Side note: This email may be a little long, the first four paragraphs are descriptions of my new area, after is a spiritual thought. Read what you like.
I never knew how much I missed the color green until I got here. This area is Seriously beautiful. I have been doing morning runs with Elder Musick and the sun rising over the treetops takes my breath away every time. The streets are lined with white oaks and tall palms. The whole atmosphere is significantly more relaxing than the busy streets of Barrio 14. There is much less trash in the streets and everything is a little more peaceful.
The ward here is small, but strong, having recently split. There are a ton of young families and 19 returned missionaries, nearly double the amount in barrio 14. We live right in front of the church which is super convenient right behind one of the ward missionaries, which is even more convenient. She (the ward missionary) is incredible, and a powerful example of magnifying a calling. We give her names and phone numbers of investigators and she messages them and sends them an inspirational message. When investigators come to church she talks to them and invites them to sit with her. She loves talking about the gospel and does so with everyone, and more than once we have come home to her sharing the gospel with a neighbor in the front yard. If wards had more people like this faithful missionary, there would be no problem with finding or retention. She's awesome.
Elder Musick is my new companion. He hails from the faraway land of Olympia Washington and is an uber scout. He loves to dance and has a real love for the gospel and the work. He was also companion to Elder Haiden Hucks in the CCM which gives us a lot to talk about. He´s really funny and it´s been fun working with him.
We live in a house with our district leader, Elder Nicoli from Brazil. He speaks perfect English and if he told me he was from Utah I would have believed him. He learned English from Nintendo and YouTube. Who says video games are a waste of time? The other person is Elder Solis, a super chill Ecuadoran with one less change in the mission than I have.
For a spiritual thought, I'd like to share a brief thought on faith. Missionary work is hard and takes a lot but through all the hardships I have had the blessing of exercising my faith, and like a seed my faith has grown and been fortified. Faith builds as we cultivate it, growing line upon line until we are able to partake of eternal life. As we build our faith it grows and we begin to taste of the fruits, fruits of joy and the presence of the Holy Ghost in our life. If you're struggling in your life, I encourage you to fan the flames of your faith. Feed your faith and you will begin to see God's blessings in your life. I know that through faith we can grow and better understand our mission in life.
I love you all,
Elder Watts
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| Service Project for our Neighbors |
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