Elder Kendall's Service in Colombia: Emergency Transfers = Crazy Sauce

Hello!

Okay, so this was probably one of the craziest weeks I've had in the mission so far, and so I will try to capture it for you guys the best I can in this email.

Monday and Tuesday were both pretty normal, we have been working hard to get the members to work with us and we were able to see a bunch of the fruits of those efforts! We talked with our investigator Cenaida, who has four children and a really bad sickness in her leg that she has had for nine years and doesn't let her really walk. She was always really distracted by her kids, because they don't want to join in on the lesson when we taught her, making it nearly impossible to teach her principles of the gospel. On Tuesday we finally taught her and one of her daughters, Angie. Cenaida really paid attention and her daughter as well was pretty interested. We made plans with a brother in the ward to pass by Sunday to bring Cenaida and her daughter to church, it was awesome!!!

Thursday we were presented by the Young Men's President to a less-active member and her friend who is named Angela. We were able to teach Tatiana (the less-active) and her friend in the morning, and the lesson was fantastic. Angela has known about the church for three years and really likes the spirit she feels when the missionaries come to teach, but she has pretty much given up on attending any church. We have a Family Home evening tonight with the whole family of Tatiana (husband and kids are non-members) and Angela is going to be there as well, it was awesome! Thursday night I started an exchange with Elder Siguenza in Tintal which ended Friday.

Friday, I was in Tintal!!! I love that place, a lot of good memories there. We started the exchange on a good note with Elder Siguenza leaving the keys in the apartment and us having to bring a super cool ladder and he had to climb up to the third floor and go through the window to get the keys! I love Tintal. ALSO! Do you guys remember Alexandra?? Well, we had a lesson with her!!! When I was in Tintal this was one of my favorite families and people of all time here in Colombia, and we were able to have an appointment with her!! The only problem she has that is keeping her from being baptized is that she needs to be married, and that night she told us that she already has all her papers and preparation and just get married and she is ready for baptism!!! I was so very happy to hear that, and so hopefully once they get the marriage all planned I will be able to see her baptized!!

Then, Friday night we got calls from the zone leaders. There were emergency transfers because about 12 missionaries have finished and are going home this week. Aaaaaand, they closed Casablanca 1, and so now before there were four elders here and now its just my companion and I!! They also changed my district, and now the Sister missionaries of Roma and the Slders of Bosa are in my district! No more Tintal and Patio Bonito!!!

Saturday Elder Valeriano left to his new area and Elder Bailon, who was my zone leader in Girardot, came to stay with us in our house until today. Also, Saturday we had a baptism!!! So, like I said this week was crazy. We have been teaching a less-active family called the Gomez's, and they have a son that turned eight years old but was never baptized because they were waiting for the Dad, Jorge Gomez, to be able to baptize his son, Mateo. So we have been working with them and last week he finally had his interview with the bishop and set the baptism for this last Saturday the 30th. So we helped out with the service and filled up the Baptimal font, and other cool stuff. The baptism was great, it was cool to see the Father baptize his son. Everything went well and we left to go home. When we got to the house, I got a call from the Ward Mission Leader who told me that there was a small problem. It turns out that when they tried to fill out the form for his baptism, they found out that he turned nine years old that same day of his baptism!! And so, having nine years old it was now a baptism of us the missionaries and not of the ward like we had thought. So we filled out the baptismal forms and had a baptism!

Sunday........ five investigators came to church!!!! We picked up Cenaida and found out that not only one but two of her daughters was going to come with her to church!! It was a really good feeling, we worked really hard this week and we had a great Sunday!!

I know that God knows me personally and that he has listened to my prayers and to the prayers of my family and friends. What an amazing week!!! We have a whole lot of work to do now and I just love being a missionary!!!

I wish time would go slower! I'm heading up towards a year already and I really don't know where time goes. I love you guys and hope you have an amazing week as well!!

Love,

Elder Kendall