temple with us and the next day their 2 teenage boys went to the Young Men's activity and they also ALL came to church.  The mom had to work on Sunday but still came to take the sacrament because she felt it was important.  

This amazing family plans to be baptized May 16th

This guy named Luis just moved into our ward from Sinaloa, Mexico the same place where Elder Felix is from and he just got back from his mission from Argentina!  He doesn't have a job yet so he came out with us all day Saturday and we learned so much from him.  He is the best at listening to investigators and asking inspired questions.  He knew 2 people from the Mendoza Mission in Argentina so hey Christian, if you know Elder Sosa or Cabrera in Mendoza tell me!  He speaks no English so it was good for me because I was forced to speak Spanish all day.  

Luis, my buddy and RM that served in Mendoza, Argentina mission

I also went on exchanges in my area with my new Zone Leader Elder Rasmussen.  He is from New York and is from the same stake as Jimmer Fredette. Remember him guys? 

So Monte Bello keeps growing here and we are very very busy and I love it!  I mean I'm sure you guys have good lives and all too… but I sometimes feel bad for you if you're not serving a mission right now.

But it's all good, we're all missionaries right? 

Love you all and keep getting buckets!!

Elder Faldmo

April 20, 2015 Monte Bellito‏

Como estan Cenicientes?!?

good good week in vegas!

we're teaching this awesome family of 6 who just moved in here from Oakland, CA.  We found them by contacting someone on the ward list who no one knew but that person moved and this family moved into their place! We left a restoration pamphlet and when we came back it was hung on their wall and they said they feel more peace in their home when it's there.  The dad said he had a Mormon friend in Oakland that he really liked so shoutout to Gustavo in Oakland for planting that seed!  

Krysta and MaKay, two of my recent converts from Warm Springs, came to lunch with Elder Felix and I and thank you fam for the package!!!! And then yesterday, we had the “Why I Believe” Fireside for the mission.  MaKay was one of the speakers and it was cool to hear her story of how she found faith through Book of Mormon and Jesus Christ and His church.  Then the next speaker was a new missionary from the South Side of Chicago who is 25 and is waiting for his visa to Brazil. He had a really cool story too! and then last but not least, one of the coolest ward mission leaders, Brother Browne from the Silverado ward spoke.  Great fireside with great speakers and musical numbers. 

Plus I got to see ELDER CHAMBERS there too! He's back from Bullhead everyone and is killing it in North Las Vegas. 

It sounds like you guys are doing awesome! Dad keep doing work in SC 2nd and shedding the pounds, Mom keep running around and being superwoman, Ashley keep searching for that someone, Abby enjoy the last weeks of HS, Maggie keep being miss perfect, and Sam keeping working hard bro!  Love you guys!

--Elder Faldmo

April 13, 2015 HOLA!

Hola!

Hey Folks. Transfer #1 in Monte Bello and #7 on my mission is over and it was probably the fastest 6 weeks of my life, and one of the most fun 6 weeks of my life.  The Dream Team 4 Pack is all in tact still in Monte Bello except for Elder Thorne.  He will be moving pretty much across the street to my birthplace in the mission, El Rancho in the Love Shack!  We will miss him but he will kill it over there.  

‪I love talking to the people of Las Vegas everyday! They're crazy! This one guy was watering his concrete driveway the other day.  Man, what if we all had that love for our concrete, we'd have some healthy concrete! Water you driveways people!

‪We did our first district meeting in all Spanish this week.  #allSpanishDistrict

‪My Spanish is still a work in progress but it is definitely way better than it was 6 weeks ago thanks to Elder Felix!

‪Every Friday evening we do our "Temple Walk" where we walk around the temple with investigators and explain what the temple is and why we have it.  This week when we showed up, Sharon and Buddy Pope were walking out! Sister Pope just had got done doing her first baptisms for her grandmothers that had passed on.  Brother Pope was able to baptize and confirm her for her grandmothers.  Special miracle to be there at the same time as they were!

‪It was a super Saturday for our District! All 3 of our companionships had baptisms.  Elder Felix and I started the day at 11 with the baptism of Olga, Jacob, and Zuri and then the Los Feliz ward elders had a mom and her daughter get baptized and to end the day the other Monte Bello elders baptized one of the coolest guys ever.  All of these people are so HYPE'd for eternity and are preparing to live with Heavenly Father again.  

Olga, Jacob and Zuri on their baptism day!

‪All in all it was another great transfer and I am excited to see what we can do to help the Lord out even more this transfer!

‪Love, 

‪Elder Faldmo

April 6, 2015 It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Que pachuca por toluca?

First of I wanna give a shoutout to Missy Hughes cause it's her birthday! Happy Birthday Mrs. Hughes! 

Another good week here in the Central Stake of Las Vegas! The cherry on top was the amazing sessions of General Conference on Saturday and Sunday.  I heard a lot of "date and get married" to RMs and YSA so there's your que Ashley :)  I also loved Wilford W. Anderson's talk about the music and dancing of the gospel.  #idon'tdance 

Also I second what Quintin L. Cook said about the church never being stronger than right now! We are doing work right now! Nothing more exciting than being in a mission like the Nevada Las Vegas Mission in these times.  I still sometimes think how God really does have a sense of humor when he's trusted us 18, 19, 20+ year-olds with the growth of his church.  

Other things I liked include:

our post conference monte bello celebration

• "R.M. means returned missionary not retired mormon" -Elder Ballard
• "Come out from the wicked and be separate!" -Elder Sorres quoting Alma 
• all of the talks in Spanish! 

Our temple walk went really well this week! A family came and we walked around with them and H.Y.P.E.d them up (How You Present Eternity) for their baptism next Saturday and got them thinking with an eternal perspective! Look up Alma 34:32 and D&C 78:7 for an eternal perspective. I'm lucky to be able to serve so close to the temple right now!

monte bello dream team after our temple walk

We hiked Sunrise Mountain this morning and it was the most steep hike of my entire life! So hard but a very good workout.  The view isn't as good as Timpanogos or anything in Zion but it will have to do.  

steepest hike of my life... great workout!

me and elder thorne at the top!

view of the las vegas valley

I hope y'all had a happy Easter! I'm grateful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ and being able to share it with others during this time of year and this time of my life!  Like Boyd K. Packer said in conference, "the Atonement is personal."  No matter what we've done, the Atonement can turn our heartache into joy, and the hard times into fulfilling times. That really is what life is all about period. Let's use it more in our personal prayers, during the sacrament and the way we act, think and things we say.

Love you all! 

-Elder Faldmo