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

Week 65 Thanksgiving Madness

Thanksgiving Madness 

worst part about the mission is....trying to spell in english. 

This week was whack and went by super fast. We set up this awesome lunch for Thanksgiving with a few other Elders. We had planned to go at 12:30 but didn't get there until about 1 and they were just starting to cook. We had a baptism interview to do for the zone at 1:30 so we couldn't stay. The interviews took quite a bit of time and we ended up not getting back to our area until about 3. We then had to go teach Fam REYES (most perfect chosen escogido perfecto no so que familia del mundo) and didn't get out until 4. Then we had a meeting with our ward mission leader (totally loves us now and is helping us plan a bomb Christmas activity) and then we had ward council. In the end we didn't get out until 6 and Elder Meads and I were dying from hunger. But we always have the best dinner Thursdays with the family Martinez that got sealed about 6 months ago. We showed up to their house and.....totally weren't home. Elder Meads and I laughed for awhile and ended up eating tamales (blended corn with meat in the middle and they wrap it in the corn husk) so that was my Thanksgiving.

This is probably going to be my last week here in Santa Fe and well I'm not that hyped about leaving. We really are working so hard and Elder Meads is just awesome. The Lord is guiding us. It honestly seems like every where we go we find someone that was waiting for us. We set some super big goals for this week and I know it's going to be the best week I have had here.

Had interchanges with Elder Quispe! koolest thing ever to see how much he has grown and progressed. We passed the whole day laughing and sharing stories. I guess I never realized how good of friends I have here in the mission until this week. I love people here. 

Love you all so much. Everyone that writes me honestly makes my week that much better. My camera doesn't want to send fotos right now.. 

Elder Thorn

Week 64 Have You Felt the Spirit Today

Have You Felt the Spirit Today? 

Had interchanges this week with Elder Wager (bakersfield, california) and he had that on a post-it note on the inside of his journal. Really had a steller week this week and I always find myself with a solid 5 minutes to write this.

We are really working soo hard with the members in the ward. About two months ago we got a referencia from a member about a less active family. We started visiting with them and in two weeks about half the family started coming to church. They told us about their cousins that also lived in the area. We had a hard time finding them but when we finally did they were so welcoming and really had been waiting to come back to church. We starting working really hard with them because they are not sealed in the temple. They are now super active in the church and should be getting callings before the year ends. 

They told us about a ton of people that lived on their street one being a Hermana Wana. We went to her house Thursday night. Small little two room wooden home. We shouted from the door, like we always do, and this little girl came out and told us her grandma wasn't home. I made a little joke and told her how brave her grandma was for being out so late at night. She laughed and ran inside. As the door opened we could she Hermana Wana sitting on the bed. She starting yelling to us that she hated the church and wanted nothing to do with us. We asked her why and what had happened. She responded with a couple excuses. My inspired companion told her that a member had sent us to visit her. Suddenly she started to become even more angry with us saying that the sisters of the ward hate her and had treated her badly. She started telling us we needed to leave. I thought to myself well we tired, and took a step off the stairs. As I stepped down the thought came to my mind to pull out the photo I had of Christ in my escrituras. I pulled it out and told her I wanted to give her something. She sent her little granddaughter and I handed her the photo. I watched from the door as her face changed. I told her that was who had sent us to her house. She invited us into her home. Almost crying she told us of all the bad things that had happened in the ward over 10 years ago. We shared our testimonies and talked a little about how well our Father in heaven knows us. Suddenly the whole family came into the small little room and started listening to us. Soon we all were laughing and a sweet spirit filled the room. I felt so blessed to know that my Heavenly Father trusted us enough to send us to Hermama Wana. We are going back tomorrow night to teach the three families that live in the home. 

We took the zone to Picacho today and read our mission calls and shared our testimonies about how the Lord calls his missionaries. 

Elder Thorn 

Week 63 You Can Do It

You Can Do It 

YA totally out of time but this week was fantastic! We had our Zone meeting and I am really starting to be a more loving person, I think. I think for all of those that knew me before the mission, and even more so those that followed me on twitter know that I wasn't the nicest kid or the most loving. I think that is really starting to change. I realized during the zone meeting, after I spoke, that I really just wanted the missionaries to be happy. I remember how hard it was for me when I only had 3, 4, or even 8 months in the mission. Looking back it was just like YOU CAN DO IT. Like you can baptize the whole world. You are just a little 18 year old kid in a different country do you not realize how much the Savior is helping you, how much he loves you, how much he wants you to succeed? 

As far as the area goes the ward LOVES us. We started bringing lil snickers to the ward council to try and help people be more motived to give us references. Just something lil to show them that we really are here to help them. Needless to say it's working. Everyone wants to leave and teach with us. Everyone is always like hey elders I want you to visit my neighbor and they are going to be at my house Tuesday at 6. I don't think you guys at home realize how steller that is. Makes the work soo much easier and more enjoyable. Life is good. The Gospel is perfect. We are truly the family of our heavenly parents and they don't want anyone to get left behind. Don't be selfish with what you have. Share the Gospel. Be Creative. 

ELDER THORN 

Lil photo of Elder Ang after the zone meeting. Happiest dude.

Week 62 Elder Duncan

ELDER DUNCAN 

Pretty much spent the week in meetings but it was solid. Elder Duncan the area presidente of central america came and talked to the mission this week. The leaders of the church are with out a doubt called and ordain of God. The things he spoke about were spot on. It really is such an eye opening experience to watch someone teach with the spirit, to watch how he opens up missionaries and helps them learn through the spirit. He came here to Country so Elder Meads and I got to set up all the tech stuff and make sure everything was running right. Then when we got here I got to talk with him one on one quite a bit. Truly an example of a man of Christ. Also super funny and loving. Made me reflect (think honestly not sure how to word that right) about what people think of me. How do I teach? Do people feel that they really are important to me? Do they see the light of Christ in us? 

We brought 7 people to church this week! We have these two kids that are really coming through por fin. They are friends of Family Tejada who got baptized like 4 years ago. They both are 18 and are going to be steller missionaries one day. We are going to have a lesson with them Wednesday in the house of family Tejada. I haven't wrote a lot about them because we haven't really taught a real lesson because they are always in school but they are on break now so it's game time.

Okay so check this out. Danail, the dude that is reading the Book of Mormon and is just steller. He filled us in a little more on who his dad is. His dad not only is a pastor. oh no, his dad is the leader of ALL the baptist pastors in ALL of Honduras. Ya. He explained to us how when him and his brother do dumb stuff how all the pastors find out and then get on his dads back about it and that's why they live in this little house where no one knows them. He showed us all these pictures of his dad and family and what not and its crazy. But at the end of the day he is changing so much, even his brother Ariel the other day was like hey what did you guys do to Danial? He is like nice now haha. It's awesome. 

Here is some pictures. I got some lil plants for the house. swag 

oh and my watch broke this week....tears were shed