Bed Bugs and Big Miracles

When I read the subject line on this email, I immediately thought "EWWW!"

So this was a really eventful week. i hope that is evident by the title haha! We have had some great success and hard times this week but that's what makes a mission interesting. I have been working a lot on myself this week. Every week we talk about how teaching about the Savior is our central purpose but I find myself asking more and more am I teaching like the Savior. I have been turning to Him more and more every day because I am weak. And I am only a young adult with the responsibility to share and invite others to come unto Christ. I know that He strengthens me every day and I hope that every day I am changing little by little.

Every day we have huge plans and we think that we will take on the world but that really isn't possible. We end up teaching maybe one to 3 lessons but they are so powerful that you cant deny the hand of the lord in this work. We thought that we would have our first baptism this week but it feel through. The family is having a really hard time so it might not happen. We did find these two kids that had been waiting for permission and finally got it! So we will be hoping for that in the first week of next month. I don't know if I shared this but here in Mexico you need the person to go to church for 5 weeks because we want converts in the mission not just baptisms.

We have been working on our companionship unity this week. Its amazing how much I see that this is preparing me for a marriage in the future. We have to work together with the spirit if we hope to accomplish anything and that is so true in a family. I hope I will learn how to be an amazing teacher for my family in the future. I realized when you teach doctrine and principles and let people chose for themselves that's when they truly change.

Our calling is to invite and it's heartbreaking when people don't accept the wonderful gift of this gospel but I feel confident when we teach with the spirit they at least have the seed in there hearts. I would encourage everyone to study preach my gospel it isnt just a magical manual for missionaries ans]d instructions for our whole life on how to be better.

So I have bed bugs and thats fun for my whole time here I have thought that I was immune because one night I had to sleep on a bed with bed bugs but nothing happend. I was sadly disappointed when I found out that bed bugs like guiro blood and latino blood. On another funny note I tried to pray in english yesterday and my thoughts were in spanish and it was suprisingly hard! The 5 of may is going to be interesting family!

My spiritual thought is that we are written on the hands of christ literally. When he completed the atonement he chose to leave the marks in his hands, feet, and side. He did that to help us know that we are always with him that he recognizes our needs and challenges. Never think you are beyond the aid of the savior because he is always looking for an opportunity to help us and reach out.
Psalms 23: 1-4

Love,
Elder Packham

Psalms 46:10

God is our refuge and strength—He dwells in His city, does marvelous things, and says, Be still and know that I am God.

So this week was an interesting week. The week of vacations here in mexico so it was near impossible to find people so teaching was really hard. We ended up only finding one investigator this week. She is an all star though and was a person we haven't talked to in awhile. She has cancer but one of the biggest testimony and faith that I have seen.

I forgot my journal this week sad day I'm so sorry. We had an opportunity to do service this week and that was really cool! I have some good news I have pictures today! Are you excited? I am! haha It took me a half hour of fighting with the computer but we have success!

I would love to hear from you all feel free to write me I promise I will do my best to get back to you some times its hard. This week I have been studying patience and humility in the work because these are attributes of the Savior. I love the time that I get to study on a mission its so great.

So the food here I don't know that I have told you all this but its so good! So different but so great luckily the members are amazing about understanding this gringo can't handle the hot stuff so they dim it down for me but its a process i am actually developing a taste for it! Also we don't really take time for dinner we just have a giant lunch and then work until we go home at night!

The other elders in our ward had a baptism two actually but it was because these members didn't have there records in order it was the strangest thing but so cool for them.

We had a lot of success visiting members and less actives and you can see the difference in the church. Its just hard because its the kind of things that don't actually get counted in our reports. We also had a lady in the ward pass away which was really sad but it really showed that people handle grief the same everywhere in the world, lots of food and family.

I want to share with you all my testimony about the  Book of Mormon because I cant even begin to tell you how powerful this book is and how it came to be. This book is for our day and it was written for each and everyone of us we just need to pick it up and we will find the answers of our soul. I really like how Jacob puts it in chapter 4 verses 6 though 10. The final verse really speaks to me "take counsel of my hands" we have in our hands the words that created this earth and us and everything! often we pass right by them and don't read them that's so sad to me!! I love you all so I will be very clear READ THE BOOK!

Elder Packham

Here are some pictures:

I love you all!!!

So here in mexico they have this thing called semana santa which is very different. The people here do these representations of the crucifixions of Christ. We weren't really affected but other missions have to stay inside all kinds of other stuff. This week was amazing in a different way it was really hard to find people because of vacations and other things but we still taught a lot of members and stuff.

One thing you wont ever have to worry about mom is that I'll starve people here just give us food and lots of it. Every time we enter a house we get something depending on the mood. Most of the time its a lot of food haha. Lucky we walk everywhere so everything that i do eat doesn't stick around long thanks to the heat. My companion is always in a long sleeve shirt and hes always saying its hot but it doesn't phase him to much.

Have I told you all about my companion? Hes 24 and serving a mission hardly 2 hours from your home! He could take a taxi home but hes serving. He has a degree and worked as an administrator in a school to save for his mission. The guy is so humble and really knowledgeable about the scriptures.

This week was conference and that was so crazy! We had two zones in the stake center and the assistants to the president are in my district so they were there too. We all pitched in and had a feast of little ceasars pizza and soda it was a little hard because we didn't get much work done but it was nice to be around a bunch of missionaries and a little hard because we talked in English a lot and the switch was a little hard. We watched conference in English also so that was so nice! I use the word watch very liberally because the picture was terrible and if you had epilepsy you would have probably been in trouble.

I would encourage everyone to watch the talk by Elder Wilford W Anderson it was truly amazing. Hear the music of the gospel I implore you it will enrich your life beyond anything that you can imagine. The dance of living with the gospel my be complicated and require a lot of sacrifice but the music when your truly feel it in your soul is incredible!

I love you all! In my studies this week I found some verses I really like in the Book of Mormon about the connection between faith and hope I would encourage you all to read them! Moroni 7: 40-43

Love,
Elder Packham

Below is a video link to the conference talk that Elder Packham referenced.

Elder Wilford W. Anderson
The Music of the Gospel

Elder Packham spoke briefly about faith and hope and the scriptures in Moroni. Faith is such an important part of my life and who I am.  It is the basis of all that I am.  As I update the blog I am currently at Time Out for Women in Kansas City.  Jenny Oaks Baker said something last night about faith that I really appreciated.  She said that when her mother was ill with cancer she felt that if she had enough faith, her mother would be healed.  She wanted to have that kind of faith.  Well, her father Elder Dallin H Oaks gave her great counsel on faith.  He said that true faith is turning our will over to the Lord's.  It is believing that 'He's got this' and that no matter what, all will be well. Here is the thing I know, Faith is a choice. Faith brings peace.... of this, I have no doubt.

Bishop Richard C. Edgley
Faith - the Choice Is Yours