Week 1 from Azuqueca de Henares

Hey hey hey, 

So I'm in this new area with this missionary who has three months in the mission and is already like the next AP with how awesome he is. He literally goes for it so hard. It's super super cool to see someone so young in the mission be so dedicated and committed to serving the Lord. Elder Barnes is a pretty sweet companion. 

Azuqueca is literally Utah. I felt that way the first Sunday. A little backstory on Azuqueca taught to me by Elder Bennett. Azuqueca is basically the same thing as Utah because all the mormons from all of Spain moved here when the temple was close because property was cheap and it was close to the temple. It's super awesome though. It's a really small town but a huge ward. The spirit was incredible in that meeting as the chapel was filled with faithful members there for all the right reasons and intentions. 

The work is going really good here right now. We have a couple really solid investigators with some serious potential and desires to progress. Our buddy Iván who speaks literally 11 different languages and has lived in 36 different countries and has read the Book of Mormon like 80 times and has been a member of like every church there is besides ours, came to church this last week. The members really dug him and he said that he really felt the spirit of God there, so we are hoping to have a really good lesson with him this week with some big commitments. We also have a couple solid people I don't know super well yet who are on the banks of the river Jordan at the moment. Knock on wood for me but we have a lot of hope right now. It's going to be a long battle to help everyone though. 

Today we had a sweet p day. I went back to parla to see some old friends I know from my time there and it was awesome to see them. My favorite part was going over to Francisco's again. He told us some pretty awesome stories from the past, we listened to some Spanish Flamenco music together, and we admired all the little things he has in his house. That man will forever be my hero. He is such an example for me and for the members of the Parla Branch. 

Some of the funny things that happened to me this week. We were in this house the other day eating dinner and I looked down and saw this turtle on the ground. I asked the members if it was a real turtle and they were like yeah! Did you know that you can domesticate turtles and keep them as house pets? NEITHER DID I. They told me it didn't have a name yet so I thought maybe they had just gotten it. Nope, been there for 6 years now and is basically the 5 year girls equivalent to a dog. It follows her around, sleeps with her, and lives in the house. Turtle-ly rad! Another thing that happened this week is we went to this American shop in Parla where I had asked them to order hot cheetos and root beer 6 months ago. Guess what, my order got there today! We bought a ton. The sad thing is that I left it all in the house of some members in Parla that we visited. Dang.... 

Welp, that's the report troops, tune in next week! 

It's a good thing they left him room to get out.. 

My hot cheetos I almost ate 

My African bud 

Elder Baron

Calle Fuerteventura 4, 2, Office 8B

28703 San Sebastian de los Reyes

Madrid

Spain

We out.....

They kicked me straight outta B8..... oh man it was so so hard to say goodbye. I have lived so close to those people of that ward for the past 6 months, and we had really made so much progress helping those investigators, and now it's just all over..... i will for sure stay in touch because I love that ward and those people. They are my family Man, I got super close with Elder Mangum. The bruises I got from doing MMA during morning work outs will heal but man I'm gonna miss that guy a ton too! 

But I got called to a really really cool ward in this place called azuqueca de Henares. I don't know what it means either, but its a super cool ward with a lot of Spanish people! A ton of the members in Spain moved here when they built the temple in Spain because property was cheap so it's kinda like the Utah of Spain. My old companion elder Bennett served here and we even went to a waterfall back a bit ago with one of the members here, so I feel like I already have some friends too! Elder Bennett told me this is a sweet place too and I have hoped to serve here for a bit now, so I'm pumped!  I'm back to being a district leader and I'm super super pumped to be able to plan district things again. Had a very interesting phone call with president about it all, but I know the Lord sent me here for a reason! My companion is Elder Barnes and he is super awesome! His grandpa was like the first mission president in Spain or something! 

A mission is super hard..... there are a lot of things that happen to you that are just really not the best.... your testimony is tried time and time again, but you come out of each trial with an even stronger person who knows even more afterwards how much the Lord loves you. Life is the same as a mission too! 

Last week was one of the best weeks yet in Barrio 8. We were able to really have some solid meetings and it was super neat to have the opportunity to say goodbye to all the great people here and thank them for all the love they showed me! 

One of the greatest things that happened last week was we finished our temple p day, and went to the house of an investigator that we have been working with since I got here! We've been pushing so hard to help him prepare for baptism and when we walked in, the first thing he said to us was, IM READY TO BE BAPTIZED ELDERS! Wowsers! Our jaws dropped and we were able to really testify with power that he was making the right decision. I wish I could be there to see it, but it brings me incredible joy to see one of my brothers accept the path and make a decision with eternal blessings! I'm so grateful to have been a part of his life! 

Have a good one fam! 

Elder Baron

Calle Fuerteventura 4, 2, Office 8B

28703 San Sebastian de los Reyes

Madrid

Spain

                         My friend Francisco

                My friend Primo!!!!!!!

My MMA buddy Elder Mangum

This guy played Nephi In a ward play being mighty and large in stature

My peeps from Barrio 8!

Scaring the metro driver, meeting new people, and finishing in vallecas

Temple day!

I'm gonna talk about that later.... 

The funniest thing happened last week! We were in the metro train and I was in the first car.... I was just waiting for my stop and then the train stopped upruptly! I was right in front of the locked drivers door when the train stopped, I was the only one to fall over! Not only did I fall over but I busted the door open to the cockpit where the driver was. He looked back at me like what are you doing kid and everyone in the train was laughing at me! Hey! At least those people aren't going to forget who the missionaries are! 

We've met a lot of new people recently! I love teaching new people soooo much! I just love teaching people the restauración! We especially had a really spiritual lesson on a companion exchange I got to do with Elder Mangum! We taught this guy who didn't believe in any churches and told us he absolutely did not think they were necesary. As we taught him about the restauración, he was staring us down paying super close attention. It was so hard to teach him at the same time because he had this puppy that was literally eating my hand off and it hurt so bad while I was sharing the first vision with him. I wanted to react to it but he was staring straight at me and so interested. The Lord helped me ignore the fact that my hand had been chewed off in that moment though. We really felt the spirit despite all that was being done by the dog to distract us. We were able to invite this man to be baptized and he accepted! It was a super super cool experience! 

I think the temple gets better and better every time we go. I can't share too much but I can share that the way I felt today being in the temple was absolutely one of the most incredible things I've ever felt! I truly know that the temple is the house of the Lord! If there is anyone reading this, go to the temple this week. Maybe you have doubts, go to the temple. Maybe you haven't done everything in the temple yet, prepare to go to the temple! It will change your life. 

There is something I want people to know about THE MORMONS... our message is not to convince you that the Book of Mormon is true because it makes sense that Jesus Christ went to America and that there were inspired men there. Our message is to not show you that there are good people who are mormons and for that reason this is a good thing. Our message is not even that this church is true because of any other factor. Our message is that God speaks to us. Our message is that if you read the Book of Mormon and come to church, BUT most of all if you have desires to follow God and if you pray to ask him if this message is true, he will reach out to you! The Lord will fill you with his love, He will answer you very clearly, and He will change your entire life as you follow this path! We are not here to tell you, but He will show and tell you this is true as you do your part. As missionaries of this church, we teach people how they can do their part. It's a glorious experience to watch the Lord change the lives of others as they follow these things, and it's amazing to watch him change your life as you do the same! I know this is true because THE LORD HAS TOLD ME SO MANY TIMES! What I have felt here is the most real feeling of love I know. I invite people everywhere to come experience this joy too! 

Have a great week and go on a mission! 

Love you guys

Elder Baron

Calle Fuerteventura 4, 2, Office 8B

28703 San Sebastian de los Reyes

Madrid

Spain

Ps it's very likely I will be moving soon! 

Is it always this cold in Madrid?

I have been asking this question to everyone in Madrid. It's actually a great conversation starter for contacting people. It's not even that cold here to be brutally honest but I just did not expect anything that cold at all, and it's a harsh contradiction to the winter I was blessed with last year in the Canary Islands. 

Crazy experience this week. We had contacted this guy and set up an appointment with him a week ago and he failed it. Last night we were walking around in the cold looking for people to listen and I thought I saw the same guy who we talked to a week ago that had failed us so I walked over to him and said, "Hello, your Alexander right?" The man looked at me and was like "how did you know my name, we've never met before..." after a couple seconds I realized it wasn't the same guy, and he even showed me his ID to show me his name was Alexander. Anyways, the guy ended up telling us he was in a hurry, so we invited him to read the Book of Mormon, gave him our phone number and left. As we were walking away my companion was like "what just happened?" He said that the two guys didn't even look the same and the guy we talked to a week ago was named Alejandro..... it kinda got me thinking, I wonder if sometimes, just maybe, God takes away the veil and helps us remember things from the preexistence. Maybe, just maybe, I promised him I would bring him the gospel before being born..... one of the many questions I want to ask the Lord some day. 

Another experience yesterday that was really cool was we were able to talk to one of our investigators about how the gospel makes us leave behind so many things that make people happy in the world. Drinking, smoking, clubbing, lying, and all kinds of other things that are claimed to bring us happiness. She began to tell us how empty she felt after trying all those things though. We were able to take advantage of that situation and bear testimony of the blessings of the gospel, and of the real happiness that comes from living the gospel. She expressed a lot of desires to change her life and apply these things with all her heart. I know that she will find true happiness as she does. It is experiences like these that make me incredibly happy as a missionary. It's the best feeling ever when someone really trusts your testimony of all these things you have worked hard to live in your life because you know the blessings that await them. Despite all the rejection and failure, it's all worth it when you find people like that! 

I know that this is the path of Jesus Christ here on earth because It truly is the real plan of happiness. Who do you know that is looking for that happiness in this very moment? Invite them to church this next Sunday and change their lives, but change your life at the same time as you watch them. 

Keep it real guys 

Elder Baron

Calle Fuerteventura 4, 2, Office 8B

28703 San Sebastian de los Reyes

Madrid

Spain

Fotos de Concilio con THE zone leaders and sister training leaders

Zone conference 

We ate this pizza that had this mystery meat on top from Egypt they called chicken and beef, or kebab for my companions birthday yesterday! It was super good! 

Warmer warmer warmer.... freeze Rey! Come on!

Well..... this week was uh, better than last week but another roller coaster. 

First off though, we had some sweet opportunities this week. We painted the house of a divorced women. It was so funny because we brought this young single adult who told us he was basically a professional painter. Well... he had some interesting painting strategies hahaha. We may have hurt the wall more than helped it at times. Also, they eat a lot of raw pig leg here. They just cut the pig leg off and sell it. It's called jamón cerrano. It's actually pretty dang good. We have eaten that a lot the past couple days. Also, we got a bunch of missionaries together and played a rad soccer game today too! That was sweet! 

This week we spent a lot of time talking to people in the streets. Day after day we went looking for prepared people. We've been trying to work with the members for a long time and well, it's going slow. One day was pretty hard.... we were getting rejected by literally everyone in this little town we traveled too and man I was starting to get frustrated to say the least. I remember thinking... "Heavenly Father, this is extremely hard, these people don't want to listen, honestly what do you want me to do here, nothing is working." The next thing that came to my mind was something I needed more than anything. I heard the words, " I just want you to try." I know that the Lord wants me to try with everyone because he loves every single one of his children unconditionally, and who am I to not have the patience with them to love them too! I know that I need to really do all I can to help these people because I have the best thing possible to bless everyone. Everyone deserves a fair chance to listen. 

Another hard thing happened too. We have been praying for months to help this investigator to progress towards baptism... HE FINALLY TOLD US HE WANTED TO PREPARE HIMSELF. We felt the spirit so strong that confirmed to us that this was exactly what the lord wanted him to do.... he changed his mind and said he wanted to wait a little longer before deciding the next day. Hence the caption to this email. But hey, this is his baptism and not mine, and I have faith that the Lord will guide him forward someday soon! 

Missions are hard but you better believe that this is the best thing you will ever do in your life and the most important thing that's happened in my life! 

Keep the faith! 

Elder Baron

Calle Fuerteventura 4, 2, Office 8B

28703 San Sebastian de los Reyes

Madrid

Spain

                               "Pig"

One of my favorite recent converts and best friends left on a trip to Peru

This is one of the coolest guys in our ward and one of my coolest companions Elder Bennett. Single ladies write him, his email is on the list 

One of the members gave me a sweet Argentina jersey that makes me feel like Messi! He wanted to thank us for helping him come back to church, have to say, one of the best gifts I've ever gotten. 

My companion Elder Campbell 

Week 2 of transfer 4 in B8

SOMETIMES you work really hard to fix things in an area, and sometimes despite all your work and prayers, things tumble down. Things fell hard here in Barrio 8 this last week as far as our investigators. We lost everything, and that is no exaggeration. 

It's funny because recently I have felt like I got my fire back in the mission a little bit more. I don't think it ever went out but before this week I felt like I added a little more gas, but the rain really came down..... It's difficult to persevere to the end sometimes.... but if you believe in yourself and if you try to think of the savior, it's manageable. 

Despite the hardships, the Lord blessed us with some really good experiences this week. One of them was seeing a member in our ward really come to bat to help strengthen an investigator we have who is fighting off an addiction. The member had to do the same a long time ago and man did he have inspired words for our investigator. I was so proud of this recent convert of three years who taught with such power and conviction. He really nailed it. He helped me increase my faith as he testified that all things are possible through Christ. 

The mission really makes you max out that's for sure. But what happens after you lift a weight and become even stronger, you only feel better. Sometimes you really gotta feel the burn though. No pain no gain! 

Have a great week everyone! 

Elder Baron

Calle Fuerteventura 4, 2, Office 8B

28703 San Sebastian de los Reyes

Madrid

Spain

0° Celsius

We have bundled up all week and working to stay warm over here. Things are going really really good here. It's a good possibility I've only got a transfer or two left here in Barrio 8 so I'm trying to give it all that I've absolutely got to finish things off! You go through ups and downs on the mission, but the trick is to always find the fire through spiritual experiences and using the atonement to keep moving on. I feel like I've got more fire to give it all I have to the bitter end. 

This week we had the awkward get used to having a new companion change period.... but hey, I really love my companion. He's a super great guy and he's got a lot of the same goals as me. We will carry on... 

I had a really really good experience in sacrament meeting this week. I began to really think about what the gospel has done for me. I think we all live life sometimes on our own. Yeah we do enough to get by living the gospel, but sometimes we kinda loose the faith. We forget the miracles that God is capable of bringing to pass in our lives and for that we don't ask for help. I call that surviving. What I've learned here on the mission and shortly before leaving is that we can live, find the joy God wants us to have, and see miracles on a daily basis when we are constantly on our knees and giving our heart to the Lord.... the more we do that, the more we feel that we are children of a loving Heavenly Father who wants to help us every day to be happy right now and forever in his presence. I know my father lives and loves me too! 

Carry On troops! 

Elder Baron

Calle Fuerteventura 4, 2, Office 8B

28703 San Sebastian de los Reyes

Madrid

Spain