December 30, 2014 - All I Wanted For Christmas Was A Baptism

Hello Family!

To answer your questions, yes I have recovered from our skype session. I forgot how much I missed you guys! I honestly have kind of lost myself in working here in Rio Santiago and it was kind of shocking to see you guys. And Max (our dog/perro). Especially shocking to see max. That was really weird (he can't stand perros now:). But I had fun and I hope I didnt seem too weird. And mom my English is deteriorating I think because I hardly speak any English with Elder Palma. Until Mothers Day Momma!

Nice one Matt. Always with you feet problems. Did they helicopter you out of the blizzard? I can only imagine the raucous you caused! YOU AND YOUR BALLERINA FEET!  (Matthew got hurt skiing this week)

This week was excellent because we BAPTIZED. His name is Eddy and I will try to send a picture or two. He is 9 years old and the sweetest kid ever. And he is super white as you might see in the picure I may or may not send so he is my brother.  One pretty funny thing happened during the service that I will note. The 2nd counselor in the branch presidency was there and we were wondering why he was there because no one hardly invites him to speak at anything because he is 90 years old and he knows he doesnt have much time left so he says whatever he wants for however long he wants. Anyways he gave the concluding remarks at the end for 20 MINUTES. Just saying random things about his life and who knows what. Eddy was dying because he has ADD or something and not paying attention so this old guy gave him machete during his baptismal service. It was great. Then at the end he went up to Eddy and started shaking his cheeks with his hands and that was that. But everything up until that was spiritual and there werent any problems. The old people in Rio Santiago make everything interesting. 

We have another baptism for this Saturday at 5. And then 2 more kids will be baptized on the 11th! We are starting 2015 off really really strong which makes me really happy. We are focusing right now on finding a family to baptize. I feel like Heavenly Father is really preparing us as missionaries and is preparing a chosen family that we will find, teach, and baptize. Will you guys pray for that too? Our goal for Januray is 4 baptisms with one man and one family. We have 3 of those already pretty much set but our challenge is to baptize a family in this month and I know that with faith it will come to pass.

I have really learned in these past 3 weeks to have faith. And what it means to have faith. For the first 3 weeks and still even now, we have been rejected and rejected and rejected. More than normal it seems. But everything has happened for a reason. So that we would go to another callejon to find a less active family with a little kid to baptize, so we would contact one more person that wants to hear more. Heavenly Father lets us fail and fail so that we can come out higher and higher. I have learned to suffer with patience and with enthusiasm. And to smile when there is nothing to smile about, just the fact that I am a missionary, which is reason enough! The whole thing about faith is the attitude we have about the obedience we show. You can give a good gift, but give it unwillingly and God will give it right back to you. And the blessings will remain ungiven. I have been reading in Moroni 7 this week and in Enos the whole month and both have taught me a tremendous amount about faith. And especially how it is connected to prayer. My prayers have improved so much this month and so has my capacity to have and demonstrate faith. The two are not unlinked. 3 NE 18:19,20. I want to keep improving on that and getting better because I know Heavenly Father is just waiting to bless us as we show him our willingness. 

And thanks again for the gifts! I have given away soooo many stickers and the kids love those things. They put them on all over their body its hilarious. And Grandma thank you for the remote control cars!!! Those things are sweet! We will definitely be using them in  a district or zone p day. And mom tell aunt kristen thank you for the Lake Powell book, but it was really cool of them to do that. I hope everyone had an excellent Christmas and Utah is treating everyone well. Matt, take care of yourself young boy. 

Love.

Elder Smith.

PS- Hey momma the mission office told me to tell you to tell people that send me packages to always put my middle name on it because they've had some struggles figuring out who to give stuff to. Theres two Jacob Smiths! Why didn't you name me Akish!

Eddy's baptism

Church members

These 3 pictures were sent to us by his companion, Elder Palma

Love him!!!

December 23, 2014 - It's a Christmas Miracle!!

Feliz Navidad party animals,

I’ll just cut right to the chase. SKYPE. THIS THURSDAY. 11:00 AM (that is the morning) GUATEMALA TIME. I don’t know if we are in the same time or what so just internet that or something. I will be skyping from a mission account. I will call you guys first. And we only have 5 minutes to talk. Which is a shame because I really wanted to talk to you for a little bit more. But the Lord only is giving us 5 minutes this year. Sacrifice brings miracles! Just kidding I think we have 40 and I hope I gave my sweet mother a miniature heart attack. It will be fun I think!

I will recount an experience from this week that basically sums up the whole week. So. For the past couple of days we have been rejected and rejected and rejected. By members, converts, investigators, perros (dogs), you name it. We still found a way to achieve our goals but we found no one positive and yeah everyone rejected us. And we have not baptized in December yet. Yesterday in our mission wide prayer that we say at 8 o’clock every morning it was my turn to say the prayer. In our studies of Enos this month (we read Enos once a day) I have learned a great deal about praying with faith and letting the spirit guide my prayers and allowing the things in our minds penetrate our hearts. I expressed my feelings in my prayer to Heavenly Father (or at least tried to in my Spanish) that we had been working like beasts to achieve our goals and to find people to come unto Christ. During my prayer I said ''Heavenly Father, please bless us with a miracle today.'' Then I paused, waited a second and said ''Or dos.'' Elder Palma and I both felt the spirit very strongly during and after the prayer, then we finished our studies and whatnot and began to work. Then the miracles: First, we found a less active family that has a little guy that is 9 years old. Baptizing him this week. He has been to church 3 times already. Miracle. Then another little guy. 10 years old. Lives with a family here in the ward. Been to church twice. Baptizing him this week. Oh how wonderful it is! We really have been working so hard these past two weeks. I have never been more tired and more happy and so grateful to my Heavenly Father. But yes, these were and are our CHRISTmas MIRACLES!!!

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas. I don’t know if you have had a chance to watch or share the ''He is the Gift'' video/message but I challenge you to do so. It was inspired by the first presidency and that thing is so powerful. Like magic. They gave us 300 of these little cards to give out and one elder said that they have the priesthood because they are so powerful in getting new investigators. It awesome. We will go up to a house in a street full of evangelicals and right off the bat they will tell us to scram but then we will interrupt them and say ''But we have a gift for you! A Christmas Gift!'' Then we will teach them a lesson about Christmas, give them the ''He is the Gift'' card and then set an appointment to meet with them again and it has been so useful. I challenge the Smith Family to do the same!!! I want our family to baptize someone and to have the missionaries teach someone in our home. And this can help immensely. This is the gift to give the Savior! Not to be nicer, to pet your dog more, to clean the dishes without being asked, but to give the gift of eternal life through this precious and plain Gospel!

I love you guys. And thank you SOOO much for the gifts. I received packages from my awesome family, Grandma and Grandpa, the Lebarons, the Robison’s and Trent and Emily. The only one I couldn’t wait for was the Lebarons. Tell them thank you for the tie and candy!! and Trent and Emily for the missionary cards and for their awesome Christmas card!! And the Patagonia and fish shirt (forgotten at home when he left) were awesome. And the peanut butter candies and jerky –yessss! It was all awesome and I will open the rest on Thursday.

Love you guys,

Elder Smith

We were very touched and grateful to receive this email and picture from his companion today and we thought his english was great! 

I´m Elder Palma comanion of your son and I wish you merry christmas

Thanks for sent your son at the misiion he is really awesome and i´m so grateful that he eis my compañion 

I know that this is the best experince that a man can be in the life and God will bless your life and will change the life of Elder Smith.

Sorry i don´t good write in inglish  sorry for my mistakes

MERRY CHRISTMAS

FROM THE MISIIONARY FIELD

GUATEMALA CITY CENTRAL

Jacob and his companion with things we sent them.  Behind them is the poster the Granite Bay 2nd ward made for him- a much needed decoration!  We had a wonderful opportunity to send Jacobs Christmas gifts in a duffle bag (behind Elder Palma) with Christopher Mullen and his wife who, while on their trip to Guatemala, hand delivered it to Jacobs mission office.  We were BEYOND grateful for their kindness and generosity!!! The Mullen's couldn't have made it easier for us as Ann Marie Mullen, took the bag for Jacob across the country to Christopher, when she went out to babysit for them!!!  SO GRATEFUL for such wonderful friends!

December 16, 2014 - La Primera Navidad!

BUUUUEENNOOOS!

Well just a little update on the change meeting and what happened! Elder Raudales left me last Tuesday and became a traveling assistant. He basically goes and does divisions every day with a new companionship and never sleeps and he’s an assistant on top of that. We have 4 assistants right now. And I received a Step Father!!! His name is Elder Palma from neighboring Mexico! He is a stud. For the past year he has been a zone leader and Presidente Markham sent him to Rio Santiago where he will finish his mission. I am his 6th kid or something so he knows what he is doing. It has been weird getting used to a new companion but I LOVE Elder Palma and he loves me too. He was appalled when he came to the house because Elder Raudales never cleaned it once in the entire 3 changes he was here. So yesterday for P Day we cleaned the house!!! What an adventure that was. We found some interesting things and insects. But now the house is clean and we can feel the Spirit more abundantly! And Elder Palma cooks breakfast for me every morning. Today we had french toast. In Guatemala. So he is awesome. He was also shocked to know that I had only been eating fake soup for 6 weeks and he told me he would nurse me back to health. What a guy. He is seriously an excellent example of Christ like Service. I am trying to do the same.

This week was great. We are already seeing miracles in this change. There is a young kid that has already been to church twice and we will be baptizing him in the next week or two and his sister the week after. They are part of a family whose son just returned from his mission in Uruguay. He came back and has basically just continued his mission in Rio Santiago. He comes out with us a ton and in his two homecoming talks he has given he gave the ward machete for not welcoming Christ into their home and helping the missionary work in this area. The ward is really starting to come behind us and I feel some miracles approaching. We have various other investigators that are progressing but nothing of great import. Elder Raudales and the other traveling assistant came to do divisions with us yesterday so he wasn’t even gone for a week! It was awesome and a confidence booster and I learned a ton from these two experienced missionaries. It was fun to see him again.

Hmm what else. Here’s two cool quotes.

''I pray because the need flows out of me, I cant help myself. It doesn’t change God, It changes me.''

CS Lewis

''My life is my message''

Mahatma Gandhi (matt show this to grant haha)

Mosiah 2 41  (obey!)

Know that I love you guys so much and I am really happy here!

Elder Smith

We're pretty sure his new companion is to his left.

Another view of his "shower"

No idea:)

December 9, 2014 - Changes! Ah!

Mi Familia!

Como estamos!!!  We received our change meeting information yesterday during zone pday and....Elder Raudales is leaving to do some marvelous work elsewhere in the Guatemala City Central Mission and I will be staying in Rio Santiago and receiving a stepdad (a new trainer to finish my last 6 weeks of training). I am excited for this change but also bummed because Elder Raudales and I thought we would both be here for Christmas. He has been a miracle in my mission and more broadly my life. I mentioned in my last email that I received a lot of correction and machete and things but literally ALL of it was for my benefit. All of it. It is just the process of learning and growing and my selfish new missionary soul could only see it in one light. But this past week I have applied the things I learned and we found success. That is how we change: we find what’s wrong and then we fix it. We learn what to do and then we do it. That is repentance and obedience. I am so grateful for Elder Raudales and am sad to send him off tomorrow. And we will see who I get tomorrow! I am sure I will learn more and more. I will have to direct the work and show him where everything is for a little bit but I am confident in my abilities and in what Elder Raudales has taught me.

One of the great successes of this week was that almost every door I knocked- opened and heard (maybe not accepted) our message. Mom and Dad, I don’t know if you had a ward fast for me, or something, but it was great! We were able to have a lot of lessons and find a lot of new investigators that we will be helping to progress in the Gospel. I am learning to love the people and I think they recognized it. This was a tremendous confidence builder and really helped me to feel like I am progressing and learning something. Dad do you have any tracting ideas from your mission? It is a little different here but I don’t know, shoot me some ideas!

The Lords work is progressing in Rio Santiago. Our investigators are progressing. I am a bit nervous to do this without Elder Raudales but I am sure I will be OK and the Lord will help me. Thank you for your prayers on my behalf. They are felt and answered.

We are reading Enos as a mission every day of December. I would suggest reading his story this next FHE and to develop the talent of offering Mighty Prayer. Because by the prayer of the righteous miracles are brought to pass. Enos was a stud and a mighty hunter I have to guess.

Love you guys a ton and get ready for Christmas!!! Only two weeks left...time flies. The season of santa clause is in full swing in Rio Santiago and we are trying to help the people to see the real reason of CHRISTmas in this month. There are a couple lights here and there, a million fireworks, and supposedly lots of food coming my way in the next 3 weeks. Yes.

Love,

Elder Smith

Oh yeah and there were 2 small earthquakes this week, it was weird

December 2, 2014 - Changing

Hello my family!

Happy one day late birthday Papa! I love you 1000 times more being 1000 miles away from you. Same goes for all you guys. Hope you guys had a wonderful Thanksgiving and thanked the pioneers for all the turkey they brought to this great land of America. How miraculous was that miracle. Mommy to answer your question the Guatamaltecos could care less about thanksgiving...Elder Raudales thought it was a weird thing to do. But I think on that day I had chicken pieces, which is kind of like thanksgiving. But oh how I thought of the mashed potatoes I was missing! I hope you all ate an extra portion for me. Sounded like a fun week for you all with the family in town and dinners and turkey bowl. And congrats to mom and dad for finishing your second eagle project. I can do anything my parents put their minds to! Matthew good job too.

This week I have been receiving a lot of instruction and corrections (called machete) from Elder Raudales. He is just worried I think that when he leaves I won’t be able to carry on the work. He really wants the best for me but it has been hard week of stretching and growing and learning. I learned that I need to WANT to change if I really am to make these necessary changes that I need to make to be able to be a messenger of Jesus Christ. It begins with this desire. But oh how hard it is to change my stubborn self! But I know that through the Saviors Atonement I can do all. It hurts but that’s because I am shedding parts of me that are not good. Mom it reminded me of that one part of the book (Chronicles of Narnia) where Eustace becomes a dragon and to become himself again he has to have Aslan tear through his old skin. It’s painful but necessary. The Lord is always willing to change us if we are willing to let Him. I am coming to the point where I am letting Him. This life is all about repentance isn’t it? All about becoming better than you were the day before and bettering yourself. Will you guys pray that I can make the necessary changes that I need to to be a successful missionary?

We found a really awesome man this week that I really believe will be baptized. His name is Gonzalo and he is the humblest and sweetest old man I have ever met. He lives in a part of our area that takes 30 minutes to walk to…uphill. Anyway when we found him we were out of breath and tired as ever! Anyways we found him this week and he is so willing to do everything that we tell him. So willing to learn, so willing to pray, so willing to change. He is a great example for me. We will be continuing to teach him this week. We have a few other investigators that should be entering the waters of baptism in the coming weeks. People just need to come to stinking church! We teach and teach and teach and teach all week and people are so pilas but then when it comes to Sunday all we see are empty chairs and broken commitments... I am exaggerating a little bit but it gets discouraging sometimes. But it is my fault for not letting them see the importance of this commitments. Just another thing I need to work on.

Passed my first full month in the mission field. I think I learned more this November than in any month in my whole life. It’s good. And don’t worry; I am still happy. I am learning to love the growing and humbling and changing process. That’s why I am here is it not?! I don’t want you guys to recognize the person that I become. I want to be totally different.

Have an excellent week and remember that HE IS THE GIFT.

Elder Smith

PS (to Kathryn) - LOVE you my beautiful sister of mine. Keep being awesome and sleeping and decorating my room. IT BETTER NOT BE PINK