Another week...

Hello Family, Thanks so much for your letters and for your prayers. I really can feel your prayers and I am so thankful for each and everyone of you. This week was great. We were able to meet President Wilkinson and his family. Can I just tell you that I love those people. They are so amazing and have made so many sacrifices to come to this country and serve the Lord. Sister Wilkinson doesnt speak a word of Spanish, but she is so determined and knows that if she puts in the work and does her best the spanish will come. President Wilkinson is an amazing teacher, and has an amazing spirit about him. I was so happy to be able to meet him and so grateful for the experience to have 2 mission presidents. At first I was a bit hesitant but my doubts went away when we got to meet them. They are truly great people with a big desire to serve the Lord. On Thursday I went to Golfito with one of the APs and we visited the only family that could be a possibility for this month, they agreed to a date on the 28th but then decided having wedding rings was more important than repentance and baptism. It has been a tough 3 weeks in Neily, but we are not giving up. A lot of doors have been slammed, people have hid from us, but we know of our purpose as missionaries. Its to share the gospel with all those who will hear. We are here to find those chosen sons and daughters of God. Those who willingly without fight leave their nets to follow the Lord. We have to accept sometimes that the investigators we have are not chosen and we must give them the opportunity to repent if they dont want to take it, we must continue the search for those who will follow. It has been a great week, it has been full of life lessons learned. I learned that a positive attitude is worth everything. Things may be dark and scary in the mission or we may feel down on our "animo" but we must not lose a positive attitude. Thats what gets us up in the morning. Thanks for all your help and support. I love you all very much and I hope you have a great week. I will see you soon. Elder Falor

Pictures!

Me in the crazy Neily rainstorm

This would be a "Costa Rican rice belly"...thanks to Rice and Beans

Elder Montoya (the first one from Mexico) and I with our shirts. Those shirts say what is Costa Rican "pachuco" or slang that the ticos use

2. This is my mission family. In the mission when someone trains another missionary that is their son. So here is my family. "My Son", Elder Ramirez (Honduras, I trained him), Me, "my dad" Elder Bertrand (Honduras, he trained me), and Elder Roberts, "my brother" (Independence Missouri, my dad trained him)

3. Elder Montoya 2 (Honduras) and I in Panama on the border.

Hello!

Hello Family and friends, I hope everyone back at home is doing fine. I am doing great on the mission. It never ceases to be an uphill climb and it never stops being hard, but I enjoy every minute of it. This week I completed 2 years of having received my mission call. I remember that day so clearly and I cannot believe that 2 years have snuck up on me. Time is flying by and its going at an incredible rate. This week we have been working hard to find new families to teach and we have had some success. We always find the families but the big test is always on Sunday. There is nothing worse than being in church without investigators, we were planning on every family attending with us on when we verified on Friday we were planning on over 12 people in church. Sunday was approaching and one by one they started falling. We were lucky to have Luis and Maria in church, this was their 8th or 9th time in church, but with family problems in the house they dont want to get married, but have a firm testimony that this is true and that they need to get baptized. My companion and I are focused on finding their question of the soul to help them choose to go forth with faith admidst the many problems they have and will have in the future. Keep them in your prayers! We had 2 great activities that were a success here in Neily, one on thursday the 12 and saturday the 14, we had a tipical foods activity and lots of people brought foods and we the missionaries made some fun activities. On saturday we had an activity for the youth in the district (a district is like a stake but its smaller and belongs to the mission) we had the youth come from Neily, San Vito, Golfito, Rio Claro and Puerto Jimenez, we played volleyball and played soccer. Me and my companion were in charge of the food, after a long hard thought process I thought about "moms sandwiches", the sandwich isnt somethign really popular here but it was a great hit. We made tipical Cyndi Falor sandwiches with potato chips and fresco, it was a hit, I thought it was funny and thought you would like to hear about how I had made the family sandwich. The only thing missing was the chipdip :)...Well I will write more next week. Love you lots... Elder Falor

Otra semana.. July 9,2012

Hello Family, This week was a great one here on the mission. I am loving the Zona Sur and Neily every single day. I dont know why but there is something so special about it here, I am dreading the day that I will have to leave this area and go to another. It was such a great week because we had the opportunity to go out with our Branch President. In all of my mission I have never done visits with a Bishop or Branch President, so that is kind of a miracle. Also because our President, Presidente Vela, has 70 years. He is such an inspiration to us all, he is going through so many problems in his house, yet he takes time out of his day to go out with us. I love the spirit he brings with him because he is one of the few members here that truly understands the missionary work. He has no fear in sharing the gospel. The only thing he knows is that every person needs to hear the gospel. I loved going with him and knocking doors of his friends, or acquantances, he doesnt have fear of getting shut down, he just understands the concept of giving people the opportunity to accept or reject the gospel. Thanks to him we were able to find a bunch of new families and new people who are willing to listen to the gospel. In Neily we are working with 2 really great families, they have both gone to church and we think they have both received a witness that the church is true. They both have the same challenge, they live together and do not want to get married. My companion and I have thought so hard as to what it is that they need and we both felt the impression to read with them "The Family a Proclamation to the World"...I love, love, love that proclamation. We read it with them and made the necessary stops where we felt the need to testify and to help them understand. It is such a powerful document that lets us know what God has in store for us as families. I am so grateful for a family, to be born of goodly parents and to be able to learn and grown together as families and have experience that can only be experienced in family life. If these people only knew what they were missing only by making the decision to get married they would do it in a heartbeat. Its such great news to know that God speaks to Prophets in our days and they are there to guide us and help us "go to the sun" as one of our investigators says, "so we can live with God"... Things are going all right in the Zona Sur, we are a bit worried about how we are going to complete the goal we have put with the Lord, but we know that if we are obedient and willing to sacrifice and consecrate our lives to the Lord he will do all he can to help us bring to pass this his great work. Today we are in Golfito as a district, we are gonna go and sit on the beach and eat lunch, haha thats the only thing we can basically do at the beach even though you all know me I would rather be swimming haha. But I am sorry this letter is so short we dont have much time, remember I love you and miss you lots! Have a great week and I am always praying for you! Elder Falor

Goodbye President Galvez, Hello President Wilkinson

Hello my wonderful family, Because I wont get to say it on Wednesday HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY! I hope you all enjoy your day back home and I expect all of those who go to grandma and grandpas house to drink lots of root beer for me! I will be thinking of you all that day and wishing you the best. This week in Neily was great, we had the blessing of having another family in church on sunday! We were fasting and I love the power of fast. I have never fasted in the mission without seeing a miracle. The Lord answers even the tiniest prayers. When we started our fast on Saturday after lunch. I remember feeling the heat so strong as I said the prayer that literally I left a ring of sweat on the floor where I was kneeling. We ended the prayer and I remember feeling the strongest sense of trust. I felt completely and 100 percent sure that Heavenly Father was in control. I knew, that whatever happened as a consequence of my work would be the will of the Lord and I knew I would be capable of accepting that. As a result of our work the Lord blessed us with a family in church. Our plan was 3 but hey, we have to be proud with what we were able to accomplish. It was a great sunday. We are teaching a family named Jonathan and Doris, they are so wonderful they have two kids named Milek and Sharilyne. They have won my heart! We went and had an amazing lesson with them yesterday and Jonathan said to us "you two just keep on convincing me that this is Gods church, I have no doubt." Our only problem with them is that they have yet to decide to be married. Jonathan spent so much of his childhood and youth in the street addicted to drugs that he has a strong addiction to tobacco, we are hoping to help him give up his addictions and be ready to be baptized this month. Keep him in your prayers! This week Costa Rica said goodbye to some of the most amazing people I have ever met. The San Jose Costa Rica mission said goodbye to President Galvez and welcomed in President and Sister Wilkinson on Friday. It will be a change but I know it will be great. I have all the faith and confidence that President Wilkinson will make great strides in the missionary work here in Costa Rica. I will miss President and Sister Galvez but know that if I work hard here in this life I will be able to see them again one day. They changed my life and helped me to become a better person. Sister Galvez sent us a letter this week and this is what she said: "Love the Lord above all other things, He is our King, He is our Redeemer and also our Best Friend, Thanks to him we will be able to see each other again and also one day he will bring us back to remember our Father that one day saw us part with the hope of seeing us again" The gospel is what gives us hope. Its what helps us understand the purpose of life and know and have confidence in a loving Heavenly Father who always has the reigns and will never let us go astray. I love the gospel and I love my mission. I love you all and cant wait to see you again. Have a great week. Con Amor, Elder Falor

Ejerza la fe y provoque milagros...

Hello my dear family and friends, This week was amazing in the mission. I am the 2nd counselor in the Branch Presidency and I am also the teacher for the Temple Preparation Class so I am super busy on Sundays but I love being busy and more than anything I love teaching this gospel. FINALLY we had a family come to church on Sunday and despite a bit of the disorder in church they enjoyed their time and made a commitment to come back next week. They are an amazing family, with amazing challenges in their lives, but they have nothing too big or too strong that the gospel cannot solve. We have had amazing experiences getting them to church. They live in a far away town called Darizara, its about 1/2 hour in bus and we dont have time to get on the earliest bus in the morning on Sunday to go and get them and be back in time to prepare the sacrament and do all our Sunday duties, so we had faith that they would make the bus in time to get to church. Turns out they didnt make the bus, as they all crossed the street to go back home out of no where their neighbor (who they had never talked to before) offered them his car. He said "I dont know where you are going or what you are going to do but I felt the need to let you borrow my car, take it and bring it back in 2 hours"...they were shocked as they got to the chapel and they told me "Elder Falor, God wants us to be here"...God answers prayers in a MAGNIFICENT way, the prayers of that family and my prayers were answered that day, just because one person decided to act upon the promptings of the spirit. Yesterday we came back at about 11:30 pm from a long and hopefuly last 6 hour bus ride from San Jose. But every trip to San Jose is worth it, especially this one. We went to Zone Counsel for the last time with President Galvez. WOW! Seriously, I need everyone to meet this man, he is incredible. He bore STRONG witness of the power of the Book of Mormon, and as he gave testimony of the Savior, I saw the Saviors face. I know that in these past 3 years President Galvez has given his LIFE to this work, he has truly understood the law of consecration and he has followed through 100%,what a blessing it was to know him and to have this last zone counsel with him. We had the opportunity to ask him any question we wanted! That was incredible, he is an amazing man who has done so much for the work here. He taught us about how he wants to see us again in 20 years. He testified that 2 important things in life are obedience and ability. He said that one cannot exist without the other. With only obedience, we would starve to death he said, but with them both, we will receive life´s richest blessings. The subject line in my email (ejerza la fe y provoque milagros) means "exercise the faith and provoke miracles"...that was something that caught my attention that President Galvez said. If we only have faith, we can literally provoke miracles and I have seen these tiny miracles being brought to pass every day of my mission. What a blessing it is to be on the Lord´s service. I am forever and ever humbled by this great experience that has taught me so much. These past 20 months have been a time of trial and learning. Its been falling and rising again. Its been happy and its been sad. But these have been the best 20 months for my life...I know that what I am doing is true. Of that there is NO ROOM FOR DOUBT...I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I love living it and participating in the blessings my Heavenly Father has in store for me. I love you all, hasta pronto, Elder Falor Pura Vida!

Todo valdrà la pena... (June 19, 2012)

Hello Family and friends, From your letters it sounds like quite the week back hom in Utah, I also had quite the week in Costa Rica. It was filled with 2 trips to San Jose, 1 trip to Perez Zeledon, 1 farewell of President and Sister Galvez, 1 General Authority, 1 New companion, and 2 GIANT rainstorms in Neily. Ha it was quite the week here but it was a great one. After I wrote you all last week we had a conference with Elder Maynes of the 70 of the Area Central America, it was a great meeting, it was short but sweet and jam packed with things we need to learn and know as missionaries, I really admire them and their determination to communicate with us in Spanish, I know and relate well with them and know how they feel haha. This week we were hardly in Ciudad Neily, after San Jose we went straight to Perez and stayed the night to do a baptismal interview. I did the interview and I love doing them, the investigators sometimes teach us more as missionaries, and thats what this investigator did in Perez. Then we made the LOOOONG trip back to Neily only to get up and do it all over again. We basically only had Saturday to get things ready for our area on Sunday, unfortunately no one came to church despite our hardest efforts. We both talked in Sacrament meeting and the members said they felt the spirit, which is something hard to feel in Neily but I think we touched their hearts and it inspired a change in them, I guess we will see this week. On Sunday night we headed to San Jose for changes meeting. It was sad to see Elder Montoya go, but he was happy knowing he had served faithfully for 24 months, he had completed what the Lord had asked and now he was to go forth. We had the most amazing changes meeting ever! It was a changes meeting but also a sort of farewell for President and Hermana Galvez. It was really emotional, the leaving missionaries formed a group with 3 of my companions, bore their testimonies. It was one of the strongest groups in the mission but it was good to see them after all this time knowing they had done their part. On top of their testimonies we got to hear from the Galvez family, their son, working at the Provo MTC bore his testimony through skype, how powerful! And then we got to hear from President and Sister Galvez, who bore some of the most powerful testimonies I have ever heard! I can´t believe how much these people inspire me. President and SIster Galvez are GREAT examples of the Law of Consecration! They have given up so much to serve the Lord, trusting in the fact that He will make up the difference and that "todo valdrà la pena" (all will be worth it) I feel that that was the theme of the changes meeting, despite all we go through as missionaries we must be willing to consecrate our lives to the Lord and His gospel, trusting only in Him and his infinite power to make everything worth it in the end. Despite some of life´s hardest challenges, we can have the surety that one day we will receive our reward and that one day, everything will be worth it. We watched a video that we as missionaries put together, everyone showing their creativity in saying goodbye to President and Sister Galvez. We got the chance to personally say goodbye and thank them for their efforts. My words do not express enough of the gratitude that I have for them and their service. I know the Lord is pleased with them and the AMAZING difference they have made in the church here in Costa Rica. I also received a new companion with the same name as my last one. His name is Elder Montoya, he is from Honduras, we have the same time in the mission and so we are leaving together. We are excited to work and to get going here in Neily. Oh yeah, and the 2 giant rainstorms, that was normal, it was just fun to see the streets turn into rivers in less than 10 minutes. haha. Family and friends, I hope you know how much I love you. I hope you know that if you find yourself amongst problems and challenges that one day, if we hold out strong, it will all be worth it. Thats what the gospel of Jesus Christ is for, its for giving us something to hold on to. Many times we just hear, hold on a little longer, what do we hold on to? The gospel of Jesus Christ, it is the life jacket, the safe boat and the helicoper that brings us safely to shore...I know that is true with 100% of my heart. I love you all with all that I am. Con amor, Elder Falor Pura Vida!