November 22, 2010-Pictures

November 22, 2010

Hey Everyone hows it going? Things are going good here. Let me tell you it is so HOT here it´s crazy. Also it´s not even officially summer here. Thanksgiving is next week and it doesn't even feel like it. Anywho I got a cool experience to share with all of you.

Ok so about 2 weeks ago we were doing contacts and we knocked on this door and this 18 year old kid came out and the gate was locked but we started talking to him. Then his sister came home from school and she had keys. They let us in and they were really friendly. We were talking with them for a good time and then we started to teach them about the plan of salvation then the mom came home and she was really nice. We started talking to her for a bit then we started teaching again. We talked about where we came from and why we are here and what we have to do to go back to heaven. We then talked about baptism and they liked the idea and they were baptized as babies. We explained that you don't have sins then and they agreed with that. We invited them to be baptized but they said did not accept. But they said they would pray about it. The mom was telling us that it was very rare that the son let us in her house because nobodys allowed in their house when the parents are not there. They all felt like it was for a reason and not just something of chance. So we went back 2 days later and taught their dad who was there and they all accepted dated to get baptized which was pretty cool because it is a family. We went back a few days later and taught them the Restoration and they loved it. Before we started talking about Joseph Smith they kept saying how there needs to be some kind of evidence with prophets and I was just loving it because I knew that they were going to love the Book of Mormon. I love teaching people about Joseph Smith. The spirit is always so strong. after we talked about all of it I asked the dad who was kinda hard and stubborn in the beginning with everything how he felt during this time of sharing with his family. He told me a peace and just a really good feeling that was hard to describe . This is the shortened version of this story but the spirit was so strong. They all noticed that the spirit was strong. The son came to church with us and he doesn't believe in God. It was great.

Well that is the latest from down south but hope all is well up there.

Love Garrett

November 15, 2010

Hey Everybody whats up?

This past week was pretty incredible. I say that for many reasons. Number one is that we went back to the family that was offended to see if we could resurrect them. We brought a member with us who is a convert from the Catholic church and a returned missionary. He told his conversion story to them and how he was offended his first Sunday also but before he came to church he prayed and received an answer. He left the church early and went home crying because some of the boys in his class were mean to him and so he left. He told himself that he was never going to come back to church, which is exactly what Fabian said to us who is the dad of this family. But the member we brought told them that he went and prayed that night because he couldn't deny the feelings he felt when he prayed the first time. So he prayed again to ask if the church was true again and he felt the same way that he did the first time. As he was telling his story the spirit was really strong and it was really great. At the end they said that they just need to pray and truly ask God. The next day we had a family home evening with them and my comp from Ecuador made fried bananas. Then we watched a movie about this guy from Italy who found a Book of Mormon without a cover. He was a catholic priest or something like that and was converted and by the end of his life he got baptized. They really liked it. They couldn't come to church because they had a family ting on Sunday but I am sure they will come next Sunday.

Also another interesting experience that happened was on Friday we contacted this lady and she gave us her direction to her house. We went there on Saturday and it was her mother in laws house. So we started to teach her and this lady just rubbed me the wrong way. She was just being so jokey and just not taking serious what we were saying. I was just getting really angry with her. I had to constrain myself from talking because she was just making me so mad. But before we started teaching she gave us the direction to her daughter in laws house. So we went to go find it which was on the other side of our area. So we got there and she wasn't home. So one of my comp started contacting a door. A lady came out and my comp really didn´t say anything at all as the lady told us to come in. I was a little worried because it was so easy. So we get in there and sit down and the lady just starts crying and just crying. It´s hard to understand in english when people are crying and talking and in spanish it´s even harder. She was telling us that she has had so many trials in her life and why did she have to suffer so much. She told us that her brother was starting to get papers to take the right of the house away that was her dads and that her dad died in September and she was really close to her dad. She was crying to the point to where it´s hard to breath normal. For the first couple minutes all we could do was just sit there and listen to her. We talked about the atonement and how Jesus suffered for her and understand her. We shared a scripture with her in Alma 7. I started talking to her and letting her know that we don't always understand our trials that we have but God does and knows us and what is good for us. I also told her about my parents and my grandpa and how they all died. After that she told me so you know how I feel and understand me. I then told her that she needed Christ in her life and needs to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized. And she accepted the invitation. Now I don't know if we will see her again because she is only here on the weekends but we have an return appointment for next week. That experience really hit me strong and it makes me think how many people are suffering out there in the world without this message. Now obviously people still suffer that are in the church but they suffer with patience and happiness and not alone.

Well as to me I am doing alright just trying to find more love of Christ because lately it´s been rough to find it for some people but it´s a work in progress. I hope all of you are doing good. take care.

Love Garrett

November 8, 2010

Wow what a long crazy week of changes it has been. So for all of those of you who don't know I am in a trio now and it´s kinds weird but oh well I have a latin comp so that is good and now we have like a bunch of people to teach. But wow where do I start. So we had the family home evening with Ingrid and her boyfriend and this other lady we are teaching and her husband and I made the Blt´s and they loved them. It was very fun to do that and something different. We read the proclamation to the world to them about the family and what is a family and about eternal marriage and I bore my testimony to them about the importance of it and with my parents and all and Ingred started crying a little. They know that they have to get married but Ingred is just scared because her parents split up when she was younger so it is kinda hard for her. We put a date with them so for the 6th of December to get married. We told them to pray together and to ask God if they need to get married. They said they would. The next appointment we had with them we were late because we were teaching this really intense lesson to this really Catholic family who are MARRIED but we testified with power and boldness. We finally got them to agree to go to church because my comp told these people he used to be a Jehovah witness and told them his story. It was powerful and it worked. So we showed up on Sunday to go to there house and take them to church. It was fast Sunday. So I thought ok well this could be good or really bad. And everything was going great until this lady who is new in the church and doesn't know that much went up and started talking about how worshiping saints is bad and anyone who does that is following the devil. This family was sitting in the front row. I could not believe what I was hearing. They were offended and they have a niece who is a member and she went and talked to them and said how she is new in the church and how we respect all religions. We are going to watch the video with them about between heaven and earth where all the pastors and Jewish rabbis and men talk. But I basically felt like somebody just recked my sand castle just after finishing it.

So with Ingred the mission president and his wife came and met Luis and her and they talked and made really good friends. It was really cool but kinda weird at the same time. They asked them when they were getting married it was funny.

Well I gotta go, but things are going good and I just need all the prayers for our sector because there are lots of possibilities but just need lots of extra help. Take care.

Love Garrett

November 1, 2010

Hey Everyone another week here in Chile that was amazing I must admit. The Lord really is in charge and we are just his instruments to make the music sound good but he is the one that is playing it but as missionary's be have to stay in tune to the spirit so he can make us sound good. First of all let me tell you what happened with Ingred this week. We taught her twice this week the first time we talked about Joseph Smith because she was confused about him and who exactly he was. She told us that since she has been sharing with us she has been more patient and felt more love for people and just more happy. She has some doubts about some things but she wants to see if these things are true and if the Book of Mormon is true we left her with Alma 32 when it talks about the faith.So we went back and she read it and we talked about what she liked and what she learned and before we started the lesson her partner walked in, Luis the guy she lives with. Ingred said he had some questions for us. So we started talking and we watch the movie the restoration and they really liked it. Ingred said she understands it better about what happened with him. Luis said that he thinks that it is true that Joseph Smith saw Jesus and Heavenly Father. We are going to have a family home evening with them tomorrow and I am going to make BLT´s, last time I did it the people loved them so we will see. Also Ingred came to church and brought a friend that we taught the other day with her. She is great. We are going to talk about marriage a little bit and bring up the topic. So if everyone could pray for them that would be great.

Also yesterday we were knocking doors and this guy named Fabian answered the door and he is 21 he looked a lot older. Anyways he said he had shared with elders before but then they moved and lost contact. We went into the house and started talking to him and it was just, I don't know how to explain it. He has been prepared, I am not kidding, he went to Church like 3 times like 6 years ago and then moved. His parents are catholic and he has never been to interested in any of that. He was baptized when he was a baby but thats it. He told us he always felt like believing in saints was wrong and that confessing your sins to a priest was wrong because a priest can´t forgive you only God can. We taught him about baptism and he was really sincere about everything. He told us this story about growing up he always felt bad because him and his friends made fun of this kid growing up and he always felt bad about it and he said he went and found him asked for forgiveness. The guy said it was ok but he said he still felt bad and I told him that with getting baptised you can feel lifted of that pain you feel. He accepted a date to get baptized for the 28th of November. We were reading out of the Book of Mormon with him and the things we were reading from he agreed with. He said that he has never agreed with any religion really growing up and never felt good really. He said that we cleared up some of his doubts that he had. Before we ended I had the impression to tell him the love that God has for him and how proud he is that he is taking this step to get baptized. This guy Fabian just has a special spirit about him. I am excited to teach him again.

Well this week was good and I love being a missionary. I hope all is well with everyone.

Love Garrett

October 25, 2010

Hola well this week as all of you know I am in a new sector called Curico. It is so huge and it´s really pretty. I am in a ward now we have like 90 people that were in the church last Sunday. The chapel we are in is kinda ghetto, it´s really small. But the people are really great. The house we live in is like the best in the mission it has 2 bathrooms and 2 storys. My companion is named Elder Yeakley he is from Boise he is a funny kid. So something really cool happened this week. We first started to do contact just knocking doors and this was on Wednesday, I think, maybe Tuesday. Anyways this woman came out and we started talking and my comp asked if we could come in and she said yes. So we went in there and got to know her a bit and she works with special needs kids and I told her about Gabe and that was cool to have that connection. So eventually we got talking about baptism and what we need to do to get cleaned of our sins. She was very receptive and is very smart. So my companion invited her to be baptised and she said well if I receive an answer then of course I will. During the end of the lesson I testified to her about the importance of families to her for some weird reason because she has a child and what not. At the end of the lesson we asked her to say the prayer and she didn't want to so I just said it. I didn't think much about it after that, but the next appt my district leader and my comp went back there and she said that I just gave the prayer in a special way and she just felt like the spirit of God was in her house and just felt so good. That made me feel so good when I heard that. They taught her the restoration and she loved it and when they talked about the restoration of the apostasy she just gasped almost and she said she got this feeling inside her like a burning inside her. They told her that was the holy ghost telling you this is true. Also they gave her a Book of Mormon and she was about to buy a book to start reading and she didn't because they were expensive so now she has the best book ever to read. Also something that is ironic is that she lives with her partner and I asked them if they had been thinking about marriage and she said yes, they want to do it this year they have been together for 10 years. The Ironic part is that she came to a baptism of the other missionaries because she couldn't come to church and her best friend is being taught by the other elders that we live with and is really close to baptism. Everything has just been a little miracle and been really cool. We just gotta get them married so she can get baptised. Her name is Ingred by the way for those of you who wanted to know haha.

So I am really grateful to be here and I know this church is true and I love seeing the hand of the Lord in this work because it really shows that this gospel is true. Take care all of you and hope your week is great.

Love Garrett

October 18, 2010

Hello everyone well they kicked me out of Linares haha and I am going to a place called Cudico. I will be senior comp there. It´s the farthest northern part of are mission. So it´s a bitter sweet feeling leaving a sector. I am content with leaving because we had a baptism with Nora. It was so great to see the changes in her. Well I tried to send the pictures but the stupid computer doesn't want to read my memory card so I will send them next week. Well I have decided that I hate saying goodbye to people it really sucks. But I have gotten really close to some people here and it will be hard to say goodbye. I have felt like my email have just gotten worse and worse as time goes on. I have really learned a lot here in Linares more than I ever thought I would and I will use every bit of it for the future.

Well this past week I was sick had a fever that was fun NOT but hey I'm still alive and doing great. I am sorry for my crappy emails but I will write more next week in my new area and send the pictures. Well I love you all and thank you for your emails and your love and concern.


Love Garrett