NOTICIAS DE COLOMBIA (June 28,2010)

another week and it was GREAT!!! there just isn't any other way to describe the Lords labor and being able to participate in it. we had a good assistance in church yesterday and the ward is super excited that i asked the bishop to let me play the keyboard in sacrament meeting. The first two weeks i forgot during the week to ask the bishop if there existed a keyboard but after two weeks of hearing everybody sing ¨oh God the eternal father¨ without any kind of music i wrote it down to ask the bishop and make sure that he would let me play, I'm glad i did. nobody actually sings any better but when i play the keyboard i have to turn up the volume real loud and since im playing the keyboard it almost drowns out the congregation singing haha. anyways yesterday was a challenge for our families that we are teaching. The flia Velez Herenandez is on hold bc the father and two of the girls went to Venezuela for 3 months... not the best news. BUT the family Manjares is doing great but with challenges we are just looking for an active family to come with us to teach them about FhE and all the other great things saints do to be holy. They are working hard to give up cafe and we helped them set a goal to pray as a family every night this week so that's what we are shooting for. the biggest thing that they need is to see how upping their responsibility with the Lord is the best thing they could do. its always a challenge for people here to actually take the decision that brings so many blessings but requires a constant effort to obtain them. sometimes its difficult to help the people really see how much God really WANTS to bless them and bc he knows that we have to make covenants with him to get those blessings he is so willing to help them make and keep covenants. we just have to let God help us by doing what he says and believing. we just barely got the conference Liahona here in Colombia and boy was i excited to finally get it. My comp and i jumped around yelling ¡new scripture new Scriptures! (something that would be completely blasphemous in any other christian religion) i was almost losing my testimony of Thomas Monson bc it had been so long without knowing what he is talking about haha. its funny being a missionary, everybody else is all pumped up about soccer in South Africa and im all excited about a wordy magazine with messages from elderly people in formal business clothes, i guess its more of the spirit it brings than anything else. i liked reading Elder Andersons talk ¨tell me the stories of Jesus¨ because it reminded me alot about my wonderful parents and family. Ive also loved how here in the mission im able to obtain stories of Jesus in what he does in my life like how he guides me always to those who wish to accept him, or how he always protects me from the world, or a million other things that Jesus dones for our family and for me right now.
we´ve been so blessed to live in a time so wonderful and with a family so great. one reason im so grateful to be on a mission becuase i know it lets me SHOW the Lord the gratitude that i have as his servant. Constantly i tell the Lord of my gratitude but its so much better when i can go out and work and let that be a testament to my gratitude for all the things that the Lord has given me. but luckily for all you who are without name tags we can all do the work of the Lord and you all can as well show your gratitude through your works.
thanks for all your prayers and letters
Elder Larson