Last Email Home! 10/6/12

Hey Everybody,

I guess for lunch I am honestly willing to eat anywhere, Maybe a burger and fries from Inn and Out would be nice. Ha. I don't know yet. Mom for dinner I would love chicken enchiladas if possible!

Tonight I am getting on a bus to go to Asuncion. I will get there at about 5 in the morning and then we are going to visit some converts and members that I grew close to. Since my plane leaves so early in the morning I got permission to go see them because they can't go to the airport. I am going to be doing that all day tomorrow (Tuesday) and then on Wednesday I am going to the temple with President and the Hermana, to have dinner with them, have my last interview, and then sleep to get on the plane Thursday morning.

It is a weird feeling going to the Cyber for the last time here in Paraguay, but here goes my last email. Honestly, I think it is hard to describe, and even harder to understand, what it feels like to be so close to the end of your mission. It is scary, exciting, sad, happy, tired, a mix of a ton of different emotions. I have learned a lot on my mission, and even though it was full of great happy events, I think I learned the most from the hard times. The mission is physically, emotionally, spiritually, and mentally taxing, and you really learn a lot about yourself and the Lord when you´re having a hard time. I will talk about it more in my homecoming talk I think, but if we let the Lord, he can shape us with difficulties and challenges in life.

I know that God loves us, and that this church is true. I didn't have the chance to watch all of conference on Saturday or Sunday, but with the little I did see and the chance I had to see the Prophet speak, I know that he is a prophet of God, and I know that we have the same organization that existed in Christ's church. I have grown to love the Book of Mormon, even though I don't have it memorized and still lack a lot of studying, I know it is true, and the spirit of God made me feel that it is true. I love you all so much and can't thank you enough for the support and letters and everything you have done for me. God bless.

6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.

7 I have fought a good ^afight, I have ^bfinished my course, I have kept the faith:

8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a ^acrown of ^brighteousness, which the Lord, the righteous ^cjudge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

2 Timothy 4

Love Elder Pearson

I will miss this amazing country! 10/2/12

Hey Everybody!!

Sorry for not being able to write yesterday. We had a leader training meeting and the bus ride I take is about 8 hours so I didn't have very much time. Things are great though, and my last week is here. It scares me, I won't lie, and it doesn't feel like it is really going to end, but I am excited to work super hard. Just like it says in Moroni 9:6

And now, my beloved son, notwithstanding their hardness, let us labor ^adiligently; for if we should cease to ^blabor, we should be brought under condemnation; for we have a labor to perform whilst in this tabernacle of clay, that we may conquer the enemy of all righteousness, and rest our souls in the kingdom of God.

The training meeting was really great and some great things were shared. The wife of Elder Di Giovanni of the Seventy shared about disanimation and how it can be hard sometimes as a missionary, but talked about what we can do to always feel better. She shared 2nd Nephi 4 and Nephi´s prayer. When we think of Nephi, we think AWESOME PROPHET. But in verse 17 it shows us that even he was a little disanimated. But as you keep reading the chapter, Nephi starts counting his blessings and remembering all the good that he has. It really is a great helper in life and it gives us the ability to conquer the hard times.

I love you all so much and, even though I am going to miss this amazing country and people, I am excited to see all of you. God bless.

Love,

Elder Pearson

Doing our best to help the people...9/24/12

Hey Everybody!!

Filadelfia is getting HOT!! We have been having some difficulties this week with the different tribes and some racism and people not wanting to go to church, but we had a long meeting with the leaders and I think everything is going to be worked out. We are planning an activity, and I think it will boost the animo a ton for the rama here. Honestly, we have just been doing our best to help the people here, and help them understand the covenants they made during baptism. As a tribe many people were baptized, but didn't know what that meant. They undestood that it was important to God, but we are working with a lot of different members menos activos in the tribe. They are such great people and are so nice, just lack a little bit of the knowledge of the gospel and doctrine. I will definately be taking lots of pictures. Love you guys a ton and can't wait to see you. God bless!!

JACOB 5:62-64

62 Wherefore, let us go to and labor with our might this last time, for behold the end draweth nigh, and this is for the last time that I shall ^aprune my vineyard.

63 Graft in the branches; begin at the ^alast that they may be first, and that the first may be ^blast, and dig about the trees, both old and young, the first and the last; and the last and the first, that all may be nourished once again for the last time.

64 Wherefore, dig about them, and prune them, and dung them once more, for the last time, for the end draweth nigh. And if it be so that these last grafts shall grow, and bring forth the natural fruit, then shall ye prepare the way for them, that they may grow.

ELDER PEARSON

9/17/12 Still working...

Hey Everybody,

I love this area! We are always given opportunities to serve the people, and you can really tell they need it. We have also been having some really cool teaching oportunities in our area. We are teaching a lady right now who is very smart and has lots of good questions. We left the Book of Mormon with her and she read it. Our next visit she asked us about the Urim and Thumim, which was a first timer for me. Ha. But, we explained it and she understood.

We are trying to find more people to teach, and keep working hard. We are going to be going back to the Abundancia for an activity this next week I think, so I will have lots more to write about next week.

I love you guys A TON!! I am always thanking my Heavely Father for your support and help. Pa´akum!!

Elder Pearson

Lots of Service This Week 9/10/12

Hey Everybody,

Another week bites the dust here in Paraguay. Things are good and we are working hard to find new investigators and get all the menos activos to come back to church. We are planning on doing an activity with the branch and want to give a lesson on the sacrament and the importance of taking it every Sunday. Hopefully, it will give the people the drive to come to church. We did lots of service again this week and were able to clean a lot of patios, cut grass with machetes, and prune some trees in the tribe Uh´ejlavos.

We started contacting and working in a new part of our area called barrio Primavera. It is a cool little part with Paraguayan and German people. As we were contacting we got a reference for a lady that supuestamente did witchcraft. We decided to go contact the reference and she turned out to be a really cool lady with LOTS! of good questions. Hopefully, she can progress. She is a very blunt person and thinks a ton, which is fun sometimes. We also contacted a German family that actually let us pass in to talk to them!! It was a miracle. Ha. But, they were super nice and Maria the daughter already knew the gospel of Jesus Christ, just didn't know she knew it. We talked about baptism, and she told us she doesn't understand how someone could be baptized by drops of water and that it would have to be how Jesus did it with lots of water, and that repentance means we ask forgiveness and never do it again. She knew her stuff. Hopefully, the family can progress. We weren't able to talk to the father, but they seem like very nice people.

Other than that not too much has been happening. We played soccer with some of the natives in Uh´ejlavos, and it was super fun. We were walking by and we saw a less active joven (youth) playing and he asked us if we wanted to play. Ha, they were pretty good and so is my latin comp, but it was still fun. Nothing better than a good partido (game)on a dirt field with sticks for goals! Good memories. I love you all and God bless.

Love
Elder Pearson

Started last change...9/3/12

I FEEL LIKE KOLIPOKI!!!!!


Hey Everybody!

This last week was a good week and I started officially my last change here in Paraguay. It is insane to think how fast it has gone and how fast it keeps going. I have a new companion who is going to be ¨killing¨ me here in Filedelfia. His name is Elder Ramos and he is from Argentina. Ha. He is a super funny guy and it is kinda ironic that I am going to end my mission on the only Latin comp I will have. It will be a good Spanish helper for before I go home. He has an awesome accent, and it always reminds me of the Italian accent back in New Jersey, but in Spanish.

This week we had the opportunity to do lots of service. We helped a family juntar leña (cut wood)again, but this time we got a lot!!! It was super fun and I really know how to work a machete after 2 years here in Paraguay. We are planning lots of cool things with the jovenes (youth) here in the area, to give them something better to do than go out on the weekends. The tribe here is so small and it is hard for them to find something better to do on the weekend than drink and party. We are also going to be doing an English class this Wednesday. I really think things are going to pick up and I will be leaving this beautiful country and people on a good note. That is about all for this week.

I am glad to hear that Justin didn't scream like a girl when he sprayed the bats. I wont lie, I probably would have. Ha. Sounds like all is well back home and that you guys are excited to go to the temple this week. There really is no better place on earth. It is kinda hard on the mission to not be able to go to the temple as much as we would like too. It's great to hear that you saw Viladi also. I hope he is well.

I love you all a ton, and am so grateful for all of you.

Elder Pearson

Excited to lose myself in these last couple weeks... 8/27/12

Hey Everybody,

It is crazy to think how fast time goes. This last week was a very memorable one for me. There was a lot of stuff that happened.

We had the baptisms of the people out in Abundancia, and it was such a great experience to be able to see them enter the waters and make this promise to God. We started our trek out to La Abundancia and got on a collectivo (bus) that took us to the ruta (path), and then began the walk to the tribe. We had some good time to set everything up. We bought some Jugo (juice) and cookies for a snack after the baptisms. We set everything up and got the little snacks, all the baptismal clothes, and registros (records) set up. Then we got everybody ready, and finally with lots of different little erands, we got everybody lined up for their baptisms. Then we had the interviews and I was able to do it, with Alvino, a returned missionary by my side. He translated everything into Nivacle. It was the first time I was ever translated into Nivacle and it was a cool experience. Then we talked to this man named Benjamin who got us some really cool things made out of Palo Santo, a really good smelling wood here in Paraguay. After the service, we got everything cleaned up and headed out for the ruta again. As we were waiting for our collectivo, we saw some people whose car had broke down and we helped them jump the car with a trucker's cables. It was fun and it always feels good to hook a brotha up. In church on Sunday I gave the Sunday School class on the life of Christ and talked a lot about service for others. There really is nothing better than kind service that we give. It makes you feel great.

That was my week pretty much. Mirta is still doing well and her son in law picked up the Book of Mormon one day and started reading. He really got interested in what it said and wants us to start visiting him, which is awesome! So, she said she is going to wait for him to be baptized so they can all do it at the same time! Awesome. It is such a cool experience to see the spirit working on her and her family.

I love you all so much, and I will see you guys before you and I know it. All I know is that it sometimes brings me to tears to think of the fact that I will have to leave this amazing country and these amazing people. I am so excited to see all of you, but I am even more excited to lose myself in these last couple weeks that I have. God bless

Love
ELder Pearson