August 20, 2012

Okay,

So this week was okay. An elder that lives in my house, Elder Bledsoe, that is working in the same ward as me is having huge back problems (and it is not getting better nor are the Argentine doctors having much luck figuring out what's going on...) so we were doing splits almost every day with his companion, Elder Yarger, to help them out with their investigators that got baptized on Friday! However on Friday Elder Howard and I had to travel to General Pico to do a couple baptismal interviews for our District Leader, Elder Parra (who was with Elder Arias after I left Pehuajó), and things got complicated so we ended up getting back at 8:30 at night and missing the baptism! We were bummed seeing as we had helped teach them and had seen them in church every week. And then on Saturday, Elder Howard and I had made all the arrangements so that two small buses could take all 30 of us in La Pampa to Bahía Blanca. Twelve missionaries had to travel in from other cities and we all left together at 5 in the morning.

Elder Howard and I and all the other Zone Leaders (the Pehuajó zone, the two Bahía Blanca zones, and the Viedma zone) had an hour long meeting with President Parreño, his wife, and Elder Viñas, a Seventy of the First Quorum and Second Counselor of the South America South Area Presidency. It was fantastic. He is an ex-bishop, stake president, mission president, church educational system worker, and just about everything else possible. He, like Elder Arnold last year, had such a powerful and spiritual presence I could just immediately tell that he was a man called of God to preach His gospel. He spoke to us about how to help the missionaries in our zones to have success and to reach their goals. He helped us understand better certain points of doctrine, as well as explained about goal setting and the reason we do it. His knowledge of the scriptures and the gospel inspired me to keep studying and applying the doctrine in my life.

That was at 9 o’clock. Then at 10 o’clock, half the mission was crammed into one big cultural hall in the church building where the mission office is (home sweet home...haha) and we had a huge conference where the Assistants, President, Sister Parreño, and Elder Viñas spoke to us. Elder Viñas told us very clearly that his message was not his; that it was from God himself. He said that what he was going to teach us was exactly what President Monson had asked them to share and that as the representative of Jesus Christ on the earth in this moment, his inspired message was exactly what Heavenly Father wants us to hear right now. He spoke about the church growth in the South America South Area and about what we as missionaries can do to contribute to "real church growth." Let's be honest. I am in Santa Rosa which is a Stake, but technically according to the numbers doesn't even qualify to be one. He said he could count on his fingers how many stakes in the Area currently QUALIFY to be one!!! And it's true. So there is a lot of work to do.

Our ward is doing pretty good though! Our converts are going to church, Marcos Herrán blessed the sacrament on Sunday in his suit and everything, and his sister-in-law, Mónica, who Elder Howard and I are currently teaching is DEFINITELY going to get baptized in the next couple of weeks. She came to church yesterday dressed up in Sunday dress! We have a lesson set up with her and her already baptized children at 8 o’clock tonight and we are going to challenger her to get baptized. She'll accept.

Anyway other than that there isn't too much news because we had a pretty unproductive week with all the complications in our area/zone! Thanks for the letters! Please pray for Mónica and the Lucero family who didn't manage to get to church yesterday!

Chau,

Elder Garrison

August 13, 2012

Dear family and friends,

This week was great!

For the third week in a row, Elder Howard and I have managed to teach a lesson with a member of the church present almost every single day. So we are seeing the results of our efforts and really excited for our investigators that are progressing very well toward conversion and baptism in the Church. When we teach lessons and the members help us out by bearing their personal testimonies, those whom we teach change because they see not only two missionaries with testimonies of what they teach, but also a normal person, many times their neighbor, who also believes what we are saying. Every time I have involved members in the lessons, it has been much more successful. We also had some cool experiences getting into some houses and teaching new people for the first time about the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Every time we get into a new house to teach someone new, we teach the first lesson about prophets, Jesus Christ's earthly ministry, the fall of His church, and the restoration of that church in modern days by a prophet called of God, Joseph Smith. We knock a lot of doors here in Argentina. We are encouraged to work with the members and doing that has proved to be very successful but when we are not working with members, we fill our time knocking doors. Up until Viedma I had seen no results from that. What changed is that now we work together with the members to help those people gain testimonies.

For example, just like in Viedma with Agustín Casanova who talked to us in English, here in Santa Rosa Mariano talked to us in English in the street and now has gone to church for a month straight with his family! So this Saturday, his little sister Milagros Ivonne Lucero got baptized! Elder Howard and I were very excited because she is super cute because she knows everything, and just bursts with excitement about the Gospel. She always has great stories about praying to be able to sleep better or how she wishes every day were Sunday so that she could go to church. And she is only 9 years old!! We were also excited because not only did Ivonne's brother and sister go to the baptism, but so did the mother, Marta! AND she went to church yesterday for the confirmation. She loved it so much she even expressed her desires to get baptized which is what we were hoping for, seeing as the bishop had expressed his worries about baptizing only the 9 year old. But something told both him and us to do it, knowing that the rest would follow her footsteps.

Also this week, we were able to teach Catalina Navas mother (we baptized Catalina two weeks ago). The grandpa set up a Family Home Evening on Monday and we taught using 1 Nephi 8 about the Iron Rod. It was great and I was just straight up with Catalina's mom about how she needs to do what her three oldest children have done and follow Christ because He is waiting for her to follow. He is knocking at her door, waiting for her to open. Then, on Saturday after the baptism, we went over again and read from 2 Nephi 2 about the fall of Adam which leaves us subject to both physical and spiritual death and how the Messiah, Jesus Christ, saved us from that. We must follow His commandments, however, if we hope to be saved.

I asked her to offer the closing prayer and she was very hesitant. But when we insisted, she did it. It was soooo spiritual that after she finished I said, "THIS is the Spirit of God." And there was this dead silence for about 10 seconds. Catalina's mother just cried because the Spirit was so strong. We left immediately, explaining that our only desire was to help her follow Christ and she showed up to church the next day. She'll get baptized soon :)

Thank you for your support! Please pray for Mónica, Marta, Mariano, and Nicolle!!

I love you.

Chau,

-Elder Garrison

August 6, 2010

**I asked Ryan how his shoes, clothes and suitcases were holding up….

Dear Everyone,

So my shoes and clothes?

The shoes I have on right now have huge gaping holes in the bottom of the heal. Like I described, the dirt roads just beat them up and they get destroyed. Viedma was right next to a river, El Río Negro, so all the streets were pebbles that just killed my shoes. So these ones just opened up on the bottom and slowly are wearing away hahaha. I'll be fine for a few months though, and I have my other pair of shoes to use too. I'll make it. My suitcases are fine. I take care of them. They just sit in my house and when I travel, the buses store them underneath the bus. And my clothes, yeah my shirts are old and my pants all sewn up for many rips but it's all fine.

This week we got transfers. I don't know if I mentioned that in my last email. So I was really feeling that I was going to leave. I spent so little time in all of my other areas (just 2 transfers each time) so I felt like my time was up. I was actually thinking I might get transferred to be Zone Leader in Necochea with a missionary named Elder Clegg. But I was wrong! Hahaha turns out Elder Clegg was made Assistant to President. And I just stayed where I am. So I will be here in Santa Rosa at least one more transfer with good old Elder Howard. But being Zone Leader, we have to be in the bus station to make sure all is well so Elder Howard and I were up almost all night sending off and receiving missionaries. Ten missionaries from my zone left and ten came in to replace them! It is going to be interesting getting everyone on the same page. But I am excited to be here still. I may have felt like my time was up but there is still so much work to do here. The ward seems to be changing now because the 4 of us missionaries are bringing new people to church every week and everyone is getting excited. Plus, we set up this activity on Saturday of Lehi´s Dream in the church. We blindfolded everyone and sent them on their way through the hallways to be tempted as they wandered along holding onto the chord we ran all through the church until they got to the huge tree Elder Howard made that was in front of the pulpit in the Sacrament room. It was awesome. We even used the stage as a great and spacious building.

So on Sunday, everyone saw us differently. The bishop even mentioned it in his testimony and spoke of his conversion story, inviting all those in the meeting that had not yet been baptized to do so and inviting all those that have already been baptized to endure to the end. Ivone, our investigator is going to be baptized this Saturday and her siblings Mariano and Nicolle are getting there. Mariano is closer and the Bishop agreed to baptize him with his sister this week if we can get him to accept. He has desires to change and continue forward faithfully but part of him allows the devil to make him doubt and think he isn't ready yet and that he doesn't know enough to make the right decision.

The other missionaries are going to baptize an older couple the following week as well. So with so many new people and success, the members are seeing us differently and starting to get excited about working with us. Elder Howard and I are doing our best to invite a member to go with us to a lesson every day. That way, the people that show up at church for the first time already know people and feel for comfortable.

This week we're in a different internet cafe so I will send pictures. Please pray for Ivone, Mariano and Nicolle! I know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ. He lives and loves us and invites each one of us to follow His example, starting with baptism by the proper authority in His church, so that we can be cleansed of our sins and return to live in the presence of our Heavenly Father once more. That is what Ivone and her brother and sister are going to do and the happiness that can be felt and the Spirit that testifies of truth allow me to contently see the changes in them day by day as they follow Jesus Christ.

Thank you for your letters and support!

Chau, nos vemos,

Elder Garrison

July 30, 2012

Dear Everyone,

So what does it mean when it does "dust" or "smoke" as the weather forecast? It means I will be enjoying some of the novelties of living outside of the states. Argentina is dustier than Arizona. No one paves the roads because if you want a paved road on your block, you and all of your neighbors have to get in on it and pay for it. And it's also a super windy area. So it is basically always dusty outside. The dead center of the city always has all paved roads (and that's my area) but as you head to the outskirts, its all dirt roads. Two of the Elders that live with me have no paved roads in their area.

And smoke? They burn all of their trash. It is not unusual to see a pile of trash on the side of the road that has been lit on fire. Also when they do yard work, they take all the leaves, sticks, garbage, etc. and light it on fire. Or when a piece of land is vacant and they want to use it, they just light it up. Kind of interesting.

As for the weather here in Santa Rosa this winter, it's been pretty weird. Everyday it's super freezing in the morning. We have to turn off our gas heaters at night because of the risk of fatal gas leaks. So we wake up pretty cold. But by the time lunch is over however, it's too hot to wear a coat. Yet when the sun goes down, the temperature just drops in a matter of minutes. Last winter in Balcarce, it was freezing all day long.

So anyway, this week was awesome. Catalina Soledad Navas got baptized this Saturday and she was super happy and so were Elder Howard and I! Everything came together very well and the whole family was there to support her, including her nonmember mother, and many of the members as well. A 19 year kid named Alejandro, who is a ward missionary, baptized her. Also, the Elders who live in my house but work in another ward invited their investigator who liked it so much that she decided to get baptized this next Saturday!

Also this week we had members come with us to a bunch of lessons so that was super successful. The Lucero family kids came to church again (Nicolle, Mariano, and Ivone) and they loved it. I was excited for them. We have been going by their house almost every day (que pesados) but it's what works! We made them little signs that they taped up on the walls that remind them to read the Book of Mormon every day, they all offer prayers in the lessons now, and I am pretty sure that they will get baptized on the 11th of August. We pray for them constantly and are always thinking of better ways to help them and teach them so they can understand and apply what we teach. I love to watch them change and grow. Sometimes their answers to our questions surprise me because they are progressing so much.

However transfers come in this week on Friday. So we'll see what happens! Ever since my first area, Balcarce, I have only been in my areas 2 transfers. So if I keep up the trend, I'm out of here. I think that is why I feel like I am going to leave. But we'll see, perhaps Elder Howard and I will stay together just a little bit longer.

Thank you for your letters and support! I love you all. Please pray for my investigators!

Esteeee.......

Elder Garrison

July 23, 2012

HEY,

This week was fantastic. We are teaching this family called the Lucero family. The mom is named Marta and her children are Nicolle (18), Mariano (17), and Ivon (9). They are AWESOME. Elder Howard and I love them. We have been slowly improving our lessons together and now are teaching together even better than ever. We've had some great lessons with this family and finally, each one of them has offered a prayer to end a lesson and they are reading the Book of Mormon together. We are excited. This week we worked really hard to get them pumped about going to church so they got there on Sunday and loved it. The week before, they had slept in and we were super bummed about it. So now we are hoping that they will get baptized in a few weeks. The only problem is that their mother lacks the motivation which is sad because she just admitted that her father in Còrdoba is very sick and could die. And not even that drives her to seek help from God. Sadly, her children went to church without her yesterday. But we'll get her there. Regardless, she loves us and has no problem with her children going to church and getting baptized if they want, etc.

It is kind of funny though because we met them because Mariano and his friend shouted at us in the street in English...Kind of like in Viedma with Agustìn. So we talked to them for a while and wrote down their addresses. When we showed up to their house, Nicolle walked up with this girl named Astrid who is a member of our ward! Not chance. So Mariano is awesome. He always has a light in his eyes when we teach him. 

The other miracle we had was that two weeks ago, we did splits with some of the older members in the stake for a few hours. Elder Howard went out with Lucas, the kid that always comes with us to lessons, and they contacted this man named Marcelo in the street. He has no house. They invited him to church and the next day he showed up. Last week we couldn't find him, however, because he has no house and lives in the streets. So he didn't show up at church. Well Lucas ran into him and lovingly called him to repentance for having not come to church. So THIS Sunday he showed up again!! Awesome. He is going to get baptized for sure.

And the other miracle was with Catalina, who I have been teaching since I got here. She goes to church every Sunday in a skirt and everything. So she looks like a member but has never wanted to get baptized! But this week, after the baptism of Marìa and Marcos, who are her aunt and uncle, she decided that she wants to do it. So she expressed her desires to her mother and grandfather and this Saturday, will be baptized! Her grandpa invited us over and told us the news and Elder Howard and I were super stoked. So we have planned everything and it's all ready to go. This week we will finish teaching her and she will have her baptismal interview on Friday!!

The other Elders in our area also had investigators in church on Sunday so the Bishop was pretty happy and the members got very excited to see the fruits of our labors.

Plus, Marcos received the Priesthood. He came up to Elder Howard and I and said, "It's been a very long time since I put a tie on...You two may be young, but you taught me many things that touched my very soul and have changed me. I thank you for that." We gave him and his wife hard cover triple combinations and a framed picture of the baptism and they were speechless. So great.

As for my new mission president, I left that out! Two weeks ago, Elder Howard and I traveled to Bahìa Blanca for the Zone Leader conference and met him and his wife. They are great, I really like them. I won't lie, I really really miss President Detlefsen. I constantly remember the things he taught us and try to apply them to my life. But President Parreño is also a very inspired man with an incredible story. He is from a smaller city near Alicante, Spain where he first went to church with two members and four missionaries. They were the only ones there. He was the third baptized member in his whole city. All because he saw a light in the eyes of the missionaries when they talked to him in the street and he wanted to be like them. Since then, many stakes have been formed in his city and he has served as Bishop and Stake President.

This week, they came to Santa Rosa and we had our Zone Conference and interviews with him. There were 37 of us there and Elder Howard and I had to set everything up, organize lunch, and I conducted the meeting. Crazy.

Anyway, thank you all for your letters and support! I love you all! Please pray for Catalina, Marcelo, and the Lucero family so that they can be okay! I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer. He lives and has restored His church in these last days so that each one of us can come to know the true points of His doctrine and be saved and perfected through His atoning sacrifice.

Adios,

Elder Garrison

July 16, 2012

Hey,

So this week was a fight. After leaving the internet cafe last week, we went to visit our investigators Marcos and Marìa. It was a tough lesson. We taught the last few commandments, using the scriptures and testifying a lot. It was very spiritual. And then we got to tithing. There are many verses about tithing in the Bible which we used. In Genesis 14 and 29, as well as Malachi where it asks, "will a man rob God?" They seemed to be quite sure about not robbing God, but at the same time, VERY against paying a ten percent tithing.

It is interesting because "tithing" in Spanish is "diezmo." It has the word "ten" in it. That makes it super easy to teach because it is quite obvious that God requires a ten percent offering. The problem was, they didn't want to. And they got very mad at us. We stood our ground though, telling them that the commandments of God cannot and will not be changed. They accused us of wanting nothing but their money to build our church buildings and temples, etc. And were so angry, they kicked us out of their house, telling us to leave and that they were not getting baptized.

As we left, without even closing with a prayer, I asked Marcos if I could hug him. So I did and we left.

I felt confused. We had prayed nonstop for days, we had made a lesson plan to know what to share and how to teach them well, we worried all day long and it looked as if it had blown up in our faces.

But we continued faithfully thinking, "they will get baptized."

The following day, Marcos called us during our lunch. Elder Howard and I went outside and he explained to me that they had repented and prayed all night long. He said that he had had a change of heart and desired so much to permanently change and be a better person that he and his wife were going to pay their tithing and be baptized in the Church of Jesus Christ on Saturday.

So they got baptized!!! It was fantastic. Their eyes were shining when they came out of the water and were so happy it was incredible. Marcos even cut his hair off and showed up all clean cut. They both looked so changed and happy; it was a testimony to me of the power of God in our lives if we humble ourselves and choose to obey His commandments. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true.

I'd send pictures but these computers don't have SD card slots.

Thank you for your prayers and support!

I love you all,

Elder Garrison

July 9, 2012

Dear Family and Friends,

Steph tells me that there are six missionaries in her ward! That is insane. And they are apparently having a lot of success if people are frequently getting confirmed in church on Sundays. I can hardly remember convert baptisms in our ward. Ever. When was the last time there was one?

We are going to have a baptism this week though! If our last in an hour goes well, that is. They are named Marcos and Marìa Herràn. They are the parents of this kid named Enzo that Elder Sanchez and his last companion baptized. They have been going to church weekly now for a good 2 to 3 months and have been progressing slowly toward baptism.

Last monday, Elder Howard and I left the internet cafe and went to teach them in their home. They shared an experience of last week that they had had and we applied that to our lesson which was about how God calls prophets to guide us and teach us His will. Marcos had admitted the week before his doubts about whether Joseph Smith had really been a prophet. He said he felt great in church and had seen significantly big changes in his life starting the moment that they began going to church but that he couldn't really accept the whole Joseph Smith thing. Well we taught about prophets, using the Bible and the Book of Mormon, and then explained that we'd like to show them a short video about Joseph Smith. He then started to explain that no movie would change his mind and that all the churches were good and that we all worship God in our own individual way (a typical ideology here in Argentina and probably everywhere in the world) and that God will save us all in his kingdom at the end (I still wonder where they pull that out of the scriptures).

So I told him, "No Marcos, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the ONLY true church on the face of the earth. And any other church that professes to be a church of God without His divine authority is blaspheming before God. We respect them for the service they do and for bringing many to believe in God, but frankly, they are false." He then just wanted us to put the movie on haha because the Spirit was testifying of the truth and he knew it. However before doing so, we expressed our love for them and our desire to help them. THEN we put the movie on. It was very spiritual. And at the end he looked up and asked, "What was my baptismal date again?" When we responded, he said, "I am getting baptized."

Since then, the only problem we found is tithing. Today we are having a second lesson about it and a member is coming with us. Pray for them please! Thanks for your letters! I love you all! I didn't have too much time today because it was a holiday and everything closes in this country on holidays. Thankfully the internet cafe opened up anyway but late.

Chau,

Elder Garrison