He said "so and so" in English....

August 25, 2014

This week was pretty good here in Menorca.   We are having a pretty great time, and seeing miracles.  One that was pretty neat happened Tuesday actually. We were going to go visit a lady named Maria, who really hasn't been progressing.  She wouldn't ever read the Book of Mormon, and she really likes all the saints that she has, so this visit was planned as a possible last, if she wasn't reading the Book of Mormon. Well, we went, and to start with, we were just talking, and I noticed that all of her saint statues, which are usually on the top shelf in a corner, had all been moved to the bottom shelf, which was surprising.  So, it was even more surprising when she let us know that she had been reading, every night, and was in chapter 4 of first Nephi. She told us that she had had the book for so long, at least for 3 years, maybe more, and she hadn't ever taken the time to even open it, until one day last week, she decided to just try a bit, and she got hooked. So, she started at the title page, and read through the whole introduction, all the testimonies, and everything.  It's really great, and so we have a visit with her set up tomorrow.  Then on top of that story, we went to another investigators house, and it was planned to be the same kind of lesson, and we again were surprised that she has read a bit.  Not very much, but she committed to read every single day, at least one verse, so we will see how it goes. We are finally coming out of summer, and people seem to have a bit more time.

Also, we have now started to restore another car....apparently word got out that we know how or something, so here we go!  I'm still not sure what I'm doing, but hey, it looks ok so far!  Maybe I should start a business when I get home.

So, to end here is a fun story.  We were in a lesson, and explaining to some tiny kids why we call each other brother or sister in the church, since we're all children of God, and so on.  Well..Elder Jonson was trying to give an example of who we call people "hermano so and so, or hermana so and so" only problem? he said "so and so" in English, and we were teaching Bolivians, where apparently, that's what they say to mean dumb, or stupid. We had a pretty good laugh over that one once he saw the confused looks on all our faces:)

Thanks for all your support, and if you need something to study this week, read alma 5 or D&C 98, they are amazing.

Love

Elder Dixon

God really is in control of everything

August 18, 2014

This week was a good week. We had a ton of tourists in church, we had a bunch of visits, and overall it was a good week. We also had a pretty neat miracle. We were going to go do service for a menos activo family in a pueblo that in bus takes about 30 minutes to get to.  However, if we go in car, it's only about 15 minutes, and so we were debating if we should ask the Clark's if they wanted to come help.  (We've been restoring a car, which Elder Clark is really good at) Well, we decided it would probably be better if we just went by bus, and so we planned on being in the bus station by 10:45 to get the bus at 11.  We got on, no problem, and we headed to the pueblo. There are three stops there, one by the beach, another just up the hill, and the last one is right next to their house, and so that's the one we always get off on.  However, this time, the bus driver took a different route after the first, and so he blew past the last two, and we were still on the bus, headed back home.  So, our only options were to go back, and then wait another hour for the next bus and go, or call the Clark's and see if they wanted to come help out. So we did, and that they were there was perhaps one of the biggest miracles I have seen. Elder Clark was able to talk to the family, and we were able to figure out some of the reasons why they aren't coming to church, and overall it was a super spiritual experience, that we wouldn't have had if the bus driver hadn't skipped those stops. There is no such thing as a coincidence.  God really is in control of everything.

 

We also got to give out a Book of Mormon in Arabic this week to a Muslim man, who is actually really open.  He is super nice, and I'm learning a ton about the Muslim religion I didn't know before.  It's a completely different way of teaching, because we really are just sharing and learning about each other's religions, and we have to really focus on the points we have in common. It was pretty neat too, because to start one of the lessons, Elder Jonson said the prayer, like normal, and to end, he said the prayer, which was a neat little chant/song thing that he had memorized from the Koran. It's really interesting, so we´ll see where it goes.

 

This week, one thing I really noticed about my companion is how good he is at improvising and following the Spirit.  For example, yesterday in church there was a family from England, and so I volunteered to translate.....well, that meant that he then taught the lesson solo, and he did a great job, and I only had to help out by asking some questions.  He is really good at just rolling with whatever comes his way and dealing with it.

 

Oh, another thing too…yesterday, as we were up on the stand to bless the sacrament, right after president gave the announcements, he leaned over to us and asked if we could give the talks....yup...we had the time of the sacrament to prepare our talks. It was pretty fun, with translating and everything else. Crazy Sunday.  There were so many people there I didn't know what to do!

 

So, basically that was my week. just one last thing.   I would encourage all of you to read Alma 5.  I've been studying it for the past week, and it's incredible!!  Go read it:)

 

Love you all,

Elder Dixon

I love old crazy Spanish people :)

August 11, 2014

This week was super crazy. So much happened, it was insane!! We did a bunch of service again, and went to Palma, met with a ton of members, and had 21 people in church! All in all a good week. This Saturday was pretty neat too, because one of the high councilors from Palma and another brother came to help us out with some stuff and go on visits with us, and so we had some amazing miracles. The biggest one was that we went to visit one of the YSA named Eddy, who has been having a rough time recently, and doesn't really enjoy talking to us. But apparently he is really good friends with Hermano Waldir, the high counselor, and so we had a super great lesson. It was really spiritual, and I think it really helped Eddy out a bunch. We also went to lunch with them, so that was a fun little treat.

 

One thing I want to say about my companion, is that he is really good at seeing what needs to be done, and doing it, even if he doesn't want to. For example, we were talking to a menos activo, but his kids just kept getting in the way and interrupting because they were bored, or because they had just spilled a cup full of Fanta into my lap (ya, that was fun...) and stuff like that, and so Elder Jonson just got up and started playing a game with them, and I was able to have a really good conversation with the menos activo that I wouldn't have been able to if he hadn't. And to make it even better, since we were in a busy park, about 20 other kids joined in the game and it turned into a great time, with both of us having to shower once we got home (me cause of the Fanta, him because he was running around like crazy with the kids) Even though he would have preferred to stay and talk, he was able to help out a ton by playing with the kids. He is a great example to me.

 

Ok, so one funny little story. Hermano Waldir is a guy from Colombia, who is really dark.  So, we were standing with him talking to somebody on the street and a really old lady walks past, and as usual, I say hi, and go back to taking to the person I was talking to...when all of a sudden this lady grabs my hand, drags me over to a bench cause she wants to sit down, and starts telling me about how she knows me from Granada, which I've never been to, since that's the south of Spain...so I'm thinking, "oh boy, another Andalucían" (remember, Elder Ferrer is from Granada, and the people from there are crazy, and when they really are off their rocker, even more so...) so, she just keeps talking, and won't let go of my hand...then she asks where I'm from, and when she found out I was from the country with the black president, she looked over at Hermano Waldir, and well....I guess she made the connection that he was President Obama.....so she drags me over to him and grabs his had as well, and starts screaming a prayer at "President" to stop the war, or something......it was fun:) I love old crazy Spanish people:)

 

Anyway, that was my week.

Love you all!!

Elder Dixon

Right in the height of tourist season and everything!

August 5, 2014

This week was absolutely amazing. The best part? We had probably the biggest miracle ever, which is that we had a baptism, in the middle of summer, in Menorca! Right in the height of tourist season and everything!

 

However, the story doesn't start just this last week, but rather on the 12th of June, before I came into the area. They had intercambios with our zone leader, and while they were working in the area, he contacted a lady named Dolores, and then she started to listen to our message. She has a sister named Margarita, who would usually just go into her room and wouldn't listen to the lesson. Well, a month later, on the 18th of July, my companion and I had intercambios with our district leader, and we went to visit Dolores, and this time, Margarita listened. By the end of the lesson, she had a baptismal date, and a Book of Mormon, and she promised to read and pray, and come to church the next week. Well, she kept her promises, and came to church, and then the next week she came again. We kept meeting her, and one time we asked her how she felt about the Book of Mormon, and she said that she could feel herself changing as she read it, and she wanted to follow the precepts that it teaches. Then the best part is that this Friday, she was baptized, and Sunday she was confirmed. It was really neat too, because after her baptism she shared her feelings, and said that she hadn't felt this way before, except for when she started reading the Book of Mormon two weeks ago. It was super powerful and really neat to see her progress and change. There were so many little miracles along the way as well, such as the fact that she had grown up living the word of wisdom her whole life. All of it, because her mother had always taught them to stay away from drugs as well as coffee and tea, so that was a little miracle. When we were explaining the word of wisdom she told us that when she was in school she had tried some alcohol, and then said she felt super bad about it so she never drank again. I am so grateful that I was able to see the change and be a part of it. I love serving a mission, especially here in Spain. .

 

Love,

Elder Dixon

A fairly interesting week

July 28, 2014

This week was fairly interesting, and we made some breakthroughs in the work. We saw a couple neat miracles as well. Probably the biggest one was that 1/5th of the people in church were investigators!!! And were going to have a baptism this week!! Ya!!! It was pretty neat how it worked out actually. We went to go pick up one of our investigators, and she was waiting for us outside her piso, and then we went to church and we had that small miracle. The Lord blessed us a ton this week. Also, we visited a couple members and had a couple really great lessons, and saw more miracles from that too.  Other than that, this week wasn't all that interesting.  We had the biggest cruise ship that has ever come to Menorca dock in the port though...that was neat.  There were so many tourists...it was crazy!!!  Oh, and we went and ate with the Clarks and they made us real hamburgers. It was soooo good. The burgers here just aren't the same usually.  But that was basically it. It's been a pretty laid back week.  Next week though....oh boy.  We have a baptism Friday...and we are going to Palma Wednesday, and transfers are next week. WHOO!   The mission is crazy, and I love it!!

 

Thanks for all you do!!

 

Love,

 Elder Dixon

We finally have a fecha!!!

July 21, 2014

This week was a Miracle week!! Want to know why? We finally have a fecha (baptismal date)!!!  Her name is Margarita, and she is really great.  She even got up early and came to church yesterday!  We were on intercambios this week..sorta...Elder Jennings came out here to Menorca, so we didn't really do the cambio part, but while he was here we went to go visit a lady named Dolores, and her sister joined in the lesson this time, and so we invited her to be baptized, and she said yes!!  So, hopefully on the 2nd of August we will be filling up the font.  I'm super excited.  This is the first one here on the island.  

Also, there is a mom and her daughter that really like the activities we do, and so they always come to the church, but they never want us to come visit them in their house.  Well, last week they didn't come to any activities, and we didn't know why until we found out that the mom had had surgery!  So, we called her up and asked if we could bring her brownies, and she said yes!  So, we tried to make brownies....neither of us had done it before, but we had the recipe from Elder Jennings, but even so, they weren't good...at all...but hey, we tried!   So in the end, we went to the store and bought some cookies and took them over to her, and we found out that her daughter had fallen that morning and broken her foot.  We had a really good visit, and now we have to try the brownies again, and we can take them over to their house.  It was a huge blessing. 

Also this week, I had my first piso check, so that was interesting.  (we passed:) and we did a ton of service.  Did I ever say I'm learning how to restore a car?  That's one of the things we are doing for the service.  It's a ton of fun.  We also went to a recent  converts field again and got stung by some wasps.  But one thing I learned this week was that like it says in 1 Nephi 3:7 the Lord will never ask us to do something we aren't able to do.   Even though everyone and their dog knows that scripture, it's still one of my favorites, especially here on the islands.

 

Thanks for all your support and prayers.

 

Elder Dixon

 

Elder Dixon, Jonson and the McCrudden family

 

One success made it all worth it

This week was pretty great.  We did a ton of stuff and service and walking and well, basically missionary work:) one little story is that we were going to visit somebody, but they weren't home, and so we went into pass by mode where we go pass by all the addresses we have records of.   To give you an idea....I have stacks of papers with names, addresses, phone numbers and that's it....clear from 2006.  So, we've been going through those, trying to figure out who they are.  Well, to start with, no one was home, or they didn't live there anymore, or they didn't want anything.  Well, this went on for a while, until we knocked on the door of a man named Roman.  All we had was his address, his name, and that he had been contacted in 2007, and never had talked to us again.   Well, we rang his timbre, and the man who answered asked us which Roman we were trying to find, because there were three who lived there.  So we said that we were missionaries, and he immediately told us to try the next door over.  So we did, and this Roman was super open, and we have a visit set up for next week.  It was pretty neat to see that even though we had had so much disappointment, one success made it all worth it.

 

Another neat story is that we were going to go visit a lady who lives alone, and so we asked one of the recent converts named Rider if he could come.  He said yes, and then later that night, we saw him with one of his friends, and he asked if his friend could come too.  So we said sure, but we thought it was just a joke.  But then when we went to pick Rider up the next morning his friend was there!!  It was super neat, and even though the visit fired on us, we still had a member present lesson, and we ended up talking about missions and encouraging Rider to prepare to go, since he is 17.  It was a ton of fun.  Also this week, we helped restore a car, and cleaned up a field.   I found a  bunch of old rusty tools that are traditional to Menorca, so I asked if I could take them and clean them up...they are really neat, and weird looking.

 

Also, I gave a talk in church this past week. This time I had about a half hour warning, so that was nice:) overall, it was a great week:)

 

Well, I got to go. Love you all.

 

Cuidase!!

 

Elder Dixon