A word from the parents

Hi everyone~

There are many beautiful cities in the Spain Malaga Mission. Here is a picture of one of the oldest cities known as Cadiz. It is a very old city and is full of history with Roman ruins and mosques and cathedrals. It is completely surrounded by water except for one small strip of land that is part of the city and which connects it to the rest of Spain. It has beautiful sandy beaches and is a favorite tourist spot for many people.

I've also attached a couple of photos of Elder Fagersten.

Thought you might like to see this beautiful country as well as many of these fine young misisonaries.

Thanks for all of your prayers and support,

The Fagerstens

Mormon Messages

Hey Family,

This is a Mormon Message that was made in the MTC in Madrid. My companion, Elder Shaver, is the one who is narrating. He was there with this Elder and I thought you might enjoy it. I know this work is true and that the Lord lives and loves each of us. I love you!

Love,
Elder Fagersten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=qEr_yY-c0fg

February 14, 2011

Hola,

Happy Valentines Day! Haha. They do celebrate it here, but it's not huge. I've seen a few people with flowers and stuff.

This week was great! We saw so many miracles and I felt the Spirit so powerfully this week. There were a lot of things that in the moment, were disappointing (lessons falling through and stuff) but at the end of the week we just experienced so many wonderful things. The members are changing and we are developing and strengthening our relationships with them, and we are finding more people to teach and who are coming to church. On Sunday, a young couple that we just began teaching came to church, and at the end, the husband, Benjamin, told me, "I like this. We are going to come here now." We have felt such an outpouring of the Spirit as we have exercised our faith and done our best to be obedient and serve with love.

I know that Heavenly Father lives and has a plan for each and every one of us. He knows you! He knows your name. In His infinite love, He sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to the earth so that we would have the opportunity and ability to return to live with Him. I am so grateful for the opportunity to serve Him, and to give my testimony to the world that Jesus is the Christ, that His church has been restored, with His authority, that He speaks to men, that He lives, and that He loves us. Thomas S. Monson is the prophet of the Lord on the earth today. I invite each of you to ponder the blessings that you have received and thank your Heavenly Father for his love and kindness. Pray and study the scriptures every day. You will feel greater spiritual strength and power, and you will feel the love of the Lord more powerfully each day.

I love you!!!!!

Love,
Elder Fagersten

February 7, 2011

Hola a todos,

This week I welcomed Elder Shaver to Huelva. He is from Sierra Vista, Arizona and one of the happiest people I have ever met. Get this - he´s like 5' 8" and he can dunk! He's a baller - played basketball in high school and a little soccer as well. We're going to play a little bit today, so we'll see how it goes. He has a great attitude and desire to serve. He loves the Lord, He loves these people, and he loves being a full-time missionary! He has taught me a lot already and we are excited to work hard and do everything we can to help others enjoy the wonderful blessings of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. We are already beginning to see miracles and we both feel assured that we will see many more.

Thank you so much for you emails and letters and packages. They help me a lot. I apologize that at times I don't respond very quickly and sometimes forget important things (such as birthdays and such) but it's not because I don't want to, there is just loads of stuff to do. I love you and pray for each of you!

This week I have seen and felt the Lord's guidance. It truly is humbling to know that God, the Eternal Father, and his Son, Jesus Christ, love us and know each of us personally. They know our names, our hopes, our dreams, our difficulties, our abilities, our opportunities, our desires, our pains, our sicknesses, our joys, our sorrows, our weaknesses and our strengths. They know all of those things, and want each of us to grow and progress and be happy. They love us. How much? So much that God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to this world to give his life for us. Through His atonement we can change, we can repent, and stand spotless before Him at the last day. How grateful I am for His love. He extends that love to each of us and stands, with outstretched arms, waiting and ready to receive all who will come unto Him. We access the power of the atonement through obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel. It is that power that changes us, brings happiness and peace, and gives purpose to our lives. I know He lives. He restored his gospel, his church, and his authority through the prophet, Joseph Smith. The Book of Mormon teaches us the fulness of this gospel and is the means by which we can know that this message and this church are true.

I love each of you sooooooo much. Thank you for your faith and your love and your prayers.

Love,
Elder Fagersten

oops...december 20, 2010

just found this one....(hehe)

Felíz Navidad,

I hope you are all enjoying the Christmas season. It is wonderful. It is very different here in Spain but the spirit of the season is here just as strong.

This past week we had a meeting with our mission president, President Clegg, and his wife, along with other missionaries in this part of the country. We had a special Christmas meeting and we had a great time. President Clegg invited us to come to know Jesus Christ, personally, and really develop our relationship with Him.

I know that He lives and loves us. It is a privilege to bear my testimony of Him every day, and invite others to enjoy the blessings of His gospel, of His atonement, and of His love. Elder Han and I are doing well and we love serving in Huelva. The people here are wonderful and I love being here with them. It is true, I miss all of you, especially at this time of the year, but I am also very grateful to be here, serving a mission for Him whose birth we celebrate at this time of the year.

There are so many stories about Christmas. Stories that teach us of kindness, of gratitude, of selflessness, of sacrifice, of home, of family, and of love. All of them help us to feel the Spirit, remember our Savior, Jesus Christ, and deepen our gratitude to our Heavenly Father for the blessings that we have received. Make your own Christmas story this year. Do as the Prophet has counseled. Lend a helping hand. Smile. Serve one another. Sing together. Read together. Love.

I love you all! I love my Savior, Jesus Christ. He loves you! I know we can be happy with His help. Let the love of the Lord lead your lives.

Love,
Elder Fagersten

Random

Get this: in Spain, "Dora the Explorer" teaches English!

January 31, 2011

Hola,

At the end of this month we also come to the end of a transfer, and, Elder Han is being transferred. He will finish the last three weeks of his mission in Murcia, on the east coast. We are going to Seville tonight, Elder Han will leave tomorrow morning at 8 a.m., and then my new companion will come at 10 p.m. tomorrow night. Wednesday morning we will come back to Huelva and get to work. I'm not exactly sure what my new companion's name is because I have heard two different things, but next week, you will know.

Elder Han is an awesome guy. I have loved being his companion and sharing so many experiences together. He has taught me a lot and he will always be a great friend. We will be able to laugh about a lot of things that happened, but also remember a lot of spiritual experiences as well. This is a special time we have here and he really helped me enjoy it.

Day-to-day, our schedule is almost always the same. Wake up at 7, pray, exercise, shower, eat. 8:30 personal study. 9:30 companionship study. 10:30 out the door to teach and talk with people. 2:00 come back for lunch and study Spanish. 4:30 back out the door to teach and talk with people. Between 9;45 and 10:15 we come back to the apartment and plan for the next day, brush our teeth, write in our journal, pray, and go to bed by 11 p.m. Although the schedule is nearly always the same, the things we do and the experiences we have change every day. Our choices in how we use that time make all the difference in our lives. There's a quote, I'm not sure who it's from, but it says, "Some men succeed because they are destined to; but most men succeed because they are determined to." Choosing to use our time wisely and productively will establish a pattern of living that brings happiness and fulfillment. The principles and doctrines and covenants of the restored gospel provide the guide as to how to use our time wisely and productively. And remember, DON'T EVER GIVE UP!!! Slow progress is better than no progress, and the Lord will be with you every step of the way.

I love you all and hope the very best for each of you.

Love,
Elder Fagersten

January 24, 2011

Hola mis queridos familiares y amigos,

This past week went great. On Thursday we went to Seville (Sevilla in spanish), and had a joint preparation day with our Zone, and in the afternoon we had a meeting with our Zone Leaders. On Friday we had a specialized training with President and Sister Clegg, and the Assistants to President, Elder Solari and Elder Brian. We had a great meeting and I learned a lot. We talked about our goals for the year as a mission, the standards that have been set, and our how we can improve our mission experience by really focusing, working hard, and having a positive attitude. President Clegg told us, "Attitude is everything." Our attitude really does make a difference. With faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement we can have a positive attitude, and it changes us.

We talk to a lot of people. A lot of people don't want to talk to us. Still, after each interaction we have a choice - we either choose to let it affect us negatively or positively - we either choose to get frustrated or choose to let it strengthen our testimony of the importance of what we're doing. I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't know it was true.

Thank you so much for your love and encouragement. Your testimones that you have shared with me through letters and emails have strengthened me and helped me keep a positive attitude as I go about this work. I love you! I love my Savior, Jesus Christ. He leads this Church. He leads this work. He restored his gospel and priesthood and church through the prophet, Joseph Smith. The Book of Mormon testifies of Christ. It is true.

If you think about and remember how much your Heavenly Father loves you, I promise you will smile. Do it. Did you smile?

Love,
Elder Fagersten

January 17, 2011

Buenos días,

This week, a young man in the ward here in Huelva, Gabriel, received his mission call. Gabriel is from Columbia, but he, his mom, Galicia, and his sister, Alina, moved here to Huelva about 10 years ago. He received the letter on Friday morning but had to wait until his mom got back from work. They have Institute and Seminary and Mutual on Friday nights here, so the youth were at the chapel, and Galicia came there from work and they opened it there, with everyone together. Gabriel opened it and then had his mom read it. He has been called to serve in the Spain Barcelona Mission! He's way excited! He has some friends that are serving there and he said he had kind of felt like that would be where he would serve. Galicia was really, really happy. I felt the Spirit when she read the call and it was a great experience to share together. My companion from the MTC in Madrid, Elder Middleton, is serving in Barcelona. Maybe they will meet each other.

I am really excited for Ben to receive his mission call! When you get it, record it, and send me the video please! I want to see it before I read an email that says where you're going, so just send the video, and then send another email separate please. And don't put where you're going on the subject line! ; )

We have so many opportunities to learn and grow. The Lord really does know us, personally, individually, and He loves us. The scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon, help us to know Him personally, individually. Prayer is personal communication with our Heavenly Father. The Atonement, which is central to our Father's plan for our happiness, is what allows us to grow and change and progress. We are children of God and we have a purpose in our lives. We have access to an infinite Source faith, hope, inspiration, comfort, strength, love, and light. The Lord is anxious to bless us, to heal us, to forgive us, and help us. I know He lives.

I love you all so much. Your emails, your letters, your packages, your words of encouragement and testimony are a great support and strength to me. They help me feel my Savior's love. Thank you!

Love,
Elder Fagersten

January 10, 2011

Hola,

This past week Elder Han and I had the privilege of seeing Milagros enter the waters of baptism, be confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost! Milagros (which in English means Miracles) is an 18 year old girl from Lima, Peru. She came to Spain about 4 months ago, and we began teaching her at the beginning of December. She is absolutley wonderful. She reads the Book of Mormon every day, she prays, she comes to church, and she has a testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. She is so sensitive to the Spirit and really wants to follow the Lord, Jesus Christ. At one of the lessons she said, "While I was still in Peru, getting ready to come here, I felt like something would happen in Spain that would help me come closer to God. And then, you guys showed up." It has been such a blessing to see her and help her change her life and come to know and understand more about the plan that Heavenly Father has for her, and for each one of us.

The Lord knows and loves us. Thank you for helping me feel that. I love all of you so much.

Love,
Elder Fagersten

December 31, 2010

Hola,

It was awesome to talk with the family on Christmas! I loved it and I wish we could have talked longer, but I still appreciate the chance I had. You're all so wonderful.

New Years isn't too different here in Spain. They do have a tradition that at midnight, they eat 12 grapes (one for each month of the year) in hopes of a year of prosperity and plenty, or something like that. It's interesting.

New Years is always a time of renewal, reflection, and resolution. Goals for the new year are always something that people think about, and I hope that we all will think about them, set them, and do our best to complete them. This past year has been quite a special one for me. I received my mission call on February 1st, and began my missionary service on June 16th. It has already been 6 months since I began! The time is going quickly, but I am enjoying it. There are always things to improve, always things to change, always things to learn, but I am grateful for them. I am grateful for the opposition there is because it gives us opportunites to grow. This is another reason why goals are so important. With goals, we have purpose in our lives and we strive to change, and improve, and apply the things that we learn. I am so, so grateful for the Savior, Jesus Christ. His atonement makes it possible for us to leave those things that hold us back, the things that drag us down, the things that stop our growth and slow our progress. We leave those things and apply the principles of the gospel, which bring peace and happiness into our lives. We establish a pattern of living that is in harmony with His will. This invitation is extended to each of us.

I love you all. Thank you so much for helping me. Your love and prayers make a difference in my life.

Love,
Elder Fagersten