Elder Cook Week Twenty-Four

We were soaked this day!  

I had puddles in my shoes.

Queridita Familia!

I feel like we´re always wet here.  Doesn´t matter what weather it is!  Either it´s crazy hot and humid so we are wet from sweat, or we drown in the rain.  We have a baptism next Saturday!!  Our investigator that came to church last week left to Chuluteca for a year because he can´t have a job here because he can´t walk.  That was a bummer to hear but it will be better for him and maybe he can get to church easier there.  But, we had a reference that wants to be baptized!  Our first lesson was kind of funny.  As soon as we said the opening prayer, it started pouring, and on a tin roof it gets really loud!  We had to sit a couple inches from each other and yell just to be heard.  We laughed a few times during the lesson because it was a little ridiculous from the noise of the rain, but near the end he said he wanted to change his life, and we said the best way to do that was through baptism. He had already received the missionaries before and was almost baptized once.  Now he´s ready!  We are SO STOKED!  I feel like we´ve just been planting seeds every day for the past 6 weeks, but now it´s our turn to do some reaping!  Sorry this computer is not working very well.  I´ll try to write more  next week.  Love you!

Elder Cook 

It rains a lot!

Before haircut

after

Elder Cook Week Twenty-Three

Hey family!

Sheesh it really does feel like we are just pushing on that big rock you talked about Dad, and that thing won´t budge! Every time we feel like we´re making progress, it´s almost like it starts rolling backwards. We have a bunch of families we are working with right now, we always have these amazing first couple of lessons, and then they reject us sometimes. It´s a bummer. But one of our investigators came to church Sunday!!! I don´t know if I´ve told you about him, but we met him through another family we taught. He has some health challenges and has super super bad knees but a huge heart and a desire to draw closer to Heavenly Father. Sunday morning, after about 30 minutes of convincing him to come since he always says he will then doesn´t, he came! We set up a ride from the ward, and I carried him down the monstrous steps he lives on. He sat in the first row and loved it! He had to leave early because his knees were hurting him too bad, but it was great.

Thanks for the glasses! It´s like a whole new country with those things. And how´d you know to send the oreos and drink mixes?! Youré the best! Yeah I have lost a little weight. I lost about 35 pounds in the first three months I was here! All the ward members keep telling me how skinny I´ve gotten. We do a lot of walking and stairs! And in response to Grandpa, there aren´t such things as traffic laws here. Whoever has the bigger car always goes first. There are as many lanes as you want to have, and they don´t have to go the same direction. The speedometers on most of the cars don´t even work, like the needles don´t move. Ask me more questions about the country! Sometimes I forget what's different here. Love you guys!

Elder Cook

Elder Cook Week Twenty-Two

Familia! 

This week was sweet! And a huge bummer. Our investigator ended up not being baptized. But we found an awesome new family! We were knocking on doors and the guy told us to come back so we could teach the whole family and to bring a Book of Mormon!! We got there for the lesson, he sat all of his kids and wife on the couch, took away all technology, and told them to pay attention. It was amazing! We have never had a lesson like that where the whole family was so attentive.  The dad said once we finished that he wanted to start reading the Book of Mormon everyday as a family until they finish!! We were SO pumped! We also found another family.  Every single one of our citas fell through, every single one of our back up citas fell through, and every single one of our back up back up citas fell through that day. We were seriously bummed. We had literally just walked for 6 straight hours trying to find anyone to teach.  We get down to 8:30, half an hour before we have to go home, and we decide to knock one last door. 

We pick the street, and then got behind the corner and I said one last, a little desperate, prayer. I asked to find one new family and one new hombre mayor que 18 años. We just wanted something before we called it a day. My companion picks a house and we knock. Before I could finish saying hola hermana she invited us in.  She had a son older than 18. Not ten minutes later, her husband walks in.  They sit down, and we teach a short lesson about families and the Book of Mormon. Our Heavenly Father listens to our prayers. My prayer was answered with exactly what we asked for within minutes. I was humbled and grateful for such a direct answer. My testimony has grown so much on this misión! More than I even thought possible. 

Love you guys!

Elder Cook 

I miss tuna sandwiches. That’s the first thing I want to eat when I get home. They don’t make cookies here! If I can do one thing for Honduras before I leave, I will spread the joy of homemade cookies. 
 

A good Honduran friend

Guava juice! I love guavas. I was stoked to see the juice!

 

Cement Work

District Meeting

Elder Cook Week Twenty-One

Hey Familia!

I've been showing investigators a picture of our family because it helps for us to conocer les. Everyone always asks if you guys are Latino or Honduran!  I ask if I look Honduran, and they just laugh at me. 

This week was great!  We have some members that are going to give us a bunch of references of families this week so we are pumped!  And our investigator has a baptism date again for this Saturday!  Yeah the funeral thing turned out fine. I´m not sure about the family, but my friend thought my language mix up was funny.

I´m not sure what the mission covers or what insurance covers, but you might be getting a little bill in the mail. I chipped my tooth the other day (no idea how).

Did I ever tell you what it´s like to walk the streets at night here? There are churches everywhere! They go in and listen to a guy scream into a microphone the same line or prayer over and over again. You have every religion you can think of on both sides of the callejon, and then there´s two missionaries walking in-between to a cita.  It´s so loud, since there are so many on both sides, we can´t hear each other talk sometimes.

The church is so small here, but the members who go to church are so strong.  It´s amazing the adversity that comes against them and they overcome it every day. It strengthens me as a missionary to see them. Oh by the way, I can speak and understand Spanish now! I think I forgot to tell you that. The day after my first companion left it was like I´d been speaking it all along. The gift of tongues is real

Love you guys!

Elder Cook

Elder Cook Week Twenty

Hey Pitufos!

In case Google translate doesn´t do it right, that means Smurfs! Man I miss you guys.  I don´t know why but it really hit me this week.  I really appreciate all the rules you had for me!  They helped keep me on the right path and out of the way of dumb mistakes I could´ve made. I love you guys so much and want you to know that I am who I am only because of you.  It´s such a blessing to know that, I have my own family waiting at home who are sealed in the temple and invested in the gospel. You have no idea what a comfort that is for me. 

This week I really learned that Heavenly Father hears our prayers.  We had been working and working, and walking and walking every day and just had no success, no relief.  But on Thursday, just when I thought I could hardly bear it anymore, we found 6 new investigators and a new familia, and the one familia we had has been reading and praying together and believe that the Book of Mormon is true.  A bunch of members have started to give us references and want to have FHE´s this week.  One of the returned missionaries announced to us last night that he has 16 familias for us to meet.  

Everything is looking up.  We teach to people every day about how God answers prayers through the Spirit and only with prayers of faith and sincerity, though not always in our time table.  I needed to take my own medicine that I had been giving out!  Heavenly Father hears us.  If we are really, honestly try the very best we can and pray sincerely in every moment, He can´t help but answer us.  When we feel like we literally can go no more, when our bodies and spirits are about to give out, that´s when the blessings come.

Siempre recuerda lo que dice la gente de Honduras de la vida. ¡Lo que no mata, engorda!

Love you guys!

Elder Cook

Elder Cook Week Nineteen

Shalom!  

People always say that to us.  I´m pretty sure that´s not even Spanish though. Things are still great here! I´m going to tell you a funny story.  We were walking down the street and one of our newly baptized members yelled Elder Cook! from the other side of the road.  There were a ton of people around him and a truck, waiting to go inside a church.  I walked over and greeted him, a little loud and was super happy.  We talked a little, and then he said his amigo ¨ cumplió ¨, which means had a birthday.  That made sense of why all the people were gathered around waiting to go in, it was a party!  So I looked up at the people and said really loudly ¨Que bueno!¨.  The look on their faces told me that was the really wrong phrase to say at that moment.  At the same time that I said that, I noticed that in the truck that they were kind of standing around, was a coffin.  But the words were out of my mouth.  He then whispered, ¨No Elder.  Murió.¨ Which means his friend died, and I just expressed how great it was.  Que pena.

Love you guys!

Elder Cook

Elder Cook Week Eighteen

Hey family!

El Picacho

Boy we've had a rough week.  We had three baptism dates on Thursday, and now it looks like we will have 0 for the 20th. One Familia still needs to be married before we can baptize the hermana, but they were gone all weekend so we couldn't start the papers,  The other family finally committed to be baptized, but one family member played soccer all day yesterday after church and another was out of town and didn't go to church.  So many appointments have fallen through this week!  We have walked more in the last couple days than the last couple of weeks, just trying to find someone to teach.  

Statue of Christ that sits just below the summit of the mountain

We are going to have to work even harder next week so we can have more of the Lord's help. But, my new companion is awesome!  He's super obedient and knows Spanish pretty well!  He was born in California but his parents are from Peru so he's bilingual.  That's so great that Grandma can see now!  It will probably make knitting a lot easier that way.  Love you guys!  The work is true.  Just remember the times when you don't have the desire to go to church, read the Book of Mormon until you do.  When you don't have the desire to read, pray for that desire.  And when you don't want to pray, pray for the desire to pray.  Everything always comes back to true, sincere prayer.

Elder Cook

Elder Cook and his new companion