Every week is pretty Crazy!

Beck Family!

So this last week was pretty good, and you guessed it pretty crazy. for real, why is like every week of my life so good and crazy? that just feel repetitive saying that every week, but gosh darn it its still true, so thats  why i still say it.

To start, this last week we found 3 new families to teach. They are all really cool, some very prepared people in there. We found them just from talking to them on the street, all at different times and different places. One of the families we found in the most awkward of situations. We were walking to a lesson with our member in an apartment complex, when we walked by this group of 20 year old girls. And these were the cholo type of girls, (cholo signifying mexican gansta). there were about 6 of them and they had started shouting at us profanities before we even got to them. Guess what, nothing feels to awkward anymore for elder beck. We walked right up to them and starting talking, about 5 of them were completely crazy. they all had babies with made up strange names, lots of tatoos, really the opposite type of group i would expect to find people who are ready to accept the gospel. But like i said, we talked to them anyway. It was a super awkward conversation for about 15 minutes as they made lots of comments about how cute we were and what they wanted to do to us. Uh, yeah, cholas as just as filthy as the guys. As the decency of the conversation fell down, we simply asked them if they knew anybody who needed to hear from us, because we could see that most of them were just not interested in God at all. The one chola who had been the quitest said that her mom needed to hear from us. We got her apartment number, and came back 2 days later. We came and talked to the mom, who turns out was very ready and willing to recieve us. She had been going through a very hard time and needed help, and we cam at the right moment. Thats just where this starts though. WE set up an appointment to come back the next night and teach her and the rest of her family, including the chola daughter. The next night we came back ,we found the family there ready to hear us, including the chola. By pure inspiration we did our lesson of the plan of salvation focusing on where do we go after we die. Pure inspiration people. As we taught, we could feel the spirit of the room change. We were teaching the mother and her cola daugher who was 27, and her brother, who was 18. Everyone else left the room except for those 3, and they hung on to every word that we said. Eventually the chola daughter brok out and starting crying. She said her ex husband had recently committed suicide, about 2 months ago in front of her, and she was wondering if she would ever see him again. She said that as we taught she felt so peaceful and that she knew what we were saying was true and that he was ok. It was by pure in the moment inspiration from a prompting of the hold Ghost that we taught the last part of the plan of salvation in this first lesson. God knew what this family needed to hear, and the spirit bore such strong witness to us in that lesson of the things we taught. It was a great lesson, very powerful. we used scriptures and testimony and experiences, and it made everything so powerful. 2 main points from this. 1. we do not know who is prepared. out of a group of 6 girl gangstas, how could we have ever picked out that 1 of them was hurting from something like this and needed our message so badly. We had to talk to them to find her. 2nd point, when a prompting comes from the holy Ghost, you must act, and you must act without hesitation. If we had hesitated or tried to do anything different, we would have walked out of that home with very different results, but the fact that we followed the prompting, even if it seemed illogical, proved to be the difference in an average lesson to a miracle.
That was just 1 story that happened last week. I hpe you know that every week i have many stories like this, there just isnt enough time to type them all in the emials to ya'll.

I went on exchanges with the APs this week. It was so much fun. I went and worked in down town long beach with ap T, he is the man. for real, the leadership in the mission and aps all seem to be just such good missionareis, it makes me wonder what i am doing with them. But it was super fun, we contacted a gay guy outside of a gay thrift store, because like i said we talk to everyone. He turned out to be really accepting, and gave us his adress and phone number and we sent the english elders over there. WE talk to everyone. Man i love missionary work, best thing i have ever done. Thanks family for everything,
Beck out,
Elder Beck

Us kicking it at the library!
 

 

Crazy referrals are entertaining!

Beck Family!

Disclaimer, this email will not include pictures. I am currently to occupied being a 110% missionary to take pictures. Maybe this week if i drop it down to 109% i will find time to take atleast 1 picture.

This last week was great. it was so hot. For real, like every day over 100. and its windy here to. So the wind feels like a hair blower is going in your face, its just a hot dry wind. And then out of nowhere the humidity hit for a day, literally was sweating all night long. then it went away and we are back to the dry pico heat that i know and love.

We got to go to leadership training last tuesday. Leadership training is for all the DLS and ZLs in the mission. the aps, mission president and his wife give trainings to us there for like 5 hours. They also feed us lunch. It is so awesome, cause i get to see lots of my old companions there. For real, i had 5 old companions at that meeting, President has been consistently putting me with comps that are better than me, so all of the ones that are not already home are leaders in the mission. Super fun. Also, just having the opportunity to hear Pres. Tew speak is something i would straight up pay cash money for back home.

On thursday me and elder L did zone meeting for our zone. wE have the smallest zone in the mission, only 15 missionaries. We have 10 zones in the mission, but lots of the other zones have 25-30 peoople in them, we are by far the smallets. Which is really cool cause i feel like i get to know my zone really well. And we are the best performing zone in the mission right now. WE are finding and teaching more than any other zone, and we had some baptisms happen just yesterday. Pico rivera is just the place to be if your a missionary.

Yesterday at church d and j came. They are both super awesome, and they are progressing really well. Our ward is still super small right now, but atleast we found somebody yesteryday who could play the piano, so we didnt have to do the whole day acapella.
Also crazy experience, we asked 2 kids of the street for a referal, cause we ask everybody for referals. they told us to go to their neighbors house. WE went there asking for A, which is the name they told us of the person that lived there. Turns out ashley was a crazy death metal junkie, that walks around all day with her kitten sitting on her head, and throws water balloons off of her 3rd story apartment at kids all day. She wasnt that interested, but she definitely have the shock value on her side.

Anyways, love you family, have a good one.

Beck out,
Elder Beck

We are your guardian angels that aren't afraid to hurt people

love these guys!

We are the army
 

Beck Family!

First things, its hot here. like over 100 every day, and for some reason it feels humid to. even the mexicans are sweating. So this last week was pretty good. First week of transfers, and i feel right at home being back in a trio. For real, i know how to teach just as good in a trio as i do in a regular companionship. We had a really good week, my comps are great. We found 12 new investigators last week, which was a good number. A new investigator is someone that you sit down with, have a real lesson, and set up a return appointment. I know some missionaries count just saying a prayers with someone on the street as a new investigator, but i'm not about that, we try to find solid people, that really want to learn more about the church. We find a lot of our people from talking to everyone. For real, i have no fear anymore about talking to strangers. And like in all situations. I just talk to whoever wherever i am. And the crazy thing is that that is how we find a lot of people who really do want to know more about the church, and have been looking for answers. Its a testimony to me that God is preparing people all around us, but if we dont open our mouths we would never know it.

We are teaching a really cool family that just moved here from el salvador 1 month ago. They are super humlbe, and have family that are members, and they really want to see if this church is the answer that can help them. They are actually living with recent converts right now, so that also helps.

Also, crazyness, but my old companion elder K got married over the weekend. He went home 4 months ago, and just got married. What the crap companion. Thats pretty darn fast.

In other news, we became acquainted with another prominent gang up here in pico rivera. From what i understand they are the only gang here that isnt hispanic. Most of them are cambodian. anwyays, we ended up contacting a lot of them outside while they were getting hammered. about 10 minutes later we walked away having made some great new friends that said 'we will be your protectors in this hood, consider us your guardian angels. guardian angels that arent afraid to hurt people.' Flattering right. Missionaries are so safe, aint nobody gonna mess with us. Anways, have a good week family, love ya'll!

Beck out,
Elder Beck