Week 14 September 19-25, 2016

¡Hola Familia y Amigos!

This week was pretty decent. Some cool things were that we helped a less-active family dedicate their new house, I got assigned as the English tutor for the District, and I reached my 3-month mark this past week (but whos's counting?). :)

This week a ward member got baptized on Saturday, he's a little 8-yr old who was so excited to get baptized that he ran down the hall and gave me a big hug. Also I played an arrangement I created like 10 minutes before the baptism started. We also had an investigator call her boss to switch work days and attend church with us yesterday. I'm amazed at the faith some people can have.

Today for a district activity we got to go on the "TeleferiQo," which is basically an enclosed ski-lift thing to the top of one of the highest peaks in Quito! It was way cool, and we had a neat spiritual thought.

Not to much this week cause I'm about out of time, but I love you all and hope you have a great week!

Love, Elder Stolle

Pictures from my apartment:

Week 13 Sep 12-18, 2016

¡Hola Familia y Amigos!

Boy what a great week! Obviously every week has it's good days and bad days, but overall, I feel like this week was pretty dang solid.

First of all, I need to apologize if I came across negative a few emails ago. I received a lotta concerned emails, and it wasn't my intention to sound that upset, but rather to show how our Faith in Christ can help us overcome our trials.

This week we started off by giving a Priesthood Blessing to a sick Sister in the ward, Even though it's a little difficult to say in Spanish, I always love feeling closer to Heavenly Father by helping him to bless his children, and the love he has for them.

I'm really grateful for my new companion. He's hard working and very obedient, but is also just as skinny as me and has just as cheesy a sense of humor. :) Needless to say, we work really well together, He's also been a big help to my Spanish. I feel like I'm finally, slowly but surely, starting to understand enough of the language and the mission culture to see what I need to do to become a more effective missionary.

We also had 2 service projects. Both times we were helping members move, and for one of them we literally had to "raise the roof" off. :) The whole time we basically played the game "Don't get Tetanus," because one missionary sliced his hand on a sharp metal roofing piece, and the members sprayed cologne as a make-shift 'antiseptic.' Hahaha I guess the alcohol in that works (more or less), right?

After one of the service projects, one thing I found myself kind of surprised at was how grateful I was for a dinner of bread and a cold hot dog a family gave us, and they apologized they didn't have more to give, but somehow I was perfectly alright with it.

On Saturday during the hour we took for lunch, a parade celebrating the Virgin Mary (the Catholics are all about her) spontaneously came down our street, and the members living below us excitedly had us watch it with them. Our church doesn't put quite that big of an emphasis on her as much as we do our Savior, but it sure was an interesting and entertaining cultural event to watch. There's also been fireworks all week, all times of day, even at 6am in the morning. I think this week was the big celebration week if I remember right.

This week I tried a pink banana and cactus fruit. Just thought I'd include that.

Finally, let's end on a spiritual note. I came across a comforting scripture the other day that seemed to match my current testimony.

"I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things." (1 Nephi 11:17)

This seemed to hit home with me, because one of the first things I gained a strong testimony of is that our Heavenly Father loves me, and every one of his children. But like the scripture, I still don't know several gospel things, only believe. Which I think is good. It's not given to us to know all things, only build a strong belief and act on our faith. I believe that, and have come to realize, that we usually don't receive a big, glorious, one-time "that was my answer" to our prayers, like we might sometimes think or encourage, but that our faith really does grow slowly, like a seed, and the answers come in little gradual spurts, through diligently praying and reading the scriptures, and as we demonstrate faith and patience in the Lord and his timing.

Also this week one of the biggest things I noticed and strived for was exact obedience. Sometimes it's hard, and we weren't perfect-ly diligent, but the days that we strived to be obedient and put the things of God first always seemed to be the best days. We'd feel the Spirit the strongest, and always seemed to have enough time to do all the things we needed to do. I believe that as we strive to be exactly obedient and put God's will before ours, that's when he can make the most out of our lives, and we can become a useful instrument in his hands to accomplish his purposes.

Have a great week! 12 days 'till conference-woot woot! (I'm so stoked)

Love,

Elder Stolle 

Week 12 September 6-12, 2016

¡Hola Familia y Amigos!

Oh my gosh I can't believe Pday's already here again...time seems to fly nowadays.

This week started off with us giving a Priesthood Blessing to a sister whose face was swollen due to a drunk husband beating her. So sad, but it was neat to see her become comforted a little after the blessing.

We also went on "divisiones" (exchanges) with the Zone leaders, and went to Pizza Hut to celebrate Elder Memmott's homeward bound.

I've been going along with Elder Memmott this week all over Quito for his final interview, last minute things he wanted to buy, and saying bye to cherished ward members in other areas. It was busy, but kinda fun to get to travel and learn the areas while he did those things.

On one bus ride, though, I was in a very crowded corner, and although people were constantly bumping into me, I could particularly feel a hand slowly start to reach into my pocket. I quickly grabbed my pocket before the person could take anything, even though he kept pressing into me afterwards and feeling the bottom of my bag. I tried to tell him in Spanish to stop, and finally he just left me alone. I'm grateful for a watchful Heavenly Father that helped me be aware, and prevented me from being pick-pocketed.

I also have to include a picture below of the sweet breakfast I made the other day. The fruit here is so good, and it's a treat to whip up a good smoothie and yogurt for a healthy meal.

We also had a cool appointment with an investigator who'd been dealing with depression, but told us he was overcoming it through daily prayers which helped him get through the day. He told us he was excited to come to Church and to get baptized, and in his closing prayer he asked to be able to help his mom and family come to this Salvation. It was just neat, what a golden investigator he was. The Spirit was strong, and it made me excited to keep teaching.

I had to say goodbye to Elder Memmott this week, as he's going back to California. But today after waiting at the bus terminal in a place called Quitumbe, I got my new companion. His name's Elder Rodriguez, he's pretty nice and latino and from here in Ecuador, and I'm grateful cause that should probably help my Spanish move along a lot faster.​​ I'm excited to see what the next 6 weeks will bring!

I hope you all have a great week!

Love,

Elder Stolle

Week 11 August 30-September 5, 2016

¡Hola Familia y Amigos!

There were a few random interesting experiences this past week or so. A dog tried to bite me, but didn't puncture my suit pants. In one appointment we had new people who insisted we drink the coffee they offered us, and we had to politely (and firmly) tell them we didn't drink coffee.

I forgot to show the cool new Ecuadorean​​​​​​ tie I bought (picture below), as well as that my 6-mo. old watch fell in the shower and the glass shattered. (picture also below) RIP My watch. 

One of the Peruvian Elders knows the "Once there was a Snowman" song, so now whenever he sees me he calls me "Elder Tall, Tall, Tall."

I also had my 2nd Terremoto. It was a 4.6 in Quito, but we were just chatting in the chapel hallway after a Ward Council meeting, around 7:30pm, when car alarms started going off and everything started swaying. I heard there were a lotta earthquakes in California and stuff, so whether it's a lotta seismic activity or what not, I don't know. But it definitely keeps things interesting.

To be completely honest, a mission's very hard, missing a lunch appointment because I didn't know the area well enough during exchanges, as well as not learning the language as fast as I want to has made me feel pretty lonely and homesick. But I just had to finally stop and say a prayer for help, and had to remind myself of why I was here, my commitment to Heavenly Father, how this would help me understand the difficult experiences investigators/new members faced, and that I'd keep persevering because of my faith in the Savior.

I was grateful I had this experience, cause we went to an appointment a little later in which I was able to help a less-active lady who was feeling depressed, and encourage her to build faith in Christ.

This week as I have worked hard to look each day for the Lord's hand in my life, I realize more and more that as lonely and incapable as I felt, he was there helping me, every step of the way.

Especially yesterday. We had a baptism for the children of a part-member family, and they were redy and very excited to do it! They even invited some of their non-member relatives. It was all going perfectly...and that's what scared us, cause we knew that there would be opposition. The next day they came to church ready, early, and sharply-dressed. We thought maybe nothing would actually happen. Then we went to fill up the font, and...discovered that the well was dry, and no water was coming out. Which was kind of a major problem, since you kind of need water to baptize. 

We prayed for some sort of a miracle, and a little after tinkering with the valves and pipes, we were finally able to get enough water going to do the baptism after church. I was blessed with the opportunity to baptize them (my first in Spanish and in the mission), and the boys were laughing when they got in the water because they were so excited.

It was truly a tender mercy, and it showed that even though adversity will always oppose, the Lord's work will still progress, and that he watches over and directs his Kingdom.

Until next week,

Elder Stolle