Saturday, July 28, 2018
Multizone Conference,random Skype call,Colombian Independence Day, and a week of work!
Hola familia y amigos!
This week was pretty normal but still started out a little weird. Tuesday we were supposed to have interviews with President at 6pm so we planned our day with that, but then we got a message that our interviews would be at 8 instead so we had to change everything up. Then we get to the church at 7:45 pm and find out that our interviews got cancelled and we would have interviews the next day. So then Wednesday we had the multizone conference which started at 9 am. It was really cool, we even had Colombian Chinese food for lunch. Then when that ended all the missionaries that hadn't had our interviews had interviews with President...my comp and I were the very last ones!haha. We didn't end up getting home till after 9 pm so we were there all day. My interview with Presidente Palhua was really cool. He has family friends who live in Oregon so he face-timed them and I talked with them in my interview haha. It was super random but really fun, they seem like really nice people!
Thursday my English teaching skills were truely put to the test because I had to teach alone since the other missionaries got emergency transferred. I am officialy a very unofficial English teacher! Then Friday I had an intercambio with Elder Stearns in his area and they have bikes!! That was super fun and reminded me of Villo. While I was there I got to do a baptismal interview for a friend of the missionaries in another area. That was super fun the young lady has an amazing testimony and a really big desire to follow Crist and be baptized! While I was over there some of our friends had their baptism interviews too which was really awesome.
It was Colombia's Independence day on Friday so Elder Stearns and I contacted with Alma 48:11 talking about rejoicing in the freedom and independence of his country. We are all so lucky to live in a free country where we have the right to choose what we want to do, who we want to be, what we want to believe. We can never forget how blessed we are to have all those things and to also never forget that freedom and Independence isn't free. Millions of people have sacrificed their lives so that we can be free in our respected countries, and our savior Jesus Crist sacrificed his life so that EVERYONE can live again with our father in heaven. We can never fully repay them for what they did but we can do our best to remember and honor them.
Sunday we had the opportunity to remember Christ and go to church. We had the opportunity again to pass by Hno Marco and push him in his wheelchair to church. He is so excited about the gospel and his baptism this upcoming Saturday; he even set up an appointment with the bishop to make sure he's ready! We also had 4 other friends at church with us which was amazing! Later that day we contacted a big family outside their house with the Family proclamation to the world. They are really interested and we're going to pass by for them this week! Today we did some needed cleaning of the house and spent some time with Elder Sosa and Elder Paredes. That's all for this week! Sorry Mom I don't have any pictures but I'll work on that this week I promise! I love and miss all of you! I hope you're all doing well!
Nos Vemos!
Elder McBride
Sunday, July 22, 2018
Week 51:Colombian Costco, Leaders Meeting, Emergency transfers, and helping the Sisters move!
Hola familia y amigos!
This week was pretty weird. First off last Monday after we wrote we went to a place called Price Smart and it is literally Colombia Costco. I went with Elder Willes and we bought Pop tarts and Goldfish. It was weird eating goldfish again for the first time in over a year! Then we got Costco pizza and a chicken bake. Then the next day we had the leader's meeting. It was pretty fun especially because I got to see a bunch of my friends. Elder Justice, Elder Hubbard, Elder Cabral, and Elder Gregersen! Then after we had that meeting we drove back to Neiva. That was another 6 hour bus ride and we got back at 3 am Wednesday morning. Wednesday was rough because I was super tired. We had some good lecciones, we went out on visits with a member of the church which was nice. One of the really cool families we had been teaching dropped us because their pastor told them that since they were listening to us they didn't have faith. That was pretty rough, It's sad to see stuff like that happen but that's why we always invite people to pray and ask God! We don't ask them to ask us or their pastor but really ask God with faith and they'll get their answer! I hope we'll get to pass by for them later in the future! Then Thursday we went to one of our investigadores B-day party that was pretty fun! Next we had an Interview with a friend of the Sister Missionaries in our District and then we had an English class that night it was a packed day. Then Friday not a whole lot happened, we had meetings in the morning and that took forever but we had a cool leccion with another member who accompanied us again!
Saturday we helped the Sister Missionaries move apartments! That was fun but pretty rough!!haha. We moved them out of their second floor apartment to a 4th floor apartment. The first part was easy but the second part was pretty rough. The apartment on the 4th floor didn't have an elevator and it was a spiraling stair case. So we had to move 3(yes 3) fridges up 4 flights of winding stairs haha it was a fun workout but I'm glad we don't do that daily! We also found a cool family Saturday night just out contacting, they seem really interested and I'm excited to go pass by for them later this week! Sunday was cool, went to church with Marco and Santiago. I pushed Marco to church in his wheelchair again, I love getting to do that. I get to see how excited he is to go to church and I’m grateful for the opportunity to help him get there! I hope I get to help him go to church for many more weeks to come!
Then later we had an "Asado" with some recent converts in the Ward. An Asado is basically a BBQ and it was super good! They're super cool people! Then some craziness happened this morning. We get a call at like 6 ish in the morning because the other missionaries in our ward Elder Willes and Elder Trujillo both got emergency transfered and they closed Palmas 1. So we threw on our clothes and went with them to the bus terminal to help with their bags and get the keys to the church and their house. It was pretty sad, I really like Elder Willes and Elder Trujillo. But now it's just Elder De Lama and me holding down the fort here in Las Palmas. We're going to merge the areas and work in both so we have to learn both areas pretty fast! Then we played soccer in the zone and then I got my haircut! That's it from this week! This next week will be pretty crazy too! We have Interviews with President and Zone Conferences so we’ll see what happens! I love and miss you all! I hope you're all doing well! I know that this is the true church of God and that he loves each and everyone of you and he listens to and will answer your prayers!
This week was pretty weird. First off last Monday after we wrote we went to a place called Price Smart and it is literally Colombia Costco. I went with Elder Willes and we bought Pop tarts and Goldfish. It was weird eating goldfish again for the first time in over a year! Then we got Costco pizza and a chicken bake. Then the next day we had the leader's meeting. It was pretty fun especially because I got to see a bunch of my friends. Elder Justice, Elder Hubbard, Elder Cabral, and Elder Gregersen! Then after we had that meeting we drove back to Neiva. That was another 6 hour bus ride and we got back at 3 am Wednesday morning. Wednesday was rough because I was super tired. We had some good lecciones, we went out on visits with a member of the church which was nice. One of the really cool families we had been teaching dropped us because their pastor told them that since they were listening to us they didn't have faith. That was pretty rough, It's sad to see stuff like that happen but that's why we always invite people to pray and ask God! We don't ask them to ask us or their pastor but really ask God with faith and they'll get their answer! I hope we'll get to pass by for them later in the future! Then Thursday we went to one of our investigadores B-day party that was pretty fun! Next we had an Interview with a friend of the Sister Missionaries in our District and then we had an English class that night it was a packed day. Then Friday not a whole lot happened, we had meetings in the morning and that took forever but we had a cool leccion with another member who accompanied us again!
Saturday we helped the Sister Missionaries move apartments! That was fun but pretty rough!!haha. We moved them out of their second floor apartment to a 4th floor apartment. The first part was easy but the second part was pretty rough. The apartment on the 4th floor didn't have an elevator and it was a spiraling stair case. So we had to move 3(yes 3) fridges up 4 flights of winding stairs haha it was a fun workout but I'm glad we don't do that daily! We also found a cool family Saturday night just out contacting, they seem really interested and I'm excited to go pass by for them later this week! Sunday was cool, went to church with Marco and Santiago. I pushed Marco to church in his wheelchair again, I love getting to do that. I get to see how excited he is to go to church and I’m grateful for the opportunity to help him get there! I hope I get to help him go to church for many more weeks to come!
Then later we had an "Asado" with some recent converts in the Ward. An Asado is basically a BBQ and it was super good! They're super cool people! Then some craziness happened this morning. We get a call at like 6 ish in the morning because the other missionaries in our ward Elder Willes and Elder Trujillo both got emergency transfered and they closed Palmas 1. So we threw on our clothes and went with them to the bus terminal to help with their bags and get the keys to the church and their house. It was pretty sad, I really like Elder Willes and Elder Trujillo. But now it's just Elder De Lama and me holding down the fort here in Las Palmas. We're going to merge the areas and work in both so we have to learn both areas pretty fast! Then we played soccer in the zone and then I got my haircut! That's it from this week! This next week will be pretty crazy too! We have Interviews with President and Zone Conferences so we’ll see what happens! I love and miss you all! I hope you're all doing well! I know that this is the true church of God and that he loves each and everyone of you and he listens to and will answer your prayers!
Nos vemos próximamente!
Elder McBride
Saturday, July 14, 2018
Week 50: Happy Colombian 4th of July! I’ll never serve in Bogota but I’ll never leave Bogota?
Hola familia y amigos!
This week was pretty fun and crazy. Started Tuesday with Colombia losing in the World Cup, the people here were not to happy, kind of a rough day, However I was not hit with flour this time so improvement! Then that night we had a fun English class, I'm digging being the worlds worst, most unofficial English teacher! Then Wednesday I met President Palhua and his family. They came down to Neiva and we got to meet them real fast, they seem really cool and I'm excited to get to know them more! We also had a NDH that night with some of our best friends of the church. We watched Meet The Mormons and I made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and it was a fun time. It was really cool because after the movie Daniel our friend was talking about being a member of the church like he was already baptized and how he just loves the gospel.
After that we ran backto the house and ordered some Burgers for the 4th of July. Weird not being in the states for the 4th but fun to celebrate it from far away. I'm so greatful for the amazing country that I'm a part of and for all the brave men and women who fight to defend it! Thank you to all you who are and have currently served our country! Then Thursday we had a super fun Englsh class, we told the people to bring English songs that they like and we translated the songs and helped them sing them it was a blast! Friday we had a really good leccion with a reference Jaqueline. We had given her a BOM and the owner of her house, Marco started reading it too and so when we passed by the house he had already read to 1 Nefi 10! That was a great leccion with them. Then Saturday we had some other good lecciones, we passed by all of our friends to invite them to church and we were excited when they all said they'd be going! Sunday came and all the people we passed by showed up! We went by and picked up Hna Jaqueline and Hno Marco, I got to push Hno Marco in his wheel chair to church, that was a really special experience to see the desire that he had to go to church and know that I was able to help him get there. It was a very humbling and spiritual experience.
At church I had the opportunity to give a talk about the importance of the Temple! The ward is having a temple trip at the end of the month, it's a little far for them to go though, it's a 6 hour bus ride from Neiva to Bogota. It's a sacrifice, but the blessings of the temple are worth the sacrifices we make to go there. There we can be closer to our heavenly father and recieve personal revelation in what we need to do in our own lives, we can forget our problems and our burdens and go to the lords house and seek his guidance. I'm so greatful for the blessings of the temple in my life and that I've had the opportunity to grow up close to a temple. I invite all you that can go to the temple to take advantage of the amazing opportuinty you have to not only bless your own life but the life's of others. Speaking of the 6 hour bus ride from Neiva to Bogota that's what I did today! Once again I am in Bogota for a conference. Maybe one day I'll actually stay here but for now it's just a conference. We got up at 4:30 and left Neiva at 7:00 and got to Bogota around 2:00. I had a burrito that is basically a Chipotle burrito and it was so good. Later tonight we're going to a place called Price Mart which is basically Colombian Costco! I love and miss you all Hope you're all doing well!
Nos Vemos!
Elder McBride
Saturday, July 7, 2018
Week 49: English classes and Colombians throwing flour!!
Hola famila y amigos!
Wow this week went by flying(still super hot tho)! So Tuesday we had zone and district meetings. It was weird to be in a zone meeting again after 4 months in Leticia. We also have English classes every Tuesday and Thursday so I gave my first "I don't know how to teach English but we have a book so it's not too bad" English class, really fun honestly and a good way to get investigadores and to get people to the chapel. Then Wednesday we had a really great leccion with the Fam Aroyo, they're super great people and we taught them about the word of wisdom. They don't even put sugar in their juice so they loved the Word of Wisdom and they said they're gonna live it! We have a NDH(family home evening) planned with them for this week and we're going to watch Meet TheMormons and eat peanut butter/jelly sandwiches!
Then Thursday happened. Colombia played. Colombia won. The Colombian people are very passionate about their futbol and we were walking in the streets and there was a HUGE moto gang of people just cruzing down the streets in their jerseys screaming and they love to throw flour when they win so everyone was covered in flour. Yeah...they threw flour at us and we had flour all over(sadly don't have a pic because we didn't have our cameras) and we had to clean ourselves up fast! haha.
Friday was just a lot of hard work looking for some people to teach. Saturday we had a cool leccion with the Familia Quitiaquez. They read the BOM and told us that they know it's true. I love that feeling...when yo see the power of the BOM working in the life's of others when they start to read it and then how their lives start to change. It was a really spiritual moment. Then later that night we taught a Messianic Jew which was honestly super cool, he told us a little about his beliefs and we taught leccion 1 and gave him a BOM. Then Sunday was cool, had 3 investigadores at church which is awesome! Everytime they come to church they want to come back and it's just super cool to see the way that the church changes the people that you meet. It’s like they're different people, they're happier and just have a different sense about them. Then today, went to a member's house she taught us how to sew real fast(You'd be proud of me mom!!) Then we bought some groceries and then went to lunch as a district which was a fun bonding time.
Yesterday Presidente Baquerizo left and President Palhua got here. I'm greatful for the time I had with Presidente/Hna Baquerizo.I love them and I'm going to miss them alot. I'm also excited to work with Presidente/Hna Palhua I know that they've been called of God to be in charge of this mission and I'm excited to get to know them. That's it for this week. I love and miss you guys. Hope you're all doing well! I know Christ lives, I know that this is his church and this is his work and I'm honored to have this opportunity to serve in his vineyard.
Con mucho Cariño!
Elder McBride
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