Sunday, March 15, 2015

Photos!

Eating food after doing a service project with a member.


Also riding on the back of a bus from Cubulco to Rabinal

Stressful week!

Well this week was kind of a full week... but a week that turned out to be a pretty good week.  It was all going pretty smoothly until friday.  We were planning a movie night here in cubulco for saturday and all the preparations were going good...  And then on friday we got some news that one of our investigators that is going super well in his progress started to drink. So that was kind of a bummer so we spent a little bit of time with him on friday night so that we could help him to get undrunk.  Also it is in his house where we have church so that was kind of a bummer because now we had to stress about how we were going to have church in a drunk guys house.  So then we just decided that we were going to not worry about that and continue planning for the movie night.  We had everything well planned and then at 5:20 it started to rain and our movie was going to be at 6 in the park, or in other words, outside.  So at that moment we were just a little bit stressed... we had plans for about 300 people that arent members to go to this activity and if it were raining nobody would go.  So we were just kind of bummed.  But we continued with faith... and everything just so happened to work out.  The rain stopped at 5:55 and then everyone started to come!  By 6:20 there were about 150 investigators sitting down in the park watching the movies about Jesus and The Restoration!  It was a huge success!  So that was all super good!  We are excited to see how the results are from this actividad and to see if we can get a little more excitement here in cubulco!  Then for church on sunday it was super weird.  The investigator was still drunk saturday night but we just felt like that we should go to his house at like 8 in the morning sunday to see if he was ok...  Andwell we got there and he wasnt drunk!  So that was super good!  But then a weird thing happened... after all the members left church we decided that we were just going to talk to him for a little bit to see what was happening... and the minute after all the people left church it was as if he were drunk again... he started saying dumb things and all that crap, which was kind of sad to see.. .but at least he was good for church, so that was kind of a blessing!  But we are going to have to see what we can do about that to help him to change that.  But that is all that happened this week!  All is well here! 
Love Elder Stuart 

Sunday, March 8, 2015

Photos!

The funeral

Eating a churasco...(grilled meat, rice and beans)

And the farewell of marcos.. we ate fried rice! 

Another week gone...

Wow... well we had some interesting things happen this week, but nothing that is too unordinary...  But first one of the funny things.  We have to go to Rabinal every week to do meetings and stuff like that in the church... but in the morning after church got over Elder Brito left the keys in the office and locked them inside... and well that was the only pair of keys... so when I got there we spent like 20 minutes trying to open the window and door by picking the locks (we really didnt think that it was going to work but we didnt want to have to break the door)  but it didnt work... so I finally decided that I was just going to kick the door open...  Remembering that we are in guatemala and everything here is built weakly... so I just kicked the doorknob and... It opened!  So I have officially kicked open a door now.. the only problem is that we kind of ruined the door knob, so we bought a new one today and replaced it... so that was pretty fun...

Also this week was kind of a sad week but also a good week.  Marcos, who is the husband of Lucia, who got baptized in december, had been trying and trying to receive an answer for  quite a bit of time... and finally this week he got his answer!!!!!!!!  So that was super good... he had a dream that he was on a bus with me and Elder Gomez and his family and that we were all going to a place... and a guy came on the bus and asked for our tickets, and Marcos was seated behind all of us, and was watching us give our tickets to the collecter.... but he said that he couldnt find his ticket.  And finally when the collector came to him told him that he had to have a ticket to continue on and that without a ticket he couldnt continue... so he got off the bus and was looking for a way to get a ticket, and a man dressed in white, with a white beard came to him and gave him his ticket to continue on... and so then he got back onto the bus and could go with us to our destination... So that was a pretty cool story to hear...  But now here comes the sad part... Marcos left for the States today!  So he couldnt get baptized before he left, and so we will see if he will follow through with the church there and if he will get baptized there... Luckily I have a way to contact him through email so we will keep in touch... but I hope that he can get baptized!  

And well many other things have happened this week but those were the two experiences that I wanted to share this week!

Love Elder Stuart

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Funeral!

Well this week was a week full of firsts...  First thing is that this week I had to direct a funeral...  That was something that I was never expecting to do in my mission.  One of the members died this week in a motorcycle accident... It was a pretty sad experience.  He was 27 and he got baptized in 2011... but he was inactive for about 3 years... or in other words since his baptism..  But he died on sunday at like 1:00 am and so we had to prepare everything so at 5 we could do his viewing.  It was a pretty cool experience... he was the only member of his family... but his wifes family was all member, but all of them were/are inactives but her brother...  so it was a really good missionary experience to have the opportunity to talk with all these people that dont know about the plan of salvation.  We sang some hymns (like 10) and me and the first counsellor talked in the funeral.  I also had to direct the funeral.  So that was just kind of a very interesting thing to do.  I believe that this was the thing that had to happen so that cubulco could receive the last little bit of preparation to blossom.  It is sad that not very many people repent until it is to late, or until something big has to happen to them or to a loved one... but the good thing is that at least they change.  So that was a pretty sad sunday.
But on a good note... we also were able to work a little bit with Marcos (the husband of lucia) and help him a little bit more to progress.  The problem is is that he drinks so we are helping him little by little so that he can get rid of this addiction.  The future for him is looking a little bit better than it was 3 months ago.  Also we are getting bigger and bigger as a group here in cubulco!  I am just so excited to see the progress here. 
Other than that not much happened this week... but all is well here in guate...
Love Elder Stuart