Time in Guayaquil
It has been quite the adventure so far!
The flight here was okay...I just slept! I was surrounded by 18 year-olds in suits and ties so i was not in it alone! When we got to Houston
there were 16 of us who had all flown in from different states and
airports. Most of us are all going to Ecuador! Anyway, we all met up at
the gate and it ended up being the wrong one so we had to sprint to the
other side of the airport to catch out flight! I am sure it was quite
the visual to see 16 Mormon boys run from one end of the airport to the
other! Haha! We made it in time and landed safely in Mexico. By this
time we were a little more relaxed. So we got off the plane, positioned
ourselves in an orderly fashion, and swagged off into the distance. I
was leading the crew! I felt so cool! haha! I was leading a pack of a
bunch of nervous, scared, clean shaven, suited up 18 year olds! We ALL
felt cool! My swag quickly faded when we made it to the counter and I
had to ask where we went for the immigration check. The answer to my
question was....uhhh??? Como? I soon realized that I was in Mexico City
and that that I No Hablo Espanol! We finally found the bus to take us to
the MTC (CCM in Spanish) and here I am!
Nothing too crazy has happened yet! Wake up at 6...pray and
study...eat breakfast...pray and study...eat lunch...pray and
study...eat dinner...pray and study...teach an investigator...pray and
study...pray again and then go to bed!!! HAHA! I love it! The spirit is
so strong here! Beans and rice seems to be my diet! That is really about
it! I already have to tighten my belt to the next hole! if that makes
any sense...I am losing weight! haha! Swoll is NOT life! All is well
though and Mexico is awesome! I fall asleep to gun shots, sirens,
screams, and the buzzing sound of mosquitoes every night! HAHA! (I am
perfectly safe mother) But I really do love it here!
We taught an investigator on our first real day here...in ALL
SPANISH!! We just ended up reading scriptures and Preach My Gospel the whole time.
The second time was even worse. He made fun of me because i was using
sign language to communicate with him. Then I wanted him to read a few
verses in the Book Of Mormon but I did not know how to say 41, 42, or 43...NUTS! I
just asked him if he could read cuatro uno cuatro dos and cuatro
tres...he paused and looked at me for a sec...then busted up laughing.
He would not stop! He was crying! I felt really stupid but now that I
look back...it was pretty funny! Yesterday we had the opportunity to
teach him again. Before we went in we prayed that he could feel the
spirit and then we would be blessed with the gift of tongues. We dropped
our books and notes...and went to work! Somehow and in some way we were
able to communicate with this man! By the end of the lesson I was able
to share my testimony with him without even thinking about it...and my
companion did the same thing (Elder S is my companion by the
way. He is such a stud). We prayed and then left. The spirit was so
strong! He committed to read the BOM and pray to our Heavenly Father. It
just goes to show that Heavenly Father answers prayers and that our
Savior makes up for out weakness through the spirit. I promise that
prayer is direct communication with the Almighty God of this world. What
a blessing it is to communicate with Him and to feel His love.
My spiritual thought for the week is for the Priesthood holders out
there! Brethren...Girls grow up nurturing and caring for dolls, they
learn how to love, etc. and what do us guys do? We destroy things, break
things, and shoot toy guns. It is no wonder the Lord does not authorize
women to hold the Priesthood! Why do they need what they already have?
The Priesthood is love. Women are born with it! Us men need it to help
us stop being boneheads (which is impossible) and to become more like
our Savior! As missionaries and Priesthood holders we are so unqualified
and inadequate to bare this power and authority...but He gives it to us
because He knows we need something to help us obtain those Heavenly and
Christlike attributes that Daughters of God are already born with! The
Priesthood is love. It is the power by which the Son of God created the
Heavens and the Earth. It is the power by which He blessed and
administered the sacrament to His 12 Disciples. What a blessing it is to
bare that same power! Us it wisely! This past week, I have learned that
in order to use it wisely and to bare this power worthily we need to
act and think like a women.
Woah Elder Noll! Hand over your man card...Now!!!
I am 100% serious!
Daughters
of our Heavenly Father are so incredible, so beautiful, so obedient, so
in tune with the spirit, and so Christlike already that they do not
even need to be holders of the Priesthood! So Brethren, become a
Christlike MAN and PRIESTHOOD HOLDER by becoming more like a DAUGHTER OF
GOD. You will be blessed for it and be more qualified to bare the Lords
power. Women...You all just keep doing your thing! I love the Lord. I
love my Savior! I am learning more and more every day!
Yo se que Jesucristo es la Redentor y Salvador de a la tierra. Yo
se que Dios es nuestra Padre Celestial. La Iglesia de Jesucristo de los
Santos de los Ultimos dias es verdad. En el nombre de Jesucristo. Amen.(translation: I know that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer and Savior of the earth. I know that God is our Heavenly Father.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true. In the name of Jesus Christ.)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true. In the name of Jesus Christ.)
Love you and miss you ALL!
Elder Noll
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