End of September

September 26, 2016

Week 2 Down!

Well this week was one of roller coasters. But it has ended on a super good note, Thursday and Friday sucked. I was frustrated, sad, disappointed, depressed, and every other bad thing. I wanted to go home and call it quits. I felt inadequate and useless. Then the Lord sent me two people, Jorge Diaz and Juan Munchez. Jorge we found late one night, Thursday night. Jorge can hear and understand, but he cant speak. I realized how selfish and weak I was being. This sweet man, who cant speak, lives in a shack with 12 people, his family, who are also super cool, and yet he was smiling and happy. How is it that I with all my blessings, from my family, to our house, to my involvement with God in the church, and still be so bitter? It hit me hard, I was being self centered self interested, like the natural man. Yes I don't understand the language but I can learn. 

Then next was Juan. We found him by the Spirit. He said that is wife just died. Later on I was teaching him on splits with a priest who said nothing, and Juan asked me if I could help him with his family. In the war in Nicaragua he was split from his mom and brother and he hasn't seen them in 40 years, and his wife of 27 years had just died. He was alone in the world except for his 3 children, one cute little girl of about 3, one teenage daughter and a 19 year old son, who has to work all the time. At the time we met him Friday, I was feeling homesick. I wanted to go home because I missed you all so much. But once again, I realized how blessed I had been. In 2 quick years I will see you all, and once a week I get to write you, and twice a year i get to talk to you. Juan has nothing. He is progressing as a investigator quickly, he loves the Book of Mormon, and loves the Plan of Salvation and the doctrine of eternal families and temple work. He went to church this Sunday and we set a baptismal date. I love Juan and Jorge with all my heart and I am grateful for them, and I am grateful to be in this work. Yes I miss you like crazy, sometimes it feels like my heart is breaking, but everyday is a little better, I lose myself a little more and I find more joy in serving the Lord. I miss you all but I know I am where I am suppose to be.

These people are amazing they are so sweet humble and kind. We had no baptisms this week, but as a zone October is shaping up to be lit. We are hoping to break the record of 40 baptisms in a month. With faith and prayer we can do so.

The food is great, parasites are not, waking up at four in the morning to go to the bathroom, and having sweats and a fever sucks. But I am feeling a ton better today, although I woke up and it looks like we have fleas, I got eaten alive. Which sucks and I am so itchy.

We have three main problems here. One nobody is legally married but they still live together. The other is that there is a ton of inactives. The members here are reluctant to receive new people. The other is there are a billion evangelical churches, that are so loud. Their services sound like concerts, and they don't like us. 

The language is coming along better, I can understand a little more everyday and say a little more everyday. My companion as I said doesn't speak any English which has overall been a blessing to me, a little rough at times but yeah good.

Also got my first door slammed on me!!

All is well here, Love you all miss you all, Love Elder Morrison

First full week of Nicaragua

September 19, 2016

First Week Down!!

Only like 90 some odd to go.

This week has been a roller coaster. As a companionship we have been on fire. My comp is Elder Diaz he is from Panama doesn't speak a lick of English so communication needs some work. But my Spanish is improving in leaps and bounds. However I can barely understand the Nicas, they all talk in slang and super soft (they are sssssuuuupppper humble here which is why it is easy to find people) and crazy fast, like super fast I can't pick up on most of it, but everyday I can understand a little bit more. Luckily the gift of tongues is a thing. Anyway Elder Diaz is a crazy motivated and hardworking guy, so we work well together. This week we baptized 4 people. 3 in a family Arlena, Axel and Keneth, and one old lady who is ancient named Angela.

They like everyone are super sweet and kind, but also super non committal and they aren't always the most honest. However we have picked up a ton of new investigators and have set a ton of dates this week, I think 10, we have three possibles for this week to baptize, not sure if its gonna happen with some of them.

I cant even begin to tell you all how crazy poor and humble these people are. It is easy to love the people because they are so real, if that makes sense.  

What I have learned from Elder Diaz is a lot. We invite to baptize almost every time we meet someone, on the street, tracting, all the time. First lesson everything we make it very clear what our intentions are and what they can benefit from baptism and attending church.

Every week the Mission President sends out the top 15 missionaries companionship based on numbers, Elder Diaz and I were number one, really that means Elder Diaz is number one because 75% of the time I have no idea what I am doing or what they are saying.

It has been a bit frustrating at times, because i want to be able to do more but everything is so new here. I mean they don't have street signs or addresses, most of our investigators live in the mountains in shacks off of goat trails. Some, like Angela don't know how to read. Our messages are super direct and super simple. We use a lot of metaphors and symbolism that is super easy to understand.

The roads here are nuts, rocks and smoke, street vendors yelling, drunks will just grab us and cry and confess all their sins to us. One got a little hostile but there are advantages to being six inches taller and 50 lbs heavier than the average Nica man. My eyes were killing me from the smoke and dust that I broke down and bought fake glasses because I was tired of looking like I was crying.

The little kids here are super cute. The two hardest rules are we are urged to be home by nine thirty but we have so many people to visit that is hard to do. and the other is we can't hold the little kids because they are so cute. But Baseball is huge here. Most of these people live in little shacks that provide less shelter than the average tent, yet they have a huge baseball stadium in the middle of the city. I like to stop and play catch with the kids in the street. For the most part though we are hauling up and down the mountains. Like running up the mountains. Elder Diaz can fly, luckily my legs are twice as long as his!!

The Food here is amazing, I actually really like it. It is the water that sucks, but I am being diligent in using the filter and I put a drop of purification in each bottle. Soda is stupid cheap, like everything here, so people are always giving us soda, which is a bit annoying because it is so bad for you, but still it tastes so good after a 10,000 foot ascent into some tiny village. Dinner isn't really a thing, we will grab like a Gatorade and some chips, we are too busy, but lunch is the big meal here, rice and beans!! Almost every day.

Anyway that is my life for the next two years Love you all miss you!!

Love Elder Morrison

NICARAGUA!!!

September 14, 2016

I only get a little bit today to write.

I have made it to Nicaragua. Love it here. The first full day we had a training meeting where we got our trainers.

Mine is Elder Diaz he is from Panama he is a stud. He is the ZL (Zone Leader) and he works crazy hard. Last night when we arrived to our apartment we immediately went out and taught a couple of lessons.

They sent me to Matagalpa, which is up in the mountains. It gets dark fast around here so we went slogging around in the mud up a mountain side, my  shoes are already ruined! But luckily I can use the boots that will me my saving grace.

The people here are super poor and super humble. The houses we visited weren't really houses. They were 10x10 shacks made up of a 2x4 frame and sheet metal for walls the floors for the most part are dirt. It was a huge eye opener last night finding that out about the people. But it makes a lot of people super open to the gospel, we have more than ten people with baptismal dates set already, hopefully we can get most of them to stick.

As a zone we are trying to get 50 baptisms in the month of October and break a zone record. I think we can do it.

I can't stress enough how insanely poor the people are but how sweet and kind they are, I have already learned a lot. It is scary a bit not gonna lie but I know the Lord will protect me.

As for our apartment it is fine. I mean we have to shower from a bucket which isn't too bad.

Love you guys a ton. P day is Monday stand by.

Coming to the end of the MTC

September 6, 2016

Officially less that six days left in the MTC, I am super pumped, and kinda sad because I am really gonna miss the guys in my district I love them all and we are super tight.  Even more excited though to finally get down to Nicaragua!! I am so pumped. Seriously the Spanish is flowing I have been working my tail off and my teacher says that I am so close to being fluent already. The gift of tongues is real.

Unfortunately one of the Elders in our District had to go home for personal issues he had to resolve. Which was a huge hit for us, he was a real good guy. But he will be back in a couple of months he fully intends on finishing his mission, and I know he will, he is the man. After we dropped him off at the exit of the MTC we  went back to the classroom and said a district prayer and it was super powerful and a huge comfort to all of us. Prayer is real, it works.

Now our district is closer than ever and we talked it over that night and we decided that we were going to finish stronger, and we are. Only with God, can situations that seem crappy actually turn into huge blessings and for our benefit. Elder Schelly also bore his testimony Sunday, and it was powerful and simple. The elder that left was his companion, and Elder Schelly said something along the lines of ´´ I have only known him for four weeks and yet I love him like I have known him all my life. And if I as a mortal, a very imperfect mortal can grow to love someone that quickly, then I get a sense, just a bit, of how much God loves us, he knows us, and has known us from the beginning, his love is perfect and all encompassing, he knows who we are and most importantly what we can become.´¨ It was one of the most powerful testimonies I have heard in my life, as he bore that it was testified to me of how true it was. I hope someday I will be able to have the impact Elder Schelly's testimony had on me, on someone else. It was amazing to me.

Today just a bit ago I got to go to the temple for the last time in about two years. I took my time going through it, really going to miss feeling the profound peace and power that comes from being there. I wish everyone could go through there, truly is a house of God.

My Spanish is improving day by day, I can now hold conversations and teach without a ton of difficulty in Spanish. Still have a lot of work and study to do but since I have been reading the Book of Mormon in Spanish (almost done with it!) Spanish is coming easier and quicker than  before. I love the Book of Mormon, absolutely love it, no book I have ever read has the power and divinity that the Book of Mormon does. Just by reading simple verses fills me up with a ton of joy. Hopefully I can bring others to the knowledge of its truthfulness. The other day we had a lesson and I asked the "investigator" if we could do an exercise, I asked her if she thought the Book of Mormon could answer all the questions of her soul. She said she didn't know. So I asked her if she had a question, any question and I promised her we could find an answer just by reading the Book of Mormon. She said she felt like her prayers weren't being answered, immediately the chapter of the Book of Mormon when Nephi is talking to Laman and Lemuel jumped to my mind. We read chapter 15 of 1 Nefi. It worked, even though the investigator was fake, the training and the spirit was not. I am so pumped to teach the people of Nicaragua about this book. 

So next week I will be emailing from NICARAGUA!!!

Stay Sweet, Elder Logan Morrison