Hey family!!
So Dad I have figured out why I
am not specific enough for you.... it’s because I don’t know the specifics. Ha!
I don’t know our address yet but I will ask my companion what our writing address
is. Its different than my address I live at. But I can tell you what it
looks like down here. Think of any Latin American movie then think of it
ten times poorer and you will have an idea of what it’s like. All the
streets are always full of people because everyone walks everywhere. There are
bigger roads with so much traffic that you have to walk half way across the
street stop in the middle and wait until they're is another brake before you
cross again. There are smaller street that are full of stairs and the houses
are all connected. There are laundry lines hanging across the street with
clothes all over it. The houses down here are so colorful, so many different
colors and all bright. I don't know what it is down here but people could care
less if things match so you get some pretty scary color mixes. Then there are
so places like by the train tracks (I am going to ride the train today, just a
side note kind of excited) but the people practically live on the train tracks
and they live in tin houses, just made out of wood and tin. The poverty here is...
well it’s everywhere. It’s so hard to find work, the war they had not long ago
is still affecting everything. I don’t know how many of our investigators we
are praying for to find work. But on thing I love about this country is that
there is a tienda on every corner or like every 20 feet. People have stores in their
houses and they just open up the inside door (always have two doors one metal
and the other wrought iron) and sell out of their house and there is literally
one every 20 feet so you can stop and get anything you want down here. It’s so
hard right know cause everything down here has sugar and I am trying to be so
good and not eat it, but I feel like I am missing out on all there is to offer
in El Salvador. The frescas (jucies drinks, pan dulces, ice cream) hard
life for me down here, Ha! Everywhere I turn there is sugar.
Well that’s a bit about where I live, let me tell you
about the people we are teaching. So we have 12 progressing investigators... that’s
a lot if you were wondering. We have a goal next month to baptize
someone each week. We already have 3 with dates and are trying to
get 3 others so keep them in your prayers because once the choice is made
to get baptized things start happened and we don’t want anyone to not get baptized.
First we have Evelyn, she is so ready to get baptized. She
has been investigating the church for a long time waiting for a divorce and it
finally came through so we are planning for the end of September for her so we can
also plan the wedding.
Then we have Yaneth and Willam. Yaneth is a mother
who has two sons one is 17 the other 15 and they joined the church not too long
ago. She wants to get baptized so badly and they are finally getting
to the point where they can. William and Yaneth were living together but have
separated and understand that they either have to get married or separate
so they have separated and they can now get baptized.... William is a
little more hesitant than Yaneth so pray that his heart will be softened
and that he will desire to be baptized.
Next we have Elena, she is great, she has a son that
is 9 and they both came to church yesterday. The first time we meet
Elena we didn’t teach her anything only gave her a pamphlet and a
Book of Mormon when we returned the next week she had read 11 chapters in
the Book of Mormon and was telling us all about Nephi and his brothers. It was
so great.
Next we have the Chiquillo family and they have a
lot of problems, please keep them in your prayers. The thing with them is
if things are going fine they dont want to hear the gospel but when things
start getting hard they want the gospel so pray for them.
That’s the major ones. Thanks so much for your
prayers, they are felt. And please keep me in your prayers that I may
learn the language fast. I can talk in lessons because I know the
vocab and even then I mess up, but I can’t talk about anything else and I
want to be these people’s best friends but I can’t talk to them and it is so frustrating. I
know it will come but man I am bad with patience. Ha.
Anyway, I want to hear from you guys. What is everyone up
to? Where are all the letters from my brothers and sisters? Ha! What the point
of having a big family? So I can brag to all the other missionaries on how many
letters I get!!! Hah! But I can’t brag if I don’t get them..... Ha! Hint
hint. I haven’t heard from Tania in a while, I just wrote her
a letter to the house, I am scared she has already found Mr. Right and
has no time to write cause she is having so much fun....... know that
I love you all so much. I have been studying the family and how
important it is man I am so blessed with the people the Lord chose to
place me with. Each one of you is in my life for a reason and I am learning so
much form all of you.
I am having a hard time deciding on what to bear my
testimony on this week. I have learned so much. We have taught the Plan of
Salvation a lot this week and I think it is my favorite lesson to teach. I love
how simple and perfect it is. How everything makes sense with the knowledge of
the plan. I love to see the look on people’s faces when we get done explaining
it . They are like “oh! Well that makes sense”.
I am so blessed to have been sent to a place that already has such a strong
faith in Christ and why we need him in our lives. It is my favorite part of the
plan and I love explaining it. My trainer says I will always explain that part
because she says I am really good at it..... I hope I am. It is the basis of my
testimony; I know that our savoir lives. I love telling people that the plan
works with Christ and that it couldn’t work without him. That he is the only way
we can return to live with God. I love showing that God knew that we were going
to mess up in this life and that is why he sent his son. That God
made it possible for all to obtain the celestial kingdom! He doesn’t just
want to save some of his children he wants to save all and there are only a few
things that he has asked us to do… And we don’t even have to be perfect in
doing them, we just have to try our best and have faith in Christ and continue
to try and be better. I love that!!
I like the title of the book you are reading Mom and Dad because
its so true, we are in many respects falling towards heaven, we are not perfect
and we are going to make mistakes........many times. I feel like this life is
more about what we do when we make mistakes than trying not to make them. God
wants us to learn to choose the right but also to choose to want to be better
and then do it. It is the harder road half them time to try and change but that
is was makes Christ so amazing, that the road is made easier through him and
our sins and all that keep us from entering the celestial kingdom are swallowed
up in the Joy of Christ and we are able to be saved because we chose to try and
be better.... not that we are all the time but that we choose to try and be
better every day. I love how simple and perfect it is that even in our
imperfect state we can still make it to God through Christ if we
choose to.
Well I love you family. I will try and send pictures
soon. My USB thing doesn’t work but my companion knows were I can
find one that will work for cheep so just a week or two more and
I’ll get you pictures.
I love you all
Love,
Hermana Hale
No comments:
Post a Comment