Week 95: Perseverance

Helloooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! Everyone!!!

Well, for all of you who want to go on a mission it takes 3 things.... Hard work, Perseverance, and... Hard Work!! 

Well! It's been another grand week here in Argentina. It's coming down to the line now as we roll in to week 5 of the 6 weeks of the transfer. This will be my official last working week of the mission, the last week we've got a conference with a seventy and then for the missionaries who go home we're going to Capital Buenos Aires on Thursday to have a tour and then to the temple on Friday! It's crazy to think that the time has come and gone so quickly, I remember when I had 2 weeks left before I left on the mission, I was super excited to see what it was like and to gain so many new experiences but also sad to be leaving behind so many things. A familiar feeling has come to me as I realize every day that I'm that much closer to the end of it all. I feel sad because I'll be leaving behind all that I have come to know here in the mission in Argentina, but happy because I will be able to use all that I have learned I will be able to go back to all that I knew before. What a strange feeling to tell you the truth.

It's been a wonderful week, I'm very happy and thankful that the Lord has assigned me to be with Elder Pavón my last transfer, he's a great missionary and he's so funny and a great person to be around. He's always got lots of energy and excitement to do the work of the Lord and he's been helping me to learn more every week! If you don't remember he's from Honduras, what and interesting world we live in. I love it so much, I love all of the people here so much, it's incredible!

This week we've been working with several investigators, the one that gives me most hope is called Isabel, she's from Bolivia, like almost everyone here in the area :D. She works with her sisters in a workshop sewing clothes. She's very interested in the Gospel and has great desires to come closer to God. She went to church yesterday, just to sacrament meeting because her sister is pregnant and they had to leave because she was hurting a lot, but we hope that she can progress and be baptized in these coming weeks. 

We're still working with Samantha and Andres, they are both super awesome, they've got plans to get married in December, they've got a few problems sometimes and we hope that we can help them to resolve their problems, but we know that the biggest help they can receive is from our big brother Jesus Christ. They are really incredible and they love us(the missionaries) so much!

We're also working with several other people, several of them have to get married too, but they are interested. We're working with a less active family that has a brother that isn't member yet, we hope that the work goes well this week. We haven't been able to find as many people as we would like, but we know that God knows where they are and that he will guide us to the people that need our help.

It's been a great experience working here in Villa-Celina, I love it so much, I have grown to love even more countries than just Argentina, I've come to love all South America. It's been so awesome to learn Spanish as well, It's a blessing that I'm sure will continue to bless me even after the mission. 

This week one of my favorite experiences that I had was yesterday. We went to visit a less active family that didn't go to church yesterday and we talked with them. I didn't really know what to do or what to say, but I just felt that we needed to show them that we love them. As we were talking with them the mother of the family started telling us about her struggle with some of her children and how she wants then to go the church so much and that she feels so sad that they don't want to get closer to God. She started crying and kept talking and as she spoke, I began to feel something very interesting, as I was watching her and seeing how she expressed so much love for her children, I felt a great feeling of love for her, I felt that our Father in Heaven loves her so much, I began to realize that the love of a mother for her child is so great and even greater is the love of our Father in Heaven for us, for all of his children. In that moment I think I could feel just a fraction of what our Father in Heaven feels for her and for all of us, and WOW, how great is His love!

I love you all and I hope you have a great week! I'm home in 2 weeks so I'll see many of you soon!  With lots of love and a big hug!

 

-Elder Slack

Week 31: The week of everything!

Hello! Still here in Argentina!

I've been having a great time in my new area with my new companion Elder Cordeiro, he's a stud! We've been working really hard and we're really dedicated to the work, so we're hoping to see success by the end of this transfer. 

This week has been full of so many different things. Really though. so full. It's been so exciting to serve here in villegas. The members here are amazing, so loving and caring for the missionaries, It's such a blessing to have a ward where everyone wants to preach the gospel!

Well, what did we do this week, well, first off. THE MIRACLE OF THE WEEK: Yesterday, well, for the whole week me and my companion we were really really focused on our goal to find new investigators, we put the goal to find 15 new investigators during the whole week, it was a really good week, all was going well, but when yesterday came, we had only found 5 new investigators for the week. So, what do we do?? We decided, we have to find 10 investigators, we just have to! It was incredible, we were able to work the whole day, we had like 10 extra minutes before lunch, so we're like "Let's go!" And we bopped around really quick and we stumbled upon this family that were all sitting outside their house cooking up their asado for the sunday, and BAM! We slid right in their and taught them, BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM 6 new investigators in 1 lesson!! That's what I'm talking about! Then later that day, we're bopping around some more looking for some gold references we received from one of our other investigators and we pass by this group of guys playing futbol on the street. BAM! We slide right on over and talk them up a bit, BAM BAM! 2 more new investigators!! We're on a good run! We now have surpassed the amount we had the week before. And then, we pass on by the house of a member to use the bathroom real quick, they give us some diamond references of their neighbors who heard the missionaries before. Then as we are leaving, the hermana comments that this kid who is posted up on a car about 20 feet away needs a little help as well. Well, one can't simply resist that no? We slide right on over, we teach him standing in the sidewalk, BAM! We only need 1 more investigator!!! We're soooooo close, and we still have 2 and a half hours!! We go on a hunt, looking high and low! There has to be someone else who is in need of missionaries at this hour! We searched without success for 2 hours, we've got 30 minutes left! We're looking and looking! And then.... Who comes to mind?? None other than willey! Who's willey you might ask? Well, we had talked with him the other day, he's an old investigator, his wife is member but less-active. Well, we pass by his house... and.... BAM, actually he's super drunk, we enter in his house and teach something, but we didn't count it as a new investigator because, I don't think this morning he remembers any of the things that we taught him. Haha! But yeah. That's the miracle of the week! As we search in faith we can find!

As well, just a quick fun fact, here in my area of Villegas A, there are a ton of paraguayos, or people from paraguay, they are super great, and make some delicious food. I tried this soy coffee this week, from a member.  It's not coffee, it's just called that, it doesn't have caffeine or anything, super duper delicious. 

Anyways. I hope you are all great! I love you guys!!

-Elder Slack