Monday, September 15, 2014

This week Gladys was baptized. She's a granddaughter of a recent convert. There were about 5 people who were baptized that day in the Ward.

We went to a school with the Ward to do a service project. We painted tables that had been worn down by use and did a few other repairs to the buildings. The paint did not seem to be water-based because when I tried to wash my hands off, it just smeared all over my hands and the water formed droplets on top. So I washed my hands with paint-thinner.

We found a couple this week. They are very interested. We left as pamphlet and set an appointment because we didn't have time, and when we went, she said that she read it all and it all made sense. She said that she goes when she's invited to Evangelical churches and recieves everything that all the religions give out, but it doesn't make sense to her. All that we left and said did.

Gabriela and her family are causing problems in the area. Everyone knew that they were hardcore evangelicals, but now are openly Mormon. A pastor accused them of not believing in the Holy Ghost, while others say that they've seen a great change for good. Their family is much more unified. The grandma, despite having been a pastor defends their family and many things of the Church. "So there was a division among the people because of [them]." (John 7:43)

We'll be going to the Temple the Friday before conference.

I am constantly reminded by means both large and small that the Holy Ghost is what directs this work. Without the Holy Ghost, people simply would not be converted. I have seen so many people come to know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that Joseph Smith saw Him and the Father, and that the Book of Mormon is true. Despite never having personally witnessed it they come to such a convincing knowledge that they speak as though they had.

Monday, September 8, 2014

I'm afraid this week wasn't very eventful. We had a Zone Meeting this week. We worked a lot this week, but we can work more. That's always the case. Sunday went extremely well. We took the Sacrament to a sister who was sick.

A granddaughter of a recent convert will be baptized this Sunday. The ward is growing very fast. There are a lot of new converts who are very strong.

The photos are from last week.

Monday, September 1, 2014

This Saturday Uriel was baptized, and he was confirmed the next day in Ward Conference along with Matias. Gabriela gave the opening prayer. Judith is asking questions about the mission. She wants to finish school first.

We're finding a lot of families, and Ricardo came to Church this Sunday. They're very interested, even though only he went. They already seem like members, except that they drink and smoke.

We went to Unicenter today, and nearly the whole Zone ended up there as well. We all ate at Wendy's.

Sorry for no photos, the internet place we usually go to isn't working.

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

This week Matias was baptized (in photo: Judith, Gabriela, me, Matias, David, Elder Mason, Leo in front), but Uriel didn't come. We don't know what happened, but we hope that he'll be baptized this week. Matias is doing much better. He was able to give up smoking. He's still struggling a bit, but he's doing great.

This week I had my first door slammed in my face. Usually people let us talk and say we can come by tomorrow when they're not there and then avoid us, but this lady opened the door, screamed "I don't want to know anything!" and promptly slammed it. At least they're honest about it. I left a picture of Christ in her mailbox.

We had transfers and Elder Mason left to La Cabaña, right next to Pablo Nogués where I was. They share the same church building. Elder Fuentes is from Chile. We live right next to the Zone Leaders, and Elder McClain was replaced by Elder Hicks who was my District Leader in Floresta for a transfer.

Monday, August 4, 2014

This Monday we had a Zone Leader Meeting in the Mission Home. (photo with Elder Molina) Dan Brown, a former singles ward bishop to whom Pres. Ayre served as a counselor, spoke to us through FaceTime. He works as a professional motivator for $25,000/hour. Elder Molina and I went to lunch with President, his wife, the Office couple (The Lines), the office elders and the assistants. Pres. and Sis. Ayre came to our apartments and said that the apartment of Elder Mason and I was "one of the best maintained in the mission." I was pretty proud.

This Sunday we had the baptism of Ezequiel, a friend of David who was baptized a few weeks ago. (photo Pres. Valente of the Elder's Quorum, David, Ezequiel, me, Elder Mason. bottom: Hairo, Leo) We learned, that Gabriela and her family didn't really want the missionaries, and were hard-core evangelicals. Now they tell us that they understand the scriptures better than they ever had before, despite being raised by pastors and having read the Bible all their life. We were reading the Book of Mormon with David and a bunch of his friends, and he was the only one who was on top of everything that was going on. I've seen this my whole mission. It is a testimony that this is the authority to baptize and give the Holy Ghost, and that the Holy Ghost is as fully functional as it was in the times of the Primitive Church.

 73 Immediately on our coming up out of the water after we had been baptized, we experienced great and glorious blessings from our Heavenly Father. No sooner had I baptized Oliver Cowdery, than the Holy Ghost fell upon him, and he stood up and prophesied many things which should shortly come to pass. And again, so soon as I had been baptized by him, I also had the spirit of prophecy,
when, standing up, I prophesied concerning the rise of this Church, and many other things connected with the Church, and this generation of the children of men. We were filled with the Holy
Ghost, and rejoiced in the God of our salvation.
 74 Our minds being now enlightened, we began to have the scriptures laid open to our understandings, and the true meaning and intention of their more mysterious passages revealed unto us in a manner which we never could attain to previously, nor ever before had thought of. In the meantime we were forced to keep
secret the circumstances of having received the Priesthood and our having been baptized, owing to a spirit of persecution which had already manifested itself in the neighborhood.

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(JSH 1​:73-74​)

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I've realized that we as missionaries don't really do very much, and what can we do? The more I work, the more I realize we don't have a clue what we're really doing. I cannot deny that the Spirit guides this work. This is not our work.

Elder Molina and I 

Pres. Valente of the Elder's Quorum, David, Ezequiel, me, Elder Mason. bottom: Hairo, Leo

Monday, August 28, 2014

This week Elder Mason got sick. It was pretty bad. Then he got worse a few days ago. I told him in the morning that it was probably a sinus infection and that he would have to tell the doctor and he would tell him to take an antibiotic, probably amoxicilin. I was dead on. We weren't able to go out much this week so I rearranged the furniture and cleaned the apartment. It's really clean, and the arrangement opens the space up a lot.

We confirmed Axel, and Judith was baptized. She was going to be baptized by Elder Mason, but because he was sick, she decided that I would baptize her. That was the first time I baptized someone. Ezequiel couldn't come so he will be baptized this week and asked that I do it. Matias showed up and said that he too wants to be baptized.

                                                David, Me, Judith, Gabriela. lower: Leo, Hairo, Ty.

Ty Mason, Sister Ayre, Brian Damitz

Monday, July 21, 2014

This week we had a Zone Meeting, which we usually hold at the beginning of transfers. We live right next to the Zone Leaders, Elder McClain and Elder Molina.

Axel, an investigator, was baptized on Sunday. We also had three confirmations of Gabriela and her two sons, David who's about 20 and his younger brother. That day two investigators who are friends of that family said that they wanted to be baptized the following Sunday.

There's another family who the Dad had been less active since he was twelve, and now his wife and his twelve-year-old son are preparing to be baptized.

We have lots of progressing people in this area. It's really a great area. We always have a ton of work. But we have to do more.