Oct 18, 2014

Dear Family Lloyd,

 

We would like to inform you that your son has been called and assigned to train a new missionary in the Mexico City Northwest Mission because of their outstanding performance.

He has been assigned to train Elder Riveros in the area of Cuautepec in the Stake of Cuautepec.

We have attached a photo of this new companionship below

 

Have a great day

Oct 14, 2014

This picture is of Bennett, his new comp from Peru and Elder Rodriguez that Bennett had the privilege of training a year ago...he will also be training.

This last week has been a good and a challenging one. The last week of the change is always hard and who knows why there were a lot of speed bumps as well and road blocks. (great people not coming to church, appointments falling through, no one, people lying. Etc,) Those typical mission problems. But we kept fighting through. 

We have found a lot of great people lately. We are working with a great family that were progressing well, named the family Camacho.. they are a family of The mom and dad and 3 over the age of 19 and a 9 year old girl, the two bigger sisters both have babies but we only teach the 9 year old Jenni, and the Parents. The dad works fixing cars and as they started to come closer to the church and to the Lord came problems, mainly in economic terms. That business is one that is obviously up and down, but he explained to us that in the last two months for the first time ever he has had almost nothing. He looked at us in a lesson and said, "I am scared a lot of times, because sometimes I don't know how I"m going to give my family food to eat." and for this reason they have not been going to church and doing the commitments we leave them. We taught them that through, and only through exact obedience we are blessed more than we can imagine. At first we may have a lot of trials, but like it says in the scriptures, the testimony doesn't come until AFTER the trail of faith, if not it would not be faith. 

And during the week I heard an incredible story of this very principle. There is a member in the ward named Jonathan, he as well is going through a lot of financial difficulties. He is a member that is always helping and supporting the missionaries. We are always calling him to help the Hermana Paz (that just got baptized) to help bring her to church when everyone falls through. He told us a story that 2 weeks ago they were getting ready for church and his little daughter says, That's weird the elders haven't called us yet to go get the Sister Paz. And he replied, That's good, so now we can go in peace.. That day the person that day fell through to take her back, so we asked him and he willing said yes. He went on to tell us he was driving and all he could think about is that he didn't know what he was going to give to the family to eat, because he had no money at all. Then without him saying a word about it to anyone the Sister Paz looks at her and says, How about you guys stay at my house to eat today. And explained that she has enough for everyone... There is the blessing in loving and serving everyone. The Lord knows what he is doing, and when we do our part in loving and serving, it opens the doors up for the Lord to bless us. 

I have been put with a new comp, fresh from the MTC and from Peru. I know he will be great. He has help from both sides, before we headed out to work today, he told me. I'm doing this for my mom. I looked at him and said that's great Elder!! Then he explained to me that she passed away from blood cancer when he was only 6. He and his sister are the only members in his family of nine. But I know his testimony will get back to his house..... The Lord knows what he is doing. 

I love you all so much. 

Elder Lloyd 

Sep 29, 2014

Well, Don't have much time. But just want to tell you all how much I love you, and how much I appreciate your love, support, and prayers. Not possible to thank you all enough. Everything is going well here, pushing along to bless as many people as possible and become the men that God desires of us that we be! Hope all is well with everyone! 

Love from Mexico City the DF! 

Elder Lloyd.

September 22, 2014

First off, sorry for not writing in a long while! ha 

Buuuut this was a good week, a hard one due to this last week being the 15 of Sep. here which is the day of Independence of Mexico in other words = everyone get your beers, blow stuff up, and shoot your pistols in the air. haha  Soooooo, we could go out to work Monday, and Tuesday in the house at 6 o'clock. With that being said we got to participate in a great baptism of a lady that we have been teaching that we love so much. The Sister Paz, she is 79 years old and so nice. She has so much faith! She is bound to a wheel chair due to her age and some infirmities, but that doesn't stop her from going to church, every week we go to the house of her, with a member or in a taxi to get her, and we get her in the car and ÁNDALE pues! Off we go. It was a very cool baptism, it took the efforts of the member and my companion and I all dressed in white to get her in the water and baptized, but there was a great spirit there without doubt! 

She is such a great example that no matter our circumstances we can push through and complete our duty to God. Even though it pains her a lot, she always says, you guys don't worry, I have the faith in Jesus Christ! 

Love you all and hope all is well! 

love Elder Lloyd

September 1, 2014

So I have received what looks to be my last change in my mission.Yeah whaaaaaat? Right? Ha it is a..... strange feeling, and I don't know how to describe it. I am back to the Zone where my first and second areas are and looking forward to seeing miracles! It was great in my last ward and definitely left an impact on me. But here, I am knowing that there will be miracles, oh and I have a Second Elder Garcia at my side. But this one's from Veracruz, Mex.

This morning and last night I was thinking a lot about something that we see a lot in our life's through out different stages. That is that we don't realize how much, or even that we are impacting the people around us with all of our actions. I think that my favorite and one of the best examples of this is the story of Abinadi in Alma. He was so true to the Lord and His will. He fought to do what he knew was right and do what the Lord required of him, and in the end he was rejected and killed. And in what I think he was probably feeling and thinking he had not impacted or helped anyone, and not knowing that he had. Alma the older, from his words and his faithfulness to the Lord, lit again a fire in Alma to return to what he knew was right, and in turn changing thousands, even millions of lives, and even today lives are changing too. And we now have almost the rest of the Book of Mormon because of it. I know that through our faith, love, and obedience we will change lives. And we never need to get discouraged because the Lord will always use our efforts to help His children. 

I love you all so much. Hope everything is well.

Love Elder Lloyd 

August 25, 2014

Another week of missionary work in the books. This week was another week of crazy missionary work, ups and downs, highs and lows, I heard it is boring when you get home... I don't doubt it, the mission can feel like driving fuel one cars, and it will probably feel like driving bumper cars when I get home. (The little ones that your to big to fit in, but you do it anyways)

We had the great blessing of being able to be the part of the baptism of Emmanauel this week, it was so great and filled with the spirit. I cant wait to see in 7 years when he goes on the mission. Before his baptism you people would ask him why he wanted to be baptized, and he would respond, "Because I want to follow Jesus Christ, and I want to go on the mission." He is a great kid and will be a great strength for his whole family!

This week we were on divisions and I stayed in our area and another Elder came with me. As we were doing our contacts through out the day, coming to the end of the day this Elder looked at me and said, whats going on here? the contacts we do here are so different, so many people that we contact seem ready... That got me thinking Why? We are just one area over, Its different, but not to much. We do try to do them by the Spirit, but know that they do as well. And I got to thinking it came to me. Where I am in the area/ward called Ward Plazas. It is by far the BEST ward I have been in. The Bishop rick is so strong, loving, and active in the ward, along with the members, And it hasn't always been like that, it started form the top with the new bishopric in the past year. And everyone being loving and willing to follow, great members. I came to a conclusion that I had thought about awhile back. That obviously it starts with the missionaries and their obedience first and for most the biggest thing, but after that, is that this area is so blessed. Heavenly father knows that he can bless us as missionaries to bring these chosen sons of His to the fold, and then the members there will take care of them and make sure they don't go astray, through love and nurturing.  I have realized from this thought process, and through out my whole mission. That the decision  we make, and our obedience does effect SO many people, in a direct or indirect way. Those who are on the earth and those who are to come. President Erying has said that he is living blessings form his ancestors. I can as well testify to that, through the obedience and love to their Heavenly Father, my Ancestors from my parents, grandparents great great grandparents, and farther back, have and continue to bless me right now in my life. I never understood and still don't really know why I have been so blessed the way I have, but I know that is a huge part. And how grateful I am! As well for being able to serve in this ward. Learn, Apply, grow, become more like the Savior. 

Iove you all so much

Elder Lloyd 

August 19,2014

A week full of preparing for conferences, conferences and meetings. But a good one none the less.The misión is learning a new principle which I love and that we are putting in practice and seeing the truthfulness of it and the miracles that come hand in hand. It is based off of Mosiah 27 When the Angel comes to Alma and the Sons of Mosiah and changes theirlives and in turn changes thousands of others. In the misión obviously, we find and teach many people. We, many times are blessed and find people that are ready to accept the Gospel in their lives and to move forward and will do what it takes. Others more times than usual, and especially here in Mexico it is not the case. Many love to listen, and love what we say. But keeping commitments and progressing in the Gospel is a different ball game. Many times we are teaching many people and great things are happening, miracles really. But getting them to come to church and things is hard. At times we get frustrated and say, "We cant forcé them to do these things, we cant take away their free agency,they have to want these things." Well in Mosiah 27 and especially verse 14 teaches us something incredible, and gives us an incredible tool for life.

As we know that Alma and his Homies (sons of Mosiah) were going around literally trying to destroy the church of the Lord. Then an angel came and changed the whole story, and in verse 14 we find out how and why. I love Reading this first, we find that it was for the prayers and the faith of his city and his father, that loved them so much. It was not for the faith of Alma and the sons of Mosiah, but their faith. We can apply this in the lives of our loved ones, in the lives of the Lords investigators here. We cannot take their agency, but the Lord CAN change their will! through our faithful prayers and faith. Do we love these people enough to stay on our knees and plead for them?

We have seen the miracles from this principle in this last week. The parents of the 11 year old child Manuel accepted to talk to us, prayed AND felt a difference, went to church, AND accepted to let him be Baptized this week. The Lord has softened their hearts. As well as the family we felt their Dad was ready we hadn't talked to him in about a week. And We went last night and at the end of the lesson he said. I know that it is time that I come together with the family and get baptized, I will say, not this week, but the next, and set his own date. The missionaries have tried for years with him with nothing, and he set his own date for us. We then explained to him that he had to first go to church and prepare himself, and then we would love to have it happen. So he said, "Okay so I will do that, then I'll get Baptized."

Lots of prayers on the knees of many people being answered. I know that this is a blessing that we can use in our lives always! and I know one that I will use in the future. The Lord loves each one of His children, Christ lives and still performs miracles through the faith in Him. I know that.

Love you all

Elder Lloyd