Our Darlings from Haiti

The Lord does work miracles.  We asked for Haitian missionaries just three weeks ago because we have thousands of Haitians living in our mission and nobody speaks creole.  We were told it would be very difficult to get Haitians because they all get called to serve in their own country.  Suddenly there is a giant riot in Haiti and now the church doesn't want to send the Hatians who were in the training center back to Haiti.  So guess what?  Our wish came true.

Just a little fence around the house

Saying goodbye is hard to do

This is clearly a work of love.  Our missionaries love the people they teach and they love one another.  Transfers are hard because it means some of those we love will be leaving to go home.  There is nothing that bonds us like serving together bringing souls to Christ.

Verifying the promise

Our missionaries put their name to their goals.  They all are committed to give everything they can to finding the people The Lord has prepared to receive the gospel.

Mission leadership council

All our Zone Leaders and Hermana Leaders gather monthly to brainstorm about how we can improve the mission.  But really the inspiration come from above.  How else could we have another month with OVER 300 BAPTISMS!!!  313 in January and January had only 4 weekends (December had 5 weekends)

Ever the innovators!

17 baptisms this weekend in one ward

Zone conference theme

A Thought About Stars

Many of you know we climbed to Everest Base Camp right before we came on the misión.  Base Camp is 17.6 thousand feet above sea level.  It’s really high.  One night during our journey, we left our habitación and looked up at the stars.  It was like we were standing inside a planetarium.  There were stars everywhere.  We didn’t even have to look up to see stars.  They were straight ahead on all sides, brilliant, and abundant.  It was truly a spectacular and very humbling sight.

            I was thinking what it required to see such beauty, and see such light.  I realized we had to get far away from civilization where there is a lot of light pollution.  The lights that men make through electricity obscure the light of the stars.   When we have gone camping, and been away from the man-made light pollution, we often see a beautiful sky full of stars.

            As beautiful as is the sky when we go camping, the view at 17.6 feet was beyond our imagination… truly breathtaking.  I realized to witness the light of Christ in our lives, we have to first get away from the things of the world, and we do this through repentance.  However, to truly receive all the light Christ has to offer, we need to climb the high mountains, go to the temple, make covenants and that’s where we really see the light.

A gift from an Hermana. It's real!

Teaching with some awesome hermanas

Nothing gets wasted here

Friends from the USA

We got to attend the baptism of the niece of the wife if the doctor our son works with in the states.  The doctor is from the Dominican Republic and his niece learned about the gospel while visiting him. When she returned she took the lessons and was baptized 

Getting a toe

So much to celebrate!

320 !! That's how many baptisms we had in the month of December.  Such a great way to start off the new year.  The mission has been striving to reach over 300 baptisms forever, and it's such a miracle we surpassed the goal in the month of December when 1/2 of the country flees their homes for vacations.  We have so much to be grateful for--consecrated missionaries, a receptive people, the true gospel of Jesus Christ restored again upon this earth!!  I can't express a part of what I feel.

Live Nativity

Merry Christmas to All

Dear Family and Friends,

My Christmas gift to you all is my testimony of the Book of Mormon.  There is so much power in this book, I can’t even think of opening it’s pages without picturing light emanating from the book.

One of the historians who writes in the Book of Mormon shares his desires for this history (Mormon chapter 8).  I read it and can feel his plea to us to embrace this record.  This prophet-historian, Moroni, has just witnessed the destruction of his entire people.  He is sickened by the sight of so much blood spilling over the face of the earth and a people, who had once had the light of the góspel, lying across the plains, their dead bodies providing food for wild beasts.  Moroni realizes he has been preserved and remains alive, although very alone, solely to complete this history and he begs us to read it.

I too, beg you to read, not just for curiosity, or for obligation, but for inspiration.  The Book of Mormon is God, talking to you personally, touching your heart like he can in no other way.  The book has touched my heart, and continues to do so every single day, even though I read now in Spanish!  Dive right in!  Read Alma Chapter 5, Read Helaman Chapter 5.  They are two of my favorites. 

The Book of Mormon brings us closer to Jesus Christ, helps us understand Jesus Christ, gives a greater desire to follow Jesus Christ, and shows us how to follow Jesus Christ.  This Christmas, if we truly worship the son of God, we must seek to better understand and follow his teachings.

With much love,

Hermana Smith

Gifts from caring parents

One of the mothers of a missionary in our mission made 200 pillow cases for our missionaries for Christmas  It was such a good idea.  Something they really needed, and beautiful too!

Missionaries Perform

For zone conference each zone (11 in total) performed a number.  They sang songs, they wrote skits.  They were so creative and fun!

We love the mission!!

Contacting the grinch

With some of our kids

Happy Hermanas

President Smith designed these shirts as a Christmas gift for the missionaries.  Who knew he was such a clever artist?  This elder is acting out the joy of the missionary on the shirt.

Why Just Being Good Isn't Enough

Why Just Being Good Isn't Enough

When The Savior came to the Americas he mentioned baptism at least 100 times.  (3 Nephi, especially ch 11 and 12)  I have been pondering this fact.  Why was he so insistent that these people be baptized?  Why not just encourage them to repent, and that’s the end.  Why not just tell them to be good, to be obedient, to keep the commandments and leave it at that?

Because he wanted to bless them!!!  He loved them.  He craved the opportunity to show his love to them.  He wanted to send the Holy Ghost to be their constant companion, to comfort them, to bring them joy, to illuminate their minds, to bring all things to their remembrance, to strengthen them in hard times, to help them feel His love.

He couldn’t do this unless they agreed to be baptized.  Baptism is a covenant, a contract, a binding agreement.  Our part of the agreement is to be obedient to the commandments, and Christ’s part of the agreement is to bless us with the Holy Ghost.  But he can’t keep his part of the agreement if we don’t have a contract!

Baptism is essential for each one of us who wants to receive blessings from The Savior.  Baptism is an ordinance essential for salvation, and baptism makes it a whole lot easier to keep the commandments because we are then entitled to the gift of the Holy Ghost.

TV Program about the Church

 Elder Welch read Mosiah 3:19 while on the TV talk show about the church in the DR.  He was a superstar.

Our assistance with the talk show host who wanted to grill our elders about the law of chastity.  They responded with Mosiah 3:19.

We bumped into friends we knew almost 40 years ago in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  They were here because Mark Tanner was one of the first missionaries here in the DR.

Delicious nativity!

Cacoa pods in abundance

Tis' the Season

The zone leaders and hermana leaders from each zone share their report for the month

Making a Point

President Smith takes a minute during Mission Leadership Counsel to talk about talking with everybody

Measuring success

Explanation of the numbers: 

1: zone 

2: goal for month

3: baptisms as of the 28th

4: baptisms resulting from references

5: baptisms performed by members

6: references from members

7: reactivations

8: companionships baptized

9: baptisms scheduled for the rest of the month

10: goal for December 

11: number of persons contacted in the month

Object Lesson

The point was, there's no time to waste.  The fastest spinner won!

If you're looking for something to be grateful for.....

Two areas of missionaries have been without water for the last several weeks. In one area the water tower was struck by lightning and in the other neighbors were tapping into their water source and after 1 1/2 hours of pumping water every day it would suddenly disappear!!

Our thanksgiving

Patriotic missionaries

Two of our favorite trainers

26 new missionaries!!!

Old and lovely

The cruise ships parked behind the old fortress protecting the city is rather incongruous, but if I were to decorate, I think I'd choose the crumbling wall.

Lighthouses talk

'Nuf' said

To cry or laugh?

We arrived at this house to do an interview an discovered the "pet" chicken, tied to a post with a string around its neck, was dead.  The children didn't notice it until we pointed it out and suddenly the 10 year old boy started wailing as if his heart would break.  They only paid 5 pesos for the chicken (alive).  The mom had planned to eat it anyway, but the 10 year old didn't know that.

These awesome elders are completing a family!  Mom Dad and all three kids were baptized.

How to be a missionary

Two of our zone leaders were asked to share a little about missionary work when the member opened his call.  The secret, they all agreed, is love the people, love the country, love the work and you'll never be homesick

Noche de Hogar

We were invited to our first Family Home Evening where a member was going to open his mission call.  It turned out he was called the same mission where Mikan served, Brazil Salvador Sur speaking Portuguese

Exceeding Faith

This tiny branch had only 4 members coming to sacrament at the beginning of last month.  The elders worked like crazy to re-activate and bring new people to church.  Last week there were 29 people at church!

A peaceful resting place

This cemetery was built into the side of a hill.  It was one of the prettiest cemeteries we've seen, with natural plants and flowers growing everywhere.

Urgency to baptize

The zone leaders in San Pedro had an activity to help their zone recognize the importance of baptism without delay

Standing behind the promise

Each member of our wonderful Leadership Counsel signed their name to their zone's promise for the month.  The promise is the sum of the number of people each  companionship feels the Lord has prepared in their own area.  Each zone leader brings their zone's promise to Consejo de Lideres and we then know what the promise is for the whole mission.