empanadas

hola fan club,

Just want you to know I am eating a really delicious empanada right now :)))

This week fleeeeew by (just like every other week...)  It’s getting harder because hna Cordoba has 3 weeks left. Killing a companion is one of the toughest things about the mission.

One, because muchas veces (many times) your companion starts to relax and get trunky and doesn’t want to work.

Two, because they are always talking about home and their plans.

Three, everyone is always asking her, “How do you feel?" "What will you do when you get home?" "Are you excited to see your family?”

LUCKILY the first and second points don’t apply to the hna Cordoba. She still is a trabajadora (worker) and we are having sooo much success :) but the inevitable is that her time is coming to an end and I can’t wait to see you guys either... but the home sickness will pass....

This week we were very blessed to see many miracles! Right now, we have four entire families in teaching!!!! It is soooo awesome! Really the family is ordained by God and Padre Celestial desea que todas las familias puedan ser eternas (Heavenly Father wants all families to be eternal). It’s such a thrill sharing the gospel with the mom AND dad AND kids present. This is the first time in my mission that I’ve had this opportunity. Usually it’s the women or moms that listen and the dads are hiding or want nothing to do with us.... I love families!!!! 

I want to tell you about a miracle that happened yesterday. We were knocking door in a dusty dirt road. We knocked one door and the lady let us in. She told us that she just wants to hear our message and that’s it because she only let us in because she knows that the mission is really hard and that many people don’t want to listen.

Not the greatest reason to let us in, pero bueno (but ok), we’ll take it.  

We begin to ask her questions about what she believes in and what not. She shared some things and then we started talking about the Plan of Salvation and that families can be together forever. She then began to "share" her point of view and I just about died of depression.

I tried to share with her that the Gospel brings hope to the people and every time I tried to say something she would cut me off and tell us, “no you’re wrong because of this and this and this.”

.... apparently it’s our fault that there are ghosts and demons here on the earth because the ghost and demons are those who have died and whose family members can’t leave them in peace because they are thinking about them so much so they turn into a ghost or demon and are forever condemned to haunt this earth....  

It’s a good thing that I still have time on the mission because I need to develop more patience and love,..... I was fuming in the lesson so I decided to let my comp do all the talking , or at least try to defend us and teach something but the lady didn’t want to hear it so we left.

I was trying to regain my cool when we passed a young couple with their baby. We stopped to talk to them and the first thing that the dad said was, “Wow! You know what, we were just talking about Jesucristo and why it is so important to have faith in Him. I was baptized in your church years ago and have been having the feeling that I need to come back, but this time with my wife and kid.” 

HOW COOL IS THAT!!!!

We got their info and we have a lesson set up with them tonight at 7:30. It was an awesome little miracle. When we do our part and work, the Lord blesses us and allows us to see these miracles and bless the lives of many people.

We had interviews with Presidente Isom this week. It went great! He told me that I can ask to extend but the answer is no :( so my home date is June 16 (Sorry Kyle…That’s your high school graduation day!) I am so grateful for Presidente Isom. He is such a great example of service and faith. 

We are going to see a ton of changes in missionary work. We are going to have a worldwide missionary broadcast 25 de Enero that announces all the changes that are being made in the missionary handbook. One of them is that now we get to make our own horario (schedule). I don’t know all the deets but it sounds like we will have much more freedom in choosing at what time we do personal study, comp study and language study.... it’s cool, but I don’t know.... it will be interesting.

AND ELDER STEVENSON WILL BE COMING TO OUR MISISON 27 DE ENERO! 

Happy birthday and big shout out to Russell!!! Thank you so much for helping me with the work here in Chile. I love you and miss you tons, but it’s been fun to feel you and see you again. Keep doing what you are doing.

deseo que tengan una feliz semana y compartan el Evangelio con MUCHOS!!!! (I wish you have a happy week and share the Gospel with MANY!!!!)

les amo!