Hola!!! ha ha Ithought I should probably include some Spanish in here since I am learning so much. So this week was a much more eventful week! First off, I was in the ER all day Friday with my companion because his lung apparently collapsed and he had to have surgery done to fix it and is going to be here for an extra 7 weeks because of it and might not be able to go to Mexico anymore! Crazy huh? It was so random too because all of the sudden we woke up and it hurt really bad so we went it and then in about an hour we were in the ER and talking to surgeons about what to do. I did get to meet his parents tho (they came down for the surgery) which was nice. His mom is a was nice lady! She even wrote me a letter and told me how grateful she was that I was with him all day in the hospital before anyone got there and such. I stayed with him because he didn't have anything to do and i didn't want him to be alone right after he just got told he might not be able to serve a mission. Elder Hillary is an amazing Elder and Friend and Iknow when he finally gets to go to Mexico he is going to be an amazing missionary! I really do miss him... and I know we didn't get along much at first but we have definitely learned to be much more forgiving and not let all of the little things get to us. Its been really great the past couple weeks, I have grown so so very much! This has been a truly amazing experience! Before all of that happened on Friday we taught again in the pratice thing again. We taught the second lesson in Spanish for the first time and we taught a legit Mexican guy so I was extremely intimidated at first, but we taught amazingly well together and we honestly taught him a full message in Spanish! Crazy! There is no way I would have been able to learn a language like this without the Lord's help and guidance! It really has taught me that through the Lord ANYTHING is possible! I know it! I am living proof! ha ha That is another reason why it was so sad to lose my companion because we have learned to teach so well together and have such a strong companionship and unity between us! I am now with two other elders in a trio now, they were my other roommates so I didn't have to move or anything, so that is good. Oh and Elder Hillary comes back from his surgery on wed or Thursday i think, depending on his recovery time. But he is not going to come to Mexico with us on next Monday! crazy huh!!? I can not believe that by this time next week i will be in Mexico, its kinda scary... ha ha But I am SOO excited to go and serve and speak horrible Spanish! ha ha Oh and this week in the resource center, which is where all the calls for free stuff and questions about anything come, and we also call out to people who have requested free stuff and make sure they receive it. And I was really feeling like I was understanding a lot of Spanish and so I asked my teacher if I could call out to the Spanish speaking people that received stuff. I was so scared at first! ha ha! It was way intimidating, but after one or two calls I became much more comfortable and really began to understand a whole lot of Spanish! Its crazy! My teacher was there to help we in case I did not know what they were saying, because they speak so crazy fast! But there is also a prompt to kinda follow, but over all I was talking in Spanish to people, crazy huh? I also realize I have only one week left and the biggest downfall of missionaries here is wasting time, especially toward the end. But I am nervous about going to Mexico and seeing ZERO English so I have been extremely focused and I really want to make the very most out of this last week and try and learn as much grammar as i can because i know that the vocab will come as i hear so much Spanish. Ah! I'm so excited! Its such a weird feeling to realize i am not going to be in the states for two years! I also so very excited to learn about the culture there and everything it entails, oh and Mexican people are so much nicer and more humble! No offense to the people who are going to read this... ha ha So I am just preparing and getting ready to go this last week and working my tail off to learn as much Spanish as i can! Oh and just to give everyone the heads up, i wont be able to receive mail in the MTV after the 27Th of Feb. So if you think it would get to the MTC could you just send it to the Mexico address? Thanks! The address in on this blog, its on the very first post back in Dec in case you do not have it. Oh and dearelder.com works to Mexico for FREE too! Its not really quick like it is to the MTC, but i will get it about every 3 or 4 weeks. and the mail system in Mexico is kinda bad, so i don't know how mailing letters works, but i guess i will find out... ha ha Oh and it takes an international stamp too.. i assume you already know that... ha ha Thank you again everyone for all of your amazing support and love, it really makes a difference here! Being here has become so much easier as i have come to better understand that this is truly the Lords work and I know He has a huge part in it each and everyday. we are here to share His message and testify if Him. I am humbled every time i think of how privileged I am to be here and serving a miss on! It has been so so very amazing and has helped me to grow in so many ways, I'm so excited for Mexico and all i know that is going to bring. I'm excited to meet so many great people and i am even more excited about sharing the message of Christ! M. Russel Ballard came and spoke to us on Tuesday (he is a modern day apostle of Christ) and one of the many great scriptures he shared with us was Alma 29:9 because it defines missionary work so much and how we really need to recognize the Lord for all He is giving us each and everyday! :D He taught us how important this work is and I honestly LOVE what i am doing and will get to do! :D Thank you so much for every ones letters and love! This might be my last email until I'm in Chihuahua Mexico! CRAZY! I love and miss you all so so very much! Love, Elder Andrew Davidson

Hi again! So I am in my 8th week here now! Time has gone by so crazy fast the past few weeks! As I have learned to just go to work with all I have in me, time has really been going fast! In two weeks from today I will be in Chihuahua Mexico! Crazy!!!!! Im way excited! I am getting a little nervous becuase we are obviously very far from fluent and I forget things when i am talking to native speakers! haha They plan on us learning most of the vocab and words in the field too, so I feel really nervous! My comapanion will probably be a native too, so I hope he speaks a little english! :) There was nothing really new this week... I think am finally just getting used to the schedule and such here. We taught again in spanish and it went really well. We even had a little spanish convo with the 'investigator' after ward too! It was weird to think that I am communicating entirely in a language that I just learned a month ago for the most part! Crazy! I imagine I will learn at a much faster rate once I get there, too! I'm excited! I have made a few really good friends here that I know I will be lifelong friends with. There are definitely a ton of amazing elders here. I feel very priveleged to be here with them and am very grrateful for this opportunity. Thank you for everyones letters this week and I loved the packages I got, thank you. I will be sure to write back today :) So i guess at this point I do not have anything super new going on.... same week routine. We now have to start teaching the second lesson in spanish now so that is a whole new set of vocab that we are going to have to learn. It is way busy all the time here, we are constantly working hard on something, there is very little down time or free time. Its very comforting to know that this is the Lords work and it makes it so much easier to completely devote myself to what I am doing. Sharing this gospel that brings me so much joy is the most amzing feeling ever and I am so very excited to get to Mexico and share this message with the Mexican people. Thank you all so very much for all of your love and support. It means so very much when I hear from you, thank you. Love, Elder Davidson

Hi everyone!!! So another week gone in the MTC already! I only have 3 weeks left here before I leave! Crazy! We leave at 3am in three weeks from now Monday! So that is very exciting! I think dearelder.com still works in Mexico, but I'm not sure if it is free or not, maybe someone could check and let me know. Thanks!So this week was another amazing week! My companion and I have been getting along great and have really developed a good friendship. a lot of the elders in the new districts in our zone our way cool and I rally enjoy being friends with them! we also officially taught for the first time in Spanish this week. We had a fake meal,and had to use vocab for that for 15 minutes and share a scripture with them( the fake investigators we teach here) and then we had a whole 35 minute lesson in Spanish! It went really well and we know most of the grammar and such, we really just need to practice and continue to practice at this point. I'm way excited to go to Mexico!This week I really feel like I learned the true importance on ALWAYS living worthy to have the Spirit with you! When I was in the resource center(where incoming calls and chats go from Mormon.org) I was talking to someone and really felt the Spirit tell me what exactly to talk about! i don't think I have EVER felt the spirit this strong in my life and I really want to always live worthy to help guide me in my life. Its really an indescribable feeling, and I don't think I have ever known anything as sure as I know this is truly Christs church. He really has witnessed to me that this is His church and His gospel and that we really are doing His work. There is truly no greater cause in the whole earth! I'm so so so so so appreciative that I am able to be apart of this great work. I know that I have never experienced so much pure joy in all my life, I love this Gospel and I love doing His work. It really is amazing! Its worth EVERYTHING and ANYTHING to have the spirit as a constant guide, I know that I am going to do everything I am capable of to allow Him to guide and direct me. Sorry to talk so much about that, the spirit has just truly overwhelmed me this week and I have never been so happy in my life. I know I am truly being blessed for this service for the Lord. Quick note for anyone deciding to come on a mission: Serving a mission for a short two years is in NO way a sacrifice. I made the mistake of thinking that, and I have truly felt horrible that I ever looked at serving as a sacrifice. It is honestly a blessing and I know that me and my family and friends will be blessed for my service. As I have come to learn the true meaning of His work, i have learned that I am the privileged one to have the opportunity to be apart of this work. After all I have been blessed with in my life, it is the LEAST I could do for Him. He has done so very much for me, and now I have the opportunity to help Him. It is the greatest feeling on earth, I promise! :D Please do not allow yourself to pass up this opportunity, its worth everything !The MTC is going great and I have learned so very much. The teachers here are amazing too! Thank you so very much for all of your love and support! It means so very much to me! Thank you! I LOVE hearing from you! Love, Elder Andrew Davidson

February 2nd 2009

Hey!!!So I have had my BEST week so far at the MTC! We are finally starting to reallycome around with spanish( I know I say that every week.. haha) As in we arereally having actual conversations in spanish now! We teach in spanish on thisThursday as well! My Companion and I are finally really getting along well andare actually good friends. As different as we are we have learned to have thespirit or charity, love and forgiveness with us and are working together so verygreat! It has definitely helped us both out tremendously! :D Thanks again forthe advice Mom and Larissa! I needed it! I think we both have just been verymature about everything the past week. Oh and we got to drive up to SLC to get our visas too! That was funa dn itmeans we are going to leave on time too! Which is very rare with MExico by theway! We leave on march 2The spirit here this week has touched me and my heart more this past week thanever before. I had some of THE most spiritual and growing experinces in my lifeand my testimony really solidified its self. There were a number of ocasionwhere things happened and teachers taught us things that really came to hit mehard! I will NEVER bear my testimony the same way ever again; on of the teacherstaught us about putting our ENTIRE heart into our testimony everytime we shareit. I kNOW this church is the true church of Christ just as I know I am alive! IKNOW we can really come to become friends with out father in heaven and Hereally does love us and is fully aware of the things we are doing! I know itwithout a shadow of a doubt in my mind! I know it for myself becuase I was ableto ask Him through prayer, and He has let me know of His church! Im so sorry Icould not have been a better example yo some of you before, but I promise I willalways so my best to be better! I love you all so very much! ALREADY, serving a mission is THE BEST thing I have done in my life, thisopportunity to draw so very close to my loving Father in Heaven is wortheverything to me! If you have the chance to serve, PLEASE do not pass it up, youwill come to regret it your whole life! Im not trying to down grade anythingelse in my life, serving a mission is just the best thing i could be doing rightnow. I am so grateful for this opportunity and know that it is NOT a sacrificein the slightest becuase I know he will bless me becuase of this. I definitelyhad some doubts before leaving, but only a month in I would not trade thisopportunity for anything! :DI love hearing from all of you and could not be here with out your support andlove! Thank you so very much! LOVE Elder Andrew Davidson

Oh and Mormon.org is an amazing site that has lots on answers if you have anyquestion about the Church of JESUS CHIRST of Latter-day saints :D Its an amazingsite. Especially the movie clip by Steve Young about Myths and Facts about theMormon Church. If you want a real answer by the church about what we blieve, its on this site :D