Elder Kyle Sorenson: Elder Sorenson

Happy New Year!

TUESDAY - 10,686 steps
Today was a pretty good day, it wasn't crazy eventful, but it was still fun. One of our investigators had her baptism interview! Let me just say, South Americans are not too concerned about start times. There was an activity scheduled for 7:00PM but didn't actually get started until 8:30PM.

WEDNESDAY - 13,614 steps
I had to say goodbye to one of my favorite elders today because he went to a different zone and it made me super sad! Also, we got shut down on lessons today and only had one or two. People are not home because of the holidays.

THURSDAY - 16,884 steps
I had companion exchanges today! I was with Elder Garcia and he is so funny! I love him so much! He gave me some really great advice and I want to share it with you guys. What does H2O stand for? It doesn't stand for water. The "H" stands for Humility 2 Obedience! When I am humble or when we all have humility, it will lead "2" "O"bedience! Obedience is the biggest focus for missionaries because it is needed to accomplish pretty much anything!

FRIDAY - 12,326 steps
I'm happy to say I am not carrying my English scriptures anymore! I can understand enough of a verse written in Spanish to know what is it is talking about! I also had my first baptism today, Hermana Lila. It was such a spiritual experience seeing her get baptized. It also rained today and, let's just say, if this rainfall is what they call rain, I sweat more than it rains here. Haha!

SATURDAY - 5,993 steps
Happy New Year's Eve! We couldn't teach today because everyone was partying on the street! A tradition that they have here is that the men dress up as women and ask people for money so they can buy fireworks. Now that is dedication! We ran into Hermana Lila and taught her for a few minutes. She complemented my Spanish and said she can completely understand everything I was trying to say! Then my companion and I ran to the house because we had to be inside at 6 PM for safety! There aren't any laws here so the entire night was music, fireworks, and screaming. I did not sleep at all!

SUNDAY - 12,821 steps
I was dying today because I was running on about one or two hours of sleep. We tried to get people to come to church but they were all passed out! There was a total of 20 people who took the sacrament and my companion and I had to prepare and bless the sacrament because there weren't any young men there! Hermana Lila got confirmed in sacrament. It was so great to see how happy she was! The family we always eat Sunday dinner with has a son named Jacob who has become my friend. He shared with me his favorite song and it is called "Patience." The words in that song are so powerful and exactly right. I need patience with this language in order to receive the blessings and the opportunity to sing it!

I had a fun week and hope you all had a wonderful and safe new year! I invite you this new year to look for service and love your families because when you're in the service of your fellow beings, you're only in the service of your God! This mission is difficult and I am struggling with this language but I know, without a doubt, all things are possible through Him. I can't believe I have already been gone for three months! I only have 21 more fast Sundays! I love all of you! Thank you for supporting me. I love your messages of encouragement and can feel your prayers! I know I am here for a reason and I know God has a plan for all of us, we just need to give it all to Him and He will return the favor tenfold. I know hard work is the key to making dreams become a reality and I may not be perfect in this language but I know people don't care how much I know until they know how much I care. I love you all!

Love Always,
Elder Sorenson