Week 52: One Year!

Hey Everyone!!!!! 

Wow! What a week. 

Life is gooood here in Bayovar! We had a great week, probably the most successful week we've had this transfer!! We have a bunnnncchhhhh of potentials and it's honestly been hard to make time for everybody and plan all of the things we need to do. This week we organized ourselves a little bit and were able to set 2 more baptismal dates! Right now we have 5 and they are all for the 12th of August. We are praying that everything will go well with them! Keep Jocelyn, Orlando, André, Angelica, and Felina in your prayers pls:)

This week we had what might have been the best lesson I've ever been in! We found a new family this week that was a reference from a member (their relative) that lives in the other side of the country but was visiting for the week. She introduced us to the family and shared her testimony to them during the lesson and it was so powerful and clear. The family came to church the next day and loved it! ALSOOO...they are already married! (which is suuperrr rare here). Tomorrow we will invite them to be baptized.

These past 2 weeks I've learned through experience, a little more about faith. The first few Sundays of this transfer were really hard, we worked so hard to help investigators come to church but they didn't come. It made it hard to believe and hope for success the following Sundays. But in personal study I remembered the passage in Mark when Jesus says to the father with the sick son:

"If thou canst believe, all things are possible to he that believeth."

and the father responded:

"Lord I believe, help Thou my unbelief." 

In this situation I felt like the father that believed but still didn't have perfect faith and trust. I still doubted a little. But I wanted to have sufficient faith to be able to receive the blessing/miracle of having our investigators really come. I prayed for more faith and for trust in the Lord's power and promises and....we were blessed!!!! Last week we had 7 investigators come to church and yesterday we had 9 come!!! I am grateful that God was able to help me increase my faith and trust in Him.

I am SOOOOO grateful for my mission and all the blessings it's brought to my life, including the blessing of preaching the everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ! I can't believe its already half way over....its bittersweet! 

Well, have a great week y'all.

-Elder Hale

Selfie with the comp right before I cut my hair last week.

Living the bald guy life.

They had to close the church so we ate our pizza outside on the street.

Hope you folks enjoy this one!

Week 51: Pioneer Day

Hey everyone!

Happy Pioneer Day! I'm soooo grateful for our pioneer ancestors that sacrificed EVERYTHING so that we can live in peacefully in "happy valley" and worship God in His TRUE church today! 

We are going along happily down here in our reino de Bayovar. Lots of crazy stuff! so much happens that I can't remember/put it into words. The mission is NEVER boring and I'm sure that's why it goes by so fast! 

We have some great people progressing! 

Jocelyn: is fighting through the mannnnyyyyy trails in her life (separating from her husband, a sick baby, looking for a job) and finding peace and happiness in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She understands something that I wish aaallll my investigators would understand: That the Gospel isn´t something we do/follow when we "have time" or "when I don't have problems/obstacles." Following the Gospel is something that we do SO THAT we CAN make it trough problems and obstacles. It's our daily fuel that makes it possible to face and conquer daily challenges, problems, temptations and hardships! She has a baptism date for August 5th.

Andre: a great 18 year old that is looking for the truth and looking for the remission of his sins! ANDD he is looking in the right place...he has a baptism date for the 12th.

There are others that are also progressing and getting ready for baptism but I'm out of time!

I love you guys and have a great week!

—Elder Hale

Everyone putting up their flags for Peru's Independence Day.

A zombie that was creepin on me during my personal study from next door.

Cute little Jeremy! Such a chubbers!

An extra pic

Week 50: HAPPY

HEY FOLKS!

I hope everyone over there had a great 4th and is having a good summer. Sorry for not writing last week. It's been super busy. But life is good! I'm training now! My kid (new missionary) is from Iquitos, Peru (the middle of the jungle). He is a convert as of 1 year ago!!! And therefore doesn't know much about the gospel, haha. The other day in a lesson he said that the 1st vision was in 1982. Later that day I brought it up and he honestly thought it was in 1982. He thought Pres. Monson was the 2nd prophet of the restoration...BUTTTT it's all good because he's learning and growing!! He is a REALLY good guy. I'm happy that I got blessed to be his trainer. He is humble, happy, innocent and ready to work!! I feel blessed. :) 

We have been working super hard and have been seeing great results. Last Saturday Victor was baptized. He received the Aaronic Priesthood and baptized our other investigator, Leandro, this Saturday!!! Woohoo! As a zone we broke the record for baptisms that our zone has ever had! It's been a time of miracles here in our zone and in our area! But not all is flowers and roses because the Adversary has also been working SUPER HARD against us and against the cause of Zion. On Sunday we only had ONE investigator come to church...it was a humbling experience...caused for reflection and pondering. 

I am grateful for the good times and the hard times in the mission. Both serve for experience and growth! I love Jesus Christ and I love His Gospel. I'm soooo happy that he has entrusted me to work in his vineyard. :) This is Jesus Christ`s church and this is His work! He leads it and he is pulling with us. I have a strong and passionate testimony of Him and His church. 

Life is happy :)

-Elder Hale

Grubbin

Leandro's Baptism!

My kids first "Pizza Raul"

Week 49: Training New Comp

No group letter this week, so this is an excerpt from mom letter

We were so busy on Tuesday that I forgot it was the 4th of July! I FORGOT ABOUT MY FAV HOLIDAY?!?!?!? Haha, we had transfers and I had to go to the offices to pick up my new comp and it was crazy. But I am training!!! I have a kid as we say here in the mish. He's a convert and he got baptized a year ago! He's from the jungle! Iquitos, Peru. Suuuuppperrrrr great guy, really humble and nice! But super klutzy and not street smart. He already broke my camera kind of, haha. But I don't have much time this week.

-Elder Hale

Week 48: No Time

Hey everyone! 

I don't have any time right now but it was a crazy and a good week here in Bayovar. We just finished moving as of an hour ago haha, we started at 6 AM. I love my area and I love being a missionary. We have transfers tomorrow and they don't tell us until tonight. I hope to stay but we'll see what happens. 

Read the Book of Mormon!

-Elder Hale

Just finished moving this morning

Pizza on Saturday

Cleaning out everything and getting ready to move

My district