You Can Pray to Know the Truth!

Hola familia!

Wow, like the other Elder Watson said, this week just screamed by! It seems like every day just gets faster and faster… it’s hard to keep track of the weeks now. That’s great to hear that everything is good at home and that I am on the other side of the world while taxes are being done in the States. That makes me feel safe. ;). Just kidding.

Well, so what happened this week? Well, it had been a little hard for us to find new people to teach, but on Wednesday when we thought we were out of places to search, we saw a couple of men outside their house, so we clapped and they invited us in. We began to teach the Restoration, and it was pretty awesome! They participated and everything, asking questions, applying the principles. So we got the book of Mormon, they accepted the challenge to read and pray. They had awesome questions that the Book of Mormon answers perfectly, and we challenged them to be baptized when the Lord answered their prayers and they knew for themselves that it was true. And they said yes. Pretty bomb awesome! It was pretty cool because most 20 year olds are focused on smoking, drinking, parties, and want nothing to do with us. Like the other Elder Watson said, MIRACLE! :) Lots and lots of people have doubts and fears about what we teach, but the reality is that the people just need to know that the Book of Mormon is true. When we know that this book is true, we know that Joseph Smith was a prophet. That Christ is the Son of God, our Savior and Redeemer, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true church of God on the Earth today. All doubts and objections rest on that. That is why we talk so much about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. The Bible is the word of God, and there are thousands of churches that say the same thing. What the difference between our church and everyone else is that a prophet of God received the authority and power of God to act in His name and establish His church. Every single objection rests on this point. Did the people reject Moses because he gave them the 10 commandments? No. It was something new, different, but they knew he was a prophet of God. Did people reject John the Baptist because he said the Son of God was coming to live on the Earth and redeem His people? Nope! They got baptized! What God says through a prophet is what He wants. It doesn’t matter what past commandments were. In the 10 commandments it says NOT to kill. But God himself commanded Israel through Joshua to destroy and kill nations. Why did they do it? Because a prophet of God told them to do it and they knew he was permitted to receive revelation for the people. It doesn’t matter why someone doesn’t want to believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet, if they pray with a sincere heart, with faith in Jesus Christ, and with true intention, then they will know the truth. If God responds to your prayer and helps you to understand that the Book of Mormon is the word of God, then you know it is true. If God responds to your prayer and helps you to understand that Joseph Smith was a prophet, then you know it is true. If God responds to your prayer and helps you to understand that you need to be baptized with someone holding the authority of God, being given to him by someone already having the authority of God, then you know it is true. It’s just that simple. Pray. Ask. Know. Ya está!

I am out of time. Love you! Take care!

Elder Watson

January is almost over?

Hola Familia!

Wow! Sounds like a busy week you had mom! It’s great to hear that everything is going great! Jacob’s gone? WOW! Time just flew by! I was thinking that he just got his mission call. Something like Elder Watson said… I can’t believe that it’s already the end of January. And that the next changes are coming up. Which makes me think a little because within the next 6 months, 70 odd missionaries go home, or more than a 3rd of the mission, and almost all of them are leaders. I’ve been here in Encarn for 3 changes, which is normal for a change, but I don’t want to go. Really. We just found a family that is really awesome. The members are awesome. The next baptism we will have will be the middle of February, which is another reason why I don’t want to go. But the Lord knows best, so I will put my faith and trust in Him and what’s going to happen. :)

This week was a little hard, to tell the truth. A lot of our investigators we just could not find at home if our lives depended on it. But, it has been a lot of fun helping Elder Hatch learn and progress as a missionary. For example, we were walking by a few houses and he told me that we should… what’s the word in English… knock on the door? In Spanish it is touch the door (tocar puertas). Haha. But anyway, there was a guy who came out, invited us to pass, and we started teaching. And he and his wife, who we talked with later, are preparing to be baptized! He even has a guitar, which he let me play “I Am A Child of God” on… that was pretty cool… I miss my guitar… haha. So we will be working a lot with them. I am excited. :) We don’t have anything new this week new coming up… next week I should be going to Asunción for a training meeting. That’ll be fun.

So ya, that’s boring old me. We’ll try to find a way to make something amazing happen this week. Thank you all for everything. I really am trying my best to get around to writing letters, in my area it is a little hard because we have to travel every P-day to go buy food, do internet, talk with the other missionaries. But I’ll find a way. :). Keep up fighting the good fight. Keep on reading the scriptures, praying every day, and going to church! That really is what builds a testimony. You just don’t notice it. :). Please have the faith in God and the trust in Him to change your life. Nobody likes changes, but God wants something better for you. Of course we can’t see what is going to happen, but God knows. And if He knows everything, and He is letting you know that you need to change something in your life, please do it. I’ve seen too many people who let the fear take control. With God, nothing is impossible. Never believe we don’t have to change something. That’s just a sneaky little lie that stops us from becoming more like Jesus Christ. No one is perfect, but God wants us to make the effort. If you just try your best, that is what counts. Please just trust in our Heavenly Father. Ask Him what is right. Ask Him for guidance. Don’t feel helpless because you don’t want to change or someone says you shouldn’t change. Our Heavenly Father knows the best route for us, and it is in Him we need to listen to and obey. He will never lie to us or lead us astray. I promise. :)

Anyway, that’s time. I love you! CHAU!

Elder David Watson

Miracles Happen!

Hola Familia

Wow... what a week!!!! It’s great  to hear how everything is going at home. I remembered about all of that high school stuff.   Boy am I glad it’s over. [We told them about counting the ballots for the Winter King/Queen at Vasquez High] Ward Conference with President Watson! YEAH! A mi me gusta! I like that! :) It sounds like it went really well!

Well, we had a baptism this week! It was such a miracle. The daughter of a less active family that lives out in the middle of nowhere, like an hour and a half walking from the house, got baptized. We had the help of so many members because the mom gets home at 8 or 9 at night, so on Wednesday we got driven out to go get the baptismal form signed and filled out and everything, then on Thursday we went with the District Leader to go do the interview, Friday made the hike out again, and Saturday came around. We went to go fill up the baptismal font, only to find out that it was already filled with water from... a long time ago. So we started emptying it out with the machine, which is really slow, and with random pots we had found to empty it out. And there are random water outages where we live so we started up filling the font until the water stopped with 3 inches... uh oh. Our branch president was working about 4 hours away from the chapel and he has the key to the water tank. So we left to go visit a few families, and then came back early. The President came back about 7, when the baptism was supposed to start, we started filling up the tank. Nobody came until about 8 due to collectivos, and then everything came out alright. All I can say is that prayers work and there are miracles that happen. :) Woo hoo! I will send pictures next week! :)

It’s is REALLY hot here and it’s getting even hotter. At least that’s what they tell me. But that’s alright. I just drink water like a camel. Something that is really funny is that everybody either sleeps or gets in the shade during the summer. It’s like a ghost town really... but the Par a guayans take their siesta seriously... hahhaa.

Like what Elder Watson said last week, I too have been thinking about all of the ‘best’ missionaries that I had met over the years and their influence in my life. I hope that I can get to be to their level. That’d be so cool! Woo ho!!! :)

Anyway, that’s about it for this week. I love you! Take care of yourselves! CHAU!!!!

Con cariño,

Elder David Watson

Finding People in the Bush

Elder Watson & Elder Hatch

Dear Family

WOW! Good week then, huh? {Cliff is able to wear regular shoes now} That is so great to hear. I bet Dad was so glad to drive the car. That is so awesome to hear about how he is getting better. I bet he is so much happier. It could be that he is starting to talk a little bit more if he is a little happier... ;).. You’re going to have to be prepared when we get back because all we are going to do is talk and talk, cualquier cosa que sea, or whatever it might be because that is what we do all day, every day! Talk, discuss, and teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Gotta LOVE IT! :) Woo hoo!

Well, this week was hard but good. We started off the week trying to work around the church and in the area around it, but it’s not their time at the moment. So we headed to where most of the missionaries work and we are finding tons of people to teach. So I now know why missionaries have been working there. It is awesome to find people who want to learn about the Gospel and put the promise of the Book of Mormon to the test. That is all we ask. All we invite to do. Missionary work isn’t forcing someone to do something they don’t want to do. It’s about helping them find the desire to follow the true Gospel of Jesus Christ and the desire to find out for themselves. That is all we do as missionaries. We teach the Gospel, how the Lord Jesus Christ taught it, and help the people to put their trust in God and ask Him for an answer.

How do we know, in our hearts, that Jesus Christ is our Savior? Through prayer and by asking God. By feeling His love for us and the peace and comfort that the Holy Ghost brings. How do we know, that the Bible is the word of God, in our hearts? We have to ask God for the knowledge that only comes from Him. Paul the apostle taught that he knew what was true because the Spirit testified to his soul. That the Holy Ghost bears testimony the God the Father is the Father of our spirits. James taught that if we lack wisdom, be it knowledge, counsel, even an answer to a question, ask God. Pidála a Dios. Ask it to God. If we have faith, without any doubt, willing to act on what God tells us what is the truth, not what we want the truth be, that is when we will get an answer. It has and always will be my same invitation. Pray to God. About anything, work on finding that faith and that confidence in Him. Ask Him, if He loves you. Ask Him, if He knows you. Learn to recognize the answer. When we can do that, we will have an undying faith that God answers prayers. If we have that faith and confidence, we can ask Him anything. I invite everyone, Christian, Catholic, and Atheist, whoever it might be, to read the Book of Mormon and to ask God if the Book of Mormon is true. If we know the Book of Mormon to be true, we know that Jesus Christ is our Savior, that Joseph Smith was a prophet, and that the true church of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth… I do it because I love you all and I want you to have the same blessings I have received. :)

I am out of time. Love you!

Chau con cariño

Elder David Watson

German Chocolate Cake is the Best!!

Hola familia

Hey all! Wow! Snow on the mountains! That’s a new sight. I’d wish I’d see some snow around here... hahahaha. Just kidding. Don’t listen to me.

Well, today we are running WAY late... We ate with a bunch of other missionaries, our district, the zone leaders, and two other missionaries, and we like talking... hahaha. But it’s always fun to be with them. The only thing is waiting for a bus to get back to our area... it takes forever! But it is alright. There is a way for everything. :).

This weekend was great! We were cruising around pretty good looking for new investigators and it’s been fun helping Elder Hatch with his Spanish. It’s already gotten tons better! We are really working on finding new investigators and helping Elder Hatch to progress with his Spanish. He is an awesome Elder and loves to work. He just wants to get out there and talk to the people. Sometimes it’s a little funny when I can’t talk in English with him, but I try to help him when he doesn’t understand. I’m getting better! Haha.

There’s not much news to report since Thursday, but this week is going to be amazing. I already know it. We have a ton of people we want to go teach and we are going to find a ton more who want to read the Book of Mormon, pray to know it’s true and then get baptized! I know that this is the true church, that the authority of God was restored through the prophet Joseph Smith and that we have a prophet that talks with God today. I know that Jesus Christ is my personal Savior, and the Savior of the whole world, and we can come to know the truth through prayer.

Well, I am out. Love you! I’ll write more next week!

Chau!

Elder Watson

New Companion - Elder Hatch From Idaho

Hola Familia!

Wow... too many things have happened in the past week and a half. Christmas was NUTS! Everyone celebrates Christmas Eve instead of Christmas, and they stay up until midnight with their barbecues and family, lighting off fireworks like there is no tomorrow. And there are some LOUD fireworks... a family invited us to spend the night to eat and have a place to be, but before the barbecue was fully finished, we had to go. We still ate some pretty good chicken though! :). I am glad to hear that the surgery went well with Michelle. She’ll be up and about in no time! She’s a tough cookie like that.  I received a letter from Spencer Brown, who is now in the MTC so I’ll have to get him a letter... along with everybody else! I am so slow! SORRY!!!! And I got one from Annie too... with a cool picture! It was awesome. Hahaha. But I will be working on that. I’ll be sending pictures home soon... my computer isn’t working very well so I will have to use another one on Monday. But that is alright! :).

Christmas Saturday was awesome; I got to talk with the family! And see them. That was pretty cool. This week was changes... I was told on Monday (by our District Leader) that I was going to be training. Elder Lamb, my old companion, didn’t believe him because our District Leader had pulled a little trick a long time ago and said fake changes. I was a little unsure because he told us that I was training. But... nope! They were real! So I headed out to Asunción at midnight, December 29, our bus broke down twice, got there at 7 in the morning, studied a little, talked with the other trainers, got trained by President Callan, and then met the new missionaries. 9 came, 5 Elders and 4 Hermanas. 6 Americans and 3 Latins. I was assigned to train Elder Hatch, from Idaho Falls, who could possibly know a friend of mine from BYU (Chelsie Cook). Now that would be funny! So we rushed over to the terminal, and we missed the bus. So we waited at the terminal until 5 to take another one, got to Encarnación at midnight, and then got home! That was my birthday! Hahaha. But I celebrated it on Monday because I didn’t know if I was going to have a change, and the family LOVED LOVED LOVED the German Chocolate Cake. I told you it was the best. :). They wanted to know if I knew the recipe for the cream or the cake. I showed them the box and the can and said I cheated. Haha. But they really did love it. It was fun see their little girl go crazy with the balloons.

Tuesday we said goodbye to people, Wednesday you already know, and Thursday is today! We helped Elder Curtis pack his stuff and took him to the terminal, went back to the apartment of Elder Rodriguez, the District Leader, and we had fun talking a mix of Spanish and English. Luckily Elder Rodriguez already knows English really well, so it was more of helping the new Elders (Elder Bowns, Utah is also training, he has about 6 more months than I do) use Spanish and telling stories from the mission. That was pretty fun. And now I am here.

I am so excited to be here in Paraguay and to be teaching the people and being a representative of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I can’t believe it has been a year; that I am not a teenager anymore; and that I am finally starting to understand how to become who the Lord wants me to be. It’s pretty darn cool! :) I am still amazed at how real the Book of Mormon is. It really is a true book that brings us closer to Christ. It really is another testament of Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith was a prophet, and because of him, we have the true Church of Jesus Christ. Like I have said a million times, if you don’t know what I said is true, you can ask God. He won’t lie. I like being able to trust in Him and receive the help and answers I need. It is plain in the scriptures: The Bible and Book of Mormon, that if we have a need, or have a lack of knowledge, or have questions, we can ask God with faith, and He will respond. I can say this because I have done it. I cannot and I will not deny what I have felt to be true. Maybe some people won’t believe, or don’t want to, but I know what I am doing is the Lord’s work. I know that there is one true church that teaches the true doctrine of Jesus Christ. I know there is a prophet of God here on the Earth, who is Thomas Monson. Every single person can know this is true, and all they have to do is… do their part and ask our Heavenly Father. Ya está! :)

Well, that’s time. I love you all! Take care of yourselves! I love you! Have a great New Year and I hope that you had a great Christmas!

Love you!!!!!!!!!!!! CHAU!

Elder David Watson

Remember What Christmas is About

Hola Familia,

Wow... the time keeps flying by. I can’t believe that it is almost Christmas already. It certainly doesn’t feel like it... hahaha. We have been getting a LOT of rain lately too, which is really unusual for December in Paraguay. It NEVER rains, but we had had 3 weekends of rain, rain, rain, and this past weekend was the first without rain. That is pretty awesome that you are getting rain... it hardly ever rains back home. Haha. But I am sure the plants are loving it at least. Hehe. Really? Was President Murri before President Udall? That would be pretty awesome to chat with him if I got the chance afterward. :) (The Mission President in Ventura used to be the Temple President in Asuncion, Paraguay).

Well, this week. We had a special Christmas Meeting, but it was really like just another Zone Conference. With lots of Christmas touches... haha. I’m not complaining because I love the chance to listen and learn from my mission president. We really focused on setting goals and how our goals help us to achieve what the Lord wants. We talked about ... rendir cuentas... ummm, reporting back?... on our missionary work and how it helps us to grow and do more of what the Lord wants for us and for all of His children. We talked about making inspired goals and plans, all that starts with a prayer. Prayer, really, is so important! It’s a wonderful chance to talk with our Heavenly Father and receive inspiration. We have to make the efforts to make specific plans and then confirm them with our Heavenly Father. He wants us to be agents for ourselves, instead of waiting for an answer and sitting on our heels, He wants us to act, use our thinking, and then ask him if what we are thinking of doing is right. By showing our faith and our willingness to act, we can receive an answer from our Heavenly Father. On another note, I was reading in the Book of Mormon this morning in Alma. He was writing a letter to one of his sons and talking about the commandments of God. Many times we think there is a grey area in between what is good and what is a sin. He tells us that the commandments of God are strict, not flexible, and a little later he commands his son to keep the commandments AS they are written. If I translated that in my head right. Alma 37:13 and 20. For example, Jesus taught that before a man who committed adultery was punished, but in reality a man who even looks to lust, or looks at women with the wrong intentions, or the intentions of committing sins, he is sinning all the same. I can’t express that right in English but I hope that comes across alright. That doesn’t mean we can sit there and think about bad things we can do, be it stealing, killing, whatever it is, it’s not just the 10 commandments but what Christ has taught us also. James 4:17 says that if someone knows what is right, but doesn’t do it, it is a sin. The bible really tells us the things that we should do, along with the Book of Mormon. Like a prophet says, the words of Christ will guide us in all things. We just gotta do it! It ain’t that hard! It’s right there in front of us. We don’t have to be perfect right away, but please make a commitment to do something better every day. You’d be surprised how something is a little better every day, for one month, is 30 things better. One year? 365 things better. It could be something simple as a smile to someone in the street, to reading a verse out of the scriptures, to say one more prayer, to say thanks to somebody... there are thousands of things. You’ll know what to do. :)

Well I am out of time. I really love you all! Remember the true meaning of Christmas. We worship our Savior’s birth. Take the time to read a little bit out of Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John about our Lord and Savior’s birth and life. Take the time to put yourself in the shoes of a bystander there, one of the Savior’s disciples. Take the time to think, to study and to apply it to your life. The scriptures really come to life. You’ll be surprised. Be happy! This is the time of year to help other people, as it is with every day of our lives. Take care of yourselves! LES AMO!!!

Chaucito!

Elder David Watson