Hay Amor!!!

Hola mi familia!

One of the things I love most about the mission is seeing how much enjoyment comes out of the little things! Here are a few of the big and little things that happened this week!

-We had 3 days of training in McAllen and boy did we learn a lot!!! It was great to see former companions and missionaries I lived with and we saw lots of great miracles during the night times (we were in training from 10-6 and then had 3 hours each night to work).

-Elder Ayers and I participated in 4 musical numbers...it was super fun! One of which I got to accompany an Elder singing a solo for Be Still My Soul, and then Elder Ayers and I sang a duet with guitar of "I love to look for rainbows." It was great! Music and missionary work make such a good combo!

-Saturday I was back in Mercedes on bike and we found some really cool people to teach! We talked to a guy on top of a gas station roof who was looking for a church, felt impressed at one point to knock on a car window and that led to us helping a lady take in her groceries and then we taught her and her sister, and then we also met a few people that knew some of our members back in Alamo! It was really cool! I worked with an Elder Child who’s from Northern Utah and he's been with me both in McAllen and Brownsville! He’s a great friend and it was really good to spend the day learning from him! It was great being on a bike too...we even got a little rain!

-Sunday- We had some really good talks at church on forgiveness and charity!!! One thing one of the speakers said that really stood out to me was the fact that charity is being able to see a need in someone around us, then feeling a desire to help them and acting upon it in faith! I have a long way to go!

One of my new favorite scriptures is in 2 Peter 1! Here Peter talks about the process it takes for our faith to be transformed into charity! Elder Ayers and I looked at this list of characteristics and put it into a pyramid and it was interesting the progression!

5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;

7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Or
                                                                                              charity

                                                                        brotherly kindness

                                                            godliness

                                                patience

                                    temperance

                        knowledge

            virtue

diligence

The higher we get up on the scale! The higher our love grows! My favorite part of that verse though is the end where it says that as we develop these qualities or "Christ-like attributes" the more we come to know our Savior!!! What a beautiful thought! I know that charity never fails and that people never forget the ones that love them! I know that the greatest form of charity comes from the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He loves each of us!

Con amor y animo!!!

Elder Cook!!!

Hasta Ver!!!

Hola mi familia!

We’re doing really good down here in South Texas! The temperature got down to 33 this week and boy was that cold. No worries though...today we’re back up in the 80's again! It feels so good to have the heat back...hopefully it’s Springtime now!

We received transfer news this week! I’m staying here in Alamo/San Juan/Pharr which means I’ll be Elder Ayers’ final companion! We were both really excited and happy to hear the news! We had a lot of changes in the missionaries who serve around us but the new missionaries who are coming are good friends as well! Today I’m short on time so I'll just share a few thoughts I sent to Scott earlier today!

Being in South Texas is all just one big Eternal summer. Today we got up early to go take breakfast to some Elders getting transferred and as we drove home from Weslaco to McAllen I had the strangest sensation that I was back in time at the start of my mission. I felt as If I still had a whole two years ahead of me! Looking back it feels like I’ve climbed a huge lighthouse and I see all the stairs...but when you look up and out you can see and savor all the beauty for miles. I’ve decided the easiest part of ending is that most of my mission friends have been older than me in the mission or will be ending just a few months after me! The hardest part...well...I think it’ll be the release itself. Lately I’ve noticed how strangely people act around missionaries. Unconsciously they can sense in their spirit that we really are representatives of Jesus Christ and so they often behave the same way towards us as they would behave if the Savior was there. Last week for example we taught Rene about the Word of Wisdom. We committed him to live it and he accepted and then took about 15 minutes to just unload his burdens about how he had felt unappreciated at work and in his family. It was completely unrelated...but I could tell that that's what he would have told the Savior if He were there! People just often need to speak about the problems and troubles in their lives and because the Savior has suffered and experienced all of it they can feel that as they open up and share these things with His representatives they will feel peace and happiness. It really taught me the principle of being a representative of the Savior. How grateful I am for the authority and power of the calling of a missionary!

I’m so grateful to be a representative of Jesus Christ. I have a testimony that He lives. I am His disciple and my commission is to say what He would say, to do what He would do, and to minister to the very people He has sent me to in the way that He would if He were here. The happiness I am experiencing on my mission is greater than any other of my life before or that I’ve yet found in this world! Missionary work really is the best!

Con amor,

Elder Cook!

From February 3 - Judges 15:3-6 (La razon por el cual el auto dominio es tan importante!)

Hola mi familia!

All right: highlight moments from the week:

1) Round II with the dog that bit me! We went back to the same house (my companion had planned that house the night before and didn't tell me which house on that street we were going to....which is good because otherwise I might have objected) and this time as we walked up through the gate we saw no dog and I confidently told Elder Ayers "Let’s go, no one ever gets bit by the same dog twice!". About 5 seconds later the monster dog came charging at us and this time I had my backpack off and started swinging like crazy in 'defense mode!' Luckily the owner was nearby and no harm was done to the dog or my left ankle. It turned out to be the home of a recent convert who we thought had moved to Corpus but really was still living there! We had a great lesson and he referred us to a friend who we’re now teaching as well!

2) We had 2 different exchanges and Elder Stott (from BYU) taught me a lot about trusting in the Lord and working with urgency!

3) Played some morning basketball (Elder Ayers...my 6"7 companion has gotten a lot better since he figured out the art of dribbling and that if he gets closer to the hoop it’s pretty much impossible to block him!)

4) Sunday was a fun day! Everyone and their dog had a cookout so as we went by visiting people we had plenty of carne asada offers and even some pan dulce! Every house has a fence, a dog, and a homemade barbecue made out of a tire rim and scrap metal! I love the Valley!

5) I had some really great studies from the Bible this week reading in the first few chapters of James and then in Judges as well (Samson’s pretty crazy!).

All in all...it was a great week!

I am so grateful for the opportunity the Lord has given me to serve a mission. It helps me so much to feel my Heavenly Fathers love, to see the hand of the Savior in my own life and the lives of those around me, and to learn from the Spirit as I study, pray and serve others! Often people ask us why we come to South Texas to serve as missionaries and my answer usually comes out as something along the lines of "well, we know these things are true and we've seen the blessings and happiness that have come into our lives by living these things and we want to share them with everyone." Lately I’ve pondered that a little further and realized how much I keep going through that same process over and over again. Before my mission I knew how to believe in the gospel, how to learn it and to teach it and to some extent apply it to my own life. Here in South Texas I think that more than anything I’ve learned how to live the gospel, and how to make daily changes to live more accordingly with the plan that I know my Father in Heaven has for me. The most exciting moments of our week this week were times where Elder Ayers saw the families and individuals we're visiting making changes to come closer to God or to see those good changes from the past become firmly cemented and rooted into their character. We've got a great friend named Rene who continues to show us what it means to be completely honest with yourself, with God and with your fellow man. Another lady Lupita has such a great desire to learn things from the scriptures that she can put into practice today to help her become a better mother and wife. Another young woman, who recently went through a painful separation, has taught us how recognizable the peace of the gospel is! I love it! It’s great to see the light of Christ come into their lives and direct them to the truth! As I see people on my mission making changes and losing their old worldly selves as they are reborn in Christ it reminds me of the Savior’s words:

23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.

25 For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?

I know the Savior expects so much of us and the reward will be great and we have so much to gain in this life and the life to come if we take up our cross daily in following His example!

Be happy and make a good change this week!!!

Con amor,

Elder Cook!!!!

P.S. Whenever we teach we say an opening and a closing prayer. One of us missionaries always says the first one and then last one is said by the person who’s being taught or who we’re visiting! Time after time they always pray for our families! So remember...the people you pray for often pray for you as well! It’s such a great thought isn't it?

Lo mas amor que tienes, mayor sera tu gozo!

Hola mi familia!

I'm grateful that Heavenly Father is a patient Heavenly parent with each of us! He knows us perfectly and always wants us to be happy! Here are some of the things that brought me happiness this week or made my week interesting!

1) Spoke 4 days of all Spanish (it was for our mission language program...and it was all Spanish except with English speakers) it was a good stretch and by day 4 Elder Ayers was missing speaking to me in English!

2) Thursday we had some rain blow down from Ohio and it got down to 33 degrees! I was in our area on exchanges, will Elder Ayers was on a bike over in Donna!

3) We discovered a new healthy snack for our lunches....a quarter of a green pepper with ranch dressing, a carrot and a cheese cube on top!

4) A man that we visit named Rene, has a super strong testimony (he literally told his son - I testify to you that the things these missionaries share with you will bring you more peace and happiness!) and sets a really good example of what it means to have integrity!

5) More visits with some of the returning less active members in the English ward and "finding" a few good families in the Spanish as well!

It was a fast week and full of work! The biggest lesson I learned this week was the importance of always learning and always recognizing our weaknesses...because if we don't...it becomes harder to place our trust in the Lord or harder to show that we have confidence in Him and His power. At this point in my mission I've really seen how I’ve been placed in areas or situations where the Lord needed and not necessarily the place where I thought I needed to be. It’s been a good lesson to learn how to change my attitude from wanting to be where I need to be to wanting to be where the Lord needs me. Elder Ayers is a good example of a missionary who has that outward focus and he teaches me a lot! If I’m ever down or a little disanimado he quickly makes a joke or finds a simple joy or something amusing! It’s such a blessing to never be alone on the mission! Here are a few of my favorite verses from Proverbs 3 on placing confidence in the Lord and relying on Him:

3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:

4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

I know the Lord sees all of our paths and knows the guidance we need now. If we follow and acknowledge Him at all times...we will be at peace even during the most difficult times! The Savior was such a good example of this and invites us as always to follow up. When we're weak, but acknowledge the Lord, we become strong!!!!

Have a great week!!!

Con amor,

Elder Cook!

El sapo a la sapa tienela por muy guapa (its a dicho!..beauty is in the eye of the beholder)!

Hola mi familia!

January is moving along and things here in Pharr/San Juan/Alamo are going great! Tuesday and Wednesday I spent the day back in Mercedes on exchanges and it was again wonderful to ride those same streets and see things again from the perspective of the missionary I was when I got to South Texas. Being there really helped me gain a deeper perspective as far as where I am now and the effect of what has occurred during my mission!

I really love serving my mission here in South Texas. I’m grateful for all the companions and missionaries I’ve served with, the members, the people I’ve taught, the places I’ve been, the things I’ve learned and the ways that Heavenly Father has helped me grow and change. The best moments of my mission have been days where we've set out to do something or helped someone, done our very best, seen miracles and divine intervention, and then afterwards felt satisfied that some good in the world has been done and that some of Heavenly Father's children are progressing towards returning back to His presence. I’ve realized that the joy and happiness I feel comes from service! Because the mission, is nothing but that! Recently, my testimony has become stronger on prayer. Prayer helps me focus. It helps me feel God's love. We teach people about prayer everyday and I don't think I’ve done a good job in recognizing the power it has to change hearts, minds, lives and situations.

On Sunday as I sat and partook of the sacrament and read of the story of the Savior’s atonement in Luke 22...I realized that the greatest act of love ever shown toward mankind, occurred during the prayer from Christ to His Father. I’m grateful for Christ’s example and the power that we can feel and experience in our lives because of that prayer!  The story goes as follows:

39 And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him.

40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.

41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,

42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.

44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

45 And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow,

46 And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

Prayer is such a small and simple thing. At times it can seem like the easiest thing to do, but at other times the hardest. I know that prayer heals our soul. Prayer will allow God to give us answers in our lives. It allows us to see what we can’t see from our normal everyday perspectives. prayer brings us testimony. Prayer brings us peace!

This week...some of my goals are to improve my Spanish work ethic! To serve my companion more! To enjoy the weather each day! To play piano for at least 30 min!  To make sure my clothes are all folded and ironed! And to make sure each prayer I say is specific and sincere! It’s going to be a great week!!!!

Thanks for all of your love and support! Kind words letters, packages (especially the ones with food! woohoo! Elder Ayers is grateful for the lunches he hasn't had to prepare...we’ve shared with other missionaries as well too!) and of course...your prayers!

Con cuidado porque hay un elefante que le esta mirando!

(no mas para ver quien hace un esfuerzo cuando digo algo en espanol!)

Con amor,

Elder Cook

El Valle es mi hogar!

Hola mi familia!

Woohooooo! The warm (or at least semi-warm) weather has snuck back! It was so good to actually sweat a little bit this week! Our little south Texas winter seems to be over and the sweaters are back in the closet! It’s interesting how big of an effect the weather has on our lives! One of my favorite things about sunny days down here is that the sunsets at the end of the day are beautiful! Especially in Alamo where there’s lots of fields and agricultural areas and the skies are wide open! A few days this week we took advantage of the warm weather by taking walking days during the daytime hours so we could go out and talk to more people. In the evenings as we got back to the truck and drove to our teaching appointments, we would be driving just as the sunset was ending and the colors in the sky were gorgeous! It was a great pick me up!

One great miracle this week was the Salazar family! They’re a less active family we've visited since Christmas and after coming to mutual on Wednesday (they have 4 girls -15, 14, 12, & 8 and 1 boy, Charles- 6) they attended church on Sunday and Ashley, the oldest, even brought a friend. They’re one of my favorite families here and we have a lot of fun when we visit them! They all wear cowboy boots and have bonfires out in the backyard and being at their place feels more like the Texan half of the Valley than the Mexican half! We're also teaching one of their neighbors who have been going through a hard time recently and it really has been a strong testimony to me of the importance of helping less active members return to church! Before, I used to always have a strong desire to find a complete family that we could teach and baptize and I had felt that I could get close but a family member or two was just always missing. Looking back now, I can see that my mission really is full of families in those less active members who have come back to church. They mean as much to me as those people who were investigators and I know the Lord has put them in my mission to bring me peace and happiness!

This week my testimony has grown on the importance of work! Elder Ayers my companion has shown me a good example of the effectiveness of multitasking and I’ve found that the harder the work, the more the Spirit prompts me to work in more effective ways! The Savior promises us this blessing as we work to bless His sheep:

2 Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day.
3 Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work;
4 For behold the field is white already to harvest; and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul;

(D&C 4:2-4....dad! I remember working hard to memorize those verses when we were young! That was such a good lesson for me!)

I know that each of us have been give a specific work to do in this life and that as we honor our callings and responsibilities- whether they be temporal or spiritual- the Lord will bless us and cause our efforts to flourish! I’m grateful Mom and Dad and Scott for all the hard work you've shown me and the examples of everyone else in my life! Sprint to the finish!!!!

Con amor

Elder Cook

Que Dios les bendiga

Hola mi familia!

This has been a great year all ready!!! Already I think it’s been one of the hardest working weeks of my mission and the joy and satisfaction you feel after working hard is priceless! With the changes of transfers things have been pretty busy and exciting! My new companion is Elder Ayers...he stands at a modest 6"6 and I often feel like a dwarf or a little kid just tagging along side of him! He's a spiritual giant as well and has taught me a lot about the importance of listening to others and treating them with love and respect even if they’re not interested in what we have to share or even if they’re not ready to act on the message! He’s really good at cleaning the apartment, speaking Spanish, and bearing testimony! 3 great qualities to have in a companion! He'll be going home in March so I might possibly be his last companion!

We had a really fun week this week getting to know all the new missionaries! For New Years Eve we got to watch a movie! Mulan! It was a lot of fun and I think we'd all forgotten how good the music was! All the missionaries had a fun time! Not staying up to 12 though made it hard to feel like New Years! I’m not connected at all to 2014!

Thursday we had a pretty cool miracle! We'd decided to take the bikes and go to a less visited part of our area! After talking to a few people outside we decided to take a back way over to a different neighborhood...it required an arduous bike ride through the mud but we got there ok! After we stopped by the house we were intending to visit, we found no one home and decided to take a lap around the block! The first man we saw was a man named Kirby! We went and talked to him and he shared with us that he was going through a tough time in his life and had felt a strong desire to do something to come closer to God! We had a great talk with him and the words in the Book of Mormon helped bring him peace and comfort! I'm grateful that God loves us and knows exactly when we are going through trials and what we need! I know that the scriptures hold power and that the Lord is always putting people in our path to bless our lives and help us to grow stronger! The best feeling as a missionary is when you talk to someone who says " I was just praying the other day for God to help me in some way" or "I’ve been going through a rough time" or "I’ve had questions about x" and being able to know with 100% certainty that God has placed you in their path and that the restored gospel has the relief or answers they need!

I love being in South Texas! The sunsets are still super cool! Each day is a fun day and a great day to be a missionary in the Texas McAllen mission! I’m so grateful to my Heavenly Father for the lessons He has taught me and for the people He has put into my life through my mission! For me my mission hasn't been much of a sacrifice in terms of worldly things like time or money, but in the weaknesses and shortcomings in myself that the Lord helps me change and overcome!

Que Dios les bendiga and I hope this week is the best you've had so far this year ;)

Con amor,

Elder Cook