Come so far, still so far to go

"I put the two brownie batches together and made this cake."

"Elder Leishman and Elder Portillo enjoying the brownie cake"

Well, as you saw from my pictures, I can now admit I hit the year mark. I really have come a long way. That day in the airport no longer seems like just yesterday. I am excited for the next year, though I have no idea what is in store. I also loved the other little package. That Indiana Jones Card made my week.

The other thing that made my week was a small moment. Like I said, I have been trying to have more faith to find miracles and people who are ready to hear us, and it is working! One of those moments was with a man named Amòs. He is an old man who lives a few blocks from the chapel in a small wooden house on a big field. By talking and asking good questions, we found out his children are members of the church and he is unhappy with the leadership in his current church. We briefly taught a bit about how Christ can help us be born again and erase our pasts so we can have hope for the future-basically repentance and baptism. On our way out he said ''I usually keep my door closed. Don't know why I left it open today. I guess God must have told you to come by.'' We work hard, and it is rare that investigators express sincere appreciation for what we do. So that meant a lot to me.

It was also great that everything went well for Paola's baptism. We had to review a couple commandments right before the interview and baptism, but she is willing to do everything, including help us teach. We have a great group of young single adults here. I'll be going to the temple next Tuesday, so the day you get the email next week might be different. Thanks for letting me know about Grandpa.* Not easy to hear, but I will keep everyone in my prayers. I am glad I got write him. And I am thankful for the time I spent with him right before the mission talking about family history. Now he is part of that legacy. And I, like George Albert Smith, have the task of bringing honor to his name.

Unfortunately, like the rest of the world, there are definitely problems sometimes with people getting offended. One of these was an experience yesterday with a member named Pedro. He complained about President Agazzani and several members. This was an interesting experience because first I wanted to get defensive and remind him that he can't let others keep him from his salvation. But then I remembered that Christ is our mediator, he always takes our side. So I tried to do that and express sympathy. I hope you don't mind, but I shared some experiences you've told me about during Dad's sickness and how you commented that the most important thing was keeping your testimony. I think that helped them, and I hope to continue to be able to mend some of the breaches here in Ca'aguazù. 

I am learning a lot of Guaranì, which is fun. I did my first baptismal interview with someone who spoke only Guaranì, but understood most of my Spanish. I kind of just had to nod and get the general idea of what she said. I am also trying to learn to pray in Guaranì.

Little things you might be interested in. Preach My Gospel in the small Spanish version is now available down here, so just about everyone has one now. I also bought new belts (the other ones were getting old) and boots (the ones from missionary mall were very uncomfortable) for very cheap. Also, I have had to learn a lot about clothing care. I knew how to sew and how to polish shoes, but washing clothes was pretty new. That first week I had to wash the garments by hand. And I learned that when pants say Dry Clean Only, it's the truth. I probably should have bought and used more washable dress slacks. Live and learn. 

One other challenge I am having is learning the area. It is big, and I am a visual learner. In Amambay, where we had maps and street names, I had the area memorized quickly. But it seems I am slower than most missionaries in learning an area just by walking and remembering. That is okay, again, it is an opportunity to learn. It is just a little thing, and in everything that is important, I am doing well. Being a district leader is a lot of responsibility, but I have a great district (you can tell by the number of baptismal interviews I mention). I decided to try looking for scriptures to cross-reference to phrases and topics in my Patriarchal Blessing. That is a great activity (though it can take a long time) that I recommend to anyone. It has helped me understand my role in serving others and how many scriptures applied specifically to ME.

Only one missionary from my group, Elder Smith, went to the other mission, as far as I know. The rest are still here with me.

Love,

Elder Wesley Morgan

*Our Grandpa Morgan died on June 9th.  :(

Conference with Richard J. Maynes

I just sent an email to Grandpa. I hope he is doing well. I feel bad for not writing him more often. He has always been a great example.

The best part of this week was traveling to Asunción for an incredible conference Elder Maynes, from the Presidency of the 70. We did it in Moroni, the chapel next to the temple, which I got to see for the first time (our trip there is in two weeks). It is always great to see my friends from the mission, including those from the north mission. Elder Maynes served in the Paraguay-Uruguay mission, so he started off with a few words in Guaraní that he said he has been waiting 40 years to say. He was a great speaker and shared some incredible things that are changing the way we teach. He talked about using the Book of Mormon more and expressing love for the people right away. In Paraguay, people often refer to each other as ¨Hermano¨, so we often skip the part of ¨How to Begin teaching¨ that explains that we are all children of God. But I am trying to do that more with Romans 8:16-17. He also talked about teaching clearly when inviting people to repent so we can find those who are really interested. He told us to stop wasting time trying to convince people to be interested, something I have done many times. So that is something else I am trying to improve. It is a little frustrating, because I am realizing how many people her don't want to change. But scriptures like D&C 42:6-8, 123:12 help me not get discouraged and have faith to find those the Lord has prepared.

And an answer to that prayer---Paola. She is a friend of the young single adults in the ward who has attended church activities for years, but never church itself. She knows it's all true but has always been afraid of something. Missionaries have been trying to get her baptized for a looong time, but she does not like to feel pressured. With the baptism in our branch on Saturday, she decided to come to church. We had taught her the day before and invited her to read and pray. She hadn't prayed yet, but we talked about how she liked what she had read (3 Nephi 11) and how she felt at church. My companion had the insight to help her recognize her feelings at church as an answer, and after listening and asking questions I pretty much said, Paola (it's important to put the stress on the O...she likes that we are the first missionaries to pronounce her name right, haha), you know it's all true, and we are not going to pressure you, when do YOU want to get baptized? And, what do you know, we have a baptism this Saturday!!

She is a friend of Laura Lopez, who has a 12-year-old sister that her family is trying to adopt. That will probably be a baptism for the week after. Miracles all around! The other person we are teaching often is Brian Naumann, whose dad speaks English and is a less-active, anti-Book of Mormon member. We have had some interesting lessons with him. I´ll try to share more another week. The branch president's wife is awesome and offered to wash our garments. We found a laundromat that will wash the rest for very cheap, which is great. Just a lot of work to haul it there, but I am happy with what we found. 

So, we are working hard with the people we have and always trying to find new people. I enjoy being district leader and being able to focus more on the individual missionaries. I did 5 baptismal interviews this weekend, which was great. I am not sure how big this city is, you'll have to google that. The downtown part is fairly small, and that is where the sister missionaries work. Our area is huge, but we work in the part within a mile or two of the chapel, where there are more houses.

My companion is great to work with. He is new, so he is willing to try anything. His name is John, but everyone calls him by his middle name, Crosby (like Bing Crosby). Crosby Pacheco--how cool is that name? Before the mission he liked salsa dancing, football, and video games. Oh, when we were in Asunción we found a place that makes Seviche. He LOVED that, and I got to try a bit. Very good. I like living with four. We cook together, usually the missionary norms of rice or pasta with eggs, meat or other sauces. Love the suit, thanks for everything!

Love and prayers,

-Elder Wesley Morgan

In the Jungle

Surprise transfer: after six weeks in Costa Bonita, I have been changed to Ca´aguazú 3.2 (3rd branch, 2nd area). It is pronounced with the Spanish Z, similar to "Kawasaki". And it means "Jungle" in Guaraní. It's not a jungle as if we were in the rainforest but it is a lot more removed from the city than my last two areas. I feel like I am back in Ciudad del Este. Lots of walking (thankfully the roads are more sand than rocks), humble houses, and even more Guaraní. I am excited to learn more of that language...maybe I'll even get to teach in it. I wasn't too sad to leave Costa Bonita because it was a pretty tough area and I feel like I worked my hardest and learned a lot there. I will miss some of the members and investigators.

The landscape close to Ca´aguazú.

But the members are great here! I have already met several (we have about 60 in church every week). The Branch President is very funny. His name is President De Wet. He is a blue-eyed South African. I like talking to him in English to listen to his accent, which he also has in Spanish. He also has a dog who nips at the missionaries legs, so I can also check that off the things I have experienced. It appears that the lady who washed the missionaries clothes took advantage of them, so I had to talk to her and tell her basically how things had to be or we would find someone else. So...today we are going to be working hard to find another place to wash them. I'm sure it will turn out fine.

"Elder Portillo and Elder Leishman, who live with us. Yeah, Elder Leishman is a Colts fan! He´s from Brigham City."

I do have to explain that "we" now means four of us. We live with the Zone Leaders, Elder Portillo (who was one of my district leaders in Amambay) and Elder Leishman (who was actually living in my room--he just moved over too when he moved up to be ZL). I am no longer a Zone Leader, now a Distrit Leader. When Elder Knudsen called me, he said he knew I wanted to train and assured me I will have that opportunity in one transfer. That's one of the advantages of being friends with the assistant. My companion is Elder Pacheco from Arequipa, Peru. He is definitely my quietest companion, but this is only his fourth transfer. He is very smart (studied banking...but wants to change to study mechanical engineering!), and works hard. I am excited to be a district leader. I am going to focus a lot on commitments (chapter 11 in Preach My Gospel). Honestly, I am a little nervous. It is a new adventure. I don't feel like I was demoted at all. I have learned that different assignments are just different opportunities to serve and learn.

Elder Pacheco, the new companion

I am still getting to know the people and the area, which is huge! It actually extends to the limit with the new mission boundary with Ciudad del Este. So I am only one ward (and about 100 miles) away from my first area. I really love it here. I helped encourage Gustavo, who was baptized a week before, to come to church and get baptized. He is missing half of his skull from a car accident, but he seems to be doing fine! He says the gift of the Holy Ghost helps him with his anxiety a lot. I am sure will meet a lot of new people. Like CDE, we always have more people to teach than time in the day. I have missed that.

Elder Morgan's new house

We also have the Arnold family in our District. They are the senior couple of the mission (his brother is a Seventy). This week we helped Elder Arnold drive around trying to update the ward list with who still lives here to help this district become a stake. That is mostly what they do all day. We also helped them with a chapel open house. Pretty easy. We just dressed in white and talked about baptism in front of the font. The other missionaries had other assignments in the tours. And, though I moved, I did get to teach English this week. Lots of new experiences!

My new shoes compared with my year old shoes.

Got my package! Loved everything. The candles said they were for my cake...was there supposed to be a cake in the package too? I may just use them on the brownies. Everyone is excited for those. They all loved the mint M&M's. Praying on the knees wasn't anything too profound. Just an important way to improve our prayers, backed up by a few scriptures (Daniel and Enos, and others). Time is flying! Love you all. Keep on doing great things and remembering our eternal goals. 

-Elder Wesley Morgan

Mi Cumpleaños

It is weird to be 20 years old. But that is part of life. Guess I'm more of a man now? In response to Brittany's question about the cigarettes*, we just soaked the cigarettes and put them in the trash. The box-burning was more symbolic.

It has been a great week. I will tell you about 2 investigators I haven't mentioned. First is Jacinto, who the missionaries have visited every once in a while for a long time. He is an old man with rheumatoid arthritis and prostate cancer. He is in a lot of pain and cannot move much. He also doesn't have much support from anyone. So we go by sometimes and sing hymns to him (and he sings songs for us, too). We read the scriptures too sometimes. As we always try to do, we invited him to be baptized, but he really needs to be in a better physical state to start coming to church. Unless someone can give him a ride every week. Any volunteers? Haha.  We have given him a blessing and he has a lot of faith in God. I told him that if he is still here in this life, it is because the Lord still has a mission for him, probably to help us appreciate what we have, see his example of faith, and learn to care for those in need. Then there is Blanquita, who we found this week. She reminds me a bit of Susan Boyle. She is a little old lady who goes into dangerous parts of town in the middle of the night to drag her drunk son back home. She is not afraid of his drug-addict friends and uses a belt to beat him, her ex-husband, or anyone else who tries to hurt her. She is a lot of fun to listen to. She also jumped at the opportunity to give her son a message that will help him change. So keep them all in your prayers. 

We really need to find more people to teach, so I am going to try teaching English classes for the first time. Gema has stopped progressing a bit, for some personal problems. Not many people who we invite are coming to church, including all the less-active members who tell us they know they need to start coming back. But I have learned a lot about stewardship and authority in this area. I don't have the responsibility to reactivate all of them, though sometimes I would like to. I can encourage them to fulfill their member-missionary duties and be good examples of keeping the commandments. But I cannot receive revelation to help them overcome their problems. We also had a companionship who was worried because their bishop was authorizing someone who may or may not have been worthy to perform a baptism. I had to tell them we really don´t have any say in that. So, like I said, I am learning a lot about leadership, especially in the church. 

It was a great week that was a lot colder and rainier. On Tuesday the streets flooded and Elder Ratliff (I was on companion exchanges) and I splashed our way home with very wet socks. Things like that are actually really good--they remind us why we are here and how important is to sacrifice for this cause. Elder Holland's talk in October also motivates me a lot. 

In the phone call I didn't want to say anything in front of my companion, and I am trying to be as positive as I can. Honestly, we have argued a lot more than I have with anyone else. But thankfully, it has improved. We are learning not to get frustrated over little things and how to let hard feelings go. We get along great now. Last night we got in a bit of an argument, but we put it behind us and were able to continue with all the planning and number-reporting we needed to do. That would not have happened a few weeks ago. While reading Our Legacy, I have been wondering why there are not as many miracles now as there were in the early church. One of the many answers I have found is that miracles are not always prophecies or visions. Sometimes they are things like that experience I had last night--forgiveness, getting along. Day-to-day things that are very important in the long run. I am learning a lot that will help me be a better husband.

And as far as the food goes, it is kind of funny that I couldn´t think of a favorite food. The thing is, all the food here is pretty good. Every once in a while it is amazing, but luckily I have only had one or two things that were very weird. I love chipa and milanesa, but I wouldn't put them as my favorite foods because everyone makes them differently. They can be very good or very mediocre. Yeah, that's Paraguayan food. 

Last week there were two days off from school/work for Independence day and Mother's Day. School is the opposite of what it is in the states, they have Summer vacations in December, January, and February. I do hope to go to the temple soon, but even if there is a session in English, I will do it in Spanish. I have always wanted to see how that is. I miss the temple, but I am helping other people get there--William got his recommend and Aaronic Priesthood. Thanks for all the news and birthday wishes. Keep praying (on your knees...I studied today about why that is important) for me and the rest of the Lord's missionaries throughout the world. Love you all!

*I had been nervous that he burned the whole box of cigarettes and would die of lung cancer.  I should have known that Wesley is smarter than that.

Excellent Week

Little things that made me happy this week: We had interviews with the President. I feel like he has a lot more confidence in me. Rather than just looking at me as the surprisingly young Zone Leader, he tells me about his plans and asks my opinion on many of the missionaries in our Zone. With the extra money at the end of last month we bought extra boxes of cereal and White Chocolate Oreos. It has been too long since I ate those. And I gave my first baby blessing for Miguel & Gema´s baby in church. I was very nervous. Might be the only time I am allowed to hold a baby on my mission.

The view from Elder Morgan's apartment.  Argentina is on the other side of the river.

Big things that make me happy: the investigators. We taught Iván, a friend of the bishop´s son who is preparing to get baptized. When reminding him of the date he said "my sister is turning 15...." I was expecting another excuse because Quinceñeras are a big deal sometimes. But then he said, "and she should get baptized before that. Can she get baptized with me?" Haha, we definitely allowed it. They are great. As is the Duarte family. We could not get permission this week to baptize them, but we had them write letters to their dad so he finally lets them. It also makes me very happy to teach Miguel & Gema. They are so happy to be coming back to church and she has absolutely no problem with getting baptized. The only problem is getting them married. She doesn´t turn 18 until June 20th. So we could wait until then to do it, or try to get her famliy to come down from the Chaco. I would love to do it as soon as possible, for many reasons. One of which is that I would love to be in their sealing in a year.

The Duarte Family

I would also love to do that for William, who is getting baptized this week! Haha, he is a huge miracle who we found just Saturday. His wife is Arminda, a more or less active member. He has been taught several times, but never could quite smoking or give up his Jehovah´s Witness beliefs. He just got back form a surfing trip in Uruguay, and he says he is ready to do both. He gave us is his box of cigarrettes to burn. He smokes because he has anxiety issues--he reminds me of Dallin Carlson in the way he trembles. We are trying everything we can so he can quit completely and get baptized this week. May is going to be filled with baptisms.

The box of cigarettes they burned for William

They did not change the Zone Leader title, just the title of our "Zone Leader´s Council." I am definitely writing Corbin and Truman now. We go to internet cafes to email, and we have to be very strict on time. The focus on repentance came from our new area president, Walter F. Gonzalez. I do have my companions sign the title of liberty flag. That is a great idea, as is the mission map.

This is Elder Taborga, who happened to have a Colts shirt one of his companions gave him.

Being a missionary is a very happy thing. It´s a pure, lasting happiness that I am very grateful for. The Book of Mormon is the answer to just about any question (and we have had a LOT of people question us this week). And the Atonement of Christ is the center of our purpose in this life. I love you all so much!

-Elder Wesley Morgan

Running out of subject ideas...it´s the same great Missionary work as always!

We just got out of the Zone Leaders´ Council...which will no longer have the word "Zone." Why? The Church has added a leadership position for sister missionaries, who will also participate in those Councils. Elders will still lead districts and zones, just like it is in the church, but there will be one companionship of "leader" sister missionaries for every 12 companionships in the mission. Should be exciting!

There were a few other interesting announcements about rules and things to change. We are going to focus even more on the repentance process in every commandment and teaching from the Book of Mormon. I really love studying the Book of Mormon, and the rest of the Mission Library--Our Heritage, Our Search for Happiness, True to the Faith, and Jesus the Christ. Each of those books is full of great doctrine and things to apply to missionary work. I also love the For the Strenght of Youth Pamphlet! I usually read those books during breakfast or other short times, and I try to focus my peronsal study on the scriptures and Preach My Gospel. I have found one of the most effective ways to study is to just write questions and doubts that investigators, members, or missionaries have, and look for as many ideas as I can in the scriptures and Preach My Gospel. When I do that, I feel like the Spirit really guides my study through revelation.

Speaking of studying, I am getting a lot better at Spanish. I can now focus on learning words like "machine gun" and "hazelnut." I also like studying a little Guaraní, though I don't think I'll every be able to teach entire lessons in that language. We did get to watch "The Restoration" in German this week with a man we found named Harald Schmitz. He is very funny, because he speaks very broken Spanish. He smokes and drinks a lot, but we're working on him! Then there is Gemma, who speaks Nivaclé, an indigenous language from the Chaco. She is living with a less-active member who is very excited to come back to church and prepare for the temple. They are a very special family, and it really was such a miracle to find her. 

Unfortunately, the Duarte family did not get baptized this week. Their dad did not give them permission, but we will pray and work with the members for this next week! They are great kids, and I honestly don't know how to convince Hector to let them get baptized. But if it's the Lord's will, he will provide a way.

Yes, I think I will know in May for sure if I am staying or going to the other mission. Villa Elisa is the city, and Villa Bonita is the name of the neighborhood. They changed it to "Costa" for the ward...not sure why. We are on the coast of the river between Paraguay and Argentina, which we can see from our house. I'll send pictures of that next week. The elections were not dangerous, staying home was just a precaution. In Guaraní we sing hymns, actually. The old Gospel Principles book in Guaraní has some hymns at the end.

I like what you said about the fact that the people who have problems with their family changing religion are often those who are not active in their own. I have seen personally that they just feel guilty and want to pull other people down so they feel better. Rules like the sabbath and the Word of Wisdom are especially frustrating to them. And for those who honestly have strong testimonies in their religion, it is true that showing them the positive, family orientation and doctrinal center on Christ will help them soften their hearts.

Lots of Love,

-Elder Wesley Morgan

P.S. Fun coincidence. On a bus (we travel a lot) I saw two guys with sporty shirts. One said Tigers in yellow and the other Bruins in red. ¡Qué Loco!

Week 2 with Elder Enriquez

I sent a lot of pictures this week (less time to write). I was going to send one of my companion and I yesterday. We had to be in the apartment all day because of the elections (in case something dangerous happened). I am always saying I want more time to study the scriptures, but that was plenty. I almost went crazy being inside all day. Luckily, my companion is pretty great. He left at 18 because they were experimenting with the young age in a few countries, as President Monson mentioned in the last conference. He is now 20 and goes home in August.  We sing in Guaraní together, he is a happy person, and he helps me clean a lot more than some of my other companions. With my Latino companions, we speak Spanish 95-99% of the time. Honestly I normally think in Spanish now. One cool that shows that my companions were chosen by the Lord. All want to be engineers. Elder Izurieta-software, Elder Gayoso-civil, and Elder Enriquez-mecatronic (also known as electromechanical, I think). Elder Nielsen wants to be a helicopter pilot and Elder Knudsen an eye doctor, but both said their backup plan is engineering. It's nice to work with smart, hard-working people.

Villa Elisa is somewhat far from Asunción. It's like Draper and Salt Lake City. The ward is small but great. I don't know if I told you the ward council volunteered to help us with the family who is going to get baptized this Saturday! We just need to have those meetings more often. I have heard in just about every ward that things "used to be better" before the bishop changed, ward divided, everyone left on missions or got married. Something like that. We are working hard to get all the wards in the stake excited to be a part of this work. We teach a lot of lessons, and we are hoping to find (or baptize) more members to accompany us. The chapel is just outside the ward boundary. We also had a miracle with the Duarte family bringing a friend, and a less-active member coming to church with his girlfriend. 6 investigators in church! 

One more quick question for pondering and answering. I often wonder why it is so hard for people to face the opposition from their family. Then I realized it would be hard for me to change religion with the strong traditions we have. (Completely hypothetical) How would you react if I changed religions?

Thanks for sending the package and letting me know how the ward back home is. I´ll write more next week. Love you all!

-Elder Wesley Morgan

Quintana family in Amamabay

Grau family in Amambay

Lorenzo, the investigator Elder Morgan played chess with in Amambay

Hector Pavón, golden investigator in Amambay

"Juan Ramón. He is the one who has to sell Bingo (lottery) all day to support his drug addict son. I hadn´t seen him in a while because of his work, but he happened to be in the bus terminal with all the missionaries! What a miracle."

Goodbye to Elder Gayoso and Amambay.

Hello to Elder Enriquez and Costa Bonita!

 

Outside Elder Morgan's new apartment

 

Inside Elder Morgan's new apartment