December 12, 2011

December 12, 2011
Well, I had a nice letter all written out and I was just doing some spelling changes and my computer shut off. Apart, it’s been a little bit of a stressful day I will try to be really quick.
The coolest thing that happened this week was that we went with Pati, (the girl that was baptized last week). We went with her on Tuesday and it was fun to see the look in her eyes. It’s the little glint that makes us different. We had a really powerful lesson and we asked who else she wanted to feel what she was feeling. She immediately said that she wanted her sister to feel what she was feeling. It was cool to see her desires to share the gospel. We were leaving and her sister just happened to be coming back from shopping or something like that. It was another cool lesson. I loved it. Apart from that we are teaching her uncle too. On Saturday we really let him have it. We talked and I finished saying something like, “really you don’t want a life free of addictions? Really you don’t want to be happier than you have ever been? Really, don’t you want everything that you have ever done to be erased? Really?” I remember that he felt like I dominated the lesson. Then my companion piped up and let him have it from the other side. It was super powerful. We came out feeling super energized.
Apart from that Friday was a really cool day too. We had 5 little opportunities to help other people through small acts of service. We came back to one of the houses later and we found a guy that had already drank a few beers. We helped him to see what was going on in life. I remember asking him, why he drank and he said because he said he felt sad. I later asked why he felt sad and he said that that was a good question. His name is Sindulfo and something interesting about him is that his two front teeth have metal stars on them. From what or why I have no idea.
Well I have to go or else it’s going to make everything else late. I had this typed out in the other letter and I really like it a lot so I want to write it on this letter too. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that His church was established, but after his death, fell. I know that this same church was restored through the prophet Joseph Smith. I know that he (Joseph Smith) was a prophet because I have read the Book of Mormon and I know that it is true. I know that no man could write it if it was not called of God. That is how I know that this is the only true church on the face of the earth. I have been taught and revealed this by the power of God. And the coolest part about all of this is that I know that whosoever desires to know these things with real intent can by this same power. For those of you, who are not familiar with this power, welcome to the Holy Ghost. It is the most important part of my service. While reading these emails for the past few months I have tried to put in a little message. Every time you have read this paragraph at the end, you have felt something, almost like you could breathe a little bit more. And you liked it. It was something that you enjoyed. This is the Holy Ghost testifying that my words are true. In these next few months that are left, read these last paragraphs and look for these feelings. I know that you will find them. For those of you who have questions I’ll see you in a few months.
Con Amor,
Elder Mackay


The pictures are the baptism of Pati last week, along with Elder Garcia, the church building in Play del Carmen and Pati's family.

November 28 and December 5, 2011

December 5, 2011
Well it seems like it has been a really long week and that a ton has happened. It wasn’t a long week as far as in bad long, just long as in a lot happening. This week I also grew a week closer to the end. It’s crazy to see how much is left. I don’t like it.
To start out, I got the Christmas package this week! (I figured if I wasn’t supposed to open it, it would say something like on my birthday package). Well, I’m wearing one of the new shirts right now. It’s really nice to see how white a new shirt is or can be. Also I got the new watch on. One of the new features that I like is that is the timer. Apart I really like the peppers! It’s about a six or so on the scale mom. It reminds me a lot of nacho cheese. It is what I use to stay awake in my personal studies.
The biggest thing that happened this week was the baptism of Pati. One of the big lessons that we had to finish off the week was the Law of Chastity. My companion and I had it planned out really well and we knew exactly what we were going to say. It can be a little bit awkward trying to teach this lesson to a fifteen year old girl but it turned out being a really strong lesson and it helped her see the reason why. I had the opportunity to baptize her too. I got to use the new pants and tie. It felt good to put on that white clothes again. She was super happy and right after she talked about getting the gift of the Holy Ghost. It was really cool to know that she understood. Also she really wanted to start the process of getting baptized when she saw a baptism before. Now she finally knows what it feels like. It was good.
The big thing this week is a family that we are going to work on. There are three kids and a mom on one side, but the other side is a dad and his son from another woman. We are teaching a few lessons there because there are different levels of what people need. We haven’t really been able to talk to the dad much. He’s not super excited about it yet, but the kids are. I think I talked about it last week when I talked about how we had a lesson with a young girl and four other kids. It’s a crazy deal trying to get everything done. But we are getting there.
Well it’s all cool. This week I had an interesting spiritual experience. We got into a house and we had a talk with a lady. She wasn’t super crazy into it, but trusted us enough. We asked her what was a question that she wanted to know about life. She wanted to know about how come things had to be so hard for little children. I talked to her about how sometimes, we don’t understand why things are so hard. But, they do have good endings if we do what we are asked. I talked about how it was sad how my new niece was born basically without a mother. And also how come she had to end up in an orphanage where there isn’t any food. Why did it have to be so hard for her. Well, it had to be like that so that my brother and sister could make her a part of the family. If it wasn’t for that what she had to go through, she wouldn’t be a part of the family. I would rather that she had to go through it.
Con amor a todos.
Elder Mackay


November 28, 2011
What a crazy week! It’s been long because we have been in the wheelchair the whole week, but it’s had its rewards. One is that we have found some really cool people to teach. Two is that we have been able to see the progression on my companion’s foot and three is that I don’t have any trouble falling asleep at nights. Although twice I have accidentally woken up in the night thinking that it was already six. I pray and then make sure that my companion is up. When he’s not up I wonder why and go over there to wake him up. On second look at a clock, I realize that it’s about one in the morning and I roll back into my hammock. We just laugh though. This week has been interesting to see how we have managed to get along; its part of the enduring. We are getting where we want to go, things are just taking us a little longer with the chair (I started to write in Spanish right there).
This week we have a cool story. We are teaching a family of four (named Dauri the mom, Alexis the oldest daughter, Yael a boy and Hemli the youngest daughter). Every time we go over there the kids get more and more excited. The last time we went over there, there were Alexis and four kids under the age of 10! It was a really cool lesson though. And when we finished the lesson, every one of them prayed! We came out of that lesson so happy and content. Also that same day we found a lady and her neighbor that we contacted (well actually they contacted us) in the street. It was a cool lesson and we set a baptismal date. The lady that had contacted us is already been baptized we haven’t been able to find her records. They show a lot of potential and could be a sweet story, but they didn’t go to church. The member is doing a great job of inviting all her neighbors to listen to us.
We have a baptism this week! Her name is Pati. She is ready, we just need to finish two more commandments and then everything is set. It’s been really nice to have someone almost ready for my “son” to practice on. We really enjoy because she never has objections. Everything is going well with her.
The other important people that we are teaching is a lady named Claudia. I have already talked about her but it is always fun to teach them. They get really frustrated and depressed when they try their hardest all week and don’t find work. It’s nice though to remember that story when I couldn’t find work. Remember that day mom when I was looking for work and I couldn’t find it and I wanted to throw in the towel? Well, I now know why I had to pass it. So that when people in the mission would be passing through that same trial, I could look them in the eye and pass them that same counsel. Do you remember mom? I sure do.
Well this week has come to an end. I remember the first day that I pushed my companion the whole day in the chair. I came back and I had a purple spot on each hand. It was from the pushing the wheel chair and it had marked my hand. Not to mention that I could hardly feel my legs and that my whole body was sweating (I had just pushed my companion for about 20 blocks). But then I realized that this is what I came to the mission for. I came to struggle and to give it my all. I am so grateful for this opportunity to learn and grow and I say to all who have an exhausted soul or mind: this is what we came to earth to do. We knew it was going to be hard, but we came to earth to grow. We will look back on these experiences with a great smile saying, “Good thing I passed that, otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to pass the next trial.” Or, “Good thing I passed that because I learned that…” these are for our benefit and this is what our Heavenly Father knows we need.
Con Amor
Elder Mackay

A few weeks ago in Glenn's email he said, "This Sunday was stake conference and it was pretty crazy because the General President of the Young Women (Sister Elaine Dalton) was in town and just stopped by to chit chat! She spoke with a translator and it was pretty cool. . The fun part after though was translating for the President to a young man." He was able to make arrangements for a few pictures from that conference.

November 7, 15, 21, 2011

November 7, 2011
Well, another one of those weeks that seemed like forever long but at the same time I can’t believe that it’s Monday again. This week I was in the areas of the, missionaries in my district for two days so I didn’t get to spend much time in my area.
In my area, there are two groups of people that are really exciting me. First is a sister named Claudia. I think I talked about her last week. If not, well oh well. She is going to be married to a member and meanwhile is talking to us. We had a super sweet lesson Tuesday about the plan of salvation and we got to explain some pretty cool things. One was she hasn’t been able to have kids until now. I showed her the picture of Brett’s family and explained how everything can work out. It was cool to feel it.
The other group that I’m about is still the family Jimenez. It’s taking a while, but it’s coming along. All of them have read the Book of Mormon. Now we are just trying to help them understand the importance of it all and recognize their answers. They give us food though so that’s nice. They really respect us a lot so that’s nice. Hopefully we can help them out a little more. They are going to take a lot of work because the three kids aren’t married but have “girlfriends” or “boyfriends”. But it would be a sweet family to see in the temple some day.
In the other areas it was fun. The first lesson was with a sister that had been waiting to receive her answer, but felt like she still hadn’t received her answer. To start the lesson off we sang “Come Come Ye Saints” and I shared why it was important for us. It really set the tone for us. It was a really cool lesson. After we went to a lady that they just hadn’t checked on in a while. We went there and we taught the plan of salvation and we came out with a baptismal form filled out Jthat made me pretty happy. In the other area there was a lady that wasn’t reading the Book of Mormon very much and we had a lesson with her. We said, “If Christ came here and you could ask him what ever question you wanted, what would you ask him?” She is already a member and asked, “why did Heavenly Father let me live without the gospel in my live for so long?” We talked about how she had to know the difference between the good and the bad. She understood but we felt like we hadn’t truly showed the power of the Book of Mormon. We asked for another question and answered it with the Book of Mormon too. It helped my testimony that everything can work out well.
This Sunday was stake conference and it was pretty crazy because the General President of the Young Women was in town and just stopped by to chit chat! She spoke with a translator and it was pretty cool. Other cool things were that we are in a very growing stake of the world. One of the speakers asked converts who had known the gospel through elders to raise their hands. About 75 percent raised their hands. Apart, if the work keeps up, in 2013 they are going to have Mission Mexico Cancun and Mission Mexico Merida divided; and also in 2014 they are looking at putting a temple in Cancun! That would be pretty cool. The fun part after though was translating for the President to a young man. I felt the power as I told that young man that he was going to lead his family and bless it. He was holding a new triple given to him with a special scripture from the President. It was super powerful.
For the spiritual thought, there is no doubt what it would be. This week, we got a call that someone needed a blessing so we hopped in a taxi and raced over there. Come to find out that it was a member that has had to pass through some hard things in life and felt abandoned so he left the church. I’m not talking about like he got dumped but really hard stuff and he has to carry a hard load for things he didn’t do. The coolest part was the end for me. I told him two things
1. I didn’t understand your pain and I can’t because I haven’t gone through these things. But I know someone who has. The Savior with his divine fathership had power over death. In other words, he could decide when and where he wanted to die. That is why he didn’t die in the garden of Gethsemane, because he chose to suffer more. He knows your pain because he suffered it and even more
2. You feel that there is no place where you can find rest from the cross that you are carrying, but there is a place where you can. It’s called the Celestial kingdom. There we are promised happiness and joy beyond description. Literally, there are no words to describe our happiness in this world because these worldly words can’t describe a spiritual experience of this magnitude. There at the door you can leave this weight. And really, this life isn’t that long. But in order to leave this load and feel this joy you have to get there.
He asked if I really believed it. I told him about ‘no empty chairs in heaven’ and about Aunt Laura and Grandma. Well ya. It was special.
Con amor
Elder Mackay





November 15, 2011
Well, this week has seemed to pass by super super fast, but at the same time a ton has happened. The biggest change is in companions. This week was changes and I don’t know if you notice mom, I’m writing on Tuesday. That’s because… well I can’t say now that would ruin the rest of my letter!
I’ll start at the beginning of the week to be more organized. Wednesday we had a training that was super intense. President really let us have it. First we had a humbling experience. He talked about whining and how when a missionary does it he says to himself, “This Elder still just doesn’t get it.” Later he said, “Stepping foot on this earth should take away all our ability to whine.” He went along the lines of, “Being blessed with a body is something that many children of God didn’t get. And we get our bodies and we whine that we are tired. Many young men don’t get to go on a mission, yet all missionaries complain about how hard things are and how hard their companion is. Well I have news for you. There is no life without trials.” Later he talked about the Atonement and how important it is and was and will be. It grew my love for who I call my Savior.
One more thing that is really cool that I have to put in here really quick. I had a little chit chat with a less active and he said I was being tough on him. I felt the world go calm and I said, “I don’t care. I'm your doctor and I know what you need.” I saw him in church this week. Now everything that I tell him I say, “you need to do this,” then I look him in the eyes. It’s so cool to understand my role as a missionary.
Ok I can’t think of anything else really huge. Changes came in and well… I’m going to train! (In Mexico they say that I’m going to be a dad). Sunday after church I got the call and they told me to go to Merida to pick up my “son”. So I went and I got him at about noon on Monday. His name is Elder Garcia. He is really cool. His is the only member of his family. Not like the only active member, but the only member. He is super excited and really ready to learn. He really wants to learn English too. I’m excited to help him in all the changes. It’s going to push me to a new level because I want him to be a good missionary and I don’t want him to pick up bad habits from me. I want him to be the best.
In the investigator lines we have Pati. She is super cool and super ready to do what we ask. This week, we taught one principle every day about lesson three. We learned in our training that this is better than teaching all at once for retention. Also I’ts shorter lessons so we don’t waist so much time. Today in the morning we had our first lesson and my son (companion) did pretty well. We taught about the Holy Ghost and the importance of why we should always have him with us.
Then the second that’s really cool is Claudia. She is super cool and still going strong. We had a super hard core lesson on Saturday and it worked out well. The situation is she is living with a member, and learned and met the church through him. She’s been a golden investigator since then. The problem is they are flat broke. And we have to marry them. To fix the work problem, there are lots of options and the marriage is coming along. That is the only thing that we have to do so that she can get baptized. However, she also has had problems having children and lost a baby that she didn’t know she had. She has had a lot of doctor visits and things like that. The Saturday that we gave the lesson was a hard day for us too so it kind of changed into a lesson for all of us.
We started out singing, “Come Come ye Saints” and my eyes got wet. I felt my ancestors there. We talked about a lot of things that had affected us and why and things like that. It helped us both go through. We took picture. I’ve helped her remember something though. Mom remember a long time ago when I was home for the winter and I couldn’t find work and I tried so many times and I couldn’t find work? And I asked why and I started to wonder if anyone was even listening? And you told me, “Don’t stop believing.” I will forever remember your face and your eyes well up in tears. I know now why I had to pass this. Now I have a testimony that I can testify to the investigators that the help does come. That is what I cold Claudia. I gave her a little toy and I told her to take it with her and I told her the story. And when they tell me about the newest trial that is causing problems, I say, “Don’t forget what my mom said.” Thanks mom.
That’s the biggest thing. If it wasn’t for that trial that I passed so long ago, I wouldn’t have this testimony and I wouldn’t be able to help these people. And now I can’t stop believing either. None of us can stop believing.
Con Amor
Elder Mackay


November 21, 2011
Well… a crazy week; probably the craziest week that I have had in my whole mission. This whole week seems like it has taken forever but at the same time it feels like yesterday I was writing. There have been so many cool experiences, but at the same time, if there is a problem it seemed to happen. I feel stretched pretty thin but don’t worry. Next week I’ll write and…
To start off with I have a trivia question. What is black has four wheels, and is used for transportation? The answer is my companion’s wheelchair! In the MTC in Mexico City, he sprained his ankle really bad and walking all day Tuesday and Wednesday made it get worse. Thursday we went to a doctor he said a month of nothing but staying in bed. Then we went to another one and she gave us some medicine and told us about a week. A member family got us a wheelchair to use in the meantime (before we were shut in the house and I had to carry him or he had to hop. To give you an idea about how bad it is, it’s about the same class as when I did it when I was at Wes’s) We scrambled to get things done and we did divisions Friday. I had a crazy time trying to make sure that everyone got to where they needed to be and getting everything to work. Saturday more doctors. It was funny but sad how many trips they made us take. Then Saturday we had a really sweet lesson. Claudia still can’t get baptized but we took her to a lesson with the Jimenez family. We sat her and her soon to be husband down in front of them and we had them talked and we opened it up to questions. The son who is the hardest nut to crack so far asked, “How do you know that the Book of Mormon is true. It was super sweet to hear them both share testimonies of the Book of Mormon and now it has changed their lives. The son said he was going to dedicate himself more to read the Book of Mormon then when (more like if) he has questions, he’d talk to us but we could come by during the week. We’ll see what happens.
And right now I have to end because this pday was really stressful. The spiritual thought is that I can do it. Apart from that, a member that has about four months as a member asked me for advice. He wanted to know if he should take a higher paying job that would make things work out a lot better. He has a job right now but it pays very little. He needs more money, but he would have to lose his institute classes and not have Sundays off (in other words, he wouldn’t be very active in the church. We talked and he understood that he shouldn’t take the job for Sundays. He started with the whole thing that he didn’t understand and I didn’t say anything, I just put my hand over his eyes and I said, “Do you see?” and he said, “No”. I said, “don’t worry He does (aka the Lord knows what’s going on).” With all the trials of this week, it feels so good to know that there is someone that knows what’s going on. And there is someone that sees and someone that knows why these things need to happen.
Con amor,
Elder Mackay

October 17, 24,31, 2011

October 17, 2011
Wow the mission is crazy. I don’t understand how much happens in so short of time. This week was a lot of crazy hassles and to make things worse, it rained. I thought I had finished the raining season but we got hit with a tropical storm. It’s not supposed to leave until Tuesday. I’m wearing my “Sunday” shoes (my eccos that I’ve had forever that I try to only wear on Sundays to keep one pair nice) because my other two pares are soaked and it hasn’t gotten very warm to heat them up
This week was a lot of crazy stuff. First was a baptism. We had plans to baptize 3 of a family of four (the dad still wasn’t sure). This week we found out that the mom and the dad weren’t married so… kind of burst my bubble a little bit. I felt super bad but its part of what they have to do if they want the blessings. We did have the baptisms for the two kids. It was a crazy one. The younger brother was afraid of getting drowned. The first time he didn’t go under and he started clinging to the walls. He eventually got back to his senses and let my companion try again. I told my companion to force him down and it worked. His older sister was scared too, but she knew better so she just dealt with it. They got baptized though.
Another cool thing has been a guy named Felipe. I think I talked a little about him in my letter last week. He was about to get baptized but at the last minute he said he wasn’t legally married. So I get to inherit him. He’s already read the Book of Mormon. It was pretty cool to have another one of those investigators. He’s pretty ready. We ran out of things to teach him so we taught him how to present the Book of Mormon and he presented it to his wife. He is reading the Book of Mormon and Bible for about two hours in total every day. It’s nice to have investigators like that.
The other couple that we are teaching is coming along. They are George, and his soon to be wife, Marleni. They are making me stretch a little as far as teaching goes. I need to find new ways to teach them but everything is coming along well.
Now that I’m a district leader I get to do baptismal interviews. This week I did 5 and they all passed. The first one was in a place called Tulum. It was crazy because the kid I as going to interview was taken to work by his dad and we had to find things to do for four hours. The second, third and fourth were members of a family. I got really stressed out because there were problems and phone calls to president - baptism by fire kind of thing. Then yesterday I did another one and it was fine. It’s crazy to be in this spot. I feel like I've graduated grade school, skipped junior high and gone straight to high school. Now I have to be “grown up” and be more organized, sharper, more exact. It’s pushing me to be better.
This spiritual thought comes from an interview that I had with one of the elders from my district. This elder has a new greenie, opening an area, becoming senior companion, and has 3 months in the field. He was a little bit unhappy with how things were going on. He talked about how he didn’t do anything right all the time. I talked to him about how we needed to be patient not only with the people around us but also with ourselves. It hit me one day, “there would be no salvation if there was no patience.” And of course our examples of patience are our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, who patiently are waiting to help us.
Well it’s short this week but it doesn’t mean I love you any less,
Elder Mackay


October 24, 2011
I just finished reading all the emails and seeing all the pictures and let me tell you what- I loved them! I wish it was like that every week (hint, hint to those who haven’t written in a while). This week had some crazy ups and downs.
There is an investigator Felipe that we have been working with. Well we haven’t had to work with him very much, he’s pretty self working. He’s over halfway through the Book of Mormon on his second time around and he’s reading the Bible. We were trying to get everything planned to have his wedding be this week, but it wasn’t happening. The only time the offices here would be open to marry him was a Thursday and his wife has a double shift every Thursday. So we married them today and he got baptized today. However that didn’t stop him from giving a talk in church on Sunday. It was pretty cool he quoted scriptures from the book of Mormon and everything.
There is a couple here (Marleni and Jeorge) who are more or less coming along. The only problem is well… there are a few problems. One is that they aren’t married (which seems to be a common theme here. I haven’t found a married investigator yet here that’s an adult.) Jeorge use to be a whole different kind of guy, and his future parent-in-laws weren’t very happy about them getting married because of who he was. Now that he has started to change, he wants to get married and set everything strait. The only problem is he wants to go talk to his future mother in law. He can’t do that for about another month….. grrr! Also Saturday we got a text from him so we called him up. He told us his wife was dying. That didn’t sound too good. We ran over there (literally ran) and checked it out. She had serious headaches and it had been going on for three days. In a few hours, she said that it hit even worse. It was the worse pain she had ever felt. But the paramedics came so I think they took care of it. They are struggling a little bit.
Another person who has been struggling a bit well… me. Thursday I had a temperature and I didn’t think much of it so I went to work. I came back home finally in the night at about six to check how high my temperature was and I was up to 102… oops! I spent Thursday night, Friday and most of Saturday in bed. It was rough but I made it through. I can’t believe how long it’s taking to get back to 100% and getting back in the groove.
Other than that it hasn’t been super crazy. I have heard that there is supposedly a tropical storm headed this way that could become a hurricane. True? The source isn’t 100% reliable but it could be worth something to check into. Something else that’s way different about this area than those others is that there are a lot of tourists here. Every time I go to Wal-Mart to do my weekly shopping I see people from not just the states but from all over the world (even one time a couple said, “Oh look it’s the missionaries.”) You can even pay in dollars here! How crazy is that!
Well I got to get going. One of the things that I have seen this week especially being sick is that our Heavenly Father knows who we are and how we feel. What a comfort to know that we are not left alone. We struggle through this life and often feel that we are inadequate or that we aren’t worth our Heavenly Father’s time. Or in a trial, we feel that we are so alone, with no one at our side. However, we are not, because of that act about two thousand years ago. Christ our heavenly brother suffered himself to be taken prisoner and to take upon himself everything. And in doing so, he had to do it alone. Now because he did it alone, we never had the need to be alone. We can repent pray and talk to our Heavenly Father and feel the warmth from the Spirit, and have the knowing feeling that he is watching us and he loves us.
Con Amore
Elder Mackay
October 31, 2011
Well, ya it was a crazy week. We had a lot of plans go wrong and a lot of changes, but learning to cope with changes is one of the things that we get to learn in the mission.
Before I forget mom don’t worry I did get my toenail fixed like a month ago. I went to a toe nail doctor (yeah that’s right they have doctors specifically for toenails) and I got everything fixed. There was a pretty good chunk that had gotten ingrown but it didn’t even bleed. Everything was leading up to me going through a lot of pain and blood being everywhere, but ´twerent nothing. I walk around fine without any problems. So please don’t worry J
The biggest thing of the week was hurricane. Tuesday we had interviews with president and he told us that we had to go to Wal-Mart and pick up eggs to make hard boiled eggs and tuna (neither of which I was very excited to eat). Also they told us to pack for five days because there was a possibility of going to Merida. We had plans on Wednesday to go with the zone leaders and camp out the storm until then. However, things changed. At five in the morning on Wednesday, we got a call and we went to the bus stop and we went to Cancun, from there we went to Merida. President said that we had to leave because he was thinking about the report that he would have to give to one of our parents if something happened to us. We were in Merida from Wednesday in the afternoon until Saturday in the morning. We stayed in Merida and worked in the area of the assistants. They just changed areas so we were helping them open it so it was strait knocking doors and getting in and teaching. It was pretty crazy. We talked with a ton of people and we even taught an almost atheist. He said that our look on life was beautiful and that he wished he could believe in it. We did set up some baptismal dates and it was almost hard to leave the area again. At 5:30 in the morning, we had to go back to the bus station to get headed back to Playa. It was good to be back in Playa.
Shortly after we came back, we went to work and we were checking on a referral when a lady came up to us and asked us to talk to her family. We talked and they all agreed that the house didn’t have a lot of peace and that this is what the needed. Under further investigation this could be a pretty special family. Everyone will have to have an interview for one reason or another, but they seem to be willing to work on things. They even gave us a ride to our house after the lesson. They have a few houses and a little bit of land that they rent out and here in Playa it’s expensive to rent so they are living well off that. The dad even has a porche! It could be a sweet family of 6 though.
Two more people that are new. One is a girl who is 16 named Naida. She grew up in the Catholic Church, but wasn’t satisfied with the answers that she was getting so, she left the church. Then she said that she saw missionaries all over Playa (which is true, there are 10 missionaries here in Playa) and finally one of them contacted her and she said she would accept a visit from us. Her mom isn’t super thrilled but she, the girl Naida, is pretty into it along with her brother. Also there is a lady that was a reference too. Her soon to be husband is a member and she had gone to church and talked with members quite a bit. Teaching her is easy and fun because she is acceptive to everything. She is about 30 and her name is Claudia. Her soon to be husband and is an ex chef and says that someday they are going to invite us to dinner. I’m down with that.
The spiritual thought comes from something one of the assistants said while I was working in Merida. “There is nobody who is more worried about the missionary work than the Lord. No matter how much we worry about it, we can only do so much. He however is in charge of this work and he invests a lot of time and knowledge into each missionary. He will not let such a valuable asset go to waste. Sure, the plans will fall but the hour and the work that the Lord wants to be done in that hour won’t. So when the lesson falls, don’t worry, don’t get frustrated, trust in the Lord that there will be something in the work that He wants you to do.” Applying this to “normal life” sometimes we have plans all figured out where we think that everything is perfect. But as usual things change. We need to remember to not worry. As long as we are on the Lord’s errand he will not let a daughter or son of God be forgotten. The Lord is in control, and as the standard of truth says, “The standard of truth has been erected, and no unhallowed hand will stop the work from progressing.”
Elder Mackay

October 8, 2011

Holy cow, it feels like I still just barely got here. Its way different here in Playa del Carmen. In Merida it was already done the whole city. Very rarely would you find something new or if it was new it was because they had destroyed what was there before and now it’s a remodel. Here there are a lot of roads that aren’t paved and there are a lot of people constructing. Also something different here is that they rent out rooms. But it’s just one room. So if anyone is just staying here for a month they just find a house and can rent a room. But it’s a lot more expensive to rent here. But anyway it’s a lot different. It’s not as hot anymore either. But I still sweat as much
There are some pretty cool people in this area. The first people that I got to meet are a family. Well it’s the majority of a family. The dad doesn’t want to stop drinking so we are teaching a mom, and her two kids. It is really fun to teach them. The kids sometimes get a little bit distracted but the mom is super focused. They are getting baptized this week so that’s pretty cool. Their names are Guadalupe, Bracey and Alberto. Bracey is 11 and Alberto is 9 or so. Alberto is quite a hand full. They are all ready; it’s just some reviewing for this week.
Apart from them is a guy named Felipe. He is pretty cool… already read the whole Book of Mormon! That helps a lot. I guess that he is going to leave pretty soon though, but I hope to help him out. He is leaving the end of the month but it’s looking like its going to be pretty good. He was about to get baptized when the elders before me found out that he was not married. Well, you can’t get baptized if you’re not married. He is reading the Book of Mormon again and he is marking. Apart from that we found a bible for him. It’s pretty cool to see him get excited because he is going to learn more with this attitude.
The last really cool people we are teaching are a couple. The husband used to be able to “consume a lot of liquids” if you know what I mean. He was really down in the dumps kind of guy, but the elders were teaching his wife and I guess she was praying a lot that he would stop drinking. She ran away to Cozumel (an island over here). They got things figured out but he said that one morning he woke up and realized all the bad things that drinking did and how badly it was affecting him. From that point on he hasn’t drank. The only weird thing is he wanted to know if there was a way to make a pact with God to get a car. We taught about praying that the Lord would bless us according to our needs, and we’ll see if he needs a car.
In the district it’s going good. I have two sets of elders, and one set of hermanas. All of the junior companions are in their first or second change in the field. One of the elders is going through his first change as senior companion, opening an area, and training a brand newbie all at the same time. I can feel a little bit of his pressure. Now as I’ve seen almost all my companions prepare district meetings, now I get to have this opportunity to learn. I remember how much I started learning about the gospel in the MTC when I first started teaching it. Now that I get to start teaching about the missionary work, I’ll be able to learn about it even more.
In a family home evening that we had this week, I started thinking (I know mom that’s a bad sign). The family home evening, the theme was about time. There were three things that it started out with that I never thought about. One was that we can never buy or save time, because no matter what we do, it is always running. Another is that we can never go back in time. Once something is done it is done. With many things, after we have done something we can try to fix it. Many things that happen in this world we can fix it. We can change it, but time is one of those unique things that can’t be changed. And thirdly was that we never really know how much time we have. We never know when out of the blue we will be changed or when blessings or trials would pass us. We never know what’s ahead. I came to understand that agency is more the choices that we make on how we use our time. All of the things that we do take up time, and as a missionary, I’ve had to learn how to use my time more efficiently. Something that someone said in Sacrament meeting was, “Many times we aren’t passing trials, we are just receiving the consequence of our past decisions.” Our decisions now will affect our time in the future. Studying and graduating high school make take some time, but afterwards it will make our time much more enjoyable. Training will takes time gives us many enjoyable opportunities later on in life. So many decisions give us a better grip on our time and how we choose to spend it. The decision that will affect the most time is how we will apply the atonement in our lives and how we will live the gospel. It is the most important decision because it will not only affect this life, but it will affect the time after this life.
Con Amor
Elder Mackay

August 29 - October 4, 2011

October 4, 2011
Wow, another change has come and gone. It went by super fast but this change there is definitely going to be some changes. This week I got a post card from Aunt Julie and Uncle Cliff (finally I can say Uncle Cliff). They said they went to Playa de Carmen (literally its Carmen’s Beach) saying how they were waiting for me but I just didn’t show up. Well they should have waited a little longer. Sunday night, when we got the call I was changed to Playa de Carmen and that is not the only thing that is going to change; I’m district leader. And I’m my new companion’s second companion in the field so in the mission language that makes me his step-dad. My companion’s name is Elder Griffiths and he is from Herriman Utah (like a half an hour from Salt Lake City). He is just barely starting the mission. I feel like there is a big weight again, but lifting weights is suppose to make you stronger, right? Also last night I got to give the district meeting. It felt cool and at the end I had to do interviews. You’ll probably laugh at me but I feel like a big missionary now!
As far as ending things up in Pensiones, the really cool investigator that was there was still Ana. She is super willing to accept whatever we said. I liked teaching her because I knew her need and I knew what she needed to hear. Apart from that it wasn’t anything super crazy. I had a hard time saying bye to people. If I ever get to come back to Mexico, I’ll never have a problem finding a place to stay because of so many people offering. I'm going to miss a lot of things.
Monday morning I got to the bus station and it really weirded me out. I don’t know how but my suitcases weigh a ton. Anyway, I was on a bus ride for about five hours… alone. I felt super weird and I started worrying about what I would do if I couldn’t find anyone at the station and I didn’t know anyone and I just felt really awkward. I gave big hug to the first missionary I could find in the bus station. Here in Playa it’s a little different than Merida. In Merida, it’s always hot and humid. Here it’s been raining and because it’s close to the sea there’s always a breeze and its cooler. The buildings are also really different. In Merida, it was a lot of the same type of houses more or less in the area. Here, it’s way different. There could be a bunch of houses that are more or less the same then a grocery store, then some apartments. I don’t know how to describe it. It’s way different.
Conference was good. I did get to see part of it. I got to see half of the session of priesthood in Spanish (because there was something wrong with the transition) and the Sunday sessions in English. At the last minute we went into the high council room in the stake center and they found a TV and I heard the opening prayer in English. It’s funny because in priesthood, I wrote my notes in Spanish because that is what I was hearing but in the second session I wrote in English because that is what I was hearing. It was me, my companion, and another elder from the states that listened in English so a little group. I have a feeling that I am going to be using the talk on the Book of Mormon that one seventy gave. But the best one was on preparation (maybe I like it the best because I can apply it to my life right now).
Preparation is an eternal principal. We were taught and prepared in the pre existence. It was planned out from the beginning and we were taught the gospel. When our Heavenly Father finally said that it was time to go down to the earth, it was because we were fully prepared to face the trials and worries of this life. No matter what we face in this life, we can face it because we have been prepared. We know that this is true because our loving Heavenly Father wouldn’t send us on a mission or let us have a trial in our lives if we couldn’t conquer it. Going from junior companion to district leader in one jump is going to be quite a change, but I have hope because the Lord would not have called me to be this if I could not do it. It also gives me hope for the future because many of the things that scare me a little (for example FATHERHOOD) are achievable. They are achievable because the Lord will never give me anything that I cannot do. “I will go and do the things that the lord has commanded me. For I know that he does not give commandments unto the children of men save he shall prepare the way to complete the commandment.” I can do it. I will see that the experiences that I have been given will be of benefit for later on in my life. Many times the Lord prepares us even when we don’t even realize that we are changing. It’s so fulfilling to know that I am a disciple of Jesus Christ who has a work to do. I love this work and I can’t wait to do what I have been asked.
Con Amor,
Elder Mackay

Sept 27, 2011
Well… this change has gone by really fast. I don’t know how it is that it works like this. Some times we have so many plans that fall through and how slow time seems to go. But apart from that, it’s been going good. I’m writing on Tuesday because I didn’t have time yesterday. I got invited to play basket ball with my mission president. Then after we went home and changed, we got to go to his house have a barbeque with him! I felt really lucky. We really didn’t have time to do anything else so today is pretty hectic.
Well… this coming week is going to be pretty hectic. We have been offered to move into a new house by some members. It’s almost exactly in the middle of our area. Plus when your house owner is a member, you get some nice benefits like food and washers and I think maybe even hot water so that will be fun. If you are squeamish, you should probably skip to the next paragraph. I have had some problems with my big toenails and I’ve been trying to take care of it for a long time, but it’s not getting any better. I stubbed it really hard a long time ago and so… I have to get it fixed. We tried going with a member that is a pedicure lady but she said I had to go up another level. So then I called and talked to the President’s wife and she said that I have to go to a doctor. They are trying to figure out where I’m going to go. There was one that they use to go to but President’s wife doesn’t want me to go there. They said they aren’t quite sure what they are going to do it could be that they take out my whole toe nail and it grows back little by little. It’s frustrating that I’ve tried hard to take care of it but it didn’t work out. But don’t worry mom, it doesn’t hurt. So between these two things it’s going to be interesting how we get things done.
As far as investigators go at the top of the list is Ana still. She went to the Relief Society broadcast with her mom and I guess she liked it. Due to some scheduling problems, we weren’t able to see her very much this week, but she is still progressing, and she went to church. We’ll see what she thinks about conference. It’s cool to see how she has changed. She wants to learn more. We had a little short visit because we didn’t want to over load her with information but she asked if there wasn’t any more to the lesson because she wants to know more. We only have to teach the law of chastity and there shouldn’t be any big hurdles left. They even show up on time for everything which is really cool to see because punctuality isn’t very high on the priority list.
The two boys, David and Raul and their mom are still in it, but they didn’t go to church this week again. We have to get to the bottom of it. One of the times that we taught, was on divisions. We try to only teach important stuff when their mom is there but she doesn’t go very much. The day we had divisions the mom wasn’t there and so my companion just said to teach whatever. I pulled out Alma 56 about the stripling warriors and how they did not doubt. I talked about how I saw them as the little brothers that I never had (I beat them in arm wrestling, even when they used two hands). I'm not going to get to see them baptized, but they some day will be good members. It felt cool to invite them to join us as the Army of God. Saying things like that never get old.
We still meet with Mario and he is progressing but slowly. He read the Book of Mormon on his own time and he said that he felt something different. It felt good like an outside energy was affecting him. We explained that it is the spirit that testifies of things like that. We had this lesson in the church and it was pretty powerful. With him I learned that I have to listen to know what he is really, really saying to me. He says a lot of stuff so its fun to decide what information is important and what isn’t.
My spiritual thought was already pre prepared. This week I had the opportunity talk in church and I was supposed to talk about the Liahona but we still haven’t gotten ours. So I talked on love and I confirmed and understood a lot of ideas that I had about how to love. I understood that love isn’t words. Love is to worry about, care about, spend time with, or do something extra ordinary for someone ordinary. Love much like faith without works is dead. A pre written card isn’t as cool as a personalized card, because the personalized card took time and action from someone else. We cannot say that we love anyone unless we act on that love. The biggest act of love ever performed on the earth is and forever will be the Atonement of Jesus Christ. There is no other person who could have done it because there was no other person who loves us so much. Love is so important it is actually in the greatest commandment given to men. “Thou shalt love thy God…” but it isn’t exactly easy to give a birthday present to our Heavenly Father so how do we show our love for Him and Christ? It says in all over in the scriptures but best phrased for me in Doctrine and Covenants. “If ye love me thou shall serve me and keep my commandments.”
Con Amor
Elder Mackay



September 12, 2011
Well, it’s been a good week so far. Nothing super crazy. Well, yes and no. Well… you’ll figure it out.
This week we have some newbies and some oldies. Newbies are a family. There is a member family here that for a little bit of time went inactive and later they came back. Now, they are bringing their cousins to church. Kind of one of those gifts that just comes about. There are two sons and a mom. The oldest son is about the same age as his cousin so they are both in young men’s group. It’s only been about two weeks that they have been going to church. The mom has already seen a change in her son though, and that makes things easier for later on. We committed them for a baptismal date for the eight of September. They are going good. It just seems like the mom just eats up what we are saying.
Another cool couple that we have found is kind of a cool story. Earlier on Sunday, we were waiting for a bus and this lady came out of no where and started talking to us. She said that she like to talk to everyone and liked to talk. We took down her address, (because she had to leave) then set up for a morning. Kind of a small side note, these two past weeks we have had more rain than I would say in like five years back home. It’s been crazy. Where the water collects it usually goes over the sidewalk. I sent a picture one time of in front of our house, where it had overflowed there. That’s nothing. It’s been like that all over. So what does this have to do with the couple? Well the agenda that had their address got soaked so we had a little bit of fun trying to get their address. We pieced it together and we went and visited them this Saturday. It was interesting. They do like to talk (it’s just an empty nest couple). The husband is super interested in finding out about the Book of Mormon. He said that it was his hope that this was the difference that he had been looking for. He has several bibles, but each is different. He is from Catholic background, but because of personal reasons he left. Now he is super excited to see us. We’ll see what happens.
Another newbie is a lady called Alma (yeah, like the Book of Mormon; only in Mexico, Alma is a girl’s name). Her husband is a missionary that when he came home, through the time he stopped going to church for one reason or another. He met her and then they got married and everything. We asked him why he wanted to come back. He said one day that he just figured out that “his soul was hungry”. They are super hospitable and even gave us cake one time. This is the first time the wife has seen her husband like this, but she says she is willing to learn and to support her husband. We have mainly talked about the Atonement and the important it has in The Big Plan. They sell stone things for fireplaces and stuff (they even have gone to Florida and New York). In their house you can definitely feel the spirit so that’s good.
As far as oldies it is Anna. She still keeps hanging in there and she finally went to church! It’s been about the same. We had a good lesson on The Spirit. I think that she is starting to feel a little bit of pressure. She is funny though. Her mom (Maria de Carmen that just got baptized) is still going strong. It is way cool to see her take part in so much. But Anna is still trucking along. We have to just figure out what is stopping her from getting her answer. She says that sometimes she lets reason go in afterwards. That she feels good then later she says it was because her daughter wasn’t causing problems or because it wasn’t raining. She is still meeting with us though. One of the things that she has learned is how much debt she is in. We still got work to do.
As far as crazy out of the ordinary stuff this week it’s been the food and the rain. I talked about the rain earlier, it’s impossible to describe. All the water could be well used up there sometimes I imagine. The food this week was super good. One day, the second councilor in the stake presidency bought us hot dogs at night on our way home. Earlier in the week, we ate and his house and we had hamburgers and root beer! The crazy thing about that is there is no root beer here but they found some. I guess they are starting to bring it back but it was so weird. To replace it they have a flavor called “negra” which is translated as black and kind of tastes like banana. It’s weird to thing about but it’s good. Then on Saturday we went to a member’s house a little late and they first came out with a plate of rice and vegetables. She said she was going to bring out “a little bit of meat”. I was thinking like a small pork chop or something. She brought out like three pounds of ribs! It was a ton of meat. She then told us that it was all for use because they had already eaten. I felt my stomach filling already. It was so much meat! Maybe I’ll put on the weight that I have lost. Probably not though.
As far a spiritual thought, well I’ve got a bunch of ideas in my head and I don’t know what to choose from. Lately we have found a few people that have problems. Like there is one member here who has been inactive almost since his baptism. He has gone back to drinking a ton and has a “friend”, even though he is married. Also there is a couple here that has problems trying to get along that we have been trying to help. Even more being here for five months I know the struggles on almost everyone. It’s super hard to see someone and not see their past. It feels like a weight sometimes that we get to carry around. I image though that it’s not even close to the weight that the Savior had to go through. This is what gives me a bit of hope is that even though all these people are going through trials, the sun will come up tomorrow. There is a solution because there is a Savior who has suffered an infinite atonement. Because he did so much, he now knows exactly how we feel, and how he can help us. One of the phrases that someone copied out of text from the bible but it works is, “And it came to pass”. It really does. Tomorrow will come. And all though some trials pass like kidney stones, they do pass.
Con Amor,
Elder Mackay J

September 5, 2011
Well, I tried warming up to the idea that I was going to go over the hump. It still was a big surprise when my zone leader called me on Thursday. I was trying to figure out why he was calling for me. But later he said happy one year and I about jumped. We talked for a second (he has the same amount of time as I do). One of the questions that we talked about is “are we half-way to where we wanted to finish at the end?” I think that at the end of the mission, we all have an idea of who we want to be. Am I half way to where I want to be? I think not
This week there are only two people that are really cool to talk about. The first one is Ana that has been progressing. She is really happy to talk with us and her mom finally came home. The big thing this week is she understood more the importance that Jesus Christ has in our lives. We asked if our lessons were helping increase her faith and she said a little. We talked about the importance of the atonement, and then on Friday we watched “To This End Was I Born.” It’s about the Atonement and shows more or less what we imagine happened. She said that she has heard about movies like this and didn’t like to watch them, but after watching them, one feels like that they are in debt. On Saturday we went to the temple and then after we went to the church next door. We were planning on explaining the plan of salvation real quick and then let her ask all the questions she asked. I knew that wasn’t going to work after a while because we spent between fifteen and twenty minutes on the pre earth life. It ended up being over and hour long. It was super powerful. She still hasn’t been able to go to church because of her office job but this week she will.
The other cool person is a guy named Esteban. He is quite a miracle. Last week he was looking for a church to go to and he went into ours. Tuesday we had a meeting with him and one of the first things that came out of his mouth was that he sometimes felt a hunger to learn about God. He has had a rough life and will need a special interview with president, but we can do it (problems with question number four if anyone understands that). One cool thing though. He got up last week and bore his testimony! Last week being fast and testimony week was pretty crazy. I saw him get up and all the sudden and I wondered what he was going to talk about. He talked about a story that he told us about in our first lesson. He was working in the forest chopping down wood and he got shot it the chest. It was a through and through and he fell straight to the ground. He had found the bible in prison but hadn’t followed it. He was laying there without any way to get up and said that he actually felt like he was dying. He starting praying and had a big change of heart. He felt strength come into his chest and he was able to get up, walk for a few miles, then ride in a car for three hours to go to a hospital. His testimony was on that he knows that God listens to us and that he gives us a second chance. The only problem is that there is an issue on who is going to teach him. Some other elders are going to want him, but he is never going to go to their church because our church is closer. And we already sent them the reference and they didn’t check it. We’re going to wait for a second or two and if nothing happens he’s ours.
The spiritual thought came from a talk and some experiences that I have shared with people during the week. The talk was from President Monson. One day a couple moved into a new house and the wife saw the neighbor hanging laundry out to dry. The wife said, “That laundry isn’t white she doesn’t know how we wash clothes.” This continued on for a few weeks when the wife looked out one day and the wife said, “Look John, she finally learned how to wash clothes!” Her husband replied, “You might be interested to know that I got up early this morning and washed the windows.” There is a couple who loves missionaries that have been married for a month that are having couple issues. I remembered one day that we were heading into Drummond and I was with Allison. I was ragging on someone about how someone (I don’t even remember) did this wrong and that and this and that. She got me real good when she said, “Yeah, but I bet she makes a good chocolate cake.” I didn’t understand but it comes back to what I learned this week. If we choose to see people through dirty windows, or look for the bad in people (for it really our choice) then we will abundantly find what we are looking for. But if we search for the “chocolate cake makers” and the “good dish washers” and those kinds of things, we will be looking through the washed windows. Not to mention, we will be happier, and be all the more aware of our own errors. As said in times of old, “One cannot cast out a mote from his brothers eye, when he has a beam in his own.” I realized that we see people how we want, and we ought to see them at their full potential; full heirs to the kingdom of their Heavenly Father.
Con Amor,
Elder Mackay
Aug. 29, 2011
Well, it’s been an interesting week. Not a whole lot happened this week but at the same time well… it’s been a weird week. I remember that there was an elder back home that when he realized that he had been in the mission for a year that it hit him like a wall and that it came a lot sooner than he thought. I remember looking at him and thinking how old he was and how close he was to finishing his mission and things like that. I figured it out yesterday that I’m him! Well pretty much.
This week we haven’t had much as far as new people. The newest person is my companion! His name is Elder Nguyen. His dad is from Vietnam and his mom is from Peru. He was born in the states though. Everyone says he is a real good mix of everything. He’s a cool guy though. He has a lot of time in the mission. This will probably be his last area since he only has this change and two more left. He was president’s executive secretary so he said that he use to get chewed out a lot and he learned from that. He was a zone leader in Cancun before coming here. The way our president likes to have trainers is experienced. So a lot of the trainers have only a few months left like he will. This change I will show him the area, then in the next two changes he will train. He’s from New Jersey and… likes basketball. I don’t know much else. He’s got a nice iron so that’s a plus.
As far as investigators go the best one is Ana. You can see that there is something different about her. She is a lot happier, and she is really starting to read the Book of Mormon. She has already read through chapter 12 of first Nephi. She also says that it’s not like any other book that you would find; that there is something different. She is really cool. I hope that she keeps going. We had a lesson planned for her on the Atonement and we also want to go to the temple with her. It’s really fun to be a missionary when there are people like her to teach. Her mom (Maria de Carmen that got baptized a few weeks ago) is still on vacation, but she still keeps her daughter in line by asking if she has read the Book of Mormon. It’s cool to be with them.
Miguel Campos is still there. It was a little hard to find him this week because his family went to Utah because there is a wedding for his granddaughter. But seeing how he is sick, and doesn’t travel well, and can’t go in the temple, he stayed.
It was kind of interesting in church this week. We worked hard on Saturday trying to get people to church and nobody went really. It was frustrating but at the same time it’s their agency. We worked hard though. (Oh yeah, we also got soaked three or four times this week while we were sticking to it. So dad, I hope you’re right about how tracting in the rain makes my wife hotter.) Anyways we stuck to it and on Sunday two miracles showed up. One is a guy about twenty years old that had taken missionary lessons before and the other one is a guy that just went looking for a church. It’s interesting how things worked out for him. He didn’t know anything about church and he thought that they would be all the same. He went to a church that is a little way up the road and then realized that there was nobody there, then came to ours (the church up the road is the Jehovah Witnesses). We are going to have lessons with them tomorrow at night with a member.
Well I don’t have as much time as I thought so that’s why it’s a little short. But this week the spiritual thought is on pride. One of my favorite talks ever on pride was President Utchdorf`s talk in general priesthood a few conferences ago. He said that pride is a sin of self elevation. It’s the desire that one is seen loftier than others. When we talk about our success in front of others, it’s easy to see the pride that can come from it. After thinking about it a lot, pride comes down to anything that we use to make ourselves seem better or that we have done something grand; that we did it on our own. This doesn’t work very well in the world and especially in the missionary world. We as missionaries do very little. We should bring the spirit by testifying and teaching. We are to give information and leave commitments and verify if they do them. We do not change these people. The “other side of the veil” does most of the work. It is the Spirit that changes the people. It is the spirit that is a constant reminder that they need to fulfill their commitments. It is he that helps them to know “in their heart, what they already knew in their mind”. If ever we make a show how ever big or small that we think we did something and that we are granted ownership over something we should take a step back of who really is in charge and who really lets what happen. Especially we cannot be prideful about our Salvation because we are literally powerless to save ourselves. Only a person who accepts the help of Him and His atonement will be able to have forgiveness in this life and in the life to come.
Con Amor
Elder Mackay

pues.. allí esta
Aug. 22, 2011
Well it’s a good week. It’s been another hard one but it’s ok. I’ve grown some and a lot of things have change. Beings how this is changes of course there are lots of changes.
Well to try to catch up on everything, it’s been going well. It’s hard to remember what all is going on. Our investigators are few, but good ones. We had a super cool experience finding one. On Tuesday we had a zone conference and president talked about some missionaries that had asked for a man on a certain street that was dressed in a certain way that would accept the gospel. We decided to do the same and see how it went. We set up a time, the street and we asked that he would wear a hat with a collared shirt. Well, we went out there and we were super excited to find him. We walked down the whole street and we didn’t find him. We were a little shocked and we figured out a few things that we could try. So then we continued on the day and we had to use a bathroom, so we visited a house of some members. A long time ago we were teaching a guy named Miguel Campos. He never got baptized because he couldn’t stop smoking. While I was in the bathroom my companion talked and Miguel had stopped smoking! I couldn’t believe it. He got sick and had to go to the hospital and while he was recuperating, he forgot to smoke. He has already seen the good effects of not smoking so he’s not going back. So we set a baptismal date with him and walked away with big grins. Then when we were walking I was picturing what all just happened in my head. I realized what he was wearing too; a hat with a collared shirt. It was a testimony builder that the work is being directed.
On the rough side we had two people that had potential to be super good members, but they didn’t work out as well as we thought. The first one is named Laura. It’s crazy how much she reminds me about mom. She is a teacher, loves her grandkids, works hard, and is enveloped in life. She says that she never has a spare minute, not even to clean the house. When we contacted her, she had a lot of questions about a purpose in life, and why we were here. We came back and explained how in Alma we are taught that this life is the time to prepare us to meet God. Eventually she opened up and said that she already knew who the church was and was afraid of the Book of Mormon. She wouldn’t accept it or anything we said. It was sad to see someone who had asked and done everything that a golden investigator should do and then not accept. The other one is a lady that we contacted last week. We were looking up some old investigators and I knocked the house in front. She came out and we talked for a second. We came back on Thursday and had good lesson. My companion started out with a great question. He asked, “did you know that all you sins can be washed away if you follow Jesus Christ?” She said that it wasn’t that easy or shouldn’t be. Later, we talked more and more and had a good solid first lesson with the commitment that she would pray to know if she should be baptized. We came back on Saturday and she opened up. She already was member, but she stopped going. Her mom was a member and was even a temple worker, but for some reason stopped paying her tithing. Well, without paying tithing, you can’t go to the temple so when her recommend was up, she stopped going to church and nobody ever knew why. It was a super powerful lesson but taught me a lot. One is that I need to remember that it’s not the church that makes mistakes, it’s the people within. Also I remembered that even like David, we are never sure of salvation until we are on the other side.
Also this week… there are changes, but I’m in Pensiones still. Elder Wynn left to a state called Campeche. It was good to be with him. I learned from him and he is going to be a zone leader. He’s even a bigger boss now. Now I have to show the area to another elder. My new companion is Elder Nguyen ( it’s like Elder When; I went from elder “Win” to elder “when”, just some commentary on the side). He is from New Jersey and was a zone leader. I have heard a lot about him and met him once. He has three changes left so I am going show him the area this change and then the next two changes after that he is going to get a greenie and then he’ll go home. I hope to learn a lot from him. He seems like a pretty cool elder and they say that he knows how to love people. I’m excited and a little bummed but that helps lead into the spiritual thought.
It’s hard to see so many people that started the mission the same time or before me and see them progressing. One is zone leader, and all the rest I think are senior companions, except me…. Don’t worry I have already heard all the “all it good time… your being watched over… its better this way…” but in the mean time, its still not that rosy. In the zone conference, President talked a lot about the why behind missionary work. He talked about Ammon in the Book of Mormon leaving on a mission to the Lamanites who wanted to kill him and all other Nephites. He went despite how crazy and how glum the path might be. He did it and we do it because we love the Lord. We love him and want to serve him. Now is the time on earth “to see if man will do what so ever the Lord their God would ask of them.” Our president asked us, “if you were assigned to just carry the scriptures of your companion for these two years would you do it? Or if you could only contact, but never teach, would you do it? Or if you could teach but never baptize, would you do it?” It made me think and now in my situation it made me think even more. Do I really submit to do whatsoever the Lord asks? Right now the Lord isn’t asking me to do much. He is asking me to have patience and do what I am asked to do as a junior companion. And if I was not sent here to do what the Lord asks, then for what purpose am I here? I love the Savior, because he has atoned for me and done what I could not do. He has done so much for me and I want to serve him. And that’s why I’m in the mission; because he loves me and I love him.
Con Amor,
Elder Mackay

Aug 15, 2011
Well another good week. This is the last week of the change which is kind of crazy because it seems like a week or two since Elder Wynn got here. I don’t get how it is that time goes by so fast here. I have over four months here and I am almost halfway done with this experience. I heard about waking up and realizing that it’s half way and not believing it. I’m starting to experience that. This week was good. There’s so much stuff goes on but Monday comes and I seem to have a blank.
The new news that goes on is that we have new investigator that is super sweet. It’s the daughter of Maria de Carmen. Her name is Ana. She went to her mom’s baptism last week and it was good for her. We watched the restoration while the people were changing and I think it had an impact. We went Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Tuesday we had a get to know discussion kind of deal. We got there before Maria de Carmen had gotten there. She came and said, “Maria hasn’t come back yet.” And we said, “that’s fine, can we talk to you? “ “Um… just a sec.” We had magically skipped over the barrier of being her mom’s visitors to being her visitors as well. We had a discussion on praying and she said the closing prayer. It was cool because Maria de Carmen shared experiences about how prayers really are answered. She said that she had been looking and praying for a spiritual path for a little while when we knocked on her door. It was super cool to be able to hear that we were an answer to the prayer. Wednesday, we finished watching the Restoration and talked about it. We gave her some things to read. Actually, Tuesday we had left something to read for the daughter Ana and she didn’t read it all. It was nice to listen to her mom get after her for not finishing it. Also the daughter had a doubt that one beer wasn’t going to hurt that its just one. The mom came back with that the Spirit can’t be in unclean temples, that our body is a temple and in order to have the spirit that we need to be clean and pure, not even a little dirty. Nice to have lessons with a recent convert, bottom line. On Thursday it was cool because the daughter was going on vacation and was going to be gone for her birthday. We bought a little cake and split it before the five of us (us two, Maria de Carmen, Ana and her daughter Marionette). I could hear you (mom) getting after her because she kept sticking her finger in the frosting! She is on vacation but should get back in a few days.
Also it isn’t super crazy but it would be really nice if it worked out. There was a family that supposedly lived in a house not far away from our house. We checked on it, and they didn’t live there, but we were greeted by a very nice family. The mom loves to talk and talk. They thought they were from a big family of four kids. When we told them that my companion is from a family of five kids and I’m from six she got wide eyed. That was some weeks ago. We went over there and it was finally a good time to teach. We didn’t teach to everyone but we stuck our purpose and message out. They invited us over for dinner on Friday this week so there is hope with them. It’s a family of four kids, a mom and a dad. They are a Christian family and it would be really cool but hard to see them progress. I haven’t been able to teach and baptize a whole family yet so here’s a good chance to do it.
The Lugo family that their daughter got baptized last week is still going good. The daughter got confirmed on Sunday. They are always crazy and it’s a bunch of laughs when we go over there. I would like to see them in about 10 years and see how they are doing. They are really an example of how a family can change and pick up the gospel. Even they would admit it that before their life style was different, but now they know where they want to go and what they want in life. The mom gave us home made rolls and it was good, but not as good as the ones from home.
Some of the other “business” of the week: I got a package of jerky from Chris Dahl oops, PRESIDENT Chris Dahl. I would have loved to have eaten them, and I almost did eat one, but then I realized that it was covered in mold. Sorry, I don’t know what the difference is but this time it didn’t make it. I was going to say something else but I don’t remember… oh yeah, this is turning out to be one of the Salt Lake City areas. Yesterday we had breakfast, lunch, lunch, dinner and dinner. All that weight that I had lost felt like it had came back in one night.
Well now the best part. I have really come to understand how much things work better when we work by importance. That’s really something that I thought about this week; how some things are important to others but for others aren’t for others. But that’s what makes us different from others. To many it doesn’t make sense for someone to be in the heat of Mexico and walk around and not get paid for it for two years, but I do it because the people here are my heavenly brothers and sisters. They are important to me. And because they are important to me it makes me go to extra lengths. When the Savior, was in the Garden of Gethsemane, he went and did it because he knew how important it was and would be. And because he loved you and he understood the importance of it, he did it. This life is short, I’m coming to realize that as I “gain more experience and gray hairs.” There isn’t as much time as we think. We need to realize and reorganize our priorities by not what we want, but what’s most important. To me is being with my family and my future family in the Celestial Kingdom. That is the thing that is most important to me. What is important to you?
Con Amor
Elder Mackay
Oh yeah, can’t forget! happy late birthday Dad. Yes I did think about you, just not so much on Monday. I got busy and lost track of time and we had to go like right away. So, feliz cupliaños papí. Also happy marrying to everyone especially Julie and Cliff. ¿Oye, Cliff, sabes español? yo no sabia que lo sabes. ¿Donde lo aprendiste? Me encantara al regresar y hablar con tigo. pues asta luego
Elder Mackay


August 8, 2011
Well another week. Seems like so much happens, but at the same time, I was just here yesterday; its pday, a long, long day, Sunday, then pday again. And I have more news, well I don’t know if its news, but my USB is full. It’s got about 500 pictures on it and I think that I’m going to need a new one. Well, I just found out I had a 1 gig file on there and I just erased it so I’ll be good for a little while. But it would be nice to have a new one if you could find one. I got a dear elder from Ross (thanks man) and Sarah (from trek). It’s good to hear from them. I realized that I don’t get mail from many people outside of family. It’s a bit different, and would be nice to have some more (hint hint=))
One of the hardest things that happened this week is that Yuri, (the investigator that was so golden and so perfect) is going to go live in Tabasco (another state outside the mission). She told us on Tuesday that there was a possibility then in the end, she left either yesterday or today (Sunday the 7th or Monday the 8th). On Saturday, we had our last lesson with favorite scriptures and all that. I talked about the 2000 stripling warriors and all that. It brought back some memories of about a year ago when I was saying goodbye to a big group of people. We finished talking about the Atonement and then just other stuff. She started crying and almost made me cry. She says that more than anything else, she wants to be baptized and wants to have an eternal family in the celestial kingdom. Just why can’t she stay here! I told her that when she finds the elders in Tabasco she needs to march up to them and say “I want to be baptized.” Happy Birthday to some obedient elders over in Tabasco.
This week was the baptism of Maria de Carmen. Everything with went along smoothly. First on Saturday we left in the morning and went to the temple to just look around. When we got there, the temple president was talking to about twelve three to seven year old kids. After, we showed her around and she said that everything even the kids were really calm. After that, we went to the distribution center behind and she bought some stuff. She’s a lot happier than when first saw us. She was really unsure of what we were up to. Now she looks for us, worries about us, thinks about questions during the week and things like that. It’s fun to see the difference in how everything has changed in her. Her baptism was in the afternoon, and it was cool. Our missionary leader believes in letting the missionaries take it easy in the baptismal services. So we didn’t have to speak or direct. At the end of her baptism, she spoke up and said she wanted to say something. She said that she was grateful for the missionaries and how patient we were with her. That she had a lot of questions, but that we answered and complained until she understood it. And that we were her guides while she made this decision to be baptized. Sounds like she understands pretty well how things work out.
Then on Sunday, we had another baptism after church. It was of Yoani and it was one of the coolest so far. It was different, because her dad got to baptize her. Not only was it making sure that she knew what to do, but also what her dad had to do. First though, was a fast and testimony meeting. It was cool to listen and I really wanted a lot of the people from their family to listen to how much the gospel helps people change their lives. Afterwards we had it and we had a good turn out. While we were waiting for them to change their clothes, we watched on the way home. It was applicable to their situation. This is one of the families that has changed 180º in their life style. They are a super happy family and love having missionaries over. In about 10 years, the older son wants to go on a mission. It`d be pretty nice.
Well, not much else crazy stuff has gone on. Just so you know I was going to write something and I started writing, but it came out in Spanish. My brain is short circuiting. That actually happens a lot now. Sometimes Elder Wynn and I (look mom, I used good grammar) will be talking, and just things change in Spanish. Or sometimes we have something to say but we can’t remember how to say it in English so it comes out in Spanish. Sometimes we convert Spanish words into more or less an English modification. I'm going to come home speaking way weird, and I haven’t even been with many Spanish companions!
Well, the thought for the week came to me in sacrament meeting when Maria de Carmen got to partake of the Sacrament. It hit me that that is what we do as missionaries. Many years ago, about two thousand more or less, a man suffered in Gethsemane and died on Calvary. Rising victoriously as a resurrected being on the third day (Sunday) was the crowning event making the Atonement of Jesus Christ complete. This is the biggest, most important act that has even happened, or will ever happen, because it has eternal affects for everyone. Everyone, through the resurrection, will receive something from the Atonement. But a missionary who has been set apart can be a guide, along the path. He holds a beacon to the nations saying that there has been an eternal atonement made, that they can be cleansed of their sins. And that the priesthood authority to partake of said sacrifice has been restored to the earth. He instructs how to be peaceful with life while we are here on the earth, and how to prepare for the life to come. He helps people be happier, “by helping them receive the Restored Gospel.” And he and his companion are the only ones in a certain area who are called and are able to do it. To the audience that receives this letter, if I could have you do one thing, it would be to pray; to pray to know how to apply the atonement better in you life. All of us are in this path, some farther along than others. This is the time to start again. This is the day for men to prepare to meet their God. This time here on earth is so short in perspective of the eternal consequences of our decisions. We need to remember, where we want to go, and why we do the things the way we do them.
Have a great week everyone. Love you all
Elder Mackay
Ps The picture is from Leanor last week. I think I’ve caught up on pictures finally.

August 8, 2011

August 8, 2011
Well another week. Seems like so much happens, but at the same time, I was just here yesterday; its pday, a long, long day, Sunday, then pday again. And I have more news, well I don’t know if its news, but my USB is full. It’s got about 500 pictures on it and I think that I’m going to need a new one. Well, I just found out I had a 1 gig file on there and I just erased it so I’ll be good for a little while. But it would be nice to have a new one if you could find one. I got a dear elder from Ross (thanks man) and Sarah (from trek). It’s good to hear from them. I realized that I don’t get mail from many people outside of family. It’s a bit different, and would be nice to have some more (hint hint=))
One of the hardest things that happened this week is that Yuri, (the investigator that was so golden and so perfect) is going to go live in Tabasco (another state outside the mission). She told us on Tuesday that there was a possibility then in the end, she left either yesterday or today (Sunday the 7th or Monday the 8th). On Saturday, we had our last lesson with favorite scriptures and all that. I talked about the 2000 stripling warriors and all that. It brought back some memories of about a year ago when I was saying goodbye to a big group of people. We finished talking about the Atonement and then just other stuff. She started crying and almost made me cry. She says that more than anything else, she wants to be baptized and wants to have an eternal family in the celestial kingdom. Just why can’t she stay here! I told her that when she finds the elders in Tabasco she needs to march up to them and say “I want to be baptized.” Happy Birthday to some obedient elders over in Tabasco.
This week was the baptism of Maria de Carmen. Everything with went along smoothly. First on Saturday we left in the morning and went to the temple to just look around. When we got there, the temple president was talking to about twelve three to seven year old kids. After, we showed her around and she said that everything even the kids were really calm. After that, we went to the distribution center behind and she bought some stuff. She’s a lot happier than when first saw us. She was really unsure of what we were up to. Now she looks for us, worries about us, thinks about questions during the week and things like that. It’s fun to see the difference in how everything has changed in her. Her baptism was in the afternoon, and it was cool. Our missionary leader believes in letting the missionaries take it easy in the baptismal services. So we didn’t have to speak or direct. At the end of her baptism, she spoke up and said she wanted to say something. She said that she was grateful for the missionaries and how patient we were with her. That she had a lot of questions, but that we answered and complained until she understood it. And that we were her guides while she made this decision to be baptized. Sounds like she understands pretty well how things work out.
Then on Sunday, we had another baptism after church. It was of Yoani and it was one of the coolest so far. It was different, because her dad got to baptize her. Not only was it making sure that she knew what to do, but also what her dad had to do. First though, was a fast and testimony meeting. It was cool to listen and I really wanted a lot of the people from their family to listen to how much the gospel helps people change their lives. Afterwards we had it and we had a good turn out. While we were waiting for them to change their clothes, we watched on the way home. It was applicable to their situation. This is one of the families that has changed 180º in their life style. They are a super happy family and love having missionaries over. In about 10 years, the older son wants to go on a mission. It`d be pretty nice.
Well, not much else crazy stuff has gone on. Just so you know I was going to write something and I started writing, but it came out in Spanish. My brain is short circuiting. That actually happens a lot now. Sometimes Elder Wynn and I (look mom, I used good grammar) will be talking, and just things change in Spanish. Or sometimes we have something to say but we can’t remember how to say it in English so it comes out in Spanish. Sometimes we convert Spanish words into more or less an English modification. I'm going to come home speaking way weird, and I haven’t even been with many Spanish companions!
Well, the thought for the week came to me in sacrament meeting when Maria de Carmen got to partake of the Sacrament. It hit me that that is what we do as missionaries. Many years ago, about two thousand more or less, a man suffered in Gethsemane and died on Calvary. Rising victoriously as a resurrected being on the third day (Sunday) was the crowning event making the Atonement of Jesus Christ complete. This is the biggest, most important act that has even happened, or will ever happen, because it has eternal affects for everyone. Everyone, through the resurrection, will receive something from the Atonement. But a missionary who has been set apart can be a guide, along the path. He holds a beacon to the nations saying that there has been an eternal atonement made, that they can be cleansed of their sins. And that the priesthood authority to partake of said sacrifice has been restored to the earth. He instructs how to be peaceful with life while we are here on the earth, and how to prepare for the life to come. He helps people be happier, “by helping them receive the Restored Gospel.” And he and his companion are the only ones in a certain area who are called and are able to do it. To the audience that receives this letter, if I could have you do one thing, it would be to pray; to pray to know how to apply the atonement better in you life. All of us are in this path, some farther along than others. This is the time to start again. This is the day for men to prepare to meet their God. This time here on earth is so short in perspective of the eternal consequences of our decisions. We need to remember, where we want to go, and why we do the things the way we do them.
Have a great week everyone. Love you all
Elder Mackay
Ps The picture is from Leanor last week. I think I’ve caught up on pictures finally.
More pictures - these are some baptisms from this week. The first lady is Maria de Carmen with my companion (he baptized her). After it's me, her and my companion and her daughter. After its just her and her daughter. After are some pictures of the other baptism. The dad baptized the 9 year old daughter. First is immediate family. Second is with the missionaries. Third is with the extend family