Sept 30: The best week

This will be a quick one.

This week was so fun, my comp and I did so many fun things. We started off by eating raw eggs and kicking rats in the street. We had the baptism of Louis and Jose Saturday night. We also had a ward talent show and a dance that same night where we learned how to dance Ecuadorian style. Everybody was laughing their guts out because obviously, we don't know how to dance but decided to send it and the members loved it. We definitely gained their trust because they started giving us a ton of references, and we haven't even had time to knock doors which is awesome.

Pictures: 

1-2. The Baptism

3. Ecuadorian rats

4. ward talent show

Sept 23: 18 days and a baptism

Well, this Saturday we will be baptizing Louis and Jose, our friends from Venezuela. They fled from their country and got here the 10th of September and from Day 1, we've been hitting it hard on all the lessons. We put a super fast baptismal date because we knew they were ready, and we managed to get them ready in a super short time with all the necessary lessons and commandments. We honestly were kinda freaking out cause this week we had to teach them the 4 major commandments - the Law of Chastity, Tithing, the Sabbath day, and the Word of Wisdom in 2 lessons. Usually speaking, you teach one of these in a single lesson and they have so many doubts as to why, or they say "I can't stop drinking coffee" but these boys understood and were so prepared to drop everything and follow Jesus Christ. I've never in my whole time as a missionary had people that are so willing to give up their life to have it in better line with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Sometimes in lessons, they tell us "Please help us so we can be baptized, we really want to change." 

We went to a place called Baños today which was about a 1 1/2 hour bus ride from Ambato. Baños is known as the gateway to the Amazon and is a huge touristy area in Ecuador. We saw a ton of waterfalls and a ton of white people. It was fun and seriously amazing.

Love you all, 

Have a great week, God loves and cares for you.

pretty sunsets

caught a young dove, the grind never stops

Baños

My girlfriend

big waterfalls

jumping picture for Mom

Sept 16: Ambato is cold

So, my old companion Elder Nieto left Los Chillos to go to Ambato 12 weeks ago, and it turns out I'm in his exact same sector training the kid he was just training. When I got here on Tuesday, Elder Nieto was still here. They had 2 baptisms planned for the night, so he stayed the day here to be able to watch them. It was super fun to catch up with him and to watch the baptisms of 2 kids they were teaching. Right after the baptism, a member took us back to his house and made us giant burgers. They were so big our faces were covered in sauce.

My new comp's name is Elder Stephens from Morgan Utah. We get along super well, it's been fun to catch up on some English even though I've forgotten so much. He's a stud. Every new missionary that comes into the mission gets trained for 12 weeks, but his trainer Elder Nieto left so I will be teaching him how to work and be a missionary. Since he's new, his Spanish isn't perfect so I've been helping him a ton with that, and it's been fun taking the lead on all the lessons and basically explaining everything. I like it a lot. 

 Ambato is super pretty, and it's so cold. I'm freezing even wearing 2 coats. The ward here is super great, we did 3 family home evenings getting to know the members. They gave us a ton of references, and 2 we put on date for the 28th of September. But other than that, we don't have a ton of people to teach so we'll be doing a ton of finding. 

On Friday in the morning, we left our house to play football at our church with some other Elders and there was a guy plastered drunk outside the chapel doors, we took a picture with him don't worry. We also ate at IHOP today, the only one in all of Ecuador - man I missed hashbrowns. 

Other than that, I have loved this sector so much. I thought it would be hard leaving my last one in Los Chillos, but our sector is so cool, and the members are so awesome. 

Anyway, this week was good.

Love Elder Rich

The first baptism here

giant burgers

Elder Nieto struggling to not get the sauce on his face

Ambato is cold

Don't get drunk outside my church

IHOP

Sept 9: Ambato and Dunks

This week was incredible. We had the privilege to have the baptism of Gladys on Saturday. She asked me to baptize her, and it really was an honor. Her whole family came to watch it, and also the family of Lincoln and Norma. We asked Gladys to share her testimony on what she's learned and how she feels after being baptized. She goes up and explained that her life was so full of difficulties and challenges she didn't know what to do. She has a lot of debt, she doesn't have a job, she's pulled herself away from God. But one day everything changed when 2 young kids knocked on her door and were very persistent on having her come to church, read the "Book of the Mormons" (as she said) and get baptized. She began to cry and honestly, I'd lie if I said I didn't tear up. Her testimony was so powerful and was so pretty. The changes she's seen is such a short small-time are amazing, and those difficulties and challenges she once had are completely destroyed thanks to the love and happiness she's feeling from Jesus Christ and his restored church.

Her testimony is a witness that the gospel of Jesus Christ, no matter what we face in life, will shape and change anyone's life. I know this to be true because I've seen it in my life, in my family's, friends', and especially those that were so desperate for help. If we really apply the teachings of Jesus in our life we will see millions of miracles and we will see the Lord's helping hand in our life.

I will be leaving Los Chillos and will be heading to Ambato which is 2 hours south of Quito. It's supposed to be super cold, which I'm so happy because I hate the sun. I really am so grateful for the time I've had here in El Valley De Los Chillos. I've learned so many incredible things like how to work with members, reactivate members, and come to love each and every single one of them. I am very sad to leave this place, I still remember when I got here, I hated it and my grandpa told me that one day you will leave and you will miss it. And now, knowing that I'm leaving, I'm really sad. But I know the Lord's plan is perfect and I fulfilled my mission here, and now it's time to gear up and head to Ambato - Let's go!

-Elder Rich

The Rodriguez family from Venezuela

Spent the evening for Norma's Birthday

Glayds!

With her family

She killed two rabbits and cooked them for us

The Amett Alcendra

Sept 2: President Nelson's Invitation

Last Monday we had the privilege of going to see President Nelson. It was kind of a madhouse with so many people shoving and fighting to get a good seat. When President Nelson walked in, the spirit instantly flooded in, and it was so strong. It was at that moment when I received my witness that he really is God's prophet here on the earth to lead and guide us. We were able to hear from his wife Wendy, and President Nelson was the concluding speaker. When he stood up to the pulpit, he began to speak in Spanish and told everybody he was going to speak to them in their very own tongue. His message was very simple but so powerful. Keep the Commandments, and God will bless you. He talked about the importance of keeping every commandment with exactness, not half the time. He went through different commandments and explained how God has blessed him infinitely in his life for choosing faithfully to follow it.

To conclude he left us all with an apostolic promise. If we follow ALL the commandments in our lives, our posterity will be blessed forever and ever. When I heard this blessing it got me thinking that with my example to choose to follow the commandments, not only will my kids be blessed, but my grandkids and my great-grandkids and so on. I honestly can't think of a more powerful blessing than that. I can see this blessing happening in my family on both sides, with many kids being born to faithful parents learning their first gospel lessons at their side.

A scripture that I like this week is in Second Nephi 27:23 which says

23 For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith.

I hope this week we can all realize how much God loves us, how much he wants us to be happy and be successful in this life. He is the same. He doesn't change. He will love us each and every second of our whole lives.

Love Elder Rico

Listening to the prophet with my investigators

saw a friend Lizzie, from back home

more conejos

and a pig

said goodbye to my trainer Elder Mora who finishes this week