Christmas, Skype Calls, and a Baptism

Guys I am so excited for Saturday you have no idea. On Saturday at 11, the entire Arambula family will be getting baptized! 6 members of Luis's family will be entering this sacred covenant. We have been teaching them for the past 3 weeks and just looking back at how much they've changed and grown together as a family is so amazing to me. This gospel truly does bless families. We have been talking a lot with President McCuistian about them and he is so excited, he is even going to come to the Baptism on Saturday so we are super excited for that as well. As missionaries it is always so exciting to teach a whole family, and it seems pretty rare to me when a family as big as the Arambulas progress and change this fast. Anyways keep them in your prayers!!  

Also, Sunday Luis got the Priesthood!! His whole family was able to be there and he can now baptize some of his family members! How cool is that! Just from his example of being baptized, his whole family will be getting baptized also and he can even help baptize them. The Arambula family is so amazing! 

Another cool thing that happened this week was that Ramon Burciaga got Baptized!!! My very first week in the mission, about 18 weeks ago his wife was baptized and he's been taught ever since then and it was so awesome being able to baptize him. We have a standing dinner appointment every Wednesday at their house so it was so much fun seeing how excited he was getting as he prepared to get baptized. The Hermanas did such an awesome job teaching him, his family is preparing to go to the temple in a year and be sealed! Yay for eternal families!

For those of you who don't know, every Christmas and every Mothers Day, we as missionaries get to Skype home to our families and talk with them. It was soooo awesome being able to talk with my family for the first time since JULY holy cow! So much has happened since then and I miss them all so much. I was even able to talk to my brother who is serving a mission in Mexico!  

I don't know if any of you remember, but in October our mission president did a big mission wide challenge to read the Book of Mormon at a rate of 9 pages a day (about the same rate it was translated into English). I am very happy to report that I accepted and completed that challenge and it was so cool! We started it on October 26 and finished it at 7am Christmas morning on a mission -wide conference call, where we read the last chapter together. It's something that I have decided to do for the rest of my life, read the Book of Mormon 9 pages a day. Think of how many times ill have read it when im all wrinkly and old! 

Hmmmm what else happened. Oh yeah! I know Im going to get asked a thousand times what i did for Christmas, so Ill just have a whole paragraph on it for all of ya. Because Christmas fell on a Sunday, we went to church, and then after there was another baptism, and I was asked to give a talk at. Then we went to our Mission Presidents house and hung out and ate food with his family and then I Skyped home to my Dad and got to talk to all my Family in Texas. After that we got together as a District and went Carling until about 8pm then we went home for the evening and I had to take care of some Leadership stuff. Over all awesome day, very busy, but very awesome.  

I want to close with a scripture that I really love from the Bible, its a prophecy of Christ's Birth:         Isaiah 9: 6  "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."    

Jesus is all of those things listed above. He is Wonderful, he is the Prince of Peace. He is our Savior. I invite you all to think in your hearts and ponder in your souls what the Savior means to you. He is always there for you. He is knocking at the door. Will you let him in? Or will you send him to the stables? Will you worship him in all your doings? Or just for an hour or two or three on Sunday? Will you take up your cross and follow him? Will you open your heart enough to feel of his everlasting love?     

At the end of a District meeting last week, I asked the missionaries in my District a question. I want to end my email with that same challenge/question.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO CHANGE TO HAVE MORE FAITH IN THE SAVIOR?    

I invite each of you to think about that question and apply it to your life. Let me know how your relationship with the Savior increases this week! 

Elder Murphy

 Weekly Selfie from the the Ontiveros house!

Ramon got baptized!!!! 

Skype call home ft. Lottermoser & Nail Family!!

Skype call home ft all the brothers !

Opening Christmas presents was a blast

Skype call home ft the Murphy family!

Super pretty Kansas Sunrise this morning. Ft. The moon

Snow, Broken Cars, and More Trust In The Lord

On Tuesday we pulled a super funny prank on our Zone Leaders. Earlier this month they challenged us to a "Charity War" and we as a zone responded back. We got together on P-day and rehearsed a flash mob that we pulled off in  the middle of our Zone meeting. Im not going to go into all of the Details because it was very elaborate. But I will send pictures of our Zone leaders afterwards. I think we broke them. 

So, on Saturday we woke up and looked out side and it was snowing! Not enough to be doing anything but we got all excited because snow is cool and what not. So we continued with our morning like normal, we did our studies, ate some food and went off for the day. Right around 1 or 2 the weather started changing and it started snowing super bad. It got to the point where we had to take our car back to our apartment and park it because we aren't allowed to be driving the Mission vehicles in that kind of weather. By 3 or 4 the roads and  sidewalks and everyone's yards were covered in a nice blanket of fresh snow. But hey we didn't care! ( it was -19° wind chill hahaha) We just kept working! We were calling members and investigators and trying to encourage everyone we could to come the Christmas party and not worry.     

So later that day we had our Branch Christmas Party, and I was pretty nervous that no one was going to show up because of the snow that had just come though. But we actually had a really amazing turn out. Elder Pankratz and I were constantly setting up tables the whole time because more and more families were rolling in! We had about 9 investigators there and it was super awesome. One of our members brought 2 friends from their work and they arre now going to be taking lessons with the Sister Missionaries in the English ward! It was super awesome to see everyone come together and celebrate the Birth of our Savior.  

Then on Sunday when we had to go to church, our car wouldn't start! The battery is all messed up and we had to leave the car at Firestone to get it fixed. So all day Sunday we went without a car. We had to get a ride to church, and then after church we walked everywhere in the snow and had a night fill of miracles! No car, no problem! 

This week we also meet Vivian, who is actually Antonios neighbor. She is a super sweet girl who wants nothing more than to strengthen her relationship with Christ. We have already seen huge changes in her and how much the Gospel has already blessed her life. On Sunday she wasn't able to come to church because her mom went super Catholic on her and told her she wasn't able to meet with us anymore. So last night we walked over to her house to have one last lesson and try to talk with her mom and had an incredibly powerful testimony meeting that completely changed her Moms attitude. Vivian bore the sweetest testimony I have ever heard and the spirit really softened her Mom's heart. We taught her the message of the Restoration and she will now be reading and praying about the Book of Mormon! 

Update on the Arambula family: they all came to church this week and came to the branch Christmas party on Saturday and Beatriz ( the mom ) even made tamales for it!! They are so excited to get baptized and loveeee the Book of Mormon! 

Overall it was a really amazing week, we faced a lot of opposition but we didn't let any of it face us, we put our trust in the Lord and he was there with us every step of the way. It's so amazing how much the Lord can do when we do put our trust in him. Ive seen over and over in my mission times when Satan has thrown opposition our way in attempt to divert the work of Salvation. As missionaries we teach our investigators a lot about this. We explain how the things we are teaching them are really good, and because it is so good, Satan does not want it. And he will do anything he can to distract them from their goal of strengthening their relationship with the savior. It's funny because we teach it a lot but we don't realize how true it is for us as missionaries too. Satan does not want us to be out there teaching. He hates it. And he will do anything he can to distract us. He will make us homesick, he will send cold weather and snow and break our cars. But all we have to do is focus on the good that this work brings and how important this work is and the Lord will always be there with us. I love being a missionary!

I love you all so much! Thank you for all the support and love you send my way! Keep emailing me, and I hope you all have a very Merry CHRISTmas! Remember the reason for the season! Spend time with your loved ones, and send me lots of pictures of your holidays!!  

Elder Murphy

Thanks for the awesome care package Lottermoser Family!!!

We have presents under the tree too don't worry! (Left: mine right: Elder Pankratz's)

Awesome tie from the Lottermoser Family!

I have decided I like the snow.

Tag picture!

Fun fact, when it's really cold, you can throw water off your balcony and it'll instantly freeze :)

Ugly Sweaters. Lip Sync Battles, and Eternal Families

So on P-Day last week we got together as a zone and had a lip syncing contest, where companionships could enter in and lip sync to a song and it was so much fun. I got to be the MC for it and ended up just jumping in randomly to people's songs when they need some extra back up dancers. I don't know really how to explain it, but I'll attach some screen shots from some of the videos and maybe you'll get the idea. 

On Tuesday we were able to have a really awesome Zone Conference where we got together and received trainings on how we can have better Goals, Plan better, and be more accountable for our work. It was super revelatory and after we read Luke Chapter 2 together as a Zone, each taking turns reading verse by verse. There is something just so immensely powerful about reading about the Saviors Birth. I personally felt the spirit so strong and just felt how much our Heavenly Father loves us. I would love to challenge you all to read that chapter with your families this week and really just talk about what it means to you personally that that Savior was born. Let's try to put CHRIST back in. CHRISTmas! 

On Wednesday we were able to have our district meeting, and I gave a training on how important it is for our Investigators to feel the spirit each and every day. Our spirits are just like our bodies, and they need to be fed. Unlike our bodies, our spirits don't tell us when they're hungry, but there is always an impact if we don't feed our spirits every single day. And when we are teaching people it is our job as missionaries to feed them spiritually, and follow Christ's commandment to "FEED" His sheep.     

We also got to have interviews with our awesome mission president on Wednesday! Interviews are super awesome and it's really like our only one on one time with President McCuistian. We get to ask him questions and get advice and he really helps us be better missionaries and we get to talk about 

Oh my goodness gracious ladies and gentlemen take a seat and buckle up because I have some awesome news to tell you, and you'll wanna be safely secured for this one. . . LUIS'S WHOLE FAMILY IS GOING TO GET BAPTIZED. ALL 6 BAPTISMAL AGED MEMBERS OF HIS FAMILY. We are so so so excited for them and it is absolutely amazing to see how much the Gospel has opened up and blessed this family.      

When we first started teaching Luis we tried to teach set up a Family Home Evening with his family, just to get the family together and have a small lesson/ activity, and his mom shut it down so fast. She was like," No, I'm catholic we aren't doing that" and so it never happened. Anyways, after Luis got baptized she has jutted opened up like a fresh jar of peaches on a hot summer day and it's wonderful. She LOVES the Book of Mormon and even already has a favorite verse (2 Nephi 33:4) and she cannot wait for her family to be sealed together in the Temple in 1 year. Absolutely incredible  

One of our investigators gave us this super awesome drink this week called Atole. SO GOOD. We were drinking it and asking her how she makes it because it was so good and all she did was pull out some cookies. We super confused at first, but then she explained that the drunk is literally those cookies blended up with milk, with this sort of cinnamon flavored water and it's all heated up and it tastes like Christmas. AGAIN, SO GOOD. We got the ingredients to make it and now we can make it anytime in our apartment. Y'all should make this stuff it's heavenly I'm telling you. 

I just want to take this time to tell you all how much I love you and how much the lord loves each an every one of you. Before my mission I took that knowledge for granted, I knew that God loved me, but I didn't KNOW what that meant. For me it was never a very personal thing. And as I've been on my mission and I've been out here devoting myself 100% to the lord, I have seen just how much he does love me. It's become so real for me, I feel his love each and everyday in a way that I couldn't even begin to explain and it fills me with so much joy and happiness, especially in this Christmas season. It is such a special time to remember all that Jesus has done for us. He came to this Earth and he lived a perfect life. He suffered and felt all of our pains because he loves so much. He felt everything you have ever gone through and he is always there to help you through any trial. He is our Savior, he is our Brother, and he is my best friend. I challenge you all to strengthen your relationship with the Savior. What does he mean to you personally? How has he blessed your life? What can you do or change to be able to say that he is YOUR best friend? Look for these opportunities in your life and in your day to strengthen your relationship with him and I testify to you, as a servant and representative of him, that you will feel his love more fully in your life.      

I love you all! Email me! Send me letters! Send me packages with cool ties or something idk! Loveeee you!   

Elder Murphy

Screenshots from the Lip Sync Battles

I got 2nd place in the ugly sweater contest! 

Kellogg District!!

Weekly selfie ft. elder Davies and I

Service, Families, and a Baptism

Luis got baptized this Saturday!! It was so awesome finally seeing him get baptized and when he came out of the water he said he felt like he was glowing! He told us how he felt famous because all the people that came to his baptism, and how his baptismal program looked. I swear he stared at it for like 30 minutes straight just smiling. It filled my heart with so much joy it was awesome. His whole family came so we were able to give them a super awesome tour of the church and answer al of their questions. It was so cool because other missionaries brought the people they were teaching to the baptism and all of them loved it so much and can't wait to get baptized too!  

As a result of his baptism, 4 of Luis'S siblings want to get baptized and so does his dad!! We are still working on his mom but she will come around soon I'm sure of it. On Sunday, his parents came to support him receive the gift of the Holy Ghost and we think that they really liked it, unfortunately their other son had a soccer game and they had to take off after the first hour so we didn't get to talk to them about it. We tried to go find the, at their house after church but they weren't there. We were able to have an awesome lesson about the restoration with Rogelio, Luis's younger brother. We had Adrian one of the young men with us and he was a really big help in helping Rogelio understand why it was important and he even taught him how to pray!! 

We had been working really hard with Luis's Grandmother this week, because she has a testimony if the Book of Mormon and knows that the church is true, but she was so attached to her other church that she would never commit to come. We finally sat down with her and asked her inspired questions for 15 minutes to find the root of her concern and we were let by the spiri to a talk that Elder Uchdorf gave in a conference address about Saul on the road to Damascus and how a lot of times we expect to have an experience like him, we expect to see an angel or see Jesus if we are going to change. But the lord doesn't work like that with us. We have to show our faith in him and trust in him to receive and recognize those answers that he is giving us to our prayers. We ended with the questions, "Where are you on your personal Road to Damascus? Are you waiting for a Saul type experience?" And she must have thought about it really hard because she came to church!  

As a companionship we really have been trying to find families to teach, so we went to knock a potential investigators door to find one to teach but they weren't there. I had remembered there was another Mexican family down the street so we walked down to their house and tried to meet them. When we knocked we met the dad, Ezekiel and he told us how he had 7 kids and wanted them to grow up with good values. We taught him the Restoration and he loved it and committed to read the Book of a Mormon and pray about a specific baptismal date. We came back another day and met his wife and shared with her that standards of the Church like the Word of Wisdom and the Law of Chastity. She lit up and was so happy that we could teach her kids about it and help them grow up to be good people in the world! Super awesome missionary experience! 

We also had the awesome opportunity to do service this week! The Relief Society president our branch was moving apartments within he complex and we got to help he move! It was super cool because this Christmas Season he church has. Campaign call #LIGHTtheWORLD where we try to be a light to other people and help other like Christ so perfectly showed us how when he walked the Earth. We were able to be a light to her and help her when she needed it! The super fun part was when the battery on our car died and we were kinda stuck there for a few hours haha. We asked a bunch of people if they had cables but apparently no one has them here in Kansas, Eventually we  found someone with some and they were kind enough to let us borrow them. I guess you could say they were a light for us!!

We also had a really cool Zone Training this week. Elder Call one of our Zone Leaders gave a super awesome training on how important our Desire are as missionaries and took it even one step further when he explained the importance of our own personal Dispositions. Disposition is something thats similar to our nature, it our inherent qualities of mind and nature. He ended his lesson with this question for us to think about "What if my dispositional will was to baptize?". Super deep. It got me thinking and what I took away from the meeting is that I need to be constantly changing my desires to be my disposition. I need to make the things that I WANT to do and make them things that I NEED to do. I need to make them my inherit nature to serve Christ at all times.

Over all it was an awesome week and we were able to see tons and tons of miracles. I love being in the lords service and I love being a missionary in the Kansas Wichita Mission. I love you all so much and I can't wait to hear about your weeks! 

Elder Murphy

DERBY Zone Picture!

The real DERBY Zone!

Weekly Selfie ft. Elder Davies 

Kellogg District!

I don't know what's happening here.

Luis Got Baptized!!