Life is Good. Just add Water

President Smith gave me a t-shirt that said "life is good, just add water" because I love watersports.  When I saw it I immediately thought of baptisms and wore it to a zone meeting.  These darling hermanas made their own "life is god, just add water" advertisement to remind them to baptize!

Welcome to the family!

President got to meet our newest grand baby, Zephyr Freer Smith, now six months old.  The work, however doesn't stop even when the grands arrive.

The Angels arrive

Two days straight of rain during a 4 day visit didn't hamper the spirits of our precious grandchildren.

What next?

No drunk voting!  Tomorrow they will try to hold elections again in this country.  (Two weeks ago they were cancelled and that resulted in rioting). Just to make sure nobody votes drunk they stop selling alcohol the day before elections.  Maybe they should hold elections everyday.

Uniting the Family

We are here with the stake presidency in Los Restauradores.  The stake president, President Marinez, and his wife are on the far left.  The Casablancas, second from right ,just joined the temple presidency

Another family reunited

Presidente Smith with a recent converso, 98 years old baptized by his grandson, the stake president in Los Restauradores.  His goal: to be sealed to his deceased wife next year.

Quite the message from above

This is the conversion story of one of our recent converts as told by the missionaries who found her:

 

When she was younger she [the convert] had a rosary from her mother. Being a believer she always wore it.  One night around Christmas she had laid down to rest and she had an "out of body experience." She could see her child sleeping by her side and she could see her own body sitting in the bed. Leaving the room she saw her family sitting and conversing but when she tried to speak to them no one heard her. 

Returning to the bedroom she began to plead with God to wake her up. She asked God many different ways to wake her up and only did she awake when she said that when the will of God for her life is revealed she will follow. Everything went black and it became hard for her to breathe, but with this promise with God she awoke. 

The next time she had an experience like this was that next night. She had laid down to sleep and the same thing happened. She could see everyone peacefully around her. Screaming she tried to wake anybody else up but they could not hear her. She heard a voice telling her to take off the rosary because this is what was causing the damage.   With that she awoke similarly to the night before. She took off the rosary and then offered up a prayer, asking God what his will is for her life. 

The next day us, the missionaries, arrived at her door and from there she has taken the lessons and has one of the greatest desires I have ever seen to follow God. She is now married and baptized!

You gotta love 'em

One of our hermana leaders had the idea to host a yoga class to find new investigators.  Eight non members came with two recent converts and a bunch of members and they received another reference from the activity.  It's so cool how they respond to our invitations.

They always make me laugh

All the missionaries have to go to immigration every year to renew their visas.  While waiting this elder pulled out the quintessential missionary snack:  peanut butter and crackers.

The Meaning of Covenants

After a pretty intense Mission Leadership Council about the importance of making and keeping covenants, the missionaries in one of the zones created their own Title of Liberty inviting their zone to covenant to do everything to reach their goals for the month.

He ain't heavy... He's my brother

For a zone activity the missionaries in one zone had a race to the font, helping people with all kinds of challenges.  This person was supposed to be lame... thus the ride.

My Amazing Housekeepr

Sweet Hermana Funcal... She showed up for work the day after her brother died.  She had traveled clear to the border of Haiti for the funeral and came to work the next day.

My Freudian Slip

In Spanish they say Jesucristo to mean Jesus Christ and the Prophet Joseph Smith is José Smith.

This past week when I was teaching at zone conference I accidentally referred to the Prophet Joseph Smith as "JoséCristo."  All the missionaries laughed, knowing I had made a mistake.  But I thought, “why did I make this mistake?” and I realized that I see many Christlike qualities in the Prophet Joseph Smith, that he and the Savior were similar in my mind.

I think of the time the prophet was in Liberty Jail, and as horrific as was his personal circumstance, he was most worried about the Saints (D&C 121:2).  Like Christ, his life was focused on service to others.

I thought of Joseph going to Carthage “like a lamb to the slaughter” when he knew he would seal his testimony with his blood.  Our Savior gave his mortal life willingly “And truly the son of man goeth as it was determined.”  (Luke 22:22)

I thought of Joseph’s being despised and hated as the Savior was (Isaiah 53:3) and Joseph accepting that this would happen from the first visit of Moroni (JS Hist v. 33)

I thought of the Son of Man who had no place to lay his head (Matt 8:20) and the Lord’s warning to Joseph Smith that in temporal labors he shall not have strength (D&C 24:9)

Like most “Freudian slips,” they are based in actual feelings, and I really feel like Joseph Smith was a Christ-like man.

Playing like the Prophet

The other really fun game was the stick pull at which the Prophet Smith excelled.  Each zone chose their champion and they challenged one another.  After it all we remembered we're all on the same team!

Loor al Profeta

We had a really fun zone conference this week about the divine calling of the Prophet Joseph Smith.  The missionaries especially liked playing the games the prophet played.  Here they are doing the "long jump" on a rather slippery floor.  But no one got hurt!

Never too late to repent

It took a few years, but this supportive family is thrilled at the chance to be together for eternity. (Missionaries on either side)

Exceptional Faith

You can imagine the faith it took for this 90 year old man to enter the waters of baptism.  He is confined to a wheel chair and had to use a walker to descend the steps and sat in a chair to be baptized.  It took three tries, with one of his grandchildren holding his feet down in the end, it worked.  What a relief to be cleansed of sin at last!

Priorities

I taught with these wonderful hermanas this week in the living room of a fine family.  I was struck by the lack of need for furniture, but the absolute necessity for very loud speakers.

Focus on what's most important

More Creative Missionaries

Two different zones re-enacting the nativity