TALANGA EN CAMPAMENTO!! WHOOO!!

SO FIRSTTTT HAPPY BDAY TO MY BEAUTIFUL SISTER! WHAT A LOVELY TEENAGER (I think I just threw up) SHE IS!! (oh goodness I just said teenager.. what the poop is happening) LOVE YA SIS AND THANK YOU FOR ALWAYS HAVING THAT SMILE OF YOURS THAT CHANGES THE LIVES AROUND YOU! Now, just dont use it for the boys! ;) LOVE YA SIS! 

Basically I'm gonna be just sending a bunch of photos! in Talanga en campamento and it's the greatest. So amazing. It's in Olancho and whoooo is it far from the city! Elder Hale and I are District Leaders now so thats super exciting! Grateful for the chance to work! We only have 4 in our district. IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL IT'S LIKE PARK CITY AND OAKLEY AND PROVO CANYON WITH BANANA TREES EVERYWHERE AND HOUSES! My comp is Elder Montejo, he's from Mexico and he is sooo awesome! Love the way the Lord works! WHOO! GO TEAM!

This week I'm thankful for la Vega and my family there, for the chance to be in a new area, my new comp, my new district, everything!, p day, hot days, cold nights, my Savior, the New Testament, emails from all you guys, and my buds on the missions. Elder Sharp, E McMullin, E Sollis, E Wheeler, E Wimmer, E Wimmer, E Avery, and everyone else on the miss!

LOVE YA ALL!

-Elder Alec Johnson

F Himenez Reyes threw a going away party and threw my face in cake!

this is our monkey Julio and he's awesome

ok, so this is why we obey the word of wisdom

I'm a G-pa...

Sooo, I'm gonna start this letter saying about 2 hours ago we WENT TO MCDONALDS!! WHATTTTT!!!!! It was the greatest thing ever. Almost cried. I also heard the song of all songs (aka the dad song) "Never Danced Like This Before" so that made me laugh. A less active wanted to take us because it's my last day here and so we got permission and I ate my #2!! Too good. The people here.. man it hurts a lot to leave them.

So my son is going to be a dad tomorrow! That's super crazy! And so this week we have like a million photos cuz it was such a great week! Other than the fact I had a Brigham Sharp week being sick.. if you know what I'm saying.. hahahah Elders Sharp's e-mails are the best. Oh, also I'd like to just say my comp talks in his sleep.. actually he preaaches. And its the funniest thing I've ever seen. I'll just be sleeping and start hearing yelling and Elder Garcia is sitting up in his bed bearing his testimony! I just die of laughter and tell him "elder, que le pasa!" and he always wakes up and says oh freak, estoy loco... hahah this week was good because he started praying in his sleep! Last week he bore his testimony and told me I was the prophet, haha I wanna get one on recording if I can this night. But ya! HE'S TRAINING!! WHOO!! But it means I'm gone.. so I'm nervous and super excited.

Never have I loved a group of people like I do here. Just everything I love. The drunks, the mean people, my ward, my house, everything. I gave my all in this area and sure I made mistakes but that's why we're here. To learn and give our all and Christ will make up the rest. But if we dont give our all, then there's no promise. I can say I gave my all which I am super happy about. But man. we said goodbye to Gustavo, Mariah and Belaly yesterday. super hard. Gustavo... man that guy. I cant wait to see him in the Temple in one year! I absolutely love everyone that I was able to get to know here. God is good. 

The baptism this week was amazing. One of the greatest most spiritual experiences I've ever had. We had 11 baptisms in the stake and President Fortuna came and talked and MYRA WAS BAPTIZED! AND SHE IS AMAZING! I just.. cant describe how I feel for this family. If anyone is deciding to go on a mission, just know that you will never know such love for indivduals unless you go. One soul means everything to our Heavenly Father. Everything. 

This week I'm grateful for Myra, my family here in la Vega, McDonalds, Cristian, familia Leon, my time here in this great city, Gustavo, Belaly, My Savior, medicine, a bed, and a best friend I'll have forever Elder Garcia. 

Love ya all!

-Elder Alec Johnson

bummer I wont see Ingris and Tiffany be baptized but they're sooo great! sooo amazing! super good Elder Garcia will baptize with his son!

My family here in la Vega!

Saying goodbye to Mr. Gustavo

Saying goodbye to Mariah

MICCCCYYYY DDDDSSSSSS!

"Man I love Honduras"

Elder Garcia and I went to this new part of town and we found this mountain and we climbed it and it was AMAZING..! and then we had a crazy time going back down hahah 

#iwinselfiewaroftheweek #someoneputthisonainsta #throwinguphonduras

Feb. 9th

STILL NOT USED TO THE STINKIN FREEZING SHOWERS

So to start, just know family of mine, that I will be sleeping for about 2 straight weeks when I get home. Without doubt. What's another word for being tired but like way more tired than tired? Exhausted? Not sure..

ANYWAYS! Week that changed the mission and how I pray and study! We had Elder Alonzo from the 70 come and speak to us. And lemme say. just... wow. First he basically called us down to repentence like crazy. Unbelievable.  Then he testified how something was gonna happen that would make all people in the world know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the true church of Jesus Christ on the earth. Then we talked doctrine and I learned how to pray and how to study. So I wanted to talk about OBEDIENCE today! I'm just gonna share a scripture that sums it all up. 

"He that keepeth his commandments recieveth TRUTH and LIGHT and KNOWETH ALL THINGS."

-DyC 93:28

If you wanna be happy and free, keep the commandments! Think about it.

Funny thing that happened this week was that we had a stinkin posum in our house... TWO TIMES! One in the morn and then at night! It was crazy and I may or may have not screamed like a little girl. I call it a ratathon.

Also wanted to thank 3 people in my life especially. Bishop Roy, Bro. Bowen, and Bro. Johnson from the 3rd ward. If someone could tell them how much they helped me when I was in young mens and how much I learned from them and love them, I'd really appreciate that. I dont think they realize or realized how much I look up to them and how I am so grateful that I was able to learn and know them. 

This week im grateful for CARPET, I REALLY MISS CARPET, that the Seahawks lost..;) Go Niners!, studies, general authorities, that we are REALLY LED BY A PROPHET OF GOD (what other church can say that?) for the BOOK OF MORMON OUR KEYSTONE AND IF WE READ IT EVERY DAY THERE IS NO WAY WE WILL EVER NOT MAKE IT TO THE CELESTIAL KINGDOM, a great week, and good food! 

Love ya all!

-Elder Johnson

January 26th 2015

Hey All!
This week was pretty nuts! 1st Ma** wasn't baptized this week because a little thing happened. But her new date is 14th de Feb. (the last Saturday I'm here) But man. She is just super faithful and wants the gospel so bad! She also made us fish yesterday and it was super good. Was grateful for a little change in the diet! We only eat rice, beans, and tortillas! Ha! But we did have 2 baptisms! An** and Sa**! Was pretty nuts because they told us they were moving but then on Saturday, they said we're waiting, so we had those 2! These kids are super crazy..ha! Like really nuts! But the baptism was super cool. Elder Garcia and I both got to baptize them because they asked us. Sure do love Elder Garcia. Hate thinking about leaving him! We're like Batman and Robin here in La Vega! He teaches me so much about what's important in life. But funny story...well not really funny at all, but we saw a kid get hit by a rock dead center in the head and a flipping adult did it! We were like..."what the!" and then there was almost world war 3 because everyone saw it and it's in the really poor area, so things got heated real fast...almost called the cops, but ya, not sure why I shared that!
We also had entrevistas with President Fortuna so it was nice to talk to him! I am going to miss him so much. Soooo powerful.
But emotionally, this week was pretty hard. Got a little sick at the beginning of the week, kept having stupid dreams about home (ha!) and our district leader is super baggy (or trunky) and I went on splits with him. Just was a tough week! And we're soooo tired. Never worked so hard in my life. Every day we give our all. Talked to Pres. about that and he said the cure to tiredness is to work harder. The man is brilliant. But thought a lot about my Savior this week and the Atonement and how He took upon, not only the sins of the world, but pains, feelings, heartaches, everything. And so He had to feel every feeling we feel. So I realized that He must have felt fear. And that to me was new. That our Savior had to be afraid, or say, FEEL fear in order to "suffer for very pain and affliction and temptation of every  kind" (Alma 7:11-14) and then I thought about when He started to suffer in the Garden and when He asked our Father in Heaven if there was another way...and then it kinda hit me. Jesus Christ created the world, He created the Garden of Gethsemane, and then He had to suffer in the same garden He created. Only my thoughts but I think he might have felt fear when He started the Atonement and that's why He asked if there was another way. But the great thing is that HE DID IT! He truly overcame the World! For us. For you.
So when you feel fear, feel despair, it's alright. He's felt the same. Just keep enduring and relying on Him. He's there for you. And as missionaries, we represent Him. People rely on us and what a sacred calling it is to be a missionary for the true Church of Jesus Christ. Love you all.

I'm thankful for repentance, Pres. Fortuna, sleep, medicine, the U.S., my Savior, my scriptures, and a testimony that no one can take from you.

Have a great week!

-Elder Johnson

my comp climbed a tree.... I probably shouldnt have let him but it was sweet haha

receive my skirt this week... (starting a sister mission of 18 months)

okkkk! this week was suppperr tiring! man. I thought I was tired after basketball.. that aint nothing. Physically, mentally, and spiritually drained every day! But the Lord gives us power to keep going and to have this energy day after day! Well just wanted to start off with one of the funniest stories every that happened yesterday. Ok so we went to dinner at this sisters house and she gave us Sopa de Mondongo.. or in other words soup of a cows stomach and legs.. well it was bad.. real bad. But we were eating outside and she was inside and we didnt know what to do because she gave us A BOWL OF SOUP.. like the thing was filled.. I'm gonna throw up thinking about it.. Anyway, we're sitting there playing with our food and she's inside and we dont know if she's looking and so Elder Garcia, just out of the blue, gets up and starts digging in a pot of plants and puts his soup in there while I'm just sitting there like a dummy the whole time laughing my head off with a huge bowl of soup in my lap, haha, but then like RIGHT when I was gonna do the same she comes out! and sees I have all my soup and Elder Garcia has none and she asks "oh you don't like your soup huh?" and I said oh no I just ate my rice first. And so Elder Garcia is the mother of all worriedness and he asks me to put some in his bowl to eat and she starts talking to us while we're eating and I'm just praying the whole time to not throw up while eating! It was just hilarious. We ate it all and we are pretty dang sure that she saw Elder Garcia do it because she kept looking at the plant. Hahahaha

But there was this activity with all the youth in the stake that we did. They served ´mini missions¨ for 2 days and they went tracting with us for 2 hours and went to the CCM the day before and it was probably the best idea I've ever heard of. Suppperrrr great. And even better, which brought sooo much joy to my heart, was when we saw Ma**, Vi**, and Mi** with the missionary plaques.. man. Now they wanna serve a mission! It's really amazing to see how the Lord uses you as a tool in the lives of others to help even more others. We just need to be willing and he will touch the hearts of the people.

One last thing! We brought, listen up people, 15 KIDS TO CHURCH. 15! and like 21 in total with adults! But it was sooo crazy because these kids are nuts! And they all came in sacrament and it was the greatest funniest thing I've ever seen cuz they just didn't stop coming! hahaha and they climbed all over me in sacrament and man! It was hilarious but sooo sweet to see all those kids come! We might be having 3 of those kids baptized this week! Depends if they move or not!  But hermana Ma** baptism is this week! We're all so excited! I love all you and hope you enjoyed a little bit more relaxed funny email!

This week I'm thankful for Christ-like attributes, little kids, service, Christ and His walk to Calvary, my journal, being tired a lot, learning to endure, pain, hardships, my friends serving missions, Elder Hale, the TEMPLE!!!, sleep, my crazy new district leader, andddd good shoes! 

-Elder Alec Johnson 

Matthew 5:14

oh and I need Josh Avery's and the Wimmer's and Jace Wheeler's email please!

January 12th, 2015

PUESSSSS... we just found out our new pres of our mission! ha! He's from Honduras! but I'll talk about that next week cuz this is all new!

This week was crazy! Vi** decided to be baptized this week so that was a surprise! really cool! um we also changed districts! same zone and area but new DL and new district! I also saw a girl eating wood.. so that was cool.

I also gave a talk in Sacrament. And this is what I would like to share. I've learned a lot about love here. Not some pitty fake love that people act like sometimes. I'm talking about the pure love of Christ. Here, people fall away from the church more than a lot. And it's not because it's not true. It's because the members and people of the ward don't really love their neighbors. I'll say it straight up. There are only a few in this ward that really wanna help others and the recent conversos. Others say they dont have time or only say they wanna help. And I was the same. I didnt realize the difference between giving 5 minutes of my day to help someone in need before my mission. I said I had too much stuff, too much going on, but I encourage all to give 10 minutes out of their day to help a less active, to help someone you feel needs a note of love, or visit a recent convert. Show others that you love them through your service. Doesn't need to be grand, doesn't need to be huge, but it DOES need to be real. I sure do love my mom for showing me that a little note can make all the difference. If Christ was here, he would set apart time in the day to go visit someone in need or make a phone call, even if He was busy with other things. I love you all and hope you guys have a great week!

-Elder Johnson

This week im thankful for steaks that are 5 dollars and MASSIVE, new area we've never gone to, water, the USA, my camera, the little things in life that make all the difference, a bed, my best friend on my miss (Elder Garcia), and Carter my brother for showing me what it's like to be a disciple of Christ

"making your mashed potato's and gravy!"