HOLA FAMILIA,

ALright, so this week was just full of events. First of all, I found out that being a Zone Leader isn't at all fun and games. It isn't smooth sailin' like everyone plays it up to be. haha, actually, talking to my companion in the morning, he said, "They really shouldn't call us Zone LEADERS, they should call us Zone SERVANTS." hahaha I laughed, but he's right....

Anyway, update wise, One of the first American Hermanas to arrive to Mexico in EVER is in my Zone. her name is Hermana Stout. she lived close to me before the mission, And I'm pretty positive I knew her before haha, but I can't remember from where, but oh well.

Anyway, have any of you seen the Rush Hour movies? well, that's how my companionship is right now! Haha, my comp speaks english like a Chinese man, and I'm black, so we've got the Rush Hour swag. he even said it. he just said that all we lack are the karate skills, so that's what we´ll practice every morning during our exercise time :p I'll send a couple pictures of us, because he even LOOKS Chinese! haha even though he's from Peru. anyway, I'm having a blast and nothing's really bad right now. 5 months and one more week and I'll be out of here :p it's odd to think about... see you guys on christmas!

Elder Stormy Sheppard

Oh yeah, and stay in school and church.

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December 9, 2013

HOLA FAMILIA!

Alright, so last week I didn´t write. Sorry. this week was better anyway.

So! last week, we found so many new investigators in Salamanca, but go figure, this week was transfer week, and guess who got transfered right when we found people to baptize? that´s right. yours truly. I´m no longer a district leader in the Salamanca district. I'm now a Zone Leader in the Celaya Norte Zone. haha yeah, I´m pretty much the best >:)

Anyway, I´m attaching some pictures to this of some pictures I took before I left, and also a picture of me and my new companion, Elder Poma. he´s from Peru, and from the like, 4 hours I´ve spent with him, he seems pretty cool. he´s been on a mission 11 months, and he speaks english, so that´s tight. also, he´s WAY motivated to work so this time around I don´t think I´ll be thinking for 2 people. haha, this guy knows how to use his brain. I think this´ll be a nice new chapter for me. No one knows me here, but the Elder whose place I took already told all the members I´m from Africa, haha so I´m gonna have some fun with that >:) and my comp´s gonna go along with the joke too, so I already like him haha. anyway, that´s my piece for this week. there are really no updates because I´ve only been here for 4 hours :p but next week I´m sure to have some stories. I think I´ve pretty much had companions from all of South America now...

Stay in school! stay in church! stay awesome, for those of you that are, and get awesome for those of you that aren´t, hahaha.

With love,

Elder Stormy Sheppard

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November 18 2013

Hola Family,

Alright, so this week, nothing really exciting, but we have found a ton of new people to teach, so we´re not really walking around playing with our toes anymore :p

I´ve had a LOT of humbling experiences this week, and I´ve realized something that we, as members of the church can fall into sometimes:

And even when we´re not members, sometimes we fall into a dangerous game. It´s called the game of "False Wisdom". I named it myself, haha, but in this game we start to study, and we study a lot. scriptures, talks, other God-related books, and we fall into the erroneous trap of thinking we´re okay in the eyes of God because we understand the concept of repentence, or we understand why having the Holy Ghost with us is important. Then, the part of our mind that´s connected with our natural and fallen environment starts to tell us, "Don´t you worry, you´re completing everything you need to to be saved. you´ve learned it all, right? so why wouldn´t you be doing it? you understand repentance, so you can just do it after anything, and still be sincere." And the most dangerous part of the game is, we have to end it early, because if we play every level, we´ll have to keep playing it for eternity in Hell.

The art of knowing is 20% of the battle folks. you could memorize the scriptures and still end up in the Telestial Kingdom. a lot of great and really "Intelligent" people apostasized when the church first started, it´s just a matter of the subtlety of the temptation. sometimes we think we know so much that our conversion starts to only be in our mind, and we don´t realize that while we´re bragging about the spiritual KNOWLEDGE we have, our spiritual STRENGTH is slowly withering and fading into the darkness.

FAITH = ACTION, people. not just knowledge. and that´s the lesson for today :p. haha also, I´ve lost 70 pounds. only 10 more to go :D

Stay in school!

Much Love, Elder Sheppard

BLOG:

Hola Familia!!!

How´re things? I´m hoping good, because I feel a wave of success coming on over here :)

Okay, first thing´s first: Updates.

This week, we had one of the most awesome lessons in a family home evening I´ve ever had! we talked about the plan of Salvation, and we watch as this family unfolded their own purposes in life as they listened to us. we saw the spirit truly working in them and it was great. haha, it Gave me a testimony about family home evening :)

Then, last night, we went to this lady´s house who´s not a member of the church, but her daughter is and she´s on a mission right now, so her mom is NOT happy. She said the church stole her daughter and a bunch of other stuff, but now that my companion and I are getting along better, we took care of that thought process REAL QUICK. haha, I still don´t know if she keeps fighting against her daughter´s decision, but at least we delivered the message :p

Out here in the mission feild, I´ve realized that we as human beings tend to lose sight of what really matters here. I wrote about that last week, but the cancerous tumor of apathy still spreads throughout the hearts of "Those who profess to belong to the church of Christ."

We had changes this week, but nobody left or arrived in the district I´m in, so the changes didn´t affect us at all... but that just means I have another month and a half to combat this lack of feeling that´s assailing the city of Salamanca.

I´ve realized that Satan attacks the church from the inside out. first, he gets our families to argue, then, he gets us to bring family problems into our communication with other members so we stop getting along with them. Pretty soon, everyone on the outside of the church is saying, "I´m never getting baptized there, their own MEMBERS don´t even act like disciples of Christ." then, we all fall slowly into personal apostasy.

That´s his plan anyway, he just isn´t fully aware yet of whose arrived to put an end to it >:)

Well, talk to y´all next week! stay "prayed up"!

Elder Stormy Sheppard

HOLA FAMILIA!

Alright, another week, another email. This transfer I`ve just felt like time has been going by SO FAST. In a week, I`ll have been out here 17 months. how crazy is that? Everyone keeps telling me "Oh, you`re already out the door Elder." haha, it`s so funny... but kinda scary at the same time.

This week, I`ve been thinking a ton about leaving the past behind. an Elder in my district and I were talking on the phone one night about how we can fix the problems in our areas, and we came to the same conclusion: We have to help them stop living in the past. As members of the church, and even outside of the church, we make the fatal mistake of judging a WHOLE group based on 2 or three people who are associated with it, then we live with that bitterness, judging an entire group for the rest of our lives based on a mistake that one or two people made. Then, we end up sacrificing our progress just to "Get back at" that person by not going to church, or not keeping the same friends because they`re friends with him/her. I`ve come to realize that we, as human beings, walk through life a lot of the time thinking that everyone`s just thinking about us. whether it be about attacking us, or waiting to cater to our every whim. but the world isn`t like that. there`s a quote that I`ve really come to appreciate this week:

"Be kind, for everyone you know is fighting a battle." and another one:

"The past is to be learned from, not lived in."

I just wanna invite everyone, the next time they get offended by someone else, to just think about, first of all, If the person even REALIZES they`ve offended you, and second, think about if the offense really even matters in the grand scheme of your existence. that`ll change things for ya.

Well, I`m outie. Be happy, Be Mormon.

Elder Stormy Sheppard

James Sheppard	3:23 PM (3 hours ago)
to me, Natalie, Natalie

HOLA FAMILIA!!

Hey, sorry I didn´t write last week, the truth is... I completely forgot, haha :p but it´s cool, cause I´m writing now.

So, did anyone else catch the General Conference messages? did anyone realize the fact that we live in the times fortold by Paul as being "perilous"?

Everything that´s been profesied (or however you spell it in English :p) since Adam about the second coming of Christ is all coming true. the first talk in conference talked about how we´re headed toward the same amount of persecution as the early church members, and soon, we´ll all need our testimonies of Jesus Christ. I feel like here in Mexico, God´s already "Shaking the tree" so to speak, to see which of his children will stay loyal no matter what temptations beset them. I read a verse in Helaman that says not everyone will be saved. it,s the sad truth, but We´re even seeing the proof here in the mission.

Our mission president has had to go dictator on us. 3 elders went home this past week for some type of grave sin. our president´s words to us after this incident were, "You guys didn´t wanna carry the yoke of Christ, now you´ll tremble under the yoke of Caesar." which was a really cool quote, even though it scared me. then he proceeded to tell us that these new rules are to "DESTROY the traitors." yeah. the mission just got real. those are the only updates for this week, but I hope everyone´s well, and I´ll see you all in 7 months.

Elder Stormy Sheppard :)

September 23, 2013:

HOLA FAMILIA!!!!!

Alright, this is just getting ridiculous. right when I think the mission can`t get any more difficult, Heavenly Father throws me another curveball, and I have no choice but to look up and say, "touché...".

This week has been probably my hardest one yet. you all remember how they recently made me district leader? well, that`s still going about the same amount of difficult. And now, they just put some more on my plate, A BRAND NEW ELDER. He`s straight out of Bolivia, and he literally NEVER talks. not even in the lessons. sometimes, I stop talking in a lesson and wait for him the folllow my lead, and he just looks at me and says, "Can we leave now?" and I just sit there feeling awkward because after 2 seconds in a house, he`s already wanting to leave without having said anything... it`s bad, but I`m not complaining. If he was put with me, it`s obviously a trial I can`t handle. I`ve tried the stern trainer approach, and he just rebelled more and told me he hated me and stormed off into the room. I literally live with a 6 year old trapped in a 19 year old body. but it`s cool, I don`t dislike him or anything, it`s just always been hard for me to teach people with a learning disability THIS STRONG. But all of you there are probably saying, "that`s exactly why he`s with you, Stormy, that`s what you have to change about yourself in this companionship", But if ANYONE has ANY advice, PLEASE let me know, because I`m all out of ideas and nothing`s changed. I`ve tried to explain rules to him, and he says "I`m not gonna follow that rule, cause in my house I didn`t have to do that", And I just wanna say, "Well, have President transfer you to your house so you can sleep all day then..." but I dont, haha.

ANYWAY, on a completely seperate note, I heard a lesson that really impacted me in church yesterday:

Inactivating yourself from the church is like freezing to death. at first, you feel the spirit leave just like one feels the cold setting in. but with more time outside, the numbness sets in, and we stop feeling anything at all. we don`t feel the spirit, but we come accustomed to it, just like the freezing cold turns to numbness, and even an eerie sense of warmth, right before we close our eyes and die. 

So, being inactive, and feeling okay with it, is really just another symptom of spiritual death, not God`s approval of your absence from the church or anything similar. but someone with hypothermia or frostbite, stops realizing they`re dying until someone comes from the outside to save them.

We`re those people. so let`s remember that.

Sincerely,

Elder Sheppard

September 30, 2013:

Hola Familia!!!!!

Okay, so this week I´ve seen a LITTLE bit of improvement in the unity between my companion and I. I feel like he talks a LITTLE more, but there´s still the problem of his refusal to learn and my own pride. I never realized until the mission how hard it is to lose an argument on purpose. But then I just think of how hard it was for Jesus to do it and I realize that my own difficulty is really nothing in comparison. I´ve decided to make a conscious effort to not complain about others and, instead, take responsibility for the situation.

So, anyway, updates this week. first of all, I got KISSED BY A GUY. it was probably one of the most traumatizing (however you spell that) experiences in my life. we were just walking down the street and a guy came up and was like, "I´m a member of your church and I need you to lend me $20". so my comp was just like, alright, and gave it to him. and the guy was like, "thank you so much!" and came over and kissed ME. he didn´t even kiss my companion, who was the one that gave him the money, he kissed ME. I´m pretty sure he just wanted an excuse to kiss a black guy.... Anyway, in other news, my favorite tie in the world disappeared, so I´m about to go "TAKEN" on all of Mexico until I find it >:(.

We haven´t had baptisms yet. or even really prospects for baptism, so we{ve been focusing on the less active members and getting them to come back to the church. because how can we expect to get new people up in here when we can´t even retain the members we do have? exactly. so we´re on OPERATION: MENOS ACTIVO now.

Today, we went with two other missionaries in my district (since there are only 4 of us anyway), and we went to climb a mountain. I´ll put some pictures in here cuz we found some pretty awesome stuff :) haha some weird ruins that I guess have been there since the foundation of the world or something. there´s a little town at the bottom of the mountain with a population of like, 20, and everyone started going into their houses and closing the doors when they saw us coming, then they would just stare at us from the windows... creepy... and there was just ONE little pink church. I´ll send that picture too. and we contacted a guy and asked if he had ever heard of the mormons. he said he´d never heard of any church other than that little pink one.... even weirder... but it´s cool, no one killed us or anything. but those are my stories for the week. hopefully there are more next week! maybe we´ll find out what´s up with that creepy town...

One more thought before I part:

If we´re not making sacrifices in our lives, we´re not following Christ.

Stay in school! don´t lick frozen poles!

Elder (Stormy) Sheppard

This is Stormy's Blog for September 16 2013

BLOG:

HOLA FAMILIA!!!!!!!!

Okay, so I promised I`d catch you guys up on the past 2 weeks today. here it is:

We finally found a new house because the sister that was renting us our last one kicked us out for good. she`s kind of.... special, but whatever, we found a new one, and it`s actually better because we have more privacy and stuff.

In our search for that new house, I realized that I`m not gonna marry a lawyer. women lawyers and I don`t get along too well. Who knows why :p haha, I guess there`s still that part of me inside that defends itself when people treat me like I`m dumb.

I`ve realized something as I`ve been here in this new area: There are people in the world who honestly believe that they have problems that God can`t help them with... we met a girl named Monse, who "believes in God" supposedly, and is having family problems, but doesn`t think the gospel can help her to improve her family life. she says that she prefers a psychologist to God, because psychologists have "Studied" this type of thing. the whole time she talked, I just sat there thinking, "God INVENTED the family! AND psychology!" but she really didn`t want to understand any of it... oh well...

Okay, this week, a sister told me she wants me to marry her daughter, haha. it was like, 10 times more awkward because her daughter was in the room at the time :p and the sister kept asking me if I would marry her daughter. luckily, my companion Elder López saved me from the situation by speaking on my behalf :p then the sister told me that if she were like, 20 years younger, she`d ask me to date her instead of her daughter. Yeah. we got out of there so fast.

We`ve kind of been vagabonds for the past couple of weeks. we haven`t had a place to stay, so we were kind of "house jumping" until we could find a new place, and we always walked around looking like homeless business men with our blankets and backpacks and all that. haha, I laugh about it now, but being constantly outside in the rain was nothing to laugh about at the time.

A sister told me the other day that she had a dream that, after I get home from my mission, I`m gonna come back and introduce her to one of my uncles, and she`s gonna marry him, so that`s new too :p we`ll see how that prophecy goes.

Okay, so I`m still district leader in this same district, but now they`ve added more responsibility to the list: I`m gonna be training a new Elder =0! Who knows if he`ll be from the United States or not, but I really hope not, because they never speak spanish well and I don`t want that to rub off on me :/ but yeah. my companion Elder López already left this morning, and I get my new companion tomorrow :) and right now I have to stay with the zone leaders, which is awesome, because The new ZL is Elder Flórez, my old companion from Columbia that I got along with better than any other, so this next tranfer is gonna be crazy. everything`s changing, folks, even me :p haha. but I`m pretty sure all of these changes are for the better.

Stay I`n school! don`t do drugs! tip`your waitresses!

Elder (Stormy) Sheppard

Stormy's newest blog for September 2, 2013

September 2, 2013

HOLA FAMILIAAAAAA,

Okay, so before I forget, last week, when I heard those gunshots in the night, it turns out that a man really was shot and killed outside of our house! yeah, it`s that safe over here. they never found the guys  that committed the drive by, so yeah, I feel even safer. did I write about the earthquake already?? well that`s another story for another day. that`s really the only real update this week, the rest has just been one huge test for both me and my companion. which I don`t understand, because everything was going so well, and now everything´s kind of going downhill. the only thing I ask is that you guys can pray for me, nothing else. I don`t have any other updates other than that this area is pretty much all I`ve been asking for since I got my mission call, And now I`m a living example of the phrase, "be careful what you wish for..."

Hey! I´m gonna attach some pics to this email so you can all see my sexiability >:) until next week,

"So you`re DUMPING me?! to marry a vaccuum cleaner?!?!"- The RM

Elder (Stormy) Sheppard

BLOG:

August 26 2013

¡Hola Familiaaaaaa!!!

Alright, what´s crackin'? so I´m gonna have to update you all on last week as weel as this one, so get prepared >:)

Aright, first thing´s first, we´re being kicked out of our house. why? because the sister that rents us the house is COMPLETELY insane. and obviously bi-polar. so yeah. we gotta go. but that's alright. it's better to find a new house than fear for my well-being every day, right? hahaha.

Anyway, did you guys know I'm a master at pool? I didn't either until I played. I'm gonna have some good money making skills when I get home, haha ;) So, this just in, the family from Querétaro that was gonna get baptized before I left, Jose and Sofia, they got baptized :) so I´m happy even though I wasn´t there to see it :p

I´ve realized something very important out here in the mission feild: GOD DOESN'T MAKE MISTAKES. If we get transferred from one area to another, it's always for a reason. I've realized that because I've learned a TON in every area and from every companion I've been assigned to. I`m gonna come back a spiritual giant :p hahaha.

ANYWAY, this week has been pretty crazy too. this week, someone`s testimony was almost destroyed because some of the teenage girls in the church started to spread rumors about her. My companion and I were so distraught. lucky for us, her testimony is stronger than that. or maybe just her resolve to marry the missionary that baptized her..... whatever, she stayed in the church, that`s all I know. I don`t get into all that, "love in the mission" stuff. but I strongly dislike when someone blames the whole entire church for something that a few members do. they don`t do it with any other church but the "mormons". If the girls spreading the rumors had been catholics, she wouldn`t have blamed the catholic church, just the girls. but they`re mormons so suddenly it`s everyone in the whole orginization`s fault. sad, sad people...

Okay, so I`m pretty sure someone was murdered last night outside of our house. haha, 5 gunshots went off in the middle of the night and I felt like I was in my mom`s hometown for a minute ;p. but we`re safe.

Yesterday, we met a taxi driver who asked where I was from. I told him, Utah. and He told us that he lived there for a while. like ten years, and still doesn`t speak english (big surprise). But he told us that he got so mad over there because a guy called him a racist name, so he killed him, and came back to Mexico without getting caught. he told us he didn`t feel bad at all and didn`t want to repent bacause when he gets mad, he kills. it`s what he does..... that was probably the safest I`ve ever felt on a 20 minute taxi ride...

All in all, I feel super safe here! :D haha, don`t worry, I`m Elder Sheppard, so nothing`s gonna happen to me. but I hope you`re all well :) stay afe and get to know your taxi drivers!

August 12 2013

BLOG:

Hola Family!!

So, first things first. I can officially solve the Rubik´s cube! haha, okay, with that said, on to mission matters.

So we have bikes in this area, which is slightly annoying, but hey, what can you do? and least the exhaustion helps me sleep at night. I had my first leader conference this week, it went well, and I learned a lot of stuff to use AFTER my mission. Hey, I don´t know If you guys are doing family history, but it´s been following around lately, so I feel like I should tell you guys to do it!

This district has so much potential, seriously. I just hope I can be the type of leader that helps them reach it.... but we´re doing quite well. we´ve found 3 people to teach this week who have accepted a baptismal invitation, but not a specific date, So I´ll keep you all updated on that. oh, and before I forget to put this quote:

"Stop bothering Korean Jesus! He doesn´t have time for your problems! he´s busy with Korean things!!!"

Haha, that´s probably the funniest thing I´ve heard all week :p okay, well, if anything changes, I´ll let you all know, for now just kicking spiritual butt and taking phisical names to open some celestial doors! I´ll send pictures next time because I can´t here. LOVE YOU ALL! Don´t make horrible choices, I´ve seem a little too much of that lately...

Elder Stormy Sheppard

August 5 2013

BLOG TIME!

Okay famiy, hold onto your seats, cause this week was insane.

First off, remember the Columbian companion I´ve been with all this time? well, his spirit was obviously one of the stronger ones out here, because he`s now a zone leader! and he only had 4 months in the mission. usually a WAY good missionary isn`t made a zone leader until at least a year in the mission, so that`s way tight.

In my news, after only a month and a half in my area (the least amount of time I`ve had in an area up to this point), they transferred me. to another state again. I`m now in Guanaxoato, which I`m not even sure I know how to spell correctly, and get this, I`m now a district leader. I know, I couldn`t believe it either. I feel like it`s gonna be super difficult, because when I got here, my companion was telling me all of the district info, and turns out 4 missionaries have been taken from the district for problems they`ve had with members and each other, and they haven`t been replaced! so now, my Comp and I are working alone, but in 3 different wards and areas. And It`s my first district as leader, so obiously I want to make a good impression. but it`s all good folks, because if God put me here in the midst of all these problems I didn`t start, that means my purpose here is to finish them. so those are the updates for right now, I`m now in charge of teaching missionaries how to be better when I haven`t even taught myself yet. we`ll see how it goes :p. but for now this is Elder Sheppard, signing off.