Easter - April 1

Hey fam!!!

Thanks for all your emails! It’s great to hear from you all! Thanks for the video of the fam as well dad, it looks and sounds like your all doing well.  I hope that you all had a great Easter and could remember the true meaning of the holiday.

This past week was pretty good week for me, There’s lots of good things going down in my area,  The only let down this week is we had meetings every single day in the morning. Each meeting was in a different church in the mission, so it was more traveling then teaching, but the times that we did get to teach were great. We invited Marcedo Rodriguez to be baptized this last Wednesday and he accepted, as well as an investigator named Aileen. She’s super nice and can speak quite a bit of English...its weird talking to an investigator in English...haha the funny thing is i couldn´t just only speak English to her, lots of it was half English and half Spanish, haha but she excepted a date for the 20th of April to be baptized, I’m super excited for her, i think she´s gonna make it, but we got a lot of work to do with her. Something else that was super exciting this week is me, my comp and the ward mission leader planned a noche de teatro or a night of theater for the ward. When everyone got to the family home evening they were all expecting to see a nice little show with me and my comp staring, but what we did is switched it up. We picked two groups, one acted out Moses and his people being attacked by snakes...and the other group acted out Jesus healing the 10 lepers...it was super great, and then to give them all a little reward, me my comp and the ward mission leader acted out the story of Jonas being swallowed by the whale...it was super funny!! Somebody recorded it...i’m gonna see if i can get a copy of it and ill send it your way!!! All the members are loving the family nights were doing with the ward...its super great because there inviting lots of there non member friends to the activities cuz they cant wait to see what the missionaries have planned!!! haha I’m loving it cuz its getting the ward stoked on missionary work!!!

Another highlight this week was yesterday, our investigator Tanía received the holy ghost, it was super incredible to stand in the circle and confirm her a member of the church! Things are going great in the area.

The absolute best part of the week was going from investigator to investigator and sharing with them a message about easter. What i found this week is that many people have no idea why we celibrate easter and what the true meaning of it is. lots of people down here just think its another holiday...but the beautiful thing is i had the opportunity to share with them the incredible message of our savior.

This message is one of the most fundamental yet simple messages that we as missionaries can share. The message of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is one that can gives us peace and happiness in this life and hope for the life to come.

Last night around 5:00 we found an inactive member that we have been trying to tract down for some time now, he is the only member in his family, he said that he was having a super hard time in life, that there are problems in each direction he looked. He told us that there really isn’t a whole lot of peace in his family; in fact him and his wife were not on the best terms. Work was stressful, and he was just completely down, i asked him if it would be okay to share an Easter message with him, he agreed, but hesitantly... if its okay with you, i would like to share the same message we shared with Christian, only in more detail, using scriptures to source the true meaning of Easter.  It’s my prayer that through this message we will understand a little bit more what our savior went through for us.

The story of Easter begins after the disciples of Christ partook of the bread and water or the holy sacrament, as our lord finished this great act, he knew that gethsemane awaited him, and in the 22nd chapter of Luke Christ told 8 disciples to wait and pray for him in the outside walls of gethsemane, and as he journeys further in the garden the record sates Luke 22:39-4139 And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him. 40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. 41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, (Mathew 26:39) 39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
   In this moment our savior began to tremble, the pain started to become so real and so horrid that he began to shake, so much that he asked the father if it is at all possible, to take the cup from him...to let there be some other way. The scriptures don’t go into detail but we know that in Luke 22:43 the lord sent help....43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him...We don’t know exactly what the angel said to  the savior in this moment, but he probably said that he doesn’t have to go through this, that he does have his agency, but if he didn´t pay for our sins, that everything would return into utter and complete chaos, that Everything that he had created with his own hand would be destroyed.... and with this knowledge, our loving lord proceeded...44 And being in an  agony he prayed more earnestly:  and his sweat was as it were great drops of  blood falling down to the ground.
 Shortly after taking upon him all of the pains of the world, there afflictions and temptations, the lord received the betrayal kiss of Judas (Luke 22:47) he was then taken by Chief Priests, and scribes. (luke23:64) They smote at, and beat the very man that had just taken there sins upon him, and then he was given to the Roman Governor Pilot, to be tried. 14(Pilot) Said unto them, Ye have brought this man unto me, as one that perverted the people: and, behold, I, having examined him before you, have found no fault in this man touching those things whereof ye accuse him: 15 No, nor yet Herod: for I sent you to him; and, lo, nothing worthy of death is done  unto him....

After this Piolet commanded that Jesus be scourged. Our savior and lord was literally beaten, and then had a crown of thorns placed upon his head, and then he was brought to stand before the Jews once more. And Piolet then asked, What they would have him do with Christ, and the Jews shouted in unison, crucify him, crucify him (Luke 23:21)

Our lord and savior was there and then sentenced to die. On the path to Golgotha, the place of the skull, he did not only carry his cross on his back, but the sins of the word as well. Then he was pierced in his hands, wrists and in his feet. After hours of hanging on the cross in pain and agony, asking the father to forgive them, a desperate cry left his lips (mark 15:34) 34...aEloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? In this moment Gods spirit had left our savior, and he hung there completely and utterly solo. Shortly after the fathers spirit returned to Jesus....I believe that in this moment Jesus became the christ, he had done all that the father had commanded him to do, and then he stated (Luke 23:46) 46... Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit....and then he died.

For three days his disciples and followers were in despair...."Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher. 3 And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments: 5 And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen."


It is my testimony that he is not dead, but that he has risen from the grave. Later in this chapter the lord appears to all of his disciples and they feel the prints in his hands and in his feet. They knew that he had risen. I have not felt the prints in his hands nor his feet, but i to know that he lives. I have felt his very presence with me in moments of despair in my life. I give to you all my testimony this Easter that our savior lives, and I’m so grateful to be his servant, and help others come to him.

Last night as i shared this same story with Christian...not nearly in the same detail i shared it with you...he began to pause and to think about all that Christ had done for him. We promised him that there are great blessings that await us if only we follow him. He promised me last night that he would pray for the first time in years, and then thanked us for the Easter message. This message changes lives and I’m so grateful for it....

Well sorry for the extremely long letter. i just started typing and couldn’t stop.. haha if anyone is still there i want you all to know that i love you and your in my prayers. Mom i didn’t get the package but im sure it will come soon :) well i gots to run!

love you all!!

Elder Holman