ELDER HILL, CHRISTIAN, CINTHYA y NINOS, ELDER SANDOVAL ~ FELIZ NAVIDAD (24th) |
It was good to see the fam again on Wednesday. I know it was a little packed and all that, but it was good. Looks like the snow is hitting hard. The weather down here has been good still. It rained on Christmas and Thursday but that`s as close as it got to a white Christmas down here.
On the 24th,
Noche Buena, we went to visit a few people. In the missionary handbook it says
that Saturday, Sundays, and Holidays are good opportunities to find new people
to teach because everyone is home and with their family.... however, the
culture here it totally different. Most people have parties and they aren`t
really interested in anyone reminding them of the commandments. Of course,
there is the occasional good person who lets you in and receives a little
lesson. We also went to see our investigators and the people that we`ve
been finding. Some were home, others weren`t. We ate a lot of food that night
because the 24th is their day for eating dinner and spending time with the
family.
On Christmas,
everything was so quiet! Nobody was on the streets, no loud music. All was
still. We went to a district meeting in the zone. Elder Calderón got sick and
we had to finish the meeting. It`s been a while since either one of us has
given a district meeting. We ate that day with the Martinez Ayala Family.
They gave us some sort of pork roast bathed in guayaba. Strange, but good.
After, we went to Rafa`s house to talk to the family the four of us from the
ward. Good day. Then we went to see Alfredo because he was on track to be
baptized this Sunday, and he was.
ELDERS' HILL y SANDOVAL, JOSE LUIS, YOLANDA, y ANA LAURA |
Alfredo was
baptized yesterday and the overall didn`t really fit him to well. He`s a big
guy and was making a ton of jokes about how he didn`t fit into the clothes.
Alfredo has been to many churches and knows a lot of other doctrines which has
assisted him in being able to make the right decisions and feel, more than
anything, what church is the right church. He`s a humble man from humble
circumstances and that`s what has helped him be one of the elect in these days.
ELDER HILL, BRIANDA, RODRIGO, MARIO, ALEJANDRA y ELDER SANDOVAL |
On Thursday
we did exchanges with the assistants. In the afternoon all of our appointments
had fallen through and we decided to move our plans up a little. When we
were almost getting to our next appointment, we passed a lady and said,
"buenas noches." Elder De Los Santos and I looked at each other then
turned around to talk to the lady. Turns out she is the mom of the 19 year old
kid who was killed about two months ago when Christian, Cinthya, and a few
other people could go to church. We talked to their family and they are looking
for answers. The father, Lázaro, accepted everything really well and even said
that he`d go to church. They, too, have received many other churches and
haven`t felt the need to join any of them. Tender mercies happen every day.
Sunday was
Alfredo`s baptism. Actually, his name is Martin, but someone called him Alfredo
a long time back and it stuck. So while the Bishop baptized him, he said his
name and suddenly Martin`s wife shouts, "Martin Alfredo!" like trying
to correct the Bishop. Everyone just sat there stunned and a little startled.
The Bishop talked to Martin, and re-started the ordinance. It was pretty funny.
We think she did it because the tradition here is that when you baptize a
little baby, that`s the name that will be used from that point on....
IDK.
From Sister
Call this week:
Some of you already know that I like
to collect inspirational thoughts. Here are a few that I would like to
share with you on goal setting:
Organize your values in the order of their worth.
A goal is a dream with a deadline.
No one knows what he can do until he tries.
Keep your eye on eternal goals.
Without some goal and an effort to reach it, no man can live.
Set your goals high enough to inspire you and within reach enough to encourage you.
Goals that are not written down are just wishes.
A goal is a planned event.
You'll never achieve your dreams if they don't become goals.
I hope you will take some time this week to set some worthwhile, achievable goals for yourself.
Let’s make this the best year ever! Abrazos…….Hermana Call
Organize your values in the order of their worth.
A goal is a dream with a deadline.
No one knows what he can do until he tries.
Keep your eye on eternal goals.
Without some goal and an effort to reach it, no man can live.
Set your goals high enough to inspire you and within reach enough to encourage you.
Goals that are not written down are just wishes.
A goal is a planned event.
You'll never achieve your dreams if they don't become goals.
I hope you will take some time this week to set some worthwhile, achievable goals for yourself.
Let’s make this the best year ever! Abrazos…….Hermana Call
Let`s make
2014 the best year of our lives because we are always progressing and moving
forward. We shouldn`t be like Lot`s wife with the heart stuck in the past and
wishing for things to be the way they used to be. 2013 will soon be water under
the bridge or over the dam.
From
PMG:
“I am so thoroughly convinced that if
we don’t set goals in our life and learn how to master the techniques of living
to reach our goals, we can reach a ripe old age and look back on our life only
to see that we reached but a small part of our full potential. When one learns
to master the principles of setting a goal, he will then be able to make a great
difference in the results he attains in this life.”
–Elder M. Russell Ballard
–Elder M. Russell Ballard
Happy New
Opportunity to Reflect, Re-evaluate, and Progress Forward.
Love,
Elder
Hill
-- 24th with:
- José Luis,
Yolanda, Ana Laura. We bought them their books for Christmas.
-Christian
and Cinthya and kids
-Brianda,
Rodrigo, Mario, Alejandra.