April 22, 2013
Hey guys!! Things are still going great here in Apopa. We had 2
baptisms this weekend! One was a kid named Emilio (his parents didn't
get baptized because they arent married but they will soon) and the
other was a young woman named Tania. I got to participate in Tania's
confirmation, which was super cool. They were both awesome, but the
baptism of Emilio was something else. More on that later. I got my
birthday package last monday after I wrote home. We went to the office
afterward and it was there. They said it was received...wait for
it....APRIL 3RD. On my birthday. But I got it. Apparently it takes 3-4
weeks for mail to get here, and another who knows how many weeks to
get them to me from the office. My advice from my companions is that
when Christmas rolls around, try to send it two months in advance.
Thanks for all of the awesome letters! And the candy and cakes and
stuff. Mom, you're the best. And dad, nice choice with those mosquito
nets, I'll be sure to send a picture. So I have some more cool stuff
to say. This week I tried a new drink. It's called carao. And it was
literally the grossest thing I have ever tasted. Before I even had the
glass to my lips I could smell the disgusting-ness of it. Gross.
Another thing is that our dinner cocinera loves to give us hot drinks
with dinner. That would be nice except we have been walking all day in
what I would describe as a very humid oven all day! This week I went
on spits...WITHOUT EITHER OF MY COMPANIONS!! Just me and the Elders
Quorum President Hermano Morales. He is a funny, older guy, and I had
to handle a whole lesson with him without the help of my companions.
We taught Pedro, who has a baptismal date on the 4th of may. He is the
cutest old man. He 'practices' his prayers often because apparently he
was embarrassed to offer one in church one week. He also loves to sing
hymns, but he struggles to follow along (but even I'll admit that the
whole verse layout is a little bit confusing...). He keeps his hymn
book, and his scriptures and pamphlets in a plastic bag tucked away so
they wont get ruined. He is really awesome, he sits in the front row
at church every week. More on Emilio's baptism: It was awesome.
Everyone cried (including me, but I recovered!). His whole family bore
their testimonies and they are just awesome. I tried horchata here.
Not even close to the same as the orchata from the Mexican market. We
also found a new family that we have been teaching. We talked to a
very drunk man on the street, and he actually gave us a very clear,
real address. We visited later and his whole family was there, his
wife and his 2 young daughters. They have been receiving the lessons,
and I have been praying that they will receive the gospel. They need
the blessings of the gospel in their family. As of right now they have
baptismal dates on the 8th of June. I have still been struggling a
little bit, mostly with the language still. But also, I always want to
be on time to appointments and not get stuck too long hanging around
at member homes, but it doesn't always turn out the way I want it to.
Dad has made me be like that, always wanting to be on time, if not
early. I have told my companionship that we need to work on that. I
have been reading the Book of Mormon, I started sometime in the MTC.
I'm in Alma 40, and I am on track to finish before the end of May, as
the mission president challenged me to. It has started raining here,
and there are thunder and lightning storms that kill the power!!
Luckily, for some strange reason, we have never been outside when it
rains, even though it has rained more than 5-6 times. I had another
really cool experience. PMG says that we can pray to be able to
recognize people who are prepared to receive the gospel. I took that
challenge, and that day, we were walking to an appointment, and we
were in a hurry (when aren't we??). I saw a man walking in the street
and was prompted to talk to him. I brushed it aside, thinking we had
somewhere to be. As he crossed behind me and continued walking, I felt
very strongly that I needed to talk to him. I told my companions, and
we had to chase him down. He gave us his address, and we visited him
yesterday. He told us that he is experiencing some economic
difficulties, that he has not been attending any church, but that he
is looking to 'hear the word'. I really am praying that we can
progress with him. I am losing weight. Sad fact, but it is now a fact.
Yesterday I looked in the mirror before I got in the shower, and even
in that tiny mirror I could clearly see that I am smaller. I am not
too disappointed, but still... Anyway, I hope all of you are having a
great week! Love you all!!
Elder Andreasen
Hey guys!! Things are still going great here in Apopa. We had 2
baptisms this weekend! One was a kid named Emilio (his parents didn't
get baptized because they arent married but they will soon) and the
other was a young woman named Tania. I got to participate in Tania's
confirmation, which was super cool. They were both awesome, but the
baptism of Emilio was something else. More on that later. I got my
birthday package last monday after I wrote home. We went to the office
afterward and it was there. They said it was received...wait for
it....APRIL 3RD. On my birthday. But I got it. Apparently it takes 3-4
weeks for mail to get here, and another who knows how many weeks to
get them to me from the office. My advice from my companions is that
when Christmas rolls around, try to send it two months in advance.
Thanks for all of the awesome letters! And the candy and cakes and
stuff. Mom, you're the best. And dad, nice choice with those mosquito
nets, I'll be sure to send a picture. So I have some more cool stuff
to say. This week I tried a new drink. It's called carao. And it was
literally the grossest thing I have ever tasted. Before I even had the
glass to my lips I could smell the disgusting-ness of it. Gross.
Another thing is that our dinner cocinera loves to give us hot drinks
with dinner. That would be nice except we have been walking all day in
what I would describe as a very humid oven all day! This week I went
on spits...WITHOUT EITHER OF MY COMPANIONS!! Just me and the Elders
Quorum President Hermano Morales. He is a funny, older guy, and I had
to handle a whole lesson with him without the help of my companions.
We taught Pedro, who has a baptismal date on the 4th of may. He is the
cutest old man. He 'practices' his prayers often because apparently he
was embarrassed to offer one in church one week. He also loves to sing
hymns, but he struggles to follow along (but even I'll admit that the
whole verse layout is a little bit confusing...). He keeps his hymn
book, and his scriptures and pamphlets in a plastic bag tucked away so
they wont get ruined. He is really awesome, he sits in the front row
at church every week. More on Emilio's baptism: It was awesome.
Everyone cried (including me, but I recovered!). His whole family bore
their testimonies and they are just awesome. I tried horchata here.
Not even close to the same as the orchata from the Mexican market. We
also found a new family that we have been teaching. We talked to a
very drunk man on the street, and he actually gave us a very clear,
real address. We visited later and his whole family was there, his
wife and his 2 young daughters. They have been receiving the lessons,
and I have been praying that they will receive the gospel. They need
the blessings of the gospel in their family. As of right now they have
baptismal dates on the 8th of June. I have still been struggling a
little bit, mostly with the language still. But also, I always want to
be on time to appointments and not get stuck too long hanging around
at member homes, but it doesn't always turn out the way I want it to.
Dad has made me be like that, always wanting to be on time, if not
early. I have told my companionship that we need to work on that. I
have been reading the Book of Mormon, I started sometime in the MTC.
I'm in Alma 40, and I am on track to finish before the end of May, as
the mission president challenged me to. It has started raining here,
and there are thunder and lightning storms that kill the power!!
Luckily, for some strange reason, we have never been outside when it
rains, even though it has rained more than 5-6 times. I had another
really cool experience. PMG says that we can pray to be able to
recognize people who are prepared to receive the gospel. I took that
challenge, and that day, we were walking to an appointment, and we
were in a hurry (when aren't we??). I saw a man walking in the street
and was prompted to talk to him. I brushed it aside, thinking we had
somewhere to be. As he crossed behind me and continued walking, I felt
very strongly that I needed to talk to him. I told my companions, and
we had to chase him down. He gave us his address, and we visited him
yesterday. He told us that he is experiencing some economic
difficulties, that he has not been attending any church, but that he
is looking to 'hear the word'. I really am praying that we can
progress with him. I am losing weight. Sad fact, but it is now a fact.
Yesterday I looked in the mirror before I got in the shower, and even
in that tiny mirror I could clearly see that I am smaller. I am not
too disappointed, but still... Anyway, I hope all of you are having a
great week! Love you all!!
Elder Andreasen
No comments:
Post a Comment