And, finally, #3:

The Apple did not fall from the tree.

Monday, January 13, 2014

Hmmmm...what to write about this week. It was kinda an average week, in that we had some highs and some lows. The high was that we got the Spanish elders moved in next door so we basically have a four man apartment without all the drama of living in a four man. We also had Zone Conference where we talked a lot about setting goals with faith and planning with inspiration. You just need to put your whole trust in God and allow to work miracles in your life. And how? Just as the people of Alma did: "...they did humble themselves before him; and because they cried mightily unto him he did deliver them out of bondage; and thus doth the Lord work with his power in all cases among the children of men, extending the arm of mercy towards them that put their trust in him." With that in mind, President Wilson extended a challenge for the mission: to have 50 baptisms mission-wide for the month of March. So these next few weeks are going to be hopefully teaching and baptizing like crazy!!!

The lows in the week though, we didn't get our iPads like we were hoping during Zone Conference, and we haven't been able to get our investigators with a date to church, they are really struggling health-wise and haven't been able to make it at all. Satan is working overtime out here. But the Lord's work cannot be hindered and the missionaries will triumph, for the Lord has said, "...whosoever I will shall go forth among all nations, and it shall be told them what they shall do; for I have a great work laid up in store, for Israel shall be saved, and I will lead them whithersoever I will, and no power shall stay my hand."

This next week lots of things planned, as well as transfer calls this Saturday, so next week will be a longer email I promise.

Love you all and hope you have an awesome week,

Elder Cox

Update #2:

Elders -1, Ministers - 0

Monday, January 6, 2014

This week we had a "discussion" with a minister from a different religion. It was mainly him telling us that we are following a false God and that he need to repent and come unto the true Christ. He said many things that were very slanderous and clearly false, so I think he was just trying to get us angry. But I'm glad to report that Elder Carper and I kept our cool and testified when we could. Unfortunately, he ignored my companion's testimony and threw mine back in my face. Through it all though, I found myself very peaceful (well, for the most part) and I was amazed looking back on it why that was when I very easily could have torn him apart with words then beat him to a pulp. Then I remembered a verse that I had read that morning during studies in 1Nephi 15: "...and whoso would hearken unto the word of God," meaning the scriptures, "and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction." That minister was throwing lots of darts at us, but none of them were penetrating the armor that I had put on that morning. I guess studies do more than give us knowledge, they literally protect us from the "shafts in the whirlwind." So ultimately we "won" the discussion, because our arguments didn't contradict themselves and we never told a lie.

I have also had a headache for the past few days because Elder Carper keeps asking me deep doctrinal questions, that force me to think about eternity. And whenever I do that and think about infinity my mind starts reeling and I feel so insignificant in comparison to the rest of God's creations. But through it all I remember what Nephi said when confronted with ideas and concepts beyond his comprehension: "I know that [God] loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things." It's okay to not understand all aspects of the Gospel, or even of life in general. All we really need to concern ourselves with it our role in the plan and how to accomplish what our Father in Heaven has in store for us.

I love you all and hope that you have an awesome week!

Elder Cox  

I got in trouble yesterday for not updating Ethan's blog. So here we go...

And A Happy New Year!

Monday, December 30, 2013

I hope you all had as merry a Christmas as I did! It was great to see my family again and to hear how much my younger brother's voice has dropped. And saying goodbye wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. In fact after I got off Skype with them, I felt invigorated and had a new determination to be better and try harder, instead of depressed and wishing I could go back to them.

We (Elder Carper and I) also had a chance to spend some time with some investigators on Christmas and make some German potatoes (which are basically funeral potatoes) and spread the Christmas cheer with them. They are really pressed for cash so that was our present to them.

On Friday we went on exchanges with Elder Angles and Gilles which was a blast! I got to go to the Spanish area and play the "dumb gringo" card a lot. What I found interesting was that when people learned that I didn't speak Spanish, they would use what little English they knew to try and include me. Unfortunately, I can't do the same for them: I know some Spanish words and I can pick up the gist of a conversation, but to try and speak it is above my pay grade at the moment. Though I am realizing more and more how convenient it would be to know Spanish out here, if nothing else to ask if they would want Spanish Elders to stop by. But there's still time to figure out the phrasing and I've been around Spanish Elders my whole mission and from the looks of things, I still will be at the rate the work is going. 

In light of the New Year, I want to share President Uchtdorf's remarks last conference that I find very applicable to this time of year: 

"If we see healthy eating and exercise as something only our doctor expects of us, we will likely fail. If we see these choices as who we are and who we want to become, we have a greater chance of staying the course and succeeding."

So set goals that you want, not ones that you feel you are required to do. When you change and improve yourself with a willing heart, then that change lasts longer than if you are compelled to change.

I love you all and will talk to you in 2014!!!

Elder Cox

Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree!  The little tree we sent Elder Cox for his apartment.

Schmidt Tunnel

Explanation of Schmidt Tunnel

Panoramic view at the end of the tunnel - a dried lake bed.

Another view of the dried lake bed.

The light at the end of the tunnel.

Elder Vargas being a "boss" while panning for gold.

Merry Christmas to All!

Monday, December 23, 2013

All,

So if any of you are wondering why the time stamp is so late, let's just say that the internet was not being friendly at the church and I just barely found a computer to use. And we went digging for gold (only 7 flakes of dust to show for our troubles). But does that dampen my spirit's? Not even close! It's Christmas time and the best time of year to increase my faith in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Since I'm a poor missionary and don't have a whole lot of funds or time, I'd like to share my testimony with you as my present: 

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." In these times of trials and uncertainty, there can be peace in our lives. When we draw closer to our Father in Heaven through His Son we can know the joy and happiness that comes from the Gospel. The Atonement of Christ is real and I have seen it work in my life and the lives of others. So while this season is important to remember the babe in Bethlehem, never forget the man in Calvary. For that is the news the angels brought, the "gladsome tidings...which inspired their heavenly song." I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ. I have dedicated 2 years of my life to spreading these truths and to find what my older brother would have me do. I testify of these things in the name of Jesus Christ amen.

I love you all and hope you have a very, very, merry Christmas wherever you are.

Elder Cox

P.S. Elder Carper says hi.

Welcome to Rosamond

Monday, December 16, 2013

All,

Well, I have decided that I don't like transfers at all for lots of reasons. The biggest one is that I end up getting sick. So I apologize if this email doesn't make sense, because it will be brief. I am now serving in Rosamond and the ward apparently is awesome. They give a lot of food to us and make sure that we are always taken care of. I wouldn't know anything about them, because Thursday I got really sick, and am still trying to get better. I don't want to give any details because it's a little embarrassing (but not life threatening), needless to say I'm in pain and not going anywhere anytime soon. My companion is Elder Carper from Layton, UT and has been out for 4 (?) months and is by far the youngest companion I have had so far. But he wants to work and once I get better we are going to kick it! We have three people with a baptismal date and the work has amazing potential here. So I'm excited.

That's really all I can say right now, other than my new address is: 

3400 15th Street West, #57

Rosamond, CA, 93560

Love you all,

Elder Cox  

 

Here's your hat. What's your hurry?

Monday, December 9, 2013

Not much to say about the week. The biggest news is that I'm getting transferred again, to put all the rumors to rest. And I have a feeling that now I'm going to the East side of the mission, since they have been swapping missionaries from east to west and west to east this whole time. So we'll have to see what the Lord has in store for me.

I'll share a funny story from this week though. On Tuesday, the ward goes on to visit less-active members of the ward. I went with a brother (we'll call him Brother Jones for now) to the slums of the ward to visit a large span-am family. We were driving along, when all of a sudden out of the dark this large mutt charged the car. We were driving at a decent pace but this dog was keeping up with us. And even though we were in a car, I was kinda scared. This dog meant business and I knew if we slowed down, he probably would have tried to jump through the window and get us. Needless to say, we sped up and finally lost him at about 25 mph. And that pretty much describes my area. Bon voyage!

So I'll let you all know where I am for Christmas and hope you enjoy the various degrees of winter you are having.

Love,

Elder Cox

Who's up for round 2?

 

Monday, December 2, 2013

As I said in my last email, Elder Taylor and I both got sick. Well I got better, my companion not so much. We went to urgent care (just like Quick Care) and my companion was diagnosed with a upper respiratory and stomach infection, as well as a common cold. So we were confined to the apartment from Tuesday to Saturday so that he could rest and heal. So we did much of the same stuff that we have been for the past week or so. But there were still blessings to be had, the sister missionaries in College Heights were able to contact a former investigator that now lives in our area and set up an appointment to meet with him yesterday. Unfortunately, he either forgot or just plain flaked on us. But the fact that he was still willing to talk to the missionaries gives us hope that we can still contact him and help him to understand better his relationship with his Father in Heaven.

I did have a great experience as I was reading the Ensign, and also thinking about what am I to learn from these past few weeks of sicknesses and trials. As I was reading President Uchtdorf's remarks, one passage summed it all up for me, "Brethren, our destiny is not determined by the number of times we stumble but by the number of times we rise up, dust ourselves off, and move forward." Yes we were beaten physically and brought low. But it only made us humble and increased our determination to serve our Father in Heaven with all the energy we can muster, because now we know what it's like to be called to do something, and not reach the potential that our Father in heaven sees in us; to have a desire to serve and not be able to act upon it. 

So my counsel for you all this week is to read the conference talks!!! Learn about what our leaders have been inspired to say to us in these the last days. Their words are modern revelation, custom-fit to meet any and all walks of life. Especially as next Sunday is the Christmas devotional, you should all watch it. I can promise that the rest of 2013 will be full of brightness and hope if you do.

That's all for this week. Just trying not to count down the days until Christmas when I can talk to my family so I can focus on missionary stuff...here's to not thinking about it!!

Love you all,

Elder Cox