Monday, January 10, 2011

District Meeting Fun

This week for the district meeting we talked about the importance that the Book of Mormon has in the conversion process. After we talked about that I asked the elders to go outside and look for the golden plates. When they found them, they were blank, so we each wrote on them our testimony as to why the Book of Mormon is important to us. It was something fun and new for them to do. So there is a picture of Mormon (me) compiling the book of the district of La Union, and there is another photo of Elder Rodriguez, whose parents live really close to us, and he has
the Urim and Thumim, the knife of Laban, the plates, and a ball of curious workmanship (thanks to grandma).

(Colin made the plates out of soda cans he cut open and boiled.)


Friday, January 7, 2011

Looking Back...

Well, everything is going great. I am a little sick with nasal congestion, but it will go away soon.It has started to be super hot this week, by 7 in the morning I am already sweaty. It is crazy. I am tired though; not going to lie about that! But things are going well.

I really love studying the scriptures now. I never did it too much before my mission, like you know, but it is really interesting. There is so much stuff to learn it is amazing! So many cool things have connections to other things. Also, before my mission, I almost never read the Bible but it is really cool as well. It is so interesting how there are so many things in there that relate to the Doctrine and Covenants and the Book of Mormon. It is just so neat. The sad thing is that it seems the more you get to know, the more you realize how little you know. Also, you can tell a big difference in your day when you really study.

I loved Cojutepeque, not just because of the people, but because that was where I had the most doctrinal growth on my mission. My first change there, it was 4 missionaries in the same house and so there was always something going on, and there was almost no studying in the morning. Finally, I decided I had to change something. The others wouldn't do anything, so I started to set my alarm at 5:30 in the morning. This was one of the best decisions of my life! I started studying every morning for an hour in the peace and quite. I would go outside in the cool morning mist; it was great. When we finally changed houses and got our own, I still woke up at 5:30, it was so great. Really, in the time of 3 months there, I have never learned so much about the gospel. It also built up my confidence in the language because I would only study in Spanish. It was just one of the best things I could have done. I feel as though I have a better knowledge of things, even though I don't know every thing, at least I am a little more educated in the gospel. But wow, I still have a ton to learn, but at the same time I am so happy with what I have been able to gain. Scripture study is such a blessing!

Monday, January 3, 2011

A Lesson from a Hobo :)

In El Salvador, according to Colin, drunk and/or homeless men follow people around everywhere, begging for money.  Recently when Colin and his companion were hitchhiking, a drunken homeless man came up to him and his companion and told them that servants of God should not have to hitchhike, they should be able to ride the bus.  So then the man gave each of them a quarter so that they could take the bus- quite a big service for a homeless person :)