Week 28

Hey Guys!

Keq'chi is an indigenous language in Guatemala. There are 22 languages in Guatemala; the dominant language is Castellano (or Guatemalan Spanish), but the other 21 languages derive from Mayan and all sound like a mixture of Spanish and Russian. It's weird.

So, to bring you up to speed: We're working a lot more with the members. We realized that we needed to do this because every less active that we've talked to stopped going to Church because they had a problem with a member. If the ward can't retain new members, the work will never move forward. It's been interesting to shift our focus, because it opens us up more to the people who live here already, their concerns, what they need help with, and many many many other things.

One thing I've learned from Elder Flores is that we always need to be ready and able to help others. We've had at least one service activity every day this week. It's a lot of fun, because you learn a lot more about the culture, like the food they cook, they way they build their houses, and really little details like that. You also learn what you're good at and what you're bad at. (For example, I can chop wood a lot better than Elder Flores, but he's better at washing dishes.) It's also made the work a lot better, because when we serve, we go from being the annoying Mormons who knock on people's doors and talking to people on the street to people who are willing to make your life a little bit easier. And people really appreciate it. We always have to remember, everyone has their own different challenges, and sometimes, the weight of a day can be a little too much to bear alone. You never ever ever know who has trials, or who's living in a world of hurt. Whatever you can do to lift another's burden makes another person feel better. 

I've been thinking a lot about what it means to be a Christian. As servants of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are supposed to take up our crosses (or deny ourselves of all ungodliness) and follow Him. I don't just say that because it's a scripture; I don't just say that because it's something that we missionaries say; I say it because it's true. When we follow Christ, we have to go where He himself went. He suffered all of our pains, He knew every one of our afflictions, and he paid the price for everything that we've ever done wrong. If we want to be Christians, we have to be willing to bear one another's burden, to mourn with those that mourn, and to comfort those that need comforting.

Go do something nice for someone else today. It makes a difference, even if you never see the results.

I love you! Than you for all your support!

-- 

Elder Jeffrey Reed

Week 27

Hey Guys!

Well, this week we were hardly able to get anything done at all, because we spent 3 days traveling: Monday and Tuesday in the Capital, and Thursday in Los Amates.  We've had a lot of adventures this week. First off, with our 2 best friends Elder Carter and Elder Cortes, we sang hymns on a crowded bus for about an hour while we were going to the Capital. Then, I had the opportunity to teach people in the capital. Guess what? PEOPLE IN THE CAPITAL CAN READ!!! I haven't been teaching educated people or actually spoken with educated people in a long time, so that was a cool experience.

After we returned from the capital, we finally put our village visits into effect. We have a village in our area that's very very far from everything else, called Tapata. This Wednesday, we went 50 minutes outside of Zacapa to look for these people and to teach them. And they're very very very humble and content there. At every house we visited, the people greeted us with a smile and said, "Come in!" Incredible. We stayed there for about 90 minutes, but then we got a message that we had to be in Zacapa at 3, so we ran back from Tapata to the city, dropped off our member at his home, and went and had interviews with the mission President.

Afer that, on Thursday we went to Los Amates, but because we knew nothing about where we were going, we ended up getting off the bus in the right place, but walking 2 kilometers away to a little village called Quirigua. That village is what you think of when you think "Guatemala": villages, jungles, tropical plants, light rain, humidity, Spanish and Keq'chi, everything. It was really cool to see. But then we called President to figure out where the chapel was and realized that that wasn't where we were supposed to be. 

This week's been a bit difficult to work with the area, but this week, my eyes have ben opened more to the sufferings of the people who are already members. There's a lot who are unhappy, and need more of this Gospel focus in their lives. So that's what we're going to do, as another one of our goals this week.

Scripture reading this week for all who want to: Mosiah 2.22, D&C 59:23, Matthew 9. Something I've learned is when we have faith, we believe in Jesus Christ- more literaly than I've ever understood it. Through our faith, He works miracles. We never can perform miracles at all; it's Him. It's always been him. We, as human beings, are so literally dependent on our Master and Savior for everything that we have. All the good I've been able to do in my life has never been on my own. It's never been me. It's always been Him. And I, as one of his representatives here on the Earth, am only window to His love. There is no greater joy than expressing that same love to people. 

I love you all! Thank you for writing!!!! I'll see you soon!

-- 

Elder Jeffrey Reed

Week 26

Hey Everybody!

The área here in Zacapa has almost no investigators right now, which is a bit of a challenge for Elder Flores and I. After the baptism and after Elder Franco left, it was kind of like... "Now what?" So Elder Flores and I got to work, looking literally everywhere for people who are interested. Pray for us in the work, and pray for the people here!

The heat's starting back up again. Zacapa, in all the time I've been here, has never dipped below 20 degrees Celsius (68 F). This March and April, it's supposed to get up to about 40 degrees Celsius (104 F). I haven't exactly adjusted to the full-on heat yet, and our house doesn't have an air conditioner, so I just might die this next couple of changes.

This upcoming week is interesting: We have to go to Guatemala City so Elder Flores can sign his VISA, then we go to Puerto Barrios on Thursday for a Trainer's Reunión. There's a lot to do, and not very much time to do it.

There are times when the misión work is harder than other. You might feel like your companion is one of the coolest people you've ever met, or you might feel like you're becoming the best missionary you've ever seen, but then at every corner you turn, you find another "no." This is one of those points in the misión field where it takes all the creativity you have, especially if you're a newer Elder teaching another Elder how to be an Elder. This week I complete 6 months in the field. Time has gone by WAY too fast.

I don't have too much other time to write, but enjoy my photos, and know that I'm always thinking about you and praying for you! I love you all!

-- 

Elder Jeffrey Reed