Temple Week!

(Emailed to Friends)
What a fantastic week it's been!  Lots of good, awesome stuff has happened.  Kind of a funky week too, but we've worked through it!

Monday - We had longer to work last pday, but it was hard to really work on pday.  Not sure why, but that's just how it worked out.  We managed to snag 4 lessons though.  We had an awesome lesson with Maricela too.  We brought another old lady from the ward over to help us out.  Hermana Inoa.  It was pouring rain, and we waiting a bit, but then she just started plowing right through it!  Made me smile.  She was hopping through puddles, the whole nine yards.  And she helped Maricela SO much.  We read Alma 32 with her.  After we bore our testimonies on the BOFM, she said "And I testify that I want to know this book is true!"  Really awesome.  I have high hopes that she'll get that testimony some day!

Tuesday - A decent day.  Rough day.  We had trouble planning for the day, so it turned out pretty hard.  I did manage to commit a lady to baptism in the morning if she receives a testimony.  A lot of times we never bring up baptism until a ton later, so I've been trying to start doing it in the first two lessons.  I felt good about that.  Her name is Margarita.  We'll see how she progresses.

Wednesday - Temple Day!  "I love to see the temple” It was Awesome!  Loved it.  Naturally.  I always get refreshed and reanimated and excited when I go to the temple.  Rededicated to being obedient and I really can see the things I can work on.    I just love it.  Then we had the English class (lame.  None of us really wanted to teach at all, we were just dead) and the first coordination missional with our ward mission leader.  He's military and really excited to work.  The first time I've seen him was the day he got called.  I guess he hasn't come to church for a year because he couldn't get off work, but now he's off of work!  He also mentioned on Sunday that he was a stake president.  Should be really awesome.

Thursday - District meeting.  Got some birthday and Christmas cards.  We had a few cool lessons in the evening.  We visited Paula and Victor.  That was awesome.  He talked about how he feels the presence of God with him at times and he just feels at peace.  We testified to him that that was the Spirit.  He also talked about how lots of people love the world more than Christ.  He's a super spiritual guy and I hope things start going better for them!

Friday - That morning we went to Santa Cruz so Elder Romero could do an interview with someone getting ready to be baptized there.  I did some contacts with Elder Pena.  Then I had intercambios with Elder Pawn in the evening.  It went OK.  We didn't have a ton of success, but had some good lessons.  We had an awesome lesson with Rocheli and Carolina, our fechas for the 23rd.  We went over the baptismal interview questions with them.  It made me so happy to see that they knew it all!  Really really awesome.

Saturday - Finished intercambios in the morning and it went alright.  Normal.  Decent afternoon as well.  We had the English class and it went better than last time.  Then we just went around inviting people to church.

Sunday - 7 people in church!  Really awesome.  Basically the same people who came from last week.  I was really happy about that again.  Then we had the interview of Rochelli and Carolina in the afternoon.  That went well.  They both passed!  The baptisms are scheduled for the 23rd at 7 o clock!  Really awesome.  Super excited for that.

Today - Normal.  We managed to milagrously get permission to go to Sambil, a huge mall.  We had Johnny Rockets there.  It was super good.  I also bought a Crispy Creme doughnut.  Really really enjoyed that!

I believe that's about all.  It was a really good week. Also next week I'll have news about transfers!  I'm pretty sure I'm changing areas, so we'll see how that goes.

Love you all tons!
Elder Easton Potokar.

(Emailed to Family)
Rochelli and Carolina are good for the 23rd now.  I'm really excited for them.  The only thing was during their interview her Dad (inactive) sent her to buy a soda for all of us right in front of the ZLs, on SUNDAY.  AND SHE DID IT. Really freaked me out.  Needless to say, we'll be teaching that soon.

I've thought a lot about Paula and Victor.  He came to church this week for the first time in like a month, so that's awesome!  Paula was too sick to come.  I fasted for them this Sunday.  Hopefully that'll help them out.

We didn't have an FHE this week.  I think we'll have a FHE tonight though which I'm really looking forward to.  English class is being changed to Tuesdays and Thursdays to give us Saturdays free to preach since those days usually everyone is home.

Nicolas opened up a little bit this week.  His whole family wrote in my journal and came to church.  I have hope for him.

I'm really really hoping Maricela will come to church this week. Members can help a ton.  Sometimes they're dead weight, and sometimes they are incredible.  The member we brought with us to Maricela’s was really good at making people feel important and that's exactly what we needed.

The family Frias hasn't come to church still since the boss at the Dad's work sold the place and a new guy owns it.  The old guy was LDS, but the new guy isn't and hasn't given him Sundays off which sucks.  And none of them are doing anything which is terrible.  They don't read anything we give them.  I don't know what to do with them.

Another cool quote from an investigator last week "We have to know where we're going to know where we came from." that's a quote we as missionaries use all the time so it knocked us back a little!  Haha.

Lots of missionaries at the temple.  3 or 4 zones.  President Corbitt  talked to us a little bit.  And we took the pictures with him.  It was really good.  They fed us pizza and after we snagged a frosty and I talked to Elder Brady for quite a while.  It felt fantastic to be able to talk to him about things.  He's doing alright.  He was in the MTC with me and was actually in the airport with me too. I did get to do the name you guys sent me which is AWESOME.  I loved that. I got the picture of us all together, but then we took off to be the first ones at the temple store so we wouldn't have to wait.  I also bought a new white tie this week for like$1.50 since my old one got stained.

I wrote in my journal once or twice this week.  I've been meaning to write down a few experiences the last few days, but haven't made it a priority.  I really need to work on that. I skinnied the tie Nicolas and his family gave me, and have been working on my new agenda this week.  And I finished reading "A Marvelous Work and Wonder" today, by Legrand Richards.  It was awesome.

Transfers are next week.  I haven't been praying for it much.  I'm good where the Lord wants me, I really would like a companion who wants to work too, but we'll see where the Lord needs me.  There are some missionaries who aren't as diligent as they should be.  Our house is really good at that and obedience right now.  It's fantastic. I was thinking of that movie (The Best Two Years) a few days ago, and how much more real everything in it is. Haha Your prayers are needed.  Thank you so much!

(Who standing between you and Romero?) That's Mon.  He's friends with tons and tons of members, has come to activities forever, and is now coming to church.  Basically the perfect investigator.  He's from Haiti.  The only thing is he's moving to Canada to work.  Crazy.  So we've hooked him up with a BOFM and Bible and hopefully he'll find the missionaries there!




I went up on the roof to relax this morning.  It felt really great to just chill for a bit.  I don't do that a ton.  And actually in one of those pictures you can see a cormada, a paperleria, and a bank.  Just to show you how that works.  And a salon looking in the other direction.

(We sent him a picture that gas was $1.79 a gallon.) That's insanely low!  I showed all the missionaries that and they all just about freaked out.

Tell all the kids well done from me for their grades, all straight A’s!  That's way way way awesome.  I'm glad to hear they are all fighting for it and doing well.  Dad told me Lydia is eating up math too which makes me insanely happy.

I like the idea of a word for the week.  I'll have to try and think of one.  It'll probably be in Spanish though.

I think that's about all.
Love and miss you always. Think of you often, just less often than before. :)
Love, Elder Easton Potokar.