Monday, October 8, 2012 - Fwd: "Ask The Missionaries....They Can Help You!"

Hola Mi Familia! I am just bursting with joy at this moment reading conference reports from everyone! The biggest news is of the missionary age change! How awesome is that! Guys in Mexico were already leaving at 18 years old and now everyone in the church can leave at that time too! And Sisters at 19 years old?!? I am absolutely thrilled! I received emails and news of many friends that are planning on leaving soon with this new age and it just brings me so much joy! I immediately thought of my siblings when I heard the announcement and what this would mean to them! Alex could go as soon as 2 years and if that is what Elise chooses as well, she could go as soon as 2 years as well! How fantastic, no! Missionary work is really moving forward and it just goes to show how much of a need we have for missionaries in the world and how much the Gospel needs to be spread throughout the world! I am just overjoyed at this announcement and can't contain my excitement! I just want to shout from the rooftops! I absolutely LOVE missionary work! So much I feel like saying, but let's just start from the beginning of this week.... One night I was making a Tres Leches cake...on my own! Yes, how fantastically adventurous and how they say in Spanish Soy Yo, "I am I" or "I am Me!". And at 10PM Wednesday night we got a call and we were told that we had special changes and that Elder Miranda was going to Obregon and that Elder Cruz was coming with me. He stayed up that night packing. My cake turned out pretty dang good if you ask me! I think I want to go into the dessert making business! The sister in our branch has inspired me! So we woke up that morning and I spent the day with Elders in Esqueda and he left to Obregon. My new comp was coming from Obregon and was supposed to arrive in Agua Prieta that night and come to Esqueda the next morning on Friday. Well, since we were going to go to Agua Prieta Friday night anyway, I just suggested that he stayed in A.P. and wait for us to come. We arrived that night and stayed with the missionaries there. All the Elders from our Zone came to AP for conference. In total there were 14 of us and we all had a blast together and became close. Since we are on Pacific time, conference started an hour early at 9AM, 1PM, and 5PM for us which was weird and something I wasn't used to. Conference was soo good! My favorite time of the year! They did set up a TV in the clerk's office of us English folk to watch. There were 6 of us who watched it in English. It was the greatest! I don't think it would have been the same in Spanish. I loved how basically all of Saturday was about missionary work with the announcement of the missionary age, which I still can't get over! How incredible! And Pres. Nelson's talk! "Ask the missionaries, they can help you!" But it is so true! This amazing Gospel that we preach really can help and benefit anybody of any age and in any situation! I also felt like Pres. Uchtdorf's talk really spoke to me about not waiting to be happy, but finding joy and happiness in everyday life. And the one about not being too busy in life...which may have been Pres. Uchtdorf as well, but I don't exactly remember. And of course the choir numbers just inspired me even more and made me not want to wait to be in the MOTAB which is an ongoing life long dream! I especially like the new number Sunday morning I think it was with the soloist! So beautiful! Ah! I just can't get enough of Conference! It was just so good! I can't wait for the Liahona to come out with the talks and for next Conference. Just think, I have already had 2 conferences in the mish and just 2 more conferences and I will be home...cray cray! So yeah, that happened, this morning we just barely arrived back to Nacozari! Whew! What a fantastic crazy weekend! So Elder Cruz, well, I still haven't really had sufficient time to get to know him, but he is from my same generation of missionaries, which means that we entered the MTC the same day, but he in the Mexico City MTC. Speaking of....we both complete 8 months in the mission today! 8 months on the 8th of the month! Crazy! He is a short little guy but is crazy ripped and says we are going to go running every morning and that I am going to get crazy ripped too! Take that Cole! We will be competing for ABs little guy! Haha! So yeah, that's what's up right now. Well, I hope everyone is well and that we are having fun and enjoying life! I hope everyone enjoyed conference and found something that they can apply to their life. I love and miss you all dearly! ¡Yo sé que vive mi Señor! Con Mucho Amor, Elder Joyner