Monday, March 14, 2016

Adios Mi Parcero

Email written: 3/14/16

Parcero is slang in Colombia for best friend.

On Monday after I wrote we went to the pension and the assistants packed up Elder Troya and we said goodbye and then I got put in a trio with the other 2 elders who live with us (Elder Sherman and Elder De Avila). Yesterday after Stake conference I talked to President and he showed me the email he got from Elder Troya and that he made it home alright and is going to start treatments today. 

With me being in a trio, that means that the Villa Oculta is now a closed area. Yes that´s right. I am the Elder that closed the Villa Oculta. One of the most successful areas in the history of the mission is now closed. So add that to my list of why everyone knows me (throwback to October when I baptized the member). And I talked to President yesterday and he still doesn´t know who he is going to send to be my companion. 

It´s been kind of difficult with all the changes this week because I have done a lot of divisions with Elders in the zone and members so I don´t really feel like a true missionary because I´m just kind of floating around. On Wednesday night at 10:28 Elder Bustos (zone leader) called me and said he felt like we needed to do divisions the next day and that I needed good plans. I was really stressed because I have not planned a full day in this area for a month and we have nothing. So with A LOT of prayer and trying to put my faith in that we were going to find something. I planned for a little bit in the morning and after lunch we reviewed the plans and prayed again hoping for something. We left feeling really good and excited that we were going to find someone. For almost 3 hours we couldn´t find a single member, less active, or old investigator. We were losing our excitement but I knew I had to keep at lest a little bit of faith and stop to doubt because we needed to find someone. We had a meeting at 7 and our only set appointment fell through so we kept looking for people. Elder Bustos had read our area book and wrote down a few names and asked me if we could find them. The first one I thought I knew how to find but the house number didn´t exist. We saw a lady and I asked her if she knew where the house would be and she didn´t know. I then felt to just keep talking to her and I asked a really stupid question about the houses and then Elder Bustos gave her a pass along card and we both saw he kids kind of laughing at us, so we asked if we could enter and share with everyone. After teaching for a little bit we left with 4 people with a baptism date! They are such an incredible family. It´s so hard to explain and tell all that has happened with them these past few days, but they are such a miracle. This is where it´s complicated because technically my area is closed but I have permission to keep it alive. It´s going to require a lot to make sure I can visit them between now and when I have a new companion. But now the Villa Oculta has hope when it gets reopened. It was such a testimony that even when it all turned against us, we held on to the tiniest thing of hope that we were going to have a miracle and we ended up having one much greater than we imagined.   -Elder Steele

Pic: We found out how to get up on the roof and we have a good view of the Elefante Blanco! 

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