June 19th, 2017

Hola everybody,

I'm super pumped for this week. We put dates on Cain and Diana, both for july1. They are both super excited and prepared for their baptisms. We visited Diana yesterday and we invited her to get baptized. SHe started to cry and we asked her how she felt. She told us that she knew this was right and that she needed to get baptized. She is so happy and she invited her mom and her sister to meet with us too. She also went to a YSA activity this week and made friends with all the members and was pretty happy for that.

Cain is so happy. When we invited him he had some doubts about if he would really be ready and that he didnt want to make mistakes after, ut we explained to him that he is definitely ready and that ,mistakes are part of life and that they help us to grow. He has been going through a lot of tough things and evertime something else happens he gets stronger and more anxious to learn. 

Alicia went to church again and like always is pretty excited. We were talking about temples and families this week with the and she said that that is a goal she has to go to the temple and all that. And her husband who hasn really been to receptive is starting to open up and listen to us, so we are going to try and put a baptismal date on them too. 

Other than that this week was pretty chill. We are having a lo of success and im super grateful for that. The Lord is defintely preparing the people here in ths area.

I love you all. Have a good week.

Love Elder Crisp

June 12th, 2017

Hola everybody,

Another sick week here in Bolivia. We are having a lot of progress with our investigators. Im super excited because there was 2 new investigators at church almost all the inv. we have are progressing. One of them is a guy named Caín haha, and his son Abel, hahahaha. There were a referral from the President of the othe mission in santa cruz and he is super cool. Hes passed through a lot of problems and afflictions in his life but he loved church yesterday. He is super humble and he accepts everything we teach, this week we are going to put a date for his baptism. 

Another was Francisca. She came for the first time yesterday. She has been super sad because her husband passed away 2 monthes ago and a convert here invited her to church. She lives a lone now with 2 little kids and she needs a lot of help, we visited her yesterday after church and she had a lot of really good questions nd she is super excited to keep learning too. 

We haven't found to many new people to teach these past few weeks but those that we have found are super prepared to learn and accept the gospel. Enrique's mom went to church again and she is excited too to keep learning. I'm so pumped for these next few weeks because we are going to put dates for baptism. 

That's it for this week. I love you all. Shout out to all the dads out there, hope you all have a sick week. hahaha


We went to Johnny Rockets this week which was pretty sweet,
and we ran into a llama in my area, he spit on me shortly after i took this picture

June 5, 2017

Buenos días familia,
This week has been full of a bunch of miracles. Probably one f the best weeks o the mish. Yesterday at church there was 80 people which is pretty insane for this little branch and 8 investigators went.There were also a few converts that attended for the first timein about 3 monthes so it was a really good day. We fasted this weekend too and our fast was immediately answered.

Last week we were walking to a cita that was pretty far away and the road to get there is pitch black at night. As we were walking a girl asked us where we were going and she walked with us to nt be alone on that road. We talked with her as we walked and set a cita with her. We taught hera little bit about repentance and she accepted to go to church. SHe went and she told us that she loved it, that she felt peace and that she was super happy to go. We taught her again yesterday and she is super excited to keep learning. She is super prepared for everythingand the YSA here is really helpful so it wont be hard to make friends.

I read a part of a message in the April Liahona by Uchtdorf. He tells a little story that i like a lot,

There is an old Jewish tale about a soap maker who did not believe in God. One day as he was walking with a rabbi, he said, “There is something I cannot understand. We have had religion for thousands of years. But everywhere you look there is evil, corruption, dishonesty, injustice, pain, hunger, and violence. It appears that religion has not improved the world at all. So I ask you, what good is it?”
The rabbi did not answer for a time but continued walking with the soap maker. Eventually they approached a playground where children, covered in dust, were playing in the dirt.
“There is something I don’t understand,” the rabbi said. “Look at those children. We have had soap for thousands of years, and yet those children are filthy. What good is soap?”
The soap maker replied, “But rabbi, it isn’t fair to blame soap for these dirty children. Soap has to be used before it can accomplish its purpose.”
The rabbi smiled and said, “Exactly.”
The rabbi did not answer for a time but continued walking with the soap maker. Eventually they approached a playground where children, covered in dust, were playing in the dirt.
“There is something I don’t understand,” the rabbi said. “Look at those children. We have had soap for thousands of years, and yet those children are filthy. What good is soap?”
The soap maker replied, “But rabbi, it isn’t fair to blame soap for these dirty children. Soap has to be used before it can accomplish its purpose.”
The rabbi smiled and said, “Exactly.”

It just explains the importance of living the gospel. We have to act and live the principles to see a change in outrlives.Thats somethingthat a lot of people dont understand, they just think "if God gives me something, then ill believe", but its necessary that we do something before we receive the blessings.

Thats all i have for this week.Happy Brithday Dad, I love you a lot and hope you ahave a super sick week. Thanks for everything you have done for me.
Love Elder Crisp

May 29th, 2017

Hola everybody,

this week was pretty sweet and pretty surprising. I thought forsure i was going to get transferred but to my great surprise I was made part of that dumb TLC show "I Didnt Know I was Pregnant" hahahahahahaha. I am training again in this same area, which means im probably going to end my mission here. Which honestly wouldnt be to bad for me because i love this area. My kids name is Elder Jorge and pretty weird, he from Lima, Peru. Hes pretty cool and hes super prepared. Its going to be a sweet 2 transfer because he knows a bunch. Im pretty pumped to train again. My last experience was pretty rough but i feel like we are going havea a lot of success here.

We were able to put fecha on Alfredo this week and he was pretty excited. We asked him what impeded him to get baptized and he said, "Nothing!" So we are going to focusing on him. His wife wasnt there to put fecha but tomorrow we are going to go and ask her too. Im super happy for them because they are super prepared.

Thats about it for this week.I grateful to be here in Valle Sanchez and top be able to continue to serve the Lord and the people here. Ilove you all, have a sick week. 

Love Elder Crisp

May 22nd, 2017

Hola everyone,

How's everyone doing? Everything is good down here in Bolivia. This week it got super cold and its been raining non stop so its been good. Its not hot and humid anymore here so I'm happy for that. But the bad part of all that is that my area is compleetly flooded and everything is wet. And that makes it hard to work because there's no way to get to some of the people because the paths are all impassable. But we were able to visit Alfredo and Dayana this week. I don't remember if I've mentioned them before but they are super cool. We've been teaching them for a little bit and we've focused on the BofM with them. We've read with them a bunch and they feel good about it, and this week we read 3 Nefi 11. The spirit was super strong and I'm positive they felt it too. We invited them to pray like always and they said they would.

Alicia, Enrique's mom, finished the BofM this week and she loved the end of Moroni and Eter and all that. She told us that she was going to start to read the Bible and BofM and compare them. She told us that she was going to go to church next week so I'm pumped for that. Enrique got sustained and ordained as an Elder yesterday too in the stake conference, and he is super excited now to do everything. Presidente Cabezas gave a talk in the conference and he talked about those that are preparing to serve a mission so Enrique was super happy haha.

This week is cambios so well see if i stay here, I honestly have no idea if I'm going to stay or go but i would honestly be pretty happy with either.

Today i was reading the BofM in Ether and i liked a part in Chapter 2:25 The bro of jared is talking with the Lord about having light in the boats, and i love what the Lord tells him
25 And behold, I prepare you against these things; for ye cannot cross this great deep save I prepare you against the waves of the sea, and the winds which have gone forth, and the floods which shall come." I like how he tells him first that he cant do anything without the Lord and that they would get to the promised land without him, but then i like the question He asks him. "Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?" He asks what the bro of Jared wanted Him to do to for him and his family and the Lord was willing to give the bro of Jared whatever he asked. God is completely willing to help us with our desires and wants and if we follow his commandments and build our lives how he wants like the bro of Jared built the boats, the Lord with give us what we need to fulfill our goals.

That's all i have for this week. I love you all. Have a good week.

Love Elder Crisp

May 8th, 2017

Hola,

This week was super sweet. The baptism of Armando was really good. It was probably one of the most spiritual baptismal services I've been too. It was a little different because a bunch of the members went to the temple in Cochabamba so they couldn't come. It was a little hectic getting everything ready and to make it worse, the font wasn't filling when we got there so we had to fill it up with a bunch of buckets and it took a long time but we got it done and everything worked out good.

We also had a conference this week with the 1st Counselor of the Area Elder Falabela. He gave a lot of good advice and talked a lot about the Atonement. He shared a scripture in Hebrews 12:2:

2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

He explained that the Lord obviously knowing that He was going to suffer to worst pain that no other human could feel without dying, He "went with joy" because he understood that that was the will of His Father and that He had to do that so that we could have to chance to accept His sacrifice and return to the presence of God.

He talked for a solid 4 and half hours but the Spirit was super strong. He applied the Atonement to our lives as missionaries and the importance of every little decision we make in the mish and for the rest of our lives, so it was really good.

That all I have for this week. I'm so pumped to talk for Mom`s Day and hope you all have a good weekend.

Love Elder Crisp

May 1st, 2017

Hola, 

So a quick update on Armando and his baptism. They decided to do it on the 6th because his Aunt and Uncle weren't here this week and they wanted to go so we pushed it back a week. He is still super excited and he is still going to get baptized so its all good. We visited them this week and had a really good visit with all his family and they told us that they were all going to go to church.

My Birthday was pretty sweet here. I ate like 3 different cakes with 23 different families and they smashed a bunch of eggs and flour on my head so it was pretty fun. That's how they show you they really care about you here. The branch also threw a little party for me and another member here who has the same birthday, so it was a pretty good day and a solid week. 

That's about it for this week. I didn't really have much time to write because we started late. I love you all, have a sick week.


Elder Crisp