Living the Trio Life... Part 3!

Hey everyone! 

I hope all of you had a great Thanksgiving and a great weekend as well. Although it has been 3 days, much has happened. First and foremost, I got my new companion Elder Crane! He is from Bear Lake, Idaho and goes home in two weeks. So this will be the fourth companion I will be sending home so far on my mission! He's a great Elder, full of charity and love for others. We picked him up from the mission office on Friday morning and have been running around between our area in Reading and his area in Pottstown. We only teach one person in Pottstown because it wouldn't work trying to go back and forth between the two areas, but we are excited for Pottstown because the one investigator, Jasmine, is getting baptized December 10th which is pretty exciting! Along with that we also go to church in Pottstown as well, so that's a total of 6 hours of church on Sunday which is unheard of in the mission unless you cover a YSA. But it's definitely a blessing being with the Pottstown members as well as the members in our area. Definitely unexpected blessings from this brand new trio.

Something else is that I was a part of the Spanish Elders baptism in Reading this past Saturday. 

So, it was for a 9 year old kid named Miguel (he speaks English). I interviewed him earlier in the week and it was pretty funny because while we were there and about to leave, they asked Miguel who wanted to give the talks and he pointed at me to give the talk about baptism. So that's exactly what happened! I gave a talk about baptism that I think only 4 people could understand what I was talking about. But it was a really neat experience being able to see Miguel be baptized and to be fellowshipped by the entire family (and this family was huge!). I was also so happy for one of the Spanish Elders since that was his first baptism on his mission and it really meant a lot to him after really searching and praying for someone he could baptize and bring into the fold.

But other than that, everything else has been going very well! Our investigators Tiyanna and Yanna (age 13 and 14) came to church this past week and are planning to be baptized on December 10th. The Lord is just providing so many blessings this holiday season. It's crazy to think there's only 2 weeks left in the transfer, but I'm excited to finish strong with these two great Elders! May the Lord continue to bless us all as we head into the Christmas season, probably one of the most special times anyone can feel for the Savior's love. Continue to keep the faith!

Elder Cortes

Reading, PA

"Live in Thanksgiving Daily" (Alma 34:38)

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

It's been such a fun day for us over here in Reading! It's been dinner appointments and a fun Turkey Bowl with the Reading Zone. Without a doubt, this is a Thanksgiving I will not forget I had on the mission.

A few other things have happened and are happing, it's never a dull moment in the fantastic land of Reading. Probably the biggest thing that happened was that we had three baptisms this past weekend. Anthony, Dakota, and Chanel. It was a special baptism because we had so many special appearances from the Assistants, (we had an exchange the day before) and Elder Martinez. It was so great being able to see all three of them get baptized and then all three of them be confirmed the next day. To have the privilege to baptize Anthony was so great. The Spirit was just so strong being able to see all three baptisms happen. 

Elder Baker and I have just been having a blast here in the late fall. The winter is coming quick with 40 degree weather with wind chill that makes it feel like 20 degrees. We have just been having great laughs about it and finding great joy in the work. Another thing that is happening is we will be getting a third companion tomorrow who is Elder Crane. His companion is going home and he will be going home in two weeks so this will be the 4th missionary I have sent home which is kind of crazy but fun at the same time. 

To close this entry of the mission, I just want to say how grateful I am for so much that has been given to me by my Heavenly Father. I'm thankful for my family first and foremost. My parents are incredible and my siblings mean the world to me. It brings so much peace that I will spend all time and eternity with them. I'm thankful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the knowledge that I know to be true which brings me a lot of happiness. I'm thankful for prophets and apostles (both ancient and modern) who have priesthood authority to guide the people of Zion to the strait and narrow path and to help us stay on it.

There are two unique things I have learned and have appreciated more since I have been on my mission. I'm thankful for my mission as a whole. I'm thankful for the people I have met, especially all my companions. Learning from all 12 of them has meant the world to me and to keep learning is such a blessing. I'm thankful for the good times and the bad on the mission. It isn't always easy to be out here on a mission. But the hard times that have made me uncomfortable, I know are making me grow. I'm thankful I have two years to represent the Lord Jesus Christ as an authorized representative to preach His Gospel. I have teared up one time or another to really think this will all be over. But I'm grateful for the time the Lord has and is giving me now. I have been blessed so much with my mission. I love my mission with all my heart, no matter what. 

The second thing I am eternally thankful for is my Savior Jesus Christ. I have always known His sacrifice and that He is the Messiah. But I just grow my personal relationship with Him more and more as I continue on in my mission. I love the Lord, probably the biggest blessing is seeing my relationship with Him grow while I am out here. I become more committed, dedicated, bold, and consecrated in doing His will. 

I'm thankful for all of you who read these weeklys. You all mean a ton to me and I hope all of us may continually remember what we are thankful for everyday, not just Thanksgiving. As we do, all our doubts will flying and we will be singing as the day goes by. 

Have a great Turkey Day!

Elder Cortes

Reading, PA

A Weekend with a General Authority

Hey everyone!

I hope all of you have been doing great so far in the wonderful month of November. The mission has been fantastic! We have had a lot of laughs and instruction by the Lord. It has been a great week here in the mission field. 

It all started on Tuesday when we had Zone Training. So usually, we have Zone Training at the Stake Center, but we found out the entire building was rented out for voting for the election... so we had to improvise and do Zone Training at the Centro Hispano at 5th and Washington. It was a lot of running around, but it was so great! The Spirit was so strong in really guiding the discussion on our Trainings. It had to be the best Zone Training I conducted! I had so much fun with it, and we have one more this transfer in December which we are very excited for. 

Later in the week, we had Elder Cordon of the Seventy train us Thursday and Friday. Thursday as an Mission, then Friday for the MLC. It was incredible to just see his training and his personally really connect with the missionaries. The biggest impression I took out of that whole training was that you can live your mission as a son of man or a son of God. As we find out who we really are, we find power in our identity. It was such a blast. Then, if we weren't blessed enough, we had stake Conference this weekend and the guest speakers were President and Sister Randall, and of course, Elder Cordon! So Saturday night and Sunday morning we were instructed even more. What was also neat was that I saw so many members from Kutztown! It was great seeing the bussiere family and the O's. What was hilarious was I just happened to sit right behind the O's Sunday, and they had no idea and then brother O looked back and I winked at him. Then he whispered to Sister O, then she turned around eyes all wide and just so excited to see me. She told me she just pulled out the vase Elder Thielen and I gave her for Mother's Day. I just felt the Spirit so strong seeing them again, it truly is a blessing to have all these friends on the mission, it's so great.

This Saturday is so exciting, we have 3 baptisms coming up and Elder Martinez is come back up to see it. The Lord blesses us everyday out here. What a blessing it is to be a part of this great work. 

I hope all goes well for you all this week! Remember that you are a child of God, although we are children of men, our divine heritage cannot be denied. 

Elder Cortes

Reading, PA

Reading Round 2

Hey everybody!

I hope you all have been doing great in this first week of Fall. It's been a week full of changes, work, and of course, miracles.

I started the week by sending off Elder Martinez to Philadelphia and picked up my new companion Elder Baker! Elder Baker is from Eagle Rock, Utah. He's half Hawaiian and half Native American and has been out for a year. It's actually pretty neat because we were both companions with Elder Thielen and Elder Harris so we've been able to connect with that. But he's a great missionary who just wants to work which is such a blessing.

We started the transfer strong by finding three new investigators this past week through bible referrals and just being led by the Spirit to stop by a less active home. The less active wasnt home but a 19 year old named Devon let us in and we had such a powerful lesson on the Restoration. It was such a blessing from the Lord to find these new investigators. It took a lot of time walking through the streets of Reading, but the Lord provided for us which was incredible.

We also have been continuing to teach the Maldanado family. Anthony, the dad, and Chenell and Dakota, the daughters, are getting baptized in two weeks which we are very excited for. They just continue to keep commitments and keep talking about their baptism. They have brought up being sealed as a family already! We are just so excited in two weeks for this special day. It all started when Elder Martinez talked to Melissa, the mom, in May. Now here we are, what a blessing it's been to be working with this family.

Well, we are having an exciting week coming up. Elder Cordon of the Seventy is coming to our mission and we have Zone Training tomorrow. I'm so grateful being able to learn how to be a better teacher and a better person on my mission. It is without a doubt the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. But I'm grateful for how hard it is. May we all recognize what a blessing it is as we learn and grow from the callings which the Lord has given us. What a great blessing it is to be pushed to become something more through our callings. Well, continue in the faith! May the Lord bless us in all that we do.

Elder Cortes

Reading, PA