After 2 hours of soccer.

Elder Lazo and I.  Elder Lazo, who is the assistant, is one of the best missionaries I`ve ever met in my life.   We`re buddies from the office.

Elder Hales and Elder Hales!  Weird!

Zone Conference

What`s up world,

Well, this week was pretty good, the Lord charged up my batteries again.  Its so weird how that works, but on my mission when I`m feeling kinda down, the Lord just boosts me right back up.  My dad told me that the mission is like a rollercoaster and its true.  Nowhere else can you be super excited in one minute and super disappointed the next and repeat the process like 10x a day.  But, don`t worry, I`m not bipolar!!  Haha!  Anyway, we had a zone conference this week and we learned a lot more about how to use inspired questions to invite the investigator to teach himself and recognized the light that`s already inside him.  It was sweet because we also got a touch of lawyer in the technique because Pres. Gulbrandsen was a super successful lawyer.  I still get a like a 2 out of 10 when I teach that way, but I`m getting better and already seeing results.  In the conference, President Gulbrandsen challenged the mission to read the whole Book of Mormon before Christmas to give a gift to the Savior.  You guys can do it too if you want.

I also did divisions this week in Tonelero.  Well, the area is called Toneelro, but it really should be called La Paz because it seriously was like going to Bolivia!  Haha, there`s a part in the area that is filled with Bolivian shops, music, food, smells, and people.  It was actually pretty sweet.  Its also filled with sin, but I guess that`s why we were there.  During the divisions I was with Elder Blanch, a way good elder from Missouri.  We did a lot of running and found and taught a lot of people.  It helped me see the abundance that`s right next door and inside my own area.

Today (I`m already stiff), we played fùtbol as a zone.  It was sweet, but super hot.  I hadn`t played in a couple months and, man, I`m an old geeser.  But I put in a few goals here and there. 

So the Pascual family didn`t come to church, and we still don`t know why.  Everything was arranged for them to come and then they just like disappeared off the planet on sunday.  We`re gonna try to contact them today.  In fact, Christian and Julian should be getting baptized this week and the parents should be taking out a marriage turn as we speak.  Then, Eduardo, the father, can get baptized after they get married.

Spin didn`t come to church either, although he told us he couldn`t last week because his cousin opened up a new supermarket and he had to help him this week.  But, he`s progessing, slowly but surely.

Last night, we had a ton of success with references.  We asked for references from all of our investigators that we taught and contacts in the street.  By doing that, we found some really great people.  I`ll give ya an example.  We talked to an investigator and she gave us the reference of her friend.  We went to the friend`s house, but he wasn`t there.  However, his grandma and uncle were there.  10 days ago, the uncle had lost a little baby girl.  The grandmother, who is evangelical, was also having some doubts about God.  We taught them right there in the door a quick lesson and then set up an appointment with the two of them for this saturday.  They were both touched by what we said and their hunger for more could be seen in their eyes.  Me encanta!

Well, I love you guys a ton.  I`m lovin my mission, even though the time passes by super fast.  Look for pics of Cristian`s and Juliana`s baptism next week.

Un abrazo,

Elder Hales