Catholic Fiesta

We live by a huge catholic church and they had like an all night party this last week blaring music, fireworks, and everything and we didn't get any sleep and the following day was super hard.

This week was a lot harder, we dropped some investigators, we had a really hard time finding people, we had a ton of meetings, it just wasn't really that successful of a week, but this week my companion and I are going to contact crazy and find some new people to teach. 

Daniel received the priesthood yesterday which was awesome, and he is super excited about his responsibility to be a home teacher. Yesterday the Joiki gave a talk in church and it was super powerful, I am so grateful to know that man and that he helps us a ton on visits. He is going to go with us all tonight on visits! yay! 

There wasn't really a whole lot that happened this week. Today we went to the monument Mitad del Mundo or the middle of the world, so I had one foot in the northern hemisphere and one foot in the southern hemisphere which was cool.

I love you all and hope you have a fantastic week, send me letters! 

Love Elder Roberts 

 literally in the middle of the world

Elder Roberts in 2 Hemispheres

 At the equator

 the stairs to our investigator

 the bros of the zone

zona quito oeste 

 It can be dangerous to be a missionary

Una Semana De MILAGROS

Wow, thanks so much for all of your prayers and support, this week.  I had the most spiritual experience in my mission. We talked with Daniels parents on Monday and it was as if everything changed. They were super receptive to us and wanted this for their Son. I had the sacred privilege of baptizing Daniel on Saturday. It was the first time I have baptized someone in my life, and I am not going to lie I was super nervous, but when I entered the water everything was just calm and right, and after I baptized him ( I got it on my first try) I just felt the spirit suuupper strong all through the night. It was a miracle, I am so proud of him. I am so blessed to have so many sacred privileges on my mission. 

 

Daniels baptism

This week we went out with the Joiki almost every day, I have learned a ton from him, he is a pioneer just as all the early saints were. in Ecuador the saints had a ton of opposition when the church just started and this man lived through all of it. He has such a powerful testimony, it is simple but really powerful.

Our neighbors got in a car crash this week that destroyed the tree right out of our house. It kind of startled us during companionship study.

The neighbors backed into the tree

I felt Gods love so strong for me, it was such a good experience for me, I know that my whole life I was prepared to be here at this time. I know whatever apostle received the revelation for me to be here received it for a reason. that he felt strong to put me here. I feel soo at home here. I feel so blessed to be here, this is literally a choice land, i love the people with all of my heart and I am going to cry super hardcore when I come home. Being a missionary is such a sacred privilege. I am grateful to testify of my savior and King every day. I love Jesus Christ. He means everything to me and I would be NOTHING without him. he is the hope of the world.

I hope you all have a good week, you should all send me letters and goodies,

Love Elder Roberts 

mi Eileen 

Eileen drew a picture for me 

 Eileens little sister Ashley

 the youth of my ward

Daniel likes the name of the church

JOIKI

Yeah, so we realized that my amiga Eileens, Grandpa is always home and he is one of the most spiritual men in Ecuador. He was one of the first members and like the third bishop in the whole country and he is poderosisimo.

So we went with him like every day on visits and it was super cool. In Kichuwa the word for Brother is Joiki, so we just call him Joiki and it is super cool. I love that man, I love his family. I love my little amiga, I am going to cry hardcore when I leave this sector.

This week we saw this little old indigenous lady carrying a huge bag of weeds up the mountain and we didn't have anything to do so we helped her out, holy cow I gained so much respect for these old ladies that carry these huge sacks up the mountain.  It was actually super hard, I wanted to give up, but then I was like if this 70 year old four foot tall lady can carry these weeds up the mountain than I can too. haha.

We were out with the Joiki and we have a new family of menos activos to teach, but they don't speak Spanish they only speak kichuwa, so the joiki translated everything for us because he speaks kichuwa as his primary language.  It was cool, I am always going to remember that lesson.

Daniel...he is so ready to get baptized, so ready, the most ready I have seen on my mission, and this kid has all the potential in the world and he wants to get baptized more than I want to drink Dr. Pepper....that is saying something. All was going well with his parents until yesterday when we gave them the papers that they had to sign and then they started to change their mind. We had a really long conversation with them and last night they talked with Daniel and we are going to pass by today to see what they decided. I am hoping and praying and praying and praying and praying that he will get baptized this Saturday. He already passed his interview and he asked that I baptized him! I really hope it works out, please keep him in your prayers.

This week we gave a tour of the church to Daniel and his brother, Fernando and ended the tour in the chapel. My companion and I ended the tour singing the hymn about the shady woodland where Joseph saw God (don't know what it is called in English). It was a really cool experience. I love singing for our investigators. There is power that music has that ordinary words don't have. 

I know this church is true and I know that God loves us sooooo much. I love you all, thanks for the emails and especially the prayers. I hope you are all enjoying your summer. 

With love from Ecuador, 

Elder Roberts 

 Volcano

 some little girl took a picture of me

just out working 

I pretty much serve in the best place in the world

 Elder Pinto and I with Pride from Honduras (Elder Pinto is from Honduras)

THE POPE IS HERE

So big news for Ecuador this week, the Pope is currently in Guyaquil and he is coming up to Quito tomorrow. It is so crazy here, it is actually pretty cool. People are coming from everywhere from middle of nowhere Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia to see the Pope and he is going to talk in the old Quito airport which is about 30 minutes from where I live. It is sooo hectic in Quito. We went into the city to do some grocery shopping and the people are going crazy, there are a ton of riot police and soldiers holding back barricades of people, a ton of streets are blocked, it is all super cool. Even tho I don't personally believe in the Pope, I still think it is really cool that he is coming and that everyone is so excited to learn from him.

I had food poisoning this week, I threw up like 14 times on Tuesday, I ate some weird shrimp and ooooh, I was dying. I felt bad for my companion we didn't do like anything Tuesday or Wednesday I was just dying in my bed. I read like all of Jesus the Christ, holy cow that is such a good book, it has soo much doctrine, I am pretty sure Talmage had a personal interview with Jesus several times while he wrote that book. I also read Our Search for Happiness and Our Heritage. I guess it was the best use of sick time I could do. 

Elder Pinto is a boss. He is 20 years old, suuuppper funny, a really good teacher, and what I like most is that he likes to work hard. We worked our tails off this week. I was pretty scared because we couldn't find Daniel at all this week, but we found out he was taking a ton of tests in his high school and this week he will have more time, because his family went on a surprise trip this past Sunday. We are going to wait another Saturday to do his baptism. He is so ready, I am so excited for him.

This week I felt like I had more power testifying of the restoration and testifying that Joseph Smith was a prophet, I am not sure why. Maybe because my companion and I have been super diligent, but I remember a big part of my testimony was an experience I had visiting the sacred grove for myself when I was younger, and I decided to write a poem about it. 

I remember when I was younger I walked in a wood

Where a fourteen year old boy named Joseph once stood

Thinking I already knew the answer to my question

I knelt down and directed my voice to Heaven

I said ¨Father is this really true?¨

Then I was overcome from something I've never felt so powerful before, out of the blue

It felt as if God was talking to me as if he was standing right above

A new feeling pierced through my heart, a feeling of absolutely pure undefiled love

Although I didn't look up through a brilliant pillar to see the Father or Son

I knew with a surety of Heart of the things in this Sacred Grove they had done

I feel so blessed to have received a testimony on this sacred occasion

To firmly know Joseph Smith was called to be a prophet in this dispensation

I love testifying every day that God loves us enough to call prophets and he always has called prophets. I know Joseph Smith was a prophet and I know today Thomas S. Monson continues to guide the world as a called Prophet of God. I hope you all have a good week.

With love from Ecuador your good friend,

 Elder Roberts