So Hardcore

La Familia Munoz 

Howdy everyone!

How's everyone doin? It's been really nice down here mid 70's sunny lot's of work goin on...can't complain. We actually have transfers tomorrow so I found out that I'll be staying another one here with my companion...so I don't want to jynx it but it's looking like I'll end my mission here with Elder Hill but I don't wanna count the chickens before they hatch....but it's looking that way. Then again I could be way off...there's going to be some changes soon in the mission so who knows what all will be goin on but wherever with whoever it's all the Lord's work and it's all the same...bringing people unto Christ.

I was reading something interesting a few days ago in the Bible Dictionary about faith. And I've thought a lot of times about what faith really means to someone and I can generally explain it but a specific answer for a specific person is almost impossible to explain but here's what stood out to me in the Bible Dictionary it said that: Faith is to hope for things which are not seen, but which are true (Heb 11:1; Alma 32:21), and must be centered in Jesus Christ in order to produce salvation. To have faith is to have confidence in something or someone. The Lord has revealed himself and his perfect character, possessing in their fullness all the attributes of love, knowledge, justice, mercy, unchangeableness, power, and every other needful thing, so as to enable the mind of man to place confidence in him without reservation. Faith is kindled by hearing the testimony of those who have faith (Rom. 10:14-17). Miracles do not produce faith, but strong faith is developed by obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ; in other words, faith comes by righteousness, although miracles often confirm one’s faith." It's the last part that sticks out to me is that Miracles don't produce faith but rather it's our obedience and righteousness to all that God has commanded. And to think of what He's commanded us; obey the commandments for one, read the scriptures, go to church, pray always, share the testimony that you have.....things that definitely put our faith on the line to let it grow and that faith leads to a relationship, and that relationship leads to happiness...it's all God's plan for us and that's what we're sharing and through those things I know you'll be blessed!

Love Much,

Elder Lawter

Awesome weekend!

Hello Everyone,

So what a good weekends it's been! You can put your money on having a good weekend with the General Authorities....they for sure didn't disappoint. Then today we actually went to the temple so it's been just a Spirit packed month already and then later on at the end of the month we're going to get the privilege as a mission and a stake here in Sweetwater to meet 2 members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles I think I'm actually suppose to keep that a little hush hush so I'll let you all know who they at the end of the month but once again...it shouldn't disappoint....

But it's been kind of the realization that I had this weekend and that I usually have every time I get the chance to listen to General Conference, meet a General Authority, or just read in the Ensign that these really are men called of God and are leading His church. It's amazing for me to think of how much God truly does care about us so He sends us messages in many ways. In the scriptures we read of angels being sent to give certain and most important messages but as well as Heavenly angels and messengers are sent, there are earthly messengers sent from God to help us, to guide us, and to lead and direct us. Now these people can be family, friends, people we don't even know that are sent from God to cross our path and to bless us but as well He sends His Prophets to lead His children and to direct the church. "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealed his secret unto his servants the prophets." (Amos 3:7) and as well God's church is... "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone." (Ephesians 2:20) Where would His church be without a Prophet and Apostles guiding it with His authority? A better question where would His children be with out the guidance of someone who receives direct revelation from God? They would be lost just as the people were when they rejected Noah, Moses, Christ Himself, and many others. So just as God spoke to Noah and Moses and Abraham...He speaks today to His Prophet and Apostles to guide the whole world. It's a bold statement to claim there is a Prophet today leading the same yet restored church that Jesus Christ set-up on the earth...most people thinks that such things don't exist in these days that all the prophets and apostles died off a little after Christ's time... So why would God just make that exclusive to back during the times of Christ and a little after and before? Like I said before in the times of most trial and struggle would God really leave us helpless and hopeless? I have a hard time believing that and because of that I'm proud of the testimony and blessing that I have in following a modern-day Prophet called of God to lead us and guide the whole world. and this past weekend was just another testimony builder for me. I know that Jesus is the Christ and that He leads and guides His church through a Prophet. I know without a doubt that these things are all true and it's my invitation to all to just search it out.....if someone says I have the best chocolate in the world and it's absolutely free would you just take his word for it chow down on that stuff! It might just be the fat kid in me but I'd eat all that I could...they would kick me out and put up refuse servicee to this guy at that chocolate buffet..it's the same principle what I'm telling you. I'm in the Lord's service preaching the most important thing anyone will ever hear and my invitation is to just try out for yourself...study it, learn of it and see if what I'm telling you is true. I know that as you do diligently that you'll find out for yourself that it's true.... "For he that diligently seeketh shall find; and the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto them, by the power of the Holy Ghost, as well in these times as in times of old, and as well in times of old as in times to come; wherefore, the course of the Lord is one eternal round." (1 Nephi 10:19)... The blessings are innumerable but it takes the faith and the diligence to find it out... I hope that everyone can find the Lord and his truth and when they do they will see the light and all the blessings that come as they have in my life! as all you are blessings to me and I love you soo much!!! Take care and have a good week!!!

Much Love,

Elder Ryan Lawter

Love from Southern California

How's it goin!?

Hope all is well with everyone back at home. Things have been pretty good

here workin up a storm. We have two guys with a date to be baptized right

now but with one I think that he got anti-ed so he's kind of ify on it right

now and then we passed by our other guy and his mom told us that we went to

jail just a few days ago. The background of this guy is he comes from a not

so good home...lots of drinking, drugs, fighting, yelling, cussing...just a

place where it's impossible for the Spirit to dwell and that's scared us a

lot lately but when we passed by yesterday his mom kind of gave us a fishy

story of how they went to church then he was just reading his Bible then the

cops came picked him up but she wasn't really sure where they went ha...and

the sad part is I don't think she really even cared. So we got on the phone

called the police department then the county jail and sure enough he got

locked in the slammer for vandalism...FOR ALL THINGS!!! VANDALISM!!! but his

court date is tomorrow so we'll find out the verdict and where to go from

here but it's amazing the work of Lucifer on somebody that it trying to

better their life and to just get closer and closer to God. It's

discouraging for me to even see it time and again and I've for sure seen it

a lot but I'm always drawn back to the Prophet Helaman and the words which

he spoke to his sons in the Book of Mormon... "And now, my sons, remember,

remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of

God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send

forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his

hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over

you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the

rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation

whereon if men build they cannot fall." How fitting of a scripture for the

time that we're entering into next month. The Holy week coming up and this

Easter season. For..."it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ,

the Son of God, that ye *must *build your foundation..." I'm not saying that

people who go through stuff like that don't have a sure foundation in

Christ but its the mighty storms winds that get thrown our way to beat us

off the path. So we're not exempt from trails, temptations, and other things

in our lives but the promise is..is that when those difficult time pass in

our lives we can find out that God has never been closer but it's that faith

and sure foundation that we need to have in Him and His Son that will

prevent us from falling. And I think that's what the Easter season is all

about...coming closer to our Savior and committing ourselves to be a better

disciple of Him. The price of discipleship isn't easy but it is worth it and

with that faith and testimony we will be lead to what is right and what is

true and then comes the promise that we will never fall.

Love ya!

Elder Ry Law

Hello Spring

Hey everyone,

Welp...how's it going...again? Things are going really good here just tryin to get these Mexicans to keep their commitments...it ain't the easiest thing for some reason but it's our work as Spanish missionaries I guess...so come what may and love it. So I've got a really cool experience that happened to us last week but first I'll fill you in on the new news that's been happening here....nothing new.... ok to the story haha well there's always things that happen every week but it's kind of all the same rejection, accept, rejection, rejection, accept...I think every teenager should go on a mission so that when the hit the dating scene they're already used to rejection haha... until you find the golden one....the one that you've been looking for and weeding through from all your work...that's the one that really matters. So in saying that Elder Hill and I parked the car one evening and just walked so that we could contact people on the street and talk to people because we didn't really have any set appointments so on the way to a house on the other side of our area we talked to a few Hispanics one was about to accept then her devil friend butted in and just wanted to bash against us about the reality of Deity and the argument of the Trinity so that was a no...talked to another lady who invited us back so we got a yes!..then another who said no, then no, no ,no ,no again....then uh....no, ha so you get kind of where our night was goin that night so then we walk by a house that has two like horses for dogs...they're HUGE German Sheppard's that I think purposely just try to scare the crap out of us every time we walk by so we usually walk on the other side of the road haha... but my comp had a feeling to knock the door and little faith Lawter I was like are you crazy!? have you seen the missionary killers that they have inside those gates!? I can only imagine what their owner looks like!!! But he said that he felt it so I was like welp can't really argue with the Spirit so we went and knocked on the door...turns out we're still alive number one but number two..nice guy buuuuuuut it was a no.... ha so we keep walking. And then we were almost to our place that we were heading to and we passed this house and my companion was like I saw a Mexican inside should we go talk to em... you all know what I'm thinkin right now ha I played it all in my head...were gonna walk up to the door since I know spanish and my comp not so much cuz he's really new and still learning I'm gonna try and there's another rejection to chalk up on the board but he's like I feel it inside that we should go knock on the door so once again can't really fight with the promptings of the Spirit so I was like ok let's go.... so we walk up and see a guy standing in the kitchen so I was like hola como esta and he didn't even turn around so I was thinkin in my head haha yup...don't say I didn't tell you so...but we walked to the door and knocked on the door and another guy came and answered and we just said hello but that was it then he left the door open and walked behind the door to the kitchen so we stood there and he came back like 30 seconds later and was like come in come in.... So I was like what the heck!? haha this never happens!! ha but we walk inside and the mom and son are sitting at the kitchen table and they were like the nicest people ever! They offered us food, drinks, pretty much anything so we got to talking and it turns out that the guy that was in the kitchen when we walked up is actually deaf and then they told us that they all actually got in a big fight as a family so when we showed up they just let us in...and so after talkin a little bit bout how important families are to our church and beliefs I asked her "so I'm just curious but why did you just let us in I mean we didn't even say anything you just let us in." and she said we just look at you....and who you're representing....so we talked a little more got an appointment with them tomorrow and they said that they're coming to Church this Sunday. We may get 100 no's in our path in life.... we may have 100 trials before we get to our destination but what makes it all worth it is that one yes and that we arrive to where we're going and that is exactly what the Gospel of Jesus Christ is all about. When it gets too hard...when the road seems never ending...there is help...and there is peace at the end of the journey. The Gospel is a thing of transformation for a person one can become anew through the Gospel of Jesus Christ which Gospel has been restored to the earth today in it's fullness. If you're not a member of it...find it...learn more about it...I promise you that it will open the blessing of Heaven among you more than you can ever comprehend. If you are a member and have steered away from it a bit...return...and never look back again. and if you are a member and are active in the faith...stay.... for it is a blessing of eternity...a blessing that will be with us forever. I have a testimony of it and I know it will bless and change lives at it has mine.....

I love you all like always and rejoice in being a member of His true Church...which church will make one whole.

Have a great week!!!

Love,

Elder Ryan Lawter

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

Hola! Como estan!?

How's everyone been doin!? Sounds like there's been a lot of things goin on in the world right now specifically with Japan and everything. Of course we haven't seen the news or read the papers but there's been a lot of members and investigators tell us about all that's been going on in Japan and it sounds pretty brutal. We got a call from someone this morning it happened and he told us that we were on tsunami alert so that was pretty crazy cant say ive ever been in a tsunami watch...dont think any tsunamis will be comin off smithville lake anytime soon either.... but our prayers from down here are out to them... I don't know a lot of details but it sounds pretty bad and we've been prayin for all those affected.

So on a lighter side things down here are groovy baby!!! ha guess the worst that we got from the earthquake and everything was some good surfin for the bros so lucky them but everything is goin pretty legit right now! We've got someone that we've been workin with for a little bit who has a date to be baptized for conference weeked acutally so it will be pretty legit but a little background on him is he's 22 right now and it just seems like nothin has been goin right  in his life.... he hasn't had any direction really, he's on stuff that he shouldn't be on and it's been his life for around 8 or so years now so it's kind of hard to help somone change when they've just been stuck in a rut for that long but we found him through a less-active family that we reactivated just a few months ago and he's struggled. He hasn't had a purpose to his life and he's just been kind of wandering about no goals in life no nothing but just recently we've talked with him about the journey that we all find ourselves on a journey that's similar to the one of Moses and the children of Israel. They lived as slaves in poverty in the worse conditions to the Phoroah in Egypt till Moses came and said have faith in the Lord and follow me. So they did...they had faith, left everything all followed this Prophet with out looking back who we now know parted the Red Sea helped the people cross into the new land the promised land or in other words a new life but it still wasnt easy they went to a desert for 40 years being prepared by the Lord and passing their trails and struggles till they finally ended up in Israel and the promised land. And we've told him this that he's in egypt right now and that the gospel is here to take him to the other side...it still won't be easy but when we all get to where were goin it'll sure be worth and he's on that path. So we all find ourselves captive in Egypt sometimes to whatever thing but it's the faith that we need to have to follow our savior into the promised and for sure the better land. May we all find that path, stick to it, and never let go!

Love,

Elder Ry Law

Less than 4!!!!!!!!!!!!

Howdy everyone!

How's it goin!? Things are going really good here just lots and lots of

work! To be honest when we come home at night is my favorite part of the day

cuz I'm just so stinkin tired all the time! We just come home, plan our next

day out, and I'm out! Ha I am soooo tired like 24/7 it seems but it's a good

tired....it's a tired cuz we're workin our hineys off everyday!  My new

companion is actually new too...well everything he's a freshie just got here

to San Diego last week so it's been good to have him and kind of show him

the ropes. We're actually doing a new Pilot program and we're the 1st ones

to do it in Spanish here I think so it's a lot of responsibility and a lot

of things to think of and worry about but it's all for the better...it

really is making us into better missionaries solely for the purpose to bring

more souls unto Christ... it's the cause that drives us and keeps us goin!

Lookin back on the past 20 there have for sure been a lot of up's but

definitely there have been more down's and looking back I think that every

missionary can agree that it's not about the down's that you live for or

even remember but it's the up's that we're workin towards and will take with

us the rest of our lives. I can honestly say that I've been blessed beyond

comprehension, the experience, the trials, the knowledge, the everything

that has happened the past 20 months have been the refiners fire and that's

what we're all going through our whole lives. So look for those

opportunities, be aware of the things in your lives that are truly for the

better and as a result will bring us down to build us up. And if men come

unto me I will show unto them their weakness.  I give unto men weakness

that they may be humble; and my grace sufficient for all men that

humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me,

and have faith in me, then will I make eweak things become strong unto them.

 -Ether 12:27 

Love you all!

Elder Lawter

Bye Bye February!

BURR!!!! IT"S COLD DOWN HERE!!!!!

Who ever said it's always sunny in San Diego is a LIAR!!! ha yea that's snow

on the mountain! not fotoshopped or anything...pure.white.the fluffy

stuff....kind-a like me pure.white.and fluffy as well! Yea it's been on the

chilly and rainy side the past week but I think our rainy season is done for

another year and the 70's temps are back. So the wee bit of snow up in the

mountains was nice for a change. Hope everythings going good back on the

homefront not a lot of huge news here playin hard workin harder but actually

I lied I just remembered about transfers coming up this week....it looks

like my companion's taking off after just one transfer together! Seems like

my fav companions I only stay with for one or two transfers but it's all up

to the Lord so if He says I need someone else then there's no arguments with

that but that's really all the huge news same thing everyday! Sorry this

emails real short but the computers were taking forever to load and stuff

hopefully next week they're runnin better and ive got more time but love

yall have a boss week!!!!

-E.L.