La Ligua semana 16

Well heres to another week!!! First of all I am sorry to everyone who wants a long letter, but we will see what comes of this. I am short on time and there was NOWHERE open today that had computers!!! jaja

So first of all, we had to run a couple baptisms back a little. We are still excited for them, just a few little things they wanted to be good and clear on before they got baptized. And we are still excited and they are as well! So no worries!!! 

One of the boys that will be baptized this next week, we talked with his mom this week to see if she had anyproblems and turns out she speaks better english than we do! She is a professional transaltor and she speaks great!! She has never left Chile, and surprisingly has learned it all here in the university!!! It was cool!!! We also talked with the father of Francho who I have been trying to convince for a LONG time now that his daughter is ready to be baptized! And so luckily we were blessed with a good lesson with him. Sadly he normally has a drinking problem, but this night he was sober. We talked about the gospel and how it has blessed him and how his beliefs in God have helped his Children! Then we showed how his son, Brian, has increased SO WELL in the gospel and we asked him if he would like that fort his daughter, and he said no.... again.... So we went back through it all and just said "look, she is ready! She will bring YOU blessings by living the gospel" and then he started thinking "maybe she is ready..." and in the end he said yes, it would be good for her!!! WOOO!!!!! So we are planning her baptism for 2 weeks from now!!! It was SO AWESOME!!!! 

Just a random side note, today we played some ping pong in the church (and we play fierce, fyi jeje ) and we SPLIT THE BALL!!! thats right, it first cracked and then we, by just hitting it, split the ball. I felt pretty cool! the first time I have done that! jaja 

Oh, and tuesday, Elder Rhoton was stinking nervous to call home and it was absolutely hilarious!!! It all went down well, it was just his first time and it was hilarious!!! 

One more funny thing, or two. First, I was teaching and accidently said "he´s like.." and just went on and no one noticed.... except Elder Rhoton, he burst into laughter because I didnt even realize it! jaja Also, I was asked in the beginning of Church right before we started to give a talk. and I felt to speak about the divine light of Christ and putting a goal for this next year to look for the light MORE in this next year. So I extend the invitation to ALL of you reading this: look for that special guidance that we can only receive from our heavenly father! As we look for it, God may give us more guidance!! So read your scriptures, pray OFTEN and dont forget about the church! 

Well, thats about all I got time for today!!! I love you all and I shall be the first to wish you all a "feliz año nuevo!!!" and just remember, I am going into the future, entering 2013 4 hours before you all! (most.. jaja ) Loves!!! 

Les quiero Mucho!!! 

Elder Marvin =D

La Ligua semana 15

Why hello to everyone in this wonderful Christmas Eve. I hope that all of you have just been fine and dandy in this lsat week! Things have been GREAT here! and we have even been surprised by a few gifts!!!

We also had a week of LOTS of traveling!!! On tuesday we went to quillota.... TWICE, once in the morning and once at night. jaja thats 3 hours of the day just traveling! haha but of course we couldnt just do it once... jaja o well!! 

Miercoles (wednesday) we had our Christmas conference (for more pictures visit http://misionvinadelmar.blogspot.com/) and it was SO AWESOME!!! All the practices and all the many activities that we did were awesome and we ate great! A couple of hermanas from Peña Blanca were helping, and so I went and said thanks and hello to one of them that remembered me! jaja YAY!!! and we got new mission journals that are totally sweet! and it was just awesome!!! So that made for a great day!!!! And we came back and visited a family that is TOTALLY awesome! I love them so much, but they havent come to church for a while and the mother (The rebel) finally said "maybe it is time that we go to church again." and two of their kids are not baptized, so hopefully we will be passing by there more!!! 

Also, the less active lady whos litle girls are just GORGEOUS and my best friends, just so you know, she came to church FINALLY and her husband (who is not a member) also came!!! I was so happy and the little fernanda (6) totally rembered me! YES!!! Also, Karen y Mauricio went to some of their wedding prep stuff on wednesday and they said that everything that could have gone wrong DID, but they still went through because they know it is the best they can do!!! and then on friday we got their invitations and they love them! So it made for a bunch of happy people!!! 

Then we also had interchanges with a the elderes in Cabildo. They are doing GREAT and I was really surprised because the Elder I was with is a jokester, but when we got to serious matters, all went well and he was really mature about how he treats the situations. I was VERY impressed!!! 

So it has been a great week! We just got done with a zone activity, we went and played football and ate shish-ka-bobs (sp?). It was pretty fun, just really unorganized, and so we lost a lot of time!! But no problems, all shall be well! and we had a good time together!!! 

Bueno, I hope that everyone has a WONDERFUL Christmas; one that will always be in your book of memories!!! I love you all and remember to share the love of Christ with those around you! Serve a little more than you are comfortable, I promise you will not regret it!!! Chao!!! 

Elder Marvin =D

La Ligua semana 14‏

Hola de La Ligua, ¿cómo están todos? ¿Algo nuevo este semana? Well we had quite a wonderful week! After goi9ng last monday and putting a marriage date, we have been working to get the invitations ready, and the get everything organized so that it will be a day that Karen y Mauricio will never forget!!! 

We also have been working hard to get anyone else prepared for baptism before the end of the year. We are trying to help the mission achieve our goal that we have for the year, and we wanna end this year great! And in the midst of that, we have about 7 people who are preparing for baptism at this time, and we hope that everyone one of them can get it! So we have been visiting them lots this week! 

 Also, we climbed to the top of the last hill here that I hadnt climbed yet! We were looking for a less active hermano who has a son who is still not a member, and in search we found another guy who is really great! The next time we go up there we will definitely go by him again. 

Something I have learned in this month is that many people do not understand how it is that we get the gift of the holy ghost. So We gladly help them to understand that it is necessary to receive it by the laying on of hands from someone who has received the authority or permission to act in Gods name (through the priesthood). However, Acts 8 very clearly shows us how it is that we receive the holy ghost, that not only because we are baptized means that we have received it. 

I am so grateful for the gospel that truly teaches me the simplicity of the teachings of Christ. I am so grateful for all that he has done for me, and made it possible that I can be guided by this Holy Ghost in all that I do! I know that it has helped me MANY times when life got hard, but I am so grateful for the blessing it is to me!!! And I hope that as Christmas gets closer that we may all think a little more in Christ and look for his influences in our lives! The spirit will testify to you, I know it will if you are looking for it!!!  Ilove you all, and I hope that you may find a way to share Christ love with someone nearby you!!! Try and be an extra special friend this year, and forget your own personal desires; I promise you will not regret it!!! 

Les Quiero Mucho!!! 

ps Also, funny thought. While eating an ice cream this week, a little girl was looking at me, and REALLY wanted an ice cream! and her mom said "Look, you gotta eat all your find if you wanna have big muscles like him." jajajaja woo hoo!! 

La Ligua semana 13‏

Well here we go again and let me just say GREAT WEEK!!! Why? Because my new companion is way awesome, we get along WAY good and well we are both just out to get the world and help them to be baptized!!!

So first of all we werent able to teach as much as we wanted this week because we had church activities 3 nights in a row, on the plus side, we invited SO MANY people to take church tours and it was SO GREAT to just be out and literally inviting everyone we saw to come into the church and see what it was like! It was way cool! I loved it! And we had tons of success with it as well! so that made it all the more fun!!!

Second of all BAPTISM!!!! Jonathan was baptized this last saturday and I was honored to be able to do the baptizing. He has been so much fun to work with and help him along the way and to think back in the end of october when His dad was telling me "its very possible that you will not be here when he is baptized.." I couldnt help but laugh! Although, that wasnt even the best part. The best part was when we were in the font, the spirit was literally so so so strong! His mom and dad were both crying, and she isnt a member and he isnt a crier! jaja So it was absolutely wonderful! We are way excited for their little family and for the positive directions they have gone!!!

We also shared with Brians cousin, Michel. She is one of those people who was chosen to accept the gospel in a split second and I have LOVED it!!! She was our miracle lesson last monday and we met with her again on sunday night and she explained how after we had left she went and called her boyfriend and explained that she wanted to get married and how she wanted to make SO MANY CHANGES and she knew that it all was true. She had felt it, and she could not deny it! and everytime she talked about it she got all teary-eyed and just said "I know that these things are true, and I know that I have felt the spirit. I have never felt this way in any other church before!" It litterally just blows my mind and I just hope that she keeps going strong like this. She says that when her boyfriend gets back from the mine that she wants him to meet with us and he has already said yes to that. She also fears a little, because she doesnt live in our area, and she doesnt think it will be the same because she trusts us so much, but we told her that the other elderes are also called of God and will be there to help her with every step! But it was SOSOSO OSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSO amazing how the spirit has touched her and she said she knows she will never go back to the miserable life she had before. And Brian stays at her side the whole time and his testimony gets stronger from her and hers from him. ITS HEAVENLY!!!!

THEN (I know, who could guess so much goodness could happen!?!? thats the mission for ya!) we were sharing with Karen and Mauricio and hermano Aurelio came with us. We started a little slow, but the hermano came in with some serious testimony that just set the spirit so perectly. and we had just finished a special fast with them and they made it the whole time, even though it was hard for them. So, with all this in the air, we brought up marriage and if they felt they could be married before the end of the year. They looked at each other, and they said yes, then Karen said "We will go down to the civil register (ok, idk what it is called in english...) TOMORROW." AAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!!! I just wanted to scream with excitement! So we planned to meet with them and this morning we went down with them and got them a day picked out and everything ready and they will be getting married on the 4th of January 2013!!!! AHHHHHH!!!!! I am so excited for those two and to think I was there the first night when we found Karen! It is just all TOO great and I know that God has been there this whole time to bless them! I love it all!!!

I love the mission so much! I am seriously so stinking blessed everyday! Thanks for your prayers and for all that you are doing! Keep inviting your friends and family to listen to the missionaries, invite them to come to church activities and meetings and I promise you that you will see the fruits!!!! God is waiting for your faith, like I talked about on sunday (we both also had talks. haha) and I know that we need to trust in him MORE. So do your part, study your scriptures, and you will notice all the many miracles that God will put in your path!!! Les quiero mucho!!!

Elder Marvin =D

La Ligua semana 12‏

Bueno hay vino y se fue un otro cambio en la mision y parece que el señor me ama porque me quedé en La Ligua!!! WOOOOOOO!!!!!

I hope you all love transalting that! sorry, so far all my other emails this morning have been in spanish so I gotta think a little more english or this letter might become confusing!! jaja

So this week started off with some funness! we had a NDH with a familia and their neighbors (non members) and it went really well until I broke a glass! I was trying to help, but then I broke one... woop! Then about 3 minutes later, I went to open the pop bottle and the hermana told me "its going to explode" but I thought she was teasing me since I just broke a glass.... well lets just say the humbling continued! luckily they all thought it was just too funny! haha ok it was funny! jaja Then Elder Bowen called us to come and help him because he got the chilean flu as well. pucha.

Then as the week went on I started to feel like even though it was the last week, I felt like Elder Powner and I would both stay! So we just kept on working hard and having a great time! then saturday night came around and we got the phone calls "Elder Marvin, your going... to stay!" wooo!!! "Elder Powner, your going..." *click* (Elder Powner talking now) "wait, what!?!? They just hung up!>!" so that was a surprise! he just had a hot stop en La Ligua, but it was a great 6 weeks! i learned tons from him! A great elder, that one! haha Then Monday we had changes and so sunday night we had to get elder Powner all packed up and then we were up at 5:45 monday morning so that we could make it to viña on time! And it was SO GREAT!!! I absolutely love everytime that I get to go to viña!!! and I got to say hola to all my great friends! and it was awesome!!! The saddest was saying goodbye to Elder Arredondo and Elder Rivera, and Edler Diaz! i cannott believe that they are finishing up! I feel like we are all just so young, how can they take them away!!! Wow, the mission life goes WAY too fast!!! And then elder Valladares is training in the office as well so I have my first office grandson!!! and who could it be? none other than Elder Wardrop. and he came to Chile with me! haha It was kinda crazy, but awesome!!! Then I found out my new companion has just as much time here in Chile as Elder Powner and Elder cannell. my new companion is ANOTHER IDAHOAN!!! haha how crazy is that, and better yet, he is also one of 11 kids in his family (both my idahoan companions have had 11 kids in their families!! craziness!) and his name is Elder Rhoton. His dad teaches at BYU-I, just fyi. So we got the changes done and then we were off to the great branch of La Ligua!!!

Its been a fun change and Elder Rhoton actually just came from being with Elder Lucero, who also came to Chile with me! and he kinda does some things just like Elder Lucero did! haha its great! We are just going to get work done here and I am so excited! We exactually started our first day, and our first lesson together was SUPER spiritual! We were with la familia ramirez and their cousin, michel, was there. We shared with her once before but this time we verified how her reading went and she read, and Brian helped her to understand it all and we inviited her to be baptized and she accepted and we explained how baptism will wash her clean of all her sins and she started crying and the spirit just filled the room! it was so awesome! We hope to see lots of her and to see her progress! I love that familia SO MUCH!!!

So as you can see its been a great first week! I hope that everyone is loving life and finding Gods hand in all that he does during this great christmas season! tell someone new that you love them and try and serve them in whatever way needed! I love you all! I know this is the work of god and that we are helping His children to come unto Him!!! Loves!!! Chao!

Elder Marvin