This may be my last entry, at least for a while. We will welcome Seth home tomorrow evening so he can receive treatment for depression.

I couldn't be more proud of him for working hard and being diligent even as he struggled significantly with the related feelings. I feel God is pleased with his offering.

First, the pictures.

Elder Gramajo from the mission office came and worked with them on Wednesday and Seth reported they had a good time working with him. He is the elder in the middle.

This is the Rueda family. Seth said, "This family truly inspires me. It was a pleasure knowing them."

He reported it was also a pleasure working with the Perez family and Sister Salimar. (I don't know which she is.)

This is Seth bidding farewell to Elders Velazquez (his district leader) Elder Raudales, y Elder Soto (his last companion) and to Coatzacoalcos.

Since this is Seth's last email, at least for a while, I will include all of it.

Querida Familia,

Well I don't have much to say in this letter. It's been something difficult in these few days, but more than anything it has taught me patience. The Lord blessed me to see the fruits this week.

Lazaro y Martina have now been turned in the hands of the Branch who are making food to sell so that the branch can raise money so that  Lazaro and Martina can get married and baptized. They are strong in attending church, and I have no worries for them. They have their eyes on the temple.

Many members thanked me for my service in the branch and expressed a lot of feelings. I was quite touched because I had not supposed to have such an effect on them. We ate with an Hermana who seemed fine until I felt impressed to ask if their was something that she wanted us to pray about in the closing prayer. She broke down, and explained how it was hard to be diligent seeing as her husband works every day, but she is very diligent in spite of this fact. I was glad I listened and for the first time in a long time she was able to receive a Priesthood blessing.

The greatest thing for me was Elder Soto, my companion. Elder Soto is known as one of the hardest companions in the mission, but I chose to believe that the Lord could perform a miracle through me. This week he expressed a lot of feelings of saddness that I was leaving, because he knew he could trust me, and I was quite touched in what he expressed. I hope that I was able to give him hope in a world where many don't understand him. He is a man without guile, and will have a great reward for his service in this life.

Testifico que estas cosas han sido según la voluntad de Dios. En los últimos momentos de esta prueba, nunca dejé yo de trabajar, y sé que testificará con un consciente limpio ante Dios y hombre de que en los momentos mas oscuros, servía. Tal vez a veces no hice todo en todo diligencia, pero Jesucristo tuvo misericordia, y ninguna de estas cosas son mías, pero son de Él, pero agradeceré todo mí vida que Dios me preservó en toda esta prueba. Ninguna de estas cosas son de mi. Testifico que Jesucristo bajó abajo de todo. Testifico de Su amor, y me mueve hasta lagrimas al saber porque lo hizo Él. Sólo pasó porque Él nos ama. Espero que me llamará en servicios a él en cada momento para el resto de eternidad. Le amo porque Él primero me amó.

(I testify that these things have been according to the will of God. In the last moments of this trial, I never stopped working and I know that I will testify with a clean conscience before God and man that in the darkest moments, I served. Possibly, at times, I didn't do everything in total diligence, but Jesus Christ had mercy and and none of these things are mine but are of Him but I will be grateful all of my life that God preserved me in all of this trial. None of these things are of me. I testify that Jesus Christ descended belwo all things. I testify of His love and I am moved to tears knowing why He did itt. It was only because He loves us. I hope that He will call me to serve Him in every moment for the rest of eternity. I love Him because He first loved me.)

Les Amo,
Elder Seth Lunt

Seth didn't send any pictures so I went on-line to get a picture of the chapel in Coatzacoalcos because this building figures prominently in his last email.

Here is the related extract from his email.

I guess the highlight of the week is that we had 2 baptisms. After a ton of opposition and problems we were able to baptize Karina Gomez Gallegos and Williams Rodriguez Sanchez. I think it might be entertaining for you to hear what happened. We finalized the interviews Thursday, and I asked for keys to the church to be able to empty, clean, and fill the font. The people who were going to give them to us forgot 3 times to pass by, and an hour before the baptism we still didn't have them. We called someone else in a hurry and met him at the church. But as it turns out the pump was out of service, so we just had to throw some cleaning products in the water and fish out the cockroaches. Only 1 family arrived and the spouse of Karina for her baptismal service, and Williams didn't arrive. We cut our losses and did a small service for her which turned out fine. Then returning from her service we were informed that Williams was walking towards the church, which is about one hour away, and the members picked him up and we returned to the church and did another baptismal service for him. In the end, what was important happened, and they were both confirmed the next day.

I would say Seth is pretty good at thinking on his feet.

Here is his testimony. "Testifico que estas cosas son verdaderas, y que la sabiduría de Dios es más grande que la de Satanás. Testifico que Su Plan para nosotros es perfecto, y cada cosa ha sido, o será, proveído para que tengamos la oportunidad de arrepentirnos. Gracias por sus oraciones y ayunos. Oro para ustedes constantemente." (I testify that these things are true and that the wisdom of God is greater than that of Satan. I testify that His plan for us is perfect and that all things have been or will be provided so that we have the opportunity to repent. Thanks for your prayers and fasting.. I pray for you constantly.)

Seth didn't send any pictures this week but, fortunately, Sister Haws posted pictures from zone conferences.

This is the Coatzacoalcos zone. You will recognize Seth and his companion on your far left. There is an odd number of Elders so I wonder if one of them is taking the picture.

There are nine zones in the mission. Based on headcounts in the pictures, Seth's zone appears to be one of the largest.

Here is Sister Haws' report. "This Conference President taught about the glory of God is intelligence, or in other words, light and truth (D&C 93: 36). He applied it to us and missionary work. We also discussed the 5 foundational blocks of our mission; Obedience, Diligence, the Holy Spirit, Expectations and Love. The Assistants taught about - Working with members to find people that are seeking the Lord and How to help get people to Church. "

Here is an excerpt from Seth's recent email.

"This week we were very blessed to be able to have 7 investigators attend church. 3 or 4 of them are going strong to be able to be baptized, although Lazaro and Martina weren't able to go because of his job. He is really showing fruits of repentance and forgiveness. He is going to quit his job to find one that will allow him to keep the Sabbath, and also he and Martina will get married as soon as he quits, because his boss won't give him his birth certificate before (I have no idea why). I am glad that he has decided to make these changes for himself, through his diligent study and prayer, he has really received revelation on how to keep the commandments. We are also blessed to see that although hard, the commandments that we have given to Elizabeth Cuevas she is going to keep.

"I have felt blessed that God has heard our prayers that we have been able to find people that have truly repented. It was hard to get to this point, because to really baptize according to D&C 20:37 is difficult, and it is easier in Mexico to baptize people before they get to this point. But to really try and convert people calls the attention of the Adversary, and sometimes it feels like his angles are screaming in my ears to try and distract or depress us. But we keep going in the hopes that one day we will rest from all our afflictions."

Here is his testimony.
"Testifico que debemos seguir el Espíritu en hacer nuestra obra en la manera más recta, aún si este mundo no está listo para vivir así. Jesucristo vendrá otra vez, y tenemos que ser seguros que tenemos suficiente aceite para nuestras lamparas  para conocerle cuando viene. Testifico que Él tiene todo poder para cambiar nuestros corazones, pero tenemos que servirle hasta llega el momento que Su gracia puede cambiarnos." (I testify that we should follow the Spirit in doing our work in the most correct way even if this word is not ready to live that way. Jesus Christ will come again and we have to be sure that we have enough oil for our lamps so we can recognize him when he comes. I testify that He has all power to change our hearts but we have to serve Him until the moment comes that His grace can change us.)

Life is good... we have new pictures two weeks in a row.

Our first photo is of his current district.

I'm guessing Seth's companion, Elder Soto, is taking this picture as none of the five resemble him. Seth indicated that recent transfers didn't affect his district much. This district appears to be half gringos, a ratio we haven't seen before.

Next we have a picture of a path Seth says they frequently use.

He used a Spanish word (fraccionamientos) to describe the buildings in the distance which I haven't heard before. I think it means apartments. I'm guessing that his companion is just in front of him.

Our final photo is of a visitor they had in their apartment.

.Seth reported that this visitor was about the size of his hand.

Now for the good stuff...

"The Chavez Alejandro Family finally come to Sacrament Meeting. They enjoyed the services, and I am glad that they are really taking a turn in their lives to better themselves. They are making the efforts now to get married so they can get baptized, so we ask that we can have your prayers for them."

"Our efforts this week were blessed to be led to 3 people who are really miracles. Elizabeth Cuevas, who came alone to sacrament meeting last week, also let us teach her daughter. They are both desiring much to be baptized. They have had some problems so they will have to move soon, but they really want to take these steps in their lives before going to another place. But their actions and the Spirit have led me to believe that they have repented, and will continue to repent sufficiently to be baptized in this short notice."

"We also were led to a contact that we had made a while back who is named Reyna. She has been hurt in the past, and through some doctrine taught by her father didn't believe that Christ had established a Church, but while talking with her and following the Spirit, she gave us a firm answer that she would read, pray, and attend church. I can see the pureness of her heart and pray she comes to Christ fully.

"The third was Adrian Vazquez who has had problems with his family and his girlfriend. He has lost hope, but when we came and talked to him about the hope he can have through the Gospel, he shared that his mom had predicted that a day like the day we found him would come when the sun was hot, and the wind strong and very weird, and that help would come also. He recognized us as servants of God in that moment, and wants to listen to us.

"We were also blessed to work with Delia and Cynthia yesterday, and after going through the requirements for baptism, they agreed to have the date set, that they want to be baptized. We will only try and pray that they establish themselves in the habits of reading and praying daily, and to attend Sacrament Meeting for the rest of their lives."

Mary and I are certainly grateful that Seth and his companion were so blessed this last week.

Seth got a new camera and I am so excited. Not only that, but his pictures would suggest he and his companion went on their first P-day excursion.

Our first photo comes from a place named Barrillas. A nice view on a wonderful day...

The following arial photo would suggest that we are looking at a large bay in the picture above.

I think the following two photos are from Barrillas as well.

It appears to be a wonderful place, especially if you aren't a missionary and can get in the water.

The following picture comes from Jicacal. I couldn't find a map that made sense to me but I will tell you that Seth reported they had to travel there by boat.

Also, I think this is the first picture we have seen of Seth's current companion, Elder Soto.

Our final photo is of a tropical bird perched on Seth's shoulder. It was nice of the bird to look into the camera for the picture.

Seth reported that they are seeing more and more people returning to church who haven't been participating for a while. One such member, Brother Brocus mentioned in a previous post, has been doing a lot of visits with them. Elizabeth Cuevas surprised them by showing up to church and staying extra long even though she didn't seem inclined when they first contacted her.

Here is a portion of Seth's testimony. "Testifico que el amor puro y la fe y esperanza nos conducen a la sinceridad, claridad, poder, y todo rectitud, y nunca debemos hacer nada sin consultar a Dios antes, y hacerlo con nuestra mira puesta únicamente en Su Gloria..." (I testify that pure love and faith and hope lead us to sincerity, clarity, power and total righteousness and we should never do anything without first consulting with God and then do it with an eye single to His glory...)

Seth hasn't replaced his camera yet so we are back to the mission preparation photos.

Two posts ago, we showed Seth participating in a district cleaning project.  Here we see that he began his preparations for this project quite young.

In this case, Melanie is helping him prepare for missionary cleaning opportunities.

Certainly, getting along with and enjoying the company of other missionaries is an important part of the work.

These Elders who served in Charleston all those years ago seem to be enjoying his company and he theirs. Birthday cakes have made numerous appearances in this blog. That can't be insignificant.

Finally, team work is an obviously important dimension of missionary work.  Seth started learning this skill quite young as well.

Should we have guessed then he would end up 6'4"?

Now, to be serious for a moment.  Here are some extracts from his most recent letter.

"We taught [Lazaro Chavez] about the Doctrine of Christ and finally to end the lesson [he] had the courage to ask Heavenly Father if this was His church, and if this is the truth. I asked him how he felt after and he could only muster up to say "Bonito." It was one of the first times in the mission I have really seen a conversion happen. He has been reading every day since then and praying."

"...a less active brother named Elder Brocus (his name yes, is Elder) that we started teaching awhile back is about to receive a calling that we need in the ward, and has been great in helping us as missionaries. 5 of his friends right now are seriously investigating the church, and he has started forming the habit of reading the Book of Mormon daily, and we hope that he can begin exercising his priesthood more fully soon."

Now, a portion of his testimony.

"...debemos orar para entender para que seamos convertidos y participar del Fruto del Árbol de la Vida, pero si dudamos después, el fruto perderá su sabor, y entraremos en la obscuridad, y desanimo para siempre." (We should pray so that we can be converted and partake of the fruit of the Tree of Life. However, if we later doubt, the fruit will lose its flavor and we will enter in the darkness and discouragement forever.)

Seth's camera is still struggling so I am going to have to come up with my own material again.

He mentioned two talks from General Conference last weekend.

Elder Nelson

Elder Ballard

He noted that they both chose to focus on the document created by the apostles in 2000 in commemoration of the 2000th anniversary of Christ's birth. He said, "...both mentioned that we should study The Living Christ, and I realized that I had never read it before."

If any of you haven't read it, here is a link.  The Living Christ

Here is an excerpt from Seth's email. "We were able to find a few new people this week that we are teaching, but we are still trying to figure out how to help our investigators see that Church attendance is necessary in their progress. We haven't had more than 1 or 2 investigators in Sacrament Meeting since I have been here, and that I means I have something still to learn so I can help the people I teach understand also."

Seth said he couldn't get his camera to connect to the computer so he didn't send any pictures for a second week in a row. However, I was looking at the mission blog kept by Sister Haws and found the following.

"We had a special work project in Coatzacoalcos and the Elders in the Zone all pitched in to help get the work done. Moms- they do know how to clean!  It was a great day working together."

Chad has a business trip to Mexico next week so he called the mission office to see if he might take Seth and his companion to lunch. He ended up speaking to the mission president who asked that he not do the lunch thing.  However, he gave a report on Seth as follows. Seth is a hard working, obedient, successful missionary who is already a senior companion. "He is great."

So, Seth wanted to help me know that he can empathize with my snow shoveling - the Mexican way.

Here is what he wrote. "to make dad feel better with all the snow that has fallen, we have a lot of wind here, and we live next to sand dunes, so while the snow plows are working in Utah, we have to shovel and plow almost a foot of sand off of our drive way."

That is the only picture for this week. I will share his entire testimony this time.

"Testifico que tenemos que encontrar la verdadera fe en Jesucristo. Cuando realmente tenemos fe en lo que Él ha dicho, seremos librados de nuestras aflicciones. Cuando lo conocemos, encontraremos amor, y cuando tenemos este amor, nuestras corazones cambiarán, naceremos de nuevo, y entraremos en Su descansa. Al seguir Sus mandamientos totalmente, tendremos mas felicidad que tenemos ahora, aunque es difícil creerlo." 

(I testify that we have to find the true faith in Jesus Christ. When we really have faith in what He has said, we will be liberated from our afflictions. When we know Him, we will find love and, when we have this love, our hears will change, we will be born again, and we will enter into His rest. As we follow His commandments totally, we will have more happiness that we now have, although that is difficult to believe.)

And we're back with pictures from Seth.

First we have a winter-rub-your-nose-in-it picture. Evidently, Seth and his companion run on this beach every morning. Evidently, the river-looking water to our right is a sewer drainage system. He says it looks pretty but smells otherwise.

Evidently, Seth and companion left the apartment, locking the door behind them only later to realize they left their keys on the desk.  Here is his account of how they solve their problem.

"We obtained a screwdriver and a large stick, and my companion used some of the things he has learned in México to open one of our windows, then we used the branch to drag our desks to the window, in the process throwing a lot of things to the ground, but we finally got in after a lot of prayer and running around."

Here is how the apartment ended up as a result of this process.

The big news of the week was that Esteban Cayetanos Rosas was baptized.

Here he is surrounded by branch members who helped with his conversion.

Here's why his letter was short again.

"We have been praying a lot lately to gain the confidence of members here, and to have opportunities to serve. Today we were pushed a little behind because we helped clear a plot of land with machetes and sticks for Hno. Aragon. We received the request from him last night, and although it was our P-day, I didn't want to miss any chances to serve when a member asked us. I didn't take any pictures, but it was a lot of work, and I have a lot of blisters. But I do know how to use a machete more efficiently now to do landscaping."

Seth didn't give me any material this week either. Therefore, I thought I would focus on how long he has been preparing for his mission - specifically for the Mexico Villahermosa mission.

If you have been following this blog, you are aware that "la mordida" is an important birthday tradition in the area where he first served.  He established a connection with his future mission on his first birthday by completing his first mordida in fine fashion.

Certainly, proper grooming is an important part of being a missionary. Here Seth is practicing so he can be clean shaven throughout his mission.

You may not be aware that Seth now sleeps in a hammock. He also began his mission preparation by trying one out in the woods. He wasn't quite ready to solo yet so I helped him out.

Anyone who has served a mission knows you can end up having very small living spaces.. Here we find Seth preparing for the most extreme of /confined living.

On to a more serious note, I thought I would share a note I received when I posted something on Facebook about Seth. It came from his seminary teacher from his senior year in high school and suggests that Seth's starting so young to prepare for his mission has paid off.

"Seth, you were a phenomenal seminary student and class president for me. You will work wonders for the Lord in the mission field and throughout your life. I have rarely seen a young man as prepared as you to face the challenges of the latter days. You are to be highly commended brother! I am so glad that I got to teach at Davis last year and was blessed to have you in class. I hope our paths cross again down the road. God bless you my friend."

Seth didn't have time to write much or send pictures so I will provide a little more information on Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz.

Here is a picture of its coastline at night.

Here is some information that I know you will find very interesting.

The population in 2010 was over 300,000.

Highest elevation 160 ft

Lowest elevation 0 ft

It covers 182 square miles.

One of the interesting sites in this city is the Olmec Archaeology Museum. Here is a portion of the graven image that sits on top of it. I'm guessing it is supposed to represent Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent.

Here is the city's shield. You can see the pyramid on which the above image sits.

Here is Seth's testimony from his last letter.

"Testifico que todo será bien si guardamos los mandamientos primero y nos preocupamos luego. Tendremos aflicción, y tal vez no veremos el fin de sufrimiento, pero siempre si haremos que ha sido mandado, salimos en la manera mejor." (I testify that all will be well if we keep the commandments first and worry later. We will have affliction and, perhaps, we won't see the endd of suffring but, if we we will do what has been commanded, things will go best for us.)

We have our first pictures from Seth's new area.  We will start with an introduction to his companion.

This is Elder Milan. His home is roughly 30 minutes from the MTC so he isn't far from Mexico City. He has been in the mission just over 12 weeks.

Now we get introduced to the house in which they are living. Seth reports, "It´s pretty big especially compared to the one in Carmen, with an entry room, small kitchen, and 2 bedrooms, 1 bath. Even though its about 2-3 times as big, its about a third the price of our previous house."

He didn't comment so we are not sure he knows what to do with that thing which is in the corner.

Here we see beds but we are under the impression Seth is using a hammock.

I was going to guess bathroom for this picture but the next picture and the microwave above would suggest they have an awesome kitchen.

Somebody really has things figured out here. As you can see, they have a table full of reading material available to you before you go into the bathroom.

This would appear to be the stereotypical missionary study area.

Blessings come from above, for sure. Sometimes, other things come from above as well.

A bird was feeling pretty good about his/her aim about the time this picture was taken.

Finally, Seth had a nostalgic moment.

The big cross in the distance reminded him of the huge cross just off the freeway about 30 miles from where we lived in Illinois.

Here is part of his testimony. "Testifico que Él pueda hablar a la corazón de cada persona, y si escuchamos al Espíritu y guardamos nuestros convenios podremos ayudar a muchos de sus hijos a venir a Él. Él nos ama, y siempre cumplirá con Sus promesas." (I testify that [God] can speak to the hear of every person and, if we listen to the Spirit and keep our covenants, we can help many of His children come to Him. He loves us and will always keep his promises.)

The big news of the week is that Seth has been transferred.

He was transferred 344 kilometers (214 miles - 5 hours) from Ciudad del Carmen to Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz. This city s a major port city in the southern part of the Mexican state of Veracruz, on the Coatzacoalcos River. Coatzacoalcos comes from an indigenous word meaning "Site of the Snake" or "Where the snake hides". According to the legend, this is the place where the god Quetzalcoatl made his final journey to the sea around the year 999 and where he made his promise to return. (Wikipedia)

Seth is now senior companion and his companion is Elder Milan. We don't know anything about him yet. Seth was serving in a ward but now will be serving in the Olmeca branch.

Here is Seth's final view of Ciudad del Carmen as he is leaving.

In his new area, he will still be looking at the Gulf of Mexico without being able to get in it.

Seth reported, "I knew that this was going to be my last week in the area, and the thing that surprised me most when I told people was how much they were grateful for what I helped bring to pass. The people that we baptized were very grateful, and it helped build my faith a lot to see how they really have had a grand change in their lives."

Here are some pictures from some of the goodbyes.

They helped Carlos Tello celebrate his birthday. (You will recognize "la mordida" to which we were introduced in Seth's birthday celebration.) In Seth's words, "He has been a huge support to us."

The following two pictures are from when they had a farewell dinner with Hermana Marisol.

Hermana Marisol was baptized with her family last week and Seth says he will miss them a lot. Her son Juan Daniel joins them in the second picture. Seth said, "He is really trying to change his life and we helped him in the process and hope he will be able to be baptized soon and receive all the blessings he can." 

I saved the highlight picture for last.

This picture is of the "baptism of Brandon Jared Ramirez Garcia. We helped reactivate this family and Brandon is 10 years old, so we had the opportunity to teach and baptize him. This family is very diligent now, even though they are making a lot of sacrifices."

We are grateful for the good companions and good experiences Seth had in Carmen. We know the Lord has heard our prayers and those of many others in his behalf.

This has been another eventful week for Seth, in very important ways. Let's start with the less important.

Seth stated, "We visited a less active member of the ward who has a business of selling shrimp to a lot of the island. Here we have a photo of about 400 kilos of shrimp that are about as big as my hand extended."
By my calculation, that is 880 pounds of non-shrimpy shrimp.

Calamari is, perhaps, my least favorite food in the world (at least that I have tried).

This picture is of "squid cooked in its own ink." Seth said it actually tastes pretty good. He must have been REALLY hungry.

Now on to important matters. 

A couple who is living together without being married may not be baptized. Romana and Regulo wanted to get baptized and Seth and his companion wanted that for them too. So, their quest to get them married led them to this little house.

Inside this little house was a lady with a typewriter and the authority to marry people.

I guess she conducts official business by pulling a little desk into her living room. Having received the required fee and completed the required paperwork, she declared them husband and wife.

Here is the happy couple with their marriage certificate.

When they arrived home, family members threw a surprise party.

Now for Saturday.

Seven people were baptized in the ward in which Seth is serving. Seth and his companion taught four of them so the sister missionaries must have taught the other three.

The first family mentioned by Seth was introduced to us above.

This is the De La Cruz Sanchez family - from left to right Romana, Regulo, and Fransisca

Here we are introduced to the De La Cruz Jimenez family.

They are, from left to right Marisol, Victor, Luz, Thomas.

Here is Seth's observation about how things are going in their part of the vineyard. "It was such a blessing to see the excitement of the families and of the ward, and now the doors are opening as more members are bringing friends to church and the families of the people who were baptized are now coming to church and learning more of the gospel."