Week 83 The 12 and a Rottweiler

This week was awesome!! 

Wednesday we had the worldwide mission conference that was great!! Then on Saturday Quinten L. Cook visited El Salvador!! 

His message was so awesome and it helped a lot! I know without a doubt that he and the other members of the 12 and the first presidency are called and guided by God. It's reassuring to know that God guides his church and for that, it will never stir away from the truth. 

So Saturday night this family invited us to eat. They are the poorest family you have ever seen and have so many mouths to feed because they never turn anyone away (they have taken in so many kids of relatives who haven't taken good care of them). The wife (Sister Cecilia) is the funniest and happiest person you have ever met. If you ask her why she is always happy she will tell you, "because I am Mormon, why wouldn't I be happy". 

When we showed up it was obvious that she didn't talk and after a few minutes excused herself to go lay down. Turns out she is super sick and is going to need an operation. They don't have money for the operation and are trying to figure out what to do... in fact they didn't even have money to get food that night for us and chose to not eat breakfast or lunch to be able to give us the little they had for dinner. 

Before we left we were able to give her a blessing and help the little we could. This family has some of the biggest challenges I have ever seen, but they are always happy. They are always looking for ways to serve others. They are always preaching the gospel. And they are always living their covenants. They are the perfect example of Christ like people and have helped me understand what it truly means to be a Christian. I hope to one day be more like them. 

Oh yeah and they have a fat rottweiler that bit me as I was sitting in the house... it's all good though, just can't use my thumb much (which makes typing interesting haha) but its already getting better! hahaha 

I am super happy to be here and everything is going good. Thanks for all your support!

Elder Davis

Week 82 Count Your Blessings

About Tuesday of this week I was feeling a little frustrated... but then almost magically the thought of that talk from that general conference came into my head... where the missionary hears the voice in his head that in God's eyes he isn't much different than his companion. I realized that I have no right to be frustrated at anyone, my sole job is to do the Lords will here in El Salvador and try to help everyone I can... so I started making a list in the back of my agenda of all the things I was grateful for this week to focus on all the blessings the Lords given me. Needless to say,  I have much to be grateful for:

- Pupusas

- Hermana Cecilia

- Johnathan and the testimony he has developed

- repentance

- modern day prophets

- Gods love

- Mercy

- Nice Pens

- Preach My Gospel

- scriptures

- Gifts of the spirit

- hot showers

- Having my own bathroom

- having a mirror (it is my first real mirror in the mission haha)

- clean water

- Journal

- answers to prayers

- Christ

- The atonement

- Gods love

- second chances

- President and Hermana Vasquez

- Hot Dogs

- Avacados

- The lady who gave Hermano Carlos work

- Hermana Carlos

- finding a seat on the bus

- Tortas

- My shoes after I got them sown back together

- Taking off tie and shoes in the night

- Anti-itch cream (mosquitos love me)

- zone conference

- Wednesdays (when we have water come to re-fill our tank)

- Health

- Mormon Messages

- Life

- Opportunity to be on the mission

- Opportunity to be in Sensuntepeque

- family support

- Parents who raised me in the gospel

- Honey

- Inspiration

- Revelation

- Goals

- companionship inventory

- money pouches

- Hermano Napo

- Pte diego

- Hermana Roxanna

- Clean laundry

- Daily exercise

- Fasting

- gift of the Holy Ghost

- Temples

- Trials

- The Book of Mormon

- friends who are on missions

- toast

- Water tank

- new socks

- Gospel art

- Church books and manuals

- Service projects

- Blisters

- Maizillo

- hammocks

- new razor blades

- sacrament

- the visit of pte Lopez (conselor to mission president to our ward)

- Miracles

- people who want to change

- New ideas

- The Word of Wisdom

- personal study

- other elders in the branch

- The fact that the bus driver jammed early 2000's pop the entire 2 hour ride to Cajutepeque

- computers that are updated above windows xp

Just a few things that I noticed throughout the week. I'm just so grateful for Gods blessings... He at times lets me go until I feel like I can't push any more... but if I give that last little push He always sends a tender mercy to keep me up.

Love you guys and hope everyone recognizes their blessings this week!

Love Elder Davis

Week 81

Another week here in Sensuntepeque. I learned that the word sensunte in some Indian language means place of many hills... my life all of a sudden makes sense. haha

This week we had an awesome multi-zone conference with President Vasquez. I guess the convert baptisms around the world dropped this year and Salt Lake is giving a ton of instructions and seminars to the mission presidents to stay on top of things. The mission is going through even more changes... honestly everything has changed since when I got here. The progression and inspiration of our mission president and the general authorities that give instructions to him is just awesome to see. The work of the Lord will progress no matter what efforts Satan throws at us.

In the multi-zone conference Sister Vasquez spoke on patience. It was awesome and a true answer to my prayers. Crazy how God is always so willing to answer us when we have faith. 

One morning we woke up at 4 and went to a less actives corn field. We had an hour and a half hike out to it... then worked until oneish cutting down the maicillo (not sure how to say that in english) and headed back home. It was super fun. I became friends with his deaf-mute brother who was helping us (see pic) and learned the art of using the "cuma" the curved machete-like thing. Super awesome day. 

Other than that just trying to help our investigators progress... It's interesting how Satan puts obstacles in the paths of the most amazing people, but without doubt God will help us see how to resolve the challenges. 

Love you  and thanks for eveything,

Elder Davis 

WEEK 80

Happy New Year!! 

Hope everyone had a great new year, and have placed some awesome goals that we will all probably forget about by February but it's the thought that counts right?? 

I personally have a few goals but I would like your help with one. I set the goal to do exercise every day (except Sunday's) until I get home. If you guys would be so kind as to verify with me each week that I am really doing it, that would be much appreciated because I am out of shape! 

We had a pretty chill new years. One member invited us to a carne asada lunch. It was soooooo delicious and there was so much food it was amazing. We were exhausted at the end of the day and ended up going to bed early:( but woke up to the millions of firecrackers that people set off until about 2am. 

Other than that it was a good week. We taught an investigator about the vicarious work and how he can help his ancestors recieve the saving ordinances and he just started crying and couldn't stop thanking us for being here to teach him. He is just waiting on a letter from Salt Lake and he wants to go to the temple the day after his baptism! 

Loving the people and truly coming to understand what patience really means. The mission is the best.

Love Elder Davis

Week 79 Feliz navidad y año nuevo

Great but weird week!!  

Talking home was awesome!! Even if it did take 4 hours to find a computer to call home with. haha 

Our Christmas party was awesome and we had mashed potatoes with our lunch so what else could I really ask for?! 

Christmas night was interesting. We ended up having tortillas with salt sprinkled on them for dinner because Pizza Hut was closed so there was no delivery and it was too late to leave the house for food. haha  It wasn't your traditional Christmas dinner, but it was chill hanging out with some other missionaries and just relaxing a little. 

Saturday we passed by everyone, inviting them to go to church. Sadly the tradition here is get drunk Christmas eve and then stay drunk until New Years, so we didn't have much success this week. haha

One super cool experience was when we showed up at Hermana Yolanda's house. She is a convert of about a year now and is probably 45 years old. About 5 months ago her mom died, and this was going to be her first Christmas without her. She felt so sad and alone and scared for a bunch of problems that were going on in her family that in the end she decided it would be better just to drink away the holidays like everybody else. She had just sent a kid to buy her some alcohol when we turned the corner walking towards her house. She quickly told the kid to come back and without telling us what had happened invited us in. We are teaching a son of hers and without even knowing the situation had planned to teach the Word of Wisdom. About halfway through the lesson we asked her what blessings she had received for obeying this commandment. At which point she broke into tears and explained to us that she had almost broke for the first time since her baptism. She cried as she told us she had been praying for God's help and when she had finally given up he sent his 2 little "white angels" to her house to protect her from falling into temptation. 

It's hard to describe the feeling you get when God sends you to answer someone's prayer. It's something hard to compare with any other feeling, something unforgettable. 

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and had the chance to be the answer to someone's prayer this week, through an act of service. 

Love you all and thanks for your constant support!

Elder Davis

Pics:  Christmas punch we made, at an activity, tortilla Christmas dinner, and me passed out at the church after a super long night 

   

Week 78 Merry Christmas!!

This has been one of the most interesting weeks in my mission. Full of lots of things, but ended super awesome!! 

Tuesday we did service for a member who had planted a ton of corn on the side of a mountain... we woke up early and got to his field at 6 am and picked/hauled corn until 1:30 pm. It was exhausting but super fulfilling. The slope where he had planted the corn was so steep we kept falling and then sliding for a ways before being able to stop... it made the work harder but really fun at the same time. 

Thursday we gave service again and helped get the foundation going to add on to this persons house... pretty much just digging holes and mixing cement for a few hours, but lots of fun. 

Oh yeah and guess who is giving singing lessons to the branch... yup Elder Davis hahahahahahaha who would have ever thought... I am tone def. It's a long story but yeah just call me Elder Tune if you want (do you guys remember Elder Tune?? hahaha)

Sunday we had the district Christmas devotional. We headed out to San Vicente after church and got back around 8 that night. It was a fun trip and some investigators really liked the presentation. They talked about the classic Christmas stories and the importance of remembering our Savior this year. They invited everyone to give the gift of taking your own names to the temple this year to the Savior for Christmas. Really neat day. 

Well that's about it... Can't wait to talk on Christmas! Hope you all have a Merry Christmas and can do at least one thing to serve someone else Christmas day!

love Elder Davis

Week 77 Changes!!!

Changes are always sweet because it gives you a chance to start fresh, start new goals, and get to know a new companion and area... but at times they are kinda hard as well. 

I am now in the beautiful hilly (honestly it is all hills- you are either walking up or down steep hills at all times... there is no flat) town of Sensuntepeque with Elder Gutierrez from Guatemala. 

It was pretty tough saying goodbye to San Miguel... I really love that place and had to say goodbye to some really great people, but I guess it was the will of the Lord and I'm excited to see what we can get done here. 

Our branch is one the smallest in the mission (about 30 attend sacrament meeting each week, about 15 in sunday school, and us 4 missionaries and 3 members stayed all the way through the 3rd hour haha) Last week the branch president turned his keys in and said he was done with the church, but its all chill because we got a new branch president this week... an RM who got home from the mission 2 weeks ago!! 

I'm pretty pumped though to see what the Lord has in store for us here. I kinda like being in little branches because you can see the fruits of your efforts a little more, and the other 2 missionaries in the branch are both good friends... President met up with me and Elder Durbin (he was ZL in the zone right next to mine in San Miguel so we worked a ton together) after the change meeting and pretty much told us, "save the branch and save your companions".  I didn't really understand what he meant until we got here. hahaha

Also side note, I have heated showers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I didn't know those existed here. It's just this little electrical thing they hooked up to the shower head and it feels so good to feel hot water for the first time in almost a year and a half.  haha

So yeah that's pretty much it. I'm happy, pumped for the work and trying to get to know the area. 

Hope everyone is doing good,  and that you can give service to someone in some way this Christmas season. 

Love Elder Davis