February 25, 2015 - Baptism!

Elder Martinez and I baptized this week!! A youngin named Elvis. It was a literal miracle. It is strange but every time we have had a baptism here in Rio Santiago, something goes wrong or we only have 3 days to teach all the missionary lessons or we cant find the person the day of the baptism/interview etc. But EVERYTHING ALWAYS WORKS OUT. My testimony of the Lord´s hand in everything has been strengthened here tremendously. Like I have said before I think, if we do all we can and are obedient with exactness, He will do the rest. I will try to include a picture if I have time of the baptism.

We had 6 investigators attending church, an all time high for me in Rio!! I was so excited and counted those 6 souls like 10 times to make sure. The fruits of our labors and prayers are finally coming to fruition. It was so wonderful. Right before the sacrament started, a man of 50-60 years walked in and said ''My name is Nicodemus, I am here because I want to adapt myself to your religion''. That’s a pretty sweet thing for a missionary to hear. We can make that happen sir! But yeah Sunday was a day full of miracles; we even had our first family attending church! So good.

This week we had zone conference, divisions with the traveling assistants, house inspections, and divisions with the other elders in my district. A couple highlights. A new mission rule that we have is that we must walk with the Book of Mormon in hand at all times in public, even on P Day. I have been learning the power of that book. People here are literally scared of it! It is much easier to find the chosens (little side note, we call the chosens here sheep and the unchosen the goats, so if I say that you know what it means) and to leave the goats quickly. I learned from President Markham about ''Building Bridges''. There are bridges between everyone here in the Church that is True. And as we construct our end of the bridge, our efforts will come together. A few bridge points are: missionaries, ward leaders, converts, investigators, and the temple. Between each one of those is a relationship (a bridge) that is to be built. How is it to be built? Follow the spirit and PMG! Just a thought for you dad in the high council maybe. We cleaned the house till it shined. But we still have a farm in the backyard that continues to grow. I love it here!

I think I completed 5 months last week. I am really understanding how to enjoy myself. There are a lot of aspects in the Work that can make one discouraged, but there are SO MANY MORE that can make one truly happy. That is one goal I have for myself, to always be happy. And it’s working. It is rare the time when my companion and I aren’t laughing or smiling and saying ''we love you'' to both the goats and the sheep. Because that’s what its all about!! Living and loving and doing it all with a smile. Grandpa sent me a little note about 'forgetting oneself'' to be truly happy. I think I am starting to defeat the natural man inside and it is making a huge difference.

I love you Father and Mother and Sister and Brother. You 4 mean everything to me and you must know that I love you. Don’t forget whose work it is!

Elder Smith

February 17, 2015 - February Miracles

Buueeeeeenoooos!

Wow what a week! Where do I start... Well we worked really, really hard this week and ran everywhere to find a miracle baptism for this coming Sunday (the 22nd) and we found a lost sheep! If you remember I baptized Eddy in December. We found out through a member that his 12 year old older brother has not been baptized or something wrong happened with his records and so he has to be baptized! He has been going to church so he will be able to be baptized this Sunday! There is always, always, always a miracle like this in Rio Santiago! When we are working like crazy and doing everything we can, the Lord will bless us and the ones we serve. I have tried and proved Him time and time again. The windows of heaven are always open!

Dad, you mentioned something about service and this new website that came out for the church - I learned a powerful lesson this week concerning service. We have a convert in the ward that was baptized a little under a year ago and has fallen into his old ways and drinking and smoking and wasting his life away. I saw him at church one time on my first Sunday here. I have taught him so many times about the Word of Wisdom and the Atonement and the Sabbath Day and all the Doctrine and with Elder Raudales and Elder Palma saw zero success with him. But that is why Elder Martinez came - to teach me and to change this man! This week we saw him working on a hill by a member’s house cutting weeds with his machete. We walked up the hill and shared a message with him. I (in my heart) had given up on him, but Elder Martinez felt impressed to ask him if we could do something for him. He asked us to help him the following day cut weeds and clean up this hill so that the owner could plant beans and squash and stuff. So we did. And it changed EVERYTHING. 3 hours in the Guatemalan sun with a Guatemalan machete changed everything. I gave him a white shirt and he went to church. He has stopped drinking and has limited himself to 1 cigarette a day. The power of service and the spirit of charity can change any heart. The best part of my week was walking into the church lot and seeing him out front greeting every member as they walked in.  He is now our friend and will be born again as we teach him the Atonement of Christ.

Elder Martinez has taught me a ton; especially in regard to loving those we serve. And truly serving those we serve. We are always laughing and joking and smiling in the street and the members and the people have noticed. They ask us why we are so happy. We ask them if they know anyone we can baptize. But really, this is and will continue to be a fantastic change. We are being obedient and doing all we can. I love what I do know and don’t want to leave this area. I have grown to love them with all my heart.

Con todo mi amor,

Elder Smith

Jacob and Elder Martinez -    no idea where:)

February 10, 2015 -Changes!

Buuuuenos familia,

The moment you’ve all been waiting for....New companion!! His name is Elder Martinez from Tegucigalpa, Honduras. He is an excellent missionary. New district leader and has 13 months in the mission. We are getting along really well and I am trying to put into practice all I learned from Elder Palma in regard to unity and demonstrating love to others. It was hard to say goodbye to Elder Palma but he sent me an email saying that he has like 5 dates planned for this week so I don’t think he is missing me too much. This is going to be a fun change and one of miracles! This is my 3rd change in Rio Santiago and I never want to leave these people that reject me so often! Seriously I love this area and the people here and I think I know the land better than some of the people that live here!

Kayler didn’t get baptized this week. This is like the 3rd time that this has happened (we have interviewed him and then something happens on Sunday and he doesn’t get baptized) and I was really frustrated this Sunday because this has happened so often and because I truly wanted to start off this change with Elder Martinez with a baptism. I was actually frustrated this time (which is weird because I am usually even keeled and all that stuff you have told me mom) and impatient and a little bit angry. All emotions that impede the Spirit and His Guide. In my prayers on Sunday night I asked Heavenly Father what I need to learn and why Kayler hasn’t been baptized yet (he could’ve been baptized the 28th of December!) and complaining, etc. And then He told me to read the following morning in Preach My Gospel the Patience section in Developing Christlike Attributes. And regularly when He tells me something I try to be obedient...so I read it and the following scriptures. ''Bear with patience thine afflictions, and I will give unto you success.'' Bam. Answer from the Book of Mormon. Piercing the heart of Elder Smith! I love those moments. I learned that when our actions are full of hope and faith, we won’t have to worry about the Lords timing. We just have to be patient and do ALL WE CAN to bring to pass the fruit of His Work. That was my revelation/Book of Mormon moment of the week. If you guys could send me some of your own I would love that!!!

Elder Martinez is a stud! He doesn’t speak any English really so I am really glad I have learned to communicate a little bit. Elder Palma helped me a ton with that. We spent P day cleaning the house. This house is always filthy and has burnt sugar cane pieces all over it that we sweep out daily. I don’t think I’ve mentioned that but the peeps burn the sugar cane before they waste their lives cutting it and there is always ''black snow´'' as they call it in the air and in our clothes and in our house! Elder Martinez walks even faster than Elder Palma and Elder Raudales. We are working like locos and we are so exhausted all of the time but it feels so good.

On Saturday night we had a Fellowship Night at a members house. 30 members and one new investigator showed up so it was a good turnout. One funny thing that always happens at family nights, fellowship nights, sacrament meeting, Sunday school, elders quorum is that whenever the speaker runs out of material or if he/she feels uncomfortable they will always without fail say ''I don’t know, what do the Elders think?'' That is like the key word that means Elders take over. So I always have to treasure up the words of life at all times to be ready for these moments! During this particular fellowship night last Saturday they, for some reason, had set up a huge sound system with a microphone and music and everything in this tiny, tiny, tiny, little house. So when this moment came I jumped right up there and preached from the Book of Mormon and shared a message about obedience. And Elder Martinez is a little shy and had never done this in his life so this branch and I had to coax him up to the mic on his 3rd day here and edify the members! It was awesome and a really cool way to introduce him to the members.

Btw....there was some craziness that happened during changes and I lost my memory card for my camera....I have basically sent all the cool pictures that I have taken and Elder Palma has all the pictures of everything for this past change. Well actually I have them because I have his SD card! Like I said some craziness happened. But don’t worry I will take care of this new one and take tons of pictures.

Glad Kathryn had a sweet bday. Tell Grandma to get better and that I will continue to pray for her every night. I have a prayer list that I pray for every night and know that Alan and Lisa and Matthew and Kathryn Smith are on it every night! I hope everything is well. Keep enduring to the End. If you must change- change. Never forget to love a little more.

Elder Smeet

February 3, 2015 - Temple Trip and the Last Supper

Forgot to tell you guys that we were going to the temple! We went to Guate(mala City) to go to the temple this last Wednesday. It was so sweet to go back there and feel the peace and power of the temple. In D&C it talks about how we go to the temple to be endowed with power from on high, and I certainly feel that! I received some very timely inspiration and am so grateful. I think I included some pictures from the temple in an email so yeah.

This last week with Elder Palma was spiritual, sacred, heart wrenching- you name it. It was hard and we passed through some challenges with our baptism falling through, getting rejected, and fasting in the Coast (try it!). But through it all we were laughing and never got down on ourselves. He has taught me to enjoy my work and to do it all with faith and hope. And that is the difference. I will receive my new companion tomorrow morning and say goodbye for a spell to Elder Palma. I know I will love my new companion because Elder Palma has taught me how. I will miss this guy. He has family in Los Angeles and he said he will visit you guys this Christmas!! That would be hilarious. But seriously I have grown so much in these 8 weeks with Elder Palma. I am not the same person as I was on December 10th. Why Heavenly Father sent him here I still don’t know but one day I will. It will be hard to say goodbye.

Elder Palma blessed this area with a sure baptism date for this Sunday (Kayler). That will be a blessing for my new comp and I to baptize on the first Sunday together and is sure to enthuse him and me to new levels of obedience and missionary success! We are trying hard to involve the members here. It has been difficult because it is a branch (and branches are branches for a reason...) but slowly we are seeing some real progress with references and family nights with investigators. I want to do my best this change to better that and keep involving the members. They are where the real success comes from. I have so much faith in this area; I know it is about to be amazing.

This week I read in 2 Nephi 1. I loved especially verse 15 where it talks about being encircled about in the arms of his love. I love the imagery associated with that. I am not going to lie; these have not been the easiest 4 months of my life. But there have been times when I can feel this ''eternal hug'' as I like to call it from our Savior through his Spirit. We are all so indebted to Him and His Sacrifice. It is impossible to measure the scope of his Sacrifice but He loves us so individually. We learned in our District meeting today that when we understand the Atonement more fully in our lives, THAT is the moment when we become truly converted missionaries and disciples and representatives of Christ. It will take a long time but we will all get there.

AND HAAAAAAAAAAAAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET KATHRYN. I can’t believe you are 11 in two days. You are so young and so old! I still think a lot about you when I teach someone your age and when I think of you it makes me happy. You are such a great example to me and if you ever decide to serve a mission you would baptize so many people. You are the most beautiful sister I have ever had (more than Matthew) and I love you from Guatemala to Granite Bay. Keep learning the Gospel and keep growing up good. Listen to mom and dad and be nice to Matt. 

I LOVE YOU KATHRYN. LE AMO HERMANA.

Elder Smith

Elder Palma and Elder Smith in the middle