To my family and friends, Thank you!!

Dear family and friends,

My 24 months, 2 years, 700+ days, 18 changes have all...come to an end.

This is my last week here in the Mexico Leon Mission and before departing I would just like to take a minute and thank you all.

Thank you for the money you have donated so I would never be hungry and could always enjoy a treat and pay for transportation to take investigators to church. Thank you for your emails of gratitude and encouragement, I can honestly say that I have never been "forgotten" or been so old in the mission that I didn’t receive any more mail as some missionaries claim. Thank you for the packages that brightened my day and the cards and pictures that made me laugh and brought a smile to my face even when things weren’t going as I would have like them to. Thank you for always remembering me and the missionaries in your prayers, I know that much of the success the lord has given me has been due to your prayers and faithfulness.

I am so grateful for family and friends that care. I have always had you behind me to push and encourage me when I needed it most, for this I will be eternally grateful.

I know that God is our father. He did appear to Joseph Smith with his son Jesus Christ. Representing the Savior, His church and spreading his gospel has taught me and brought me so much Joy that it makes it difficult for me to come home. I had a hard time coming to the mission now it’s hard for me to leave!! I hope that all of you who have supported me can be present at my homecoming which will be the 28th of this month in Garden Grove 6th Ward so I can personally thank you.

This is Jesus Christ’s church, his teachings and ordinances have been restored along with the Authority to teach and administer them! We live in the greatest and last dispensation of all times to be able to teach these things to our brothers and sisters that don’t know them.

Con mucho amor escribo estas cosas,
(with much love, I write these things)

Elder Salazar

Four confirmations. ZL training. New AP's. New ZL's. 7265 blog hits.

Elders Trejo, Maxfield, Toutai, Salazar, Callen

Hey Mom, and Dad,

This week went ok for us. This month we baptized eight people the first week of the month, but four of them were never confirmed due to the fact that on Sundays instead of coming to church they went to other places. Finally this last Sunday we got them to church and confirmed! A baptism doesn't count till it’s confirmed.

The last zone leader council went really great. I trained the Zone leaders on the importance of numbers. It was a great ZL council. Its official, Elder Sherman is out of the offices and now up in "La Joya" or aka Arbide2 as a ZL. That's where Elder Maxfield and I were Zone leaders together before coming to the offices. I really enjoyed my time in La Joya, its up in the hills of Leon above the city. Our new APs will be Elder Toutai (my old comp from Celaya) and Elder Trejo (who was in Irapuato with me when we used to go to Abasolo). They are great elders and I am really excited for them. Good luck to Elder Toutai, he is going to be in the offices till November and it will be his job to welcome the new Mission President, one word...STRESS. He will do great though. He and I were great companions and great friends in Celaya.

This week president is sending Elder Callen and me out to travel the mission and work with other companionship's for the week. Elder Callen will be going to San Luis Potosi and I will be going to Celaya, then Wednesday morning, Elder Callen and I will rendezvous in Aguascalientes to work with the ZL´s and some other companionship's there that are struggling. Friday evening we will come home together. It should be a fun week. When I travel I feel like the days go by so fast, it also gives me a great opportunity to meet other Elders and help them in their areas. Elder Maxfield will stay behind to show Elder Toutai and Elder Trejo their areas and train them in their duties.

15 more days till we see each other again. I feel a great excitement about going home to my family and new life. My branch president in Cardenas once taught me that in a young mans life there is never a greater time where he is so close to the hand of the lord, than when he is on a mission. The lord literally guides his every foot step and sends angels daily to protect him, bless him, inspire and console him. I don't know how any missionary would want to leave this feeling no matter how far away they are from home, so because of that I feel a profound sadness.

I get home Monday and on Tuesday morning I plan on doing a personal trip to the Newport Beach temple. It’s almost been 2 years since I've been through an endowment session at the temple. You never know how much the temple means to you till you don't have the opportunity to attend regularly.

Well I have to get going; Elder Callen and I are going downtown to do some shopping before we head out. My time is coming to an end and I am trying to make every minute count.

Love ya!

Elder Salazar

*A picture of the new APs, along with a picture of me "Fast and Furiously" going to get investigators in the van. Lol =D