Week 39: Miracles

Elder Hendrix says goodbye to Tyler and Summer Hawes
before they move back to the U.S.

Why does it never stop raining here?

A few months ago, we stopped this guy named Elton in the street. We had a nice conversation and he told us he would be totally down to here our message in his home. He didn't have a phone because he had just barely moved here from Brazil and was still working on getting one, but he gave us his address. Since then, we have tried passing by his place several times. There was never an answer. His piso is about an hour walk from ours, so there has been some discouragement in the past when we go over there to find nobody. And the waterfalls coming from the sky don't make the hike over there much better. We stopped trying to visit him about a month ago. 

Well, this past Saturday, we were out contacting in the street and I had this sudden impression that we needed to go try Elton one more time. It was getting late and it had started to rain again, but for some reason I just felt like we needed to go over there. We headed that direction, made it, and rang the bell. And....nothing. No answer. We rang again. Still nothing. I felt so discouraged and confused. Why did I feel like we had to come over here? We said a prayer right there in the doorway asking God why we were led over here. And immediately after I said amen, we had the idea of trying one of the neighbors. There are 4 pisos in this building, and to enter the building, you have to ring someone's bell so they can buzz you in. So I tried one of the neighbors, waited a few seconds, and then we heard the door unlock. They buzzed us in! We entered, and walked up the stairs to the door that we had rang. We knocked, but nobody was answered. They buzzed us in, so there had to be someone home right? Well, there was no answer when we knocked. 

We went up to Elton's piso and tried knocking on his door. We heard the door handle turn and then it opened and then boom! Elton answered! He seemed so surprised but happy! He let us enter and we sat down and talked for a while and had a really awesome lesson! His wife was there and we taught them both with their 2 year old daughter. We taught the plan of salvation and it was one of the most powerful lessons I've ever been a part of. This family is ready. They're ready for the gospel in their lives. They were so willing to listen and to hear what we have to share. They were the nicest people! They thanked us so many times for coming by. We have another appointment next week and we're really excited! As we headed out their door, Elton stopped us and asked how we even got inside the building. Turns out his bell doesn't work, which is the reason we've never been able to enter. So when we buzz his piso number, they don't hear anything. 

We told him we rang one of the neighbors' pisos and they let us in. And then he explained to us that nobody lives there. The other pisos have been vacant for months. Nobody could have buzzed the door open because there's nobody there. So how did the door open? I don't know how, but that door was somehow opened. An electrical problem maybe? Luck? To me, it was a God working in a mysterious way and blessing us with a miracle. He knew that Elton was up there in his piso with his family waiting to hear from us. 

D&C 6:5 "Therefore, if you will ask of me you shall receive; if you will knock it shall be opened unto you." We literally knocked on this door and it was opened. I do not believe this was just a coincidence. I believe that this was God blessing us and showing us that we really can see miracles if we have the faith. My testimony of his love has increased this week. I know that he wants to bless us. We are His children and he wants us to experience miracles. I LOVE being a missionary!!!!!

Gonzalo is progressing and is ready for baptism! We had to change his date to the 21st because we'll be in Madrid for Elder Bednar on his original baptism date. But we're so excited! His birthday was yesterday but he still came to church! And he loved it! This guy is seriously a stud and he's just gold. We've taught him all the lessons already. He's prepared! He's anxious and excited to get dunked! The branch is super pumped too. They're really friendly to Gonzalo and they all want to be his friend! There hasn't been a baptism in this branch for over 6 years. The last baptism was the current branch president's.

Tyler Haws (branch mission leader) with Gonzalo,
who will be baptized this month.

The Hermanas in Lugo had a baptism last week and my companion and I got to go because they didn't have any Melchizedek priesthood holders to be witnesses. So we got up super early one morning to take a 2 1/2 hour bus ride out to Lugo to witness a baptism! The guy's name was Gueirrmo and he was a funny dude! He was so happy! He came out of the water with the biggest smile on his face. He wiped the water out of his eyes and put his hands up in the air and it was just awesome! There was such a strong spirit in that room.

I'm so grateful to be a missionary. I know that Santiago is where the Lord needs me right now. I'm so grateful for this calling! I love missionary work! I leave you with my testimony that I know God loves us. He knows each of us personally. He wants us to experience happiness. He wants to bless us with miracles. That is a fact!

I love you all and I hope you have an amazing week! HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL YOU MOMS, ESPECIALLY MY MOM.

Elder Hendrix

Elder Hendrix on a Skype call to his family on Mother's Day.

The Santiago branch.

A zone meeting in Lugo. Elders Gustafsen and
Bartholomew were previous companions to Elder Hendrix.

Week 38: Crazy Spaniards

It's raining again...

Crazy story of the week: So we were out contacting in the street on the way home one night when we stopped this huge hairy Spaniard. We introduced ourselves and such and he was quick to reject us. He didn't say a word. He just turned around and started marching off. And then I was like "Hey, we do service as well if you're interested! We're teaching English classes!" And then he turned around and yelled in perfect English "I don't need you to teach me English!" And then he starts a full-out sprint towards me and, holy goodness gracious, I felt like I was in a bull fight arena. He ran right in to me and shoved me and I tumbled to the ground. It was like a mortal combat scene. I don't know what it is with people shoving me lately. I swear I didn't do anything. But then he just walked off and that was it. Crazy people here.

So Elder Bartholomew and his companion are staying in our piso this week!! Their assignment this transfer is to visit all the branches in the north to clean up membership records. Apparently, a lot of people have moved or changed phone numbers or died, so their purpose is to just figure out where people are. So this week, they're working in our branch here in Santiago! It's been soooo cool to see him again! He was my companion in Torrejon a few months ago. He's definitely my best friend in the mission. So it's been super fun in our piso! He brought
his ukulele up here so we've been having some nice jam sessions.

We saw a miracle yesterday! We were contacting in a park when we stopped this dude chilling with his 2 kids. We showed them a pamphlet of the family proclamation and this dude was so interested! He said he had never heard of this before and that he was so down to listen to us! So we walked over to the Bake's piso with his family and taught them! His name is Marlon and his 2 kids are Sebastián and Samuel. That lesson was soooo cool! We gave them a Book of Mormon and they said they would read it together as a family! We have another appointment with them this week and we're so pumped! I have so much faith in this family!

I'm so grateful for this time I have to be a missionary. It has gone by ridiculously fast, but it's been amazing. I'm so grateful for this opportunity I have to share with others the fact that we have a loving Heavenly Father who knows us personally. With such a strong testimony of that, how could the pouring rain every day stop me from pressing forward? Elder Murset, a good friend of mine serving in Seattle, said this in one of his emails home: "Nowhere else would these kinds of experiences happen! Where else can I run through the rain in a white
shirt and tie, carrying a Book of Mormon and ready to testify to every living soul I see that this Gospel is true and that Christ lives! Amazingly great experience out here. This is truly the Lord's work. Without Him, none of this would be even close to possible."  I just want to add to that my testimony of the Savior. I know He
lives. I'm so grateful to be here in Santiago,Spain testifying to others that He loves us. We may face challenges such as bad weather or constant rejection, but I know that this is the work of the Lord! And it's the most rewarding work ever! I love being a missionary! There's nothing better than helping people come to know their Savior!

I hope you all have an awesome week!

Elder Hendrix

Btw, here's a scripture I read this week, 2 Nephi 9:51: "...do not spend money for that which is of no worth." I would invite each of you to apply this into your lives this week by choosing the right when considering which fast food restaurant will most likely meet your physical and spiritual needs. Chickfila is always the way to go.
Don't waste your money on anyplace else.

Week 37: Carrera Report!

Elder Hendrix and his district after a basketball game
with Tyler and Summer Haws.

Uno dos tres cuatro


We had the pinewood derby on Friday!!! And it was a SUCCESS. It was so the funnest night of my mission for sure!!! Definitely the coolest activity that this branch has ever had. It was so awesome! We had a super good turnout and the cars were so amazing! We gave everyone a kit with a block of styrofoam as a base, with other pieces of styrofoam to work with. And the wheels were thick poster board. Super low budget, but holy heck it worked! Every single person's car ran down the track without problem! I'll attach some pics. I'm so glad that this activity we planned worked out! We've been planning it for 2 months. And the branch loved it! We had families, less actives, and friends of members there! We started with a spiritual thought, then had the race, then dinner, then an awards ceremony. It was really informal, but sooooo much fun! So many people kept telling us how awesome of an activity it was. The winning prize is a dinner that the missionaries are gonna make. And then we had a few certificates for like most creative car, most colorful, etc. We had some awesome cars there! I was so amazed how these people turned a few pieces of styrofoam into art. The winning car was the yellow one in the picture.

The pinewood derby with the Santiago branch.

We've been working with the members a lot more this week. After that activity, I feel like they have so much more respect for us. They trust us! They all talk to us now. There has been some tension in this branch in the past, but I feel like the pinewood derby night really was a great opportunity for the members to bond and have a good time. We're so grateful for the success we had with that! Transfers are today. I'm staying here in Santiago with Elder Trassierra. We're excited to keep on going and find people to teach!

OHHHH SOMETHING HAPPENED. Our mission president emailed everyone this morning to say get ready cause on May 14th, ELDER DAVID A BEDNAR IS COMING TO SPAIN! THIS IS HAPPENING, I KID YOU NOT. We get to go to Madrid next month to hear Elder Bednar speak to the mission!!! I'm sooooo excited!!!!

I let the hermanas cut my hair today. Scariest thing I've ever done.

The hermanas giving Elder Hendrix a haircut.

Sorry I don't have a lot to say this week. Hopefully these pics make up for it. Have an awesome week!

Elder Hendrix

The pinewood derby with the Santiago branch members.

This ward member won first place with his fast car.

One of the primary kids shows off his pinewood derby car.

Week 36: Jello

Elder Hendrix at Muxia.

I invented a game. It's called jello. When you're standing in a crowded bus, metro, or train, you're not allowed to move your feet. It's difficult since keeping balance is such an art. So when it's bumpy and you lose balance, you fall into someone. So here's the game... You have to talk to the first person you bump in to and start up a conversation. Well, this past Wednesday, literally all of our lessons failed on us. And, like always, it was pouring rain. So we spent the entire afternoon in a bus talking to people! And we got quite a few references! I love contacting in transportation settings. It's a great opportunity to practice sharing the gospel in just a few minutes. Buses are quick, so sometimes you only get like 30 seconds! It's a lot of fun though. And if you mess up or the contact just goes bad, it's ok cause when that person gets off the bus, a new person gets on, which means you get a retry. That's one thing I love about contacting. There's always second chances.

So Tyler Haws' birthday was this week! We had a little party with them and ate food and cake and stuff. It was awesome! We invited over some youth in the branch and some young adults and we played basketball! It
was so much fun! Tyler is the coolest mission leader ever. The highlight of that activity was that I somehow managed to get lucky and tie Tyler in a three point shootout... That's going on my résume.

We had an appointment with this guy that lives on the completely opposite side of Santiago this week. He lives on top of a giant mountain. And it was raining sooooo hard that day. And of course the wind was insane. And there's no bus that goes over there. So we had like an hour and a half hike to this place and it was crazy. I was
completely drenched and freezing. Well, we knocked on the door, and he wasn't even home... So that's awesome. But it's ok cause my quads got massive. And then I was reminded of how amazing it is to be a
missionary. Hiking in storms is the worst. But it's the best. Even if our lesson fails us, there's still something about putting in effort that makes it so satisfying. I've definitely grown a testimony of putting my trust in the Lord. I know that he knows what he's doing. There is a reason behind everything.

Gonzalo is progressing! His baptismal date of May 14th is looking good! We're so excited! I love that guy! He's like my best friend in Santiago. He came to basketball this week and has loved getting to know the members. We had a really good lesson with him last night. He's reading the Book of Mormon, praying, and is right on track to being baptized.

I've been teaching Elder Trassierra to pray in English and it's going really well! Being companions with a native has been interesting. It's hard, but I feel like my Spanish has improved a ton.

The pinewood derby is this Friday!! We're so pumped! There's gonna be food, desserts, prizes, ahh I'm excited! I'll report back next week!

So today for P day the Bake's drove us to a place called Muxia (moo-shee-uh). It's this huge chunk of land that's just covered with boulders. It's right on the coast and the weather was amazing! Ahhhh and ocean smell. It wasn't dark overcast rainy like Santiago! Such a nice change! Pictures attached...

Anyway, sorry this weeks email is short... I love you all and I'm so grateful for your support!

Elder Hendrix

Oh one more thing... Spanish government decided to be dumb, so I can't get packages any more... Letters are still good though so keep them coming haha.

Elder Hendrix at Muxia.

Elders Trassierra and Hendrix at Muxia.

An old church at Muxia.

Inside an old church at Muxia.

Elders Hendrix and Trassierra in front of
a Santiago cathedral that is being refurbished.

Week 35: Teaching Opportunities and Jam Sessions

I think it stopped raining....wait....oh...never mind yeah it's actually hailing now. Yay.

A swan at a Santiago park.  It is a popular place for wedding proposals.

I'll start with the funny stuff.

So there was this kid like 18 or 19 years old waiting at the bus stop across the street and we decided we were gonna go try talking to him. He was alone and looked kinda sad so we just thought we would see what's up. We approached him and said hi and he just started at us. We introduced ourselves and whatnot and he didn't say a word. We asked him if he was ok or if we could help him with something, but he just stayed silent with a scary glare on his face. I pulled out a restoration pamphlet and showed him the picture of Christ on the front and asked him if he knows who Christ is. And then the weirdest thing I've ever seen happened. He started hissing like a snake and then snatched that pamphlet out of my hand with his teeth, then dropped to all fours and ran away like a dog. On his hands and knees with the pamphlet in his mouth. It was crazy! I don't think I've ever seen a person run like a dog that fast! It was sooooo weird! But hey, at least he accepted the pamphlet!

We went to visit an old investigator one day this week to see if we could talk with him, but he wasn't home. We were about to leave until we heard this really loud music coming from a piso down the hall. It was some blues jazz or something, so my companion and I decided we would try knocking on the door and asking about the music or who it is or whatever. We figured it was an idea to start a conversation. This woman (like mid 30s) opened the door and we just said hey we heard the music down the hall and we were interested in what it is! She invited us in and started confessing to us her love for jazz and blues and stuff and her whole story about being in a band that ended when someone died or something... Idk. But Elder Trassierra and I told her how we're musicians as well! And then she lead us to this room full of instruments. A drum set, keyboard, sax, trumpet, guitar, everything. I sat down at the drum set and dropped a sick best and then Elder Trassierra hopped on the keyboard and we were straight jammin' and then the woman picked up an electric guitar and starts shredding and holy glorious Chickfila it was amazing. It was sooooo much fun! Unfortunately however, she has absolutely zero interest in the gospel. All the fun deescalated very quickly... Long story short, she doesn't want us to return... Oh well!

We found this awesome Dominican named Janet. She's gold! We met her in the street last week and had a lesson in her home a few days ago. And it went so well!! There was such a sweet spirit there! We taught the
restoration of the gospel through the prophet Joseph Smith. She said she would read the Book of Mormon, and she even said she would be baptized if she receives an answer! She's willing and prepared to hear the gospel. She has solid intent. We're excited to meet with her more in the coming weeks! The only challenge is that she has to work on Sundays... But we'll see where we go! More info to come...

Gonzalo came to church yesterday! I talked about Gonzalo a few weeks ago I think... He's an investigator that we found in our area book. He has already read the whole Book of Mormon and he knows it's true. It's been difficult getting a hold of him the past few weeks because he did the Camino de Santiago and then got a new job where he works a ton, but we finally had another lesson lesson with him Saturday night! And then came to church the next day! This guy is a stud. Except Justin Bieber is his favorite singer... But he's awesome! The members were really nice to him and welcomed him and talked to him and it was just great! He doesn't have a baptismal date at the moment, but we have faith that he will get there soon!

We met an AMERICAN this week!!!! Daniel is 25 and is from California. We found him on the street. His Spanish is perfect haha. We were speaking in Spanish and then he said he's from Los Angeles in the US and then I replied in English like no way dude I'm from Arizona! And then we made a connection haha. Finding other Americans in Spain is a beautiful thing. He gave us his number and said he would be so down to meet with us! So we had a solid lesson this week at the Bake's piso. He's so interested in why Mormons are always so happy. He said there's just something about Mormon families that's so noticeably different. We talked about how the gospel blesses families and such and it was great! We're gonna meet with him again hopefully this week. It was so cool to teach a lesson in English! Haha it felt uncomfortable and awkward, but it was cool!

We have a noche de hogar (family home evening) with this member family of chivales once a week. Jose (21), Jonathon (14), Katherine (21), and Rachael (16). They're all cousins from Ecuador and live in a piso without adults. That place is a madhouse sometimes haha, but we go visit them every Sunday night. They're from Ecuador. They talk soooo fast, but they're the funniest kids ever. We always share a message, have some snacks, and play a game. They sometimes invite friends over too! They really are awesome kids. We're working on trying to get them to come to church more. It's getting better!

The weather isn't changing much. It still rains school buses every day. It's getting kinda old. But we still keep working!

Fun fact... There's a fresh water spring right in the middle of Santiago.

Oh here's an update on the pinewood derby activity! We're doing it on the 22nd. The members are really excited! People are already trash talking and getting competitive! We feel really confident that it will be a success!

I'm grateful to be here in Santiago. Being a missionary is the greatest blessing. I've learned so much in such a short amount of time. My testimony grows every day and I'm so grateful that I get to share it so often!

As always, thank you for all your support! I miss and love each of you so much! Send selfies with Chickfila. Have an amazing week!

Elder Hendrix

Elders Trassierra and Hendrix in Santiago.

Elder Hendrix poses with a local.

Week 34: Pull the Weeds!

Another awesome week!

We had a zone meeting in Vigo on Tuesday. It was really cool! We talked a lot about street contacting and what we can do to improve. One thing that I realized in that meeting is that, with street contacting, there are always second chances. If you try to stop someone in the street and it just goes awful, or your Spanish was really bad, it's ok! Because we are surrounded by people all the time so there's always somebody different you can talk to and retry! If you stop someone and they totally reject you and don't even look a look at you, don't get discouraged! Just keep going and keep trying! Street contacting is really growing on me. I love trying new things and thinking of different approaches and practicing them. Anyway, after the zone meeting, we were assigned to work with a different missionary in the zone to go contacting with for the rest of the day. And I got put with Elder Gustafson! He was my trainer! It was so cool to work with him again! Working with him made me reflect on the past 8 months. When I served with him, I was brand new in the mission. I didn't kow Spanish, I wasn't confident in my teaching ability, I felt uncomfortable all the time... But holy goodness gracious I've changed. It was so weird to work with him this week and actually speak Spanish and talk to the people and teach lessons and feel totally confident! It was a humbling experience. It just showed me that I've come such a long way in such a short amount of time. We had such a good day!

Zone conference in Vigo on March 29, 2016.

In the zone conference I got to be in a musical number! I sang a song with my district called The Olive Tree.

We met with our Rubik's cube investigator this week! Her name is Francinette. She's from Brazil and I can't understand a thing she says lol. She speaks to us in Portuguese with a few Spanish words thrown in. Elder Trassierra can understand most of what she says fortunately. I just kinda smile and testify of the Savior and stuff... It's great. But she's really cool! We taught her the plan of salvation and she was really interested! And she's reading in the Book of Mormon and praying!

So Elder Trassierra and I make brownies every single morning. We take brownies to all of our lessons. Members, investigators, everyone. Sometimes we just give them out in the street haha. But we've become expert brownie makers. Like Oxspring status. Almost.

So I guess my birthday was this week or something... Haha it was fun! Birthdays in the mission are weird... It just feels like any other day to be honest. But my district threw a little surprise party for me! Hermana Bake made a huge lunch! All American stuff! Roast, potatoes, carrots, salad, ah it was awesome! My family sent me a Betty Crocker cake mix for my birthday and told me to make my own cake. So I did that. And now everyone thinks I'm weird. So I'm blaming my family. Thanks guys! Haha I have to say though, that thing was gooooood. That night, Tyler and Summer Haws invited us over for dinner! They made us some real tasty American burgers. So my birthday was overall pretty great! The only bad part was that literally all of our lessons that day failed us... But it's cool because Elder Holt in my zone gave me some Chicfila sauce that his family sent him.

So this week we had a cool idea! We bought some chalk and went to a park and drew the plan of salvation really big on the ground. It looked so good! All different colors and stuff. A ton of people passed by and we taught a very brief explanation of the plan of salvation soooo many times! We got quite a few phone numbers, so hopefully a few of them are good! It was really cool and fun way to teach people in the street! We're hoping to try it again if we can find a few minutes of no rain!

I hope you all enjoyed conference this weekend! I know I did! I loved all of the talks, but I have to say that one that really stuck out to me was President Uchtdorf in the priesthood session. He was talking about finding happiness in a marriage. One thing he said that I LOVED was "Pull out the weeds and water the flowers." Stop pointing out the things that are irritating and causing yourself harm, and start looking for the good. Focus on what's beautiful and uplifting. I feel like this applies to life in general. We need to stop complaining. If there are weeds, get rid of them. Look at the flowers. Happiness is a choice. So make that choice and water them! With effort and diligence and charity, you'll get some dang nice lookin flowers. And then you won't even notice the weeds anymore.

I love you guys! Thank you so much for all of the birthday wishes!

Elder Hendrix

Elder Hendrix made his own birthday cake!

Elder Hendrix gets a surprise birthday dinner at
 Brother and Sister Bakes' piso

A yummy American birthday dinner.