Week 76

This week was a rough one. We had a lot to do and just didn´t have enough time to do it. One of the glimmers of light we saw this week was when we were able to go to  the baptism of Carla! The missionaries have been teaching her for over three years! It was incredible to be one of the missionaries here to teach her right now. Just to watch her progress from the day that I showed up in Rocha and started teaching her, until now is a huge testimony that the Gospel of Jesus Christ changes lives! She is So happy and was so excited for her baptism! I could feel the confirmation that her baptism was a special one and although it took countless missionaries and over three years, she was finally a member of the Church of Jesus Christ and has taken that first step to live with our Father in Heaven again! 

This week I also learned some helpful life skills! Here in Rocha there are not very many members of the church, and so I have had to really develop my cooking skills quickly haha! It has gone well so far! It definitely isn´t like my mom´s cooking, but it hasn´t killed me yet haha! We have also been fighting some kind of bug in the house. We just feel things biting us all the time and everyday we find new bug bites... At first we thought it was bed bugs. So I washed all my bedding and sprayed poison all over.... Now we think its fleas. So we have been spaying poison on everything we own. We actually don´t know what is going on, but something has been eating us alive this week. 

Hope all is well at home! Love y'all! 

Elder Cole

Parts from the family email:

This week was good ma! ....Actually it was a terrible week hahaha! We got rejected an unusual amount of times this week. Usually we get rejected quite a bit, but this week EVERYONE rejected us.  Even some of our better investigators just started avoiding us and stopped answering their phones.  Its fine, I learned some things and it just showed me some of my weaknesses. Overall I am doing well, I feel good, just didn´t quite have the success we expected.

I really understand now when you and dad would get upset with the messy house or a lot of dirty dishes! I have been having the same thoughts go through my mind that I used to hear from you guys! Only these aren´t my kids, just three other 20 year old men that have to wait for me to clean up for them! Hahaha! Love ya Ma!

Week 75

This week was a great one! We worked really hard and saw the Lord bless us! It was an incredible feeling to be used by the Lord to help other people this week! After a day of knocking doors and stopping lots of people in the streets, we found a nice little old man named Artigas, whose wife passed away just three months ago. He has taken it really hard and has lived feeling a little lost these last three months. We were able to share with him the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and help him understand that as he lives the commandments, the Lord will bless him with comfort now and an eternity with his wife later. I am really excited for him to continue growing closer to our Heavenly Father! 

We also met, this week, a very humble woman named Mariana and she has great desires to follow Christ. She is looking for the strength and direction she needs to make some life changes and be baptized in the Church of Jesus Christ. Mariana has a homosexual orientation, but has felt the Spirit touch her life and is now searching for the help she needs to follow Christ and keep all of His commandments. As we spoke to her and got to know her, I felt a deep love for her, that I am sure was the Lord allowing me to feel, just a small part of what He feels for her. Mariana has lived a tough life, but I know that the Lord has just been waiting for her to seek the way to follow Him. I have no doubt that the Lord will be by her side through all she needs to be baptized. 

This week was a week that was truly incredible! I know that my Redeemer lives. I know that He suffered and died for me, for you, for each one of us and that as we do all we can to follow Him, He will make our efforts greater than they are. I could not do this work without His constant support. I know that He will make us greater tomorrow, than we are today, if we allow Him to take a part in our lives. 

I hope that you all have a wonderful week. I will be praying for you, I always am. 

Love,

Elder Cole

Week 74

This week was definitely better than the last one haha! We really saw a lot of little miracles this week, and we learned that some of the "bad" things that we have been going through were actually hidden blessings, we just didn`t understand why until now! We also spent a lot of time in meetings this last week and it was good, but nothing beats just hitting the streets and working! We worked extra hard with the time we did have and felt the Lord bless us! 

One of the blessings came because we were able to really go by the Spirit! We had some extra time, so we decided to try knocking some doors in a neighborhood we hadn`t entered before. At first we were just rejected several times, but after a while we felt the impression to knock one more house before we went to a scheduled lesson (which we were already running late for). We ended up finding a lady that had just gone through some kind of cancer treatment and we really sick. It wasn`t the best lesson ever, but we were at the right place at the right time, just when the Lord needed us to! It was great to talk to her and share this message of hope and strength, even in the most difficult of situations! 

We also helped an older guy in our branch clip the wings of his ducks. It was fun! We had to run around and grab the ducks and then he would clip the wings. It was great during it all, but when we finished, we realized we were covered in poop and duck blood haha! It was not a very pleasant smell... 

We also cooked an Uruguayo BBQ on a grate over a bon-fire!  A nice lady from the branch invited us over for lunch and then put us in change of the fire. It was our first time cooking that way, but it turned out pretty well and the member was impressed! Haha! (I don`t have any pictures because for right now my camera is a little broke)...

Hope all is well in the States! Uruguay is doing great! It is starting to get a little colder so my days of getting sunburned are numbered haha! Love y'all!

Love,

Elder Cole

Week 73

This week was a long one... haha! It was definitely not one of the weeks that I have enjoyed most, it was a battle for sure, but we got everything worked out and I am a better missionary/person for having to go through this week. 

This last week was the week of transfers and I ended up staying here in Rocha with my companion. I am really excited to be staying here because there is still a lot to do and my companion is really great! Since we didn`t change, we worked like normal, but it was nice to see the new missionaries show up in Rocha. I am really excited to see what happens here these next few weeks, it`s like there is something in the air here that just says that miracles are coming to Rocha! 

I also realize that my email last week might make it sound like I am excited that this family is getting separated. That is not what I meant to sound like... haha.... We are currently helping three other families get married, but just in the case of these two ladies, it was better that they leave the abusive relationship that they were in and live somewhere else.  We only help people come to Christ! 

Hope your week was better than mine! I love y'all!

Love,

Elder Cole