Geckos

Wonderful Days

Cartagena

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Testimonio de Cristo

I really do not know where to begin in the testimony of I have of Christ. When I think of what he would do in every situation I think how unnecessary the commandments would be if we just loved as he did. If we allow him to change our desires to just do good! To do as he would do! When I think of his love for me even when I fail. and when I fail his other children I think of his miraculous power, to compensate and take advantage of our shortcomings and I can know that he LIVES and LOVES me bastante. He is my Savior, and you come to know it more and more by striving to live like Him.

My testimony is simple. Those who keep the commandments will prosper in the land. We keep the commandments in order to have the eternal family and if there is one chance in one hundred billion of having that eternal family it is worth the fight. It is worth these two years to be trained and honed to be able to take care of our families. It is worth it because of the love that we have for Jesus Christ and that which he has for us, this love that the people do not understand and even we don´t understand completely, but we strive to. It is this love that drives everything. That makes the family eternal and by which Christ suffered for us. Though I may feel far from this love at times in these years I know that it will come to me and that I will do my best to make it effective in my life.

Elder Taylor

God Called Me

November 21st Letter

Hola Familia!

Que habo? Do you want me to be unwisely and totally honest as I write this on the 17th of November 2011 - pretty much I can only just think about and be amazed at the fact that Matt already has a year. What in the world? And that I have the same time that my Padre (trainer) had when I got sick with that cursed infection and spent my half birthday (not important) in the Baptist Clinic from the underworld.

So call me trunky if you will but I am here to testify of how fast time flies, and also that I was led, unknowingly to a building, of apartments, without a guard. We entered and there were about eight apartments so we start knocking -- lo and behold in the poopiest (excuse the language, pupi here means like rich) we find a woman with genuine interest! We made an appointment and lo and behold just as I had prophesied she gave us a delicious jugo in fancy looking cups while we taught! Rich investigators rock.

Lo and behold we found another one in the buildings! A "couple" of a member that just died - (she was old and recently underwent heart surgery -- I sang with the relief society at her funeral with my comp on Friday) but the "husband" of her inactive daughter is now our investigator - in the sweet apartments - I fell kind of bad cuz in four months here I never knew the sister that lived there and now it's a little too late. BUT I'll do my best to serve her family.

About two weeks ago I held a special fast for myself and the only thing I fasted for was references - like "Please help the members to create references" and since then I hadn't really thought about and just kept going normal trying to inspire the members to share. I talked to a 14 year old named Wilson and said, "hey we eat lunch at your house tomorrow -- invite your friends over, like three and we'll watch a movie of the church. He invited six and three said they're coming to church today then the referencia from the family of the member that passed away and the referenceias are all in the buildings that we haven't really proselyted in but that we are planning to enter and here is how - super weak and wimpy - but it is all that we got:

The bishop (who is turning us into his slaves - we do him a lot of service, it is awesome!) has a bunch of Liahonas - old ones, in the church still in the plastic and we are going to put a note with the information of the church and the zone leaders phone number (we do not have phones - well in the house but we're never home) in each Liahona - to start we'll leave like 5 to 10 Liahonas in front of a small placard type thing that stands up so that all will see it that invites them to take the Liahona and call to meet with us cause we can't go door to door. (I asked... I have been talking with administrators of these buildings for some time (like two weeks) trying to figure out how to enter) nor are there any members to start working with in the buildings - like each one is its own little island or area. So a lot of this week was trying to figure out the presentations.

These are my 16 stones. I'm hoping that God will somehow make them glow.

If you guys have an ideas or how missionaries enter apartments in the US. Obviously my 16 stones could use some polishing - like putting the stand in the elevator cuz then everyone would see it and, I don't know, we'll see how it goes.

Yesterday (Domingo) I set some appointments with the vigilates de los edifices so we'll see how it goes.

Have I explained to you why I want to enter and teach in these apartments? I will tell you why... there are families there. Beautiful families that are complete and not totally of weird and complex relations one to another. Also the environment to teach will be so much better - without pounding ballerato and alcohol for todospartes. The Spirit will actually be able to be there in the lessons and the rich people will give us juices (already evidenced) and might even have air conditioning or at least a sweet fan.

Because, to put it bluntly, these poor neighborhoods - they have not yielded any fruit that lasted, hardly any, because out of 500 baptisms - 40 ish are currently active. the music and the alcohol and the laziness are just too much for these people and they go inactive. Only the strongest really are remaining in this ward.

So the somewhat rich people, though they may be harder to convert, I believe will definitely last longer. So that's what I've been doing this week and also I got to capitalize more on these opportantidudes de entrar - and work harder at finding them in the street to enter and find this service en Manga, so that this barrio will start to progress. I don't think any missionaries have ever tried, at least in the last years to reach these people, so hopefully there's some good fruit.

I almost feel like I wasted so much time (this is terrible to say) working in a rotten part of the vineyard instead of trying to climb to the top and making an effort to go where the good fruit is - I'm going where I believe the fruit to be good, even if it's hard to reach. I feel super good about my 16 stones. Also the missionaries before had no success in the poor places. I have stopped teaching almost all those who we were teaching before - pretty much all of them. I realized how much time we spent with these people that we basically just entertained. Now I'm here with few investigators and this plan and probably only two weeks left in this area - DANGIT.

I also had my haircut by the sister that lives below us - quite entertaining. Haven't really looked at it yet and of course the power went out so I'm in a wrinkly shirt waiting.

I still don't fit in my bed but I put the blanket at the end and that's enough.

Lilath con Z is progressing fast and will be baptized the 10th of December and ya - the work has been slow but we're in a transfer stage of finding locations - from poor to rich and I have just been planning and scheming how to enter. It is over 3/4 of the population live in these buildings in my area.

I think about Abinadi - he was a great missionary but probably never knew. Could someone else have been more effective in the area of Abinadi? Maybe, but it doesn't matter. God didn't call someone else. God called Abinadi. Could a different missionary have been more effective here? Maybe, but it doesn't matter. God didn't call them. God called me.

Love you all tons!

Love,

Elder Taylor

I have a dream for this area

November 14th Letter

Hola Familia!

I recently completed the second day of being stuck in the house => so totally torturous - and we are doing group studies almost all the day which is sweet but I would so much rather study on my own - BUT it's all good - cuz learning to do things in groups is totally effective. Some things that may be important for you to know that I don't think I ever mentioned before =>

• Also I took out 200 mil pesos => like a hundred bucks - for this week of being stuck in the house, just in case => this next week I'm going to buy some nice things for myself - for example:
  - a sweet bag - whether fanny pack or side bag I'm not sure (back packs make me sweat A LOT => demasrade => so I only use it when I need to and it makes my shirts dirty - don't know if it is fault of the shirts or backpack). My old fanny pack broke - totally died - we had a good four months together.
  - a good pillow - that's not totally nasty
  - and a sweet belt, cus the one I got => not that awesome looking now
  - I'm going to look in this next P-day to see if they'll have socks and shirts my size. If not I'll let you know. I'm doing fine on all this but just so we can have that for future reference
  - and other little things that will make me totally eficaz como missionero

I have had way too much time to think this week, but it has been cool. Most of all I realized that I gotta improve so many things! Most of all I got to know how to focus on people that can actually progress. We have so many that are stuck and are not progressing in marriage, in assistance and now I'm going to find new rich investigators - which will be sweet.

My companion told us this evening, like Friday or Saturday, how even though his family has not written him in nine months, how much he loves them and they are even members and I am just amazed at his strength cuz if you all hadnt written me I'd already be home I think. With the infection and everything, but he's here - a pesar de all that- he's here fighting to help the other families be eternal (and he's had success) so cool -

I think about a lot of people. They really do know Christ and they know Him well, but they don't know, anytime someone conquers sin, chooses the right despite hard consequences, overcomes a trial, an addiction, feels that love, they get to know Christ on some level - they feel the Spirit - something urging them to keep going and getting better themselves but they just don't identify the source. A lot of these people probably know Christ a lot better than I do, just they don't recognize it, and sometimes (a lot of times) don't want to pay the price to recognize Him fully. So I realized the obvious, but it took on a new level. My job never is to tell someone they don't know Christ but to help them realize they know Him better than they imagined.

That's also something I'm realizing, the obvious. You wonder why you don't get results and the answer is always in front of your eyes, but it takes a training, or a zone conference or a cool moment to realize you lack the obvious.

For example, DO SERVICE, they tell me... well duh? Why haven't I been looking for that? And it seems like such a novel idea but it's right there!

You really just need to focus on the basics => and use all of the basics - there are a ton.

Did I tell you in the two days we worked 2 women pretty much asked us to be baptized? So cool. I now have two investigadoras e con fecha that seem pretty solid - (not a fat joke, though one of them is pretty chunky) and I have a dream for this area - investigadores in these sky scrapers.

Because I have been working in the poor parts, where sadly the people's family's are pretty much destroyed a lot of the time and many of the people simply don't seem ready. It is a HARD environment, always, with alcohol and the music so loud but it is where the missionaries have chosen to work all the year long and pretty much nobody has gotten baptized so I'm going to environments where the spirit will more easily thrive so the people can progress.

Apparently there is an entire street and almost everyone is a member and is inactive - totally not awesome - but you remember this sister Ana Claudina, whose husband is way sick and he falls and is stuck and stuff, she and a different menos activa came to church today! along with Sila who we programmed - Cool! and a bunch of members visited Jenys while I was stuck in the house - not awesome - but she's definitely progressing, though we are still "all" con el esposo.

So while we sat in the house studying, first normal with personal, comp, and language, we had a mini CCth where we had "actividades" throughout the day where we studied the 8 principles together and then did something else throughout the day but I just sat talking and studying and writing and I even took a full hour and knelt down and prayed. I also bought nutella and peanut butter and a lot of bread to make french toast. I already had syrup.

Anyway, I only left the house once to go to church service Wednesday. Totally bogus, we easily could have left and worked all week without problems if we were just smart. I have no doubt I am suffering consequences of stupid missionaries before - drives me nuts. Just be smart! Follow the little white book.

For example => a bunch of missionaries had the bad habit of pretty much making mini farewells when they were transferred and some wouldn't get back to the house until like 10:30 trying to say good bye to everyone (the girls of the ward) - idiots. Have some self control. Plan ahead and become the best you can by following the guidelines that God has laid out for you - namely Preach My Gospel and the little white book and focus on your purpose even on your last day in an area. You're here to find, teach and baptize not say good bye to your crushes. It became such a problem, in fact, that now no one knows the cambios until Tuesday in the night time because apparently these representatives can't control themselves and keep focus. There are just so many things; like that in this mission where the missionaries weren't mature enough to focus and follow the purpose that those who are, not me, but others of course, get limited in the good we can do for trying to be obedient whereas the others just continue being more disobedient with the new rule. The thing is though, a lot of the missionaries did not grow up the same and are learning. We are all learning and that's what I have to remember. they are not idiots, nor are they cieces of crap, they are learning, sometimes I just wish they'd do it faster.

But the missionaries in my district are cool. A new Elder, Delgado, has like four months and the other - DeLaCruz elder Ellis se fue- elder DeLaCruz is awesome. He got here and had to be in the house for five days without leaving. What a great way to start in a new area. He has like 15 months.

So there you go. A lot of what was on my mind while I wrote. Weird but cool week - learned a lot - just have to apply it. Watched a talk by Elder Holland that was awesome. three times actually and I'm felling good to be on the street again.

You guys really are the best. I don't think I'd make it if it wasn't for you. Pretty sure I wouldn't. Maybe, but thanks for being in this with me. I love you all tons!

Cuidense! Love you tons,

Elder Taylor

Freakishly Cute

November 7th Letter

Hola Familia!

I found something the other day => yesterday in fact => in the scriptures, that really struck a tone with me, dice "Porque no me envio' Cristo a bautizar, sino a predicar el evangelio". Dang it! that's in 1 Corinthians 1:17 => totally like, "Elder, you can't worry about the baptisms - I'll do it and do all I can so He can make baptisms happen.

But I'll tell you what - it is frustrating to not know if you're working effectively, helping the people effectively because in my life I learned effectiveness got results - and to this point I don't even have investigaters with una fecha - haven't for almost three weeks -

BUT on the bright side we have an awesome lady Jenys - (Jenys is pronounced He-nis) and she wants to get baptized but her husband is overly stressed and a little immature - in that he's not her husband - solo son uma pareja que viven juntos - so we went to talk to him on Tuesday and he just went off complaining. I didn't understand everything I don't think it was anything new to her and she still wants to marry him! and they have three little girls who are freakishly cute - they are so cute! (like totally adorable).

So today - Thursday, the 3rd of November we talked with her husband and her for a good hour - way different. She told me that they never talk. I was like whoa! This makes so much sense! The younger generation, never learned to talk out problems, talk through things and invite divine guidance. Part of the reason why today a lot of marriages struggle so much, I suppose, is that they never learned to talk to people well and just sort it out and I made a rule for myself that I'm sure my future spouse will approve of - that even if I am so mad that I can't talk to her or she can't talk to me, we always will be able to talk to God together.

It's Monday now, this week was sweet even though my numbers don't show it at all. I actually doubt I've ever had worse numbers, but I've realized something. I'm not looking for lessons just to pass time. I'm looking for baptisms - before anything else... which is IRONIC because still I have ningun investigador con fecha! Not one -

So there you go => Gosh, super frustrating but we made a lot of progress with Jenys and her husband. Two lessons more with the youth of the ward and she and her husband read 3 Nephi 14 juntos! It was cool and they saw the ways they can both improve. He was a lot more receptive.

This has been really cool because as they expressed their different points of view of how things were going in their family, I realized that they had the same goal - take care of their ninas but were going about it differently, so we read Alma 56:27, 46-48 and we talked some and the Spirit was working and he got all like shaken and weirded out by the feeling and made an excuse to leave to pick up one of his daughters - totally sweet and she's told us multiple times that she wants to get baptized but that she has to get married.

Cool - so let me tell you about Halloween - yes they celebrate it here but the candy is not as big or as much and no one goes around with pillowcases full of candy - all very small - but is was almost cold Halloween night. It had been drizzling pretty much all day and the night was completely tranquila. In a neighborhood that we work in a lot where normally there is tons of noise and people - nothing - no one in the street - no noise just totally nice. I loved it. As we went back in "jeep" I was standing, riding colgado, everything was just totally calm, no music - few people - weird for Cartegena.

Wednesday was Dia de los Muertos. I organized, basically, a plan to go to the cemetery to contact people about their dead loved ones. 11 missionaries, the assistants showed up (surprise!) and we talked to a lot of people and this cemetery is nuts! Like uber creepy and awesome and way too cramped and broken. They struggle to keep anything truly nice looking here but still awesome.

So I planned that or at least made it possible then the bishop asked us to remove dirt because a ton(!) of mud fell into a lot that he owns and we did that and it worked out super well because hen a member let us shower in his house and we didn't have to waste a ton of time going back home to shower.

I also spent a couple of hours looking for a service project to do in Inanga which we have 0 investigators in. It's all apartments and "rich people" which makes me laugh cuz they are not rich at all! Just have a car y ya - mas nada - their hearts should not be that hard.

So I'm searching for this service we'll see how it goes. Guess what, this week I work today and tomorrow and then they shut us in for the parties. Apparently it gets ridiculous - everyone throws foam and water and there are dirty and clean dances nastily in the streets so we are FORBIDDEN to leave even the house. It is an inferno! But you should have a freakishly long letter next week from my mini MTC time here in the house. Five days without leaving - so great.

Well, there you go! Love you all tons!

Elder Taylor