Elder Adam's January 18th email

Dear Family,

I finally got your guys' packages! Thank you guys so much for everything! You really shouldn't have spoiled me so much! :P

The Meat & Cheese was definitely an amazing surprise! I put it on hold until the Zone Leaders went to Nauta later on in the week. In the night, we all had a Meat, Cheese, and Crackers party, and we all LOVED it! It was truly one of the most delicious things I've eaten here! 

As for events this week, it was actually rather normal. Nothing much happened. We've had a good bit of progression in our investigators (three of which had babies this week or are having a baby this upcoming week! Awesome "Plan of Salvation" opportunities coming up!). We've also had the best sacrament meeting I've seen in Nauta, with the best talks and the highest attendance number. I just got to work a little bit harder and that number will grow even more!

Sorry for the not-so-newsy email. I'm having a difficulty of thinking of things to tell you guys about.

WHOOOA! Heather got to meet Dick Van Dyke?! No way! That's awesome, Heather! How was the 10K for you guys? Here in Nauta, the circumference of the city is about a 5K, so some day, before I leave the city, I'm going to run it. 

How are you doing, Dad? What's Boston like? What kind of stuff are you working on at work? And how's the house-makeover with Jim and Erin going? I heard they're getting ready to move this Saturday! Good luck!

Again, sorry for the short email. This next week will be better, because there will be a transmission from the First Presidency to all the missionaries, so we'll see what they've got to say!

Love,

Adam

Elder Adam's January 11th email

I absolutely LOVE Adam's emails. Missionary emails make me want to be a better person!  It also reminds me of how blessed Glenn and I are to have the amazing children we have in our family!!

Dear Everyone,

This week was something special. Yesterday, I got the opportunity to meet Juan A. Uceda from the Seventy, who's president of the Northwest South american area! Not quite as cool as what cousin John Boekweg got to experience with Elder Christofferson, but still pretty cool in it's own sphere! 

He talked to us about a lot of things that will help me be a better missionary. One thing he talked to us about is "Faith Vs. Fear". Sometimes as missionaries (and members), we don't do things because we're often scared that we might mess up, or that someone would correct us, or that it would be a waste of time. He taught us that when we know what's right, and it's the opportune moment, JUST DO IT! "If you're scared to do it, do it being scared!" (my favorite quote). Fear is just a phantom that doesn't exist. 

One thing I learned from the spirit of that lesson was that fear, too, can be a form of pride, which is the great stumbling block. I made the connection when I realized that there are so many things that don't get done because of fear, when we're scared of putting something that's ours at risk, whether it be our reputation, our good feeling, or whatever. Both fear and pride are great stumbling blocks, and they're almost the exact same thing.

Another thing he taught us is how we can better study the scriptures. He gave us an example and drew a 8x8 grid on the board, telling us to find all the squares. Some people immediately said 64. In reality, there were 204 squares, and most were hidden. Some were larger than others, some were in places we didn't even think.

Studying the scriptures is like that. Sometimes, when we read the scripture just to get farther in, we're only learning 64 of the 204 that's there. That's less than a third of what we can be learning. So he gave us an example of what we can do better. We went through a passage of scripture, going phrase by phrase, looking up definitions and footnotes along the way. It was slow, but very, VERY sure. Along the way, we also began asking ourselves questions such as, "How can I be more like Abinadi?" or "Am I filled with 'soberness' like the Stripling Warriors?" 

It was a very amazing experience. I want to invite all of you guys to do it too. You'll learn more from 10 minutes of one verse than you have reading it 10 times normally. 

This week, as some might have noticed, I've done something a bit different. This email was one I wanted to share with everyone, so I sent it to more people than just the family. I sent it to some friends too, especially the ones who are out on missions. I hope what I've learned from Uceda can help bless your life too.

Love,

Elder Dixon

P.S. Happy Birthday, Todd!

I think you will find this post... moving...

Come help us move!  We will feed you!

The Jim Dixons are moving on January 23rd from our apartment in draper to our new house in Sandy.  Anyone who wants to come and help us move at 9:30 AM is more than welcome to (that is the polite way of saying "WE NEED YOU!!! BWWAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!  *sniff*").  We have already begun moving boxes to the house, and will continue to do so over the next 2 weeks, so hopefully the move will mostly consist of the bigger things.

Our apartment: 36 E Hawthorne Hill Lane, Draper

Our House: 9875 S Falcon Hurst Dr., Sandy

Also, big thank you to everyone who was able to come to the painting party last Saturday.  With your help we got a ton done!  I know its late notice, but if you don't have anything going on tomorrow morning at 9:00 we would love to have you again.  There isn't as much left that needs to be painted, just ceilings baseboards and trim.  We will have muffins!

Love you guys!

Elder Adam's January 4th Email---Man, I love that kiddo!

Dear Family,

I had a pretty good week this week! We found a new family that came to
church! Their names are Tony and Lydia. Lydia is the sister of one of
the members, and they've got some pretty great potential! I'm excited
to teach them more!

So this week was New Years, so I decided to do something a bit special
for the people we teach. I made up a special New Years lesson to help
them understand repentance, new beginnings, and why we all set goals.
We taught everyone about the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and that
through it, we are all able to erase our sins and start again, no
matter what kind of sins they are.

Then I shared the U.S. tradition of setting goals for New Years, and
invited them all to set goals for themselves as to how they can better
follow Jesus Christ this year. I've gotten some pretty great and
diverse answers, such as:
-Reading the scriptures more every day
-Bearing testimonies more in church
-Going to the temple
-Showing up at church early instead of late.
-And lots more stuff.

The New Year's Iniciative that I made up was a success, and I'd like
to ask the rest of you the same question that I asked my
investigators, converts, less-actives, and members:

What will you do differently this year to better follow and remember
Jesus Christ?

I know that whatever goal we come up with, it will be within reach.
The Lord will always help us as long as we do what we can to achieve
what we've put for ourselves.

This past week, for Christmas, I bought some American Cup-o-Noodles
and enjoyed it dearly. Later, I found the Peruvian equivalent of Top
Ramen, called Aji-No-Men. I bought a couple and enjoyed it too. The
funny thing is, that I bought two seemingly-different flavors, but
realized too late that they said:
"Gallina" (which means "Hen")
and
"Pollo" (which means "Chicken")

Chicken and Hen flavors? I looked at the ingredients. There was
absolutely nothing different. :P Oh, Peru, what am I going to do with
you?

What is everyone up to this week? Enjoying 2016? Has school started back up yet?

Love,
Adam