Week 43 Stop Drop and Roll

Stop Drop and Roll 

Putting in some serious work here in Marcala. Elder Lopez found a box of folletos de Castidad like 500 or so. Needless to say all of Marcala will know the commandment of the chastity by the end of July. 

I feel like I am at a pretty weird spot in the mission. I honestly feel like I have only 4 or 5 months here in the mission. I decided this week that I am going to make an impact. With every comp with every investigator with every family every member every area and in the end I am going to make an impact on Honduras. I am learning soo much from Elder Lopez its wild. I really love this kid. I think the only person I have got along with like I get along with him is Mckay. Really is one of my best friends.

Pres. Diaz went on vacation this week... lol ya so Sunday was next level wild. We had to plan everything and it really taught me a lot about how important our callings are as members.  Don't just do your part in the ward but help others do theirs. 

I really think I am starting to understand who I am and when we come to understand what is really important we can find a a new happiness. Something we have been teaching to everyone this week is that the love our Heavenly Father has for us hasn't changed. He loved the people in the old testament enough to give them a prophet. He loves us just as much as he loved them. I know Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God and that if I follow his example I with obtain the same happiness my Father in Heaven has.

Elder Thorn

This is a bird that loves me but it can't fly

Fredi

Week 42 Miracle Week

Miracle Week 

I almost don't even want to write this because I know how far off it's going to be from what really happened this week.

I have almost three months here in Marcala and it has been super rough number wise. But after all the work and fasting I have put in I finally got to see some success. I had two baptisms this week and one was with a friend of a life time. I was privileged to take part in the baptism of Fredi this Wednesday. The sisters contacted him like the first week I was here but he was the type of guy that just wanted to know weird stuff like what language God speaks in. The sisters dropped him (stopped teaching him) after 5 weeks or so. Long story short we ended up teaching him again and challenged him to really ask God if the Book of Mormon is true. Not beat around the bush and try to prove it in the eyes of men but ask God the question exactly " is the book of mormon true and was Joseph Smith a prophet" . That's when we saw the change. He was still super worried about baptism and had his fair share of satan's temptations. We visited 6 different places to help him decide where he wanted to be baptized. IN the end he decided to be baptized at this waterfall in our area. This is the part that is so hard for me to write. 

 We left with a small group of people from the branch in a little old toyota tacoma. I was packed in the cab with the sisters and elder Lopez (we cant ride in pila) for the 20 minutes drive or so. As we pulled up to the waterfall it was raging with water. I knew this is where Heaven Father wanted him to be baptized. We changed into our white and walked down with the small group. We sat on the boulders and sang a few hymns. As I walked into the water I felt nervous and my feet were almost slipping on the rocks below. As I found my footing and helped Fredi to do the same I looked back at the small group on the shore. But it wasn't just the small group on the shore. Even though I couldn't see them I know with a surety that it wasn't just this small group watching his baptism. I almost want to write more but I hope you guys can feel a little of what I felt and see a little of what I saw in these photos.

The second baptism we had this week was with a 16 year old named Ana she has a little boy that has just one year but is the cutest little kid. She has one of the hardest life's I have even seen. But I have learned soo much from her. How important it is to forget ourselves and help those that surround you. 

I hope one day I can share these two stories a little more clearly. 

ELDER THORN 

Fredi's Baptism

Ana's baptism

Fredi took us to El Salvador this morning lol. Honestly can't wait to see what this guy is going to do to help the branch.

Week 41 Famous in Marcala

Famous in Marcala 

Lots of crazy things are happening in the mission right now. President Fortuna is done this change. This might be my last week here in Marcala. Wednesday I am Baptizing Fredi in a waterfall.

Had a super hard week work wise. This little town beats me up sometimes. I never have worked harder in my life then I have in this area. And I mean both physically, mentally, and spiritually. I think the last one is the hardest part in the mission for me. Because I had next to no experience when I started my mission. You have to be so focused spiritually here in the mission and if you aren't you aren't going to help anyone. I think that is something I am starting to understand now. That quite often I think someone is progressing and is ready for baptism and then they pull out this weird excuse to not be baptized. This has been happening with Fredi Garcia (going to see if I have a picture of him) for almost my whole time here. He always comes to church, he has read like 150 pages of the BOM (more then me before the mission) but he still just couldn't commit to be baptized. Turns out his mom (the dude is 45) was sending people form other churches to visit him and tell him not to be baptized. Well long story short he ended up praying with us to see if he needs to be baptized. Tomorrow I am going with him at 7 to check out his waterfall in his field to see if we can baptize him there.

Had the Zone Leaders here on Friday. We are so far away that they just slept here lol. 

Other crazy good news. Elder Edwards (my very first comp that went home in the CCM) is going back to the mission!! But to Washington Tacoma. 

Also got a package from the young women in my ward this week!! hichews for days lol so happy. 

Love you kids.

ELDER THORN

Played in a bouncy house today. 

radio crew. i will be talking on the radio again this Wednesday at 6 look up radio cafe Marcala on ustream if you want to listen 

Ever's birthday

lol i bought a cake that said FOR EVER. lololol no one got the joke though. 

This is Ever who is one of my favorite kids here in Honduras he is trying sooo hard to get out on a mission but his mom legit cant live with out him. it was his birthday this week and we went and smashed eggs on his head at 6 in the morning lol its a thing they do here.

Week 40 Ima Think of a Title Later

Ima Think of a Title Later

I had a dream the other night that I was a professional baseball player. needless to say i am really changing here in the mission.

Things are sooo whack right now. Elder Lopez and i are doing the craziest things to try to find people because just contacting hasn't worked at all here. I got to talk on the radio for an hour the other day!! mostly talked about the free english classes we have and all these people were calling and asking us questions. Like 5 people asked me to marry them, including a dude. But in the end we had over 30 people in the english class!! and all week people were like hey gringo was that you on the radio. Really just trying to build the church´s rep here because its just not good to say the least.

Jose Trino (the blind dude) took second in the 5km race this week lol. Ya he runs along side a person who can see with a little rope. The best part the dude he was running with took 3rd. He told me he knew they were done and he just dropped the rope and sprinted. Craziest dude in the world. Still not coming to church though. He travels sooo much. 

Just want to bare my testimony that there is a joy in keeping the rules. I see and hear of too many missionaries that think they know better then the first presidency or really in the fin our Heavenly Father. Keep the rules weather you're in the mission or not.

ELDER THORN 

Zona La Esperanza

Took out the five young men we have yesterday to visit less actives. All are converts. Noah has the most time in the church with like 5 years.

Random waterfall this morning

It's was like party week here and this was a game they played. hahah best part was all these dudes are soooooo drunk and couldn't even walk let along climb.

Lol so presidente Diaz asked me what I missed the other day and I said pancakes. He invited us over for pancakes and well ya eat pancakes with beans....still miss pancakes.

Week 39 Radio Lessons

Radio Lessons

Weeks are flying by and next thing I know I am sitting here trying to think of all the things I want to share. 

I was blessed with a opportunity of taking part in a miracle this week. We went to visit familia Hernandez, German y Carla, and like normal super powerful lesson. This family is seriously gold but they need to get married and its nothing short of a miracle to get people married here (unless its in the catholic church). At the end of the lesson my comp asked if there was anything that they needed help with, like stuff around the house, and German started crying. Big bearded man of like 35 years starts full of crying. All he said was that tomorrow they weren't going to have any where to sleep. I was super confused because they are a pretty nice house. He explained to them that the lady that owns their house was asking for the past 8 months rent because they hadn't been able to pay it. it was 20,000 limps or like 1000 dollars. My comp shared an experience that he had with his own family that was far too perfect for me to share here. But in short his family had passed for a similar situation. We invited them to do a fast as a family to ask the Lord for a miracle or for some way that their family could have somewhere to sleep. The next day around 4 he called me with an energy in his voice that was unmatchable. The lady who owns the house had visited them that morning to kick them out but instead presented a new plan for them to pay what they owned. German also received a bonus in his job and was able to pay about a fourth of what they owed.

Too many miracles happen here in the mission. I have truly seen the hand of Christ work miracles here in Marcala. 

Went to the Chiflador again today and it was even more steller than the first time. and we got this investagador to give us a ride. buuttt he goes to jail Tuesday.. lol long story short he was cutting trees in a place where you can't cut trees and haha ya he was to go to jail for 4 years. His name is tuke 

Oh the title lol. the radio guys love us and this Tuesday we have a half hour to answer people questions about mormons its going to be freaking awesome. 

Went out and found this contact this week. not the most positive but taught 2 families.

 Tuke

Other waterfall we visited on the way to the big waterfall

Seriously love this kid!  Not every comp is a friend but Elder Lopez is a homie.