1-10-11 email

Well This week was pretty good, we got some good work done and the work seems to be picking up, last week was pretty hard because all the investigators that we had didn't end up coming to church and so that's always discouraging when you see the people not making good choices. I still really like this area that I'm in, I get along very good with the members, I think its because I'm at the point where I'm more fluent in Spanish and so now I can actually have a conversation about things other than the gospel, and my companion doesn't speak any English at all so I am just forced to always speak Spanish, which is good for me because it always forces me to learn. Its hard to remember that there was a time that I wasn't able to understand Spanish, because now its just so natural to speak. I can definitely see the blessings that I receive each day from my heavenly father, its really an amazing opportunity to be apart of this work, which is really just so much bigger than me, and its just so amazing to see and hear how we are effecting people life's just by being young men worthy to carry the spirit and to be able to share the message with those who don't know the truth, there are so many people out there, and they are all looking for happiness, they search in so many different things, whether it be money, drugs, boyfriends, girlfriends, alcohol, and just all those things of the world, that yes can give short term pleasure but the only way that anyone will ever find the happiness that they want, that feeling of pure love, is if they live the principles of the gospel. That's the only way that we can find happiness, its the secret of life, and its a promise that our heavenly father has given each of us, that if we will follow his commandments, we will prosper in the land.

Last week we were out knocking doors and my comp was getting tired and didn't want to tract anymore, so I was like alright how about we just knock this one last door, so we did, and so I knocked, and a 25yr old woman answered and we told her we were missionaries and that we had a message that would bless the lives of her and her family, and we asked if we could share it with her. She accepted and invited us to come in. So we went inside, and began to get to know her, her name is Paola, she is married and has a 2 year old baby, and her and her husband live with his parents, which isn't uncommon here. We shared the first lesson with her it went very well. She invited us to come back the next day so we did and As we have been teaching her over the past week of so, we have learned alot more about her and husband. We have become very good friends with them and they told us that they want to be Mormon. Yesterday, Paola and her baby went to church but her husband Cesar couldn't because he had to work, but he said that he wants to change his work schedule so that he wont work on Sundays. They tell us that they have seen such a difference in their life's since that day we knocked on their door. They are a great family and are now our good friends, and we talk almost everyday, they always want us to come over and just talk to them because they say that when we are there they just feel something different.

Not really too much really happened this week haha, which is a big understatement because each day I see and experience something new and different, but I'm getting to the point where I'm just use to the crazy and to the strange. Like the other day while I was watching some lady kill a chicken I saw a guy walking down the street with his pet armadillo. haha it was quite strange. I see things like that each day, so nothing is really that surprising to me haha.

Well I hope you have a great week!

I love you!

Elder Stradling