Transferred to Santo Domingo!!

Goodbye Ambato!

Hello Everyone!

Well this week was changes (transfers) and it's my turn to go to the coast! I am pretty excited because every missionary here longs to go to where I will be at. Its called Santo Domingo. For me personally I don't like the heat but I want to get to know all area of Ecuador so I got the city, now I am going to the coast, and I only lack the Oriente! Although I can't lie I am going to miss this ward a lot... ALOT. Especially one family named Family Arias. They are literally like my family here. When we are sick they are always there to help us, they always are so supportive of the work, and just have this special love for us missionaries. The changes have changed so we receive the calls as to where we are going Sunday night, then we have P-day free, and then Tuesday morning we leave. It used to be we receive them Sunday night and then leave the very next morning bright and early. So it was nice because we spent most of the day with their boys and we are going to have dinner with them a little later on. It is a bit hard because I know there will be crying involved and it kills me. ha But its all apart of the mission. Like the hymn goes, "Ill go where you want me to go dear Lord!!"

This week was a hard week. I don't know what about it but always the weeks right when we leave are the hardest weeks. Its like all the investigators don't want to listen to us and we have no success. Elder Mamani was the motor this week and it was so amazing to see that. At times I felt like I don't know how I am going to make it through these next few lessons, but with his enthusiasm and with the spirit so strongly in the lessons it was amazing to see the change in myself. The change in attitude and the change in spirit. I loved the opportunity to fast this past weekend. I love that Heavenly Father gives us these trials so that we can become what He wants us to become. Part of the reason why this week was so hard is we found one of the investigators making bad decisios (decisions) We found him and he was with his cousins doing not very good stuff. Although I was a little mad at him, I did realize that I have developed a love for him. Because I just felt this love and longing for him to make the right decisions not for the reason that we can get another baptism and have good numbers, but for the fact that I know with a surety that this gospel is the fuente (source) of happiness. It was the first time in the mission I cried over an investigator. But it helped me realize how Heavenly Father must feel when we make the wrong decisions. Especially ESPECIALLY me! But I will never ever lose the hope. Never. It was a tender mercy also to see that other investigators that we are teaching attend church.. At the beginning of sacrament meeting, there was no one and we can't lie we were really discouraged. But 2 minutes past and some of our Menos activos (less actives) walked in, 5 minutes passed and some investigators walked in, 10 minutes and more investigators!! Tender mercies of the Lord... He will always comfort us. I love this work. It has brung brang (Elder Reynolds is losing his English!!!) haha me closer to God. My relationship with him is real and so strong. He lives. I know it with all my heart. Our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are real beings. And they are there for us in whatever phase in life we are in. I love you all! Bring a question to General Conference!! What a privilege we have!!! I love you! 

Elder Reynolds

P-day Adventures!

Volcano Quilotoa

It is a water-filled caldera and the most western volcano in the Ecuadorian Andes.

Elevation: 12,841

Last Eruption: 1280

Location: Pujili Canton, Cotopaxi Province, Ecuador

Elder Reynolds and Elder Wilson

Exploring Ecuador

Brotherly Love

Wow, these Elders are tall!

Stake Conference filled our little Chapel!

Hello everyone!

I am sorry but this one is going to be a short one! This week was a great week because we had Stake Conference and Zone Conference! Even though I love the work, I love when the leaders of the church get to talk to us and we get to listen. What a blessing! I love how here in Ecuador they put so much emphasis in the conferences! They make flyers and they talk about them for weeks and weeks in advance! It just showed me that it is all really about the mindset we have when we go into things. Talking about spiritual or about temporal things. When we know or are excited to experience this specific meeting or something like that, we will always get so much more out of it because of our mindset.. it is that simple!!

The topic of the conferences was mainly about obedience. But not about obedience for blessings, rather about obedience because we love our Heavenly Father. They were all telling stories about how when the kids are unusually nice it is because something they want or something happened.. haha how true that is!! It is the same with our Heavenly Father. No doubt there is always promised blessings that come when we obey an commandment. But that shouldn't be the sole purpose of following the commandments. Mas que todo (more than anything) it is because we love Him. Truly love Him. It was also a really crazy conference because we had over 800 people in our little chapel! haha crazy stuff! Because usually there is something like 100 people and it felt a little squished! But it was nice being a big group of saints being there because we love HIM!

Our investigators are doing good. Abraham didn't get confirmed a member of the church the last Sunday because of Stake Conference so he is going to get confirmed this next Sunday. He is super excited for it! It is amazing to see the change in his rostro (face). It is amazing to see first hand the power of the atonement in one's life. 

We visited an awesome volcano this Monday called quilotoa! It is a Laguna but it used to be a volcano!! WWAAAYYYY cool. We had to get up at 4:30 to goooo.. but it was well worth it!! Last Monday we went to a waterfall that is called pailon del diablo! Look it up on YouTube because pictures don't do the work to see the majesty of it!!!

The mission is going great. When we truly discover the why of all things, we see so much more and are motivated to not only resist temptation, but alejarnos (get away) from it too! As far away as we can get. This is an awesome work we are in. I love you!

Elder Reynolds

Doesn't he look so happy???!!!

Baptism of Abraham!

Abraham's Baptism

September 9, 2017

Hello everyone!!

this week was a great one! We had our first baptism as a companionship this change and we couldn't be happier! It is such a blessing to be a part of the conversion process of oneself. Abraham is such a great guy and has made some major changes in his life and it is simply amazing to see the progress and the testimony he has over these months that we have taught him. It just shows that anyone can change that is willing to change. We simply just need a desire to change and the Lord will help us. Obviously its not going to be easy but I know that if we are truly willing to do it all for the Lord, He will bless us with things that we didn't think were possible to accomplish. One of my most favorite things about a baptism of a convert is hearing their testimony afterwards. Abraham was telling us that he loves this gospel and he truly has felt a change in his life and he feels something different about himself. He said when he came up out of the water he really felt like a new man. I can testify that that is exactly the reason for baptism. The opportunity to start new again even though we may have many years under our belt. What an opportunity!!!! What a blessing it is!! And every week we have the same exact opportunity when we take the santa cena  (Holy dinner/sacrament). We are so underserving but surely our Heavenly Father loves us soooo much. I am so humbled to be apart of this great work. That really was the best thing ever to see Abraham make this covenant with our Heavenly Father. 

This week was also full of much more experiences. Unfortunately this week was also filled with heartache with other famileis (families).. It absolutely kills me to drop someone.. We are thinking about doing that because we don't see any progress and man that is the absolute worst!! Ugh... But I have felt more of a love for the people here. Seeing the change in others and in my life makes it hard to let people make their own decisions. But agency is what we fought for before this life! I feel like a parent having these feelings of letting people go do their own thing and just left with my companion to be sad together hahah I was telling my companion that and we just laughed because it is kind of true... I love all of you so much. Keep at it. Never give up! A testimony is so fragile. Never let temptation get the bet of us. I love you!

Elder Reynolds

Ambato Zone Conference

"We will be the Lord's Missionaries to bring the world His truth"

~Army of Helaman

P-day Adventures

Another great week...Another Baptism!!!

We are in the 4th Quarter!!! Give it all you got!

Hello everyone!

This week was another great week to be a missionary! Elder Mamani and I are finally getting better so we are having more desires to serve. Elder Mamani is such a great example to me. Even though he only has 3 months in the mission, he is so mature and so ready to serve with me! We are doing great. At times I find myself with a lot of pride, but the antidote to pride always is serving. It is sometimes hard to bite my tongue and just serve haha but it is always the best outcome.

Our investigators are doing just great! We are going to have another baptism this weekend!! His name is Abraham. He is doing awesome with all the things we have committed him with. I can testify of the importance of goals in our lives. As a missionary, we always center our lessons around the compromisos (commitments) that we are going to leave with the investigators. For example, we always ask the question, "What do we want from this visit?" "What do we want the investigators to do from this visit?" And then we plan from there. It is so effective when we plan this way because at times it is easy to just give a lesson. But I feel like we are really teaching people instead of lessons. We can feel a difference in our planning session now. The spirit truly directs us and it is quite clear what we are supposed to teach that day with that person. This was the case with Abraham. He wasn't keeping his compromisos (commitments) and we were thinking about dropping him but we started little with reading just a verse a day. And from there his conversion process started. And this week he is getting baptized!! Man how beautiful the spirit is when someone is willing to listen and submit him or herself to the promptings of the spirit. 

We had an activity from la obra misional (missionary work) this Saturday! We planned to have a presentation in a park near the church of the plan of salvation. it was kind of awfully planned haha because all of Friday we were preparing with our mission leader to get all the things done. I felt like I was in high school again! Scrambling to do everything last minute! ha But it was a great success. How beautiful it really was to explain the plan of salvation to those who didn't know. It was so awesome because the people would just go on a question rant and ask us "why" and I love that this gospel can answer every question!!! The true gospel has no secrets. I love how Heavenly Father wants us to ask questions because He wants us to know more and more !! It was funny because the members of the ward were acting as us as to find and invite people to come to the presentation. They were SO SO SO uncomfortable at the beginning, but by the end they were so excited!! They got bit by the missionary bug! 

This work is true. At times it is hard but like Elder Holland said "salvation is not a cheap experience!" I love you all! Keep at it. We are in the 4th quarter! Give it all you got!

Elder Reynolds

Elder Reynolds loving Ecuador!

Making it snow in Ecuador...with Styrofoam!

Love these missionaries of Ecuador!

Preparing for the Ward Missionary activity!!!!