Week 20 in Paraguay

So my change came this week and I pretty much got the biggest change I could have had. I left my little Paraguayan branch out in Pedro Juan and my latin companion to come down into an area called San Lorenzo Centro that has been closed for 3 changes. My new companion is Elder Williamson from Utah, he`s a good missionary that really cares about the people here. The only thing wrong with him is that he`s a diehard Utah fan! We kind of hit heads on that one, but he has good reason because before the mission he was actually on the University of Utah basketball team, and he has been going to Utah games since he was in the womb. I guess I don`t really have room to talk since I hadn`t even gone to a BYU game until I was going to school there. It`s the same as it was with Elder Dennis. He has only two more changes left before he goes home so I might end up killing him (sending him home off his mission) too.

We have the largest chapel here in all of Paraguay in San Lorenzo. We have 80 members that go to church every Sunday. President pulled out the missionaries in this area because there wasn`t a baptism here in over a year. The members were so excited to see us when we came into the area. Almost every member when they met us, set up a time with us to go see them and told us they would have an investigator there with them.

We already have a wash lady that has already washed our clothes once. We haven`t eaten in our house yet. Our Bishop is the coolest Paraguayan I`ve ever met. We met with him the first day and he told us he wants to make sure the members are doing the work and we are just there to help. It is so amazing how much the members here wanted us back. They went without missionaries for about 4 1/2 months and they are super excited to see us. One member had actually been bringing this one girl to church so we are even baptizing this week. The first baptism this ward has had in probably over a year. It is so awesome here. It was hard the first day though because the mission literally just put us here and told us to find everything we needed. So we found a house, got moved in, and have been contacting pretty much all week to find members and find our way around around the area. It has been really hard, but it has been really fun because of how excited the members are here.

I loved conference too, but we weren`t able to see the priesthood session here. I also had to watch a little bit of the rest of conference in Spanish. We had this wonderful investigator there we wanted to sit with. I understood a lot, but not nearly as much as if I had been listening in English. It was only the second half of the Saturday Afternoon though in Spanish. I listened to Elder Holland's talk in Spanish and it was still just as powerful. I definately know what Gary was talking about now. Pornography is just part of the culture here. It is really hard to go out and work a full day without seeing it here. I know that we are doing the Lord`s work though, and there is protection in preaching the true gospel here. I love the Lord`s work and I am so excited to do bring this work forth here in San Lorenzo. I loved conference, it seemed like there was so much spoken in the conference this time about the family. A super focus on teaching children and the importance of mothers and that kind of thing, it was just filled with it. I am so thankful for a family that loves the Lord and is supporting me in this work. Keep doing what's right and I`ll tell you all about my first real convert and baptism next week! Love you all, Elder Adamson V