December 31st, 2013

Ya the Bednar talk was pretty awesome. It was from Provo, but it was pretty cool, he pretty much just answered questions from the audience, we could write notes and pass them and then they were emailed to his Ipad. It was so mindblowing how every question it seemed he had prepared a talk for. Hes crazy smart. Some things i liked from it he said the best missionaries are the ones who know this isnt about them, and that the more you focus on yourself, the harder it is for the spirit to come in. He also said his favorite hero in the scriptures is nephi, because of the story how he went to get the plates not knowing beforehand what he would do. The action goes before the power comes, thats how faith works. There was a lot more awesome stuff I cant write all of it though.

Thats awesome you went to the bowl! I miss football. I want to watch sports so bad. I hope you guys had fun without me haha. I think that program youre talking about is a really good idea. WE just had a talk the other night, they gave us M &Ms which stand for Members and missionaries. They told us how we need to use the members as a missionary tool cause thats the way that works. Family history is actually really fun, my roommate was super into it back at school, and he kinda got me into it as well. Its really interesting.

Im not gonna lie I kinda teared up when I read that dad saw kent. Im not gonna lie I was praying for him the other week so I hope that helped, i will continue to do that. If you can let him know that I love him and miss him a lot. For new years plans, tonight were gonna sleep on the roof and watch the fireworks tonight. If ive learned one thing about mexicans is that they love fireworks. I know were prolly breaking the rules but i dont care. Ask me if i care. I dont.

I cant really think of anything more that happened this week, I hung this elders teddy bear because he kept kicking my bed and putting my nail clippers in my shoe. It was hilarious. Umm Im just super ready to go, I only have one more p day in the CCM! I hope you all have a delicious week, just do what you do ya know. Love you all - Love Elder Crisp

The aforementioned hanged bear

The cutest Christmas card ever

December 24th, 2013

Thats what they call christmas eve here those wierdos. Ya So anyway
this was a pretty good week! Its kind of the same stuff everyday so
there really nothing exciting to tell you. Last wednesday, Me and
elder evans my comp had a good experience, our DL elder gibson came in
right before bed and asked for a blessing, I think he was super
stressed out. Elder Evans seemed super excited to say it so he did it
and gave a great blessing it was awesome. After wards he told us it
was his first one, and that that morning he had been praying for
oppurtunity to give a blessing. He said he knew he would the whole
day, even though it was 15 hours after. So it was a huge blessing to
the both of them, it was a huge testimony to me.
In our practice lessons this
week, the teachers made Elder Evans start to do most of the lesson
because up to that point I pretty much said most of the lesson. He
surprised himself i think and me cause he was able to say a lot more
spanish during the lessons. Hell still use like a manual or something
but we are actually starting to use each other as companions, its
helped see how lessons really go. It was actually pretty gnarly we
about made the fake investigator tear up cause he asked a question i
forget what it was and I had a perfect scripture for it, 2 Nephi
31:29, that says that no name other than Christ bringeth salvation
along those lines. It was cool i guess.


We also had our first issue to deal with as
zone leaders, it was kinda wierd. We had a demonstration type deal as
a district and an elder, who has some form of autism Im sure, said
something that made us laugh, and he took it the wrong way and got
really angry with us. After the lesson, he stood up and started
yelling really loud at mainly the sisters, he just kind of targeted
them but he was mad at everyone. They were all scared so we quickly
took him aside and calmed him down, and then we had a litle chat with
the district about it while he was gone and we prayed together that
he would feel that we loved him, and ask that he be blessed with
patience and whatnot. We talked one on one with him after to tell him
he cant take his frustration out like that and asked if he knew that
we loved him, and he kinda paused and said yes he did. It was such a
great blessing and since then he has been super happy so that was a
neat expierence.

Sunday was pretty nice, we had a good talk from i think the CCM
director hes a young gringo dude. He talked about not looking back to
our past lives and focusing and committing 100 percent as
missionaries. He told us a story from his youth where an old man told
him stay on target youre a disease. It had something to do with his
talk but i thought it was a really dumb saying so i remembered it.
youre a disease. remember that always. Oh man in sacrament meeting
Elder evans gave a talk, and he ran out of words from his notes so he
told us about a mosquito he saw on the window just before, who kept
crawling close to the opening but would fall back down, and he related
that to us as we try to become clean from our sins well keep falling.
As he came back to sit down I was like that was pretty cool analogy.
and hes all like ya i didnt say it in the talk but i killed that
stupid mosquito. hahaha i was dying. I thought you might want to hear
that.


Oh last night there was this hush hush tie black market in someones casa. It was
insane there was like 50 elders and everyone bartering their ties and
yelling and whatnot. But ya anyway we got shut down the CCM security
told us we couldnt have parties. It was hilarious though, people take
their ties too seriously it was really funny to watch and try to sell
my crap ties haha.


K so I can email. Im not sure when right now, itll be for 30 minutes
anytime between 1230 and 230 here (two hours ahead). so we can like
chat or whatever, so ya atleast we can talk kind of. Anywho have a
good christmas eve and Im excited to open my presents!
Love you guys

Elder Crisp

December 17th, 2013

Hey guys,

Ya I saw that it was cold in California and I was cracking up. Thats stinks for you guys. The weathers like perfect here, except it smells like sewer everywhere. I love that whole story of Abinidi cause what ive leanred so far is its not about numbers, its about planting seeds. Just as long as some can get even a little bit of the message. IT reminds me of a talk we watched from JEffrey R Holland this last week, he said by the time you get home you need to have converted at least one person. And it better have been you. Actually that doesnt really have anything to do with it but I like that. He said a lot more stuff but i dont remember it its in my notebook. I probably could share some good spiritual experiences with you since thats what you probably want but theyre all in my notebook which I dont have with me, I dont keep anything in my memory.

We watched a jacked up Mexican christmas play called something like los posados, maybe ethan knows it. It was so wierd but the dancing was cool and the chicks dresses were sick. It was stupid though baby jesus was obviously a doll, whats the fun in that. And then satan and his little buds came and danced. It didnt make sense. Sunday we had a cool little talk about specific prayers, there were some cool stories from missionaries who prayed for specific things and got them. Like two prayed that tehy would find someone to help, not mention anything about who they were, then as they left, the person they helped would ask about Christ, and they would teach their family, specifically 8 people. And within 10 minutes after leaving the house that whole thing came true. THey even had exactly 8 people in their family. Its crazy but I cant wait to try something like that.

We got to go for the temple again today, but its the last time well go while im here because its closing. It was cool again, the celestial room again was great. Gosh I love that place. But ya i wish we could go more. Oh ya I got called as zone leader on sunday, which kinda means nothing while im in the ccm. Im kinda happy about it guess itll be a good experience, I just thought I would be a penguin on a telephone wire so its feels wierd. Im not sure what else to say, this week I feel like my spanish got way better. I just think of what I want to say way quicker, its pretty sweet. I keep practicing with Mexicans, its really fun. I dont know if i told you about the Mexicans that live in the same casa as us, they were hilarious and were really fun to talk to. ANyway they all left this week and it was sad cause they were the entertainment for us everynight. We had a huge Mexico vs USA pillow fight the night they left, it was brutal. Other than that, nothing really exciting happens all day, just a bunch of studying and mock lessons. Its super fun.

Welp, eche le ganas, ihope you have a good week everyone. Love you

Elder Crisp

Welp, eche le ganas

December 10th, 2013

Sorry that Im not gonna do the usual talk in Spanish thing in emails. Cause I hate Spanish. Its taking over my brain, every sentence I want to throw in something in Spanish. No Im just playing, but I am loving the CCM! Its way different than I expected, its just feels wierd to be a missionary! My district is cool and everything, Ill include some pictures of them. The second day I was here, we already started teaching lessons in Spanish to "investigators", and weve done three total, all of them have actually gone pretty well! I suprise myself when Im trying to think of a sentence and it just comes. I guess thats the Spirit but still its amazing.


My companion, Elder Evans, doesnt know any Spanish, so I literally have to speak the entire 30 minutes, but I try to get him involved, even if its just having him read a scripture or bear the testimony he wrote down in Spanish. Hes cool though, hes trying his best to learn. On Saturday, my instructor Hermano Sanchez was trying to teach him a few things one on one and Elder Evans just wasnt absorbing it. And I tried to help him teach and I think it helped him a little more because obviously my English is better. After wards, Hermano Sanchez took me aside and told me I was an answer to his prayer right there, he said he had been praying the night before about those who struggled in our district, Elder Evans and a Hermana. He said he had no idea how to help them learn better, but he told me that God put me with Elder Evans because I was supposed to help him with the language. He said that was my tarea from God or something along those lines. The instructors awesome by the way, and suprisingly I understand most of what he says cause he pretyy much only speaks Spanish in class.

Sunday was really great, thats when I really started to feel the Spirit, First I was called to speak in Sacrament meeting (where we have the Holy Dinner haha ethan will get it). They told our branch all to prepare 5 minute talks on the restoration, and of course I had to be the one from all the new district to be called. Right before I spoke, there was an elder that bore a testimony, in English, but it was crazy powerful. In like a super sturn voice and with all his passion, he said something like Nobody would suffer all these things for a false book they made up, talking about Joseph Smith. He was almost yelling but in a revernt way, I dont know but it was a good testimony. So then I spoke, just kinda about how GOd prepared the way, with america and everything, for the restoration. It was alright, but it was great practice speaking spanish.

Later on Sunday we watched the Christmas Devo, and the Joseph Smith Prophet of the restoration movie, and the Spirit was good in that meeting, mostly from the movie. Then we sang God be with you to all the missionaries leaving, and it was funny i was like bawling for the other missionaires as they like hugged and stuff. It was so gay of me. haha. I think it was just everything from the Spirit in that meeting built up, and then just let all out, but it was strong nonetheless.

Today we were able to go to the temple, which was awesome, the Mexico temples huge and so awesome. They made us do it with headphones in English and do the veil in English but i wanted to do it in Spanish. I just took the headphones off and I understood everything. In the celestial room I prayed how I can be more Chirstlike, as well as help Elder Evans and I learn better, and I got some good answers. Just to always be looking for ways to help other missionaries cause were all in the same service. I felt that me and Elder Evans should be praying ALL the time for the gift of tongues, just continually praying and i think that will help.

To answer some questions, the food here is kind mexican but they try to make it american, its good anywho. Its all just unexpected flavors ya know. Its just an awesome experience all around here, its a great place to be. Well I hope you all have a good week, I know I will. Sorry I dont know anyones email but you can give this to anyone you want. Paz

-Elder Crisp