The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

We started off the second half of October giving a temple discussion to our new convert Emiliano.  The statistics show that if new converts can get to the temple within 90 days of their baptism, they have a higher retention rate.  Since there was a schedule temple trip at the end of October we wanted to point his attention towards the temple.  He was very interested in the lesson.  We usually use the Rome Italy open house video that the church did when teaching new converts so they can see inside a temple and learn what the purpose of the temple is.  See it here Rome Italy Temple Video  He was very impressed.  We explained how to do basic family history and also how to get a temple recommend to do baptisms only,  since in the first year that is all they can do.  We must have converted him, because he signed up and went on the trip at the end of the month.  That was a month from his baptism date.  He had received the Aaronic priesthood so he actually got to perform the baptismal ordinance for the first time... in the temple!  This 18 year old convert is a great young man.  We sure hope he can stay active and down the road serve a mission.  His friend who introduced him to the church is getting ready to go on her mission in April, so she is setting the example for him.  When members are involved in conversion, it rocks!

One of our part-member families had a difficult time this last half of October.  The wife, who is not a member, had a health scare that put her in the hospital for over a week.  We visited her there and she truly was scared she might die.  If it brings her to repentance, great.  The hospitals here are very austere.  They do not provide much other than a bed, a bathroom and occasional medical assistance.  No food is provided, no TV's (we were told TVs were bought for the hospital, which is fairly new, but that all the construction workers stole the TVs rather than install them..and got away with it.  Go figure) and family members are always staying with you when you are in the hospital 24/7.  It's a whole different world here.

She didn't die, but she has had to take it easy.  Her husband wasn't able to work the whole time she was in the hospital so since then he has been working non-stop and we haven't had much chance to visit.  We did take her a meal after she came home from the hospital.  Ministering in action.  I don't think any of the members did anything for her.  Ministering here has a ways to go.

We are visiting a new convert who's mom is in a wheelchair, but the wheelchair is falling apart.  E. Rhoades looked into fixing it, but the cost of parts was not cheap.  A new wheelchair is 35,000 pesos ($636 US) which is not something she can afford.  We considered seeing if we could contact the church's wheelchair donation service but before we figured out how to do that, another new convert we are visiting mentioned they were selling items they no longer needed and one of the items was...a wheelchair!  He was willing to sell if for 1,000 pesos ($18 US).  This guy is poor.  We told him he needed to sell it for more.  The lady is poor as well, but she told us she could afford 1,000 pesos.  We bought it from him for 3,000 pesos, which was a fortune to him.  We told a white lie to get him to accept the 3,000 pesos.  Hopefully, the Lord will forgive us for our sin as it was in an effort to give service to others.  We just need to combine the two wheelchairs to make one that will work for her.

Baptisms have been slow lately in Venado Tuerto.  We did have a couple baptisms in October.  The first one was October 18th.  The sister of Jessica Sanchez, a convert of 7 months, was married and baptized.  Hopefully, her husband will be following her into the waters of baptism and membership soon.

 Outside the Registro Civil, Oct 18th, when Fabricio & Karen were married.  E. Vergara & E. Castilla are the missionaries working with them.

Jessica Sanchez on the left and her brother, Ariel on the right - who is also reading the Book of
Mormon and receiving the discussions from the missionaries.

That evening, they held a small party at the Branch 3 chapel.

Simple decorations, a simple cake, a potluck dinner (usually pizza and/or empanadas) drinks, and music with dancing.

Here is what their little son thought of the party --- sleeping right through it.

Ruben, one of the members, acting as DJ for the event.  Joaquin Sanchez, a nephew gives the thumbs up.

As is common, here baptism was the next day, Saturday  For some reason we didn't get any photos from that event.  And her confirmation was Sunday.  We have not been able to start working with them since they moved the very next week and things were unsettled for them.  And we have been busy with other projects since then.

Mother's Day in Argentina is in October - the 20th.  So Sister Rhoades got to celebrate it twice.

E. Rhoades got her a rose and she made chocolate chip cookie bars to take around to the mother's whom we felt needed them or with whom we are working.  For some of them it was the highlight of their day.

The Alvarez family is now back to being in-active again.  They are like a yo-yo.  It is very disappointing.  Finding this out on Mother's day started a domino effect of disappointments with the people we are working with.  Multiple families and individuals have moved away from the path of discipleship and our efforts seem to be falling on deaf ears.  We've had to take a step back away from visiting them as it is not bearing any fruit.  We've visited them long enough that we have learned to love and care for them and it is sad and disappointing to see them let go of the iron rod and go off into the mists of darkness.  Hopefully, they will find their way back as they realize that life is harder without the gospel in their lives.  We are learning that some are not willing to pay the price of discipleship.

We had a second baptism, however, on October 25th, of an investigator who has been on again off again.  Hopefully, she will stick.  The members in Branch 1 know her pretty well as she has been attending for some time.

The funny thing is, her last name means church in English.  And her first name is the same as the dance that was popular awhile back.

Hna. Ellsworth, Macarena Iglesias, Hna. Martinez

We are working on our next district activity, a Sports Day.  It was originally scheduled for October 19th, but we are in the spring here and the weather is so unpredictable!  One day warm and beautiful, the next 3 days cold and rainy.  The weather forecast was not looking good for that day AND the youth had not organized well for a fundraiser for EFY so we decided to postpone it until Nov. 2nd.  As it turned out Oct 19th turned out to be beautiful weather.  It would have been perfect for the sports day.  Oh well...next month.  And we really wanted the youth to have a successful fund-raising for EFY so hopefully it will be worth the wait.  We also had not had much chance to publicize it with General Conference and District Conference two weeks in a row.  Next blog post you'll be able to hear all about it... and see lots of photos.

We are also starting to work on our Christmas activity, a musical fireside.  This event will be more on the spiritual side.  I am working closely with Laura Roldan, the district music director.  I have managed to get her pretty excited about the event.  We've also got a member in Branch 1, Hna. Sanchez, who has gotten the vision of what socials can do for the members and missionary work.  She contacted us wanting our help organizing and planning a branch event for their Dia de Tradicion which is on Nov 11th, but she wants to do the activity on Nov 8th, a Friday night.  That is really close to our Sports Day event so hopefully the members and the branch missionaries can do most of the work and we just need to provide moral support and a little bit of help.  Next blog post you'll hear more about that event as well.

Halloween is not celebrated down here.  We almost didn't even realize it was October 31st.  Our Pathway group reminded us what day it was.  So to give them English practice we had them go to the following link  Monster Mash  and listen to a Halloween classic. 

And that's the last half of October.  You decide what is the good, the bad and the ugly.  We had it all these past few weeks.

Spiritual Thought: In his letter to the Hebrews, the Apostle Paul was trying to encourage new members who had just joined the church (oh, sounds like what we are trying to do!), who undoubtedly had had spiritual experiences and received the pure light of testimony, only to discover that their troubles had not ended but that some of them had just begun.  The reminder is we can not sign on for a battle of such eternal significance and everlasting consequence without knowing it will be a fight -- a good fight, and a winning fight -- but a fight nevertheless. (see Hebrews 10: 32-39). 

In Latter-day Saint talk that is to say, sure it is tough...That is the way it has always been, Paul says, but don't draw back.  Don't panic and retreat.  Don't lose your confidence.  Don't forget how you once felt. Don't distrust the experience you had.  That tenacity is what saved Moses and Joseph Smith when the adversary confronted them, and it is what will save you.  Jeffrey R Holland "Cast Not Away Therefore Your Confidence"  BYU Devotional  March 2, 1999