CHANGES

CHANGES 

¡Hola! So the time has finally come. I was changed out of San Martin. After being 7 months in one ward, it feels so weird to be changed out. There were a lot of people I was sad to leave. Agustin who is progressing so well to baptism, Magarita who is so strong in the faith. Juan Lorca with all his desire to come back to church. The members have all been great to me and I really do love that ward. Attached with this are some photos one of me and Agustin with Hermano Comas and another with Margarita and her family and finally me with the missionaries of the ward (who I have come to love so much) [note..there were no pictures attached to the email.] it was sad to go but I know the work goes on in that sector. I hope to be able to come back to see Agustin get baptized.

Well I got changed out and sent up to San Miguel. Which is the richest zone in all of our mission and my sector is one of the richest sectors in the entire mission. It’s such a change I’m used to the poorer parts of the mission and I have come to love those places with all their defects and dangers. Now I’m in a new world and its going to take a bit to get used to it. The sector is also about 4 times bigger than my last sector with 100 times more people it’s so different. Here in san Miguel there are a lot of apartment buildings building of 20 or 30 floors we have about 10 or more in our sector it’s so big. 

I’m with Elder Ferloni, he is from Paraguay (I think I spelt that right). It’s going to be a good couple of changes here since he has only been here for 2 changes. I imagine that we will be together for 2-3 changes. I’m surprisingly low on things to say today. It just been crazy on with the change so I have forgotten much of what has happened during the week. 

On my mind today has been how we measure success cause if we think there are many different ways that we can see success. Looking back on these last 7 months in the sector in numbers the success does not show but when I think about how  much I have grown how much I have learned this change the work I was able to do I feel like I had success. Our mission president has been talking a lot about this lately about what is success and really it has helped me see. he talks about how a lot of the times ``there are things we do that we count that don’t count and there are things that we don’t count that count`` truly if we can say we are giving are all if we are doing all we can to work for the lord doing as he would have us do we have success. Never compare yourself to others or those around you focus on what the lord wants you to do and do it and you have success.

I hope you all have a great week

-Elder Harrison

SICKLY WEEK

¡Hola! No se preocupe no era yo quien estaba enfermo tranquilo. This week my comp was taken down by an ingrown toenail. Last week or two weeks ago he had tried to just pull it out and do it himself but it didn’t work out so well this time. So on Thursday he went to the missionary doctor and got it pulled out. the problem was that that would mean that  he would be in bed for a few days ( my comp being a slow healer) so I’m not going to lie I was kinda looking forward to staying inside and resting a bit because well my comp had to do it. well it comes to the first day he needs to go do the operation and Elder Babbitt (the Elder who lives with us) falls and hurts his arm and heads up with my comp to the doctor and then stays inside with him for the day. well at first I will admit I was not happy but then as I went out with elder Lopez (Elder Babbits comp) we had a days full of miracles finding people we didn’t think we could having great spirit filled lessons. it was amazing both me and Elder Lopez saw the blessings. Then the next day Elder Babbitt felt better and went out with his comp to go work. I stayed inside with my comp but all I wanted to do was go out I wanted to work. The last thing I wanted was to stay inside. I was able to learn a lot when I was inside a lot it was great. I had such a desire to go out and work then for the rest of the time that my comp was stuck inside for his toe every day one of the other elders fell sick (I think of it as a blessing) and I was able to do division and go out and work and every time doing divisions I saw huge blessings. 

Sometimes the lazy bug catches us I think it does for all of us. That little bug that says ``you’re tired, take a break its okay`` the bug that looks for any reason not to go out and do stuff. We must kill that bug. I felt I this week and felt it hard. And I know that going out and working is 1000 times more satisfying then staying inside and listening to the bug. The lord wants us to work in whatever he has called us to do. Weather is missionary mom bishop or teacher whatever it is. Don’t listen when the lazy bug says take a break.

Just to let you know Agustin is going well towards his baptism date. This week we had our first lesson where Eduardo (the husband of Belen) listened in on a lesson. it was amazing cause normally they are just mad and don’t want to talk to one another but when the end of the lesson came they were talking and laughing showing a bit more of love for one another. Truly the gospel is the key to family happiness when it is in a home there is love and peace.

I hope you all have a great week. 

-Elder Harrison 

A NORMAL WEEK

¡Hola! so this week was a pretty normal week but it being a normal week helped me something. This week nothing super exciting has happened but what I have been able to see this week is the miracles that everyday has. Each and every day there are miracles but sometimes in our desire to see the big things we miss the small little miracles. Let me share a few of mine.

So first of this week we got a new Ward mission leader and it has made better changes the Ward is taking a new love for missionary work. The members have been coming out a lot more with us and our investigators these last couple of days have been in there houses more. (This is amazing for this time of the year)

As for our people, Magarita this week told us she is going to talk to the man where she stays on Sundays and ask that she can start coming to our Ward on Sundays every Sunday. (She has been going to the other Ward, which is good) if she starts coming more here she can get a calling and begin to be a great help in the Ward. Her daughter Belen sadly will have to wait for her baptism because she is not married to her boyfriend and is living with him and she has no desire to marry him. We are hoping that Eduardo (her boyfriend) will start to listen and accept the gospel cause we know that will help them and bring them together.

Agustin these last few weeks has been progressing leaps and bounds. It’s been a great help from a member named Hermano Comas now the special thing is that Hermano Comas is blind and has no legs but is the first to volunteer to come out with us and is always ready to do the lords work. Thanks to his powerful testimony Agustin came to church and has accepted a baptismal date for the 22nd of February. We are super excited for him.

We have seen this week a lot of people progress in amazing ways it’s truly been a great blessing. I feel as though my time is winding down in this Ward after being her for 7 months now I feel like I will probably get changed out next Saturday but we never know I know that if I stay or go the lord will keep blessing me with miracles everyday. I love this Ward and I love the people I love this work and most of all I love The Lord

-Elder Harrison

p.s. there are photos of some service we have been doing lately

NEW YEAR FIRST WEEK

¡Hola Feliz nuevo año! espero que todos tengan un feliz nuevo año con grandes planes por el año que ya hemos comenzado.

This week has been a pretty good week for us. Magarita is still going strong in the gospel and her daughter Belen is looking forward to her baptism. She did however ask if we could wait till the 8th of February to do the baptism. She has all the desire to do it and her husband is starting to share more with us. Also this week we got in with one of our investigators, Agustin, and most of the time we have just been sharing with him his mom is catholic and does not want to see or hear us. So normally we have always just shared outside. While this time as we are sharing there comes a man to the door that is doing some work for the mother. He needs to pull out some cabinets and we just happen to be there so we jump up and help and we are able to talk to the mom for a bit. She was super grateful for our help and talk to us for a bit. It was great as the lord gave us the opportunity to be able to meet with her. 

Also this week we went to meet with Manuel another investigator who for many reasons just has us share with him. Well this week as we talked with him and began to share with him his 12 year old daughter just walked out and sat down and began to listen so we began to share with both of them. Just a bit later the wife comes in and sits down as well. We were able to teach to all of them it was great. Normally they don’t want to listen but this time they did and I think it really called there attencion it was great. Truly the lord blessed us this week cause our goal is always teach families and this week the lord blessed us to be able to meet with 2 amazing families that normal stay far away. 

For new years we just enjoyed the night in the house with the other companion ship. It was good and fun I hope you all had a great new year and that this year we set our faces and our goals higher. That we remember what God wants for us and that our goals are based in him and his will for us.

I hope you all have a good week.

-Elder Harrison

FELIZ AÑO NUEVO

¡Hola! How is everyone? This week was an interesting week. Christmas has gone by and it was great we had a good time with Yeny and Johny in their house on Christmas Eve. I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and am looking forward to a great new year. 

This week here in Chile we had some great things happen first Magarita made it go church this week and was able to receive the Holy Ghost. When she came we had planned that her friend Juan (who had baptized her) to also confirm her. Well, when they came on Sunday he suggested it would be better if someone else did it. Margarita choose me. (This is about 5 minutes before sacrament meeting starts) I recieved all of 4 seconds of instruction on how to do it. I had never done it before so as we got up to do it my hands were shaking and my voice to. As I did the confirmation everything came out perfect and I know it was the spirit guiding me. I felt calm as I gave the blessing and everything it was amazing and the spirit was very strong. 

About 2 weeks ago the ward released our ward mission leader and we have been 2 weeks without one. Well this Sunday Eduardo came to church. This was big cause he had not been able to come for years. He came loved how he felt and yesterday when we had a lesson with him we talked with him about missionary work and he began to explain to us the love he had for missionary work the work he had done in the past to bring back less actives and share the gospel. Me and my comp both saw it. That was our new ward mission leader. We were so confused as to why the lord released our ward mission leader and didn’t call another one. Now I see that its cause he knew Eduardo was coming back and that he is the ward mission leader we need. It was amazing. 

Other than that everything has been normal. We had a great lesson with Juan Lorca and his family about faith and works and trust. The wife is slowly but surely coming to baptism. Sadly they didn’t come to church this week.

These holiday weeks are usually pretty rough because a lot of people go out of town for the holidays. We have had a lot of time this week to do contacts and seen some great blessings from doing them.

I hope you all have a great week and that we may all look at the New Year as a new beginning and that we may take this year with a stronger determination to follow our lord and savior Jesus Christ.

-Elder Harrison