learning every day

Hey y´all

I feel like I should have a lot to tell you . . . but time flies by and blurs together so much I´m not quite sure what happened this week! ;)  But I have been loving it!

I am learning so much every day.  I am so lucky to have such an amazing companion as Elder Oliver -- he is so real, so funny, and so efficient.  He helps me grow every day, and I love having companionship study with him because we always set goals and plans to improve, and then we actually do something about it!  It is a great way to live.  It´s definitely a process though. 

I had a really good wake-up call and a reminder that YES it is a process to repent, improve, and become more like Christ.  I was feeling stressed because of all that is expected of me -- as a zone leader, as a missionary . . . just everything, you know!  And I was feeling worried and inadequate.  But then a couple days ago I read this absolutely fantastic talk by Elder Gong: https://www.lds.org/liahona/2014/07/young-adults/becoming-perfect-in-christ?lang=eng

I already sent it to several of you but I must include it here again because it is so awesome!  I learned that I don´t have to stress out so much about being imperfect, and that being perfect DOES NOT mean never making mistakes.  It means coming unto Christ and being perfected in Him over a time and through a process which is all of mortal life.  We should just trust in His love, His Atonement, His mercy and grace, freely given to all those who live the gospel.  Then we can free ourselves of fears and just be happy.  I still have a lot more to learn and apply, but it´s coming along!  I am working to overcome my perfectionist nature, keeping the good part of those desires and throwing out the unrealistic expectations.

So, the coolest stuff that happened this week were:

1. Intercambios.  I had a couple of lovely exchanges with our district leader Elder Morales in his area and then yesterday one with Elder Delgado the financer in my area.  It was great!  I learned from each missionary wonderful things, as always.  Mostly, I learned to be a more confident leader, and to be more natural and calm in all my interactions with people.  Well, I learned that I should do that -- actually doing it will take time. :)

2. Tomas!  We started teaching this amazing menos activo named Tomas who has lived all over the world, speaks several languages, and is just a really interesting and nice guy.  He lives alone in his apartment on a major street.  But the craziest part: when we showed up to teach him, he immediately started speaking ENGLISH to us!!  We taught the whole lesson in English, and he wants to practice his english with us always.  He speaks very well.  The Spirit was different and so powerful teaching in my native language, which I had never really done before.  I love teaching him.  We have had two lessons.  After the lesson yesterday, he gave us a gift!  He gave us two old ties that used to be his dad´s (who died quite a few years ago).  He also . . . . . . . . gave us underwear.  I was surprised and tried not to laugh.  He doesn´t know anything about the endowment and wearing temple garments, but whatever!  The thought was nice! HAHAHA.

Anyways.  My time is over.  But know that I love you.  Don´t expect to be perfect now!  Trust in the merits of Christ, not your own!  

I love you all so much!

--Elder Max Olivier

a week of wandering

Dearest family and friends,

You are awesome, more than you know.  Never forget it! :)

Skype was wonderful last sunday!  Happy Mothers´ Day to all! :)  It was so cool to be able to talk to my family -- they are a fount of support and blessings and love.  It was also amazing to speak Spanish with Grandpa Fred!!! :)

So.  this week´s title comes from . . . our difficulties in our area!  We have not had much to do and we have been kinda wandering around trying to find random people (members, former investigators, less-active members).  We are both VERY excited for church tomorrow so we can finally get to know the ward for real and see all the members together.

Sunday we had lunch at the mission home with the Cooks!!  OH my gosh what a treat and surprise.  But we had to go to another church building because our meetinghouse was used for voting.  Quack.

Monday was super fun!  We went shopping in the morning to buy food for the zone conference on Tuesday.  Elder Burnett (the Burnetts are the incredible senior couple of our mission) took us in his car to Tienda Inglesa and from there we went to the mission home to cook with Hermana Burnett.  Sadly I didn´t get a picture with her, but I did get one with Hermana Cook who was kind enough to let us use the mission home´s dream kitchen -- she also helped us cook a bit and later made guacamole for us.  We made burritos -- they were SO good -- that´s something you don´t get to have in Uruguay!  YUM.  See the two photos. :) After the cooking, we went and had lunch with the Burnetts in their lovely apartment!  They are some of the most generous and loving people ever.  Then we went with Elder Burnett to look at a house for us to move in to -- it was kinda good, but dark and dank and a bit sad.  But thankfully he decided not to buy that one.  We have been looking for other houses in our area.

Tuesday -- the conference was lovely.  Interviews with President just always make me feel better and make me realize that I don´t have to be perfect and that my best try is all that is expected of me.  God´s grace is amazing.  Pte Cook told me that I can measure my progress as a missionary by my development of Christlike attributes and my desires to serve others and the love that I feel for others.  I loved that measure of progression!  I translated for Hna Cook when she talked one-on-one with several latino missionaries -- it was fun!  But I had to miss the workshop of one of the assistants.  

The rest of the week was kinda lame . . . but whatever!  We´re just doing the best we can and I´m sure we will be blessed by the Lord to see fruits over time.

We had an incredible spiritual experience yesterday by visiting an active member named José Luis.  He is quite old and appears to have suffered strokes or aphasia or something, because he can´t talk very well at all.  But he is an amazing man.  He is sooooooo happy and smiles a lot and he LOVES the missionaries.  He walks with a prosthetic leg.  The poor soul lives all alone in his little apartment.  We were chatting with him a bit, sang a song and said a prayer, and then he bore his testimony to us immediately and out of the blue.  It was one of the most powerful things I have ever experienced.  The Spirit hit all three of us and filled the room so sweetly.  All he could say was something like this: "Jesus Christ.  Wonderful.  Heal me paralysis.  Joseph Smith saw personages.  Thomas S Monson prophet.  Book of Mormon word of God."  I almost wept because the Spirit´s presence was so strong with his testimony!  I know that he has a perfect witness that Jesus is the Christ.  My companion and I immediately thought of the same scripture -- 3 Nephi 11.  We read the part where Jesus appears and bears testimony of who He is -- our great Redeemer.  I will never forget the incredible spiritual power and joy and peace that I felt in that little apartment with that humble man.  I too know that Jesus Christ lives and loves us.  His Atonement is real.  His grace is sufficient.  Praise the Lord!  Be of good cheer!!!

Well, my time is gone.  Here´s to another great week!

I love you all very much!

Elder Max Olivier

Hello again!

Dearest family and friends,

I am writing again because my p-day is now saturday.  yay!  We live with the office elders and the assistants who all have p-day on saturday, so we do too.  I like it already.  We are getting along fabulously as a companionship and as a house, so I am very excited for this change.  This zone seems super awesome.  We had our first zone meeting yesterday, which was simple but very sweet.  I love the missionaries in our zone and I think we will get a lot done this change.  It was strange to be directing a zone meeting for the first time, but it was honestly easier than conducting a district meeting.  

I have a lot to learn about being a zone leader.  There are a lot of missionaries to think about -- we are 20 in the zona Este.  There are also some unique challenges in the zone, for example it is different working with the office elders who often struggle to get out and work in their area.

There are definitely some sweet little perks with being here: the house is awesome, Montevideo is really cool, we live right next to the mission offices and about 15 minutes away from the temple and mission home.  We went to the temple this morning!!! That was a very special treat.  We may be able to do that frequently early saturday mornings.  

Montevideo is SO DIFFERENT!!!  It is a big city.  We are in whitewash because the assistants took over the area where my companion was and tossed us into Barrio 9.  It´s about a 25 minute walk away or something like that -- maybe more.  Street contacting is almost impossible in many parts because we have some VERY busy roads in our area.  Just look up Avenida Italia, Batlle y Ordóñez, 8 de Octubre, Comercio on Google maps and you´ll have an idea.  I love the area, though!!!  It is super cool.  We have a big red zone that we cannot enter at night because it is fairly dangerous.  There are fairly frequent robberies in Montevideo.  

The focus in the mission is changing so that we can work more effectively in the Lord´s work of salvation.  We are going to work much better and more closely with the members.  That is especially necessary here in Montevideo where street contacts just aren´t really effective, usually.  We have been going around and meeting the members, especially the leaders, in the ward.  This is a very amazing ward.  I LOVE all the members we have met so far.  They are SO COOL and so willing to magnify their callings.  We, as the full-time missionaries, are called to help the members do missionary work, not the other way around.  When that is what happens, we have success.

We haven´t really been able to work in our area much, because we had a baptismal interview yesterday (as well as the zone meeting!) and Wednesday was changes and today is p-day.  It´s kinda lame because we won´t be able to go to church in our ward tomorrow.  The city has appropriated the chapel for voting, so we will be traveling to Aeroparque for church, where my companion started his mission.  That will be fun, but it is super lame because we don´t get to meet all the members in church until next week.  On monday we will finally be able to start working full days in our area.  Yay!

I am just so darn excited to be back with Elder Oliver.  He is such a great guy and an amazing missionary.  We have a goal to be a consecrated companionship.  I am very happy to be here in zona este, although I am intimidated by my assignment as zone leader.  It will be good.  I still have so much to learn in how to do the missionary work effectively and how to be an effective leader, but I am loving it already.

I ask for your hopeful continued prayers and thank you for all your love and support and writings. :)

Love,

Elder Max Olivier

random funnies:

1. There is an investigator in this area who is generally known as "the prophetess" because she is kinda crazy and thinks she´s a prophet.  She randomly sent us two super strange text messages.  Should be interesting to eventually meet her!

2. In our zone conference, we asked each companionship to introduce each other and decide what animal their companion would be.  It was SO FUNNY.  Elder Oliver and I both said that the other would be a fox, without planning it!  Now he is making a roster of our zone with animal pictures.  So cute and so funny!!! 

:)

sorry if you didn't get this!

Dearest friends and family,

I am just sending this to Mom and Dad because I have no time!  I hope it will reach you all.

CHANGES!!!  I am going to Este, the area Barrio 9, in Montevideo!  I am going to be a zone leader with Elder Oliver, who was my previous companion!!!!!  I am super excited.  And also nervous.  But mostly excited.

Ana was baptized and confirmed!  She is an angel and was SOOOOOOO prepared by God for this.  I love her to death.  I wish I had more time to write now, but I must be going already.  Suffice it to say that she is an amazing convert and will help the branch a lot because she truly converted herself into a disciple of Jesus Christ and decided to change her life.  So awesome!

I am learning to accept God´s will in all things.  He is full of grace and truth.  If we trust Him, we will be happy.

Yikes, there really is no time left.  This week was amazing.  There are SO many amazing people in Minas and the Lord is blessing them a lot.  I wish I could give you every detail.  It is so amazing to serve His children and see what He does for them every single day.  I am a bit sad to leave Minas but I am excited and hopeful for the future.  My companion will do a great job taking over the area as I leave.

I love you all so much.

See you on Sunday, family! :)

Love,

Elder Max Olivier

foto: baptism of Ana!

foto: Hey dad, I tried head cheese too!!!!!

sorry, short message!

Hello dearest family and friends!

Suffice it to say that this week was crazy and busy. 

The highlight was the 2-mission conference with Elder Oaks and Sister Oaks!  The mission presidents and their wives also spoke, along with two area authorities, Elder Cabrera and Elder Viñas.  It was awesome!!!  I ended up singing, sadly, because the other mission´s pianist had already been asked first.  But I knew him -- Elder Bentley was in my BYU ward for a year!!!  

The conference was lovely.  I especially loved how Elder Oaks talked about being an instrument in the Lord´s hands.  He compared it to a pen -- we need to be full of ink, or we need to treasure up in our minds the words of eternal life.  We need to be in working order, or healthy and taking care of ourselves and our bodies.  We need to be ready to go at any time in the Lord´s service, especially as FULL-TIME missionaries.  We need to write the Lord´s message and do His will, not our own.  I thought it was an ingenious analogy!  Sister Oaks was also amazing -- she brought her famous testimony gloves for the mission, too!

I also had 2 baptismal interviews this week.  Ana Corbo will be baptized tomorrow!! yay!!!

Um, sorry, but the ciber is closing right now so I have to go.  Love you all so much!!!!!

--Elder Max Olivier

A week of little miracles

Dearest family and friends,

Yay for today!  Yay for the chance to live and grow and move and breathe and work!  Yay for a God who constantly watches over us and loves us and gives us life!

This was a great week.  I was kinda feeling tired and stressed because we have a ton going on, and I am getting a little tired from doing so much all the time, but my companion´s good humor and patience has helped me out a lot.  I am loving the work so much right now.  We are really blessed with a lot of investigators with a lot of potential right now!!!

On tuesday I had an intercambio with my zone leader Elder Mendenhall.  I learned from him to make friendship be almost the first priority in every contact, lesson, and interaction we have with people.  He is full of charisma and love, and a great teacher.  

We taught the restoration to a recent convert´s sister who is a firm catholic and it went really well -- she understood perfectly, but now it has been super hard to get another lesson with her.  We will see her this week, somehow!  

Right after, we had a great contact.  A little girl had previously told me and my companion to pass by her house because her sister wanted a Bible.  I went with Elder Mendenhall and we talked to the mom, Gladys.  She opened up to us and told her about her sad life story, her divorce, her depression, and her desire to come closer to God.  She accepted a Book of Mormon and a return visit, as well as a baptismal invitation.  When we went to visit her again, she wasn´t there, and the next day we found out that she had attempted suicide.  We should finally see her today.  I can´t believe how many people actually attempt suicide -- it is super sad. Thankfully Yanci seems to be doing a lot better now and she hasn´t attempted again.  We also have two other potential investigators who have attempted.  :(  These people need the light, hope, and happiness of the restored gospel now!

Elder Mendenhall stayed the night and he and I went to Montevideo the next day for the mission choir practice.  I think it went well -- it was actually really short!  It is not sure whether I will actually get to play the piano or if it will be the guy from the other mission, but if I don´t play I will sing, so I am happy and excited either way.  Tomorrow we will have the two-mission conference with Elder Oaks!!!  yay!!!  we´re going to estaca flores in the other mission, so that will be cool.

We have a lovely new investigator named Esperanza Ilusión (Hope Illusion) (!!) who is a super cute old grandma who lives with some family members.  Despite her considerable age, she understands the gospel very well.  She read 3 Nephi 11 in the Book of Mormon and had a great spiritual experience and understood the chapter perfectly.  She wants to be baptized.  She will come to church this sunday, but needs a ride to get there.  What a great person she is!!

On Thursday, I went to Pan de Azúcar to interview a baptismal candidate of the hermanas in the district.  wow!  What a spiritual experience!  When President Cook told me I would be a district leader in my interview with him a while ago, he commented to me that: Isn´t it amazing that all through the world, if someone wants to join the true church, they have to go through a young man of only 19 or 20 years of age?  This is a huge trust that the Lord has given to me.  I prepared as best as I could and memorized the questions.  I think the interview went well. I felt the Spirit of discernment powerfully and in a very different way.  I felt that she was prepared for baptism, despite not perfectly knowing or understanding everything (duh, no one will).  I could see a light in her eyes, and I could see her as a member of the church.  I could feel that she has repented and changed. She will be baptized this coming saturday!

Ana is doing really well!  The plan is to have her baptism this sunday after church!!!  I wish I had time to go into more detail on her.  She is such a wonderful and peculiar person!  I just love her to death.  She is kinda quirky and funny, but she understands the gospel and is reading the Book of Mormon.  I´m not sure if she has a testimony of the restoration yet, and we still need to teach her all of lesson 4 and 5 this week (!) but we plan to work hard with her and with the members so she can be ready for baptism this sunday.  She came to stake conference with us yesterday!!!  This Sunday will be her third time attending church.  She really wants to be baptized and wants to change her life, and she seems genuinely committed.  Pray for her a lot!! :)

Stake conference was lovely.  Our stake president is super amazing.  the choir sounded nice too! :)  I can´t wait for the conference with Elder Oaks tomorrow!!!

I love you all so much and thank you for your continual support,

--Elder Max Olivier

yeah, apparently my memory isn´t that good

Family and friends whom I love very much,

It was a fantastic week!  I just cannot seem to remember many details! I am already following the footsteps of my father and becoming the absent-minded professor. ;) Just kidding!  But seriously.

The highlight of this week was definitely Ana Corbo.  We knocked a door on Monday night -- it was already dark, no one was in the streets, we didn´t have firm plans, and contacting is always pretty hard at that hour.  But we spoke to her in the doorway, she was super chill and really nice, she had gone to church with the sister missionaries once 10 years ago and is very religious and has attended many churches. She accepted the invitation to be baptized, and we set a return date.

That is always the test, to see if a person is actually chosen, actually committed.  The first lesson with Ana was one of the highlights of my whole mission!!!  It was super awesome.  She read the entire folleto that we left her, said that she wants to be baptized to set a good example for her daughter so she can also be baptized, she read part of the folleto to her brother and invited him to be baptized, and she was basically just super awesome!!!  We taught her about the restoration and gave her a Book of Mormon, and I think she understood well.  She still needs to understand completely the role of the priesthood and how this is the one true church of Jesus Christ.  But she´s getting there!  She already has an awesome desire to be baptized and is open to learn more.  She came to church with us yesterday and said she can go to stake conference in Maldonado this next sunday!!!  I loved our first lesson so much because she was so chill and open and honest and sincere, and our teaching was simple and done by the Spirit.  Her mom was also present, and at the end of the lesson she got out her guitar and sang a hymn for us about Jesus Christ!!!!!  It was SOOOO COOL!!!!!!!!!!!  She doesn´t see very well anymore but has played and sang since her childhood.

It is so exciting to find such a cool person.  I am so thrilled to help her progress in the gospel until she understands and receives the ordinances of salvation!

Pero ta. Ya se me va el tiempo.

The charla with Beatriz was a bit of a mess, but I have hope!  Yanci is doing better, but she doesn´t have a baptismal date anymore, and she has a boyfriend again.  But she´s out of the hospital and came to church with Olga!  And she committed to stop smoking -- she wants to, but not quickly . . . .   Pray for her -- I think she can progress!

I am going to be playing piano for the two-mission conference this month!  One of the TWELVE APOSTLES is coming to teach us!!!!!  I am super excited.  The choir is going to sing a very beautiful arrangement (by Sally DeFord, I think) of I Stand All Amazed.  I have been practicing the piano part, which is challenging and very beautiful.  I am also going to sing in the stake choir this sunday!  I am going to Montevideo on Wednesday to practice with the mission choir for the first time.  

Oh, I also conducted my first intercambio this week, with the elders in my house!  (I think that´s called an exchange?)  It went really well!

Well, we see miracles every day, my friends.  Know that I am so happy and that I am sharing my testimony in every moment.  I am so grateful that God has given me light and truth -- I am so grateful that I have personal certainty that sustains me and lifts me and invites the Spirit.  I LOVE the mission.  

Sorry for the lack of more details.  Love you all so much!

--Elder Max Olivier

foto -- a lovely family home evening with familia Barboza and recent convert Angela -- we did it last friday -- they are so awesome!  It was very spiritual and very fun.

Hark, all ye nations!

Dearest family and friends,

Yikes, this keyboard is a disaster, so I don´t know how much I will be able to write! Sorry! ;)

YYAAAAAYYYY for general conference!!!  It was such a fantastic experience for me. It was my first conference in the field and my second conference as a missionary.  It is way better as a missionary, because I have actively prepared and anticipated the conference and attempted to savor every word during the conference.  I hope you were all able to seek personal revelation through this great opportunity.  

A personal insight I can share that I felt at the beginning of Elder Holland´s talk comforted me greatly.  I realized and felt that I can only do so much ... I have limits.  I can always do more to improve and serve, but really the Lord is doing everything and making all the difference.  It´s Him, not me! It´s okay -- I cannot do everything by myself.  He can.  As I act in faith with real intent, He will consecrate my effort and He will refuse to let His children fall -- His arms will lovingly save us and others through us, so we never have to fall beyond hope.  Love!!! :)

During Elder Nielson´s talk, I thought a lot about Luisa.  We haven´t really had contact with her, except a text message.  We might just have to wait until she and her family are truly ready to enter in at the waters of baptism.  I am going try to set up a lesson with her in the church this week, and send her little messages with scriptures to read.  But we can only try, pray, fast, hope, and wait. 

I also thought of Yanci during the conference.  We had a very good, spiritual lesson with her.  She is doing very poorly and is back in the hospital for depression.  In that lesson, we committed her to truly pray and to take her weaknesses to the Lord.  However, I still don´t know if she did it.  She no longer has a baptismal date. :(

We found and taught Sebastian!  He is super cool.  I may have made a grave error by giving him a baptismal date as a goal, because he is living with his girlfriend.  Pray for him!  He has troubles with drugs but wants to get out, and he believes in God and would like to be baptized.

Miracle!!!  We called Beatriz, a woman we contacted in her door who miraculously accepted a Book of Mormon and said she was searching for truth.  We haven´t been able to have a lesson -- that was like two or three weeks ago.  But I called her and she went to General Conference!  She said she has been thinking about baptism and has lots of questions about the Book of Mormon. We have a lesson on Tuesday!!!

Love you all so much!  No time left here. I hope you enjoy the photos of this beautiful country.

Love,

Elder Max Olivier

a bunch of nightly phone calls and a dreaded text message

Dear Family and Friends,

Love you all!

This week was fantastic.  My first week of being the district leader has been crazy and exciting.  It is an adjustment, to be sure, but one I am loving already.  The thing that stressed me the most was giving the district meeting, but thanks to the Holy Spirit´s guide, I felt like everything just came together beautifully.  It is so amazing how the Holy Ghost will help us, even when we are lacking or somewhat unprepared . . . He knows what we need, and He knows what others need too.  My plans came together, and I taught the district on Friday!  I taught about the light of the Restoration, and the importance of teaching the Restoration to the less-active members and helping them remember the light they have received because of it.  The practices went well, too, and I think it helped the district.  I am so lucky to have such amazing missionaries in my district -- there are three other companionships other than my own.

Another thing I do as district leader is the nightly verifications.  I call each companionship (well, I talk face to face with the one that lives with me!) and hear how their day was, how the people they work with are doing, and how their plans are doing.  It is spiritual, interesting, and just fun!  It does mean that I have no free time in the nights anymore.  This morning was my first leaders meeting with the zone leaders, district leaders, and hermanas viajantes (sister trainer leaders?).  It was great!  We set some great goals and plans for the zone and talked about how we can help specific missionaries.

Anyways.  So that stuff is going pretty well!  About the dreaded text.  yep.  Luisa Fernandez sent us the ever-dreaded message before our lesson on Friday telling us not to come over and that she doesn´t want to receive the lessons anymore.  We had almost no saldo but I called her . . .and then the saldo ran out in the middle of the conversation.  It´s her darn husband!!!  Apparently he forcefully told her that he doesn´t like her going to church and having us over at the house and that he didn´t want to get married anymore either.  She told me she will continue reading the Book of Mormon and praying, which I believe she will do.  We haven´t seen her since or had other contact . . . she and her family need your prayers!  She has a testimony!!!  For now, my plan is to pray and fast and then try to set up a lesson in the church, and maybe something more . . . . . . but she wants to avoid contention in her family and it sounds to me like she is a bit unwilling to go against her husband.  If you can, pray for her and put her name on the temple prayer roll.

Yanci is doing well -- she came to church again with her mom Olga and we taught her twice during the week.  We will see her again tomorrow.  She doesn´t 100% understand all that we teach yet, but she loves going to church and she needs the gospel in her life now.  She has attempted suicide a few times and suffers from mental and emotional illness, but she is a super amazing, calm person.  We will help her be baptized in April!  She has been reading a little in the Book of Mormon and is reading out loud together with Olga.  She would also benefit from your prayers.  We were also able to bring a less-active sister Hna Correa to church, and all the sisters were super excited to see her!  She wants to return.  She has been struggling with smoking again and knows she is not keeping all the commandments, but she seems willing and eager to come back to church!

I am so excited for the general conference!  We are also promoting and attempting to use the new video Gracias a que Él vive (Because He lives?).  I am eager to bring people to listen to the prophets´ voices testifying of the Resurrected Savior!  I know He lives and I love Him.

Love you all!  thanks for everything!

--Elder Max Olivier

Cambios!!! A full!!

Dear family and friends,

This week was a bit slow, and full of wonderful special activities.  We had a zone conference at the temple on Thursday!!!  We got to attend the temple after having some instruction with President Cook as well as personal interviews with him.  He is such an amazing, spiritual man.  It was only my third interview with him, but every time it just lifts me up and makes me feel better! :)  He surprised me in that interview by telling me that he is making me district leader for this change, which starts tomorrow!!!  I will still be finishing the training of Elder Anderson here in Minas, of course, but it will be a big change!  I can´t quite believe that starting tomorrow I am going to be doing all the nightly verifications with my district and that on Friday I will be teaching the district meeting!  Yikes!  It is a big new responsibility, but also a great opportunity to learn, love, and serve.  I am mostly excited about it.  But I also ask that you say a prayer for me so I can do it!  The zone is getting a ton of new leaders -- the other district leader is going to be my friend Elder Torres, also a new leader, who I know because he was in Florida when I arrived, and we´re getting a new zone leader and a new hermana viajante.  

Last night, all the elders traveled to La Capuera, the new area with the super nice, clean, small new house.  All ten of us slept over, and this morning, we traveled to Pan de Azúcar to climb the famous hill with the whole zone.  It was super fun!  It was like a real hike!  This is basically the only place in the country with a hill capable of being hiked, so that was a special treat.  There is a giant old sketchy stone cross at the top you can climb.  There was also a cute little zoo with some odd native animals including capybaras (here called carpinchos).

Anyways.  Church was lovely even though not that many people showed up. Luisa is still going strong and she is progressing so much!  This was her second time at church and she LOVED it!  She talked to her husband and they are planning to get married so she can be baptized!!!!  He still doesn´t have any interest in the church, but we will work on that.  I feel so privileged to see the conversion of Luisa -- I feel like in a humble way I am actually making a difference in someone´s life.  I hope we can find more firm investigators, because we still don´t have any other real investigators right now.

I love you all so much!  Sorry for the short letter!

--Elder Max Olivier

gorgeous view from the hill

me in the slightly creepy cross

Come in, between. Drink a chair.

Dearest family and friends, hello!

This week was fantastic.  We had the oros conference with Elder Anderson´s group in Montevideo.  The hermanas viajantes taught us some awesome workshops, and we were also with Pte y Hna Cook.  We ate super well.  We learned a lot.  We had fun being with all the trainers and oros of this change.  It was a lovely experience.  Included is a picture of Tres Cruces, the giant bus terminal in Montevideo for travel throughout the country.  

Church was a miracle.  76 people showed up!!!  Usually there´s only about 52.  It is amazing to me how the Lord works.  We hardly do anything -- He directs this work, the grand work of salvation.  As full-time missionaries, we just be obedient, learn, study, and work as hard as we can to help others come unto Christ.  We are less than the dust, but in His hands, we can help others.  Often, He prepares people´s hearts without us even doing anything.  There´s a handful of less-active families who have started coming back to church -- we are going to help them return to full activity and build their faith.  But there is still LOTS of work to do.

On Saturday we had the most spiritual, beautiful, miraculous lesson of my mission so far.  We taught Louisa for the third time and we brought Hna Sanguinetti, who is less-active.  Louisa kept all her commitments.  She has been reading the Book of Mormon every day and night, and she has been offering personal prayers every night.  She told us that she never took interest in religion and never really believed in God, but then we appeared at her door and she received us.  After the first contact with her a couple weeks ago, we showed up late to our scheduled time with her because we actually found Melani and we were teaching her the first lesson.  Louisa had waited for us, but then left because we didn´t come.  We told her daughter we would come back.  Louisa has kept every single commitment.  Despite our weaknesses and our failures, and our más o menos lessons with her at times, she is feeling the Spirit.  She is being converted through the marvelous power and truth of the Book of Mormon.  Her family doesn´t want to learn anything right now, but they support her, at least.  She is SO FAITHFUL and is really a chosen person.  It was the most beautiful experience to hear her say that her life has changed already because of the Book of Mormon.  She came to church by herself on Sunday and seemed to enjoy it.  We will see her on Tuesday -- tomorrow!!  Pray for her.  She is amazing.  She has a baptismal date right now, but will need to get married to achieve it, and she doesn´t know that yet . . . . . so we still have a lot of work to do.  But yay!!!

The rest still haven´t kept commitments or we haven´t been able to find them.  Entonces . . . claro.  Así es.  Pero ta.  :)

Love you all so much!  Have to go!  Bye!

--Elder Max Olivier

ummmm did another week really just pass by? :)‏

Hello dear family and friends!

This week was interesting.  It was a bit patience-trying, to be honest, and yet it flew by insanely quickly.  I think it´s because I am often at a bit of a loss of what to do, as far as planning goes -- our few firm investigators are so hard to get a hold of that they almost never answer the phone or respond to messages or receive us in their houses, and they have canceled whatever firm lessons we had scheduled.  It is disappointing, but I am doing the best I can and seeking the Spirit´s guidance every day, and I know that I am still learning, so I feel okay.

We had an amazing first lesson with Melani, who we contacted in the street with her boyfriend.  They were super nice people who stopped to listen and were very kind with my companion´s slow spanish.  They both showed interest and accepted baptismal dates.  This was about two weeks ago, but only in this last week were we finally able to have our first lesson with Melani.  It went very well and the Spirit was very present.  She told us that she struggles with depression and bipolar disorder and that she is also entangled in drugs right now, and that she wants to find the way out and wants to feel like God is actually helping her.  We taught her the message of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ and gave her the Book of Mormon.  It was so wonderful to be able to teach according to her need and testify of God´s love and hand, and how we can receive His help through the Book of Mormon.  We read from Alma 7 about Jesus Christ´s Atonement -- His part, and our part, or what we need to do to apply it.  She committed to read and pray -- we left her with 2 Nephi 2 to read.  She also said that she would love to be baptized and that she would love to receive answers from God.  The frustrating part is that she canceled on us for our next lesson two days later, and we haven´t seen her since, despite calling, sending messages, and passing by her house.  I pray for her every day, because I know that she has desires to change and improve her life, and I know that learning and living the restored gospel of Jesus Christ will enable her to do that.  I ask that you pray for her also!

Our other firm investigator Iris and her niece Karen have also been nearly impossible to get a hold of, and although we fixed a lesson with her and a member yesterday, when we came by they were in a birthday party and told us to come back later.  Ugh!  Iris told us that her daughters talked her out of going to church last week, and she didn´t want contention so she didn´t go. But she still seems  interested, and said that she read a few things in the Book of Mormon but didn´t remember anything, although she did like it and felt good about it.  She´s such a funny old grandma -- I wish her large loud family were more open to being taught as well.

Once again, no one committed to go to church during the week.  We also had a good first lesson with Louisa -- she was a contact from knocking doors.  She actually keeps her commitments to have lessons!  That lesson was . . . hard.  My poor companion broke down into frustrated tears when I gave him room to speak because he didn´t know what to say nor how to say it.  I felt so bad.  Louisa was so kind and understanding.  I didn´t really know what to do . . . but I finished teaching the lesson (which went poorly) and we set up a time to come back this week.  I felt responsible at first for my companion´s suffering.  Now, I think it´s not my fault.  I wish I could be a better trainer and teach him better, but all I can do is continue to give my very best effort and constantly seek and follow the Holy Spirit.  It did feel good to comfort him and teach him afterwards about how I have learned to be more patient and charitable with myself in the mission.  He is a bit of a perfectionist as well.  Pray for Elder Anderson!

We had a very interesting experience this week with recent convert Angela.  She was baptized by Elder Oliver at the end of December.  She is the most faithful person I know, I´m pretty sure.  The way she 100% accepted and immediately lived the restored gospel is astounding.  She is a single mom and grandma right now and has many health problems and basically no support from her family, but her faith in Jesus Christ is basically unshakable.  When we were in a lesson, she sent a message canceling our appointment with her and saying that she wasn´t going to go to church anymore.  This shocked me, coming from the woman who, despite her physical pains and difficulties, bikes to church by herself every sunday.  It was alarming!  Then she called a bit later to make sure we knew that she was still going to read her scriptures and everything, but that she wasn´t going to church and she didn´t want us to come over.  I explained that we would still love to come over even if she didn´t go to church, and that our priority is to make sure that she is well, spiritually.  She accepted.  In her house that day, she ended up letting us know that she learned in church through a class that she, without previously realizing or understanding it, was breaking a commandment, and for that could not take the sacrament last week.  She talked to the branch president and everything.  She felt so horrible and remorseful for her sins -- she is really a converted person.  She demands a lot of herself.  We were able to read the scriptures together.  I had recently studied 3 Nephi 18, and we studied the Savior´s own words about the sacrament and repentance.  It was a very spiritual experience -- I felt like an instrument in God´s hands.  She committed to keep going to church every week -- her repentance was strong and immediate, and will continue with time.

There´s a lot more I want to relate .  . . .  but I have already gone into depth on a few of the highlights of this week.  Now I shall read your lovely letters!  I have talked too much!  That´s something I have to work on -- sometimes when people actually listen to us, I get overexcited and talk and teach too much.  I just love teaching the gospel -- but then I get tangled in too many words and talking too much.  This is a dispensation of preaching repentance, and not many words, as the Lord said in the Doctrine and Covenants.  I am working to be more efficient with time and words, more simple, more clear, and more focused on the Spirit.  I ask for your continued support in prayer.

I love you all so much and give you many thanks!!!

A large hug,

Elder Olivier

pictures: the house!

and . . . me, always ready to study! ;)

Another good week of work!

Dearest friends and family,

To start, I forgot to mention last week that we were about to have a conference with Elder Viñas of the seventy, a counselor in the area Sudamerica Sur!!!!  It was so awesome!!!!!!  Last week on lunes (monday, p-day), we had to go set up chairs and tables in our chapel in the morning.  We also had to walk to the other chapel in Minas and CARRY three tables to our chapel, which is probably a distance of about 20 city blocks.  I carried the heaviest table with Elder Johnson and just about died -- I have literally never sweat so much in my life.  Totally worth it.  The conference was fantastic and we felt the Spirit so strongly.  Elder Viñas encouraged us to focus on the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He also taught us to seek out the chosen people and help them become disciples of Jesus Christ and then be baptized.  He said that the overall quality of baptisms, at least in this area of the church, is somewhat poor, because so many people become less-active or inactive.  I loved his perspective of finding chosen people, then helping them become converted, then baptizing them.  He said something that really helped me put things in perspective: "Don´t worry about your personal success!!!"

There is kind of a lot of pressure to baptize, which is good, because in that way we help people come unto Christ and enter in at the strait gate towards eternal life.  However, I had previously worried about the small quantity of baptisms in my mission so far.  I feel like I have been doing the absolute best I can, which of course includes many flaws, but I haven´t seen a whole lot of fruits in baptisms.  When Elder Viñas said not to worry about your personal success, I realized that the most important thing is having our eye completely single to the glory of God and forgetting ourselves.  Also in a fabulous district meeting after the conference, we talked about Abinadi and how he didn´t live to see even ONE fruit of his incredibly faithful service!!!  And yet he had such a huge hope, faith, and assurance that he was in the right path and that he could be an instrument in God´s hands for the blessing of His children.  I am a HUGE fan of Abinadi and I want to become more life him -- more faithful, more hopeful, and more consecrated.  This perspective both gives me comfort and challenges me to be better.

In spite of my weaknesses and faults, I know that if I do my very best and devote myself to my Heavenly Father, the Atonement applies immediately and fully.  The Atonement is so infinite, so eternal, and so perfect that it even applies to people who have already died and are in the spirit world!  How much more, then, does it apply to us in this life, here and now!!!!  I am so grateful for God´s perfect plan and for the Savior´s atoning sacrifice.

Our investigator Iris, despite committing super well to come to church, making a plan, and complying with her other commitments, did not show up to church, but instead had her husband call us at 8:30 the morning of to cancel. :(  It was disappointing, but I know that we did everything we could, so I wasn´t disappointed in myself.  Other promising people failed to keep their commitments to have lessons with us, but we did all we can.  the good news is that the phone credit arrived, so after a week without phone credit, we can work much more effectively now!  Anyways.  The search for chosen people continues!  Gladys is doing well, although her mom didn´t bring her to church this sunday.  She will do it next sunday.  Pray to help us find and help the chosen people!

I love you all so very much and I thank you for keeping me in your prayers.

--Elder Max Olivier

¡Gladys se bautizó!

Dearest family and friends,

Hooray for Gladys Tomé!  She is so wonderful.  And stubborn. She didn´t want to be baptized in front of so many people and didn´t want to go under the water.  I knew she would do that -- she´s quite the character!  She cracks me up.  It was awesome!  And Elder Anderson got to baptize her -- the first time  he has ever baptized!!!!  yaaaayyyy!!!  The service was good, but also mas o menos -- some of the members can be so difficult!  They were complaining about the use of both the children´s songbook and the hymnal, and some were making negative comments when Gladys was resisting a bit in her typical rebellious way.  But there was also invaluable support from some truly amazing members!!!  On sunday, Gladys and her mom were VERY welcomed into the church.  I got to confirm Gladys!

The last time I had baptized was Nov 8 -- it had been faaaaaaaaarrrrrrrr too long.  But I know that as we continue with faith, patience, and animation, the Lord blesses us.  We have a lot of really good posibilities for serious investigators this week and this month -- it is exciting!  We continue to find wonderful little miracles every day.

Hmmmmmmmmmm my time has already left me.  Sorry everyone!!!  I will try to write some physical letters to relay the incredible things that happened this week.

Love you all TONS.

Chau, see you soon!

--Elder Olivier

Yay for training!

Dearest family and friends,

Yay for training again!  This time I feel so much better-prepared.  I know I am VERY imperfect, but I know I can do my best, and the Lord will make all the difference.  My companion is Elder Anderson of West Valley, UT!  He is absolutely wonderful.  He is 19 years old.  The group of gringos that arrived all went to the Provo MTC because Argentina was full!  Poor souls. :)  

It is great to be training -- I learn a lot from a different perspective.  I am trying to help him adjust, get out of his comfort zone, teach, contact, study, everything!  My companion´s spanish is just developing, so there´s an added burden on me to take the reins in pretty much everything.  But I am learning to give him more opportunities to take the initiative from the beginning, so he can learn.  I hope he feels like he is fully contributing! I seek balance between letting him learn by faith, by experience, by my help, and I also seek balance so that I can still effectively direct the area.  He is great!  I have already seen much learning and improvement!

My time is already escaping me, but good news! Gladys will be baptized this saturday!!!  Her family members still didn´t go to church, but her mom committed to bring the family to the baptism and to bring Gladys to church on Sunday -- she even said she could take Gladys to church every sunday.  They need your prayers so they can open their hearts, their desires, and their schedules to help this little girl come unto Christ.  She really loves church and loves learning about God and His Son.  She will be the key to bring her family into the church.  It was a very hard decision for me to make, because I would hate to baptize a child and have them go inactive because there´s no one to take them to church.  However, my companion and I prayed together and made the decision together to announce her baptism yesterday, and I feel that it is what God wants.  The work is only just beginning, though -- we have a TON to do with her family so they can all arrive on Saturday and Sunday, and so they can commit to bringing Gladys to church!!!  It will be a challenge.

Ah, so many wonderful experiences to share and so little time.  Every day is so incredible in the mission.  I have learned the following about daily life:  If we search for miracles, we find them.  If we search for revelation, we find it.  If we pray for energy, happiness, and the attitude to do God´s will, we find it.

I love you all so much.  Pray for familia Tomé and also a new investigator Eduardo!

--Elder Max Olivier