Monday, July 14, 2014

WOW

Holy smokes this place is so great! I love it! This transfer has gone by so fast! It is crazy! I only have two weeks left! Then Elder Bechan is back to Holland and I'll have a next comp! It is crazy! But anyway we have had an amazing week this week! It has been so good! One thing I have really learned with Elder Bechan is to just keep going and never stop! We have seen so many blessings from that! 
So we have been meeting with a kid named K'lil. (I actually think it is spelled Khalil but I just like spelling it with the comma to the top!) But yeah he is a 13 year old who is a friend of one of our strongest member families, the Yearwoods. And they have a grandson who they bring to church who is about K'lil's age and so he invited K'lil to seminary and so K'lil went to an entire year of seminary. The missionaries I guess weren't able to teach him or something but we have started teaching him and he is getting baptized on the 27th. I am so excited for that! We got a super prepared all because members invited him to Church functions. You're probably thinking, "It can't be that easy!" But look it is! This has been member missionary work at it's finest!
Also Anil is doing well. He has great desires but he wants it to be a family thing so we are going to see what we can do to help that! He is a super cool guy! I love going over to the Phagu's and visiting with them! They are so funny and our becoming my family in Barbados!
So this week something that I thought a lot about is how the atonement blesses our lives in so many ways! Something that I thought about is how it makes it so we always have someone that we can turn to and how because of it we are able to become like him. In zone conference Pres. Mehr said something along the line of "He is going to continue to refine you because He loves you. And He want's you to become like Him." That's why trials come. He loves us and knows that is the only way we can become like Him. So with whatever it may be right now, make sure that you are doing the right things and you're not just putting yourself through this trial. And for the most common type of trial or things just happening because we're being refined, turn to him and know that He is there. He has been there before! I know that! I love you all!
Love,
Elder Smith

Wherever we find ourselves on the path of discipleship, whatever our worries and challenges may be, we are not alone. You are not forgotten. We can choose to reach for God’s hand in our need. We can face our challenges with prayer and trust in the Lord. And in the process we become more like Him.
-Jean A Stevens

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

I Love This Place!

Man this week was a good week! We have found a lot of cool people and our members are fantastic here! Probably one of my favorite member families is the Phagu's. (Pronounced Paw-goo) But anyway they are the best. Brother Phagu is one of the funniest people I think I have ever met in my entire life. He is a funny man. He is the Young Mens president and he is really focusing on getting the youth on missions. He is a great leader. He is like the Mark Wilcox of this branch. Sister Phagu is the seminary teacher and the youth really like her too. They are really excited about missionary work and have helped us a lot already. We are teaching Brother Phagu's brother Anil right now. He is here from Guyana so that he can earn some money and take it back home to his family. He is also a very funny guy! But yesterday Anil fasted for the whole 24 hours that his family would be open to the gospel because his wife is Hindu to the bone and so I really hope that works out. We haven't gotten super far with teaching him yet but he came to church yesterday and seemed to like it. But he is just a way cool guy so we'll see what happens!
We also get fed by Sister Armstrong 3 times a week. Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday. She gets us our veggies since me and Elder Bechan hardly ever have any! Ha but she is just a crazy funny old lady who speaks with a really strong Bajan accent so I can hardly ever understand what she is saying! Ha but she is cool and can for real cook food.
Yesterday at the end of the day we went to see the Phagu's and talk to them about the fast and we get there and Branch President Alleyne's car is there and were like, "Oh boy this can't be good." But then we go in and Bro. Phagu,.Anil and Pres. Alleyne are just chilling and having a man's movie night. Ha so we obviously had to interrupt that if we were going to stay and talk so they stopped the movie and we talked about a fireside we're going to have to encourage the youth to go on missions. So we all talked about it for about an hour and 15 minutes, even Anil! Ha but then we came up with a plan for the fireside. Elder Bechan and I are both taking part! He is going to share his conversion story and how he decided to go on a mish and I am going to share some mission stories and how it's blessed me. So that will be sweet! I love this branch!
I know that as members take part in the work there is just so much power! So just always remember to do your part and be an example of the believers! I love you all! 
Love,
Elder Smith

"If we do not … willingly teach others of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ through the Prophet Joseph Smith, who will?"
-M. Russell Ballard
 Me and Elder Beck with our Carribean faces
 Me and Elder Beck decided to trap the Sister's car
 The Horse races
 Lunch at Sister Armstrongs
Lunch at Sister Armstrongs

The Bados!

Man I love this place! It is super hot but it is so amazing! I have just grown to love it here! Elder Bechan and I have been working really hard to get things going here and get some progressing investigators. Elder Bechan is a great missionary so it's been great!
This week was also zone conference so I sang a song that I found named, "I have not seen, Yet I believe" It went well and so I was really grateful for that! I also got to have Elder Hatch stay with us the entire time and that was great! I love that guy! He was with us a lot and I got to go on splits with him and so I grew a lot from that. I have been working on sharing my testimony about the Book of Mormon with everyone! There is so much power in that book and I have noticed that when I share about it things go a lot better and the spirit is able to testify a lot more than if I were to just beat around the bush. So that was great to see that and have that experience.
I still don't have a ton to writeabout the Bados yet but I will write about our recent convert, Desmond. He is in his 70's and he is kinda crazy. But I haven't met a more loving person. He is incredible. He literally has nothing but he is so kind and always so happy. He got to meet President Mehr yesterday and it just made him so happy! Ha he was just beaming! But Desmond is just an amazing guy and probably my favorite thing is he calls me Smithy! Ha it makes me laugh! I love that guy! He is going to introduce us to everyone that he knows on tuesday! Ha so that is going to be great!
The Bados is sweet! I love it here. It is hard but as we work hard I know the Lord will bless us! That;s the way He works. If you want something good then make something happen! I love you all! 
Love,
Elder Smith