Week #49 - Pictures

Service with Elder R. I got some new blisters for the first time in forever!

Cleaning the font!

Elder S., LS, and I for the baptism!

Week #49

Hey Family!

This week I did get your email! And I was super excited to see this trip that you guys took! I am happy that you guys got to go and experience another Open House! They are so spiritual even if they haven't been dedicated! That is so cool that Dolores and John got to go. I am certain they felt something there, now they just need the help to recognize it! That is super awesome! The pictures were all super pretty! I definitely have to visit it when I get back!

Sounds like everyone is doing really good in school and I am super happy that everyone is healthy especially with this weird sickness epidemic(I dont know what it is in English) but its pretty scary! So I am grateful to my Heavenly Father that everyone is healthy and happy :) 

This week was a good week! We worked hard and sweated a lot. My companion definitely has the Lord on his side! I don't know how he hasn't burned to a crisp yet! I am somehow still getting grossly dark but as we say here ¨Así es la misión¨ so we will continue to work hard and enjoy the sun! haha

On Monday we left at night to get to Santani on time to our Zone conference! So it was another fun sleep over at the church! I learned a bunch this Zone conference! It really helped me! You guys should look up a video on the church website called Because of Him. It is super powerful! But It was a really good conference! We learned to Love people as the Lord does! I loved it! 

I also received your package! I LOVED IT AND THANK YOU! I am reading the book and it is super good! I love the Tie and I am waiting for the perfect moment to use it!The Captain America pin was awesome! Thanks Megan! But I have to say my favorite part were the letters :) thank you! The pictures scared me! But they were so beautiful Megan! And Kali and Kody are so big!! Ah it was crazy! But thank you SO much! 

This week was a baptism of the unity! There is a little boy named LS that we were able to teach and to participate in his baptism! He wanted Elder S to baptize him so my son had his first baptism! He was super excited and super nervous! So the day of the Baptism comes on Saturday and we clean the font (mini swimming pool) and then I start looking for the baptismal clothes and I don't find them. I call Elder R and he has no idea either! I go to the other house of the other missionaries and they don't know either! So I look for these clothes for a good 3 hours and nothing. Elder S decides that we should pray for help so we did. After that we looked a little more and we received a call from the other Elders saying that they found them! We would find out that they were all in a black garbage bag, hadn't been washed since the last baptism in July, and somebody had thrown them in the trash! So out of them I found the smallest one for LS and hand-washed it. It was nasty but It was the answer to our prayers that we found it! So I wasn't as upset as I normally would've been! But The baptism was really good! The L family came and they really enjoyed it. So it energized them for their baptism :) so we are super blessed and super excited! On Sunday I would confirm LS and it was a huge honor! He is only the 2nd person I have confirmed so I was super blessed and filled with the Spirit! 

Well this week was a good one! And it would end the change! I am certain I will stay and Elder S also...but who knows! But I am excited to be here and to continue the work here! Thank you all for your love and support! Thank you for the package and the Birthday wishes! I love you all so much! I pray for you always! I will write more next week!

Love,

Elder Milton 

Week #48

My Dear Family!

I hope this email finds everyone in good spirits (probably not considering its a Monday haha), but I hope the week went well and all are ready for another week more!

Well let me start this letter by saying it was a good week! On Wednesday we had the interview with Hermana L and she will need a little more time! She expressed to the interviewer (Presidente M) that she wants to be baptized and receive these blessings! She is super humble and excited to continue on with her life. So we set another date and goal for November 1st!  They are super excited and we will continue to help them out and really prepare them. I wasnt bummed out about the interview! I am glad that she can prepare even more so that she can be a firm believer in the Atonement of Jesus Christ and in his church and gospel!

The week really heated up! And I guessed it right, we started rocking he sombreros again! My companion looks like a goofball/rice farmer haha but at least he isnt cooking! I will send pictures next week. But it was a good trial of our diligence and I feel that we overcame out natural man this week and worked hard!  

On Thursday we decided to go exploring a part of our area that I hadn't been to yet, and we found a sister that had recently returned from the hospital and she begged us to come in and to ¨pray for her¨ because her leg is really swollen up and can't really walk so we came and taught about the Priesthood Authority and blessings, and we gave her a blessing that she would continue to recuperate and have the faith to walk. After that she asked us if we could go ¨pray¨ for one of her neighbors that the son got bit by this dog and went to the hospital to get it stitched up! 

So we went over there and the Mom let us come in and we taught them and explained to them why we came and the Mom was more than willing to let us ¨pray¨ for her son. We could give him a blessing and we told him that he would heal quickly and healthily. At the end of the blessing the Mom was crying and she thanked us and asked us to come by again next week! So it was super good! All because I had a desire to explore an Area that I haven't been in.

This week we watched conference and let me say this was the most spiritual conference that I have ever watched! Maybe it was becuase I wasnt in pajamas, or I stayed awake! But It was so amazing to put myself in the shoes of the L family and watch the Prophet as if it were my first time. I guess I have taken it granted all my life...but they loved the conference! Especially Sister L. It is hard for me to pick a favorite talk...but when Elder Hugo Martinez came on I thought he was speaking English! Because the translator wasn't translating, so I was like what is going on! Then I realized like everyone else that he gave his talk in Spanish! It was super good! It was an amazing conference!

So this week was good! And as always I was super blessed! I am proud to be out here and to have this chance to serve. Thank you for keeping me in your prayers! I love you guys so much and pray for you all the time! I will write more next week!

Love Always,
Elder Milton

Week #47 - Pictures

This one is for Kody! This thing was dead luckily...It was so huge! Bigger than my cell phone!

The church plaque! We need to find someone to hang it up outside the house! 

At the river with the L family! It was so beautiful!

Week #47

Hola Familia!

Well I think I got here a little early again or something went wrong with the computer! I never know haha but the time has changed here! I know in Arizona its the same but here it went up an hour, so that might be why that it might seem I am on a little earlier! I dont know Its a little confusing haha!

This week was another blessed week! We were able to teach a lot and find some new people! And at the same time continue to work with the L and A Families! This week it heated up a little bit too! We will have to start using sombreros pretty soon! My companion is super white and will burn to a crisp if he is not careful! I guess I could say the same thing about me too...but I am a tad bit darker than he is! haha

This week was really focused on the L family. On Monday we asked the son E to take us and show us where the river is! Turns out the whole family accompanied us! It was BEAUTIFUL! We walked there for about 45 minutes and through jungle, countryside, and through some bodies of water that E gave us piggy back rides! It was super pretty. I could only complain that it was blistering hot! and super humid with the river so close but the way there was so gorgeous. I wish I would've taken more pictures but I will soon!   We got there and the kids swam and E fished a little bit and we looked for a good place for the baptism but it might be a little difficult because it takes a little while to get there and its a lot of jungle! 

But as the week continued we finished teaching all the required lessons! So we started to prepare them for the baptismal interview and as we did, the mom Sister S admitted to us that she has committed abortion. This would mean she have to be interviewed by President McM or one of his counselors. I was so sad! Because she has been with this guilt for more than half or her life, always trying to go to church and taking her family with her to try to make it right with God. I cant imagine having this burden for so much time. It really made me so grateful for the knowledge of the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. We told her that she could repent of this sin and receive forgiveness but it will require effort on her part! So she will have this interview on Wednesday.

The rest of the week would be good and we would visit the L family to continue to teach them and relearn somethings, and then came Sunday when the time changed! Here the majority of the cellphones don't change automatically, well we knew that but almost all the members forgot about the time change! So we didn't have very many people show up. I was freaking out because the L family didn't show up either! Until the last hour(Sacrament) they showed up and admitted they had forgotten! But they came and I was so relieved! We will be watching conference next week after I download it because we didn't receive the satellite transmission here so everyone is excited for next week! Some people have never seen it! They have only read it in the Ensign! So I am excited to see how they love it!

So that was basically my week! It was really good and really blessed as always! We are praying for the L family and the Lord is answering our prayers and theirs so we are super humbled and grateful for the miracle the Lord is performing with this beautiful family! Thank you for all your prayers! I am so grateful to be as healthy as I am and to have the guidance I need! I love you all and I pray for you always! I will write more next week!

Love,
Elder Milton 

Letter Home - Dated September 10, 2014

Dear Family,

Well, here I am again!  As I am writing you guys this letter, I am waiting in the Luque Stake Center to have our changes.  We had to leave at 10:30 p.m. yesterday and we finally arrived at 4:30 a.m.   So now, we are waiting for all the other missionaries to get here at 7:45 a.m.   So, as you guys already know, Elder R got changed to Luque and I am going to have a son!  Well, in the Mission, ha ha!  I will have the privilege to train a new missionary!  It is likely he will be from the United States, so that would make him my first "Gringo" companion.  I am a little nervous because I don't know my area too well, and I am still called to be the district leader!  So, it will be a little more responsibility!  But all in all, I am excited!

So, we have been working really hard with all the members of help them be strong and basically wake up!  My new companion and I will continue to work with this vision.  We are preparing these pioneers for the future!

Also, the C.  family is doing good!  I am to impressed by them.  J., about a year ago, gave up smoking and drinking without knowing the gospel!  He was tired of the way his life was going, so he made the necessary changes!  We haven't taught him the Word of Wisdom yet, but it was another testimony this he was definitely prepared if he wants it.  So we will continue to help them.  His mom, Hermana M. is super awesome!  She knows the Bible super well and applies all the doctrine.  She can't ready anymore because of her sight but we are going to download the Book of Mormon audio so that she can listen to it while she works washing clothes.

Well, as you all know, my birthday is soon!  And also, I will have one year in the mission!  I cam constantly amazed how fast time goes. . .  But the good news is I am working and taking advantage of the little time I have.  So, please keep praying for me and the people here!  I love you guys and I will write more very soon!  You are all in my prayers!

Love always,
Elder Milton

Week #46

Hola Familia!

I did get the email this week! And I was super excited! I never thought that you guys forgot about me so don't worry about that! I just figured it was the computer as usual! But it did put a smile on my face to read this email and read that everyone is doing really good!

Well this week actually started out pretty funny! And I guess a little scary for Elder St and one other Elder in my district named Elder Sm! Both being new haven't really done anything with a division...so guess what I did?! Not only did I do a division but I also left Elder St in our area and I went with Elder Sm in his area! So if you could imagine these poor guys with only 3 weeks in the field wondering what to do! Haha okay so it wasn't that bad I helped Elder St a bunch to prepare and I did it with the purpose because they need to learn! So when I went to Elder Sm's area this week...we got so lost for 4 hours...but I will say it helped me help him more with talking to people and practicing his contacting in Spanish! Elder St did great while I was gone! So It turned out really good! They just didn't believe that I was going to actually force them to do this...so that was funny! 

This week was a good test! After having such a super good week last week the Lord blessed us with rain ALL week! So at first it was normal but by the end of the week we had to fight against the natural man and go out and work! The district did great this week also in this aspect, so I am pleased! We taught all our investigators several times this week, The L, A, and C families! So we were super happy and all really are progressing besides the C family. Turns out J might be moving so hes been gone a lot so his sister and his mom are doing okay! But Sunday comes along and 9 o clock hits and not one of them come to church! So I start teaching the Gospel Principles class and slowly all the people start showing up....like a bunch of people and members! But still no investigators! So everyone time someone would walk in I would have this false hope! So I finally gave up...and right when I did the L family walked in! I was so happy! And they have a baptismal date of October 11! There is the Mom S and her two kids E- 16 years old and S- 10 years old so we are super excited to help them a bunch this week and prepare! We are going to the river today with E to check it out to see if it is safe for the baptism so we will see! :) 

So this week was a good week! We just had to work at it and it wasn't all given to us like the other one! So it was good and we got a lot done! I have realized that the members here really trust me! I guess lacking a bishop or a president they probably look up to me for something! So I feel honored and privileged to work with them and help them! This week is General Conference and we won't be watching this week, but next week we will download it and watch it with the members so don't spoil anything! But then again I don't know what that really means...its general conference its not like a movie so there shouldn't be spoilers? haha well thank you for all your prayers :) I love you all and I pray for you! I will write more next week :)

Love

Elder Milton

P.S. Super slow today! I will send more pictures next week :)