February 23rd Kind of a frustrating week

How goes it?

 

Wow Charles, haha you are loco crazy...

Well that sounds like a fun week just taking care of Charles. I printed off that email and also shared it with my companion, he thought it was pretty cool. Well the part about the prayer and all that. It was hard to get over how cool and direct that answer to his prayer was.

 Well about this week... you could say it was a hard one... We were trying all we could to have lessons with members and to find new investigators but it just didn't happen and it was kinda frustrating... my comp has been a little stressed/frustrated because we have been trying and trying and nothing worked out. We weren't able to get anyone to church either which was sad... we did get to go to a baptism here in the ward and an investigator came but then Sunday he didn't show up because he had to work... he had gone 3 weeks in a row! and then... nothin... and we weren't able to teach that family this whole week, we were going to have a tour of the church before the baptism with them and then they were going to stay for the service but then the dad had to work and they didn't show up and I don't know why they didn't come to church but we will go and find out. 

 

Actually today we talked with a guy in the street and  I think we can get him to progress :) we will see if we can find him this week. I don't really know what else to share... this week was a whole lot of walking around and not being able to teach  people... I am not down or anything... it is just the truth of what has been going on, but we are going to see what we will change this week to be able to actually help some people :)

Here are some pics of Elder Naylor and me. A little more about him... well sometimes we are like the same person... I don't know... we have a lot of things in common and we even look alike... it is weird...I came all the way to Mexico just to meet my double that lives like... less than an hour from my house... well maybe we are so similar because we are different than Mexicans or somethin;)

Well that's about all I've got for this week. I love you all :) Bye!

-Elder Sampson

February 16th Interviews with President

Hey!!!

Feliz día del amor y amistad!!! de México!!! jaja :) well... it's a little late but it was the best I could do and... well I did know it is presidents' day  for that nifty little calender you sent me that has that super funny picture of Grandpa from Claire's snapchat.. it makes me laugh every time I see it :) and... Well I knew it was Nathan's birthday yesterday also, I am so glad that we know how it all works out in the end with the Plan of Salvation and all that :)

Well this week was cool because we had interviews with Pres. and fue bien padre.  Mi compa y pres. hablaron por una hora y 10 minutos!!! estábamos allí en la estaca desde las 9 hasta las 5:30... pero me gustó bastante :)

This week I really don't have much time but just so you know, Carlos came to church and well... está con ganas :) he is really coming along quite well.  We haven't been able to teach him this week but we were able to talk to him last night and he is like watching little videos about the Book of Mormon that explain the stories and  is already hearing about Alma and has the stuff down pretty good and was sharing what he learned from the stories.  Don't worry I am pretty sure the videos are from the church and all that so they won't be putting in unwanted false info :) you've got to be careful sometimes with what you find on the internet. 

 

That family that we were teaching didn't show up... none of them are members, the dad doesn't count as one because we will have to baptize him but they didn't come because their car kinda broke down or something.

We are getting along great my companion and I but I will write more next week because I don't have any more time because we were cleaning the house for like 4 hours because it was a huge mess... but it is a LOT better now, just a few things to finish up tonight and it will be great :)

Well I love you all and I will write more next week :) Adiós!!

-Elder Sampson

Feb 9th My New Area

Hello everybody!

 Well, I have to apologize right off the bat that I won't be sending any pictures but if you want to know what Elder Naylor looks like, just think of me... just a tinny bit shorter a little bit thinner and with brownish greenish eyes.... and there you have him! Elder Naylor! haha it's kinda weird to be with someone that looks so much like me after being around Mexicans all the time... Today we went to get haircuts and I was just sitting there looking in the mirror at me then at him then at me and thinking "wow... this is weird..." we aren't exactly the same but it is kinda weird....

Well about the new area. My comp was already here when I got here so he has one change here. He has about 7 months in the mission. There are some investigators that they were already teaching when I got here and there are some with some good possibilities :) 

One is a family :) and the father already got baptized in the US but never got confirmed so... we have to baptize him again and then get him confirmed.  We are teaching his whole family and it is pretty great :) 

Also, there is an investigator that is a dentist and lives with his dad, who is an atheist, and well, he totally came to church! His name is Carlos and he participated and everything in Elders quorum so it was cool... He is reading the BOM and progressing, we are going to try to get him baptized the last week of this change :) 

A cool experience we had yesterday. We went to the house of a street contact we had during the week and we started talking to him and he starts to say... "Well... my family and I go to another church and I don't want to separate us by going to another church and I don't really want to change anyways..." and then his wife says from the other room "But you got baptized in that church!"....... ¿Que? all of the sudden he is an inactive member! Who knew? well we started talking to him and he asks... Why doesn't it say Joseph Smith in the Bible? And so we talk about that a little but then we start to focus on the BOM and testimonies of Joseph Smith as a prophet and all that and well it turned out to be a really great lesson and he accepted a copy of the BOM (he didn't have one because he had like 25 years since he left the church) and was all excited to read it and accepted another appointment, something he wasn't going to do at the start. It was cool to see how he changed as we talked to him and that our testimonies were able to help him rekindle the testimony that he had lost over the years, We are going to see him next Sunday so I will let y'all know how it goes :)

Well that's all I've got for now :) I love you! :)

-Elder Sampson

Feb 3rd Transfered to Victoria

Wow, that month went by really fast...

Good news and bad news! I got transfered! It's good and bad at the same time... Good because change is good and gives me an opportunity to be in a new area and new companion, so it's all good :) 

Anyways.... The bad news is, (it's actually something really good but I am a little sad because I won't be there... ;) ) Monica (or Carolina) the friend of Monica (por eso le decimos Carolina) received her answer to her prayers! She has been listening to us and was asking if she should get baptized and all that and... well she had a dream... In her dream she ran into some old friends and they were asking her what had been going on in her life and she told them she was Mormon! She was also married in her dream (she isn't married right now by the way) and really happy. She said that it seemed the the dream was  like one year in the future and that she wants to get baptized! She had accepted the invitation before but it wasn't ever very sure... but when we talked to her she asked us "hey, can I get baptized on March 3rd?" dijimos que sí... :) she was really really excited and she went to church on Sunday and everything! she seemed kinda bugged the whole time and later we talked to her friend and she said that Carolina really liked the whole experience but... she was hungry ;) so that's why she looked kinda mad.... ha ha but really... she is excited to get baptized and everything.  She has already read up until 3 Nefi! it is so great :) and she bought us nachos and gave us cup cakes... :) they were delish!

Well that's a little bit of what happened last week. We weren't able to get Anatolio or Abraham to church but I really think they will get baptized here in the next few changes :)

Ok, now a little about transfers, I am now in Victoria (that's the city). Victoria is the capital of Tamaulipas. Everybody talks about it like it's la Tierra Prometida ha ha :) they say the members here are great and always help and stuff like that so we will see what happens.  Also, supposedly the people here have more money... They say they are más fresa here. I am in the ward Libertad with elder Naylor. He is from Utah. Actually he is from Kaysville and kinda knows Rachel from elementary school, how crazy is that?  He is from the same generation as Elder Porter... my companion from two changes ago.  I will send some pics the next time if possible :) 

Wow, it is cold here... but good news (that's right more news!!) I got one of the Christmas packages! The one with the vacuum-packed sweaters and the socks, the really sweet tie and the pocket knife con ganas!! Thanks!  Last night I was looking for something that needed fixing because it has so many tools! ha ha it's great :) I was expecting something a little smaller but it's all good! It just surprised me with it's hefty-ness :)

Well that's all I've got for now :)  I love y'all :)

-Elder Sampson