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

The Reading Roller Coaster

Hey everyone!

It's been such a busy week here in the one and only city of Reading. We laughed, we cried, we saw miracles. So pretty much the usual here in the mission field.

It was actually pretty interesting, Elder Martinez got sick two weeks ago which made us move an exchange. So we had three back to back exchanges and I happened to leave the area each time. I went to north Reading, Pottsville, and Pottstown. With such incredible missionaries. I first went with Elder Weisler and Elder Holden since they are in a trio. They are two of the oldest missionaries in the mission and I was so blessed to learn from these two seasoned missionaries. I also went with an Elder named Elder Crane in Pottstown who is also another old missionary. Probably the most loving man I have ever met. It was incredible, I learned so much about charity just by being with Elder Crane for a day. I loved it!

We also had Zone Training on Thursday, which was pretty exciting. President Randall was there and gave incredible comments. Since it was my second one, I had a few rolls off the tongue, but it is amazing how the Spirit just works through your weaknesses. It was one of the best Zone Trainings I was a part of. Elder Weisler gave his dying testimony and I was just bawling when we sang the mission hymn. It was incredible!

We also found two brand new people to set with baptismal dates. One was from a recent convert family and the other was from a less active. We are just so blessed with the Lord providing everyday. Probably one of the  best traits of Elder Martinez is his confidence in the Lord providing people for us to teach. I have not seen it so strong in a missionary like him. It is incredible. 

I'm so grateful to be here in Reading, miracles are happening left and right. I definitely won't forget my time here that's for sure! I love my mission, I love the Lord. I'm so thankful He has made it possible for me to be here now. I humbly pray and hope all of us may make the most of where we are in our lives. There is always a blessing, always!

Elder Cortes

Reading, PA