We Got Saved by One of the Three Nephites!

3/23/2015

Just so you all know I’m now in my new area, San Antonio in Zona Merendon.  This place is a little dangerous.  There are two rival gangs that are in the area, and there’s a part of my area that we don’t go into after seven at night.  So nothing crazy yet, but I’m sure it will be a pretty crazy time. This also may be my last area of the mission. I completed 18 months here in the mission last week, and it’s very likely that I will stay for six months here.

It’s always pretty rough in a new area. I have no idea where I’m going, and the members are all pretty different.  The people here are kinda angry, I won’t lie.  It’s more of a suburban area, not very rural like La Jutosa.  So I feel like that makes the difference.

Other than that, things have been pretty good this week. I was able to hear a few good things from my converts.  One of the converts, Vallery from Rio Lindo, sent me a package with some ties and also told me she is preparing to go on a mission!  I also emailed Jonathan, from Cerro Verde, last week and today he told me that he is planning to get sealed to his wife in December of this year, and he also had the opportunity to baptize his mom and his sister into the church!  I have also returned to the stake where I started the mission.  This Sunday I got to see the Familia Espinal.  Hermana Mercedes and Hermano Marvin are both still active.  I didn’t get to talk long because we had to take a bus because it was late. Then the next day I got to see Hermana Mecedes’ daughter and son that both got baptized after I left the area.  And I got to see the members of Cofradia which is always fun.  So it was a pretty good week.  I’m happy to hear that some of the people I got to help become members of the church are still active. 

The funny story of the week, we had to leave the Saturday night session of stake conference really fast to get a bus.  So we are standing on the side of the road in the dark waiting, and none of the buses stopped, and there weren’t that many.  So I was thinking, we are in trouble.  But all of the sudden some car comes up, and the guy is like “hey I’m Nefi. I’m a member, where are you going?” So I was a little unsure, but we got in and he took us to where we needed to go.  Weird little Mormon world, and we were the second pair of elders he had taken for a ride that same night!  We got saved by one of the Three Nephites!

My new comps name is Elder Harris.  He’s from Utah too, my second gringo. He’s pretty quiet, but pretty funny.  This week we have had to contact a ton, because the Elder that left didn’t really do much... there are no progressing investigators here. So we are almost opening an area.  That just means we have to work hard and rely on the Lord and I know this is His work and He will guide us to the people He is preparing.  So that’s the goal!

Anyway, not much more, but things are good. The only bad thing is that people ask me how much time I have in the mission now and then they tell me I’m leaving soon.

Elder Ollis