The Work Goes On

February 2, 2009

Hola familia,

All is well here in good old Bucaramanga. This has been yet another week that has passed rapidisimo (very fast) but another good one.

This week we decided to focus on working with members that haven’t been as active and with our converts. We have two teenage girl investigators that could accept an invitation to get baptized any second, but they still feel a little nervous so we are trying to help them with their doubts. We also have another teenage girl who is 16 and already has a testimony and wants to get baptized but her parents are very very catolico and they haven’t yet given her permission, so we have potential investigators we just have to get them over the hump and help them. But as I was saying this week, we had a lot of lessons with our new converts and with some inactive members.

The family of Marta, Jose, Pablo and Angie are doing great and really growing in the church. For the Sacrament meeting here they use 5 priesthood holders, 2 to bless and 3 to pass since the ward is smaller. ha-ha This week 4 of the 5 were our converts, one of them blessed the water and the other 3 passed the Sacrament. At first they looked a little like lost sheep, but the First Counselor pointed them where to go and they got it done. It was very rewarding to see the people we have brought into the ward contributing and already helping in the church. It really is true what President Hinckley said, that all new members need a friend, a calling and to be nurtured with the scriptures. You can just see how much more people feel involved when they have something that they are asked to do in the church.

My comp. (District Leader) and the Zone Leaders, who live with us, went to Bogotá today for a meeting of leaders so I am here for 3 days with another Elder from here. We will split up our work between our two areas and today we are here in our casa for p day. It has been a very relaxed pday, I have done the laundry and relaxed around the house. For lunch we went to a little place down the street where they have a bunch of roasted chickens and potatoes. We bought a little chicken and some potatoes for 11 mil (thousand) pesos which make about $5.50 for both of us.

On a spiritual note, today I was thinking about our investigators and what we could do to help them gain a stronger testimony and I realized it’s really a blessing and made me think about the atonement. That I can be here in a different country and I’m worrying about these people I've just met and not about being homesick or feeling like it is too hard. It’s something we can always have to think about that the Savior already suffered for every pain we have had so that we would be able to worry about these other things.

You asked about my shoes. I rotate between the 3 pairs every day, the Eccos are a little better looking but the Rockport’s are very tough and all 3 of my pairs of shoes are in great shape so far. I haven’t gotten a dear elder parcel yet but I’m sure it’s coming. Also, how is grandma doing? I haven’t heard about her for a while and Adam and Taylor with his mission tambien and anything else going on in the family? I can’t believe it when you said the Cardinals were in the super bowl, ha but I guess that shows I have been gone a while.

Thanks a ton for everything and I will talk to ya next week.