11 Months!! Bam I've been out here for a while huh?

11 Months!! Bam I've been out here for a while huh? Still got 13 more to go or I guess I should say I only have13 more, gatta start running to appointments now ha! Not much time left! There is a lot of mission activity in the ward here in the way of people coming and leaving. This week the third member of the ward to leave on a mission during my time here will go, and in the family that we live with their son just came home from a mission. It seems like everyone who’s leaving on a mission from Guatemala is going to Peru.

We were suppose to go to the temple tomorrow, but me and Elder Centeno aren’t, so today is still our Pday (it would have been tomorrow) that is kinda a bummer because I was hoping to go 2 times in one change! Elder Centeno will be being sealed with his family on the 25th so we will be going our 1 time then. His entire family have been members for about 10 years but after being baptized his dad began smoking again, until his youngest brother left for a mission, which motivated him and his older brother to go also. All this helped motivate his dad into finally dropping the habit, allowing them to finally be sealed in the Temple.

The drama isn’t that intense with a companion who is not only willing, but wanting to work. We still haven’t achieved a baptism here, nobody can see far enough past their wallets to see the benefit of spirituality in their family lives. This last week has been our best so far with tons of lessons and contacts, but still no one who is quite ready for the water. Out of our investigators that is. Yesterday I had the opportunity to perform a ward baptism for Lusbin Joel Figeroa Galves who turned 8. It was really nice to see that font fill up...I hope we can do it more often! Pray for success!!

Alright time for a list of strange and unusual things for the mission! Last week I...
was bit by a parrot
threw up for the first time in the mission
conquered my fear of a strange old lady.

The first two weren’t nearly as bad as the last. It may sound mean but I was honestly a little weirded out. She lives in the nicest residential of our mission, in a shack of sheet metal and junk between to nice houses, speaks what seems to be nonsense whenever we pass by (for example one time she was talking with someone when we passed and she started shouting and pointing at us saying ¨there go the kids of the president!¨) and has a humpback.  She comes up to my waist. Whenever I'd pass by with Elder Marquez who knew the area he was always just walk and tell me to do so, saying she was a strange one.  Even the bishop said that she sells drugs or something, but I decided we were going to find out for ourselves. Not much happened, she seemed pretty normal when she talked to us, I even helped her move a couple buckets full of water a few feet for her. She told me I had the face of a baby.

Oh one more experience yesterday we were contacting and came upon another sheet metal house. We began talking with a man who whipped out his bible and said that he had spoken with ¨Mormónes¨ before and wanted to hear what we had to say about certain passages of scripture. This man was VERY catholic. Up until this point I thought the catholic bible was pretty normal but I guess not. His first question was about what John said about someone going before him that could come after him (Jesus Christ) and said that is was the Holy Mother Mary.  He read from John chapter one where it would say the Word was with God and the Word was God and that all things that were made were made by him. In his bible it said ¨Her¨ instead of Word. I felt a strong impression...almost a permission to testify with power and authority, so I did! I read the first few verses and also the 14th verse where it said that the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld the glory of the word like unto the glory of the Father. I testified that it was our savior and redeemer Jesus Christ who created all things. He was quieted and began to talk some strange gibberish about Job and his wife or something (none of what he was trying to get at was anywhere in the bible) but he felt to read us the whole fist chapter. We told him we might come by another time.

Last thing was that we had interviews with President Torres and I told him that I would be absolutely fascinated by going up North to Petén or Coban. He told me thank you for sharing that Elder Bronson... and wrote something down in his notebook. I might be going to Petén? I guess we’ll see.

That’s the extent of my memory for this week; I am always praying for you all and will continue to do so. You guys also have my permission to hit Brandyn for not emailing my 2 weeks in a row. Curses...

MUCH LOVE stay safe, healthy and spiritual!

Elder Bronson