The Storm Passes and the Work Progresses

Hey everybody!

I hope all of you are doing well. I cannot wait to talk about my week
this week. So much happened with investigators and spiritual
experiences it was amazing!

Tuesday we were on exchanges I was with my Zone Leader Elder Holden
here in Kutztown. It was a little hard to go around and park because
so many spaces and side streets were still blocked by snow. But we
made it work! We actually met with a recent convert named Sarah who
got back into school at Kutztown University 2 weeks ago. We were able
to talk about the temple with her to go do baptisms and it was so
great to hear she already had a plan to go with members of the ward!
I'm so excited for her, especially since she's preparing to go for the
first time. It's so important for new members to go to the temple as
soon as they are able. To feel the power of the temple for the first
time is such an experience. I know it'll be a great time for her when
she goes. But working with Elder Holden was so great! He reminded me
so much of my trainers Elder Hendricks and Elder Foster, so it felt
natural just to teach and tract with him. We even stopped by a college
girl named Katie who ordered a Bible and told us she is looking to
change her life around. Of course, as missionaries, we asked if we
could help out with that. It ended up with us setting up an
appointment tomorrow!

The next day Elder Maughan came back into Moorestown and it was a
rough day all around. All our appointments fell through and no one
really wanted to talk to us. It was hard to really focus because we
really did try to make the day productive. But Heavenly Father
answered our prayers and we met with this woman named Michelle in our
apartment complex. She told us about how she had come to have God in
her life. The spirit was so strong when we taught her the Restoration,
I mean you could just feel it. Elder Maughan invited her to be
baptized and she told us if she sincerely knew this was true, she
would! It was such a blessing to us at the end of the day. Somehow the
Lord always finds a way to lift our spirits when we are discouraged.
It always happens, without a doubt.

Thursday, we met with Julianna (the woman we met my first week in
Kutztown). She had to take care of her sick kids the past few weeks
but it was a miracle she got back in touch with us we could come over!
She read in the Book of Mormon and really liked it! She was asking how
the Book of Mormon and the church can bless her family and how she can
raise her 4 sons the best way possible. It was so great to talk about
that and transition to the Plan of Salvation. You could tell she was
feeling the spirit because she said she felt different when we talked
about the purpose of life and where do we go after our time on earth.
It was amazing!

At this point, I was thinking what else is the Lord going to do? What
have we done to have all these blessings in our appointments? But He
just kept going. We met with this couple named Dot and Michael on
Friday.Dot is an investigator and Michael is a less active. The thing
with them is they are living together and are not married. So this
lesson we taught the Law of Chastity, which talks about how couples
need to be married if they are living together to be baptized. We
asked them what they thought about it and they told us it's something
they want to do. They just said "you know, I think it might be time
for us to get married". I was just dying inside. The Lord just works
wonders, if people are prepared, their hearts will be softened. I have
a huge testimony of that.

Saturday we contacted this less active named Paul. Paul and his wife
live with their two autistic grandchildren. At first, he wasn't
interested in talking to us, but as we talked more about his
grandchildren, he became more open. I was so happy I could relate to
him somehow with my sister Annie. It was not a coincidence I happened
to stop there. It happens all the time with missionaries. They find
people who they can invite the spirit into their home somehow, it's so
great!

What really topped it all of was after church, we went finding and
looking up addresses to less actives. We were getting no success and
then, we met this great guy named Tony who lives like 5 minutes away
from the church. He was really open and told us we could stop by later
this week. So we are hoping and praying for new investigators,
investigators with a date, and a continuation to be worthy of these
blessings we have been given. Heavenly Father truly does see the work
we put in and the intent of our heart. That's truly something I have
seen on my mission. The blessings do come if we are submissive to His
will and do what He would want us to do. We are lifted heavenward as
we do so.

I'm excited for this month! Hopefully many good things come out of the
miracles we have seen so far, I pray all of you are doing great and
are happy. I'll talk to you all next week!

Sincerely,
Elder Cortes

Kutztown, PA

A Missionary in the Frozen Tundra

Hey everyone!

I cannot tell you the week that I have had. There was a lot going on
and at the same time, there wasn't. I'll explain what I mean by that
in a little bit.

But to start, I went on an exchange in Reading with my district
leader, Elder Jolley! He has actually been out as long as I have. The
great thing about Elder Jolley is that he is from Mesa! What's even
better is that he went to Mountain View for two years and Mesa High
for the other two. We just talked about how strange it was we never
knew each other in High School and that we had a lot in common. We did
a lot of street contact in Reading talking to many different kinds of
people. Elder Jolley gave me some good tips on finding people and we
had a great time all around.

On Wednesday, we had District Meeting! We usually have it on Thursday,
but we had a special Worldwide Missionary Broadcast on Wednesday as
well that they wanted all the Zones to be together for. It was so
great to learn how to be a better missionary from Elder Anderson,
Elder Bednar, Elder Oaks, and other General Authorities. It was the
first time they had a broadcast like this in over a decade! Needless
to say, a lot of instruction was given.

It was a little tough Thursday. Elder Maughan came down with a really
bad cold so we had to go in sometime in the late afternoon. But it's
okay! It was great to practice patience in these kind of situations.
I'm grateful for Elder Maughan, I was glad he didn't push himself over
his limits.

Friday we had interviews with President Anderson! Interviews are
always great with President. It's so nice to get that one on one time
with him and Sister Anderson. By the time your mission ends, I can
guarantee your mission President and his wife will become some of the
closest people you have in your life. That's exactly how I feel about
them. To hear their support and love for me means so much. We also
heard snow was going to come tonight! But we also had to go in early
as well because President Anderson wanted all the missionaries in by
6. That was when the snow hit....

Now, I've seen snow before, but I was so shocked throughout Saturday.
Everything was covered in snow and it was so deep! In my mind I was
thinking "how are we going to get out of this". We could not drive our
cars for the rest of the weekend and Elder Maughan was still sick so
we couldn't go outside. So all day Saturday it was pretty much a day
to make phone calls, study, and whatever else we could do to make the
day productive. It was a little different, just not being able to go
outside all day. I really just wanted to go out there and teach people
even though there probably wasn't any hope in getting to anyone. By
the end of the storm, we had found out we had gotten 31 inches of
snow. It was a record for the Kutztown area for the most snow at one
time!

Sunday was pretty much the same thing. The only difference was Elder
Maughan felt a little bit better, so we went to an older member's home
(The Thompsons) and helped shovel their snow. I had never shoveled
snow before. So it was a great to do that for the first time! We also
helped out 4 or 5 of his neighbors with their driveways. But overall,
it was great to experience a snow storm like this. It will be
difficult to go through the streets and icy roads. But we will be very
careful! I'm also hoping to see a lot of the work move forward in this
Winter weather. I hope all of you are nice and warm! It's pretty cold
over here. But you get used to it! I'm thankful the weather hasn't
been a major problem for me. It really helps me focus on doing
missionary work! Well, I hope all of you have a great last week of the
month! I'm definitely going to over here.

Elder Cortes

Kutztown, PA

Tracking in a Winter Wonderland

Hey everybody!

The first thing I have to say is that the snow finally came. It wasn't
terrible, but it finally came and it has been in the mid 20's all
week. But we have kept busy regardless!

The snow came on Tuesday night when we were driving home from an
appointment. I was so excited! The first time snow has come on my
mission! It caught us by surprise because when we went to the
appointment it was just a regular cold night. Then, we got outside and
the ground was covered in snow. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would
be driving home, we made it back safely. But that brings up part two
of the snow experience.

On Wednesday I went on an exchange with a young Elder over in Reading,
PA while my District Leader came here to Kutztown. So I was with Elder
Jones for the day (which was great because he is from Mesa as well! He
went to Red Mountain). Reading is such an exciting place. Pretty much
what they do when they don't have appointments is go street contact.
Well, it just so happened to be 2 of the 5 lessons that were set up
cancelled. So we did a total of 3 hours of street contacting. It was
so exciting because I haven't been into an area that has a lot of
street contacting. However, the snow covered the streets and the were
outside in 20 degree weather. On top of that, it felt every direction
we went, the wind blew right in our face. Even when you are bundled up
with a few layers, it's still pretty cold. But we saw many miracles
happen that day. Elder Jones knew I hadn't street contacted a lot on
my mission, so he wanted me to take the lead in where we should go. To
be in a big city, it can be a little intimidating and confusing on
where to go. But I asked for guidance and direction from the Lord. As
I prayed privately and quietly on street corners, the Holy Spirit
showed me which direction I should take. One time, we went around an
entire block and we taught a man, waiting for his bus, the
Restoration! It was so great because he wasn't there when we first
started, but after we went in a circle, he just happened to be there
and ready to listen. All in all, we taught 4 lessons on the street! I
was just so grateful to have such a great day like that over here in
Reading.

Thursday, we had Zone Training, which was very uplifting. My new Zone
Leaders, Elder Holden and Elder Jewkes, are great teachers. A lot of
it was on personal improvement and goals the mission has for the new
year. Also, I'm grateful for the Reading Zone. There are Elders and
Sisters who were in my last Zone in Cherry Hill, Elders I came out
with, and so many great examples I have had since I have been on my
mission. Later that night, we went to visit a member in a care center.
While we were waiting for the member we were going to take with us, we
talked to the receptionist in the lobby. She was so interested in what
we did and had so many questions about missionaries. In the end, we
got her contact information and are planning on having missionaries go
and see her (because she lives outside our area).

Friday and Saturday, all of our appointments cancelled. But what our
Zone was doing was to see how many pass along cards we could give with
our church address. By the end of it, we had passed out 198 pass along
cards in two days. Which is pretty hard in our area because there is
practically no one on the street to give them to. Despite the snow,
cold, and wind, I just worked as hard as I could with the Elders I was
with. I'm grateful to the Lord and allowing me to have the strength
and diligence to continue to find people. Although it may not be easy,
somehow I keep finding strength in Christ to persevere and press
forward. I pray all of you may do the same. The highest it is supposed
to get is 34 degrees. But that doesn't phase me. I am going back to
Reading tomorrow with my District Leader so I'm hoping for the same
success! We also are having a worldwide missionary broadcast Wednesday
which I am very excited for. Hopefully the week will turn around with
our investigators! May the Lord bless you in all your efforts!




Elder Cortes

Kutztown, PA

Kutztown, My New Home

Hey everybody!

Well, needless to say, it has been more busy than usual this week for

me here in the mission. I left on Tuesday Morning to the mission

office to meet my new companion. I found out that I was going to be a

refininer (a refiner is a missionary's companion right after he has

been done being trained) which is pretty important. His name is Elder

Maughan (pronounced "Maun"). He is from Logan, Utah. Like I said

before, he finished his training so he has been out for 3 months. He's

very soft spoken, but a very hard worker. It's...a little hard to find

similarities but that's alright. There really isn't a difference when

we are doing the work.

Regarding the area, it turned into an Elder area a few months ago.

It's very rural. Farmland is all over and the cities in the area are

very spread out. Of course it has been a little tough adjusting

regarding the area, the ward, and other things that came with being

transferred, but I'm adjusting! For the most part, we have

investigators that really don't want to commit to make commitments

(reading the Book of Mormon, going to church, etc.). But we are going

to work through that and hopefully these people will come closer to

Jesus Christ.

We have already have had a lot of great experiences. One is that we

knocked on a woman's door named Juliana and she told us she was Roman

Catholic, but told us we could come back the next day. The next day

she told us she didn't want to be rude and slam the door in our face,

when we came again, she didn't think it might have been a good idea to

talk. But in the end, she let us in and we talked simply about her

family. One of the things she brought up was if we had any advice in

raising her four sons. It was a perfect way to tie it into 1st Nephi

(family with four sons in the wilderness) and give her a copy of the

Book of Mormon. In the end we set a return appointment in 2 weeks! It

was so great to see the spirit work in her heart. She went from "I

don't think this is a good idea" to "give me two weeks to read". It

showed me that the Lord truly does have a way to soften people's

hearts as we teach them.

For the most part, the Elders in the past have knocked on doors. It

hasn't been effective as you'd hope it would, but we will keep trying,

especially for me thinking of new ideas for missionary work. Remember

when I said all those weeks where it has been in the 60's and 70's?

Well, this whole week the highest it has been is mid 30's.... It's

been beanies, gloves, and layers of sweaters and coats every day. But

I'm excited for this next transfer. I'm excited for this year overall.

The Philadelphia Temple open house will be in late July hopefully so

there has been a lot of buzz about that throughout the mission and the

members.

The last thing is that I had the special privilege to bear my

testimony to the ward in Kutztown. It is a different feeling bearing

your testimony to a ward you just came into in less than a week. But I

was so grateful to bear it. It showed myself no matter where I am, the

Lord is with me and I am still who I am, a son of God. It is my hope

with all of you that you recognize that special identity you have

being a son or daughter of the most perfect and glorious being in the

universe. Such knowledge allows us to be strengthened in our lives as

we perform out labors here in mortality.

I hope you all have a great week and that you turn to the Lord in your

times of joy and sorrow. By doing so, your relationship with Him will

grow and never break.

Elder Cortes

From Moorestown to....?

Hey guys!

Well, we are in a new year which is really exciting! Of course, with

this being the last week of the transfer, it's always busy. Especially

when you're packing because I'm getting transferred!

But to talk about the week, on Wednesday we went to the Davis' house

to teach another lesson to the kids. What was so special about this

visit was that we committed one of the kids, Lilah, to baptism in

February! We weren't really expecting it, but she really want to and

she got permission from her parents to make it happen! Honestly, that

made my whole day. I figured if I was leaving Moorestown, I wanted to

leave it in pretty good shape.

New Year's Eve, we had District Meeting which was pretty great. The

Assistants were in my District Meeting, and one of them is a

pretty.... serious. Not in a bad way. But it went really well! They

both said I did a great job and I felt like it was one of the best

meetings we had as a District so I was really glad we ended the

transfer strong on District Meetings. At the end of the night, we came

home early because everyone was out doing something so no appointments

and tracting was pretty pointless at that time. It was really strange

because I always stay up for the New Year and I went to bed at 10:30

(mission rules). Then fireworks wake you up in the middle of the night

and you're just so confused..... But overall it was really great!

On New Years we had a pretty busy day lined up. I did a baptismal

interview for the Zone Leaders for a man named Tom. It was really

great because before he was atheist and now he has a strong testimony

the church is true. Really, I will never stopped being amazed at the

strong testimonies these men and women have right before they are

baptized. They are just so strong! Later that day we had dinner with a

couple in the ward named the Duns. They drove us to Cherry Hill to a

tai restaurant and there was so much good food there! The best part

was the bbq pork they made. I don't what it was, but it was the best

pork I ever had. At the end of the night, we got transfer calls and I

found out I was being transferred for the first time. At first I was

thinking "okay I figured this was going to happen. Not a huge deal".

Then I was lying in bed thinking "wait, I need to pack and say my

goodbyes and I don't even know where I'm going". I wasn't stressing

out, but a million thoughts were rushing into my head. But I knew the

Lord would be with me at this time and I know He will be with me

wherever I go.

Saturday, we had a few appointments drop... So we decided to stop by a

lot of our investigators and set up appointments for the coming week,

so Elder Harris and his new companion could start the week strong.

What a tender mercy this day was. So many different people were

setting up dinner appointments for next week and we're excited to see

us come back. There was one point Amy Knapp (a less active we are

seeing) told us her son Nick asked when can he be baptized. She also

told us he has done everything we have asked him to do so far(read

pamphlets, read Book of Mormon, etc.). Although I won't be here when

the great miracles happen, I know this area will be well taken care

of, which really made me feel good.

Sunday was the big day to say my goodbyes. It was really hard to say

goodbye to a lot of close friends I have made these past six months.

What was so special was that almost all of them said we will see you

again. Which meant a lot to me. It didn't even feel like I was serving

in the Moorestown ward, but that I was a part of it, which I really

appreciated. There are a lot of people here who have a heart of gold

which I'm so grateful for. After church, so many different members

wanted us over for dinner, dessert, and pictures. It was so much fun

being around all of them. I know without a doubt, if I came back to

Moorestown, which I know I will, it will feel like home to me.

Now we're here to today. I just finished a huge meal at Buffalo Wild

Wings. All that's left is to write emails, pack, and say a few more

goodbyes. Transfers are tomorrow morning at noon. To describe how I

feel right now is a little hard. It's bittersweet. I'm excited to see

a new part of the mission, but I'm a little down to leave an area I

worked so hard to build through the Lord. I'm excited and nervous at

the same time. I've never been transferred before, but I know I will

be okay. I can't wait to tell you all about the new area I will be in!

It will be an experience i will definitely remember. But I will be

okay. The Lord has my back. You all have my back. There's no way I'm

going to falter. There's a great work to do these next 18 months, and

it is my humble prayer I can do and learn all that the Lord wants me

to learn. I hope you all have a great start to 2016!

Elder Cortes

Christmas in the Mission!

Hey everyone!

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas! It really was a special day and

I was so grateful for the spirit that was there.

Zone Conference was so great! It was this past Wednesday and it was so

fun seeing a lot of old friends, President and Sister Anderson, and

Ephraim's Rescue (movie about the pioneers). There was also a great

talent show and there were so many skits, great music, and a lot of

good jokes. We also got our gifts, which of course, was really

exciting!  We also had a lot of great meals from members and gifts we

weren't even expecting.

Christmas was just so special in so many ways. In the morning we

opened up all of our gifts which was really exciting! Elder Harris and

I had a great time with all the gifts we opened. I even received a box

of oranges at our doorstep! In the afternoon, we talked to our

families and let me

just say, I was so grateful for that one hour. I felt right at home,

and it was so great to catch up with my family. Just to hear how

everyone was doing really brought me a lot of happiness. But the day

didn't end there. We saw a couple named the Walchs. They were baptized

a little over a year ago and asked if we could give them blessings.

They were sick and we're going to have us over for dinner, but were

too sick to make anything. But I'm so thankful, on such a special day,

that I was able to exercise the power of God to help others. I truly

am thankful for such a blessing. We also met with a less active

brother named brother Orsi at the end of the night who was stressed

out and just not having a good day. It was so great to talk about the

Savior and why He was so important on Christmas. Doing missionary work

is so special on Christmas. You just get an additional confirmation

what you are doing is right.

But, this is the last week of 2015! To really look back on this year,

I'm grateful what I have went through and what is in store for 2016.

This is also the last week of the transfer, so I find out Friday if I

get transferred or not. We'll see...... Anyway, have a Happy New Year!

I hope the best for all of you!

Elder Cortes

Christmas with a change of location

Hey everybody!!!!

Wow, I can't believe it's almost Christmas! I also can't believe have

been out for almost 6 months! It's so strange how time has flown. But

it's just really exciting all around.

So for my week, it has just been busy all around during the Christmas

time. We have had 12 referrals all in the past week, which is  a lot

for a week in our mission. So throughout the week, we have just been

delivering Bibles to people throughout our area. It's been really

great to see how the Mormon.org Christmas initiative has really been

getting out there. It's been really great to see!

Wednesday, we went to a lesson to a less named Sister Punchello. It

was really great because we taught her for the first time in a few

months and talked about how Christ has changed her life. She really

was receptive and just talked about how she needs to come back to

church. What was a little plus was she let me borrow her daughter's

trumpet. Because...... I am playing a Christmas song for Zone

Conference! It's been to practice here and there for it. I can't wait

to perform after it's been so long!

Friday, all we did was street contact sharing the "A Savior is Born"

with our Zone Leaders. It was really great to share the video with

people. Their hearts just get softened after watching that. There's a

reason why missionaries say Christmas is the best time to be out

serving.

We also had our Christmas program this past week as well. It was so

great. There were so many songs and narrations, it really did invite

the spirit. Also, David Garduno, who we have given the sacrament every

week to, came to church for the first time since I have been here! It

was really exciting. He is on the way to getting a temple recommend!

He really is one of my favorite people to teach. All in all, just a

really humble guy.

Well, the weather has been the same, pretty warm. Christmas it is

supposed to be 70, which I am really excited about. It'll feel like I

never left Arizona. Just kidding! But to just leave you with

something, I am excited for Christmas to come. Throughout my studies,

I always come back to the Book of Mormon reading with Samuel the

Lamanite and his prophesies of the Holy Messiah's birth. Also, in 3rd

Nephi 1, where the believers' lives are literally on the line

depending on the Savior's coming. I ponder how much faith would we

have if we were in that same position. May we "watch steadfastly" as

the Nephites did on our Lord. Not just at this time, but at all times.

If we do so, we will have reason to "lift up our heads and be of good

cheer" as the Savior told Nephi. I pray you all have a special, safe,

Merry Christmas. There is reason to celebrate in our hearts and in our

lives. He was born so we can be born again. I testify of this as a

representative of Him.

Happy Holidays!

Elder Cortes