Alright well this email is going to be quick cause I dont seem to have
any time. Today we went to the temple so yesterday we didnt have the
Pday. That is why I am writing today. The temple was awesome today and
I got the opportunindad to do my first session in spanish. It was so
nice to just be able to think of the Lord in His house and listen to
the promptings of the spirit. It is exactly what I needed at this
point in the mission. A little bit about the area. I got another new
companion named elder Avila and he is pretty tight. We had special
changes and so buckwheat got transfered out and I got him. He is
pretty dead and I know the Pres. stuck me with him so he didnt start
wasting his time. We are working hard though and teaching a lot of
people. The Lord has finally started to bless us with a ton of new
people that actually want to listen tho this lesson so i am way hapy.
After 9 weeks of straight looking and knocking doors we are finally
seeing the blessings. I know that the Lord alwsays blesses us after
the trials of our fiaaith. That is what He was doing to me and I am so
grateful for the trials He always gives me. That is when I feel like I
am a real representative of His Son. This next week I will give you
fmore details cause right now i have to plan the district class and
still have a ton of stuff I have to do. I love you mom and dad and
family and hope you have a great week.Thank you for all of your
prayers on my behalf. thank you for everything. รง
elder Burr
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Monday, August 29, 2011
Matt's email 8/29/2011
This week was just a great one. We started out by sending off some of the old guys which was great. It is awkward, however, sitting with all of them in the house of President and his family as they all eat their last dinner and share their final testimonies here in Argentina. It's..... different, but it makes me want to work just that much harder for the time that I have here. I don't know if I have told you, but the two assistants that I am with are both leaving at the end of this transfer so I pretty much have to figure out all this business before they pack up their bags and head out. There is a lot to learn, but it all comes by grabbing the bull by the horns. This week I also had the awesome opportunity to go for a drive with President Avila and show him nascar moves. I was more nervous for that drive than I was for my test flight with that wonderfull FAA woman, but President gave me the ok which means that I can now drive here in Argentina. It's going to be different because nobody here has ever learned how to drive and they all do whatever they want, but we will see how it all goes. Good thing the seat belts work good right?
This weekend was awesome. Elder Harvey and I were out looking up inactive members with the ward list and we came across a family that hadn't been to church in a really long time. At first they didn't want to let us in, but after some salesman technique, they finally let us in and we saw why they were so reluctant. On the table they had a huge bottle of beer and cigarrettes were littering the floor. It really was an aweful sight to see what they had done with the covenant that they had made with God at baptism, but for that reason Jesus suffered all they he did, so that we could be forgiven of our mistakes. We left them with a little message and said we were going to pass by on saturday again to meet the kids that aren't baptized. We showed up on Saturday and had a great lesson with all of them then committed ourselves to bringing waffles yesterday morning to help them come to church. We showed up at 8 with the waffles and they were all waiting for us, ready to eat some fantastic waffles! It was seriously a little miracle that we were able to see. We showed up to church and met up with some other great investigators that we had there and it turned out to be a great meeting, which is always a sigh of relief. So despite all the added responsibility, I just want to say that all is going well and the work hasn't stopped. I love this work. I think I have become addicted to knocking doors and being in awkward situations, but it's a great addiction right?
This weekend was awesome. Elder Harvey and I were out looking up inactive members with the ward list and we came across a family that hadn't been to church in a really long time. At first they didn't want to let us in, but after some salesman technique, they finally let us in and we saw why they were so reluctant. On the table they had a huge bottle of beer and cigarrettes were littering the floor. It really was an aweful sight to see what they had done with the covenant that they had made with God at baptism, but for that reason Jesus suffered all they he did, so that we could be forgiven of our mistakes. We left them with a little message and said we were going to pass by on saturday again to meet the kids that aren't baptized. We showed up on Saturday and had a great lesson with all of them then committed ourselves to bringing waffles yesterday morning to help them come to church. We showed up at 8 with the waffles and they were all waiting for us, ready to eat some fantastic waffles! It was seriously a little miracle that we were able to see. We showed up to church and met up with some other great investigators that we had there and it turned out to be a great meeting, which is always a sigh of relief. So despite all the added responsibility, I just want to say that all is going well and the work hasn't stopped. I love this work. I think I have become addicted to knocking doors and being in awkward situations, but it's a great addiction right?
Marc's email 8/22/2011
Hello Mother it is just me checkin it again and stuff. I will start
out with a summary of my week. Well it started out with us finding a
tight family that has accepted us really well. The mom is named
genoveva and she has two kids. She told us she has been praying lately
and asking for a miracle and when we showed up she knew that miracle
had been fulfilled. She has had many trials in her life but she is
willing to change and do the things the Lord wants her to do. We found
her contacting so that is a miracle in and of itself. I am way happy
to have found her and I know this is a blessing for the hard work and
sacrifice we have put in. Also this week we had the zone conference
which was way good. It started out with the hermana talking for an
hour about how we need to take care of ourselves and start out every
day with some fruit. She explained that before eating anything we
should eat the fruits and veggies first then the real food. Then she
made us all put our hands on the table so she could check our
fingernails.... i think she was making sure we cut them or something.
Then she kept going on about how to do laundry and a whole bunch of
stuff like that. I was pretty bored to be honest haha but then the
Pres talked about trust in the Lord and some of the goals we have. We
have some high goals but also some high promises so I know that the
Lord will help us. Then after everything he pulled me aside and moved
me up to district leader so I am pretty stoked about all of this.
Elder Black from Mapleton is in my district and the district is pretty
tight. There is only one district in the zone so I am also pretty much
zone leader. I know that this is my chance that I have to show the
Lord my true dedication and love. Overall this week was way good. We
have just been working hard and trying to find people. We have seen
many miracles and have had many people tell us that we have something
different. Although they dont want to change I know I represent my
Saviour Jesus Christ. I know all He wanted to do was teach people the
Gospel and even He had people reject Him. I cant complain, I am in the
work of the Lord. I love my calling and I love all of you. Mom and Dad
I hope you have fun in Powell just sittin. Other family members that
are too busy to write me I hope you are all keepin it real and working
hard. I hope everybody is enjoying life and always remembering about
our Redeemer who is Jesus Christ. I love Him and all of you. I hope
you all have a great week.
Elder Burr
out with a summary of my week. Well it started out with us finding a
tight family that has accepted us really well. The mom is named
genoveva and she has two kids. She told us she has been praying lately
and asking for a miracle and when we showed up she knew that miracle
had been fulfilled. She has had many trials in her life but she is
willing to change and do the things the Lord wants her to do. We found
her contacting so that is a miracle in and of itself. I am way happy
to have found her and I know this is a blessing for the hard work and
sacrifice we have put in. Also this week we had the zone conference
which was way good. It started out with the hermana talking for an
hour about how we need to take care of ourselves and start out every
day with some fruit. She explained that before eating anything we
should eat the fruits and veggies first then the real food. Then she
made us all put our hands on the table so she could check our
fingernails.... i think she was making sure we cut them or something.
Then she kept going on about how to do laundry and a whole bunch of
stuff like that. I was pretty bored to be honest haha but then the
Pres talked about trust in the Lord and some of the goals we have. We
have some high goals but also some high promises so I know that the
Lord will help us. Then after everything he pulled me aside and moved
me up to district leader so I am pretty stoked about all of this.
Elder Black from Mapleton is in my district and the district is pretty
tight. There is only one district in the zone so I am also pretty much
zone leader. I know that this is my chance that I have to show the
Lord my true dedication and love. Overall this week was way good. We
have just been working hard and trying to find people. We have seen
many miracles and have had many people tell us that we have something
different. Although they dont want to change I know I represent my
Saviour Jesus Christ. I know all He wanted to do was teach people the
Gospel and even He had people reject Him. I cant complain, I am in the
work of the Lord. I love my calling and I love all of you. Mom and Dad
I hope you have fun in Powell just sittin. Other family members that
are too busy to write me I hope you are all keepin it real and working
hard. I hope everybody is enjoying life and always remembering about
our Redeemer who is Jesus Christ. I love Him and all of you. I hope
you all have a great week.
Elder Burr
Matt's email 8/22/2011
Oh don´t you worry, we will have plenty to keep us busy here. This
past week was just full of different events, but it all ended out
great and we got to work in our area for more than half of the week so
it was awesome. The area that we are assigned to is just a gold mine.
We have found some great people this week and many of them made the
leap of faith by coming to church. There are great members here that
are so excited for the missionarywork. I honestly get more excited for
being in such a great area than I do for being here with President. I
have come to know of the love that he has for this mission and the
excitement that he carries for us. He really is such a great man and
his heart is huge. While we were at the airport waiting for the new
missionaries, he decided to buy us whatever we wanted at the
restaurant in the airport. Everything was super expensive, but the
price just didn´t matter to him. He reminds me a lot of you mom and
dad and that love that you always had for me as your little boy. You
are such awesome examples for me.
I am having such a fun time here on the mission. Everyday I just go
out and have a blast and I absolutely love it. Today for P day we went
to the zoo just me and two other companions. It was just the 3 of us
dressed in suits, but it was still hilarious. I have learned how to
make every moment into the best moment. There have been times where I
have wanted to just kill something, but I have always tried to be
positive and happy and it has always worked out for the best.
I heard a quote that hit me really hard this week. The is not a higher
place on this planet than being on your knees praying to God. I am so
thankful for the power of prayer and the consolation that it brings
into my life and the life of our investigators. I have seen grown men
brought to tears by the miraculous power of prayer and have realized
that God really is the Master of all and that we are his finest
creations. I just want you to know that I love you all and I am
continually taken away by your amazing faith and support on my behalf.
I know I leave some of you hangin on the email replies, but please
forgive me and know that I am doing great and I am happier than I have
ever been!
past week was just full of different events, but it all ended out
great and we got to work in our area for more than half of the week so
it was awesome. The area that we are assigned to is just a gold mine.
We have found some great people this week and many of them made the
leap of faith by coming to church. There are great members here that
are so excited for the missionarywork. I honestly get more excited for
being in such a great area than I do for being here with President. I
have come to know of the love that he has for this mission and the
excitement that he carries for us. He really is such a great man and
his heart is huge. While we were at the airport waiting for the new
missionaries, he decided to buy us whatever we wanted at the
restaurant in the airport. Everything was super expensive, but the
price just didn´t matter to him. He reminds me a lot of you mom and
dad and that love that you always had for me as your little boy. You
are such awesome examples for me.
I am having such a fun time here on the mission. Everyday I just go
out and have a blast and I absolutely love it. Today for P day we went
to the zoo just me and two other companions. It was just the 3 of us
dressed in suits, but it was still hilarious. I have learned how to
make every moment into the best moment. There have been times where I
have wanted to just kill something, but I have always tried to be
positive and happy and it has always worked out for the best.
I heard a quote that hit me really hard this week. The is not a higher
place on this planet than being on your knees praying to God. I am so
thankful for the power of prayer and the consolation that it brings
into my life and the life of our investigators. I have seen grown men
brought to tears by the miraculous power of prayer and have realized
that God really is the Master of all and that we are his finest
creations. I just want you to know that I love you all and I am
continually taken away by your amazing faith and support on my behalf.
I know I leave some of you hangin on the email replies, but please
forgive me and know that I am doing great and I am happier than I have
ever been!
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Marc's email 8/15/2011
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!! In a few days anyway. I dont know if you have
forgotten about your birthday cause you have been so busy but your
bday is just around the corner. The big 50... Thats not too young by
the way. Its alright everybody has to reach that point in their life.
This week was another good week here in Guady. Elder
Carrasco got sent home 4 weeks early so now Elder Martinez and I are
just kickin it. We contacted over 180 people this last week and really
didnt find any new people to teach. It is a struggle here in Estancia
but we are looking and putting our trust and faith in the Lord and I
know we will find some families soon. This message is just too
important to deny and it will touch the hearts of the people that the
Lord has prepared. As His missionary I just need to stay obedient and
work as hard as I know how and I know He will bless me with success.
This week I read a tight little story type thing and it has made me
think alot. I am going to summarize it a little bit. So it talks about
his guy that enters into a file room. He sees a wall that is
completely filled with file cabinets and he starts pulling out the
file cabinets. He opened the one titled "Girls I have liked" and
started reading the names. He realized that he knew every girl and
then realized he was in the file room of his life. He later saw the
file titled "Lies I have told", " People I have disrespected" and many
other files. He also reads the file named "People I have shared the
Gospel with". He starts reading the files and starts feeling the
regret and remorse of all of the things this man has done in his life.
He pulls out the files and tries to tear them in half but realizes he
cant. He then realizes that the files are written with exact details
in the mans own hand writing. At the bottom of every card is his
signature. He starts feeling embarrassed and sad and when He looks up
he sees the Savior. The Savior also has a face of agony, pain,
sadness, but love. He gives the man a hug and takes all of the cards.
The man pleads with Him to leave him alone for the feelings he is
feeling. The Saviour, in His infinate love, takes every card and signs
His signature in blood over the mans signature. The man leaves the
room and realizes the door does not have a lock on it. It doesnt have
a lock because the man still has to live his life. I learned so much
through this story and have thought about my own life. I hope you can
all think about your "File room" and the things that are written on
your cards. The Saviour has paid the price for the remission of our
sins but we must plead forgiveness. He has bled for me so that I might
be cleansed from sin and He is always waiting for us to return to Him.
His arms of mercy are always extended towards those who are willing to
change and those who want to come unto Him. This is the love that He
has for us. I have felt this love so much in my mission and cant deny
that He lives. No I have not seen Him but I have heard Him and I have
felt His presence. I know He lives and I know He loves us. I hope you
never forget the life a man that lived so perfectly. I love Him and
know that I am helping Him in the vineyard. I am so grateful for the
church that He put on this earth and for the plan that He has for us.
My only hope in this life is to be able to return to Him together with
my loved ones. I hope all is well back at home and that you are all
living the dream. I am loving it out here and wouldnt want to be
anywhere else. I love you all and will talk to you next week. Peace out.
Elder Burr
forgotten about your birthday cause you have been so busy but your
bday is just around the corner. The big 50... Thats not too young by
the way. Its alright everybody has to reach that point in their life.
This week was another good week here in Guady. Elder
Carrasco got sent home 4 weeks early so now Elder Martinez and I are
just kickin it. We contacted over 180 people this last week and really
didnt find any new people to teach. It is a struggle here in Estancia
but we are looking and putting our trust and faith in the Lord and I
know we will find some families soon. This message is just too
important to deny and it will touch the hearts of the people that the
Lord has prepared. As His missionary I just need to stay obedient and
work as hard as I know how and I know He will bless me with success.
This week I read a tight little story type thing and it has made me
think alot. I am going to summarize it a little bit. So it talks about
his guy that enters into a file room. He sees a wall that is
completely filled with file cabinets and he starts pulling out the
file cabinets. He opened the one titled "Girls I have liked" and
started reading the names. He realized that he knew every girl and
then realized he was in the file room of his life. He later saw the
file titled "Lies I have told", " People I have disrespected" and many
other files. He also reads the file named "People I have shared the
Gospel with". He starts reading the files and starts feeling the
regret and remorse of all of the things this man has done in his life.
He pulls out the files and tries to tear them in half but realizes he
cant. He then realizes that the files are written with exact details
in the mans own hand writing. At the bottom of every card is his
signature. He starts feeling embarrassed and sad and when He looks up
he sees the Savior. The Savior also has a face of agony, pain,
sadness, but love. He gives the man a hug and takes all of the cards.
The man pleads with Him to leave him alone for the feelings he is
feeling. The Saviour, in His infinate love, takes every card and signs
His signature in blood over the mans signature. The man leaves the
room and realizes the door does not have a lock on it. It doesnt have
a lock because the man still has to live his life. I learned so much
through this story and have thought about my own life. I hope you can
all think about your "File room" and the things that are written on
your cards. The Saviour has paid the price for the remission of our
sins but we must plead forgiveness. He has bled for me so that I might
be cleansed from sin and He is always waiting for us to return to Him.
His arms of mercy are always extended towards those who are willing to
change and those who want to come unto Him. This is the love that He
has for us. I have felt this love so much in my mission and cant deny
that He lives. No I have not seen Him but I have heard Him and I have
felt His presence. I know He lives and I know He loves us. I hope you
never forget the life a man that lived so perfectly. I love Him and
know that I am helping Him in the vineyard. I am so grateful for the
church that He put on this earth and for the plan that He has for us.
My only hope in this life is to be able to return to Him together with
my loved ones. I hope all is well back at home and that you are all
living the dream. I am loving it out here and wouldnt want to be
anywhere else. I love you all and will talk to you next week. Peace out.
Elder Burr
Matt's email 8/15/2011
So this week was one full of surprises and new beginnings. I will have to tell it all very short because we are about to leave and go to President´s house to eat dinner with all the old missionaries but pretty much I got a call on Friday from President Avila telling me that he wanted me to be the next assistant in the mission. At first I didn´t believe him, but he then told me I had about an hour to get all my bags ready and start heading to mendoza in the mission car. So pretty much I left a bunch of work in Amppya and headed down to mendoza to start another page of my mission. On saturday we had to do transfers, which was just an adventure, and today we are calling all the zone leaders to let them know. Tomorrow we are going to receive like 18 new missionaries which means we will have training meetings and airport runs and interviews with president and all that good stuff... It is going to be a lot of work, but I am loving it so far. We have an area that we work in that is a gold mine and in just 1 day of work we have found some great people to work on towards baptism. I am so grateful for this new opportunity to serve the Lord in Mendoza and I will do my best to serve Him with all my heart might mind and strength. Hopefully next week I have some more time to write and fill you all in. I love you all and hope you all have a splendid week!! You are all my heroes!!
Marc's email 8/8/2011
Hey mom garbage taker downer lady how are you? Just your boy elder Burr checkin in from Guady leanin like a cholo. It sounds like your week last week was a tight one. Did you ever have a headache and want to run away? How are Ben and Olivia and their family doing/ How is cam liking St George? That is a lot of news from the ward and I cant believe that the Hansen triplets finished their mission already. That flew by. Matt will be home tomorrow at this rate and I might be home the next day. It is unreal. It also sounds like the shopping days for you might get a little better with the blessings you and dad are raking in. Dont spend all of those benjamins on stupid stuff. Remember to save some for my lazer hair removal. That is awesome though that we are receiving those blessings. We all know why, when we are out here building the Lords Kingdom, He always helps us build ours. Just remember that pride comes with money so dont let that get out of hand. A little bit about the week we had. Elder Carrasco and I just worked like Mexicans here trying to find people to teach and to baptize. It is hard cause the people are too lazy to come to the door so they just talk to us through their doorbell/camera/microphone thing and tell us no. It is pretty discouraging but I know the Lord is going to help us this week. We are going to baptize Liliana this week but she needs your prayers. She wants to get baptized but her husband is just an alcoholic that is always saying he doesnt believe it and he will never pay tithing and the church is just a business. On top of that she has the TJ's going over there saying that the prophet gets paid. I hate the JW's they are so annoying. They are like the fly that is always landing on and getting in your eyes when you are trying to work. I dont know why the Lord just doesnt destroy all of them in their wickedness so they can stop bugging us! ITs alright though the Spirit of the Lord is always with us and that is all we need. Also this week we have a kid that is going to be with us all day everyday cause he wants to do everything we do for a week. We will see if he doesnt start complaining tomorrow from blisters on his feet. Well everything here is going really well. I know this is the Lords work and He is blessing all of us. I know this church is true and it is the only true church. I love my Savior and everything He did for me. I cant wait for the day that I enter His presence to live with Him and my family forever. I love all of you and hope you can all feel the Saviours love this week. I feel His presence every moment and I love it. Well I am out until next week. I love you all
Elder Burr
Elder Burr
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