We Are 3! - Perfect Weather - Love Of The Gospel/Mission - Happy - It Is Worth It!

Alright so this week I don't have my camera, because I got a virus on my memory card :( I have to buy a new one soon :( Haha but my awesome companion is being nice enough to let me borrow his camera for the week.

This is us outside of our pension living in paradise! The weather is so nice right now we are loving it! It isn't hot, nor cold! 

Well we had two investigators who were going to be baptized this Saturday... but the week before their baptism... they kinda bailed on us. We were going to an appointment, and they weren't home. The next day, they weren't home either... the next day... same thing. So we have been calling, texting  and passing by the house to see what happened, but we just don't know! So they will not be baptized this Saturday, but we are still hoping that we will be able to find them and get them ready for there baptism.

Well all of a sudden we are 3! We just got a new companion! He is from Salta Argentina and will be with us for a little bit, we aren't sure for how long, but we are happy to have him with us.

I don't have much time to write this week, but I want to share a quick experience. 

The other day, a new missionary in our Zone was telling me that he found a scripture in 3 Nefi about when Jesus Christ was telling the nefites that the "other sheep" that he had mentioned in John chapter 10, were them, in the Americas. He told me that this surprised him so much and that he was literally amazed in the connection that el libro de mormón has with la biblia. In my head, I kind of laughed to my self, thinking, "isnt that a fairly obvious scripture that everyone knows?" and then quickly corrected myself for thinking like that. I realized that 9 or 8 months ago, I had found that same scripture for the first time, and was literally in awe with the power it had in it. 

I guess what I am trying to say is that I am amazed at the spiritual growth I have had in this past year, and how much my scriptural knowledge has increased. I love it. I sometimes think that the knowledge that I have is just something I have, but then as I think and ponder, I realize that it is not like that at all. I realize, that because of constant study, and a true love of the scriptures, of course tied in with lots of faith,I have come to a real understanding of the scriptures, that I never thought possible. That being said, I have lots more to learn... lots more to learn. 

If I come away from this mission loving the scriptures, willing to read them, and study them deeply every day for the rest of my life, just in that, my mission will have been a success. 

I love the mission. I love this Gospel

Elder Graves

Argentina Posadas Mission

LA IGLESIA DE
JESUCRISTO

DE LOS SANTOS

DE LOS ÚLTIMOS DÍAS

 

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Write to Elder Graves in 1 of 3 ways  :

1. E-mail -  tgraves@myldsmail.net

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2. Send letters through the Church Pouch Mail Only postcards or one-page correspondences (no envelopes).

Fold the letter in thirds, secure the long side with tape about one inch in from each end. Do not seal the ends. Stamp and address the blank side as you would an envelope. Use the following mailing address:
Elder Taylor Graves
Argentina Posadas Mission
POB 30150
Salt Lake City, UT
84130-0150

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3. Physical Mailing Address:

 
Elder Taylor Graves
Córdoba 1243
Posadas, Misiones 3300
Casilla 12
Argentina

Conference In The Jungle! - Emotional Preparations To Do Baptisms In The Temple For Juliana's Parents! - 1 Year Has Passed 1 More To Go - Loving The Mission!

Every month as a mission, all the zone leaders get together and we have a Mission Council, and we talk about the things that we need to do better as a mission. We identify key points that we need to focus on to get better as a mission as a whole. Every month the meeting takes places in the Stake Center in Posadas. However, when we arrived to the Stake Center this week, Tuesday, there were a couple of Conveys waiting to take us somewhere. We were all so excited! President, after boarding the cars, told us that he had felt that we needed a change of pace, and that we were going to have our Mission Conference in the Santa Ana Cruz. Its this cross, that everyone can see for miles and miles across this part of Argentina, and we got to be there. It was so awesome to get to be there, and to get to feel the peace that was there in that "jungle like" environment.

I love this place! It is so amazingly beautiful and green. Sometimes, we as missionaries don't realize how wonderful this place truly is, because we just get carried away in the work, but when you take a minute to sit back and smell the roses, as my dad has counseled me to do at least every once and a while, I begin to realize how lucky I really am to live in such an amazing place. As I think, that in less than a year, I will no longer be here, I feel a sharp sadness, already knowing that I will deeply miss this place. I wish I could just show all of you the beauty of this country, because the pictures just don't do it justice.

Us four missionaries in the second picture have all worked in Carlos Antonio Lopez! I feel like I share a special bond with each of them, because I still remember something that draws me to one day go back to the place I started my mission. If I could have one wish from my president of the mission, it would be to be able to finish my mission where I started it, Carlos Antonio Lopez, and then I could show them that I can actually speak now! :)

I remember when I got my mission call, and I heard that I was going to Argentina, I figured that I would surely be hiking through the wild jungle, dodging tigers lions and bears... well we can just say that normally, we find ourselves walking through big city streets down here, but when we get lucky, we get to make a trek through jungle type areas, and it is pretty fun. (I have not seen any lions, tigers or bears, but have seen several monkeys, and heard packs, herds, gaggles, of monkeys hooting and hollering in the trees.

Well to keep everyone updated on the investigators, sadly we had rain on Sunday, so Alejandro and Yanina didn't come to church :( They were planning on getting baptized this 27th of June but will now have to postpone a bit. We are still praying that everything will go well and that they will be able to get baptized as quickly as possible.

Juliana, who was recently baptized, is paying tithing, visiting other people, being part of the mission work, and will be having her interview to get her temple recommend, to do baptisms for the dead for her parents. When we taught her about the fact that she could help her Mother and Father enter into Gods kingdom, she was very emotional, and decided she was going to go as soon as possible.

I am loving the mission and feel the love of each of you. 365 days ago I was giving my farewell talk in my hometown ward. I remember, that so many of you were there to support me. I felt the love of you all then, as I do now. Thank you for the continued support. I cant believe the things I have learned, the experiences I have had, and the blessings I have received, in what seems like just a blink of an eye. In another, I will be back with you all, and will have the opportunity to hug each of you, and truly express how grateful I am for the prayers and fasts that are constantly made for me. 

One last foto just for kicks :) My companion found some cool sunglasses, and I decided that its been too long since I participated in #selfiesunday

Love you guys!

Elder Graves

Argentina Posadas Mission

LA IGLESIA DE

JESUCRISTO

DE LOS SANTOS

DE LOS ÚLTIMOS DÍAS

 

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Write to Elder Graves in 1 of 3 ways  :

1. E-mail -  tgraves@myldsmail.net

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Send letters through the Church Pouch Mail Only postcards or one-page correspondences (no envelopes).

Fold the letter in thirds, secure the long side with tape about one inch in from each end. Do not seal the ends. Stamp and address the blank side as you would an envelope. Use the following mailing address:
Elder Taylor Graves
Argentina Posadas Mission
POB 30150
Salt Lake City, UT
84130-0150

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Physical Mailing Address:

 
Elder Taylor Graves
Córdoba 1243
Posadas, Misiones 3300
Casilla 12
Argentina

 

New Members Love The Gospel, Share It & Become Missionaries! - Argentina Sleeps (Siesta) At Noon - Friends Reunited During the Siesta/Dario Preparing To Serve A Mission 1 Year After Baptism - Taylor Began His Mission 3 Years Ago Sharing The Gospel With His Friend Who Leaves On A Mission Himself In July!

 What an awesome week. Teaching here in Argentina is one of the most interesting things. Juliana, just loves the gospel so much. She is continuing to grow in her spirituality, and continually tells us of how she felt the spirit overcome her when we put our hands on her head to give her the Holy Spirit. She has even showed us a neighbor of hers who she thought would be interested in the gospel. She is already a missionary! We had the lesson with her friend and the husband of her friend, and they loved the idea of baptism. We obviously explained to them that we were going to be with them helping them little by little to gain their testimony, and later on will be baptized. We are hoping that in the coming month they will be baptized if all goes well! What makes me happier than anything is that Hermana Juliana, has already become a missionary. When we as Elders, (and sister missionaries) see the joy that comes from being in this church, shine out in the converts, it makes us realize that our hard work, really is worth it.

Okay as you can see we are in the middle of downtown, and there are 0 cars and 2 people in the whole city... haha. This is what we call the Siesta, or in English, the Nap. Everybody in all of Argentina, sleeps and takes a break from work. As you can imagine, it is a very difficult time for us as missionaries, as we continue searching people, but for about 3 hours or more, EVERYONE is asleep...

Well as you can see, as we walked the streets of Downtown Posadas, Dario Do Santos found us!!!!!! I was so happy to see him! I saw him and we both freaked out! We hugged each other and just talked for a good long while! I miss that guy! He has been called to be the 2nd counselor in the young mens, and is very excited. He said that he is working hard to save for his mission that he is planning on serving within the next year. (If I am very very very very very lucky, I will still be here when he leaves and would very likely be able to ask permission to see him off).  He understands so much of the gospel, (probably more than me already haha) and is very excited to have the opportunity to preach the gospel, that very recently was preached to him by me and my awesome companion Elder Hawk.

3 years ago, I had strong impressions that I needed to show one of my best friends, Tanner, the missionaries. I had these impressions very frequently and didn't know why. Tanner was Atheist, and had no interest in God, and surely wouldn't have any interest in learning from the missionaries. I ignored the prompting for more than a year. Finally one day, Tanner came to me and asked me if I would show him to the missionaries. Someone had asked him a very difficult question regarding God, (as he had a reasonably important role on the Track and Cross Country team kids would frequently ask him for advise). When normally he would be able to quickly respond with some way to help, he realized he didn't know much about God, and couldn't find a way to respond. In that very same week, he asked me to show him the missionaries.

I was shocked. I wondered why I had ignored the promptings for so long, and also learned that God always will get the work done, it is up to us if we want to help or not. I learned I needed to ALWAYS listen to the promptings that God gives me.

We started talking with the missionaries. Me, Tanner, and Jessica Mccubbins, who now is serving a mission in Rancagua Chile. The missionaries names were Elder Thomas and Elder Holmes. They were the best missionaries I have ever met and changed all three of our lives. 

We had the first lesson with Tanner, and the very first thing that he told us was the following "Hello Elders, it's nice to meet you. I would like you to know that I will NOT  be getting baptized, and I am here just to learn about how God works, and how your Church is." Haha. 

Well lets just say things didn't go as Tanner had planned. We had lessons every other day with the missionaries, and he took notes to every thing they said, and studied and asked questions to me and to Jessica frequently. Through the course of time, he started realizing how true everything was. He realized that God truly loves him. He decided to be baptized.

The proudest moment right now of my whole mission is about to take place, and it isn't happening here in Argentina. It will be starting on the other side of the Globe where Tanner will be entering the MTC of Provo, to start a 2 year mission of his own.

In no way do I take credit for the progress of Tanner. I am just amazed at the trust the Lord put in my hands to allow me to be his friend during this process.

We ran together daily back home, I we will be working together now in the Lords work.

The theme of my letter is that those who truly become converted to the Lords gospel, realize the intense need to share it with everyone. Juliana, Dario, and Tanner now know the need to share the Joy that is found in Christ. I hope that each of you, can find your true conversion, and share the message of the restored gospel, with all who still don't know.

I love you all.

Elder Graves

Argentina Posadas Mission

LA IGLESIA DE

JESUCRISTO

DE LOS SANTOS

DE LOS ÚLTIMOS DÍAS

 

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Write to Elder Graves in 1 of 3 ways  :

1. E-mail -  tgraves@myldsmail.net

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Send letters through the Church Pouch Mail Only postcards or one-page correspondences (no envelopes).

Fold the letter in thirds, secure the long side with tape about one inch in from each end. Do not seal the ends. Stamp and address the blank side as you would an envelope. Use the following mailing address:
Elder Taylor Graves
Argentina Posadas Mission
POB 30150
Salt Lake City, UT
84130-0150

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Physical Mailing Address:

 
Elder Taylor Graves
Córdoba 1243
Posadas, Misiones 3300
Casilla 12
Argentina

Juliana's Baptism! - Elder Blanco Returns For Baptism - Waiting For Buses - Silly Pictures - Splits With Mission President Lapierre! - Loves Beautiful Garupa - Blessings Of Communication/Thanks For Writing - Knows The Gospel Is True

Why not just start with a picture? :)

We had our baptism! Juliana was baptized and we were so happy to see the light within her! It was incredible to see her grow through just a few short weeks, all because she was willing to do her part, as she prayed, read the scriptures and went to church, almost without reminders from us.

The first picture is of me, Elder Gardner, Juliana, Raquel (her daughter who is descapacitada,... i dont know how to say that in English - This is Taylor's Dad - descapacitada means handicapped) and Elder Blanco. Elder Blanco and I found her when we were doing divisions/splits about a month ago! When I called him about a week ago and invited him to come to the baptism, not only was he surprised, but was truly happy to see that we had achieved something. Sometimes, we visit someone, and we have no idea the impact we make on them, and then later on, we find out that the small thing we did actually changed there life. 

 

 

Sometimes we get bored waiting for buses to come by and pick us up

 

 

and other times we miss the bus as we are taking silly pictures... haha.

Well one of the coolest things that I have done to this point in my mission happened this week. On Monday we got to go on splits with my mission president Lee Lapierre. 

I honestly was getting a little down on myself that day, but things started getting better, as I read letters from you guys (especially some really cool stories from my dad), and as I was reading those letters, the president of the mission came in. He said "Elder Graves? You want to go to work tonight?" I was kinda like... "uh...uh... YEAH!" 

We got going and in EVERY step I took alongside that man I felt as if it was guided by the spirit, not to mention the way we spoke to those we taught. The power in our testimonies together was indescribable. Every day since then, I have truly focused on having the spirit guide each step and each decision I make. Still not perfect, but I am learning.

 

I love Garupá. This place is so full of beautiful places, and the views we find don't stop amazing me. Its like my Dad used to tell me as we hiked in the mountains when I was younger, "Taylor, when I come up here, I realize that there is a God. He made all of this. How else could this place be so beautiful?" I think of my dad´s words very frequently and often quote them in lessons.

This is me about an hour ago, reading the letters that effortlessly stream from that side of the world to this. Technology amazes me, and continues to bless my life. The letters I receive from you all are of support and love, and I appreciate each one.

If I didn't know this church was true, I wouldn't still be here. If you ask my mom, she will tell you that I was a kid that didn't like to waste his time. If I didn't have anything to do, I would start going crazy, so I would just go and run, so that I could at least accomplish something. I didn't like wasting my time. I can say that if I didn't know this church was true, I would not spend my precious God-given time to be here. I would spend it at school or doing something else. But, I know it's true. I love being able to say that, because it was so hard fought - to come to that conclusion, but I have arrived, and will not leave the tree. 

I love you all. 

 

Elder Graves

Argentina Posadas Mission

LA IGLESIA DE

JESUCRISTO

DE LOS SANTOS

DE LOS ÚLTIMOS DÍAS

 

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---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Write to Elder Graves in 1 of 3 ways  :

1. E-mail -  tgraves@myldsmail.net

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Send letters through the Church Pouch Mail Only postcards or one-page correspondences (no envelopes).

Fold the letter in thirds, secure the long side with tape about one inch in from each end. Do not seal the ends. Stamp and address the blank side as you would an envelope. Use the following mailing address:
Elder Taylor Graves
Argentina Posadas Mission
POB 30150
Salt Lake City, UT
84130-0150

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Physical Mailing Address:

 
Elder Taylor Graves
Córdoba 1243
Posadas, Misiones 3300
Casilla 12
Argentina