ELDER SKOUSON'S MISSION TO RESISTENCIA, ARGENTINA: Week 1 in Corrientes. We're seeing some miracles.

Well, my first week here went well. I started talking to everyone. We didn't have many plans the first day so we just contacted just about everyone we saw. It goes about like this.

We knock they come out. If they look like their going to be friendly in the first place we talk with them and try to apply the gospel to their lives. If they look like they don't want anything at all we offer to give them a pass along card, they usually will take it and as they walk toward us we can be cheerful and hope it can make them happy enough to talk to us. It usually gets them talking a little bit.

We have had some very interesting contacts. We knocked one house and an older woman came out and said, "I'm a Jehova's witness." We said, "that's great, you believe in God and in Jesus too then." She told us, "yep I believe in God, Jesus and the Virgin Mary, because she is in the bible too." We asked her some more questions and she told us that the pope had said it was good to listen to the Jehova's witnesses about 2 weeks ago. Interesting.

We also talked to a woman that told us that she would not change churches if God told her too, but she would do it if the Virgin told her to.

So basically here many of the people have apostated from the catholic church. There are a lot of statues of Gauchito Gil (I don't think he is actually even a saint) here as well.

We also saw miracles. Our branch president is a blind man from birth. It is interesting talking to him. He didn't see how tall I was until he tried to touch my shoulder. He has come out with us a few times now. It is really cool that he is very willing and even volunteers to accompany us in the street. He can follow us putting his hand on one of our shoulders and we guide him.

He came out with us when we went to visit our investigators that came to church the Sunday before I got here. They are Diego and Myra we went to visit them and Diego wasn't there. He had left the day before and until last night he still hadn't come back. She was obviously quite upset. I felt the spirit help me know what to testify of to a woman that I had never met before that helped her be calmer after we left. The spirit guided my words for sure. We were able to have a very powerful lesson with her. We are still working with her and are going to try to help her figure out all the problems she is going through.

We also saw a miracle with one woman that we contacted. She was very distracted but we left her with a Book of Mormon and 3 chapters to read to respond to some questions she had. She had a brother that had committed suicide and she had a lot of questions about all sorts of things. We passed by the next day with our branch president. She had read the 3 chapters and told us that she had felt the same way that she felt when she had had a dream. She dreamt that she was with her brother and also her Grandmother who had passed away and her Grandmother said we are all together again at last. She heard about temples in church and we explained that they can help us do the work for those that have passed on. She accepted a baptismal date for the 22nd.

Elder Smith told me he used to not like talking to people so much, but we talked to so many people that now it's not too bad. We don't waste too much time walking. We are always talking to someone when we can. It sure makes things go more smoothly when we give it our all. it really is true that the best cure for being a sad missionary is working hard.

In my last area the Elders have had a really hard time finding Agustin and I'm not sure what has happened with Susana. But in the future everything will work out. We for sure helped both have hope and see that they can stop smoking at least. Some day they will get baptized.

Here there is a mall and McDonalds and Walmart. It is almost like being home, but the milk still comes in bags and there are no marshmallows here.

Love,

Elder Dallin Skouson

Here are some pictures of my new apartment and see if you can spy the peanut butter in each picture. Yes, we have peanut butter. Yay!