Hace un Frio Loco

It is cold.

What can I say more?

I guess I have no legitimate room to complain for several reasons.

1. Here in the offices we find ways to keep it warm. Central heat is not an option, but we do have an abundance of gas heaters.
2. This is the first time I´ve legitimately felt cold since I arrived in Buenos Aires last September
3. After this week I probably won´t feel this cold again until November of 2011, after I get home from my mission.

The arctic winds have picked up and are carrying icy gusts all through Buenos Aires. There´s not a cloud in the sky, but a frigid wind chill takes care of what the sun doesn´t do. It should get colder tomorrow and yes, EVEN colder on Saturday. They´re talking about a chance of snow this weekend. Just when I thought I had escaped the blasted white powder curse my dreaded Jack Frost nemesis has found me in the southern Hemisphere. I´m so layered up with sweaters my twig like build now resembles the Pillsbury dough boy. And that´s not just because I´ve been living off of deep fried chicken and beef for the past 11 months of my life.

Congratulations to Zane Rigby for the mission call in Columbia. What day do you leave? I was just talking to a sister in our ward last night who served a mission in Columbia. She said there were many missionaries from Chile and Argentina. You´ll surely get familiar with the Buenos Aires slang. (Vos tenés que ser bien preparado eh? No seas trucho)

Anyways, despite the cold we have managed to have several successes this week. One of those is the progression of Damian who is going to get baptized this Saturday. I´ll send you all the pictures next week. His son Gonzalo decided to wait a little bit on his baptism for various reasons. He´s studying for his elementary school finals and wants to be a bit more prepared. We´ll be teaching him with his dad over the coming weeks. Damian bore a fantastic testimony last night in our appointment testifying of the change that he had in his life. He told us that before we came and visited him, God was like his neighbor. He would say hi occasionally when he saw him. But he wasn´t that important. Now he feels that God is the most important thing in his life. More like, well, a father. He is very well-prepared and will have a wonderful baptism this weekend.

In other news, Luis and Veronica were able to make some big strides. Veronica has started reading in Gospel principles in addition to her regular Book of Mormon assignments. She has already read the first 100 pages, and was able to explain to us the reason we have trials in this life based on her knowledge of the pre-existence. She missed church a few weeks ago, and told us that that week was one of the hardest weeks she has had in a long time. She told us it was a sign that God was telling her that she couldn´t deviate from the path that she was on. That she had finally found the "buen camino." Probably the biggest development is as a result of their vacations, they were able to go to the registro civil to set a date for their marriage. They are getting married August 20th, and if all goes well, they´ll get baptized a week later, August 28th. It´s so rewarding to see the changes that they are making in their lives. I always heard that the gospel had the power to change people, but to see it first hand is just that much more of a testimony of the truthfulness of this work.

I would like to thank you all for the prayers in our behalf this week to find the elect. We have felt miracles with finding. I would like to share three of these experiences with you.

Just the other Saturday we were walking in the street when all of the sudden we saw a couple that looked very happy. We said hi to them and they said hi back to us. Elder Pepito and I looked at each other. "Do you think we should talk to them?" I asked. I wasn´t sure if it was the spirit, or if it was just me. Elder Pepito didn´t hesitate, he turned around and started heading toward them. Elder Boyer wasn´t far behind. I asked them if they knew what street we were on. Just something to break the ice. A bit of a white lie as we were on two very well known streets. They gave us "directions" as we were new in the area and weren´t sure where to go. After a brief introduction we introduced ourselves as missionaries from the church. They both looked at each other and smiled replying "that´s just what we were talking about." We talked a bit, and then asked if it would be all right to pass by their house one day and share a message about Christ. They agreed giving us their direction and number to call. Diego and Jessica were their names. Unfortunately they weren´t there when we passed by on Tuesday, but we know it wasn´t coincidence that we found such cheerful people so willing to listen. I´m sure we´ll be able to find them on Saturday.

More recently, on Tuesday night we were walking back to our apartment after our appointment with Luis and Veronica. It was quite cold. We saw a couple standing on the side of the road with a car pulled over. "How are you" we asked routinely. "Really bad" replied the wife loudly. We stopped and inquired as to the situation. As it turned out the car battery had died and they were stranded in the cold. We asked them if we could call someone for them and they had responded that they had already done so. They assured us they were fine and told us to get to warmth as soon as possible. Being slightly in a hurry, but more lazy from a long day, we began walking away to head back to the pension. We hadn´t walked half a block away when I couldn´t get the couple out of the head. I know the spirit speaks with a still small voice, but this time around it felt more like a blaring voice shouting "There they are! Right there! Stranded in your path! It´s game time lazy! Share a message!" I turned around and returned to them explaining, with the same excuse, that we were new in the area and that we needed to know where the street Serrano was. After, we began to share a message with them, testifying of the blessings they could receive. They responded that they lived a ways away. On the Calle Tupac. That was coincidentally one of the streets we walked on most, and in an area where we had been looking for investigators for the past transfer fruitlessly. We agreed to pass by in the coming days and have an appointment tonight to go by and see them.

And then last but certainly not least, one of my favorite contacts of the mission happened last night. We were walking back to the apartment yet again, when all of the sudden a man on a motorcycle stopped and shouted out to us in English "are you Mormons?" Fearing a prospective robbery we stopped and kept our distance. "I want to know where the church is" he shouted again. This time we approached him, telling him the direction. The man began to explain to us in perfect English that he had seen us walking around his house frequently and wanted to know when he could hear our message. A little dumbfounded we explained that we went to the houses of people in this neighborhood to offer prayers with them and help them as best we could. He introduced himself as Savior, and explained that he lived too far away for us to visit him. We asked him what street he was on and replied "Hernandez" One street down from Tupac, where we had needed to find so badly. We set an appointment and got his phone number. He explained a bit of his circumstance, how he was studying and working right now alone. I asked him why he called out to us, but he still couldn´t quite explain. To tell the truth we were so dumbfounded by the man´s interest that we weren´t able to find out as much information as we would have liked. He promised that if we couldn´t find him at night that he would come to church on Sunday. And then Savior sped off into the night as mysteriously as he had appeared.

These are but a few of the finding opportunities we have had over the past week. I know that there are many more in store for us as we continue working to find the elect. I think of the finding experience from last night, how many days we spent fruitlessly wandering around on those streets, thinking we were being rejected, thinking it was pointless. But as a result of our consistency in getting out and working, even if it was late, we were being watched. I learned a lot about what it means to follow the Spirit this week. I also learned about how God truly does provide a way when we´re doing our best. I know the church is true and we have a loving father in heaven who knows each of His children. I love missionary work and the spirit that guides it.