Home on Monday November 9, 2015
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
Last Letter Home
Saturday October 31, 2015
Hello friends and family!
Well I guess this is it... I`m going into my last week as a missionary!! It`s a weird feeling but I feel so happy, so blessed, and also so excited to see my family.
My mission just keeps getting better and better. Last week we were teaching a recent convert and her daughter came in and started listening. Her name is Monse and she almost got baptized about 4 or 5 months ago but wasn't ready yet. We stopped teaching her after that because she wasn't very interested in it and we hadn't really taught her since. When she came and started listening the other day she started asking us a lot of questions and has gotten to a point in her life where she has to make a lot of big decisions. We taught her about reading scriptures and praying and the next time we went over there we taught the plan of salvation and then on Sunday she came to church and then this Tuesday while we were over there we sat down and she started to cry. She said she prayed until 3 in the morning and had the overwhelming feeling that she needs to be baptized and that Heavenly Father wants her to serve a mission. Nine months ago Monse didn't believe in God and felt she had no purpose in this life. A week from today she is going to be baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am overwhelmed with joy to be able to see this miracle. This is why Heavenly Father needed me to stay just a little longer; to show me that He is a God of miracles.
I have been reading my journal a lot this week and reflecting on my mission. I feel so blessed to have had this opportunity to serve the Lord. I have met so many amazing people, learned so much, and have grown closer to my Savior.
I thank everyone who has supported me during these two years. They have been the best two years of my life and I have felt the prayers of friends and family that have carried me all the way through. I will be eternally grateful for the support of my family, friends, and church leaders.
I know that this is Christ`s church that has been restored by a modern day prophet. I know that God is our loving Heavenly Father. I know that our Savior lives. I know he paid a price for us that we will never be able to repay Him. I know that families can be forever and I am so excited to be back with mine.
See you soon everybody :)
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Hello friends and family!
Well I guess this is it... I`m going into my last week as a missionary!! It`s a weird feeling but I feel so happy, so blessed, and also so excited to see my family.
My mission just keeps getting better and better. Last week we were teaching a recent convert and her daughter came in and started listening. Her name is Monse and she almost got baptized about 4 or 5 months ago but wasn't ready yet. We stopped teaching her after that because she wasn't very interested in it and we hadn't really taught her since. When she came and started listening the other day she started asking us a lot of questions and has gotten to a point in her life where she has to make a lot of big decisions. We taught her about reading scriptures and praying and the next time we went over there we taught the plan of salvation and then on Sunday she came to church and then this Tuesday while we were over there we sat down and she started to cry. She said she prayed until 3 in the morning and had the overwhelming feeling that she needs to be baptized and that Heavenly Father wants her to serve a mission. Nine months ago Monse didn't believe in God and felt she had no purpose in this life. A week from today she is going to be baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am overwhelmed with joy to be able to see this miracle. This is why Heavenly Father needed me to stay just a little longer; to show me that He is a God of miracles.
I have been reading my journal a lot this week and reflecting on my mission. I feel so blessed to have had this opportunity to serve the Lord. I have met so many amazing people, learned so much, and have grown closer to my Savior.
I thank everyone who has supported me during these two years. They have been the best two years of my life and I have felt the prayers of friends and family that have carried me all the way through. I will be eternally grateful for the support of my family, friends, and church leaders.
I know that this is Christ`s church that has been restored by a modern day prophet. I know that God is our loving Heavenly Father. I know that our Savior lives. I know he paid a price for us that we will never be able to repay Him. I know that families can be forever and I am so excited to be back with mine.
See you soon everybody :)
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Patricia
Saturday October 24, 2015
Hello Friends and Family!
All is well here in Guadalajara! We gave Hurricane Patricia a run for her money! :) It was actually pretty funny because we have a zone on the coast that was supposed to be the only zone hit by the storm and so they were preparing and everything and Patricia threw a curve ball and started heading up our way. I´m not going to lie, we were all jumping for joy when we heard we were going to get a piece of Patricia. I thought it would have made the perfect end of the mission story! Yesterday morning we went and bought food and water for two days and buckled down ready for the storm in the afternoon. It just rained and that was about it. There are a couple fallen down trees in the city but nothing major.
Besides that, this week was pretty normal. We worked a lot and have been having a good time with our good friends Elder Conrad and Elder Gonzalez. They have an appointment in the embassy on Monday. We don't know if we should pray that they get everything figured out or that they have more problems so they can stay with us!
Being with the new missionaries has made me remember when I first got to the mission. I have been telling them all sorts of mission stories and funny experiences and it has helped me realize how many amazing experiences I have had here. I have enjoyed some funny experiences, some scary ones, lots of spiritual experiences, challenging, sad, faith building... So many experiences that have helped me learn and grow. Sorry in advance if all you hear from me when I get home is mission experiences. I know that not a day will go by when I do not either think of something from my mission or use a skill that I have learned on my mission. I feel like this experience of serving the Lord has become a foundation that I will always be able to rely on when times get tough. I can truly say that the Lord has become my rock and foundation.
I love you all! Have a great week :)
Elder Del Toro
Hello Friends and Family!
All is well here in Guadalajara! We gave Hurricane Patricia a run for her money! :) It was actually pretty funny because we have a zone on the coast that was supposed to be the only zone hit by the storm and so they were preparing and everything and Patricia threw a curve ball and started heading up our way. I´m not going to lie, we were all jumping for joy when we heard we were going to get a piece of Patricia. I thought it would have made the perfect end of the mission story! Yesterday morning we went and bought food and water for two days and buckled down ready for the storm in the afternoon. It just rained and that was about it. There are a couple fallen down trees in the city but nothing major.
Besides that, this week was pretty normal. We worked a lot and have been having a good time with our good friends Elder Conrad and Elder Gonzalez. They have an appointment in the embassy on Monday. We don't know if we should pray that they get everything figured out or that they have more problems so they can stay with us!
Being with the new missionaries has made me remember when I first got to the mission. I have been telling them all sorts of mission stories and funny experiences and it has helped me realize how many amazing experiences I have had here. I have enjoyed some funny experiences, some scary ones, lots of spiritual experiences, challenging, sad, faith building... So many experiences that have helped me learn and grow. Sorry in advance if all you hear from me when I get home is mission experiences. I know that not a day will go by when I do not either think of something from my mission or use a skill that I have learned on my mission. I feel like this experience of serving the Lord has become a foundation that I will always be able to rely on when times get tough. I can truly say that the Lord has become my rock and foundation.
I love you all! Have a great week :)
Elder Del Toro
On the Lord's Errand
Saturday October 17, 2015
Another good week in Guadalajara!
I have been learning so much lately! The Lord has been teaching me so many things during my whole mission but I think I am becoming a better learner or something. Life is just full of little lessons to learn from.
I have good and bad news about the stolen suit case boys...
The good news is that they were able to go to the area that they were originally assigned to! The not so great news is that they had to come back the next day because they found out their passport and visa things still aren't in line. And that´s not even really bad news because that means they will be with us another couple weeks!!
Elder Gonzalez and I had a really sweet experience teaching a family who still hasn't been sealed in the temple. The husband was baptized just over a year ago and so they can be sealed whenever they are ready but they haven't really shown interest about it. The bishop asked us to visit them so we did and we had a 15 minute lesson with them but it was one of my favorite lessons I have been in during my mission. We talked about covenants and the reason why we make them with our Heavenly Father. We then talked about the new and everlasting covenant, which is eternal marriage. We both shared a spiritual experience that we have had with our families in the temple and shared our testimonies. The spirit was so strong! We felt impressed to invite them, as representatives of Jesus Christ, to not procrastinate any longer their temple marriage. They were both crying and it was clear to see that the spirit was telling them that that is exactly what they need to do. As missionaries we always teach in the name of Christ but every once in a while, you get a special feeling that our Heavenly Father is speaking directly through you. It is a great privilege to be a worthy representative of Jesus Christ and to help Him bring to pass His work and His glory. I love being a missionary. It´s the best thing I´ve ever done.
Have a great week everyone!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Another good week in Guadalajara!
I have been learning so much lately! The Lord has been teaching me so many things during my whole mission but I think I am becoming a better learner or something. Life is just full of little lessons to learn from.
I have good and bad news about the stolen suit case boys...
The good news is that they were able to go to the area that they were originally assigned to! The not so great news is that they had to come back the next day because they found out their passport and visa things still aren't in line. And that´s not even really bad news because that means they will be with us another couple weeks!!
Elder Gonzalez and I had a really sweet experience teaching a family who still hasn't been sealed in the temple. The husband was baptized just over a year ago and so they can be sealed whenever they are ready but they haven't really shown interest about it. The bishop asked us to visit them so we did and we had a 15 minute lesson with them but it was one of my favorite lessons I have been in during my mission. We talked about covenants and the reason why we make them with our Heavenly Father. We then talked about the new and everlasting covenant, which is eternal marriage. We both shared a spiritual experience that we have had with our families in the temple and shared our testimonies. The spirit was so strong! We felt impressed to invite them, as representatives of Jesus Christ, to not procrastinate any longer their temple marriage. They were both crying and it was clear to see that the spirit was telling them that that is exactly what they need to do. As missionaries we always teach in the name of Christ but every once in a while, you get a special feeling that our Heavenly Father is speaking directly through you. It is a great privilege to be a worthy representative of Jesus Christ and to help Him bring to pass His work and His glory. I love being a missionary. It´s the best thing I´ve ever done.
Have a great week everyone!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
A Convert from Stolen Suitcases
Saturday October 10, 2015
Hello Friends and Family,
It`s been a great week! I am still a trainer! Elder Gonzalez and Elder Conrad still don't have their passport and visa stuff worked out so they are still staying with us. It`s been so fun. The missionaries that were supposed to train them called us this morning wondering if Elder Gonzalez and Elder Conrad are ever going to make it down to Zamora. Poor guys! We robbed their sons!! They should be on their way down there sometime this week though.
This is kind of a cool story about their suitcases getting stolen... A policeman came to do the report that day of the accident and we were all talking to him a little bit. A few days later he stopped by the mission office to drop off some paperwork for President Egginton and told him that while he was talking to us four missionaries he felt something that he has never felt before and wanted to know more and also wanted his brother to know more about the message we share. President Egginton took down the info and sent the missionaries to visit them. The brother of that policeman received the missionaries and accepted a baptismal date and the policeman is receiving the missionaries in his home with his family. If those two Elders` things never wouldn't have gotten stolen, those people never would have been able to hear this message. Who would have thought that so much happiness would come out of stolen suitcases? Elder Conrad and Elder Gonzalez have had a rough start to their mission but they said that getting all their stuff stolen is all worth it if through it all someone comes to know of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and is able to make sacred covenants with our Heavenly Father.
It`s amazing to me how our Heavenly Father works. The experiences that he gives us help to shape us and become what He knows we can become. I love being a missionary because I feel closer to my Heavenly Father than I have ever felt in my life. I am so happy :)
Have a great week everyone!
Elder Del Toro
Hello Friends and Family,
It`s been a great week! I am still a trainer! Elder Gonzalez and Elder Conrad still don't have their passport and visa stuff worked out so they are still staying with us. It`s been so fun. The missionaries that were supposed to train them called us this morning wondering if Elder Gonzalez and Elder Conrad are ever going to make it down to Zamora. Poor guys! We robbed their sons!! They should be on their way down there sometime this week though.
This is kind of a cool story about their suitcases getting stolen... A policeman came to do the report that day of the accident and we were all talking to him a little bit. A few days later he stopped by the mission office to drop off some paperwork for President Egginton and told him that while he was talking to us four missionaries he felt something that he has never felt before and wanted to know more and also wanted his brother to know more about the message we share. President Egginton took down the info and sent the missionaries to visit them. The brother of that policeman received the missionaries and accepted a baptismal date and the policeman is receiving the missionaries in his home with his family. If those two Elders` things never wouldn't have gotten stolen, those people never would have been able to hear this message. Who would have thought that so much happiness would come out of stolen suitcases? Elder Conrad and Elder Gonzalez have had a rough start to their mission but they said that getting all their stuff stolen is all worth it if through it all someone comes to know of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and is able to make sacred covenants with our Heavenly Father.
It`s amazing to me how our Heavenly Father works. The experiences that he gives us help to shape us and become what He knows we can become. I love being a missionary because I feel closer to my Heavenly Father than I have ever felt in my life. I am so happy :)
Have a great week everyone!
Elder Del Toro
Another Gonzalez
Monday October 5, 2015
Hello Family!
This week has been crazy! We sent off all the old missionaries and got in all the new missionaries on Monday. Something kind of funny happened.... We went and picked up two american elders who got here on a later flight and then went back to the mission home for them to be interviewed by President and when we came out a couple hours later, we jumped in the van and started driving and one of the new elders said "has this glass always been like this?". We turned around and the back window was smashed in and all of the suitcases were gone. EVERYTHING they brought to the mission was gone. They both took it like men. We went to the mall and bought them new everything and had to go report the crime so they could get new passports and it was just a big hassle. They were supposed to go work in Zamora but they have to stay here in Guadalajara until they get their paperwork in to be legal here in Mexico so I was very quick to volunteer Elder Raya and I to be their temporary trainers. I´m a trainer!!!! I am training Elder Gonzalez from Mesa Arizona and Elder Raya is training Elder Conrad from Provo. They will probably be heading to their new areas sometime this week but it has been a lot of fun to be showing them the ropes this week. The first missionary I trained was also Elder Gonzalez! I´m two for two on Gonzalezes!
Conference weekend was awesome!!! I loved a bunch of the talks but one that really stuck out to me was President Eyring´s about his great great grandfather who was called to be a missionary after being a member for 7 months and then during his mission his President passed away and he became the new mission president. Later in his mission he had a dream that he needed to find Brigham Young so he went and found him and when he got there he told him he had not been called but he felt he needed to leave to find the prophet and he was willing to go right back if that was what the Lord wanted. Brigham told him that he was needed and they were looking for him. President Eyring said that there are many times when we feel inadequate but whom the Lord calls the Lord qualifies.
There have been many times when I have felt inadequete during my mission and maybe right at first of all those times I was inadequete, but looking back now, I can see how the Lord has blessed me and has helped me grow to be able to accomplish the different tasks that he has had me do.
I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ! :)
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Hello Family!
This week has been crazy! We sent off all the old missionaries and got in all the new missionaries on Monday. Something kind of funny happened.... We went and picked up two american elders who got here on a later flight and then went back to the mission home for them to be interviewed by President and when we came out a couple hours later, we jumped in the van and started driving and one of the new elders said "has this glass always been like this?". We turned around and the back window was smashed in and all of the suitcases were gone. EVERYTHING they brought to the mission was gone. They both took it like men. We went to the mall and bought them new everything and had to go report the crime so they could get new passports and it was just a big hassle. They were supposed to go work in Zamora but they have to stay here in Guadalajara until they get their paperwork in to be legal here in Mexico so I was very quick to volunteer Elder Raya and I to be their temporary trainers. I´m a trainer!!!! I am training Elder Gonzalez from Mesa Arizona and Elder Raya is training Elder Conrad from Provo. They will probably be heading to their new areas sometime this week but it has been a lot of fun to be showing them the ropes this week. The first missionary I trained was also Elder Gonzalez! I´m two for two on Gonzalezes!
Conference weekend was awesome!!! I loved a bunch of the talks but one that really stuck out to me was President Eyring´s about his great great grandfather who was called to be a missionary after being a member for 7 months and then during his mission his President passed away and he became the new mission president. Later in his mission he had a dream that he needed to find Brigham Young so he went and found him and when he got there he told him he had not been called but he felt he needed to leave to find the prophet and he was willing to go right back if that was what the Lord wanted. Brigham told him that he was needed and they were looking for him. President Eyring said that there are many times when we feel inadequate but whom the Lord calls the Lord qualifies.
There have been many times when I have felt inadequete during my mission and maybe right at first of all those times I was inadequete, but looking back now, I can see how the Lord has blessed me and has helped me grow to be able to accomplish the different tasks that he has had me do.
I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ! :)
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Iguana
Saturday September 26, 2015
Hello Jello..
Another week down! This week was pretty sweet. We had zone conferences in Lazaro Cardenas and Uruapan and stopped by Morelia for a couple of interviews. We have been busy with transfers lately and then next week is leadership conference but after that things should be a little less crazy. I will be spending my last 6 weeks here in my same area with Elder Raya. At the end of this transfer it will be 10 months in this area :P That´s a long time!!! But I love the ward and Elder Raya so it´s ok.
This week I tried iguana for the first time. We were in Lazaro Cardenas and a family had given the zone leaders some iguana so they shared it with us. I know they say this about everything, but it tastes like chicken.
I love being a missionary. These past few months have been a little hard because it´s been different not working in an area a whole bunch but I have realized that the Lord calls us all for different purposes and no matter what the purpose might be, he expects us to serve with all of our heart, might, and strength. It doesn't matter if we are a stake president, missionary, nursery leader, or whatever else. What matters most is that we serve with a willing heart with all that we have.
I love being a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am learning so much. I am so grateful for this opportunity and blessing.
Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Hello Jello..
Another week down! This week was pretty sweet. We had zone conferences in Lazaro Cardenas and Uruapan and stopped by Morelia for a couple of interviews. We have been busy with transfers lately and then next week is leadership conference but after that things should be a little less crazy. I will be spending my last 6 weeks here in my same area with Elder Raya. At the end of this transfer it will be 10 months in this area :P That´s a long time!!! But I love the ward and Elder Raya so it´s ok.
This week I tried iguana for the first time. We were in Lazaro Cardenas and a family had given the zone leaders some iguana so they shared it with us. I know they say this about everything, but it tastes like chicken.
I love being a missionary. These past few months have been a little hard because it´s been different not working in an area a whole bunch but I have realized that the Lord calls us all for different purposes and no matter what the purpose might be, he expects us to serve with all of our heart, might, and strength. It doesn't matter if we are a stake president, missionary, nursery leader, or whatever else. What matters most is that we serve with a willing heart with all that we have.
I love being a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am learning so much. I am so grateful for this opportunity and blessing.
Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
This is in a little town called Paracho. They make a lot of guitars there.
Love and Charity
Saturday September 12, 2015
Hello family!
This week was a great one. We got through 3 zone conferences and had to postpone the other two in Michoacàn because there was a family emergency with a missionary in our mission and he decided to go home to support his family.
I learned a great lesson this week about charity and love. Sometimes we get so caught up with how WE feel and what WE want that we forget about others. I was having a tough day the other day and thought that what I was going through was something that just wasn't fair. Almost at the same time while I was having those thoughts, the mission president got a phone call from a stake president of a missionary here in our mission telling him that this missionary`s mom had passed away in a hiking accident. I immediately realized that what I was going through was nothing compared to what this missionary and his family would be going through. We drove to his house and this missionary walked out with a great big smile on his face to see all of us. I started to cry thinking about how this news about his mom would hurt him. My worries about myself immediately went away and I felt love and charity for this missionary. We were able to spend the next day with him and talk with him and at night when we were in bed he thanked us for the love and support we gave him. I felt overwhelming happiness knowing that my companion and I could help another son of God that was in need of our help.
That which will help us most in our times of need is serving others. I love my mission. I am learning more than I ever thought I would learn on my mission. I am so grateful for my friends, my family, my religion, and my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Make it a great week this week :)
Elder Del Toro
Hello family!
This week was a great one. We got through 3 zone conferences and had to postpone the other two in Michoacàn because there was a family emergency with a missionary in our mission and he decided to go home to support his family.
I learned a great lesson this week about charity and love. Sometimes we get so caught up with how WE feel and what WE want that we forget about others. I was having a tough day the other day and thought that what I was going through was something that just wasn't fair. Almost at the same time while I was having those thoughts, the mission president got a phone call from a stake president of a missionary here in our mission telling him that this missionary`s mom had passed away in a hiking accident. I immediately realized that what I was going through was nothing compared to what this missionary and his family would be going through. We drove to his house and this missionary walked out with a great big smile on his face to see all of us. I started to cry thinking about how this news about his mom would hurt him. My worries about myself immediately went away and I felt love and charity for this missionary. We were able to spend the next day with him and talk with him and at night when we were in bed he thanked us for the love and support we gave him. I felt overwhelming happiness knowing that my companion and I could help another son of God that was in need of our help.
That which will help us most in our times of need is serving others. I love my mission. I am learning more than I ever thought I would learn on my mission. I am so grateful for my friends, my family, my religion, and my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Make it a great week this week :)
Elder Del Toro
Zions Camp
Saturday September 5, 2015
Hello family!
All is well here in the mother land. This week flew by and we are currently in Zamora. We forgot that we were coming with President and sister Egginton starting today so we kind of scrambled to get laundry washed real quick and came on our way. We will be here in Zamora for three days and then continue on to Uruapan, Morelia, and Lazaro Cardenas. We will get home a week from today and continue on with the zone conferences in Guadalajara. The bad part is that I forgot my socks.. Just kidding, I remembered them :)
This week I have been studying a little bit of the teachings of Joseph Smith. I was reading about how a group of men were called to be part of "Zions camp" and had to travel 1600 kilometers to get to the place where they thought they were going to fight a battle. When they arrived the prophet Joseph Smith received a revelation that it was not necessary to fight and that they could turn back. The Lord revealed that it was necessary to get to that point to show their faith and devotion. Many of the men complained and criticized the prophet, but that trip also shaped and formed many of the first leaders of the church. When the church was later organized, nine of the first twelve apostles and all the first quorum of the 70 were men who had been part of "Zions camp". On that trip they took, those men learned what they needed to learn about leadership in the church and showed the Lord their faith and devotion no matter the circumstances. We may never know why we must go through what we do, but we do know that if we are obedient and endure it well, the Lord will shape us into who we must become to be able to serve Him.
I love our Savior and I am learning so much as I try to become a better tool in His hands. Whatever trial you are going through, endure it well :)
Have a great week!
Elder Del Toro
Hello family!
All is well here in the mother land. This week flew by and we are currently in Zamora. We forgot that we were coming with President and sister Egginton starting today so we kind of scrambled to get laundry washed real quick and came on our way. We will be here in Zamora for three days and then continue on to Uruapan, Morelia, and Lazaro Cardenas. We will get home a week from today and continue on with the zone conferences in Guadalajara. The bad part is that I forgot my socks.. Just kidding, I remembered them :)
This week I have been studying a little bit of the teachings of Joseph Smith. I was reading about how a group of men were called to be part of "Zions camp" and had to travel 1600 kilometers to get to the place where they thought they were going to fight a battle. When they arrived the prophet Joseph Smith received a revelation that it was not necessary to fight and that they could turn back. The Lord revealed that it was necessary to get to that point to show their faith and devotion. Many of the men complained and criticized the prophet, but that trip also shaped and formed many of the first leaders of the church. When the church was later organized, nine of the first twelve apostles and all the first quorum of the 70 were men who had been part of "Zions camp". On that trip they took, those men learned what they needed to learn about leadership in the church and showed the Lord their faith and devotion no matter the circumstances. We may never know why we must go through what we do, but we do know that if we are obedient and endure it well, the Lord will shape us into who we must become to be able to serve Him.
I love our Savior and I am learning so much as I try to become a better tool in His hands. Whatever trial you are going through, endure it well :)
Have a great week!
Elder Del Toro
Blessings Follow Faith
Saturday August 22, 2015
Hello family!
This week has been wonderful. The temple trip went great with the missionaries who finished their missions. The Sunday night before they go home there is always a testimony meeting and I always love hearing their strong testimonies as they end their missionary service. It is going to be my turn before I know it.. I got my flight plans this week :P What a scary/exciting time to be at the end of your mission. I feel like the Lord is blessing me with more joy than I have ever felt in my life. I feel so blessed to be a missionary at this time.
We found two awesome families this week! We found both of them after the trial of our faith. We found one of the families while it was raining cats and dogs. We were thinking there was no point in continuing to look for people to teach because everyone would be inside but we kept working and then the rain stopped almost right away and we found a lady who needed help carrying a big water jug to her house. As we talked to her we found out that her husband died a few months ago and her and her two kids have been having a tough time understanding why God did that to them. We were able to teach the plan of salvation and it brought them peace and happiness knowing that they could see their father again. Another day it was really hot and we weren`t having any success and hadn`t had any lessons that day. We were walking down a street and passed a house that had the door open and there was a family inside. We got half way down the block and decided we needed to go back and talk to them. We went back and they let us right in and we taught them about the restored gospel and invited them to be baptized. They accepted everything and are planning on coming to church this week. The blessing always come after the trial of our faith. We are very exciting to help these two families learn more about the restored gospel and to come unto Christ.
We are doing awesome. I love being a missionary. I`ve never been so happy in my life.
Have a great week!
Elder Del Toro
Hello family!
This week has been wonderful. The temple trip went great with the missionaries who finished their missions. The Sunday night before they go home there is always a testimony meeting and I always love hearing their strong testimonies as they end their missionary service. It is going to be my turn before I know it.. I got my flight plans this week :P What a scary/exciting time to be at the end of your mission. I feel like the Lord is blessing me with more joy than I have ever felt in my life. I feel so blessed to be a missionary at this time.
We found two awesome families this week! We found both of them after the trial of our faith. We found one of the families while it was raining cats and dogs. We were thinking there was no point in continuing to look for people to teach because everyone would be inside but we kept working and then the rain stopped almost right away and we found a lady who needed help carrying a big water jug to her house. As we talked to her we found out that her husband died a few months ago and her and her two kids have been having a tough time understanding why God did that to them. We were able to teach the plan of salvation and it brought them peace and happiness knowing that they could see their father again. Another day it was really hot and we weren`t having any success and hadn`t had any lessons that day. We were walking down a street and passed a house that had the door open and there was a family inside. We got half way down the block and decided we needed to go back and talk to them. We went back and they let us right in and we taught them about the restored gospel and invited them to be baptized. They accepted everything and are planning on coming to church this week. The blessing always come after the trial of our faith. We are very exciting to help these two families learn more about the restored gospel and to come unto Christ.
We are doing awesome. I love being a missionary. I`ve never been so happy in my life.
Have a great week!
Elder Del Toro
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Good times in Morelia
Saturday August 15, 2015
Hello!
This week was another good one! At stake conference in Morelia I found the Arredondo family!! Elder Ormeño and I taught them over a year ago! I was so excited to see them! They are all doing well and sister Arredondo says she has been relief society president for almost the whole year she has been baptized!
Elder Raya and I took President and Sister Egginton on the downtown Morelia tour on Saturday night! Here is a picture of the Cathedral. There were fireworks and everything! While we were walking through the crowed I heard "Kadyn!!!" and when I turned around I saw a family that I taught while I was in Morelia. They were a pretty unusual family and they thought that I had finished my mission and come back with my parents. I have no idea how they know my name.. They were so excited to see my "family" hahaha. The dad bowed to President Egginton. We only taught them 3 or 4 times about a year ago and then stopped teaching them because they weren't progressing. When I saw them last week I told them to go find the missionaries and get baptized! The dad then bowed to me and said he would do it. That made a pretty good journal entry.
We are saying goodbye to 26 missionaries on Sunday who finish their missions and are welcoming in 10 new ones on Monday. I´m going to be here in Bugambilias for at least another 6 weeks so I'm pretty happy about that.
Have a great week everyone!
Elder Del Toro
Hello!
This week was another good one! At stake conference in Morelia I found the Arredondo family!! Elder Ormeño and I taught them over a year ago! I was so excited to see them! They are all doing well and sister Arredondo says she has been relief society president for almost the whole year she has been baptized!
Elder Raya and I took President and Sister Egginton on the downtown Morelia tour on Saturday night! Here is a picture of the Cathedral. There were fireworks and everything! While we were walking through the crowed I heard "Kadyn!!!" and when I turned around I saw a family that I taught while I was in Morelia. They were a pretty unusual family and they thought that I had finished my mission and come back with my parents. I have no idea how they know my name.. They were so excited to see my "family" hahaha. The dad bowed to President Egginton. We only taught them 3 or 4 times about a year ago and then stopped teaching them because they weren't progressing. When I saw them last week I told them to go find the missionaries and get baptized! The dad then bowed to me and said he would do it. That made a pretty good journal entry.
We are saying goodbye to 26 missionaries on Sunday who finish their missions and are welcoming in 10 new ones on Monday. I´m going to be here in Bugambilias for at least another 6 weeks so I'm pretty happy about that.
Have a great week everyone!
Elder Del Toro
I love to see the Temple
Saturday August 8, 2015
Hello!
The temple trip went great! All of the converts since january were there and all of them brought names of their ancestors to be baptized for. We were able to watch the baptisms and confirm some of them. It was such a sweet experience. Rosa had to head our early but here are the rest of them!
Other than that we have been working more in our area and have found a few great new investigators. Our ward has a bunch of young men and we are starting to work a lot more with them. We are going to have an activity this next week where a few young men come and work with us for 3 days straight. It`s going to be kind of like a mission prep crash course. haha. Today we are headed to Morelia for the weekend because President and Sister Egginton are speaking in a stake conference there.
Things are going great! I`m still loving being a missionary :)
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Hello!
The temple trip went great! All of the converts since january were there and all of them brought names of their ancestors to be baptized for. We were able to watch the baptisms and confirm some of them. It was such a sweet experience. Rosa had to head our early but here are the rest of them!
Other than that we have been working more in our area and have found a few great new investigators. Our ward has a bunch of young men and we are starting to work a lot more with them. We are going to have an activity this next week where a few young men come and work with us for 3 days straight. It`s going to be kind of like a mission prep crash course. haha. Today we are headed to Morelia for the weekend because President and Sister Egginton are speaking in a stake conference there.
Things are going great! I`m still loving being a missionary :)
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Temple Prep
Saturday August 1, 2015
Hello again!
Another great week. This week we worked a lot with our recent converts. This afternoon we are going to the temple to do baptisms for the dead. All of the people I have baptized here in this area have their temple recommend and have names of their ancestors to bring to the temple to be baptized for them. I don't think I`ve ever been so excited in my mission! We did more family history research this week than I have done in my whole life. It`s such a great feeling helping new converts continue faithful in the gospel.
That was pretty much our week! Next week I`ll send pictures of the temple trip :) Have an excellent week!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Hello again!
Another great week. This week we worked a lot with our recent converts. This afternoon we are going to the temple to do baptisms for the dead. All of the people I have baptized here in this area have their temple recommend and have names of their ancestors to bring to the temple to be baptized for them. I don't think I`ve ever been so excited in my mission! We did more family history research this week than I have done in my whole life. It`s such a great feeling helping new converts continue faithful in the gospel.
That was pretty much our week! Next week I`ll send pictures of the temple trip :) Have an excellent week!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Puras Ccosas Buenas
Saturday July 25, 2015
Hello Family!
This week was one of my favorite weeks of my mission! The Murillo family`s baptism was last saturday! It went really well. Sister Murillo`s niece, who is a member, also came and she is the one that passed us the reference of the Murillo family so that made it very special. We were 8 people all dressed up in white! Two members who helped us with the teaching baptized brother and sister Murillo and Elder Raya and I baptized the two girls, Fatima and Sandra. It was one of the most spiritual baptismal services I have been in.
FSY was also a blast. There were almost 800 kids there participating and on tuesday we got to teach four groups of 90. We kind of felt like rock stars after. EVERYONE wanted to take selfies with us haha. And the next day we went back with 50 missionaries to teach them how to share the gospel with their friends. It was a blast.
Other than that we have been trying to find people to teach and working a lot with our investigator Francisco. He is preparing to be baptized in August.
This whole mission thing is awesome. I love it. Even though there are a lot of hard times, it`s all worth it.
Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Hello Family!
This week was one of my favorite weeks of my mission! The Murillo family`s baptism was last saturday! It went really well. Sister Murillo`s niece, who is a member, also came and she is the one that passed us the reference of the Murillo family so that made it very special. We were 8 people all dressed up in white! Two members who helped us with the teaching baptized brother and sister Murillo and Elder Raya and I baptized the two girls, Fatima and Sandra. It was one of the most spiritual baptismal services I have been in.
FSY was also a blast. There were almost 800 kids there participating and on tuesday we got to teach four groups of 90. We kind of felt like rock stars after. EVERYONE wanted to take selfies with us haha. And the next day we went back with 50 missionaries to teach them how to share the gospel with their friends. It was a blast.
Other than that we have been trying to find people to teach and working a lot with our investigator Francisco. He is preparing to be baptized in August.
This whole mission thing is awesome. I love it. Even though there are a lot of hard times, it`s all worth it.
Have a great week!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
God's Love
July 18, 2015
Hola familia :)
This week has been great. Tonight is the baptismal service of the Murillo family!! We are very excited. Jaime, Araceli, Sandra, and Fatima will all be baptized. Our dear friend Abel Tovar leaves for his mission to Monterrey this next week. He has had such a sweet conversion in the past 8 months and has helped us out so much here in our area. His family was the family that was sealed just a couple months ago. The whole ward is very excited for him.
We got back from Michoacán on Wednesday afternoon and have been getting back to the work here in our area. It was a long trip!! We were half dead when we pulled back in to Guadalajara but the Lord continues to bless us with strength :)
This week will be pretty fun. We are going to EFY with President Egginton on Tuesday to speak and teach some classes and on Wednesday we are also going with a bunch of missionaries from our mission to teach the youth how to teach the restoration.
I have felt so close to my Savior during my mission. I am growing closer to him and have been able to see and feel how much our Father in Heaven loves each and everyone one of us. As we drove through some tiny little towns in the middle of nowhere this week I thought about how our Heavenly Father knows and loves each person, no matter where they live or what they are going through. Its amazing to me how personal of a relationship each one of us can have with the same God that created us all. He love us all :)
Be happy and have a great week!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Hola familia :)
This week has been great. Tonight is the baptismal service of the Murillo family!! We are very excited. Jaime, Araceli, Sandra, and Fatima will all be baptized. Our dear friend Abel Tovar leaves for his mission to Monterrey this next week. He has had such a sweet conversion in the past 8 months and has helped us out so much here in our area. His family was the family that was sealed just a couple months ago. The whole ward is very excited for him.
We got back from Michoacán on Wednesday afternoon and have been getting back to the work here in our area. It was a long trip!! We were half dead when we pulled back in to Guadalajara but the Lord continues to bless us with strength :)
This week will be pretty fun. We are going to EFY with President Egginton on Tuesday to speak and teach some classes and on Wednesday we are also going with a bunch of missionaries from our mission to teach the youth how to teach the restoration.
I have felt so close to my Savior during my mission. I am growing closer to him and have been able to see and feel how much our Father in Heaven loves each and everyone one of us. As we drove through some tiny little towns in the middle of nowhere this week I thought about how our Heavenly Father knows and loves each person, no matter where they live or what they are going through. Its amazing to me how personal of a relationship each one of us can have with the same God that created us all. He love us all :)
Be happy and have a great week!
Love,
Elder Del Toro
Sunday, July 12, 2015
Lupinta's Revenge
Saturday July 11, 2015
Hello Family!
Today I am writing from a city called Uruapan. Its in the state of Michocán and it is so beautiful! Its very green and rains like washington. We were in morelia wednesday, thursday, and part of yesterday. In a few hours we are headed to Lazaro Cardenas and Zihuatanejo. We will be there sunday and monday and make the trip back to Guadalajara on tuesday. Its been a lot of fun to be with President and Sister Egginton. They kept complaining that we never to them out to real mexican food so while we were in Morelia we took them to Lupita´s. That did them in. They absolutely loved it but the next morning they both woke up pretty sick. We all got Lupita´s revenge pretty bad. haha.
Transfers went well last weekend. We sent off 21 and got 10 new missionaries. All of the new missionaries are Spanish speakers! We have been getting very few american missionaries in our mission lately.
The sister missionaries in our ward picked up where we left off with the Murillo family. If everything goes well their baptism will be next Saturday! :)
Sister Egginton runs a facebook page for our mission and posts a bunch of photos if you would like to see what´s going on here. She is a lot better about remembering to take photos than I am. The facebook page is called 2015-2018 Mision Mexico Guadalajara Este.
Everything is going great. I love being a missionary.
Have a great week!
Elder Del Toro
Hello Family!
Today I am writing from a city called Uruapan. Its in the state of Michocán and it is so beautiful! Its very green and rains like washington. We were in morelia wednesday, thursday, and part of yesterday. In a few hours we are headed to Lazaro Cardenas and Zihuatanejo. We will be there sunday and monday and make the trip back to Guadalajara on tuesday. Its been a lot of fun to be with President and Sister Egginton. They kept complaining that we never to them out to real mexican food so while we were in Morelia we took them to Lupita´s. That did them in. They absolutely loved it but the next morning they both woke up pretty sick. We all got Lupita´s revenge pretty bad. haha.
Transfers went well last weekend. We sent off 21 and got 10 new missionaries. All of the new missionaries are Spanish speakers! We have been getting very few american missionaries in our mission lately.
The sister missionaries in our ward picked up where we left off with the Murillo family. If everything goes well their baptism will be next Saturday! :)
Sister Egginton runs a facebook page for our mission and posts a bunch of photos if you would like to see what´s going on here. She is a lot better about remembering to take photos than I am. The facebook page is called 2015-2018 Mision Mexico Guadalajara Este.
Everything is going great. I love being a missionary.
Have a great week!
Elder Del Toro
God's Army
Saturday July 4, 2015
Hello Family!
Things are going great here! President and Sister Egginton are moved in and have thrown themselves right into the fire. This week has been very busy and a ton of fun. We have been showing President and Sister Egginton around and taking them to some of the zones to meet missionaries and planning a bunch and just staying really busy. I hope they are still up to this whole mission thing after these next few weeks! This weekend is transfers so it´s super hectic with missionaries going home and new missionaries getting here and starting this Tuesday we are going to travel to all the zones in Michocán for interviews. It will be a week long trip!
President Egginton served his mission in Uruguay so he knows some Spanish and it´s starting to come back to him. He speaks spanglish better than about anyone I have ever met. He is super funny and he came to work! He wears short sleeve dress shirts and is planning to come proselyting with us once all the interviews are done. His wife is so sweet. She speaks zero Spanish but is trying to learn so hard! She wrote out her testimony in Spanish and every time she reads it the spirit is so strong. They are hilarious together. President tells the jokes, Sister Egginton laughs at them and we all have a good time. They are always full of lots of tears during meetings but are so in tune with the spirit. They treat us like their kids and every time they drop us off somewhere they tell us that they love us. They are dying to try some authentic Mexican food but for whatever reason we have only made it to Chilis and Chinese food. haha.
I am loving serving with them. I know that they have been called by a prophet of God just as we have and that we are doing the Lord´s work. President Egginton says that he retired from the US army but he will never ever retire from the Lord´s army. I loved that!! General Egginton is in the real war now! :)
Have a great week everyone!
Elder Del Toro
Hello Family!
Things are going great here! President and Sister Egginton are moved in and have thrown themselves right into the fire. This week has been very busy and a ton of fun. We have been showing President and Sister Egginton around and taking them to some of the zones to meet missionaries and planning a bunch and just staying really busy. I hope they are still up to this whole mission thing after these next few weeks! This weekend is transfers so it´s super hectic with missionaries going home and new missionaries getting here and starting this Tuesday we are going to travel to all the zones in Michocán for interviews. It will be a week long trip!
President Egginton served his mission in Uruguay so he knows some Spanish and it´s starting to come back to him. He speaks spanglish better than about anyone I have ever met. He is super funny and he came to work! He wears short sleeve dress shirts and is planning to come proselyting with us once all the interviews are done. His wife is so sweet. She speaks zero Spanish but is trying to learn so hard! She wrote out her testimony in Spanish and every time she reads it the spirit is so strong. They are hilarious together. President tells the jokes, Sister Egginton laughs at them and we all have a good time. They are always full of lots of tears during meetings but are so in tune with the spirit. They treat us like their kids and every time they drop us off somewhere they tell us that they love us. They are dying to try some authentic Mexican food but for whatever reason we have only made it to Chilis and Chinese food. haha.
I am loving serving with them. I know that they have been called by a prophet of God just as we have and that we are doing the Lord´s work. President Egginton says that he retired from the US army but he will never ever retire from the Lord´s army. I loved that!! General Egginton is in the real war now! :)
Have a great week everyone!
Elder Del Toro
A God of Miracles
Saturday June 27, 2015
Hola Familia,
Another week in the books! Time really is flying by..
It seems like things are all ready for the transition of mission presidents this week. This week has been filled with a lot of prep work but we have also been able to help our investigators progress toward their baptisms. The Murillo family is doing awesome. Sandra and Fatima LOVE the primary. They also LOVE my magic tricks :) I don't think I have mentioned it before but I've turned into quite the magician. I'm not going to lie, my magic tricks are pretty sweet. Sandra and Fatima`s parents, Jaime and Araceli, are also doing great. Jaime has a lot of health problems so we went to pick them up with members the first two times they came to church but then they told us that they wanted to make the sacrifice and come alone. Even though they are passing through tough times as far as money goes, they took two busses and showed up to stake conference last week early in the morning. They are reading the Book of Mormon every day as a family and are experimenting an awesome conversion.
Francisco and his son Javier are also loving the church. Every time we read the Book of Mormon with Francisco he is absolutely shocked by the stories and says he knows that the book is true like a million times.
Alejandra and her two sons Noel and Nicolas are new investigators that we found last week. Alejandra is a single mom that has been going through a lot of trials lately and when we talked to her in the street about our message she immediately wanted to know more. And that`s what its like every time we visit her and her family. She has a ton of questions every time we visit and just wants to know everything already. She quit her job after the second visit because we taught her about the Sabbath Day.
We have a God of miracles! He is guiding us to His children that are ready to accept the restored gospel. I am so thankful for this opportunity to share the gospel with these people of Mexico :)
Have a great week!
Elder Del Toro
Hola Familia,
Another week in the books! Time really is flying by..
It seems like things are all ready for the transition of mission presidents this week. This week has been filled with a lot of prep work but we have also been able to help our investigators progress toward their baptisms. The Murillo family is doing awesome. Sandra and Fatima LOVE the primary. They also LOVE my magic tricks :) I don't think I have mentioned it before but I've turned into quite the magician. I'm not going to lie, my magic tricks are pretty sweet. Sandra and Fatima`s parents, Jaime and Araceli, are also doing great. Jaime has a lot of health problems so we went to pick them up with members the first two times they came to church but then they told us that they wanted to make the sacrifice and come alone. Even though they are passing through tough times as far as money goes, they took two busses and showed up to stake conference last week early in the morning. They are reading the Book of Mormon every day as a family and are experimenting an awesome conversion.
Francisco and his son Javier are also loving the church. Every time we read the Book of Mormon with Francisco he is absolutely shocked by the stories and says he knows that the book is true like a million times.
Alejandra and her two sons Noel and Nicolas are new investigators that we found last week. Alejandra is a single mom that has been going through a lot of trials lately and when we talked to her in the street about our message she immediately wanted to know more. And that`s what its like every time we visit her and her family. She has a ton of questions every time we visit and just wants to know everything already. She quit her job after the second visit because we taught her about the Sabbath Day.
We have a God of miracles! He is guiding us to His children that are ready to accept the restored gospel. I am so thankful for this opportunity to share the gospel with these people of Mexico :)
Have a great week!
Elder Del Toro
After our last zone conference with President and Sister Camarillo
Loving the rain!
Ready to wrestle!!
The last zone conference with President and Sister Camarillo
The Last Supper
Saturday June 20, 2015
Hello family!
This week was great! We are starting to get some nice rain storms! These next few months here in Guadalajara usually are full of rain. We have been staying busy with the work and are now starting to really get ready for President Egginton to get her. He arrives next monday (June 19). Its hard to believe! President Camarillo invited us over today to his house and surprised us with a BBQ! It was the last supper with President Camarillo. It was a lot of fun. Elder Raya and I were also his grill assistants. He even let us flip a couple of steaks while he was on the phone ;) haha.
The Murillo family is doing great!! They came to church again last week and the whole ward is super excited to have another strong family. Francisco and his son Javier also came to the church and loved it. Francisco even talked his wife into coming to stake conference tomorrow so we are excited about that too. We are hoping that July will be a month full of baptisms!
Things are going great here in Guadalajara. Couldn`t be happier :)
Elder Del Toro
Hello family!
This week was great! We are starting to get some nice rain storms! These next few months here in Guadalajara usually are full of rain. We have been staying busy with the work and are now starting to really get ready for President Egginton to get her. He arrives next monday (June 19). Its hard to believe! President Camarillo invited us over today to his house and surprised us with a BBQ! It was the last supper with President Camarillo. It was a lot of fun. Elder Raya and I were also his grill assistants. He even let us flip a couple of steaks while he was on the phone ;) haha.
The Murillo family is doing great!! They came to church again last week and the whole ward is super excited to have another strong family. Francisco and his son Javier also came to the church and loved it. Francisco even talked his wife into coming to stake conference tomorrow so we are excited about that too. We are hoping that July will be a month full of baptisms!
Things are going great here in Guadalajara. Couldn`t be happier :)
Elder Del Toro
Monday, July 6, 2015
Funny Accents
Saturday June 13, 2015
Hey there!
This week was an awesome week. I think it was one of the most successful weeks of my mission. We have been able to find a ton of people to teach lately. We got another family from English classes too! Last Sunday the Murillo family came to church!! And so did another girl name Katia. The lady who was baptized a few weeks ago shared the gospel with Katia and she loved it and is preparing to be baptized in July.
This week has been super hot! I´ve been getting a nice tan lately. But it also rained super hard the other day and we got soaked.
I had a pretty funny experience this week. We went to a Chinese restaurant. But a real one with chop sticks and real Chinese chefs and everything. We started talking to the workers in their broken Spanish and one of them one of them told me I have a funny accent. I took that one to heart. Mostly because they speak Spanish so funny and the Chinese guy told me that I have a funny accent. Haha. It was sweet though, we taught them a lesson and it was such much different. They had only heard of God before so that was kind of hard, but we gave them a pamphlet and we are going to see if we can get them a Chinese Book of Mormon.
Im super excited to see my sister and her husband married! I told all of Mexico about it this week. They look great. I´m a proud brother. Congrats to the new Poulson family!
Have a great week this week everyone!
Elder Del Toro
Hey there!
This week was an awesome week. I think it was one of the most successful weeks of my mission. We have been able to find a ton of people to teach lately. We got another family from English classes too! Last Sunday the Murillo family came to church!! And so did another girl name Katia. The lady who was baptized a few weeks ago shared the gospel with Katia and she loved it and is preparing to be baptized in July.
This week has been super hot! I´ve been getting a nice tan lately. But it also rained super hard the other day and we got soaked.
I had a pretty funny experience this week. We went to a Chinese restaurant. But a real one with chop sticks and real Chinese chefs and everything. We started talking to the workers in their broken Spanish and one of them one of them told me I have a funny accent. I took that one to heart. Mostly because they speak Spanish so funny and the Chinese guy told me that I have a funny accent. Haha. It was sweet though, we taught them a lesson and it was such much different. They had only heard of God before so that was kind of hard, but we gave them a pamphlet and we are going to see if we can get them a Chinese Book of Mormon.
Im super excited to see my sister and her husband married! I told all of Mexico about it this week. They look great. I´m a proud brother. Congrats to the new Poulson family!
Have a great week this week everyone!
Elder Del Toro
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