Costa Rica is Paradise!
Buenas Familia!
Thanks for the nice long letters, I loved them! Well I´m glad to hear that you guys will be getting to go one vacation this next week! And I am so stoked to hear about Eric and Shelby´s sealing! I wish I could be there, but I´ll be there in spirit.
Well this last week was a little different. So we got a call from the AP´s last night, and turns out that we did splits with them for basically the whole week. I went to their area in Purral, and another area came here to Tres Rios. It was a really interesting experience becuase Wednesday an Elder was going home early because he didn´t want to stay, so Elder McCallum and I decided to take him out with us to try and help him to stay here on the mission. (He only had 3 weeks in the mission.) It was interesting because this is the second time that President has put me with a new Elder that was wanting to go home, so I guess they need to hear my testimony about the atonement.
Well all of our lessons fell through so we decided to drive up to this mountain where they dedicated Costa Rica to missionary work. Its this sweet view where you can see the whole country and even the ocean on both sides. Well we took him there and we began to talk to him, and testify of the atonement, and how this infinte sacrifice has changed our lives. All of us were crying and the spirit was so intense in the car. Afterwards we took him to the woods behind the mountain and we gave him a blessing. The spirit was so strong and he knew that he had to stay, but he decided to go back to El Salvador, hopefully he can stay strong and come back here on the mission!
I got some sad news also, you know that family that we were going to baptize on Saturday? Well turns out that their papers were expired, and we couldn´t marry them. Their mom has been really lying to them, and saying that we are a cult, and now they don´t even answer our phone calls. I feel
like my whole time here in Tres Rios has been like this. We have done so much good work, but we have had disappointment after disappointment and it is really frustrating. But this morning I was reading in Mosiah and I came across this... ¨Nevertheless the Lord seeth fit to chasten his people, yeah he trieth their patience and their faith. Nevertheless, whosever putteth his trust in him the same shall be lifted up at the last day. Yeah and thus it was with this people¨(Mosiah 23:21-22). I feel like this is what is happening right now.
With so many disappointments my faith has faltered a little bit, and I have not been the happiest person, however, I trust in this promise in the scriptures. I know the holy scriptures contain the word
of God, and I know God communicates with us through them. I love this experience, even through it has been one of the hardest things I have ever done, but I know that the Lord is putting me through the refiner´s fire, and I love Him for that.
I am so stoked for everything that is going on at home. I hope everything is going well, and I am always praying for you guys! I love you so much, and thanks for the box, I´ll let you now when I get it! Love you!
Pura Vida,
Elder Taylor
Photo
Buenas Familia!
Well first off I am so stoked for JB Olsen! Thats so awesome that he's going on a mission? And are the Karzens in our ward now?! I am really so stoked! I love hearing about all these guys going off to serve!
Well this last week was really awesome! On saturday we were blessed with 2 baptisms! Martha Oliva and her friend Yasarys Lacayo! They were so cute during the baptism, and they really were so happy that they were finally able to make this covenant with the Lord. It was funny to hear their testimonies after.
So Martha lives with a less active member, Isabel Gonzaes and her family. So one day we passed by Isabel's house and Martha was there so we invited her to the lesson. We casually invited her to come to church and she actually did, but we really didn't think anything of it, and we didn't really focus on teaching her. But then she kept coming to church so we put a baptismal date with her and she was so stoked to be baptized! She had been hearing the missionaries on and off for about 2 years, but she feels like now was finally the time to take this importnat step in her life. It was so sweet because at her baptism, Isabel and her family didn't even show up to the baptism, and we asked Martha why and she said because they had been invited to a huge party off in Guapiles (that's right next to my first area Guacimo). She said when we challenged her to be baptized the 17th that was a big stumbling block, but she said that it was only one of Satan's attempts to stop her from changing her life! She is amazing and she has already shared the gospel with all of her family in Nicaragua, and she was baptized Saturday!
Yasarys was also a tender mercy of the Lord. One day we had absolutely nothing and no one to teach, so we were looking through our Area Book at all the Old Investigators, and we came across Yasarys' teaching record. It said that she had come to church, but was too afraid to be baptized. We called her that day and visited her, and we challenged her to be baptized and she accepted for the 17th! It was awesome, because we used the story of Esther to help her overcome her fear of being baptized, and it really helped her through this process! P.S. I love the Old Testament so much! It has so many great stories and examples for our investigators!
Well this upcoming saturday we will also be blessed with 3 more baptisms! We will be having the marriage and Baptism of Daniel, Brenda and their daughter Angie. They are an amzing family, and they really are those golden investigators that every missionary wants. I love them so much, and they really are going to be strong members. It's too bad because their whole family is attacking them right now, and telling them things like, "Oh, the Mormons trapped you huh?" and "You are only getting married to get divorced..." and other lies like that. But they are staying strong and Daniel really has a strong testimony that this is the true church. It's funny because he was a reference from his brother-in-law, an investigator from the sister missionaries here, and he is actually going to be baptized before his brother-in-law! I love them!
We also had a sweet experience this week with an investigator, Karina. Her mom passed away about 4 months ago, and we taught her the Plan of Salvation and she told us that it just made everything "click" in her mind and she knew it was true. Well yesterday we decided to teach her about Family History and Temple Work (it was different because it was only our 3rd lesson with her) and we could see the Spirit working so strongly in her. I told her that she could be the one that saves her mom, and helps her to progress in the plan of salvation, and she just paused and whispered, "Wow, it all makes sense now!" It was an awesome lesson, and she will be getting baptized the 14th of September!
Well, I love the mission. I love the Spirit I can feel here. I love what I am doing, and I love the hope that we can feel through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I know that he is my Saviour, and I know that only through his infinite sacrifice, we can find peace in this life. I love you all, take care, and I am always praying for you!
Pura Vida,
Elder Taylor
photos: Martha and Yasarys' Baptism!
Buenas Familia!!!
How are you all doing! I'm glad to hear that Grandpa got all settled in and it is a good environment! and I'M AM SO STOKED ABOUT ERIC AND SHELBY'S SEALING! I will be there in spirit, but I really am so happy for them. You don't even know but I always talk about Jason, Eric, and Katie with my investigators, so everybody knows about them!
Well guess what? The 17th we will be getting blessed with 2 baptisms! I think I have talked a little about Martha and Yazari. They are amazing! Martha is a really cool investigator, because she has been basically investigating the church on and off for about 3 years, and finally she feels like she knows that it is the true church! She really is going to help the church out a lot after her baptism. Yazari is also very special, because she really wants to share the gospel. She knows that it is true, and she knows that it will bless her family and she is just so excited to share it with her husband and her children. So I am totally stoked for them.
Well this week Elder Schweinfurth and I had a neat experience. We were walking one day and this young kid stopped us in the street and asked us what our religious beliefs were. So we walked with him to his house and we started talking to him. Turns out his name is Gerald, he's 18 and he has about 1 month in his Christian church. He is really excited to learn, so we talked a little bit and we left him with the restoration pamphlet. We came back to his house a few days later and he was totally stoked! He was like, "Brothers, you don't even know how much that pamphlet helped me out! I read everything, and it answered every single one of my questions! I had always wondered why there are so many churches, and also what happened with the people here in the Americas!!!" It was sweet, so we explained a little more and he came to church on sunday. We will have to see how he progresses because he is going to this other Christian church and keeps inviting us to go with him and check it out, but he really understands our message, he just needs to pray and ask the Lord about it.
So things are going great here in Tres Rios. We have been watching the Missionary World Training video that came about a couple months ago with the members, and they are really starting to support us more! I feel like I'm serving the mission in the states because we are using members a lot more now! I love it! We really will only find success here in the mission when we work with members, and when we have the same goals as our leaders here. For a long time we have seen two churches in Costa Rica, the church of the missionaries, and the church of the members, and we now are finally breaking that barrier, and we are really begining to fulfill what the Lord wants us to do here in our missions....
Well, I love you all. I hope all is well at home, and I hope you know that you are always in my prayers. Mom, I think everything I need will be in that package. Maybe if you could send me a couple of short sleeve white shirts, my neck size is 16.5, but that would be greatly appreciated and also a memory card for my camera. Love you all! Take care!
Pura Vida,
Elder Taylor
P.S. fotos, There is a photo of our zone. Today we hiked up to the cross of Alejuelita. There was a sweet view up there, I loved it!
Todo Tuanis in Tres Rios
Buenas Familia!
Well, first off I'm glad to hear that everything went well with Grandpa and the big move. That residence sounds awesome, and I think it will be a great place for Grandpa to rest, he has really lived a great and fulfilling life. I will always remember how he hated when we jumped on the beds, and one time he got me jumping on the bed and he scolded me. I love him. Well this past week was excellent. We will be having 5 baptisms this upcoming month, we will have Yazari and Martha on the 17th, and on the 24th we have the baptism and wedding of Daniel and Brenda, and their daughter Angie, so I am super stoked for this upcoming month.
We had a really neat experience this past week. So something I love doing is contacting people, and knocking doors!!! I don't know why, but I love it because it is a neat way to meet a ton of different people. It is also an excellent way to follow the Spirit, and find those people that the Lord has guided us to. But this week we had a really funny and cool experience. All of our lessons had fallen through, and we had no idea what we were going to do, so we decided to pray. The whole day this random Husky dog was falling us in the street, and after the prayer we decided to follow it. So we followed it to this one house, and we knocked the door and the family invited us in. We taught a little bit about the restoration and the husband told us that he had always been confused about which was the true church, and how we can find out. They are super excited to come to church and learn more, so hopefully we can keep teaching them and help them to understand more about this gospel.
We also had a really neat experience. So this past week we had leadership counsel with President Wilkinson, and he told us about a sister in another stake here in Costa Rica that gave him a reference. He said that the sister had prayed a lot for a missionary experience, and that she started talking to her friend, Karina, about the Plan of Salvation. Turns out that Karina's mom had passed away about 4 months ago, and she had always had questions about the plan of salvation. And guess what? Karina lives in our area, so we went over to her house yesterday and explained to her breifly about the plan of salvation. It was so cool! She told us finally that all the pieces had clicked together. She had been searching for her whole life for the truths that we have here in the gospel, and had really attended like 5 or 6 different churches, and finally her search is over. I love this gospel, and I love the truths that we enjoy. I have always taken the gospel for granted in my life, and just now here in the mission I am finally understanding just how blessed we are to have this knowledge. And especially how blessed I have been to have been born in the Church in this last dispensation. I love it! I love the plan of salvation and the comfort it gives to us. After this life it is not all over. We keep learning and perfecting ourselves, and I love it! This is the true church.
Well family, I love and miss you everyday. Today I was thinking about how soon I will be going home. The mission has gone by so incredibly fast. It really made me sad haha, I love everything that I am learning and doing here. I love the guidance, and comfort that my Father in Heaven has given me here. I love the feelings that I feel here, and the peace that I have found in my life. Take care, and I am always praying for you. Love you all!
Pura Vida,
Elder Taylor
