I am doing wonderful. I love it here. My Spanish is coming along, slowly but surely.
Living conditions are all right, not bad at all. Actually, the pension that I am living in right now is supposedly one of the best in the mission. We don't have much of a kitchen, just a sink, fridge, microwave, and camping stove, but that is all right. We don't really have time to cook and the Church members feed us almuerzo, so it all works out.
The food is very, as my cousin Poly [who served a mission in Chile] said "bland." By that I don´t mean that it tastes bad (because it is delicious), but rather that it is not spicy like most North Americans think about South American food.
There are little "stands" (people just turn part of there house into a place to sell food "to go") everywhere. I love going and getting empanadas and papas fritas. The empanadas are delicious as are the french fries. The fries are always freshly cut potatoes and cost maybe a dollar for a huge plateful. But don't you worry, I'm eating healthy and taking my vitamins.
As for adjusting, still haven't done it. Why you may ask? Well, let me tell you. I just haven't felt the need to adjust. I mean it does not seem that foreign to me. That probably sounds wierd as I am half way around the world in another country speaking another language, but I think you know what I mean.
You asked me about singing and playing the piano. Singing--I do it all the time. When we walk in the streets, in the house, in the shower--EVERYWHERE. In fact, I write songs as I go. Here is one I have been singing/writing:
My Shepherd
He knows me more than I can understand
He knows me and has raised me from a lamb
He carries me when I am broken or afraid
He encircles me in love and says tenderly:
``Ye are my sheep, I am your shepherd´´
Safely we sleep for He watches over
In the morn´ His voice is heard
He calls my name and I will follow
He is my Shepherd
He is my Shepherd and I shall not want
He is my Shepher and watches o´er His flock
He leads to pools of water, sparkling and clean
He encircles me in warmth and says lovingly:
``Ye are my sheep, I am your shepherd´´
Safely we sleep for He watches over
In the morn´ His voice is heard
He calls my name and I will follow
He is my Shepherd
When I was lost in the wilderness
The other ninety-nine He left
To find and bring me to the place
Where His sheep can safely graze
He carries me there and in my ear He says
``Ye are my sheep, I am your shepherd´´
Safely we sleep for He watches over
In the morn´ His voice is heard
He calls my name and I will follow
He is my Shepherd
The work is moving along here in La Serena. Javiera will have her baby on this Wednesday, so we have had to push back her and Danny´s dates to the 12th of December with Raquel.
Elder Brady and I are working hard to be tools in the Lord´s hands. Not caring about what we want, but going and doing what the Lord wants.
I know that Jesus is my shepherd and that he has sent me here to find those lost sheep and bring them back to His waiting arms of mercy.
I love my mission!
Smile of the week: A lot of the houses here have patios with gates in the front of the house. I was on splits with Elder Roylance and we entered a patio with an open gate to knock the door. While I was knocking the door, Elder Roylance played with the gate and shut it. The gate could only be opened with a key. We ended up being stuck in the patio for 25 minutes before the owner of the house came and let us out.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010--The First Change
Today is the day that comes every six weeks in the life of a missionary. It is a day looked forward to, but also dreaded. Today was my first day of cambios [transfers] here in Chile.
I especially was nervous this morning about the change, because I had gotten a call on Saturday morning telling me that I would be leaving my area. When the call came I of course was excited, but also devastated. I love it here in La Serena and we have such wonderful investigators and Church members here. Although I knew that it was the right thing and what the Lord wanted, I did not want to leave. I took consolation knowing that I would be leaving the area better than I found it.
Then on Saturday night, Elder Brady got a call from the zone leaders and they told him where I would be going, but he couldn't tell me. Today in zone meeting I found out where I was going. The zone leaders said, "Elder Rowley, se va" (you are going), "a quedarse" (to stay!!!!!!!!!!!!!).
Needless to say, I was confused at first, but then I realized that I would not be leaving!
Hooray! It turns out that originally I was being transferred to Brillador B (I´m in Brillador A-- same ward), but the Saturday night call told Elder Brady that we would be together for another change!
This last week was wonderful! I set three baptismal dates with our investigators this week. Danny, Juan's brother, readily accepted a baptismal date for the 27th. Also, Danny's girlfriend, Javiera accepted a baptismal date for the same day, unless she has her baby, then we will have to push back her date.
On that same date, we will have the baptism of an eleven year old girl named Dangela, who's mother is a less active member who recently reactivated herself. Also, on that day, we will have the baptism of Jorge and Pia, a father and his daughter. Finally, on that date, Tamara will be baptized. Then in December, Juan's parents will be married and then his mom will be baptized.
Great things are coming this change in Brillador and I am thankful to be here. I love it here.
I love my mission!
I especially was nervous this morning about the change, because I had gotten a call on Saturday morning telling me that I would be leaving my area. When the call came I of course was excited, but also devastated. I love it here in La Serena and we have such wonderful investigators and Church members here. Although I knew that it was the right thing and what the Lord wanted, I did not want to leave. I took consolation knowing that I would be leaving the area better than I found it.
Then on Saturday night, Elder Brady got a call from the zone leaders and they told him where I would be going, but he couldn't tell me. Today in zone meeting I found out where I was going. The zone leaders said, "Elder Rowley, se va" (you are going), "a quedarse" (to stay!!!!!!!!!!!!!).
Needless to say, I was confused at first, but then I realized that I would not be leaving!
Hooray! It turns out that originally I was being transferred to Brillador B (I´m in Brillador A-- same ward), but the Saturday night call told Elder Brady that we would be together for another change!
This last week was wonderful! I set three baptismal dates with our investigators this week. Danny, Juan's brother, readily accepted a baptismal date for the 27th. Also, Danny's girlfriend, Javiera accepted a baptismal date for the same day, unless she has her baby, then we will have to push back her date.
On that same date, we will have the baptism of an eleven year old girl named Dangela, who's mother is a less active member who recently reactivated herself. Also, on that day, we will have the baptism of Jorge and Pia, a father and his daughter. Finally, on that date, Tamara will be baptized. Then in December, Juan's parents will be married and then his mom will be baptized.
Great things are coming this change in Brillador and I am thankful to be here. I love it here.
I love my mission!
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Monday, November 2, 2010--Three Months
This week I turned three months old! How crazy is that? Yesterday I got my mission call, last night I reported to the MTC and today I am in Chile with three months of my mission already gone.
Three months. That´s one eighth of my mission already gone. That is scary. Seven times that and I will be home and will have to start worrying about myself again.
That is one of the things I love about my mission--you don´t have to worry about yourself. In fact, you shouldn´t worry about yourself. The beauty of the mission is that for two years you leave behind selfish cares and desires and devote yourself to the will of the Lord. I don´t have to worry about doing homework, about keeping up on politics, the latest fads, going out with friends. Every second of the mission is spent thinking and worrying about others--my companion, my investigators, my ward, etc.
My focus is to be the best missionary that I can and become a true servant and disciple of Christ. In the MTC they told us, "Be the kind of missionary that your mother thinks you are."
Now about our investigators:
Juan was confirmed a member of the Church yesterday. His mother, Raquel (who will be married and then baptized in about a month), and his brother Dani, whom I talked about last week, both attended. Dani does not yet have a baptismal date, but told us that he will be attending church every Sunday.
Francisca still has not been baptized. I have not seen her in over two weeks. Every time we pass by her house, her grandma tells us that she has been sick, or is gone, or gives us some other excuse.
It hurts me so much to be losing an investigator so wonderful. Francisca knows that this is the truth and was making the changes in her life to follow what she knew, but now we have lost contact with her. I pray that we will be able to find her and that she is okay, but for now we have decided that we need to move on and spend our time more effectively teaching other people, rather than passing by to look for her.
This week we were walking and we saw a lady struggling to push her stroller up a dirt hill. Elder Brady and I quickly ran to help her and carried the stroller to the top of the hill. We talked to her about the gospel and set an appointment with her. She is very sincere and was very interested in the Church.
However, in the lesson we found out that she is "convive" or is not married to her "husband." But on the other hand, she has four children, two of which could be baptized. She told us that she would go to church but would have to miss the first hour.
Yesterday, we hoped that she would come, but expected that she wouldn´t. We were sitting in Sunday school when the bishop knocked on the door and brought in Alison (the lady), her stroller with baby inside, and her six-year-old boy. She is very genuine and I am excited to teach her.
Halloween is celebrated the same here as it is in the states. The kids go around to the houses and yell, "dulce o truco" or "dulce o basura," and then they are given candy. Because of Halloween, we didn't get into any houses yesterday, but we contacted a lot of people in the street.
I love mission!
Three months. That´s one eighth of my mission already gone. That is scary. Seven times that and I will be home and will have to start worrying about myself again.
That is one of the things I love about my mission--you don´t have to worry about yourself. In fact, you shouldn´t worry about yourself. The beauty of the mission is that for two years you leave behind selfish cares and desires and devote yourself to the will of the Lord. I don´t have to worry about doing homework, about keeping up on politics, the latest fads, going out with friends. Every second of the mission is spent thinking and worrying about others--my companion, my investigators, my ward, etc.
My focus is to be the best missionary that I can and become a true servant and disciple of Christ. In the MTC they told us, "Be the kind of missionary that your mother thinks you are."
Now about our investigators:
Juan was confirmed a member of the Church yesterday. His mother, Raquel (who will be married and then baptized in about a month), and his brother Dani, whom I talked about last week, both attended. Dani does not yet have a baptismal date, but told us that he will be attending church every Sunday.
Francisca still has not been baptized. I have not seen her in over two weeks. Every time we pass by her house, her grandma tells us that she has been sick, or is gone, or gives us some other excuse.
It hurts me so much to be losing an investigator so wonderful. Francisca knows that this is the truth and was making the changes in her life to follow what she knew, but now we have lost contact with her. I pray that we will be able to find her and that she is okay, but for now we have decided that we need to move on and spend our time more effectively teaching other people, rather than passing by to look for her.
This week we were walking and we saw a lady struggling to push her stroller up a dirt hill. Elder Brady and I quickly ran to help her and carried the stroller to the top of the hill. We talked to her about the gospel and set an appointment with her. She is very sincere and was very interested in the Church.
However, in the lesson we found out that she is "convive" or is not married to her "husband." But on the other hand, she has four children, two of which could be baptized. She told us that she would go to church but would have to miss the first hour.
Yesterday, we hoped that she would come, but expected that she wouldn´t. We were sitting in Sunday school when the bishop knocked on the door and brought in Alison (the lady), her stroller with baby inside, and her six-year-old boy. She is very genuine and I am excited to teach her.
Halloween is celebrated the same here as it is in the states. The kids go around to the houses and yell, "dulce o truco" or "dulce o basura," and then they are given candy. Because of Halloween, we didn't get into any houses yesterday, but we contacted a lot of people in the street.
I love mission!
Monday, October 25, 2010--Terremoto!!
First of all, today is a special day. A day that does not occur very often. It's a day that we celebrate. Do you know what I´m talking about? It´s P-Day!
Okay, well that's not really what I was talking about. What I am talking about is the birth of my father, Kurt Stevens Rowley.
Let's just take a moment to recognize all that has been accomplished during his lifetime. He was born in a land called Pangaea. He was there to witness the discovery of fire and even help with inventing the wheel! Yes, that may seem like a long time ago to some of us, but to him it seems like just yesterday.
I think of that Primary song that says, "One year older and wiser too." Well, Dad is a very, very wise man.
But seriously, Dad, happy birthday! Know that people are celebrating your birthday on the other side of the world. . . .
Yesterday was a wonderful day. Every Sunday is wonderful, but yesterday was particularly special, because it was Jaun's baptism. I was privileged to be the one to perform the ordinance. It has been so beautiful to see the journey that he has started and how he was prepared, even before we taught him, to take this journey that leads to eternal life. His whole family (and the girlfriends of his brothers) attended and thought that the baptism was something very special.
Then last night, we had a noche de hogar at their house and watched Our Heavenly Father's Plan. After the movie, Dani (the older boy, he and his girlfriend will have their baby in November) said that he wants to have an eternal family and that he has the "ganas de bautizarse." It is wonderful to see how the Lord works and how Jaun´s decision will lead to the salvation of his family and many others. We will start teaching Dani and his girlfriend more often and prepare them to be baptized.
As the subject suggests, I experienced my first Chilean terremoto, or earthquake. Don't worry. Nothing major happened. On Friday night, we were sitting at our desk on the second floor, planning for the next day. In the distance I heard a rumbling and then the desk started to shake. I quickly jumped up and ran to the door and Elder Brady and I huddled there, waiting about ten seconds for the tremor to pass. Nothing happened, but it definitely got my adrenaline pumping.
I have learned so much already. The gospel is incredible and I know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ. I love my mission!
Okay, well that's not really what I was talking about. What I am talking about is the birth of my father, Kurt Stevens Rowley.
Let's just take a moment to recognize all that has been accomplished during his lifetime. He was born in a land called Pangaea. He was there to witness the discovery of fire and even help with inventing the wheel! Yes, that may seem like a long time ago to some of us, but to him it seems like just yesterday.
I think of that Primary song that says, "One year older and wiser too." Well, Dad is a very, very wise man.
But seriously, Dad, happy birthday! Know that people are celebrating your birthday on the other side of the world. . . .
Yesterday was a wonderful day. Every Sunday is wonderful, but yesterday was particularly special, because it was Jaun's baptism. I was privileged to be the one to perform the ordinance. It has been so beautiful to see the journey that he has started and how he was prepared, even before we taught him, to take this journey that leads to eternal life. His whole family (and the girlfriends of his brothers) attended and thought that the baptism was something very special.
Then last night, we had a noche de hogar at their house and watched Our Heavenly Father's Plan. After the movie, Dani (the older boy, he and his girlfriend will have their baby in November) said that he wants to have an eternal family and that he has the "ganas de bautizarse." It is wonderful to see how the Lord works and how Jaun´s decision will lead to the salvation of his family and many others. We will start teaching Dani and his girlfriend more often and prepare them to be baptized.
As the subject suggests, I experienced my first Chilean terremoto, or earthquake. Don't worry. Nothing major happened. On Friday night, we were sitting at our desk on the second floor, planning for the next day. In the distance I heard a rumbling and then the desk started to shake. I quickly jumped up and ran to the door and Elder Brady and I huddled there, waiting about ten seconds for the tremor to pass. Nothing happened, but it definitely got my adrenaline pumping.
I have learned so much already. The gospel is incredible and I know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ. I love my mission!
Monday, October 18, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010 -- Light of the World
As the whole world knows, and as eyes all around the world have watched on their TV screens (except those of missionaries of course), thirty-three miners were rescued from a collapsed mine here in Chile. This is a very huge event here in Chile, especially because mining is such a huge part of the culture here (which I will talk about a little later). I must be my father's son, because I couldn't help but draw gospel parrallels when I thought about this event. Time is short, so I will only share one little piece of food for thought.
When the mine first collapsed in the three months ago, the miners were in utter darkness. They were trapped in the darkness, afraid, not knowing if their comrades had survived. My thoughts turned to the events in ancient America after Christ's death. How would it have been to witness and live through the tempests, earthquakes, fires, and whirlwinds after His cruxifiction? Then after that, to be trapped in a darkness so thick that a fire could not even be lit? For three days, the people lived in utter darkness. Then on the third day, when the darkness dispersed, the first thing that Christ says is "I am the light and the life of the world." How much more of a meaning that [declaration] has after experiencing life without light!
He is my light and I cannot live without Him.
This week, Jaun had his baptismal interview and he is good to go for his baptism. He will be baptized this next Sunday after church. I am so excited for him. He is the light in his family and will lead the other members to Christ through his example and desires to follow Christ. Our other investigator that was going to be baptized next Sunday--Fransisca--did not attend church yesterday, so she will have to wait another week.
In one of our appointments with Fransisca this week, we checked up on her commitment to live the law of chastity (something that is a big problem here in Chile). She told us that she had talked to her boyfriend, shared with him the pamphlet and section [on sexual purity] from For the Strength of Youth, and told him that she would be living this commandment of God. In our lesson we asked if she thought that he would like that and she said, "I told him that it was my decision and I want to follow Christ. If he can't live with that, then chao!"
I am so excited for [my cousin] Devin [who starts his mission next week]! The MTC is an incredible place and we missionaries are so lucky to have such a center to prepare us for the mission field. Devin is going to have such a wonderful time and I can't wait to hear about his experiences.
As I said before, mining has a huge effect on the culture here in Chile--in particular, on the family. Many of the men work in the mines. For their work, they are assigned "working tours." A usual tour would be "twenty for ten," meaning that they are gone for twenty days working in the mine and then home for ten days. Two-thirds of the time, the men are gone, living in the mines and working!
I am so thankful for this opportunity to serve and I know that God is watching over me and all of you.
I love my mission!
When the mine first collapsed in the three months ago, the miners were in utter darkness. They were trapped in the darkness, afraid, not knowing if their comrades had survived. My thoughts turned to the events in ancient America after Christ's death. How would it have been to witness and live through the tempests, earthquakes, fires, and whirlwinds after His cruxifiction? Then after that, to be trapped in a darkness so thick that a fire could not even be lit? For three days, the people lived in utter darkness. Then on the third day, when the darkness dispersed, the first thing that Christ says is "I am the light and the life of the world." How much more of a meaning that [declaration] has after experiencing life without light!
He is my light and I cannot live without Him.
This week, Jaun had his baptismal interview and he is good to go for his baptism. He will be baptized this next Sunday after church. I am so excited for him. He is the light in his family and will lead the other members to Christ through his example and desires to follow Christ. Our other investigator that was going to be baptized next Sunday--Fransisca--did not attend church yesterday, so she will have to wait another week.
In one of our appointments with Fransisca this week, we checked up on her commitment to live the law of chastity (something that is a big problem here in Chile). She told us that she had talked to her boyfriend, shared with him the pamphlet and section [on sexual purity] from For the Strength of Youth, and told him that she would be living this commandment of God. In our lesson we asked if she thought that he would like that and she said, "I told him that it was my decision and I want to follow Christ. If he can't live with that, then chao!"
I am so excited for [my cousin] Devin [who starts his mission next week]! The MTC is an incredible place and we missionaries are so lucky to have such a center to prepare us for the mission field. Devin is going to have such a wonderful time and I can't wait to hear about his experiences.
As I said before, mining has a huge effect on the culture here in Chile--in particular, on the family. Many of the men work in the mines. For their work, they are assigned "working tours." A usual tour would be "twenty for ten," meaning that they are gone for twenty days working in the mine and then home for ten days. Two-thirds of the time, the men are gone, living in the mines and working!
I am so thankful for this opportunity to serve and I know that God is watching over me and all of you.
I love my mission!
Monday, October 11, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010 -- Editor's Apology
It has taken us a while to get this blog up to date. Shameful indeed. But today, October 11, we added seven new posts (not including this one). The blog is now current!
We aim to do better, to keep current, in the future. In the meantime, please read the posts just added. They include Elder Rowley's pictures from his days in the Missionary Training Center, his phone call home from Texas, and his arrival in Chile--as well as the experiences that keep him saying, "I love my mission!" -- Ed.
We aim to do better, to keep current, in the future. In the meantime, please read the posts just added. They include Elder Rowley's pictures from his days in the Missionary Training Center, his phone call home from Texas, and his arrival in Chile--as well as the experiences that keep him saying, "I love my mission!" -- Ed.
Monday, October 11, 2010 -- Every Member a Missionary
Have I ever told you how much I love my mission? Well, I love it! So there.
Yesterday we had a beautiful baptism. Our investigator Carlos was baptized along with three investigators of the other missionaries in our ward. It was so wonderful to see them all dressed in white, entering the waters of baptism and entering into a covenant with their Heavenly Father. I wasn't there to teach any of them. With Carlos, I taught him twice, but the lessons were just to take care of some baptismal interview and baptism business. Despite this, my heart reached out to them and I felt an overwhelming love for them. It is so lovely to see God's children finding their way home. One of the baptisms was especially moving. As the women came up out of the purifying waters, having been born again, she began to weep. She was touched by the joyfulness of the moment and understood what a wonderful step she had just made. It is such a privilege to take a part in this work and see the true beauty in life and in people.
The baptism was also wonderful because one of our other investigators, Francisca, attended. She is nineteen years old and she was found a couple days before I arrived, so I have had a large part in teaching her. She has a baptismal date for September 23. The baptism yesterday was directly after church and she stayed for all three hours of church and for the baptism. Not only did she attend the baptism, but she also took part in the service! The Young Women sang a song called "Hija de un Rey," ["Daughter of a King"] . . . and Francisca sang with them. The members here are excellent and have done a wonderful job of befriending her.
Members are so pivotal in missionary work. In every stage of the work, the members need to play a role: finding, teaching, and persevering. Finding can often be hard for the missionaries. But if the members invited all their friends to listen, the missionaries would be able to spend more time teaching. I invite you to think of anyone you know and talk to them about the gospel and invite them to listen to the missionaries. Although it may be difficult or scary to do so, the worst that could happen is that they say that they aren't interested. On the other hand, if they do listen, their lives will be changed for the better and will come back to their Heavenly Father. I also invite you to go to lessons with the missionaries. The testimony of a member can be extremely powerful and the role of a friend is irreplaceable. Remember, every member can and should be a missionary!
There was one house that we got into this week that I would like to talk about. The man who we taught is named Nelson. As we talked and invited him to be baptized, he told us that he could not because he is Catholic (here, almost everyone is Catholic, it's like a nationality--they are born into it, but most of them don't practice the religion). We invited him again to be baptized, but he said that he couldn't because it was a tradition in his family to be Catholic. His parents were Catholic, their parents were Catholic, so he is Catholic, although he does not practice the religion. When he said this, my mind turned to the scriptures and how people are lead away because of the ''traditions of their fathers.'' The only reason that Nelson would not accept our message was because of the tradition of his ''padres,'' which can be translated as parents or fathers.
As I have thought about that experience and others that I have had, I began to think about the way that the Adversary works. He leads men away "with a flaxen cord, until he bindeth them with his strong cords forever." He does not try all at once to bind people, but rather slowly and gently leads them step by step with a soft flaxen cord. If he can get men to take one step away, off the path that is all he needs. I like the analogy they used in [general] conference [on October 2-3], of walking in a minefield. We have the way set out before us, the safe path through the danger, but if the devil can get us to take one step away from the path, it can be fatal. . . . This is why we must be strictly obedient. For if we let ourselves wander, if we are selectively obedient, we could stray from the safe path into the dangerous minefield.
The Spanish here is pretty crazy. The natives talk at a hundred miles an hour. They drop endings to words all the time, or even drop whole words from a sentence. My companion described it as ''lazy Spanish.'' However, I am starting to understand it more and more. I hope that I will be able to learn Spanish better so that I will be able to invite all the people to come unto Christ.
I love my mission!
Yesterday we had a beautiful baptism. Our investigator Carlos was baptized along with three investigators of the other missionaries in our ward. It was so wonderful to see them all dressed in white, entering the waters of baptism and entering into a covenant with their Heavenly Father. I wasn't there to teach any of them. With Carlos, I taught him twice, but the lessons were just to take care of some baptismal interview and baptism business. Despite this, my heart reached out to them and I felt an overwhelming love for them. It is so lovely to see God's children finding their way home. One of the baptisms was especially moving. As the women came up out of the purifying waters, having been born again, she began to weep. She was touched by the joyfulness of the moment and understood what a wonderful step she had just made. It is such a privilege to take a part in this work and see the true beauty in life and in people.
The baptism was also wonderful because one of our other investigators, Francisca, attended. She is nineteen years old and she was found a couple days before I arrived, so I have had a large part in teaching her. She has a baptismal date for September 23. The baptism yesterday was directly after church and she stayed for all three hours of church and for the baptism. Not only did she attend the baptism, but she also took part in the service! The Young Women sang a song called "Hija de un Rey," ["Daughter of a King"] . . . and Francisca sang with them. The members here are excellent and have done a wonderful job of befriending her.
Members are so pivotal in missionary work. In every stage of the work, the members need to play a role: finding, teaching, and persevering. Finding can often be hard for the missionaries. But if the members invited all their friends to listen, the missionaries would be able to spend more time teaching. I invite you to think of anyone you know and talk to them about the gospel and invite them to listen to the missionaries. Although it may be difficult or scary to do so, the worst that could happen is that they say that they aren't interested. On the other hand, if they do listen, their lives will be changed for the better and will come back to their Heavenly Father. I also invite you to go to lessons with the missionaries. The testimony of a member can be extremely powerful and the role of a friend is irreplaceable. Remember, every member can and should be a missionary!
There was one house that we got into this week that I would like to talk about. The man who we taught is named Nelson. As we talked and invited him to be baptized, he told us that he could not because he is Catholic (here, almost everyone is Catholic, it's like a nationality--they are born into it, but most of them don't practice the religion). We invited him again to be baptized, but he said that he couldn't because it was a tradition in his family to be Catholic. His parents were Catholic, their parents were Catholic, so he is Catholic, although he does not practice the religion. When he said this, my mind turned to the scriptures and how people are lead away because of the ''traditions of their fathers.'' The only reason that Nelson would not accept our message was because of the tradition of his ''padres,'' which can be translated as parents or fathers.
As I have thought about that experience and others that I have had, I began to think about the way that the Adversary works. He leads men away "with a flaxen cord, until he bindeth them with his strong cords forever." He does not try all at once to bind people, but rather slowly and gently leads them step by step with a soft flaxen cord. If he can get men to take one step away, off the path that is all he needs. I like the analogy they used in [general] conference [on October 2-3], of walking in a minefield. We have the way set out before us, the safe path through the danger, but if the devil can get us to take one step away from the path, it can be fatal. . . . This is why we must be strictly obedient. For if we let ourselves wander, if we are selectively obedient, we could stray from the safe path into the dangerous minefield.
The Spanish here is pretty crazy. The natives talk at a hundred miles an hour. They drop endings to words all the time, or even drop whole words from a sentence. My companion described it as ''lazy Spanish.'' However, I am starting to understand it more and more. I hope that I will be able to learn Spanish better so that I will be able to invite all the people to come unto Christ.
I love my mission!
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