Week 69 Christmas Honduran Style Round 2

Christmas Honduran style round two 

This week went by too fast and I made a lot of special memories. Family Avila invited us to eat dinner in their home the 24th. Christmas here is celebrated the 24th. And I felt so at home with them. I felt so welcome and even the lil daughter Ruth told us to go to bed early because santa was going to drop off presents. Cutest lil family.

Calling the family was a special moment. I think something that I never thought about before the mission was how great it is to hear a familiar voice. Every time I have talked to my family here in the mission I get this heart throbbing feeling when I first hear my mother's voice. The family is truly the greatest part of life. We spent the whole week teaching people about the family and the role we all play in the family of our Heavenly Father and the proclamation to the world. The Family is such a power tool. I don't think there was a single person this week who didn't let us into their home. 

Had a once in a mission opportunity this week (I hope someone laughs at that) we got to teach the family of the Mayor of Taulabé. There is a couple missionary; family Mendoza. They are so amazing and helped us set a date to meet with The mayor and his family. We showed up yesterday and met the whole family. Super nice and even gave us juice. The Mayor himself never showed up which made for a downer, due to the fact he was stuck in some remote town about 2 hours away. But we taught 13 people about how to have a successful family and how to do a prayer as a family. We finished the lesson with Elder Mendoza and his wife singing. Then we knelt in prayer, all 13 together. We will be going back this week to teach them the restoration.

ELDER THORN

Familia Avila

 We got stuck in Siguatepeque and there were no buses. Thumbed a ride back with this dude in a semi. (as far as I know this is not against the rules) He has been going to church the last 6 months but can't get baptized because he needs to get divorced and than married. Miracles happen.

Week 68 Week of Service

Week of Service 

Hardly got to work in Taulabé all week. Pres Ferman is super focused on doing a bunch for service this holiday season and we as a zone did some steller projects.

But the two days we did get to work we found 6 families. I just pass all my time smiling here in Taulabé. Other then at night. Our house is a oven no joke. The lil group here is growing and we are slowing finding people that were baptized in other parts of Honduras but now live here. Something super sick that happened this week was we got to attend and speak at the weddings of 5 families that got married. They do these group weddings here. They all go to the court house and they marry all of them at the same time. The mayor does a lil speech and all the families come. There is a couple that is serving a mission in Siguatepeque that is next level. Elder Mendoza. He hooked up a connection with the mayor and the four of us went and talking in the wedding ceremony (Elder Mendoza his wife, elder Co and I) but the best part was after. We gave them all "The Proclamation to the world, The family" and they all agreed to meet with us. Then the Mayor himself accepted that we visit with him on the 27th with his whole family. Miracles are happening. 

FELIZ NAVIDAD 

ELDER THORN 

Bus ride selfie

Shined shoes in the park for free

Elder Small played the guitar

this drunk dude came and held the sign for a soild 2 hours and got tons of people to come 

Set the foundation for a new home.

Blistered hands

Pres gave me permission to ride a horse haha best day of the mish hands down 

Week 67 The First Sacrament of Taulabé

The First Sacrament Meeting of Taulabé

We had sacrament meeting in our little house with 21 people for the very first time here in the aldea of Taulabé. The missionaries have been wanting to be here for a few years but have never had the chance. The missionaries have come and visited it every once in awhile. Taulabé is about 30 minutes north of Siguatepeque (where the church has one ward and a branch). There is a solid 15 members here that have been traveling to Siguatepeque for 16 years to partake of the sacrament. A few months back Elder Johnson and Elder De la Rosa started coming to Taulabé once a week to see if it would be possible to start the Church here. Then Elder Small (who came to Honduras with me) starting coming with Elder De la Rosa and asking Pres. Ferman if we could give Taulabé a chance. They got the go and found a house to live in and got the back up of the branch Presidente, Pres. Zuniga, to help with the work. When I got to changes on Monday they announced that I would be training. I wasn't surprised, I had a feeling that I would be training for a few week. But when Pres told me that I would be starting a branch in an area that has never had missionaries, I felt this overwhelming excitement to share the Gospel. I received Elder Co.

Elder Co has a long and amazing story of how he got into the mission but I will keep it short. Born and raised in Guatemala in a familia Catholic. He went to the states for work in Texas and was enjoying it much. A friend gave him a number of a lady that lived in Utah that could give him a job. We traveled to SLC and slept in the apartment of a bunch of return missionaries that served in spanish speaking missions. They talked about the church and he accepted the invitation to attend that Sunday. Had a lot of questions his first Sunday but felt the need to keep learning. He met with the missionaries that week and they told him to offer a sincere prayer asking if he needed to be baptized. He told them he had never said a sincere prayer to ask God something before and wasn't sure that it would work. It did. He prayed and asked our Heavenly Father about his baptism after 6 months and felt the need to follow the Savior's example and be baptized for emersion by someone who holds the priesthood authority. Three weeks later he was baptized and had read the Book of Mormon. Since then he hasn't missed a Sunday and has helped his mom and sister who live in Guatemala get baptized. 

In the Four days we have had here in Tualabé we have found and taught 40 people. Broke the record for new people in a week in just four days. People were inviting us into their house without us even saying a word. People called us after handing our a little cards on the bus, saying that they wanted us to pass by to teach them more about the Book of Mormon and Jesus in the Americas. It has been a Week of miracles. I have felt that the Savior is at our side. I have felt stronger than I have ever felt in my life that the Savior lives. This is HIS church. The same person that was born 2000 years ago in Belen of Mary, the same person that pled with the Father in the garden of Gethsemane, that was crucified on the cross, the same person that took his life again the third day, that same person appeared to Joseph Smith. I know it. I feel it in the deepest part of my being and the joy that it brings me to share it with the families here in Taulabé for the first time is an opportunity that I will not pass up. 

ELDER THORN 

Elder Co in SLC

Week 66 Honduras is Cleaning Up for Christmas

Honduras is Cleaning Up for Christmas

Christmas has totally started here in Honduras and everyone is hyped. The people here really love Christmas. Not anything like Christmas in the states but they really love what they have. Most people put up trees and lights. But they all paint their houses. It's Awesome. Everyone cleans their house and paints it and just makes everything look super nice. We went and painted an entire house this week of the less active family that loves us.

This week went a little different then planned. We were really trying to clean the area for the change. We went with the people we are teaching and decided if we were going to keep teaching them or no. For a lot of them it was a no. One thing I have learned here in the mission, is that some people are ready and that is why you are there. Others are just starting the process and you are there to plant a seed or to help the little plant they have grow. I have taught more than 500 people in my time here. Everyone has been the biggest blessing. It's honestly a miracle that anyone opens the doors for us. 

I didn't complete all my goals for the week but we did bring 7 people to church. haha its a head ache bringing that many people to church. We have to be running and asking members to do this and help with that, all to try and make sure everyone has a spiritual experience. I love it here! We have enough food in our fridge right now for two weeks, all from members.  

We had a GIANT stake Christmas activity and this kid from the ward did the funniest dance as santa. 

This was a lil whacky. Made me realize how OLD I am now. This is Elder Jones. He has exactly a year less then me in the mission. Really awesome kid from California.

 Put up the hammock again

I am almost 20