Monday - August 26, 2013

Monday - August 26, 2013

Hey there Family Crew!

Sounds like everyone had a great time at Stanley and Red Fish Lake. Awesome for everyone. It was great for you to all get together and for Papa and Grandma Jones to have almost....everyone there.. Ha ha!!

Well...my week: I feel that 1 of 3 things generally happen. We find people and either three things happen.....1. They say no up front. 2. They progress for a second and then its no. or 3. They progress awesomely and then are BAPTIZED! I love when number three happens which is getting to be a lot more often. It’s great. We actually have a baptism today! Right after P-day. We were going to do it on Saturday or Sunday but the Naun's mom works every day all day and only has Monday free. So Bishop announced it in the ward yesterday and everyone is making it an FHE activity. The Relief Society President is making dinner and there are various women bringing drinks and some other things. Here it's not like dessert nights it's more like....chicken and rice. It’s like ham fried rice but with chicken and chicken flavor. It’s really good. But it’s funny how they're like...yeah we'll bring arroz con pollo and frescos. I love them. Everyone is super excited and I think the young women are going to sing for his baptism. Our baptism is of a young man named Naun who is 14. He's so awesome! Just such a good kid and exactly like Josue that we baptized. I remember our first lesson and he said he wanted to be baptized because he wants to be a better person and start on a good path different from his family. We have been teaching him for about a month and his mom gave permission! She signed the paper! When we stopped by we explained what we have been teaching Naun. She took some lessons before like a few months ago with other missionaries. But I told her how much Naun has changed and how she did a good job raising him. She's a single mother and started to cry. I think she just needed to realize that she's doing a good job. He'll have the priesthood and they'll have the blessings of that. We started teaching his sister who is 17 and she agreed to baptism. We are working on their whole family. They are doing so great! Oh but when we were teaching Naun, he gave us a drink that was a juice type of thing. We both drank half of our drinks and said oooo that's good. I asked what it was and he said...oh iced tea with orange! My comp and I looked at each other and we said...WHAT? Have you been drinking this? And then we took a moment to explain that as members, we can't drink iced tea. He didn't know. We called our zone leaders and they laughed at us. They said...first....your baptism can still happen and then they said...sisters...go repent now. Ha-ha. So we did. But we both were busting up laughing because sin never tasted so good. Ha-ha. Just kidding! So bad. Don’t drink iced tea! And we didn't drink the rest just FYI. Too funny.

Roger is doing a little bit better. He has alcohol problems - and has had some setbacks.He lost his job due to drinking so much. But people from the ward have been visiting him and talking to him when they see him at church. We stopped by on Saturday and told him to come to church. On Sunday, he came!!! He came late because he didn’t' know the whole process with getting back into taking the sacrament and didn't want people to see. He talked a little bit with the Bishop and they have an appointment on Saturday. One of the ward members who has been helping us with him sat by him. It was so great. He’s doing fine. He apologized to me and said he was embarrassed and wants to repent and start over again. It’s amazing how he can. After falling so low, the atonement can lift him even higher. I realized just then how grateful I am for Christ's sacrifice. Heavenly Father loves us SO MUCH that He sent His ONLY BEGOTTEN SON to die for us just so we can have the option of living with Him again. I am really learning to appreciate the atonement. I love the gospel!

We have started teaching Yessenia and her boyfriend Lester. They called us last Monday and asked to meet with us. They live in another area but are trying to find a home here. Her son lives in our area and is serving a mission in Honduras right now. We are teaching them and they said they want to get married and baptized. So...we are preparing them for the end of September because first, they have to live in our ward boundaries. Working on that. They are great though and it was so cool to have people contact us and say...we want to get married and baptized.

We have started teaching Andrei again. He was the one who was struggling with his faith. We passed by their home and talked with them. He said he had been offended with some of the things Hna. Portillo said to him but said he'll accept us teaching him again. We just explained that we want to help teach him and help him to build a  foundation to help him progress forward with his family and strengthen his faith. He said it was fine so we're at a good start.

 
Eating tres leches for Hna. Rhoden’s 6 month mark on our divisions!! (Splits)

Getting ready for the Oscars! Costa Rica celebrates Mother's Day in August!!! (My companion and me.

Happy Mother's Day Ward Activity - Oscar's Night! Mother's got all dressed up!

View from our area in Belen.

We gave a gift to the mission president's daughter because she is starting her first year at BYUIdaho this year. We made a little booklet with pictures from the Liahona in 10 tips for how to survive college. Ha-ha. 

We started teaching another family who has a husband who is not a member. We went and visited them and after talking and giving introductions, he explained his process with all the missionaries who have taught him for the last 10 years. He said...well...I don't believe in God so the conversation and lessons usually stop there. He's a great guy and has a wonderful family. He told us that he likes when we come because it gives his two little daughters a good example and role models to look up to and his wife feels the spirit and like there's a good environment. He said he wants to get married in the temple but doesn't know how to get there. His wife has been a member all her life and her family lives over in the same area as the mission president. We explained a little bit about what we do and how we want to help them progress and become more united. I asked him what he thought and felt when his first daughter was born. He didn't have an answer. We sat there in silence and he just said...I don't know. I think he has a desire to know and like it says in Alma 32...start with a desire to have faith and let that work in you. We are going to start that with him.

Another couple in the ward who is super awesome gave us a reference and we are in the process of having an FHE with them and this reference. It was from their work. So that has been good. We had a ward activity on Saturday night for Mother's Day. It was OSCARS so all the mom's had to wear their best dress, do their hair and makeup. We had a red carpet that they did a competition and then various performances by the young women and singing things. It was great! We had 7 investigators there who loved it. There was dancing after. Way too funny to watch the crew dance. So tempting to dance but we headed out. After my mission I want to learn how to dance like these Latin’s! They sure know how to move. Ha-ha. Oh...by the way...before the activity, we were visiting some families to invite them and it started to rain SO HARD! Like....incredible. In 2 seconds, we were walking practically in a river and were soaked from head to toe with umbrella in hand. Plus...we were both wearing white skirts so totally see through. We just busted up laughing. There was a man nearby who went under a roof and started showering practically. Guess it was a blessing for him. His prayers were answered. Ha-ha. But we had fun walking in dirty crazy water. The rivers looked like rapids it was so nuts. Gotta love Costa Rica. We drank some hot chocolate so it was all good. Ha-ha.

Other than all of that, things are going great. We did two divisions this week with some of the sisters. They are doing just fine. One sister is struggling in her belief in God so we are working on that and helping her develop her faith. I have been studying a lot about faith and I have realized that we do have faith. Waking up every day is by faith. So anyway...things are good. I am loving Costa Rica and loving working with my comp. She's way awesome and we are trying to help each other not get too stressed out. But anyway. I love you guys. Hope you have a fun week. No crazy allergy stories. All the members are super focused on it though and always say...this doesn't have nuts. Ha-ha. It’s great! Can't wait for you guys to see this place. Well...love you all so much. Sorry not a ton of pictures. I'll get better at that. But for P-days we haven't done much. Next week we are thinking water fight or laser tag. We’ll see. Be safe this week and love you!!!!!!!!!! Tell the family I say hi.

Hna. Jones

Tons of hugs and kisses being sent your way. Muah! Oh and maybe heard Bob Marley on the bus singing one love. Cracked up and thought of Landon.