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

Oh, how I love the Book of Mormon!!!‏

Dearest family and friends,

I know I promised details to mom and dad about inviting people to be baptized in the first contact . . . but we´ll see if I have time for that . . . :)

First of all, Gladys Tomé is doing well!  She came to church with us again on Sunday and immediately asked afterwards when we were going back!  She could conceivably be baptized this saturday, but we want to make sure she is really ready and that she has someone to go to church with every week.  Her parents are very supportive, but have not gone to church . . . also, Luis seems to be losing interest . . . we haven´t been able to get a hold of him -- he won´t answer his phone and usually isn´t at the house anymore.  However, I have hope!  It is a struggle to teach the Tomé family -- their house is pure chaos.  We usually have ended up just trying to teach Gladys alone while the rest of the family is doing whatever so we can focus a bit more -- although she doesn´t focus very well . . . but we will figure it out!  Her siblings are great -- we need to help them come to church.

Last Tuesday (I think) we had a super cool experience!  It was morning, (which is always a difficult time to work in Uruguay) and we had basically no good plans.  We started to contact a guy on the street and we asked him for references, and he told us to go visit a nearby house.  We knocked, and Teodoro answered.  He chatted for a bit and then immediately invited us inside to get out of the sun.  He is the most well-educated, interesting, well-traveled Uruguayo that I have met!  He has a whole bunch of books and loves reading, which is sadly VERY rare here.  One of his best friends is our YM president!  We were able to teach him about the Book of Mormon (woot! the best book you can read!), and I think he fell in love.  He ended up reading all of Moroni 10 out loud with us!!!  We felt the Spirit really strongly.  I am a huge fan of that chapter.  It is an incredible voice crying from the dust: "come unto Christ, and be perfected in him . . ." .  Just . . . WOW!  We really can become perfect if we follow Christ.  I know that is true.  We committed Teodoro to read, ponder, and pray about the Book of Mormon.  We weren´t able to fix another visit because he travels a lot, but we have his number and know where he lives. I plan to visit him this week.  He is very intellectual and calls himself primarily a follower of Descartes (awesome) and doesn´t have interest in churches, but I know that the Book of Mormon will change his life and help him come unto Christ by receiving the restored gospel.

Yesterday, we had another super cool experience with the Book of Mormon!  A few days ago, the Spirit told me to go knock on a door, and the coolest lady ever greeted us as we were about to leave her doorstep -- Blanca is her name.  She is the most exuberant, happy, smiling person I have ever met!  She is a devout reader of the Bible and believer in God and a really great person.  She presently belongs to a questionable church called Dios es Amor, known for extorting money of its followers.  It is quite prevalent here in South America, or at least in Argentina and Uruguay.  But we gave her a folleto about the restoration (I think) and challenged her to read, pray, and have another visit with us.  The missionaries visited her and her husband years ago, and they have a Book of Mormon but have never read it.  

So yesterday, we went to her house because we had set an appointment.  Blanca wasn´t there, but her husband Domingo was waiting for us. (!!!)  This was amazing for several reasons: 1) Basically nobody keeps their commitments -- the great majority of people who accept another visit in a street contact or a door contact do not keep that commitment.  2) They are actually MARRIED!  3) Domingo is a super nice guy, a sincere believer in God, and open to listen and talk civilly, unlike many people who judge and label and reject us before even opening their ears.

So, YAY!!!  We were able to explain the Book of Mormon, correct the common misconception that it was written by the prophet Joseph Smith, and read Moroni 10:3-5 together.  Domingo showed interest, listened sincerely and attentively, and committed to read and pray about Moroni 10.  We go back to teach them both this week.  What a fantastic couple and a lovely miracle that the Lord gave us!!!  

I absolutely love teaching about, presenting, reading from, and testifying about the Book of Mormon!  (for me, now, El Libro de Mormón!).  This book has changed my life and continues to change me every day.  I have learned recently the great importance of sincerely seeking truth through personal revelation -- that is so amazing to me.  The Spirit can speak to us and give us our own personal REVELATIONS through the Book of Mormon if we ask, seek, and knock.  Wow.  I know the Book of Mormon is the word of God, that it is true, and that it is the most correct book on the earth, and that by reading it we come closer to God.  I know Joseph Smith translated the book by the power and design of God.  I am so grateful to have this treasure in my life and to be able to share it so frequently and directly as a missionary!

Well, I have a lot more to tell you all, but my time escapes me now.  

Oh yeah -- I´m TRAINING AGAIN!!!  Elder Oliver is leaving as a zone leader, and I will be able to train these next two changes!  I thought this might happen since my trainee left.  I will miss my companion very much.  We have really been an ideal companionship, because we get along easily, we are friends, and above all we have the same goals and desires to work, improve, and invite all to come unto Christ.

I love you all so very much!  Fortify your faith TODAY in the Book of Mormon!  Read, ponder, and ask God if it is true!  Seek personal revelation!

--Elder Max Olivier