Acorn Grove Cont.

Dec. 5, 2011

Hey Capos!

Another pretty great week here in the Acorn Grove (Avellaneda). This week was pretty darn awesome. We had a Gira Misional this week with Presidente Aiduikitus of the First Quorom of the Seventy. He's a great leader from our South America South Area Presidency. He is from Brazil and had the funniest accent. It was awesome to listen to him speak. He talked to us a lot about faith and what it really means to have faith. I loved what he said. "Faith is doing everything you possibly can to make your goals become reality.” As missionaries we are always setting goals. Everyday we set goals for that day, and then we have weekly goals, and goals for the month and goals for the year and goals for the mission! We have a TON of goals. And they are all worthy and achievable. But as it says in James 2 "Faith without works is dead."

If I only have faith that God is going to provide a way to find someone ready to hear this message of the gospel of Jesus Christ and I never leave the Pension then my faith is dead and serves no one. But if I have faith that God will help me find someone and I leave the Pension right on time, talking to every person I can, inviting every person I meet to hear the gospel and I find that one person. Well then my faith proved to be a true faith. Faith always precedes the miracle, but if we don't work for the miracle, it will never come.

I've learned here that God is a God that expects a lot of us. He expects our very best. But when we give that, he blesses us and makes everything we do that much better, that much more effective, it reaches farther and has more power. God is willing to work through me, not for me. Every great example we see in the Book of Mormon and Bible, labored hard in the vineyard. Not one person was ever rewarded for their laziness and they never will be. That is not the program. So if you’re like me and you expect to see miracles in your life, work for them. When you do that, I promise they will come. I've seen it work in my life, and especially this week.

We have found an incredible lady that is ready to change her life. That is what being a disciple of Jesus Christ requires us to do, change our lives and be better. And not just to change one time, but every day until forever. "If your life is comfortable, you aren't doing something right." I'm not sure who told me that but it has been stuck in my mind lately and it is true.

I love you all and hope you are doing well. I'm doing GREAT!!!! Getting into the Christmas Spirit! This Christmas is gonna be way different! That is for sure!

Love you all,

Elder Anderson  

Best Week EVER!!!

Nov. 28, 2011

Hi Everybody!

Sounds like you all had an AWESOME thanksgiving! We actually forgot it was Thanksgiving here and were reminded by one of our investigators that said, "Isn't it that Turkey festival today in the US?" So we went home and made some....honey and bread! And of course commented on how grateful we were for it. By the end of that one slice I could hardly eat any more. Went to bed early (not) right at 10:30 and slept in till 6:17 in the morning!!! We were out of control! So ya. Thanksgiving was a big hit here. Needless to say our Argentine companion doesn´t think it is a very good Holiday. He said, "So Thanksgiving is just like every other day?" We said yes and just left it at that.

We've seen some real miracles here this week in Avellaneda. We had a BAPTISM!!!! Three people, Abby (33), Chris (11), and Jane (8) were baptized. It was incredible to see them all making such an awesome decision in their lives. Chris before his baptism came up to us and asked if he would have to live the commandments forever after his Baptism. We said "Well ya. Of course you do!" He smiled this big

old smile and said "Oh good! I like that!" Abby has quit smoking and drinking in order to be baptized and she is really changing her entire life. It is amazing to see how HAPPY people are when they come unto Christ. In Matthew 11:28-30 it talks about how Christ will make our burdens light.

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

You can see that when people make the choice to be baptized and live the commandments,  the burden of sin leaves and they look happier, brighter and less "cargado" as they say in Castillano. I

love it.

Other than that it has been a slow week. A lot of walking and knocking on doors and talking to whoever we can and getting told over and over again, "I don't need God" or "I don't have to do anything more, I've already been saved." It is so frustrating to see people wanting to remain ignorant. They tell us they don't need God but you can see in their faces and their eyes that they are sad and suffering. Everyone has their ability to choose or their agency though. That is why we are here. To choose. The only thing we can't choose are the consequences. Think about that for a minute!

Funny thing that happened this week. We have a young woman in our Ward who is putting in her  application to be a misionera! We are really excited for her! But to pay for the visa she has to send $40 US money, which right now in Argentina is really hard to buy.  She was telling us all this, and I remembered that I have $40 from when I was in the airport! I told her this and she almost shouted,  she looked so happy! So we are going to trade my US money for some pesos later this week and all her papers will be complete! Super cool! Funny experience! Glad I could help her out!

Well I love you all so much and am getting excited for December! Right now it is about 34 degrees Celsius. They tell me it will get all the way up to 39! With almost 100% humidity! Crazy! Christmas is

coming and it feels like July! Another Christmas in the heat!

Love you all,

Elder Anderson

Photo 1 the baptism!

OH YA!!!

Nov. 21, 2011

Hey Family!!!

So happy to hear you are all doing pretty great and stuff. I'm doing really great here! Life is good and the work is even better! This coming week is really big too because it is my MOM'S BIRTHDAY!!!! ¡¡¡Feliz cumpleaños mamá!!! I love you so much and am sending you good vibes and a big Kiss!! The mission is where I need  to be and my Gift to you this year is my faithful service and honoring the great legacy of Spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ that we have in our family. We have a pretty cool tradition of that. We are all missionaries in our own sense and always can be examples to others.

This week has been crazy. I did three intercambios which means I leave my area for the day and trade companions with someone else and work in their area for the Day. So in the past week I have had the pleasure to work in the areas of Thomas Flores, Piñyero, and Wilde. It has been awesome! I learned a lot from some great Elders. In Thomas Flores, me and Elder Cowan were working together. It was really interesting because we got here at the same time which means our Spanish is at a level that is less than awesome. So we went out to go talk to people about the Gospel and stuff because that is the best thing you could possible talk about, and we found this one guy. OH MAN! We could not understand a word he said. He said something about Soldando la Vigen en una caja y cosas como asi. Pero no entendí nada. Pienso que él estaba boracho o algo. But ya. He was talking about welding the Virgin Mary in a Box or something and me and Elder Cowan just kinda stared at him blankly. It was great! We smiled and acted like we knew what he was saying and when we walked away around the corner both of us died laughing. That was a way good experience. Classic.

The other two intercambios were with Latin Elders so a little less of a disaster, but still way fun. We did some good work.

This week I've really been thinking about my calling as a Missionary. In the Manual that we use to study called "Preach My Gospel" it says that one of our purposes is to tell people and remind them that God loves them. I don't know why it surprised me so much. We do that everyday anyway, but when I really made a point to tell every person I talked with that God is our loving Heavenly Father and we are His children and he loves us, I saw people soften and change. I think deep down inside every single one of us realizes that we are special. But maybe we don't realize how much. We are literal spirit Children of God. As such we are able to inherit all that is his. Think about that. In the scriptures God says, "This is my work and my Glory, to bring to pass the immortality and Eternal life of man." He wants us to have all he has, to be all he is. Are we living up to our potential? We have a woman we know here that is physically and mentally abused. We told her one day, "Do you realize that you are a Daughter of God? No one has the right to treat you like that!" And it was like all of a sudden she remembered! The light bulb went off and she said, "YA! That's right!! I am a daughter of God! I don't have to take crap from anyone! I'm special!" I hope we can all look deep and really realize how special we are. Each and every one of us has the potential to one day become like our Heavenly Father. To become like God and have all that he has. YOU ARE MORE SPECIAL THAN YOU CAN IMAGINE!!!!! DON'T LET ANYONE TELL YOU DIFFERENT!!!! I love you all so much. I wish I could sit down and tell you this face to face but this will have to do for now. God exists. He is Heavenly Father and he loves us more than we know.

 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Revelations 3and 20

He stands at the door and knocks. Are we willing to let him in?

Love,

Elder Anderson

Pic 1 The "Cami" Carneceria

Pic 2 Me, Brother Emiliano Perez (old) and Quique (Young) after the service project in the community version of Jeffco Action Center in Colorado- called El Quincho

Pic 3 Check out Quique's shirt

Pic 4 Putting my name on the wall for all the stuff we did. What did I do?.....

Pic 5 I burned stuff. We cleaned up a community Parque and painted the Homeless Shelter. Way awesome.

Pic 6 Elder Guzman from Tucuman. Found this street sign in Piñyero

Acorn Grove

Nov. 14, 2011

Hey all!

Another great week here in the Acorn Grove (that is what Avellaneda means. Ironic, there are very few trees...). I heard that the reception for Grandpa Great Miller was really good. He is an incredible man. I love my family so much and realize more than ever how blessed we are. I have the most incredible family in the world!

This week we have been preparing to baptize dos little chicos. One is named Jill (name changed). She has 8 years and the other is named Craig (name changed). He has 11 years. They are both really great and so excited to get baptized. I love teaching them because the truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ are so basic that even a child can understand them. Things like "God is our loving Heavenly Father. I am literally a Child of God. That means I am special and can become perfect just like him." And, "When I make bad choices I feel bad, but I can pray for Jesus to take away those bad feelings, and he will if I ask him and really want it and promise not to make the same bad choice again!" They are just so awesome and innocent and just amazing! I love it! Craig's mom is also preparing to get baptized. She is working on getting married and giving up smoking right now in order to be prepared for this. She is doing really well! Both of those things are REALLY hard to do! We are very proud of her and helping her all the way!

This week we also had a great Noche de Hogar or Family Home Evening with a family where some are members of the Church and others are not. We taught from Mosiah 2:21 and 22.

 21 I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

 22 And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you.

It is an interesting idea to think that no matter how hard we work we can never pay back our debt to God for all he has done for us. However, Christ can and will pay that debt IF we follow ALL his commandments! We can't pick and choose!! We have to follow ALL of them! And then we can have the assurance and joy that everything is taken care of. I don't know about you, but I don't want to meet God's debt collector! He's probably a pretty intense dude! So as it says in Joshua 24:15 "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Think about ALL the commandments you know, and identify one that you have a hard time with. Maybe this is keeping the Sabbath day holy or not telling 100% of the truth. Think about it and make a commitment to improve this week. Say to yourself, “You know what, my soul is worth keeping the Sabbath day holy." Or maybe before you tell a half truth think "Is this lie worth more than my soul? Is it worth more than me?" How much are you worth. I think our identity of self worth can be directly related in how we keep the commandments. IF we really think highly of ourselves, than we are not willing to degrade our worth by lying or stealing. Just think on that. And more than think, DO IT!!! YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE!!!!! YOU ARE WORTH IT!!!! But you have to want it and you have to work for it. How much are you worth?

I love you all. I love being a missionary. I love the people here. I love my Savior.

-Elder Anderson

P.S. Here is a montón de fotos to make up for last week!!

Foto 1 ¡Esta bebé tiene razon! (This baby knows what it is talking about!)

Foto 2 You can find something beautiful EVERYWHERE!!

Foto 3 HALLOWEEN!!! Great Moms think alike!

Foto 4 Elder Guzman

Foto 5 Cool mural right outside our pension

Foto 6 Wow! That’s like 150 kilos!!!!

Foto 7 Municipal building

Foto 8 Zombie!!!!

P.P.S. We saw an entire row of cars on fire this week. And by a row I mean just one and one starting to catch on fire next to it! BUT IT WAS A WHOLE CAR ON FIRE!!!! People were acting like it was no big deal too!! I was flippin out!!! Oh well. I guess it is normal here to just LIGHT YOUR AUTOMOBILE ON FIRE IN THE PARKING LOT OF YOUR APARTMANT COMPLEX IN THE MIDDLE OF A HUGE CITY when you don't want it anymore. No. I'm not freaking out at all. There's just a CAR ON FIRE OVER THERE!!!!!

Aloha!!!

Nov. 7, 2011

Aloha!!!

You'll never believe it but I saw that on a guy’s shirt this week! I ran up to him and said "Are you from Hawaii (in castillano)?" And he looked at me like I was crazy and said "I don't want to hear about your church!" I laughed and walked away. I don’t think he knew what his shirt meant...

Everyone here has English words all over their shirts and they have no idea what any of it means. I saw this 5 year old girl walking down the street wearing a shirt that said "Love has failed me." I almost peed my pants! Today we saw a guy with a shirt that said "The ladies love my moustache." Ya. He didn't know what that meant either. What else... An 80 year old man wearing a Tool (the death metal band) shirt and a little kid that had a Shirt that said a lot of bad words.... Pretty funny week in the t-shirt department.

On Sunday we had a lady come to church who thinks she is Mormon but isn't really sure. It was fun explaining to her that she probably wasn't since she was baptized by a guy who said he was a Prophet. We are pretty sure that President Thomas S Monson has never come to Avellaneda... The people you meet!

This week has been so hot and I've sweated through all my shirts. It is really getting hot and humid here. Just had to throw that in. Sorry. This email is really scattered right now but it is pretty hot in here right now actually and I'm having hard time thinking.

This week has been really cool spiritually. I've been studying a lot about who our savior is and what he is like. I love 3 Nephi 11 where he comes to the Americas. I stand all amazed at his mercy and grace. He lets every single person come and have a moment with him personally to see and feel the prints of the nails in his hands and feet and the mark in his side. Every single person had the chance to meet their Savior face to face. I think each of us can have moments like this in our lives. We may not see him face to face, but there are moments when I feel he is so close. I feel in my life the effects of his sacrifice and I KNOW that he lives and loves me. It is a huge blessing. I am seeing this gospel change people’s lives. They are becoming better and stronger. We have seen drunks give up Alcohol completely, drug addicts come clean, and broken families pull together and recover from tragedies as they have been baptized and have come unto Christ. What a blessing I have. I have a font row seat on the greatest show on earth. I get to watch people change and come unto Christ and I get to see the moment when people feel his arms wrap around them. So cool to see that moment when they just get it. When they get it that God is real and he has a plan for us and all they have to do to take part in his atonement in repent, be baptized and obey his commandments until the end! The weight of obeying the commandments is so much lighter than the weight and grief of sin! ¡¡Tenga la ganas y cambia tu vida!! ¡Veni a Cristo y cambiará tu vida!

I love you all and hope you are all doing super well!

Happy birthday to Nat Kruit-en-bosch and Abersue Richards!!! I love my cousins! You guys are the best!!

Love,

Elder Cam

 P.S. Hope all are doing well in the Anderson and Miller family. I love you all so much and you are all so strong. Be brave! Love, Cam

The Lord is My Shepherd, I Will Not Want

Nov. 3, 2011

Hey All!

Sorry I'm writing so late this week. We had translados or transfers which is when everybody gets switched around. Me and Elder Hope are holding down the fort here in Avellaneda for at least another 6 weeks though. I am really starting to love this place. At first it was just bien, but now...it is re bien!!!!! I love Avellaneda!! Some big things this week. Grandpa Miller has passed and that has been kinda hard for me not being able to be with all of you. But it is Ok cause we all know we get to see him again. What a beautiful truth. I was actually studying that this morning in Alma 40 and 41 before I even knew that he had passed. We are so blessed to have such a clear knowledge of the life after this. It makes death bearable. I know I WILL see Grandpa again and he will be perfect. Not a hair on his bald head will be lost!

This week has been a good one here. It is starting to get hot and I am trying to guess more and more the temperature in Celsius but I'm always 5 or 6 degrees off so I think I'll just stick to what I know and say it was really hot and I got a real good sunburn. But such is life! Some crazy things I've encountered this week are in the pictures. A scuba diving Nestor Kirchner and A......

We have had a really hard time lately finding people to teach but this week we found a family that had been inactive or not going to church for three or four years. We got talking and it turns out they lived in Denver. What is crazier than that is that they went to church IN THE DENVER 1ST WARD!!!!! So crazy!!!!! We talked about a bunch of people we knew and it was really crazy!! They have a little girl who is 8 years old who is going to get baptized and we are teaching her right now. She loves the Book of Mormon and when we gave her her very own copy it was like Christmas!! She was just beaming and hugging her book. It was cool to see someone so excited about being baptized! 

My message is something that struck me while I was thinking about Grandpa Miller. Psalms 23 is one of the most beautiful passages of scripture I know of. The Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want, he leadeth me beside the still waters. And as Grandpa would say¨"Everything is terrific." Take a moment this week to just be still and pray and know that God is there- because He is. "Ask and you shall receive, knock and it shall be opened unto you." Matthew 7: 7-8, Doctrine and Covenants 4.

Another big thing this week is that My Uncle Cole turned 40. You are old. Dang. I still love you though. No worries.

Todo aqui es tranquilo. Me encanta la obra misional.

I love you all. My heart goes out to all the Andersons and Millers especially this week. I love you so much and am so glad that we are an eternal family.

Love,

Elder Cam


The pictures below were attached to Cameron's email this week, but he didn't really say what they were all about.  You can see he's having fun though!  

Tengo Fe!!!

Oct. 24, 2011

Hey All!!!!

Another week gone here in Argentina! It is weird; I've never measured my time before in Mondays. But here I am! Measuring my time in Mondays! 5 Mondays here in Argentina!!! FWAAA!!! (That is what all the Porteños say instead of like WOW or NO WAY) This week has been incredible.

Some funny experiences. First, the Spanish mix up of the week. There is a very large and important difference between Ramera and Remera. Look it up.

Secondly, we had a great week working in an area that the missionaries call "Gotham City." It is an apartment complex that looks like something out of Batman. All the buildings are 10ish stories with no lights in the stairs or hallways and falling apart. Super Cool!!! Fun to walk around in. The picture is from a 5th or 6th story and the colorful building below is a Jardin or Preschool/ Kindergarten.

Third, THE 29TH IS MY DAD'S BIRTHDAY!!!! Feliz Cupleaños Papá!!!!! You are the best Dad in the whole world and my gift to you this week and year is the following story. The Dad in this story makes me think of you. He is so strong and full of love for his family. You are an amazing Father and partly because of you I am here. Thanks for sharing your gift with everyone (not that you really had a choice...) Love, Elder Cam.

 I want to share with you all something sacred that has happened this week here. We as Elders get to see and participate in alot of sacred experiences but this one for me was life changing. We have a recent convert family here in our ward, Avellaneda 1. They are a family of four kids and the parents are separated but coming back together. Their youngest son is named Jerad (name has been changed). He is four years old and dying of leukemia. The medical system here is dirty and poorly organized and so he cannot receive the treatments he really needs. We go over to their house every week and share a lesson with them. They are so amazing and I feel the Spirit so strong when we are with them. We found out just this week that the youngest boy had leukemia when the Bishop asked our ward or congregation to all fast for him. He is the cutest little boy. This last time we went over we taught them a lesson from Alma 50 in the Book of Mormon. In this scripture the Nephites are fortifying their cities for war. They  pile up montones de tierra, vigas, estacadas, and build torres to defend their cities. We talked about how the cities represent our families. And that we must protect and fortify our families against the evils and filth that constantly attack and tear down the family. The montones de tierra are prayer, the vigas are reading the scriptures, the estacadas are going to church, and on top of the towers we have a living prophet who can see all through revelation from God and warn us of things that are coming. When we do and have all these things in our life we are protected and safe. Andrew (name has been changed), the father was on the verge of tears and explained that more than anything, he loved his family. Before he joined the church he was a drunk and honestly drank away his sadness that his family was falling apart and blamed it on everyone else. He said now, they are doing these things, and he sees a difference and his family is fortified. The thing though, was that the miracle happened after our lesson. He said to us, now more than ever we have to rely and have faith in our Jesus Christ. He called his four year old son over who is dying and asked him, "Hey! What did I teach you?" The little boy got a huge smile and shouted "Tengo fe Pa!!" which means “I have faith Daddy!" He would raise his fist in the air and shout "Tengo fe Pa!" smile, and wait until his Dad would raise his fist in the air and say "Tengo Fe Tambien!!" or "I have faith too!" It was the most beautiful humbling thing I think I have ever seen and I am so blessed to know this amazing family. I have faith!! I know that little boy can be healed! That through the power of the priesthood, God’s power that we hold on this earth, and through his faith and the faith of his family, he can be healed. And even if he does die, he has healed all of us. He has warmed our hearts and made us reexamine our faith. If I could have half the faith of that Father and his little son, I could move mountains. I hope someday I can. I challenge you all to reexamine your faith and fortify your families that you may have the courage and the conviction to shout "Tengo Fe!!" I leave this message especially, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Love,

Elder Anderson

 Picture 1 "Gotham City"

Picture 2 Elder Guzman's Birthday

Picture 3 My desk. Cleanliness is next to Godliness.....

Picture 4 My missionary creed.