Week 21 - Salado - 5 Investigators, Making Tacos, Old guy Talking to a Parrot, The Atonement to Me

This week was awesome. There were 5 investigators at church yesterday, which is the most by far that we´ve ever had. One day this week we weren't quite sure who we going to visit, and so we looked at our area map and found a less active family. We never did find the family, but super close to where the family was supposed to be we found an awesome lady who said she had wanted to go to church for years, but just needed someone to motivate her to go. And she was there yesterday.

 

We made tacos with the Gonzalez family this week, because they wanted to try them, it was super fun.

 

I also went on a division with a Mexican missionary this week, it went surprisingly well as far as being able to communicate with each other. It was different going to a different area too, I learned a lot from it. But we talked to this lady from Chile, and she talked way different than Paraguayans and was super hard to understand.

 

All the old guys here are funny, we´ll say hello to them and they´ll stop us in the street and agree to go to church, and be baptized, and then we won´t see them at church or ever again. A lot of people we talk to agree with whatever we say, and will let us in to talk, but don´t ever do anything they say they´ll do. It makes it harder to find the people that really do want to learn, and are open to change.

 

I´ve been hearing a lot of american music from the 80´s lately, I guess it´s just what a lot of Paraguayans like to listen to. At least I can understand it I guess.

Elder Ivan Bowles

I´ll find out for sure a week from today in the evening if I stay here in Salado. I´m pretty sure I´ll stay, which I would be just fine with me.

 

Julia-whenever we visit a less active family, we get to know them, usually they end up telling us why they don´t go anymore, and we make sure they understand the importance of going to church. Then it is up to them. That´s kinda nerve racking about the guy that tried to get in to the apartment.

 

Dad-yes, PP is getting baptized this Saturday, in between general conference sessions. Conference starts later here, it´ll be kinda weird. The word I probably use the most in Guaraní is mishimi, which means muy poco and I use it whenever someone asks me if I can speak Guaraní. I like teaching about the Book of Mormon the most, but I really enjoy seeing people pray for the first time after we teach them as well. Everyday is an adventure at church here in Salado, it doesn´t have to be testimony meeting. It´s like having every single person who talks in church being that old guy who talks for forever about the same thing over and over again. And then there is that one old guy here too, who could probably talk to a parrot for months and not notice it wasn´t a person. It´s good though, because it´s good listening practice for me.

 

Kami-that´s awesome that you got 11th, keep up the good work, Mrs Lauten is crazy, but at least she´s funny.

 

Mom- No, i didn´t see the broadcast, all the broadcasts from church headquarters are at the stakecenter in Luque, which is about 40ish minutes away from our ward, and almost nobody here has a car. For me, being able to look forward instead of backward is what the Atonement means to me. Just being able to know that all I have to do with past mistakes in my life is really, sincerely repent and learn from them and strive to be better makes everything ok in life.