July 26, 2010

Hola family,
I am here in Bogotá now. Today and tomorrow we are having the zone leader’s conference here in the temples visitor center. We left on a bus last night and drove all night. We got here at about 6 in the morning, caught a nap and then went to a synthetic soccer field they rented and played a little soccer. Here the temple has like a hotel by it because lots of people have to travel a long way to get here so we are staying there and the conference will be in a conference room here. Also today is president Hackings birthday so we will have a little birthday party tonight. It is nice to be back and see Bogotá after almost 9 months, I forgot how gigantic it is, but the weather here is perfect, always cool. We are writing from an internet cafe in Tierra Linda, my old area where I was before I went to the offices and on our way out of the temple we saw an old member from here who I was good buddies with and we traded email adds etc. Good memories.

The weeks keep on flying by like they always have. This week as yall know we went to Barranca for a few days to participate in the Independence Day activity they did. Another good chance to see old members and friends which was very cool and I got to see our old converts from Barranca and they are still firm and active :) The next day we did interchanges with the elders there which went very well. Friday I also went to Real de Minas and did divisions with Elder Thomas (another old area that I was in!). ha so without planning it I have now been in three old areas this week, but cool. We had a very good day working with Elder Thomas. He was just made district leader there for the first time so he has lots of questions and we had some good talks so I think it was a very good chance to help him and give him some confidence.

Things in the area just keep going great. We had 2 baptisms on Saturday, German and Vanesa. Unfortunately after his baptism German basically disappeared and when his mom and sister got to church the next day they told us he had gone with a friend after his baptism to visit and that they hadn’t heard from him yet. So Vanessa was confirmed but not German, hopefully he is alright and we can find out something. Please keep them in your prayers.

With this weekend we finish the month with 26 baptisms here in the zone, breaking the record of 21 :) It is very rewarding to see goals, plans and hard work pay off. We started as soon as we got here to put new ideas etc in place and just try to get the spirit and work hard and it has paid off in the whole zone. This week we designed and ordered zone shirts for everyone with all of our names (the shirt is modeled after the Bucaramanga soccer teams jersey) Now August will be starting so we can’t sit and celebrate because the idea is to keep things going.

We had a very spiritual experience this week with the Garcia Family. Noe, the dad, finally got back from working on their farm so we were finally able to have another lesson with the whole family. They are an awesome family and very good people. I don’t know if I told you but the other day they had special Colombian hats and bags brought in from the coast and gave them to us! They are the first investigators I have ever had that have 2 cars. The daughter studies no where else but in Alberta! She is at the University of Alberta, but she doesn't go back to study for a few months ... But anyway that’s not the spiritual experience. We finally got to teach them all, we planned a special lesson about the restoration and then the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It was a spiritual lesson and we shared some strong testimonies etc and then we "sacamos la fecha" (took out the date, invited them to be baptized) on the 14th of August, my last week in Colombia. The mom Marta said "you know me and Stefani (the daughter) have been talking about baptism and we think we should." So they all said they would prepare to be baptized the 14th of August. The mom and the daughter were both sure and happy about it, the dad was a little bit unsure but his wife put her hand on his shoulder and said "don't worry, you'll be ready to be baptized with us too" and he accepted to prepare for that same date. It was really a spiritual high, even for missionary life. They really are good people and they are looking for the truth and what’s right. I don't want to get ahead of myself because a lot of things can happen in a few weeks, but it would be a really great experience if they could stay strong and make it to their goal. I would love to see them be baptized my last Saturday here. It really is a testimony that the Lord guides his elect to us. If you remember it was one of our first weeks in the area and we had taken a wrong turn looking for a member’s house. They drove by in their SUV and almost kept going but a little ahead of us they stopped and called us over. Honestly, it can’t just be a simple coincidence. I know the Lord led us and them to each other.

So we will be busy working with them, also a few other investigators, and the rest of the zone. I am happy to say I will finish very well and working as hard as ever. I know this is the true church and I know that Christ lives, loves us and knows us. Thanks for all your support and love and have a great week. Mucho Amor, Elder Barnard