HIGH ADVENTURE‏

The craziest week of my mission just passed but also this week is changes. Everything's moving super fast. Elder Paiz went home to Guatemala for 4 days due to a family emergency (everything's fine now), and I ended up working with the Zone Leaders in the meanwhile. Super crazy, being in trio like that. We went to the Temple on Thursday because our areas had baptized 2 people (the monthly goal in the mission), met a returned missionary who gave me a referral. We had to take buses normally to get there, which was a bit of an adventure, if for nothing more than traffic. We only got back at 3 in the afternoon, without having lunched or anything. But I was able to buy a bunch of materials for our investigators.

Saturday we did a service at a school, macheteing tall grass. We were on a cliff and we started casting the waste material below, which was fine until the workers at the school started burning it to get rid of it. Smoke rises and all, and us being on a cliff right above the fire made it a bit hard to keep working :y but I got some cool pictures. Elder Paiz came back right before we had to enter at 6 on Saturday (so I missed the baptism of the Zone Leaders), but even though we hadn't been able to visit anyone all week, Familia Monterosa still came to church, we did divisions Sunday in the afternoon, and we had a very good Sunday. This week was super fast and super hefty. And I don't know who won the elections.

Remember that all those who serve God sincerely begin to resemble Him!

Elder Jacob Newman Salvadoreño

Temple! (4 companionships in the Zone went to the Temple) 

 People that I interviewed for baptism like a month ago!

 The District!

 The Zone!

Life is Liffy‏

 This week was a new experience. We have some temporary rules that limit our ability to proselyte normally, so we haven't been doing near as much work as boots on the ground. We have high hopes for this week, and we're going to work hard.

A ver. We helped cut some trees, companion exchanges with the area of Limón, and I got sick to the stomach yesterday. I think it's indigestion? First time taking Pepto Bismol. Really, nothing much has happened. It continues hot and sunny in El Salvador. OH duh we had interviews with Pte Vásquez, and watched Meet the Mormons (or rather, half of it because my interviews fell such that I didn't watch more than 2.5 families). But that was cool. Our new Mission Leader got home from his mission in Honduras a month ago, and he's helping us a lot, especially to open a part of our area that we don't work much (and getting us the movies of the Church and discs with Mormon Messages and stuff to MODERNIZE TEACHING YEAH - we have technology). 

I suppose that's the week. ECHEN FUEGO Y FORMEN PARTE DE SIÓN

ELDER NEWMAN SALVADOREÑO

(lo siento Joseph :> )

  Because we haven't been able to visit some of our investigators dure to extraneous circumstance, we've been writing them letters with little lessons and words of ánimo. 

Shenanigans.

Selfies of selfies.

Geckos‏

Shenanigans of the week. Since I bought a new camera with Christmas money, I've been putting it to use. The first photo is with our Zone Leader Elder Martinez from la Republica Dominicana during exchanges (I gave him my old camera since he hasn't had one since he lost his the 8th day of his mission). Then I helped Elder Paiz take better selfies, tested my camera on a page from the Book of Mormon, and took a picture of a gecko in our house and gave it red eye :> I like the geckos that I keep finding. I'll need to have the luck of taking a photo of a Torogoz one day (the national bird of El Salvador. It's tiny and fat and has weird things at the end of its tail and I love them). Oh, and Elder Paiz with his MTC Group.

In other news, this week was crazy. Wednesday was a meeting with Pte Vasquez and the Assistents to verify training, and begin the second phase. We all have the goal to make sure our new missionary is ready to train at the end of his training. We set a goal to talk with a ton ton ton of people. At the end, Pte invited us to Taco Bell (we don't eat Mexican food here. Almost nothing is spicy either).

Thursday in Zone Conference we learned how we're going to change the method of weekly planning to be more efficient. It's cool.

Also, we contacted a man named David Hernandez in the street. He said that he was going to work (but when we came to church yesterday, he told us that he had just left the house because he was feeling really bad. He doesn't have a job right now). We contacted him Friday, he shared about his life right off the bat, accepted a baptismal date and went to Church after one visit. He was really touched by the story of Alma, when the Lord lightened their burdens and promised them liberty when they were under the oppression of Amulon. (It's Mosiah 24 or 25 or somewhere about there)

Saturday a man named Alejandro contacted us while we were looking for an old investigator because he wants to restore his relationship with God, knows some members of the Church and felt that he needed to make a personal effort.

We also contacted one of our neighbors yesterday. They're good Catholics, and while we doing nightly planning, they passed our house and gave us cheesecake. INCREDIBLE

Also a certain Familia Rivera, the husband has been inactive since he had 18 years, and didn't except the missionaries until now. The wife and 2 daughters are also pretty positive. We taught about the Book of Mormon.

it's been extra hot here. Winter is the second best, after fall. :<

But yeah, we keep moving forward.

This week might be a little bit crazy, but we hope for the BEST!

ELDER NEWMAN EL SALVADOREÑO

 With Zone Leader Elder Martinez

geckos are wonderful don't insult them they make me happy and also make weird noises

 Catholic Church

Picture of the Zone

Gotta go "fast"‏

So last night our carbon monoxide alarm went off at 4AM due to low battery and it took me an hour and a half to get back to bed. :y (fortunately I had bought batteries in Usulután that met the specifications of the alarm, otherwise the situation would remain unresolved)

This week was pretty calmado. We kept working, some new families progressing, a few taking steps backwards, but yeah. We hope hope hope that there are 3 more baptisms and confirmations in February, and we'll keep fighting there (the Familia Monterosa. The chief worry is about how quickly they can take out their papers to be married, and Edwin Ramos, who mostly needs a stronger testimony but is keeping all the commandments and already dropped coffee. Coffee is a terrible thing). We're also helping a family reactivate and we'll probably baptize one of their sons in March. SIGA CON TODO THERE IS NO TIME TO SPARE TO DO ALL THE STUFF

Purpose of patience, hope, and foresight:

Given that life is designed to teach us to know what is good and bad and exercise faith in these truths, it would be rather ridiculous to be struck by a lightning bolt the instant you do something bad and just as much receive your answer as soon as you pray. It can happen, but it's not been made a habit. It makes justice trivial and repentance obligatory, which doesn't really make you grow as a person. When you gain a reward for diligence and love and faith, not seeing the reward but knowing that it is real, that makes you a different person. It makes living worth it :>

Still not a magnificent District Leader or trainer, but Elder Paiz is pretty comfortably a missionery already and the District had a very good week (since the beginning of Feb, we've had 6 baptisms, after having 1 in December and 0 in January). Keep moving forward!

Scripture study and daily prayer, tithing, fasts and offerings, keep the Sabbath Day holy, Word of Wisdom, Law of Chastity, go to the Temple BE HAPPY

Elder Newman :>

Pictures of the pie I got from home for Christmas and only just made and my desk. I think Elder Paiz took that picture.

NO HAY TIEMPO BAJO EL SOL‏ (There is no time under the sun)

There is like no time left

but we baptized

Elder Paiz is great and guatemalteco and we're moving forward

2 Nephi 26:24 is recommended reading

do stuff you've never done before to receive results you've never had before

keep moving forward

-my eloquence is perfect-

but I really hope your week is fantastic! Read the Book of Mormon every day and always always always pray and direct your thoughts to God.

Salu

Elder Newman Salvadoreño

With his new companion, Elder P. (Check out the sunlight streaming through the door there...plenty of room for mosquitos to stream through, as well!)

With his companion and their baptisms: 

Zone Conference Picture (he's in the back row) 

Walking through a crowded bus I imagine feels like being food as it passes through the intestine‏

So this week turned out pretty well. Elder Rojas went home, Elder Paiz, my new companion came, todo. Monday we watched Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restauration, and the 3 families of investigators present were greatly impressed. Tuesday, we visited almost everyone one last time with Elder Rojas and it really augmented my hopes that a lot of these families will be baptized. We should have a very good month :>

We've started out well with Elder Paiz. He's Guatemalteco (from San Marcos, Guatemala, the border with Mexico. It's apparently very cold there), I'm his first companion, and we're moving forward con todo. We helped the Seminary teachers here invite less active youths to Seminary, did a service in a Catholic school, 2 baptismal interviews for other areas that turned out well, a meeting with the Bishop, and my first Ward Council in this area. It's been especially busy, but it's good I figure.

In Church, during 2nd and 3rd hour, there was a special general meeting in place of classes, in which we watched a video of the Area Presidency presenting the Area Plan for the year. There are changes to Ward Council, and a heavy emphasis in doing the basic stuff, like daily scripture study and prayer, paying tithing and offerings, and doing fasts. It should make things a lot better. Also, Pres Vásquez has plans to improve public relations by searching large service activities and stuff. It'll be a cool year.

El Salvador is a magnificent country. I mean, there are far too many gangsters and I wouldn't raise a family here, but I'm reaaaaaaaaaally glad for the opportunity to be here. I want to make as big a change as possible while I'm here, because the people here deserve much more than what they have right now. We're going to move forward con todo!

Salutations, 

Elder Newman Salvadoreño

I forgot my camera in the house.

A Quicker Message

I'm currently in the Mission Office writing since my companion got interviewed for his release this week by Presidente Vasquez. So I won't occupy too many words.

This week was a ton of running around. A lot of stuff happened, not news worthy, but cool. Although we don't have much in the way of baptisms for this month, February should be super good. We achieved the Normas de Excelencia in the mission last week, (6 baptism dates, 6 investigators in Sacrament, 10 progressing, and 12 new) and this next week I'll be training a new missionary. Con todo.

The mission is really great, and it's just been getting better. I just hope to work con todo with my new companion and make the area even stronger.

We're going to have a good next week.

Keep moving forward!

Elder Newman Salvadoreño