68

It's December! I can't believe how fast this year has flown. I'm so excited for Christmas! We are looking forward to a White Christmas. Even though we don't get any snow in the valley where we serve, we are working to help truly converted people enter the waters of baptism this month. It's our "White Christmas," the white baptismal clothing representing purity. Elder Villalva and I have set up a little Christmas tree in our house, we listen to Christmas music, and we share Holiday videos and scriptures with members and non-members. Yay!

This week we taught our investigator, Cheryl. She is incredible! She has been searching for the gospel for a long time, and now she is prepared for baptism. She has lived with a member friend for 20 years, and within the last year her friend has returned to activity and has helped Cheryl learn. I have a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ being the "good news." As we have taught Cheryl she is so eager to learn and understand and enjoy fully the blessings of the Atonement. Through Jesus Christ we can become clean from sin. The burdens of guilt and sorrow can be washed away. I love being able to help someone else understand our need for Grace and change their lives! Cheryl is amazing.

As a side-note last week Elder Villalva and I got a call from Elder Clifton in the mission office (he's our vehicle coordinator). He switched out our old Chevy Malibu (we call it a Mali-boat for it's lousy turning radius) for a brand new Chevy Cruze. I'll probably never drive a newer, nicer car for years! We like it. They are better than the Toyotas that the Church used to buy.

We had a mission conference this week and found out that by middle of next year, we should have about 250 missionaries serving in our mission. Right now we are below 190. Holy smoke! I'm stoked. This means that every single ward in the mission will have it's own companionship. No more two ward areas. It's a struggle to balance and serve effectively in two wards. Oh yeah baby.

Hey, the Church made a Christmas website! Check it out, check it out.
mormon.org/christmas

Love to all and Merry Christmas!



--

Elder Chris Andrew

California Sacramento Mission

8267 Deseret Ave

Fair Oaks, CA 95628

NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.

67

Thanksgiving was great! We went with the Taylor family to "The Delta King," a steamboat on the river in Sacramento. We drove through Old Sac and boarded the ship. It was a buffet style Thanksgiving dinner. Super delish. It was awesome to spend Thanksgiving with them, and afterward we came home to hang out with the McClellans, the family we live with. They had all their kids and grandkids over. It was awesome. After eating so much Elder Villalva and I had to play basketball with the McClellan grandkids to burn it all off. The picture above is Elder Villalva and I on the dock of the the Delta King.

On Saturday Claire O'Shea in the Wilton ward got baptized! She is the result of the hard work of dozens of missionaries. She has been off coffee for two weeks, and we are super proud of her. Her husband is a less-active member, and he is in a nursing home in Sacramento. Claire was baptized by Br. Telford, her hometeacher. She is from Brooklyn, NY and has the greatest accent. Very classy.

After the baptism of Claire I headed up to Jackson to witness the baptism of Steve Larson. I taught Steve for almost six months in the Jackson ward and Elder Gurr (my companion in Stockton) and his trainee have been helping him progress. I am so happy for him. Steve is completely blind from an accident years ago. I was so happy to see many of the members of the Jackson ward that became family to me -- Br Martinez, Br Ward, Sis Saldate, Br Fedena. 

Well, the Church is true and I've got to go. Love you all!

--

Elder Chris Andrew

California Sacramento Mission

8267 Deseret Ave

Fair Oaks, CA 95628

NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.

66

Happy Thanksgiving! It's been a long week without pday on Monday, but all day today is pday. We are going with the Taylor family in our ward to a restaurant in Old Sacramento. Elder Villalva and I are pretty excited. After that we will come back and eat with the family that we live with, the McClellans. They have had all their kids and grand kids home this week. All this is new to Elder Villalva, of course they don't have Thanksgiving in Ecuador. We decided to fast this morning before eating two dinners this evening :)

Investigator update: Claire is getting baptized this Saturday! She has waited so long for this. She overcame coffee and has a testimony. Before she lived here she lived in my old area of Amador County where she met the missionaries. She moved to Wilton with her less-active husband and the missionaries tracked her down and have been working with her for years.

Steve! Remember Steve Larson in Jackson ward? He is getting baptized this Saturday as well. He is my favorite investigator/best friend that I taught. Elder Gurr has been working with him, and he received an answer to his prayers after listening to General Conference. He is awesome.

Jocie in Wilton ward has also set a baptism date for December 29th. Oh yeah.

We added a new investigator named Cheryl in the Wilton ward also. She is so humble and willing and prepared. When I think about all of the investigators and people that have been prepared to hear the gospel, each of them have had a great friend or family member that has led them to the church. It's a testament that we need to share it with everyone.

Well, here's my thank-timony --

I am so thankful for my mission. I love it. I am grateful for my family that loves me and supports me. I am grateful that I have such an awesome companion and a great district. I am thankful for President and Sister Lewis and the guidance they give me. I am grateful for my Heavenly Father and the prayers that He answers. I am eternally grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ.

Well, love you all and have a great Thanksgiving! (write ya on Monday)

--

Elder Chris Andrew

California Sacramento Mission

8267 Deseret Ave

Fair Oaks, CA 95628

NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.

65

Sorry it's a short one this week w/out pictures. Last Monday our zone played glow-in-the-dark ultimate frisbee in the church gym, with glow sticks around our necks and taped on the frisbee. That was fun.Tuesday was great. Wednesday we taught Clair, one of our most promising investigators. On Thursday it rained, that was cool. We had training from our zone leaders instead of district meeting this week, so I didn't have to prepare a district meeting. I'm cool with that. On Friday President and Sis. Lewis came and taught us about faith. That was awesome. We studied scriptures, Preach My Gospel, and discussed how we can increase our faith and the faith of our investigators. I'm always amazed that even though faith, repentance, baptism, and the Holy Ghost are such simple gospel principles, we can always talk about them in such depth. I love it.

Saturday was great, Elder Villalva and I taught a lot. My favorite days are the ones that we are rushing between teaching appointments and are constantly teaching lessons and reading the scriptures. Those days we see the most miracles in finding as we teach, and as we invite investigators to be baptized.

Church on Sunday was crazy. We are still getting to know ward members and leaders, so it's awkward when someone comes up to you and you know their face... but you forgot their name in the plethora of new names and faces jumbled around in your brain. I feel like an idiot sometimes. Oh well. Love ya!

Love,

Elder Andrew

--

Elder Chris Andrew

California Sacramento Mission

8267 Deseret Ave

Fair Oaks, CA 95628

64

Woah, what a crazy week. On Wednesday I got a ride to my new area, the Wilton and Sheldon wards in Elk Grove. It's the countryside kinda near Sacramento. It's a little like Jackson and Ione, except not as hill-y. Beautiful area. We live in a member's guest home by ourselves. My companion is Elder Villalva! He is from Ecuador. He is awesome. Elder Villalva has been out for 5 months and this is his first time serving in English work. He speaks it very well. We still do language study every day for an hour, and I study Spanish while he studies English. I told him my goal by the end of the transfer is to be able to talk about the gospel and pray in Espanol. Elder Villalva is funny and we get along great.

 

Being shotgunned into an area is an adventure. This week was kinda hard to find the people that we are teaching and have been taught in the past. Church was great though. We meet in the biggest building in the stake, the Vintage Park building. It has two chapels so two wards can meet at the same time. We have to bounce between both of our wards so we can be where we need to be for ward councils, sacrament meetings, and gospel principles. Good stuff! These wards are great, and we have a lot of support.

 

On Saturday I was able to go back to Stockton for the baptism of Jacob Lemon! That was awesome.

 

The missionaries in my district are awesome. On Thursday we had district meeting. Elders Nalesoni and Gottfredson are in the Waterman ward and Elders Scalese and Kafton are in the Elk Grove ward. Great Elders.

--

Elder Chris Andrew

California Sacramento Mission

8267 Deseret Ave

Fair Oaks, CA 95628

63

Oh boy, it's been a good week. Our transfer calls came last night, and I'm leaving to Elk Grove to be a district leader. I'm being "shotgun-ed" or "white-washed" into an area, which means my companion will be just as new to the area as I am. My companion (not sure how to spell his name, I'll let you know next week) is from Mexico and was called to speak Spanish in this mission, but is being moved to English work this transfer. So, I'm not sure how much English he speaks. It will be an adventure. Good stuff! I have a feeling it will be a humbling transfer as I accept this responsibility. I just talked with Elder Muir, the missionary that was serving there last transfer, and he told me that they have a investigator with a baptismal date and a few other progressing investigators. Yeehaw!

Elder Brook is staying in Valley Oaks ward with Elder Chatterton! Elder Chatterton came out with me from the MTC. "Valley Oaks! No jokes! We be baptizing all the folks!" This Saturday is the baptisms of Jacob Lemon and Janie Mustapha. I'm hoping and praying that I will be able to come back for their baptisms.

On Sunday the Mezey family was baptized! SO happy! It's been a long road for them, but it was such a sweet, happy day. Br Mezey received the priesthood in church and baptized his wife, Amy, and four children that evening. In the picture, from left to right, is me, Alyssa, Shelbie, Elder Brook about, Br Mezey and Sis. Mezey, James, Kayleigh, and their next youngest Lilliah in her lap. They have a new born brother J.T. that is not in the picture. They are an awesome family.

Along with Br Mezey in church Tom Erps received the Aaronic priesthood. It was a blessing to be able to participate in his ordination. Edgar and his family is living in the El Dorado ward now, and he should be receiving the priesthood soon too.

Well, it's a big week ahead and I'm stoked for the adventure. It will be a challenge. I'll miss the people of Stockton. It's been real, it's been fun... it's been real fun. I love you all! Love,

Elder Andrew

PS the Stockton homicide count is 69 this year. That breaks the record, which was set last year! Last weekend there were 4 murders, and our mission president told all the missionaries in Stockton to return to their apartments by 8pm to do companion study, instead on returning at 9pm. Good stuff!

--

Elder Chris Andrew

California Sacramento Mission

8267 Deseret Ave

Fair Oaks, CA 95628

62

Well, the Mezey's were not baptized this weekend. They want their father to baptize them all and he should get the Aaronic Priesthood next week, so the baptisms has been postponed until then. On the bright side, this week our other progressing investigator, Janey, quit smoking and has set her baptismal date for November 3rd! She is amazing. Jacob Lemon is still set for the third as well!

Edgar and his family moved into their new place permanently this week. They are doing great and Edgar should be getting the priesthood soon. Tom is solid... he enjoyed Stake Conference this weekend. He should be getting the priesthood soon too.

Next week is transfers, so you won't hear from me until Tuesday. I feel like I'm probably leaving, maybe to be a district leader. Our zone leaders gave us our transfer reports (how our progression, skills, growth and abilities are measured by our mission leaders every six weeks) and mine said to leave Valley Oaks and be a district leader. We'll see. I know being a district leader will be hard, but I think I'm ready for the challenge. District leaders are usually over 2 or 3 companionships and they provide training every week in district meeting. They go on exchanges with all the missionaries in their district and help them in their areas. The missionaries in their district report their proselyting efforts to the district leader, which he reports to the zone leaders. The zone leaders report to the assistants to the president, and they report to the mission president.

I sure love this place. Stockton is great. I love the people that I have taught and the ward members that I have worked with. Life is good!

--

Elder Chris Andrew

California Sacramento Mission

8267 Deseret Ave

Fair Oaks, CA 95628