Christmas time

We all got together as a zone for Christmas and had a pretty good party. We played soccer (3 on 3 where you can't cross the middle line we can't play real soccer here) and we played a game called 25 we also got to skype home and that was a real treat. We ate lunch at about 7 at night which was crazy. We were all super hungry.

Calling home was fun. I was glad to see that my family is good and they are all happy.

We also are working hard with a man named Daniel, he is doing well and is changing little by little. We are trying to help him come to Christ.

This week I think I got to see how big of an obstacle the social opression can really be here in Mercedes Corrientes. We have a member from Corrientes Capital staying here with a broken hip in her sisters house. we went to visit her 2 times last week. the second time we visited her someone knocked at the door. the sister went and attended the door. she came back and told us it was the landlady who was asking her why she had let the mormons in. she had asked her aren't you catholic?

Then we went back Sunday to take the sacrament to her and her sister told us we could come back but not too much. There are a couple other people who see you guys coming.

I was reading also in Doctrine and Covenants in the first few sections today and noticed that repetedly God warns the prophet to not heed men more than God. I wondered how I do that, and including how I heed my own reason more than God at times. I think it is something we could all improve on.

God knows us and loves us and will guide us in the best paths if we are willing to heed him.

Love,

Elder Dallin Skouson

Following pictures:

horses crossing the road in front of our bus.

picture from a christmas party

picture of 2 recent converts with an investigator and us

Following pictures: 

fireworks from christmas at 12 midnight

me by a rare type of sign here. funny thing is that it's hidden behind a tree from the view of the traffic.

Following pictures: 

us cutting down a tree with our branch president

a kid in the branch with a lot of commotion going on all around him.

us with one of the members after we helped her paint a cabinet.

Christmas 2015

 It was so good to talk to Elder Skouson and just be together sort of---even though it was for a very short time. (45mins.) Elder Skouson is doing awesome, and we're so grateful! 

                        MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

All together sort of. 

                                       Brothers! Craig and Ryan

Kate

Mom. this week was good. my favorite part of Christmas was probably calling you guys. We also were all together as a zone that was fun. but I think it was most fun being able to talk to you guys. I also liked using those videos for Christmas they are really good and help the people recognize we are christian too which helps.

Dallin's branch. 

There is great joy in learning, applying and sharing

So, this week was a good week as well. We worked with a man named Daniel Luque and he made it to church. Elder Curtis and his last companion were working with him a little bit. He made it to church yesterday and we were very happy to see him. He stayed just for sacrament meeting but I think it was a good experience for him to see that hour in specific.

We also were unable to connect with Raul and Silvia all week long. They said they had gone on a trip. We are hoping they will keep reading the Book of Mormon and they will keep learning more.

I think the coolest part of this week for me was that I got to do the baptismal interview for some people that are from Curuzu. The Elders there have been working with a family and I got to do their interviews. The 8 year old volunteered to be first (without knowing what he was volunteering for) and he did an awesome job. the mom was next then the next daughter and last of all the dad. They all are well prepared for baptism.

some of the things they said are these:

The mom said one Sunday she had sold her bakery items like she did every day and didn't go to church. that night she was reading in the book of mormon and just read about the sabbath day. that was when she realized she had made a mistake and decided to change.

The daughter said she was excited for the church and she was excited to go to the temple as well.

I think that in the end the biggest lesson I learned is that the more we are fighting for God, changing our lives, and becoming better people the more desire we will have to become a better person and really live the gospel. Preach My Gospel says that (this might not be word for word, I read it in Spanish) The joy we have as we learn the gospel will make us want to apply it.

As we apply the gospel the joy we have will make us want to continue to apply it and to share what we have learned. There is great joy in learning, applying and sharing.

I know those things to be true.

Elder Dallin Skouson

Pictures:  Elder Curtis and Elder Skouson and some of our branch members. 

Temples are where we can be united with our ancestors from all over the world

So, this week went fast. We did a lot of walking, almost running to get from top to bottom to top of our area this week. We have an area that is twice as big as before.

We also have some very good investigators named Raul and Silvia. Raul has some very good questions and likes to learn and to talk a ton. he will just start and go and go and go and go. They made it to church this week one of the members commented in priesthood so he leaned over and asked 'can everyone comment?'. he had good questions and comments the rest of the lesson. Silvia has more desire to come and do that stuff as well.

Alejandra had a dream and said that after she felt like she needs to keep coming to church. She felt like she was in a large building like a university, and she was sitting there and somebody gave her a piece of paper, but she couldn't remember what it said, but she knew that it was very important.  When she woke up from the dream she felt that she needed to go to church.  Well, that's the good news the sad news is that she is going to be going on vacation to Buenos Aires this month. we invited her to attend on her trip. we will see what happens. who knows maybe when she gets back she will be already prepared to get baptized. Or even already baptized. At least I hope it goes that well.

We also had a good meeting in church. some senior missionaries from the area passed by and visited the branch here. they came in during the second hour and then quite a few of them shared their testimonies during sacrament meeting the third hour. They were very good testimonies.

With Alejandra going down to B.A. close to the temple there we shared with her a picture of the temple and she said she had seen it before when she was traveling.

Temples are where we can be united with our ancestors from all over the world, where we can help those that have left their legacy with us to obtain salvation and even exaltation after this life.

Elder Dallin Skouson

We finished our month long Book of Mormon reading.

Summer is coming!!! My new companion was remarking how green it all is here. I started to look around and it is true. this week it wasn't too hot but it looks like it will be getting hotter here soon. Enero and diciembre sound hot but january and december sound cold. I guess they don't mean the same thing to me in my head. haha.

Last Saturday we had a baptism! it was the branch president's daughter. so not a missionary baptism but still it was nice.

We also had transfers. I stayed here. my companion went to El Colorado. They shut down one of the areas here in Mercedes and my new companion, Elder Curtis, just finished his training in the other area. So our new area is all of Mercedes instead of half. They also have me as district leader and we are in the branch presidency together. It's all is a lot of responsibility.

Elder Curtis is from Texas and is willing to take charge in the lessons and work together to get them done and help the people out.

We are going to be working hard. We have some good investigators here especially since they combined the areas.

We are teaching Alejandra who has come to church and wants to come again. Also we are teaching Carolina who read and prayed and knows the Book of Mormon comes from God. She is a 22 year old single mother of 2 kids aged 4 and 3.

And we are teaching Silvia and Raul. They are from the other area and are interested in reading the book of mormon and coming to church.

Pray for them! they need help to be able to really take hold of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in its fullness.

We finished our month long Book of Mormon reading. it for sure helped build my faith. I learned a lot about being strengthened by the Lord and about having faith. It is not something that just comes and goes. true faith can help strengthen us because we will trust in the Lord even in the hard moments. We can receive strength though the atonement of Christ. I think that's something very powerful and important we often forget.

Love,

Elder Dallin Skouson