August 30, 2010

WOW! Shout out to the best friend in the whole world, Annie Eichers, who sent the most perfect package! I needed it all!

Monday was just fantastic! Because of the rain, we had a relax day which is weird cause that never happens. I got caught up on my letter writing. I wrote 15 letters! Then the guys came over and we ate our immense amount of food our service gave us.

Tuesday was the double meal day, and I dominated. I have developed some serious eating skills here. You just shut up and eat then all the members will love you!

Wednesday, I went on splits with the District Leader, Elder Castro. He is great and taught me how to teach to the needs better and not to worry about lessons. We had a great day and my buddy Emirico took us out to eat. He has changed and he seems so happy and different. He reads like every day and always goes to church. He is just happy. He has an aura about him. It is amazing. I just learned a ton from Elder Castro and we worked super hard. It was great!

Saturday was sooo busy. We did service at the Roca and my friend Keith gave us a mountain of food again. I love that man and the service and relationships that you can make on the mission.

Sunday was an amazing day. I gave my first real talk in Spanish. I was a jokester just like I always am in my talks. I have a personality in Spanish now. I can speak in Spanish like I do in English with grammar errors. I didn't read my talk; I just talked and it was totally awesome. I love it and I sang too! I just want everyone to know that the gift of tongues is real and that it is awesome cause I have learned this language so fast. It is so awesome what the spirit can teach you. I was assigned to talk about a person in my ward that helped me come out. I wanted to talk about my uncle Jayson, because he helped me the most. But it had to be someone from my ward, so I talked about Todd Wolfenbarger. He didn't do anything big, he just hung out with me and helped me out. I said by little things great things can come to pass which it says in D & C 68:30.

I had a great week!

August 23, 2010

It is weird, I am so accustomed to being in this area, I know people when we walk down the street or go to the store. I am kinda sad that all the kids in the ward that are our age left yesterday to go to school. But life is great and just flying by. I love all the people in our ward. It is sure different out here, it is like a family and I just love them. Yesterday, was great, we had a lot of fun at the bishops house. He is super into the mate, a drink from Argentina, and he gave us a ton. He has a little business and he gave us a ton of supplies. My Spanish is getting better. I find myself talking too fast and that is when I make mistakes. Yeah, it is like every thing that I have ever done. I want to do it fast. I want to do it perfect. And I want to do it the best, which has been a good thing and bad thing in my life.

Monday, we went to this families house and had noche de hogar and that was great! I found out that this family are all swimmers and that was so great. I also figured out that the only fear of Elder Castro, one of the elders that I live with, is the water! So that was pretty funny!

Wednesday, we taught my buddy Emerico. He has been inactive for 6 years and he came to church yesterday and it was just great! I was so excited to see him there and he knew all the members and everyone just like embarrassed him. I was so so happy. Like I can't describe how happy. I was helping to change a life. He has changed so much. I am just so happy. I gave him a tie and everything and he was just so happy at church.

Friday, I made cupcakes for the district. Everyone is just loving that I have taken over the mom role of the district! HaHa. I love my district, we only have 2 more meetings together before transfers, which is kinda weird.

Saturday we did our service day and the guy that we work for cooked us a whole bunch of food to take home. Since we got all this food we are having over the missionaries to help us eat it all. Later that day we got together for a BBQ and sports. It was kinda thrown together at the last minute and everyone showed up late with too much food. It was still way fun even though we weren't the champs this week.

Peace and Blessings. Love you All!

Love,

Elder Aaron James Phillips

August 16, 2010

This week has been labeled the week of prep. We are going great and trying to get our numbers back up. We are working so, so hard and going like crazy. Elder Standage is still getting past the timid stage, so I do most of the talking. It kinda works out because I like to talk.

Monday was rough day with a family that we go visit a lot. They are struggling and we continue to be marriage counselors. We are expected to strengthen relationships and the way we do that is to talk about Jesus Christ. I don't know much about marriage, but I do about my relationship with Jesus Christ and we can apply those things to the families that need help. One thing I have learned is when it gets too complicated is to take it back to the basics and then you will be all right.

We were on our way home that night and a guy stops and is asking all about us and our beliefs. So we teach him a bit as he is rolling a joint. So, I say I will only teach you if you put that down while we are teaching. Then we told him that we believe in no drinking, no drugs and no sex. He was like dang dude, I have done all that today!! So, so funny!

Tuesday we talked to this guy with a Catholic background and he is really really strong in those beliefs. The one thing I really like about being a missionary is that all we do is teach a message and invite people to pray and read. We don't argue or anything, that is not my job and that is why people like us because we are different from other churches that want to argue.

Wednesday we went on exchanges and I was with the new guy Elder Hagard from Australia. We talked a lot about him and I found out that he is really really poor and is having a really hard time with the mission. I feel super bad. He is having trouble with his trainer and everything. But, the spirit was really helping us...this kid knows nothing in Spanish but we taught this great lesson about baptism and the person was really receptive to our message.

Then we had dinner with the Rudencindo family who are from the Domincan Republic and the people there speak lightening fast and it is super hard to understand for people that are learning Spanish. But, I could talk to with them! That means that I am improving and can talk with Jordan Fletcher's dad! That is a victory that I had today!

Thursday, we got up at 3:30 am and drove 100 miles to zone conference!I learned a ton about following the spirit!

Saturday we had a ward activity. We had a BBQ and played soccer! So fun! We really got into it and my team was the champs!!

August 9, 2010

It's time already for the weekly email...I feel like I just did it. I am just loving it out here!

Monday was great! We had Family Home Evening with this family that we are trying to get to go to the temple. They are really strong members but we are still working with them trying to get them to go to the temple. We got to play soccer and chilled with the Elders that speak Portuguese. I love them...they are fun. One is from Portugal. We are really good buddies. He is really into working out, so it is a match made in heaven!

Tuesday was the slowest day for lessons on the mission. We worked and walked a ton.

Wednesday, all I know is that I am going native! We are having so much fun. I love spicy foods. We made chipotle salsa and home made corn tortillas. Elder Castro (from Mexico) says he is very proud of his white friends! I want to travel all over South America when I finish my mission. I don't want to go to Spain anymore.

Friday was a good day. We found a new inactive member. He is our friend. We teach him English and the gospel and in return he reads the Book of Mormon and goes to church. He is learning English through the gospel. How great! This guy is so fun. His name is Emerica and he just watches out for us, gives us food, wants to hang out and work with us. How great!

Saturday was another service day. We volunteered serving food again. It is great because we get free food. The people are awesome. We always get to teach there. It is a great opportunity. We also had a life lesson that I will never forget. We were eating with members in the night and I was telling them how I feel bad about eating people's food because sometimes it seems like they can't afford it, which is so sad for me. She explained that they love the opportunity to exercise faith and to have the missionaries in their homes...so you got to eat even when you are full. Then she said you don't know poor until you have been out of the U.S. This was a shock because I thought I was in a poor area. No way she said. It is way, way worse. I want to see it someday after my mission.

Peace and Blessings. I am loving life out here!

August 1, 2010

I have been super sick for about 5 days. It started last Sunday and I went home and just passed out. By the way, Grandma's first aid kit saved my life. Wednesday was p-day so we went to watch the sunrise again because it is a tradition on transfer week. I was super sick and there was no where to go to the bathroom, so I had to run into the forest to do my business cause I had no choice!! Yah, life is good! I had to go clean up when I got home....Good mission story!!

Thursday, we got our new companions in the morning. Yeah! Yeah! for me! I got Elder Standage...the little turd knew that he was getting moved to me for three days! Dang him! I almost killed him...haha! He has been in my apartment so he just moved a room over. Then we got a new kid living with us from Australia and he can't speak a lick of Spanish. Standage and I are doing great! I was worried about two things: (1) that we wouldn't be able to talk to anyone because of the language barrier. He is super shy and doesn't talk to anyone in Spanish...but I never shut up so we are totally fine. The Lord is blessing us. I am learning a ton faster because we get to study together. I love it that we are working hard. (2) When I was with Elder Molina, I thought my gift of being able to get along with people was gone, but it isn't. I am just loving serving with Elder Standage. I am doing so much better. We are really different . He was home schooled and likes music not sports. He looks kinda nerdy, but he is the coolest kid I have ever met in my life. We get along great and are having so much fun.

I know that the Lord is watching out for me and answers my prayers. I got the best comp in the world and I got my confidence back in getting along with people. I get along with just about everyone. I have officially been out for longer than my other mission which is totally sweet!

Keep it real! Peace and Blessings!