Week 101 - THE END!

Well this is my last week in Uruguay. I have been trying not to think about it too much for several reasons. One is that I am going to miss the culture and people here a lot! It has also been a dream of mine or a long time to be a missionary and I can´t believe it´s ending. But I also have a lot of work to do here in Melo until Thursday when I head to Montevideo. However it doesn´t matter how much I try its always in the back of my mind that in just a few days the life that I have known for the last 2 years will end. I am excited to see what the future holds and to continue growing as the Lord wants for me.

My mission has not been easy and I feel like it is impossible to describe the mission in an adequate way, but I have loved every moment of it! I have truly come to know more about the Savior and about His gospel. I love my Savior, Jesus Christ! My mission has meant everything to me. It has forever changed my life and I am thankful that my mission has been the means of changing the lives of others as well.

I have been trying to think of what I could write in my last email to really just wrap up my mission, but words can´t really describe what the mission has done for me. So my testimony is simple. I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the Church of God. I have no doubt. I have felt the love and goodness of God for all His children, even those who are a little "lost" in this life. He loves them and He has a plan for them and for each of us. We truly do have a Father in Heaven and each of us are His Children. He has great things planned for us! We just need the faith to see it!

See y'all in 5 days!

Love,

Elder Cole

Week 100!!!!

This week was a good week! I really love the mission! It`s been a great time! The things that I have learned and then people I have come to love are truly unforgettable! 

This week we had a little miracle! Sofia got baptized! She is the daughter of active members of the church and she turned 9 last week. She was never baptized when she was 8 because she never felt like she had a testimony, but we were visiting her family this week and they asked us for help. It was pretty fast and crazy, but we taught her everything and Sofia decided that now was the time to get baptized! 

This week I had the chance to work on some Christlike attributes. I started the week off asking the Lord to help me be a little more patient, humble and charitable. The Lord responded to my prayers haha! There were little things throughout the week that gave me the chance to better develop these qualities. Since this was one of my last weeks I really just wanted to dig down and work, just leave everything I have... But my companion had some tooth pain this week and we spent some time visiting dentists and resting.  Sometimes the pain was so bad he didn`t speak and i had to do all the teaching haha!  One day the pain was just Too much and Elder Sarango laid down to rest for a little while. I guess I am a little selfish and wanted to wake Elder Sarango up and go out to work. I decided to ask the Lord what He would have us do. As I prayed, I felt that Elder Sarango needed to rest and that this was a chance for me to work on some of the attributes I want to develop. So I started reading a talk about charity and after reading for a few minutes the clear impression came to me to stop reading about charity and start being charitable. I spent the next hour and a half looking for little things to do to help the other guys in the house. I can`t say that I am the most humble, patient or charitable person, but the mission (and the Lord) have made me a lot more than I used to be!

I know that the Lord loves us and is interested in each of our lives! He wants to help us and make us better, we just need to be willing to follow Him. I hope ya`ll had a great week! Love ya!

Elder Cole

Week 99

This week was good! We worked really hard this week and I definitely felt the Lord`s help as we taught the people! This week we had a conference in Montevideo and so we had a long day of traveling. But it was super nice to be able to see some of my friends, from other parts of the mission, for probably the last time here in Uruguay. It was also really special because it was my birthday and since I will be going home soon I had the opportunity to share my testimony with them! 

I learned a lot this week about leadership and about my own personal development. Normally I have the chance to see the Lord make deep changes in the lives of other people, but this week it seemed that happened was to mold me rather than others.  We saw a lot of people make changes in their lives this week, but I also really felt the Lord was teaching me a lot. It was not an easy week, but it was a good week and I really saw some changes that the Lord wants me to make. It reminds me of the scripture,

 "And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them." . Ether 12:27

I am thankful for the changes that the Lord has made in my life and for the opportunity that I have to help others make these changes in their lives! The Gospel of Jesus Christ is about change. If the Church or our calling in the Church doesn`t make us change, we aren`t truly applying the gospel to our lives. I am grateful to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I know that it is the Lord`s church and that only through His church can we be made the men and women that He wants us to be. I have seen these things touch the lives of countless people!

I love you all and I hope you have seen a change in your lives as you have sincerely sought the Lord`s will. See you soon! ;)

Love,

Elder Cole

1. On the bus at 1 Am headed to Montevideo

2,3. We went to Aceguà today. It`s half Brazil and half Uruguay.