Week 57 - November 17, 2014

This week was super good! We have quite a great things that have happened in San Fernando!

First of all, I did divisions with Elder Mendoza Jimenez this week, who is from Colombia. He is a super cool missionary and I enjoyed my time with him. We did service and we had to dig a ditch so water could go through the yard easily. We got working and I ended up breaking the shovel and maybe I hit a water pipe... Im not quite sure! Then we had a CRAZY lesson with this guy named Heber. Heber believes in extra terrestial people. He doesnt believe in God or anything like that. He says his brother saw a UFO that was Giant and that NASA was so interested that they came to visit them and talk to them about it. It was a crazy lesson and I feel for Kade who will be teaching in Thailand to people who dont believe in God. Its tough. 

We also did a service this week and we had to dig a lot and then smash concrete to make a driveway. My comp had a bunch of blisters quick! Then we ate two lunches that day. 

On Thursday we had a conference with Elder Christensen from the 70. It was with all of the missionaries in Uruguay and it was awesome to know all of the missionaries from our mission still! The conference was awesome. Elder Christensen talked about how we can be better missionaries and love the people more. My favorite part was when President Smith talked though and then they did a Question and Answer for all the 500 something missionaries. It was crazy cool to see the two mission presidents and a member of the 70 just answering with scriptures and what they have already taught us! We just dont understand everything yet! 

Saturday we had a MIRACLE. Absolutely ridiculous miracle. We were walking to contact a reference we had just received and we got a text that said "Elders we hope everything is going great. Its been a while since we have talked. We want to get our birth certificates because we are urgent to get married to be able to get baptized that way we can follow the Lords plan for us." I literally stopped in the dirt road and just said "WHAT!? NO WAY!?" It took me a while to read it again and make sure I read what I actually saw. I called the number and we talked to the couple. It was legit and they said they would go to church the following day! They went to church and we will be visiting them on Wednesday! 

Sunday we had quite a good amount of less actives and investigators in church! I feel like we are working hard and seeing the Lords hand in the work! 

Sunday after church we went to the 16th ward for a choir practice. Then I went on divisions with Elder Baggett and we slept the night at their house. It was super fun! Then today we went and played volleyball at the beach but we went to a grass field because there was too many temptations at the beach. Then we went to the World Trade Center in Montevideo and had Frozen yogurt at a ridiculously nice mall! 

This week we are changing the mission schedule! We wake up at 7 and get to be outside until 10 at night! Its mainly because of summer. We study at mid day because its ridiculously hot. 

I cut my hair this week with a 1 on the sides. Dad would be proud of me. I cant send pics this week though! 

We had a good week with quite a lot of good lessons! We are just trying to get more people to go to church so they can get baptized! 

Cool scripture that I have been meditating this week: Mosiah 15:7. In English it says that Christ swallowed the will of God but in Spanish it says he Absorbed the will of God. Whats the difference? I like the Spanish way better :p 

I love all of you! 

Week 56 - November 10, 2014

This week was AWESOME! 

It started of weird and pretty bad on Monday though. After we got off the computers, we found out that an hermana had gotten robbed in the same place we were at while she was writing. Someone stole her backpack and she didnt even notice. It was raining hard too so that just adds a good effect. Then after our day, we were getting followed by two guys on a moto that kept passing us. Then we went to buy milk and one of them followed us around the store. We made sure he was following us and then we took a good speed walk home. Nothing happened but it scared the heck out of us haha. 

This week I also did divisions with Elder Salomè from Perù. He is super cool and he wants to go study at BYU after the mission. We had a great time and I love doing divisions with other missionaries. I studied Italian for language study that day too. While I was there, I did a baptismal interview for a girl that was getting baptized. She is young and her parents havent been active, but hopefully she can help them get all back to church. She was awesome. 

One day we got called by some Sisters in our zone and they asked us if we could go to their area to give one of them a blessing. It was really humbling to be trusted by this hermana and to be able to give her a blessing! Always gotta be ready! 

We had a Family Home Evening with the Smith family. The whole Smith family came. All the kids, spouses, and grandkids. It was quite a festival. We invited Flor to come with us and she came. It was with all the missionaries in Montevideo. I was in the choir and we performed High on the Mountain Top. It was awesome. It was a great activity about the restoration and families. Then it was fun to talk to a bunch of Smiths when it was all over. 

Saturday we had the BAPTISM of Virginia! I was able to baptize her and it was so awesome! It was a pretty well prepared baptism and everything went very well! She also asked me to confirm her on Sunday. That was really cool too. On Sunday I was running all over the stage. I was playing piano, confirming Virginia, and then I gave a talk. I gave a talk about the Doctrine of Christ. The mission leader and bishop told me I dropped cane but they liked it a lot. The mission leader told me that it was one of the best talks ever because I just read and explained the scriptures. I didnt have anything written down, I just read DOCTRINE. It was a pretty sweet Sunday. 

One of the cool things that happened is after the baptism, we went to one more lesson before the day ended and we gave the investigator a baptismal date for next month. We need to keep finding people though! 

Overall, pretty awesome week. I feel so grateful to be a missionary. Its super weird to think I have been here for over 13 months now. I love all of it though!

Week 55 - November 3, 2014

Hello!!!!!!!! This week the biggest news is that on Saturday we will be having a baptism!!!!!!!!!! I am super stoked! Virginia is super excited and we cant wait for her to get baptized! 

This week Elder Cline had a roller coaster of a week. He had some stomach problems which we think was caused by the water. We had to stop in a couple fields a couple times. He has been trying to talk a lot more though and he has a great attitude. 

The work here in San Fernando is exploding. We are talking to lots of people and finding many. We just have a problem of getting people to church for the first time. Our area is far away from the church, so its not easy for people to just go by themselves. 

This week we will have a family home evening with all of the missionaries from Montevideo put on by the Smith family. We invited Virginia and we will see how it goes! I am in charge of finding a bus for us to use for the whole San Jose part so that will be fun... 

My district is doing awesome too. We have some awesome missionaries and everyone is figuring out how to work hard! 

The weather this week was weird. Sunday and Monday was HOT HOT HOT but now we are in sweaters and jackets because we have had rain and cold wind for 3 days straight now! 

I am doing great and super excited about the baptism! We just need to keep trying to find people and get them to church!

Elder Baggett says hi! 

I love you all! Have a great week!