Hello all my family and friends,
Well, an you believe another week has come and gone already, I cannot! This first change has gone by slow, but fast at the same time. Today was an irregular pday, no surprise to me though, because I have only had 1 regular pday this entire change. My comp and I had to wake up at 5 this morning in order to travel to the Mission office so that me and some other missionaries could go to the US embassy of CR and sign some papers for our residency. So, needless to say, it´s been a long day, that we spent in the middle of busy San Jose. This week was crazy, a long with the rest, and just like I always tell Elder Montierth, I am never ceased to be amazed here, either I see something I have never seen before and it´s totally crazy, or I am amazed because of the love I can feel from Heaven. Both of these things happen quite frequently, if not every single day. We had divisions this week, everyday except yesterday. It was crazy! One day I am working in Tibás, where I am Sr. Comp, have to make appointments, talk to people, and call the shots, lets just say I was nervous, but it all worked out well, and then the next day I am working in the Leon 13 with Elder Montierth, and then we switch it up again. But I learned a lot this week, who knew that there was so much to be learned. Nevertheless, I am always learning here, whether it be something new I learn in Spanish, the gospel, myself, the mission, the world, all of it, I am learning new stuff.
On my first Sunday here, my Comp, the Bishop of our ward and I traveled around our area in order to get familiar with the place, we ran across a man my age, his name is Elvis, I may have mentioned him before, but at first glance when he answered the door, I´ll be honest, all of us thought this was going to be another rejection, but we were pleasantly surprised to see him let us into his house with open arms, we, along with the bishop, shared a small message with him, his sister Tania, and his mother Carolina. We met with them a lot throughout the coming weeks here, but we could never usually meet with Elvis, but we continued to teach Tania and Carolina, after the first lesson, we invited them to be baptized...Carolina replied saying that she didnt want to, that her brother was a pastor of another church and she wasnt interested. We continued to set appointments with them, and everytime we showed up, they would ignore us, or turn off the lights and tv when they saw us coming. So, we thought there was no more we could do, and we stopped visiting them. But this week, as Elder Nuñez and I visited a family of the boy who I baptized this week, (who are next door neighbors with Elvis) the mother, Edith told us that her neighbor Elvis and his family was interested in the Church. We were taken aback because they stopped showing interest, but we set a time to stop by them and see what the deal was. On divisions one day, Elder Montierth and my comp Bertrand visited them, and Elvis was there, they taught him the first lesson, and set a baptismal date for Feb 5, he also said he wanted to go to church and maybe even serve a mission. Elvis came to church on Sunday and he absolutely loved it, and seems firm in his decision to get baptized on this date. This experience was really cool to see how it progressed, and I learned alot from this experience. I learned that the Lord has His own time table, as I´m sure we all know, He works His ways, on His time, and we have to be patient in long suffering, like it constantly says in the scriptures, until his works come to pass. They will always come to pass, and the Lord always fulfills his promises. This decision showed me that God really does prepare people to hear this message, He works, in HIs time, a small change in their hearts, and allows it to swell inside them, until they are ready to receive the Lord´s messengers.
How grateful I am to be a messenger of the Lord. Even though I cannot speak or understand all of the language yet, the spirit translates for me, and the spirit is fluent in all languages, and he can find me, even in a small tiny shack in Costa Rica. I´ll be honest family, everyday here is uphill, Its not easy, and there are times where I really question if I have it in me, but what reassures my doubt is my friends and family back at home. I thank all of you with all that I am for your love and your support. I can truly feel it, as if you were all here with me cheering me on in the sidelines.
Yesterday was an example of this, at 630 on the dot as we woke up for the morning, the phone rang, it was one of the members of the ward, my good friend Carlos Vargus. He informed my comp and I that we would be talking in Sacrament meeting, at first, my stomach sunk, and then, it ended up in my throat, and I got so sick and nervous, I sat in my bed and I questioned, how I was going to do this, I barely speak spanish. I love to give talks, and I love to express myself, but how will I ever do this in Spanish. I jumped out of bed and frantically wrote a talk on Missionary Work (how convenient huh?) I didnt have much more time to dwell on my fears because we had to go and get Elvis and Tania ready for church, we ran there and headed to the chapel and before I knew it I was at the pulpit, with 75 people, all fluent in spanish, staring at me. And I was expected to speak in front of them. I worried, and worried and worried that I would make a mistake, but I had a feeling in my heart, testify to me, that if I trusted in God and had faith, yeah I might make a mistake, but the spirit would translate, and the spirit is 100% fluent in Spanish. I spoke, made a few mistakes, but left the situation feeling totally spiritually refreshed, and lots of people came up to me afterwards and thanked me for my words.
Family, friends, and everyone I love so very much, I learn something new each and everyday here, and I am always so excited to share them with you, because I see the way that my life is blessed, and I want the same for my beautiful family and friends. I know that if we live worthily, we can have the blessing of the Holy Ghost with us always! And in moments like these, we have to trust in our actions, thoughts, and our God, to know that if we did our part, HE WILL DO HIS! He will do His part family, I know it. Because without His part, frankly, we´re nothing. I recall one of my favorite scriptures that says for with God nothing shall be impossible. How true that statement is. Often times, I wake up and see the day ahead of me as a HUGE mountain, and I question how I am ever going to climb this, I turn to Luke 1 and read that scripture, and immediately am brought back to square one. And at the end of the day, without fail, when I reflect on what we accomplished, the words of one of my favorite songs comes to my head, ¨sometimes that mountain you´ve been climbing, is just a grain of sand, what you´ve been out there searching for forever, is in your hands, and when you figure out Love is all that matters after all, it sure makes everything else, seem so small¨ Those few words have saved me here. As well as my love and faith in God. I pray everyday family that we can all have more faith, more hope and more love in our lives, because God is anxiously waiting to bless each and everyone of us, to make our lives a little more easy, to lift our burdens just a little more, to make ends meet one time, to put those feelings of joy and happiness in my heart, he´s just waiting for us to do our part. I pray that we can all do our part.
Well everybody, a big thank you again! From the bottom of my heart! I am so blessed to have you all in my life! I draw upon your strength daily! Remember that I love you, each of you. Remember that I know that what I am doing here is divine, its a call from a Prophet, its the work of the Lord. I know its true, I know without a shadow of a doubt that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Kingdom of God once again on the earth, restored by a prophet, Joseph Smith, I know we have a prophet today Thomas S. Monson, I know that if we heed the words of our living Prophet and apostles and follow the words of Christ, that uphill climb will get a little bit easier, I know it. I know that God hears our prayers, and he answers them in His own time, we just have to be patient. I love you family, so much! Keep the faith and lose the fear! With all the love I could possibly give,
Elder Falor
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
4th Week Update
Hello Family and Friends,
Well another week has gone by, and I dont really know where it went! I´m sorry I don´t have a lot of time this week, which is sad because I have a LOT to tell you! Tel Grandpa Dave Happy Birthday! And tell Amy Happy Birthday as well! I love them both!
Mom, to answer your questions, sorry, I didn´t send my camera card, because I didnt have time, so dont worry, I have my card here. I´m pretty sure the new camera should make it here by changes which is Feb 2. When we travel to the temple and zone mtgs and such we take a bus into San Jose and then into the city further to our meetings. A lot of times we walk, but anywhere outside of Tibas we take a bus.
This week was crazy, it disappeared so quick I don´t even know what happened. But I can definitely see the Lords hand at work in my life every single day.
The baptism on Saturday was really great, It started off crazy because one Elder in our House, Elder Nuñez wanted to move the piano from the Sacrament room into the Baptismal room and he got so excited in doing so he tipped the piano over and broke it, haha! It was crazy, but only something that would happen to him. This baptism was a cool experience because it was a 4 person baptism, 1 from our area in Tibas and 3 from the Sisters area in Zurqui. Each one of the Elders in my house baptized a person that day! I baptized Daniel from Tibas, and it was so great! I was nervous but as always the spirit brought me back to square one and helped me through. I am continually seeing the changes the Lord makes in my life, each day, little by little, a little more of the old me is chipped away and I am becoming more of what my Heavenly Father wants me to be.
We did a lot of different stuff this week, we had divisions where I went with Elder Montierth from Idaho into the Leon 13 and we taught a bunch of cool lessons. The people are great and they are so humble and willing to let us in and hear our message. I spoke a little more and was able to understand almost everything. I´m getting to the point where I can understand everything gringos can say in spanish, now I have to work on the Latinos, they are a little more difficult.
But I am doing great, some days are harder than others, but like I said before, in every situation, I am brought back to square one, back where It´s most important, where I can refocus on my purpose and start over better the next day.
The time really is flying by, I have been in Costa Rica for a whole month now. And I can´t believe the things I´ve done, the things I´ve seen and the way I´ve changed. I have seen such a change that the gospel has wrought in my life, I can´t wait to see that change in the lives of those that we are teaching.
Sunday was great, we had a confirmation for Daniel and he is now a member of this amazing church! What a privelege to be members of God´s Kingdom on the earth. I don´t think any of us realize the amazingness in that sentence, we are involved in the most divine work. We have all been saved, for this time, this place to be here and help in the work of the Lord in some way, some how. I´ve realized how much work needs to be done, and you don´t always need a call from the prophet to get the work done. Work can be done in every area of every stake, ward, branch, group, etc. We had a Stake meeting for Estaca Toyopán on Sunday, all the missionaries and stake leaders met at the stake center and discussed the stake goals for 2011. We have made some big goals for the wards to help out in missionary work, to continue to build the kingdom. It affects me a lot because I have a feeling I will be in Tibás for another 5 months. We also ate dinner, hot dogs with cabbage on them, strange, but tasty! And its always fun to get together with our zone.
I absolutely love the Missionaries in this mission. Like everyone, they have their problems and their challenges, but each of us are striving each day to be better than the last, and in reality, that´s what the Lord asks of each of us. To become more of a Disciple of Christ today, than I was tomorrow, and to keep moving forward. I don´t remember who said it, but someone said that we aren´t going to get anywhere standing still, sounds like a simple statement, but when thought out is far more profound. We are never going to reach our potential, waiting for God, family, friends, coworkers or so and so to make the change in us, we have to put in the work, and the others help along the way. In that long path back to our Heavenly Father involves work. This church is work! And we are not ashamed to say that, because our Father in heaven has blessings in store for us beyond our ability to comprehend, but we must work. We must strive harder and harder each and everyday to make that change inside of us, to bring a little piece of us closer to our Savior. Who gave his EVERYTHING for us.
Today was splendid! Absolutely splendid! It was my one month check up, that they call in the mission. Where all the Elders and HErmanas that came in my group meet together in the Church in Los Yoses, where we met with pres Galvez and the Assistants and discussed the last month, and how to improve the next 21. Pres Galvez is great and truly inspired, he definitely has the spirit with him and does such a great job to lead this mission forward. After that, we all gathered in a bus and drove into the city Coronado (which is just as beautiful as Coronodo in San Diego) up to a huge mountain that over looks the entire country. We gathered in some mans back yard and looked out at the view, which was mostly clouds, President Galvez continues to tell us that this property, years ago, was the place where President Boyd K Packer himself stood and dedicated the Land of Costa Rica for the preaching of the Gospel in Costa Rica. I was floored at this experience! This dedicatory prayer offered by Pres Packer, allowed me, to stand at that exact spot years later, to preach the gospel to this people. As the man shared his story of this great experience, he talked about how Pres Packer really wanted to see the city, but the clouds were taking up the view, right as Elder Packer began his prayer, the man said, there was not a cloud in the sky, the Heavens literally opened up, and God himself dedicated this land for the preaching of the Gospel...It is no mistake that I am here...It is no mistake that the Gospel is being preached in Costa Rica. There is no mistake in this earth, except those made by man. God really is in charge, he is there, and he knows everything, deeply and intimately, beyond our imagination. As the man shared this story, the hairs on my arms and neck stood up, and I had goosebumps as the spirit testified to me of the truthfullness of this story. He said as Pres Packer finished the prayer, the clouds moved in again, and it began to pour rain. We stood at the exact spot where Pres Packer himself stood, where 10 years earlier, lightning had struck, perhaps, giving a sign that someday, this spot, would be very important to the people in this Country. Since that day, the face of Costa Rica, and the face of the Church in this country has changed in miraculous ways! It was a way cool experience, but unfortunately, My camera broke all the way and I wasnt able to bring it, but I have pics from my comps camera that I will send sooner or later. After this we traveled to Pres Galvez´s house and had an AMAZING lunch! and got our mail! Which was great to receive a package! Thanks so much!
Well family, the work continues, like I say every week. It doesnt stop, it doesn´t get easier, it just gets more and more worth it. Moments like Baptisms, feeling the spirit so deeply touch your soul in a lesson, people saying hi to you on the street, someone accepting the message, makes all the suffering, the walking, the misunderstandings, the yelling, the hatred, it makes it all worth it. This work is definitely work. For those people who said Oh man, costa rica! Thats a vacation for 2 years, not a mission. You are really wrong, there is work to do, even in a country as beautiful as this. And the work of a Missionary doesnt stop, it doesn´t let up, because this isnt temporary, this is eternal work that we are performing here. We are leading people to the narrow gate and onto the path back to their Father in Heaven.
I love this work. Even though its hard, I love it, with all that I am. I know this Gospel is true, I know that God lives today and he is the same, today, yesterday, and forever. He never stops loving us, ever. I know in our times of weakness, we may feel that the Heavens have closed, and God has ceased to bless us, and we might as well give up. I urge you, family, friends, or anyone who feels that way, to stop, and realize the potential you can gain from this experience. They are all for our good, every moment. The heaven´s are not closed, far from it. They are open and ready to receive all who fall at the feet of the Savior.
I can´t begin to comprehend the blessings and miracles I have seen here, and they are not huge giant miracles just because I am a missionary, they are little pieces to the puzzle that are continually being revealed to us and helping us see that God is with us, every single step of the way.
Family, I pray for your health and safety each and everyday, I know that God hears my prayers, and I hope you can see the blessings God gives you, the blessing of another day, another day to learn, grow and progress as a Son or Daughter of a Heavenly Father. I hope you all feel my love, and I hope you all find great joy and happiness this next week, and next 21 months. Please please, remember I love you, I am thinking of you CONSTANTLY! each one of you are here with me, you walk behind me on the sketchiest of streets and you are in the back of the bus with me, and you are even with me in the tiny houses of our investigators. I feel your presence and I am deeply grateful for that.
Stay strong family, remember I love you!
Until next week, Elder Falor
Well another week has gone by, and I dont really know where it went! I´m sorry I don´t have a lot of time this week, which is sad because I have a LOT to tell you! Tel Grandpa Dave Happy Birthday! And tell Amy Happy Birthday as well! I love them both!
Mom, to answer your questions, sorry, I didn´t send my camera card, because I didnt have time, so dont worry, I have my card here. I´m pretty sure the new camera should make it here by changes which is Feb 2. When we travel to the temple and zone mtgs and such we take a bus into San Jose and then into the city further to our meetings. A lot of times we walk, but anywhere outside of Tibas we take a bus.
This week was crazy, it disappeared so quick I don´t even know what happened. But I can definitely see the Lords hand at work in my life every single day.
The baptism on Saturday was really great, It started off crazy because one Elder in our House, Elder Nuñez wanted to move the piano from the Sacrament room into the Baptismal room and he got so excited in doing so he tipped the piano over and broke it, haha! It was crazy, but only something that would happen to him. This baptism was a cool experience because it was a 4 person baptism, 1 from our area in Tibas and 3 from the Sisters area in Zurqui. Each one of the Elders in my house baptized a person that day! I baptized Daniel from Tibas, and it was so great! I was nervous but as always the spirit brought me back to square one and helped me through. I am continually seeing the changes the Lord makes in my life, each day, little by little, a little more of the old me is chipped away and I am becoming more of what my Heavenly Father wants me to be.
We did a lot of different stuff this week, we had divisions where I went with Elder Montierth from Idaho into the Leon 13 and we taught a bunch of cool lessons. The people are great and they are so humble and willing to let us in and hear our message. I spoke a little more and was able to understand almost everything. I´m getting to the point where I can understand everything gringos can say in spanish, now I have to work on the Latinos, they are a little more difficult.
But I am doing great, some days are harder than others, but like I said before, in every situation, I am brought back to square one, back where It´s most important, where I can refocus on my purpose and start over better the next day.
The time really is flying by, I have been in Costa Rica for a whole month now. And I can´t believe the things I´ve done, the things I´ve seen and the way I´ve changed. I have seen such a change that the gospel has wrought in my life, I can´t wait to see that change in the lives of those that we are teaching.
Sunday was great, we had a confirmation for Daniel and he is now a member of this amazing church! What a privelege to be members of God´s Kingdom on the earth. I don´t think any of us realize the amazingness in that sentence, we are involved in the most divine work. We have all been saved, for this time, this place to be here and help in the work of the Lord in some way, some how. I´ve realized how much work needs to be done, and you don´t always need a call from the prophet to get the work done. Work can be done in every area of every stake, ward, branch, group, etc. We had a Stake meeting for Estaca Toyopán on Sunday, all the missionaries and stake leaders met at the stake center and discussed the stake goals for 2011. We have made some big goals for the wards to help out in missionary work, to continue to build the kingdom. It affects me a lot because I have a feeling I will be in Tibás for another 5 months. We also ate dinner, hot dogs with cabbage on them, strange, but tasty! And its always fun to get together with our zone.
I absolutely love the Missionaries in this mission. Like everyone, they have their problems and their challenges, but each of us are striving each day to be better than the last, and in reality, that´s what the Lord asks of each of us. To become more of a Disciple of Christ today, than I was tomorrow, and to keep moving forward. I don´t remember who said it, but someone said that we aren´t going to get anywhere standing still, sounds like a simple statement, but when thought out is far more profound. We are never going to reach our potential, waiting for God, family, friends, coworkers or so and so to make the change in us, we have to put in the work, and the others help along the way. In that long path back to our Heavenly Father involves work. This church is work! And we are not ashamed to say that, because our Father in heaven has blessings in store for us beyond our ability to comprehend, but we must work. We must strive harder and harder each and everyday to make that change inside of us, to bring a little piece of us closer to our Savior. Who gave his EVERYTHING for us.
Today was splendid! Absolutely splendid! It was my one month check up, that they call in the mission. Where all the Elders and HErmanas that came in my group meet together in the Church in Los Yoses, where we met with pres Galvez and the Assistants and discussed the last month, and how to improve the next 21. Pres Galvez is great and truly inspired, he definitely has the spirit with him and does such a great job to lead this mission forward. After that, we all gathered in a bus and drove into the city Coronado (which is just as beautiful as Coronodo in San Diego) up to a huge mountain that over looks the entire country. We gathered in some mans back yard and looked out at the view, which was mostly clouds, President Galvez continues to tell us that this property, years ago, was the place where President Boyd K Packer himself stood and dedicated the Land of Costa Rica for the preaching of the Gospel in Costa Rica. I was floored at this experience! This dedicatory prayer offered by Pres Packer, allowed me, to stand at that exact spot years later, to preach the gospel to this people. As the man shared his story of this great experience, he talked about how Pres Packer really wanted to see the city, but the clouds were taking up the view, right as Elder Packer began his prayer, the man said, there was not a cloud in the sky, the Heavens literally opened up, and God himself dedicated this land for the preaching of the Gospel...It is no mistake that I am here...It is no mistake that the Gospel is being preached in Costa Rica. There is no mistake in this earth, except those made by man. God really is in charge, he is there, and he knows everything, deeply and intimately, beyond our imagination. As the man shared this story, the hairs on my arms and neck stood up, and I had goosebumps as the spirit testified to me of the truthfullness of this story. He said as Pres Packer finished the prayer, the clouds moved in again, and it began to pour rain. We stood at the exact spot where Pres Packer himself stood, where 10 years earlier, lightning had struck, perhaps, giving a sign that someday, this spot, would be very important to the people in this Country. Since that day, the face of Costa Rica, and the face of the Church in this country has changed in miraculous ways! It was a way cool experience, but unfortunately, My camera broke all the way and I wasnt able to bring it, but I have pics from my comps camera that I will send sooner or later. After this we traveled to Pres Galvez´s house and had an AMAZING lunch! and got our mail! Which was great to receive a package! Thanks so much!
Well family, the work continues, like I say every week. It doesnt stop, it doesn´t get easier, it just gets more and more worth it. Moments like Baptisms, feeling the spirit so deeply touch your soul in a lesson, people saying hi to you on the street, someone accepting the message, makes all the suffering, the walking, the misunderstandings, the yelling, the hatred, it makes it all worth it. This work is definitely work. For those people who said Oh man, costa rica! Thats a vacation for 2 years, not a mission. You are really wrong, there is work to do, even in a country as beautiful as this. And the work of a Missionary doesnt stop, it doesn´t let up, because this isnt temporary, this is eternal work that we are performing here. We are leading people to the narrow gate and onto the path back to their Father in Heaven.
I love this work. Even though its hard, I love it, with all that I am. I know this Gospel is true, I know that God lives today and he is the same, today, yesterday, and forever. He never stops loving us, ever. I know in our times of weakness, we may feel that the Heavens have closed, and God has ceased to bless us, and we might as well give up. I urge you, family, friends, or anyone who feels that way, to stop, and realize the potential you can gain from this experience. They are all for our good, every moment. The heaven´s are not closed, far from it. They are open and ready to receive all who fall at the feet of the Savior.
I can´t begin to comprehend the blessings and miracles I have seen here, and they are not huge giant miracles just because I am a missionary, they are little pieces to the puzzle that are continually being revealed to us and helping us see that God is with us, every single step of the way.
Family, I pray for your health and safety each and everyday, I know that God hears my prayers, and I hope you can see the blessings God gives you, the blessing of another day, another day to learn, grow and progress as a Son or Daughter of a Heavenly Father. I hope you all feel my love, and I hope you all find great joy and happiness this next week, and next 21 months. Please please, remember I love you, I am thinking of you CONSTANTLY! each one of you are here with me, you walk behind me on the sketchiest of streets and you are in the back of the bus with me, and you are even with me in the tiny houses of our investigators. I feel your presence and I am deeply grateful for that.
Stay strong family, remember I love you!
Until next week, Elder Falor
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
3rd week update
Hello all my amazing family and loved ones,
Here I am at the middle of week three here is Costa Rica. The time has just flown by, some days I don´t feel that way though, but either way, the work of the Lord continues, whether I´m ready or not. I can feel and see such a change in myself. I´m not the same person as I was 15 months ago, nor the same person you dropped off at the curb of the MTC in October. The Lord continually pushes me, just to the point where I think I can´t handle it, and then I learn and discover something new about myself, and the Gospel, the world, everything. I still struggle alot with my confidence at times, but I am a way different person than I was. I am now walking the streets of CR and saying hello and talking to random people, when before, I got anxious to talk to the cashier at Kmart. I know the Lord has SOMETHING up his sleeve for me. I haven´t yet figured out what he´s doing but I know in time I will reap the benefits of all this.
This week was CRAZY! As was the other 2. Each day is filled with new surprises, new goals, new hopes, lots of work, and lots of WALKING! My comp and I have a baptism on Saturday for a boy named Daniel who is 9 years old from Nicaragua, I might be the one to baptize him too! Crazy! We are really excited for saturday, our zone has made some big plans and have about 30 baptisms scheduled for zona Toyopán.
So last sunday my house fasted, because we had been having trouble finding people to teach. It was a rough fast, because I haven´t fasted and then walked and worked so hard while fasting, but I made it through, and at the end of the day on Sunday, we still hadnt found a family to teach. So we decided to make one last stop at a house that we had stoped by like 6 times that week to teach the family but they were never there, and this time they were there, we werent planning on teaching right there, but they invited us right in and we taught them, and they were very receptive of our message. The spirit was so strong, I shared the message of the Restoration and the first vision with them and at the end of the lesson, the father accepted our invitation to pray at the end with us all, and as he said an innocent prayer for us and his family, the spirit was SO strong, It filled my soul with joy like you wont believe. We are really hoping this family accepts our message and invitation to be baptized. So that was a cool experience, Its amazing to see, in action, in all reality, that the Lord really does uphold his promises, and right before our eyes!
I had another experience last night, as we sat in this TINY TINY TINY home of one of our long time investigators for our area, her name is Ivania, her and her husband, Aristides, have wanted to get baptized for quite some time now, but need to get married first, and move out of their house, so we visit her and her son Loudy and daughter Paula quite often and keep them spiritually on their toes until they can get baptized. Ivania and Aristides have been having problems with their landlord, she is very violent with Loudy and has a bunch of dumb rules for Ivania to follow, and though I couldnt understand all of what she said, I sat there in this tiny house, and looked at these people, I couldnt understand, I had only known for 2 weeks, but I had such great love in my heart for them, I KNEW with all that I am, that they were Children of a Heavenly Father, and that though they happened to be in this vale of sorrow rightnow, the Lord has prepared a Valley of Promise for them, if they follow the words of His Beloved Son, which is what we were there to declare. I can´t explain the feeling I had as I looked at this humble family, and felt so priveleged to be here, to give them this message of hope and happiness. It really brought me back to square one, it made my problems look very small and not all that important. It made everything all my trials and hardships in my life that I had experienced very small and almost insignificant. While we were teaching Ivania and she talked of her struggles to find a house, a prompting came to my mind that I need to pray for her, that I need to help draw down the powers of heaven and help this family. Then I remembered a family who had been offering us a place to stay for 3 weeks and we keep denying it becasue Pres. Galvez said we couldnt, we offered it to Ivania and she is going to look into it. I thought about how amazing that little moment was. That we had a way to help her right then, that the Lord had put that apartment in our path for her benefit. I decided as I reflected on my mission, that miracles, are everywhere. Not only for missionaries, for everyone! Shoot, the fact that I am here, 3000 miles away from my comfort zone is a miracle in itself. They are everywhere family, continue to look for the miracles, and express gratitude when you find them.
We always visit this family, the Solano family, a family of members. And they have a boy named Jeffrey, and when I told him that my dads name was Jeffrey he was shocked! He asked if my dad was bien tuanis. Which means like way cool, and I said of course! So they really wanted to tell you that I am safe and that they have a son named Jeffrey, so mom, If you get an email from a Juan Carlos Solano, don´t be alarmed, it´s just a member.
So, the rest of the week was great, monday we did service pretty much all day long, we painted a room for a member of the Garabito ward which is the other area near us. It was a lot of fun, and good to do some service for her, because she had been sick and just recently fell and was rushed to the hospital, so we got together and cleaned up her house and room for her, so when she returned she wouldnt be so sick.
Today was a wonderful day, as you heard we as a zone got to attend the temple! And what a blessing that was! I was so preoccupied at first because It was all in spanish! I just barely got comfortable with it in English! But onceI set foot inside the Lord´s house i felt peace! Rush through my body and I felt so comfortable. The temple was a great experience! And The CR temple is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!
But what was really amazing about today as well was what happened after the temple. I was talking to Elder Kemp (an elder from my district in the MTC who me and him became really good friends) and he expressed to me about how he had some doubts, and he didnt think he was going to be able to stay on the mission, and he had been having the same struggles as I had been having (not the going home part) but just with doubts and homesickness and insecurities and such. And I told him I felt the same, and we got talking and something told me to tell him, you are where you are supposed to be, you can´t leave, because you are not supposed to be anywhere else. It was strange that I said that, because for awhile here, I thought that my call to CR was a mess up. That I was supposed to serve in an english speaking mission becasue I will never be able to learn spanish, and all that stuff, unfortunately Im embarrassed to say that I thought that, but I did, and as I said that, I felt the spirit tell me the same thing...you are where you are supposed to be...don´t doubt, don´t give up, because this is where you are and where you are meant to be...I was floored for the rest of the day, shocked because those words came out of my mouth for his benefit, and mine. I shared with him the insight and knowledge that all my great family and friends shared with me, and I think it really helped him. I am constantly amazed that the Lord knows us, individually. He knows us by name, and we are His children. I have had first hand experiences with that here!
So family, if you ever doubt, if it ever gets harder than you can bear, trust in the fact that you are Children of a Heavenly Father. There is power. Power beyond our own capabilities, our own comprehension, power beyond anything in the world. Always remember, what has really helped me, that when life gets too hard to stand, kneel. Because he hears us, and heals us. I know this. Because I have experienced it.
Well family, I am doing great, things are looking up, I have those hard days, but I am starting to realize why they are there. The good and the bad days HAVE to go together, to make the good days even better, and to make us strong enough to withstand the bad days. I am safe, I am protected, always under the eye of Him who knows everything. I pray that all is well with you, I think about you every second.
I want you to know family that I know that I am where I am needed. I was called by a Prophet of God, to declare what knowledge I KNOW to be true. I know! With all my heart, with all my head, soul spirit and body, that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is the Kingdom of God restored once again on the earth. I know this is HIS work, I am HIS son, you are HIS children. We are so important in His eyes, which is more importand than in the eyes of the world. I know that we have the priesthood restored on the earth, the power and authority to draw the blessings from heaven for the benefit of those who worthily seek them. I know that the Book of Mormon is the WORD of God, and If any of us lack wisdom, that is where we find it first, and second in getting on our knees and praying with all our heart, might, mind and strength. Because we don´t pray to a wall or a ceiling or an empty room, I know we pray to a loving Father, who cares for us, and listens to us, and ANSWERS our prayers. I know these things are true, for this reason, for this knowledge, I have chosen to leave my family, to come 3000 miles out of my tiny little bubble that I formed for myself, for this knowledge. Because I know without it we cannot have the blessing of eternal life. And those who have eternal life, are rich. I know that if we are patient in afflictions, the Lord will lift us higher because he is with us. Read D and C 24:8, this scripture has inspired me beyond all measure, afflictions will be there, suffering will be there, but it will ALL be for our good. I know the Lord is with you, reach out and grab his hand.
Just as importantly, know that I love you, with ALL I am. I know our family is divine and I love that. I love you all! You are so important to me, don´t forget it.
With all the love I can possibly give,
Elder Falor
Here I am at the middle of week three here is Costa Rica. The time has just flown by, some days I don´t feel that way though, but either way, the work of the Lord continues, whether I´m ready or not. I can feel and see such a change in myself. I´m not the same person as I was 15 months ago, nor the same person you dropped off at the curb of the MTC in October. The Lord continually pushes me, just to the point where I think I can´t handle it, and then I learn and discover something new about myself, and the Gospel, the world, everything. I still struggle alot with my confidence at times, but I am a way different person than I was. I am now walking the streets of CR and saying hello and talking to random people, when before, I got anxious to talk to the cashier at Kmart. I know the Lord has SOMETHING up his sleeve for me. I haven´t yet figured out what he´s doing but I know in time I will reap the benefits of all this.
This week was CRAZY! As was the other 2. Each day is filled with new surprises, new goals, new hopes, lots of work, and lots of WALKING! My comp and I have a baptism on Saturday for a boy named Daniel who is 9 years old from Nicaragua, I might be the one to baptize him too! Crazy! We are really excited for saturday, our zone has made some big plans and have about 30 baptisms scheduled for zona Toyopán.
So last sunday my house fasted, because we had been having trouble finding people to teach. It was a rough fast, because I haven´t fasted and then walked and worked so hard while fasting, but I made it through, and at the end of the day on Sunday, we still hadnt found a family to teach. So we decided to make one last stop at a house that we had stoped by like 6 times that week to teach the family but they were never there, and this time they were there, we werent planning on teaching right there, but they invited us right in and we taught them, and they were very receptive of our message. The spirit was so strong, I shared the message of the Restoration and the first vision with them and at the end of the lesson, the father accepted our invitation to pray at the end with us all, and as he said an innocent prayer for us and his family, the spirit was SO strong, It filled my soul with joy like you wont believe. We are really hoping this family accepts our message and invitation to be baptized. So that was a cool experience, Its amazing to see, in action, in all reality, that the Lord really does uphold his promises, and right before our eyes!
I had another experience last night, as we sat in this TINY TINY TINY home of one of our long time investigators for our area, her name is Ivania, her and her husband, Aristides, have wanted to get baptized for quite some time now, but need to get married first, and move out of their house, so we visit her and her son Loudy and daughter Paula quite often and keep them spiritually on their toes until they can get baptized. Ivania and Aristides have been having problems with their landlord, she is very violent with Loudy and has a bunch of dumb rules for Ivania to follow, and though I couldnt understand all of what she said, I sat there in this tiny house, and looked at these people, I couldnt understand, I had only known for 2 weeks, but I had such great love in my heart for them, I KNEW with all that I am, that they were Children of a Heavenly Father, and that though they happened to be in this vale of sorrow rightnow, the Lord has prepared a Valley of Promise for them, if they follow the words of His Beloved Son, which is what we were there to declare. I can´t explain the feeling I had as I looked at this humble family, and felt so priveleged to be here, to give them this message of hope and happiness. It really brought me back to square one, it made my problems look very small and not all that important. It made everything all my trials and hardships in my life that I had experienced very small and almost insignificant. While we were teaching Ivania and she talked of her struggles to find a house, a prompting came to my mind that I need to pray for her, that I need to help draw down the powers of heaven and help this family. Then I remembered a family who had been offering us a place to stay for 3 weeks and we keep denying it becasue Pres. Galvez said we couldnt, we offered it to Ivania and she is going to look into it. I thought about how amazing that little moment was. That we had a way to help her right then, that the Lord had put that apartment in our path for her benefit. I decided as I reflected on my mission, that miracles, are everywhere. Not only for missionaries, for everyone! Shoot, the fact that I am here, 3000 miles away from my comfort zone is a miracle in itself. They are everywhere family, continue to look for the miracles, and express gratitude when you find them.
We always visit this family, the Solano family, a family of members. And they have a boy named Jeffrey, and when I told him that my dads name was Jeffrey he was shocked! He asked if my dad was bien tuanis. Which means like way cool, and I said of course! So they really wanted to tell you that I am safe and that they have a son named Jeffrey, so mom, If you get an email from a Juan Carlos Solano, don´t be alarmed, it´s just a member.
So, the rest of the week was great, monday we did service pretty much all day long, we painted a room for a member of the Garabito ward which is the other area near us. It was a lot of fun, and good to do some service for her, because she had been sick and just recently fell and was rushed to the hospital, so we got together and cleaned up her house and room for her, so when she returned she wouldnt be so sick.
Today was a wonderful day, as you heard we as a zone got to attend the temple! And what a blessing that was! I was so preoccupied at first because It was all in spanish! I just barely got comfortable with it in English! But onceI set foot inside the Lord´s house i felt peace! Rush through my body and I felt so comfortable. The temple was a great experience! And The CR temple is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!
But what was really amazing about today as well was what happened after the temple. I was talking to Elder Kemp (an elder from my district in the MTC who me and him became really good friends) and he expressed to me about how he had some doubts, and he didnt think he was going to be able to stay on the mission, and he had been having the same struggles as I had been having (not the going home part) but just with doubts and homesickness and insecurities and such. And I told him I felt the same, and we got talking and something told me to tell him, you are where you are supposed to be, you can´t leave, because you are not supposed to be anywhere else. It was strange that I said that, because for awhile here, I thought that my call to CR was a mess up. That I was supposed to serve in an english speaking mission becasue I will never be able to learn spanish, and all that stuff, unfortunately Im embarrassed to say that I thought that, but I did, and as I said that, I felt the spirit tell me the same thing...you are where you are supposed to be...don´t doubt, don´t give up, because this is where you are and where you are meant to be...I was floored for the rest of the day, shocked because those words came out of my mouth for his benefit, and mine. I shared with him the insight and knowledge that all my great family and friends shared with me, and I think it really helped him. I am constantly amazed that the Lord knows us, individually. He knows us by name, and we are His children. I have had first hand experiences with that here!
So family, if you ever doubt, if it ever gets harder than you can bear, trust in the fact that you are Children of a Heavenly Father. There is power. Power beyond our own capabilities, our own comprehension, power beyond anything in the world. Always remember, what has really helped me, that when life gets too hard to stand, kneel. Because he hears us, and heals us. I know this. Because I have experienced it.
Well family, I am doing great, things are looking up, I have those hard days, but I am starting to realize why they are there. The good and the bad days HAVE to go together, to make the good days even better, and to make us strong enough to withstand the bad days. I am safe, I am protected, always under the eye of Him who knows everything. I pray that all is well with you, I think about you every second.
I want you to know family that I know that I am where I am needed. I was called by a Prophet of God, to declare what knowledge I KNOW to be true. I know! With all my heart, with all my head, soul spirit and body, that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is the Kingdom of God restored once again on the earth. I know this is HIS work, I am HIS son, you are HIS children. We are so important in His eyes, which is more importand than in the eyes of the world. I know that we have the priesthood restored on the earth, the power and authority to draw the blessings from heaven for the benefit of those who worthily seek them. I know that the Book of Mormon is the WORD of God, and If any of us lack wisdom, that is where we find it first, and second in getting on our knees and praying with all our heart, might, mind and strength. Because we don´t pray to a wall or a ceiling or an empty room, I know we pray to a loving Father, who cares for us, and listens to us, and ANSWERS our prayers. I know these things are true, for this reason, for this knowledge, I have chosen to leave my family, to come 3000 miles out of my tiny little bubble that I formed for myself, for this knowledge. Because I know without it we cannot have the blessing of eternal life. And those who have eternal life, are rich. I know that if we are patient in afflictions, the Lord will lift us higher because he is with us. Read D and C 24:8, this scripture has inspired me beyond all measure, afflictions will be there, suffering will be there, but it will ALL be for our good. I know the Lord is with you, reach out and grab his hand.
Just as importantly, know that I love you, with ALL I am. I know our family is divine and I love that. I love you all! You are so important to me, don´t forget it.
With all the love I can possibly give,
Elder Falor
Monday, January 3, 2011
Keep the Faith and Lose the Fear
Hello Family and friends,
I hope once again that this letter finds you all well, happy, and healthy. I am so deeply full of gratitude for each and everyone of you and your amazing words of advice for me. I thank my heavenly father, numerous times in one day for putting you all on my path in life! Thank you, thank you thank you! And Happy New Year! I hope this year is a great one for all of you and you all find success in it.
Ok, so to answer your questions, don´t worry my living conditions are just fine. There is hot water available in the city, and most houses have what is called a ducha and it warms your water for you, but for some reason, neither of ours work, and we are all too lazy to buy a new one and install it, but don´t worry, I am used to it and I actually like a cool nice refreshing shower in the morning. And the food thing, that´s allright, we eat when we can and we never starve. There is just so little time to cook and eat breakfast in our schedule, but we always have a big lunch every day and usually members have us over for dinner. But I am eating, don´t worry, I am eating a lot and loving it! I really love rice and pinto beans which is what they have here for EVERY meal.
About the city, no, it´s nothing like the beautiful pictures we saw on the internet, honestly, it´s a lot like the outer boundaries of SLC, or Logan at the fairgrounds during the fair. It´s just a city, but the campo is supposed to be beautiful, and odds are I will be here until June and then hopefully out of the city in the jungles and get to see those beautiful things we saw in pictures.
Thanks so much for the packages that you are sending, I will most likely only get them every 6 weeks at changes meetings or random times during zone conf. but they will be well appreciated either way :)
So about the weather, some days it has this rain that they call pelo de gato, because its weird and its like the hair of a cat, but its so cold mixed with the wind, but don´t worry for the majority of the time, it´s a general 60 or 70 degrees with a little chill, but all is well I promise...And yes, of course I have a bed, on the top bunk so I am far from the floor, we also have electricity, haha :) my living conditions are really great actually, don´t worry about that. I dont think I could use the brownie mix because we don´t have a stove, but I could def use the ramen noodles, we have pans pots and cups so no need to worry about those.
So It´s a new year here in Costa Rica and they definitely know how to ring in the new year here. Friday night we were told to end the night quick because things get crazy, so we returned to our house at 7 and bought pizza (one for each of us) and played monopoly until midnight where we all went outside and rung in the new year with the Ticos. Everyone and their dogs lights fireworks off and they are all super big and loud, so that was lots of fun. My 2nd week was a lot better, I decided to change my attitude. Everyone always told me it would be hard, I dont know why when I got here I was so scared about how hard it really was. But this week definitely was hard, but it was just as much rewarding. People always told me, you will have good and bad days but both are worth it, and I see that so much here. Sometimes we fall pretty low, only so the Lord can lift us even higher, and in those times when I feel like I am absolutely suffering and I couldnt get lower, the Lord brings me higher, to a higher place I never imagined.
Family, I know the holidays are hard, but just think about what I am doing here, its great to be with our families for the holidays, but the thought of being with your family for eternity is even more exciting in my mind. I am here, inviting people to live with their families forever, not only for the holidays, or not only for this very short span of time on earth. It´s amazing, I am taking part in the work of GOD, the very God who created each and everyone of us! It´s such an amazing calling! The hardest thing I´ve ever had to do, but definitely the most rewarding.
At Times, it´s hard to look to the future and see how sometime in the future this will all pay off and that things will get better, and before you know it you´ll have to deal with Kolby all over again! But it happens, the Lord truly makes everything work out for the better, sometimes we have to wait through the storm and be patient.
One quote that Maddy, Garrett, and I always say to each other is keep the fear and lose the faith. Unfortunately the past 2 weeks, I lost the faith. I truly lost all hope and faith that things would look better, that I would learn spanish, that I would be a success in the mission field. And the times when I completely lost all faith were the times I suffered the most. On christmas eve, I opened this quote, shortly after I called you:
¨May today there be peace within, may you trust your highest power that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the INFINITE POSSIBILITIES THAT ARE BORN OF FAITH. May you use the gifts that you have been given and pass on the love that you have received. May you be content knowing you are a Child of GOD. Let this presence settle into our bones and allow our souls the freedom to sing, dance, praise, and love. It is there, for each and everyone of us.¨
This quote came just in time, It gave me insight of what I needed to change to make my misson the BEST mission there was. I need to truly keep the faith and drown out that fear that will drown out my faith. Once I can harness that, I can harness power beyond my comprehension. Amazing things are born from our faith family. I urge us all to be faithful, in any circumstance, member, non member, sick, afflicted, happy, sad, anything. Infinite possiblities await us as we demonstrate our faith in Heavenly Father. Our Father in Heaven works with us according to our faith, he can make miracles happen. Miracles happen every day, we just have to look for them. Look for miracles and you will really be able to see the Savior and his hands at work in your life every single SECOND of your days.
I know this time may be difficult, for all of us. I am adjusting to being away from home for the first time ever, being in a distant land, hearing a language I cannot understand (yet), and you are all adjusting to the problems and trials in your own life, but we mustn´t give up. The Lord is waiting, just ANXIOUSLY waiting to bless us! Each and everyone of us has blessings in store in the hand of the Lord, all we have to do is exercise our faith, reach out, and grab them, and enjoy them.
Anyway, that is a lot of what is on my mind at this time, because I am never cease to be amazed at the help and support I receive. I really question how on earth I ever did this whole ¨life¨ thing before. This week was great, a constant struggle, it´s like walking uphill both ways no matter where we go. We have a few people that we are working with to strengthen and teach its been a great week. We found a less active family who was baptized in Nicaragua about 4 years ago and has been inactive for bout 2 years. Their son, Daniel, wants to get baptized and the family realized that after they had gone through some afflictions they wanted to become more active in the church again. We were thrilled at this news, because we had been having little to no success. The people in the city are very prideful and do not want anything to do with us half the time, so for someone to come up to us and say they want to be baptized was truly a gift from heaven. So we made plans for him to be baptized on Sat the 8th of Jan, but unfortunately when we went to get them for church on sunday they werent there, so now we had to push the baptism back to the 15 so he could come to church and meet with the ward and Bishop. We are also teaching a family who are so sweet and so nice, we taught them the amazing lesson on the restoration, and the spirit was so strong, but the lady turned down our invitation to be baptized. I know she felt the spirit, and I Know in her heart she desires to find the truth, which is what we come carrying. But for some reason she didnt want to. We are continuing to guide her and help her on this sometimes long and hard path. On Sunday we visited a recent convert, who was baptized right about when I entered the MTC and he had been having a hard time continuing to stay active, we met with him and shared a message about enduring to the end and I testified to him from my own experience that It isnt enough that we are baptized, we must ETTE, read the scriptures, pray, attend church and be the disciple of Christ we promised to be at baptism, an dbelieve it or not, that was all in spanish :) I am able to understand about 50% of a conversation, just enough to know whats going on, but barely enough to be fully involved in it all.
We are also trying to teach a family who really wants to be baptized but dont want to get married to each other, even though they have 2 kids. And another who all her kids are members but she just doesnt want to commit. We stop by frequently to t each them and strengthen them, and one funny thing that always happens is this little old lady, the owner of all these little houses, invites us in and gives us ¨sweet water¨ and bread, and she askes us to pray with her, while we say a prayer she always recites a prayer outloud in the middle. She has a son, Omar, who is mentally handicapped, and he always talks to us and loves tosee us, I don´t understand a word he says, but it´s always a treat to go in and visit her and her son.
Mom, I showed my comp a pic of you and he said is that your mom! How old is she and when I told him, he was shocked, he said you looked so young! So I just had to tell you that, I figured you would like that. Also, I completely forgot to say anything about Parkers birthday, even though she wouldnt of noticed but HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I cant believe it´s already been two years, what a cutie!
Well I am doing fine family, I have so much support, not only the strength I feel from you but also In my quotes from maddy (thanks by the way!) the scriptures, my pictures and everything you have all done for me. Not a day, hour, minute, or second goes by where I dont think of you. Each and everyone of you! You are all so important to me, and I know I say this in every letter, but I love you, with all that I am I LOVE YOU! You mean the world to me. I know it was divine, everything that may have led us to know each other, whether you are my parents, grandparents, siblings, friends, 2nd family, or people i met along the way, it was destiny, and I thank God each day for that, that I am able to draw on our friendships and relationships for strength.
I sincerely appreciate all you do for me. Honestly this would be impossible without you all and the help of my Heavenly Father. When life gets hard, or sometimes, unbearable, remember to truly Keep the Faith and LOSE THE FEAR. Don´t let fear sway you from your course, remember you are a child of God, what greater lineage could we ask for! Remember some gringo missionary in Costa Rica loves you beyond words! Remember that!
Stay strong!
Love, for ever and for always,
Elder Kolby Falor
I hope once again that this letter finds you all well, happy, and healthy. I am so deeply full of gratitude for each and everyone of you and your amazing words of advice for me. I thank my heavenly father, numerous times in one day for putting you all on my path in life! Thank you, thank you thank you! And Happy New Year! I hope this year is a great one for all of you and you all find success in it.
Ok, so to answer your questions, don´t worry my living conditions are just fine. There is hot water available in the city, and most houses have what is called a ducha and it warms your water for you, but for some reason, neither of ours work, and we are all too lazy to buy a new one and install it, but don´t worry, I am used to it and I actually like a cool nice refreshing shower in the morning. And the food thing, that´s allright, we eat when we can and we never starve. There is just so little time to cook and eat breakfast in our schedule, but we always have a big lunch every day and usually members have us over for dinner. But I am eating, don´t worry, I am eating a lot and loving it! I really love rice and pinto beans which is what they have here for EVERY meal.
About the city, no, it´s nothing like the beautiful pictures we saw on the internet, honestly, it´s a lot like the outer boundaries of SLC, or Logan at the fairgrounds during the fair. It´s just a city, but the campo is supposed to be beautiful, and odds are I will be here until June and then hopefully out of the city in the jungles and get to see those beautiful things we saw in pictures.
Thanks so much for the packages that you are sending, I will most likely only get them every 6 weeks at changes meetings or random times during zone conf. but they will be well appreciated either way :)
So about the weather, some days it has this rain that they call pelo de gato, because its weird and its like the hair of a cat, but its so cold mixed with the wind, but don´t worry for the majority of the time, it´s a general 60 or 70 degrees with a little chill, but all is well I promise...And yes, of course I have a bed, on the top bunk so I am far from the floor, we also have electricity, haha :) my living conditions are really great actually, don´t worry about that. I dont think I could use the brownie mix because we don´t have a stove, but I could def use the ramen noodles, we have pans pots and cups so no need to worry about those.
So It´s a new year here in Costa Rica and they definitely know how to ring in the new year here. Friday night we were told to end the night quick because things get crazy, so we returned to our house at 7 and bought pizza (one for each of us) and played monopoly until midnight where we all went outside and rung in the new year with the Ticos. Everyone and their dogs lights fireworks off and they are all super big and loud, so that was lots of fun. My 2nd week was a lot better, I decided to change my attitude. Everyone always told me it would be hard, I dont know why when I got here I was so scared about how hard it really was. But this week definitely was hard, but it was just as much rewarding. People always told me, you will have good and bad days but both are worth it, and I see that so much here. Sometimes we fall pretty low, only so the Lord can lift us even higher, and in those times when I feel like I am absolutely suffering and I couldnt get lower, the Lord brings me higher, to a higher place I never imagined.
Family, I know the holidays are hard, but just think about what I am doing here, its great to be with our families for the holidays, but the thought of being with your family for eternity is even more exciting in my mind. I am here, inviting people to live with their families forever, not only for the holidays, or not only for this very short span of time on earth. It´s amazing, I am taking part in the work of GOD, the very God who created each and everyone of us! It´s such an amazing calling! The hardest thing I´ve ever had to do, but definitely the most rewarding.
At Times, it´s hard to look to the future and see how sometime in the future this will all pay off and that things will get better, and before you know it you´ll have to deal with Kolby all over again! But it happens, the Lord truly makes everything work out for the better, sometimes we have to wait through the storm and be patient.
One quote that Maddy, Garrett, and I always say to each other is keep the fear and lose the faith. Unfortunately the past 2 weeks, I lost the faith. I truly lost all hope and faith that things would look better, that I would learn spanish, that I would be a success in the mission field. And the times when I completely lost all faith were the times I suffered the most. On christmas eve, I opened this quote, shortly after I called you:
¨May today there be peace within, may you trust your highest power that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the INFINITE POSSIBILITIES THAT ARE BORN OF FAITH. May you use the gifts that you have been given and pass on the love that you have received. May you be content knowing you are a Child of GOD. Let this presence settle into our bones and allow our souls the freedom to sing, dance, praise, and love. It is there, for each and everyone of us.¨
This quote came just in time, It gave me insight of what I needed to change to make my misson the BEST mission there was. I need to truly keep the faith and drown out that fear that will drown out my faith. Once I can harness that, I can harness power beyond my comprehension. Amazing things are born from our faith family. I urge us all to be faithful, in any circumstance, member, non member, sick, afflicted, happy, sad, anything. Infinite possiblities await us as we demonstrate our faith in Heavenly Father. Our Father in Heaven works with us according to our faith, he can make miracles happen. Miracles happen every day, we just have to look for them. Look for miracles and you will really be able to see the Savior and his hands at work in your life every single SECOND of your days.
I know this time may be difficult, for all of us. I am adjusting to being away from home for the first time ever, being in a distant land, hearing a language I cannot understand (yet), and you are all adjusting to the problems and trials in your own life, but we mustn´t give up. The Lord is waiting, just ANXIOUSLY waiting to bless us! Each and everyone of us has blessings in store in the hand of the Lord, all we have to do is exercise our faith, reach out, and grab them, and enjoy them.
Anyway, that is a lot of what is on my mind at this time, because I am never cease to be amazed at the help and support I receive. I really question how on earth I ever did this whole ¨life¨ thing before. This week was great, a constant struggle, it´s like walking uphill both ways no matter where we go. We have a few people that we are working with to strengthen and teach its been a great week. We found a less active family who was baptized in Nicaragua about 4 years ago and has been inactive for bout 2 years. Their son, Daniel, wants to get baptized and the family realized that after they had gone through some afflictions they wanted to become more active in the church again. We were thrilled at this news, because we had been having little to no success. The people in the city are very prideful and do not want anything to do with us half the time, so for someone to come up to us and say they want to be baptized was truly a gift from heaven. So we made plans for him to be baptized on Sat the 8th of Jan, but unfortunately when we went to get them for church on sunday they werent there, so now we had to push the baptism back to the 15 so he could come to church and meet with the ward and Bishop. We are also teaching a family who are so sweet and so nice, we taught them the amazing lesson on the restoration, and the spirit was so strong, but the lady turned down our invitation to be baptized. I know she felt the spirit, and I Know in her heart she desires to find the truth, which is what we come carrying. But for some reason she didnt want to. We are continuing to guide her and help her on this sometimes long and hard path. On Sunday we visited a recent convert, who was baptized right about when I entered the MTC and he had been having a hard time continuing to stay active, we met with him and shared a message about enduring to the end and I testified to him from my own experience that It isnt enough that we are baptized, we must ETTE, read the scriptures, pray, attend church and be the disciple of Christ we promised to be at baptism, an dbelieve it or not, that was all in spanish :) I am able to understand about 50% of a conversation, just enough to know whats going on, but barely enough to be fully involved in it all.
We are also trying to teach a family who really wants to be baptized but dont want to get married to each other, even though they have 2 kids. And another who all her kids are members but she just doesnt want to commit. We stop by frequently to t each them and strengthen them, and one funny thing that always happens is this little old lady, the owner of all these little houses, invites us in and gives us ¨sweet water¨ and bread, and she askes us to pray with her, while we say a prayer she always recites a prayer outloud in the middle. She has a son, Omar, who is mentally handicapped, and he always talks to us and loves tosee us, I don´t understand a word he says, but it´s always a treat to go in and visit her and her son.
Mom, I showed my comp a pic of you and he said is that your mom! How old is she and when I told him, he was shocked, he said you looked so young! So I just had to tell you that, I figured you would like that. Also, I completely forgot to say anything about Parkers birthday, even though she wouldnt of noticed but HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I cant believe it´s already been two years, what a cutie!
Well I am doing fine family, I have so much support, not only the strength I feel from you but also In my quotes from maddy (thanks by the way!) the scriptures, my pictures and everything you have all done for me. Not a day, hour, minute, or second goes by where I dont think of you. Each and everyone of you! You are all so important to me, and I know I say this in every letter, but I love you, with all that I am I LOVE YOU! You mean the world to me. I know it was divine, everything that may have led us to know each other, whether you are my parents, grandparents, siblings, friends, 2nd family, or people i met along the way, it was destiny, and I thank God each day for that, that I am able to draw on our friendships and relationships for strength.
I sincerely appreciate all you do for me. Honestly this would be impossible without you all and the help of my Heavenly Father. When life gets hard, or sometimes, unbearable, remember to truly Keep the Faith and LOSE THE FEAR. Don´t let fear sway you from your course, remember you are a child of God, what greater lineage could we ask for! Remember some gringo missionary in Costa Rica loves you beyond words! Remember that!
Stay strong!
Love, for ever and for always,
Elder Kolby Falor
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