Week 26

FAMILY!!!!!

How are you all doing??? I`m sure you`re doing great. You`re being dumped with double-missionary blessings right now. What else are you looking for? ;_).

So... Haha. Let`s start out this letter with how Elder Ramirez and I started out our day today. We walked out of the house, and as we opened the gate TARZAN walked by. Mom, don`t laugh. I tried not to when you told me you beleive in bigfoot. And I`m being serious. We both stopped, not knowing what to do, as a wild man walked briskly by wearing nothing but a sweater tied around his waist.

Elder Ramirez looked at me, I looked at him, we nodded, and kept on walking. Later, he told me, “Elder Stewart. We`re not in the United States anymore.”

On that note, guess who`s having a BAPTISM this week????!!!! After 5 weeks of really re-working the work here in Ybatè, we`re FINALLY seeing the beginnings of the fruits of our labors. We`re working to have these fruits turning over at a consistent rate.

Meet Luis. Luis will be baptized the 5^th of February. He`s a 30 ish year old man, with a wife and 3 kids. What an investigator he is! A few highlights:

1. He doesn`t LOVE us, the missionaries. It`s great. Let me explain. He`s happy to have us over, and he`s happy to listen to us, but his happy place is the church. He`s friends with ALL of the members. He`s been four times, and just loves to meet new people, chat with them, and after 5 minutes they`re best friends. It`s quite fun to sit back and watch him work. ;_). A lot of times the conversion is really hard on people, changing from their weekend-party lifestyle friends, to friends in the church. It can be uncomfortable and awkward. Recent converts are usually good friends with the missionaries, and stay that way for a while as they ease into the groove of things. Haha, Luis just dove in, head first, and is basking in it.

2. We taught him about Joseph Smith, and praying to know, and really stressed that he needed to get an answer. He quietly listened to us... and then, when we were finished, he said, “Well... I think you`re right. But I think for some people, they just... know.... you know?” And he... just knew! It was really neat. He`s never doubted that Joseph Smith was a profeta, from the first time that we taught it to him.

3. We left him a Word of Wisdom pamphlet this week, and came back to teach him. He told that that morning, he had put his water on to heat up for his Coffe, and then went to read the pamphlet, read that you can`t drink coffe, and went and took his water off the stove. SOLID!!!! I asked him why. Why didn`t he question it? He`s been drinking coffe his whole life. Everyone drinks coffe here. So why not question it? Haha, he just responded with, “Well, like you said, if Joseph Smith was a prophet, and this commandment came from him... then I shouldn`t drink coffe.”

The Lord lead us to an incredible investigator. One of his daughters skipped the church that she`s been going to and came with us to church this week, and found a new best friend in one of the members. His other daughter is coming with us to church next week. We`re still working on the wife, and the one year old baby... they`re being a tiny bit stubborn. ;_). The Lord`s working, sleeves rolled up, right alongside us here in Ybatè.

Mom, I really loved that quote by Sister Hinkley. I honestly cannot wait to get home and sit and chat over a nice frozen yogurt. It will be a little strange to have an adult relationship with my parents, but I`m kind of looking forward to it! And besides... it won`t be too grown up. There`s still lots of life lessons to learn for a 21 year old RM. That`s how I imagine it at least.

Thanks for the updates. I think we`re going to go Jimmer some of our investigators this week. ;_). The work is really going well here. I think you`d be proud of your little boy with his missionary plaque on. ;_). The work`s swallowed me up here. I`m loving it. The past few weeks have just FLOWN by. It really seems like every other day or so is already another Sunday. Everything we do all week leads up to who shows up in Sacrament meeting. I`m trying to give the Lord all of my Heart, Might, Mind, and Strength. And it`s working. Haha, I can`t lie though, I was pretty happy thinking about P day as we were walking home last night at 9:30. I was tired. ;_¨). Even Elder Ramirez mentioned it this week. Haha, he said, “Man... I`ve been really tired this change. Elder, I think this is the hardest I`ve worked in my whole mission.” I hope you`re proud, my dear pop. I love you a lot. There`s that scripture that talks about a parent not having a greater joy than to watch their child grow in righteousness. I hope this doesn`t come across as arrogant. I know I`ve still got a ton to work on. I just want you to know that I`m working. ;_). I love you. I hope that things are going well for you. You always worked your tail off,trying to provide the very best for me. I appreciate it.

Love you all,

Elder Joshua Stewart

Week 25

Family-

My dearest mother, HAHA!!!! Oh, you are so very good for me, aren`t you. There`s a reason you were, well... are, my mom. Haha, I couldn`t help but smile when I thought of you reading your books. To hear that Christ has a sense of humor that nobody could hope to match is solid. Fun to think about. Witty. Haha. I loved it. This morning, as I was studying, I accidently came across the scripture about, “What manner of man ought ye to be? Even as I am.” And it`s true. If Christ is happy, and has a sense of humor, shouldn`t we emulate that attribute too?

George!!!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! I`m super proud of you! Way to be. A big bad zone leader, like the Elders I live with. Wow. That`s incredible. And it`s the best kind of pride, just the fact that the Lord trusts you enough to lead his other missionaries. That just means that you`ve been working your tail off, and you`ve been super obedient. Haha, I`m really proud of you. Like Mom always says, the higher you are up in positions of the church, all it means is more service. In this work, 100% of the glory is for God. I know you already know that, and that`s why I`m happy for you. You`ve never been a selfish, prideful person. I always admired that about you. The missionaries you`re working with will recognize that about you right off the bat, that you`re just there to serve. Man, I love you. What a brother I ended up with.

The work is going soooo well. We had a super hard, discouraging week last week. But the Lord is working right alongside us here in Ybatè. He gave me a very strong testimony of that this week. I`m learning about Faith. About REAL faith. The kind that`s more than just words. The kind that doesn`t blow over the first time a tough wind comes through.

My days and weeks have become enveloped in the work. It`s an incredible feeling. My mind and heart have been set here. My week is a tough week only when the work isn`t going well. My happiest days aren`t P Days, where I get letters and emails, even though they`re great, but rather, the happiest days are when I feel like I gave the Lord everything I had, and we came out with a few lessons and a few baptismal invitations. I`m learning patience. I`m learning to be humble, and have faith that this is the Lord`s work, not mine. If I`m giving the work my all, it doesn`t matter if the numbers turn out how I wanted them to. They`ll get there eventually. Why? Because this life isn`t mine. “ Beleive in God. Beleive that there is a God.... Beleive that God comprehends things that Man can`t”. That`s a rough translation, and I don`t have my scrips with me, but you get the idea. God sees the underlying miracles, when all I can see is emptiness. God loves us. He`s got this work, this life, planned out to a T. And he loves those photo finishes. ;_). We`ve got to be tougher than those storms, those winds, and have that REAL FAITH that we`re going to come out on top. It took some rough winds to blow the brother of Jared to the Promised Land.

I love you all.

Elder Stewart

Week 24

Family!

Dad! I forgot how much you dislike the cold. I smiled as I read about that in your letter. Haha, scholarship applications. Maybe the school will pay you to work from home for them as a professional schedule/ application counselor. ;_)

ASHLEY JO!!!!!! What in the world are you doing learning waterfall!!!!! You crazy, crazy girl. I can`t beleive it. I was a few years older than you before I learned it! Well, you always did do things your way, now didn`t you. Kind of like that other sister we have.... ;_). Just kidding. J, keep practicing the basics too ok? I still wish I had studied chords and sight reading more. Keep up the good work! I`m so proud of you!

Rach! How did life go over the break? School breaks were sooo much fun in high school. How are you feeling with all of your new classes? How`d you pull through with the last semester?

George, thanks for the advice. I liked it a lot. I printed it out and studied it this week, marking it and all. You`re a solid missionary. I wish we could serve together for a week. That would be so much fun to teach with you. And we`ve already shared a room most of our lives anyways! So no big deal, huh? I wish the best for you as you finish out. Sucess, my brother. And just be happy, ok? Work hard and be happy. Love you man.

Mom, I love you a lot. Thanks for your story about prayer, and about the guy from switzerland. Those were really neat.

Alex. I want to know when you finish up with all of your duty to god ok? I`m super proud of you for working so hard.

Well, this week was great. We had interviews with President Callan. I couldn`t have asked for a better President. I love him a lot. We`ve been so pumped to work, so excited para hacer la obra del Señor. A few clips from the interview.

He thanked me for my positive attitude in my weekly letters to him. I laughed, because mom, you and I were just talking about that last week.

He said that in the next two changes, the missionaries that are leaving are averaging 2 baptisms per month, as a whole group. He said that we need the younger missionaries, my age, to really step it up, and fill in those holes.

He asked me if I was fully, completely, 100% lost in the work. I told him I was trying to be, I was working my tail off to be. He told me I need to get there, and that I would get there.

He told me two really inspiring stories from his mission. Miracles that happened that can, and will happen here. People who have found him just in the past year, who now have whole families in the Gospel because of his work as a missionary 30 plus years ago.

Favorite quote: "You should go home tired and skinny. Let your mom fatten you back wheyou get home. The mission is too short to "pace" yourself.

Love you all,

Elder STewart

Week 23

Hey family!!! Marvelous Monday!!!!

So... I`ll be quick. I want to send some pics.

Mom, I loved that idea from Jared and Lynna, to recognize when you`re being positive. I thought that was pretty funny. It`s very true, too, the fact that we have our ups and downs, and we have to recognize the downs when they`re there. Sometimes it`s kind of nice to just sit in your sad little puddle of sadness, and wallow in it for a while. ;_). Healthy. You`re right again, though, that the way to be happy is just to pull yourself up when you`re done wallowing, and start looking for the good in life again! It`s a process. Life is just a process. A good one.

Look, I have to tell you about this. Prayer. So, my WHOLE life I`ve felt like my weakest point has been prayer. It`s just where I seem to fall short a lot. The mission has been awesome for me. We pray a LOT here. ;_). It`s great. It`s good to converse so often with Heavenly Father. This morning, though, I had a really neat experience. The Zone Leaders were gone to a meeting, so it was just Elder Ramirez and I. I was missing Dad, and all of the talks that we had before the mission, just the hours and hours of chatting in the car, or in his room, or wherever. I went to my room and prayed. I just talked with my Father in heaven. And we talked. I asked a lot of questions. I gave an account of how the work`s coming here, how the weight and the responsibility feels. We talked about you guys, my family, my friends out on missions, my brother out on his mission. I can`t recap it all. But it was something beautiful. More than just praying a lot, it was a very real conversation with my Father in heaven. And it helped. I think I`m here to learn how to have a real Father – Son relationship with my Heavenly Father.

Speaking of the work... WOW!!!! I can`t tell you how nice it is to have a P Day after a HARD week of Work. Elder Christofferson, in his talk about the 5 aspects of a Consecrated life, talks about how hard work gives rest its sweetness. Today`s sweet. ;_). Rafael and his sobrina Banina came to church this week. They`ve got baptismal dates for the 29<sup>th</sup> of this month. Luis assisted church too this week. He`s SSSOOOO solid. He has a wife, and three kids, and just loved church. His wife said she`s already had a baptism in another Church. I don`t know how to explain it, but it`s not a big deal. She`s very very open about everything, (we`ve actually only taught her once. She works a lot), and we`ll explain everything really well to her this week, so that the whole family will be at church next week. Elder Ramirez and I taught in church this week, and taught about the Priesthood, and how a baptism needs to have that power and authority and permission from God for it to work. Luis understood it perfectly, and was commenting a lot. He`ll be able to explain it really well to his wife as we teach them tomorrow.

Tambien, tenemos Amada y su hijito, Marcos. Los dos tienen fechas bautismales, pero no pudieron asistir a la iglesia esta semana con nosotros, por causa de la hija de Amada (ella es miembro ya). Ella se enfermó y se fue a la hospital. Por eso, no asistieron, pero repasamos el bautismo con ellos, y la importancia de la asistencia para prepararse para bautizarse. En fin, ellos tienen otra fecha para sus bautismos, el 5 de Febrero, y si o si van a asistir la próxima semana.

Alright. It takes too long to type in Spanish.

It`s hard to imagine being cold right now.... I`m trying..... but my every part of my shirt is stuck to me because it`s a little warm here.... So... I think I`ll beleive in snow when I see it.

Love you all! Best wishes from a VERY long, long, long ways away.

Elder Stewart, the Younger.

Week 22

Hello family!!!

Good to hear from you. You always seem to be doing very well, and I´m glad for that. Love you all, here´s some responses to your emails!

Mother, for heaven´s sake, please do not send emails about ABC Mandarin and Milkshakes. ;_). Just kidding. Oh boy, pots and pans at the Chadburns for new years. We had a lot of years pass like that, didn´t we? Those are good memories. Tell Chris to take it easy, would you? Haha, it was really good to see him come home the week before I left. He had changed so much. I hope that´s what some outgoing missionary thinks of me by the time I come home. Changed.

I can´t tell you how great it is to be in a house with four elders. Especially living with the Zone leaders. Haha, you´ll laugh, but I really feel like I´m a sophomore rooming with two Student Body Officers. They´re KILLER missionaries. Soooo good. It´s really inspiring to be around them. Elder Phelps especially. He´s a red head kid from Utah, and just the nicest guy ever. He´s super real with everyone, while still being very focused and direct. It seems like every time he opens his mouth he´s teaching, without you realizing that he´s teaching, because it really just seems like your talking. I went with him to pick up some members before church this week, and he just really knew how to talk with the natives, and be loving, but direct with them. A great opportunity overall, to be learning from so many older Elders.

Elder Ramirez is such a sweet comp. Him and I get along Sooooo well. He´s a super humble guy who´s willing to learn from my strengths, and compart of what he´s gained over the mission. We´ve got an awesome working relationship. He´s a STELLAR singer. Very very good. He played in a Mariachi band before the mission, and sang in it too. So we try to sing in a few of our lessons. It really helps to bring in the spirit. Right now our biggest trial is our numbers. We´re just reworking how things are planned out, and I think that´s going to help us out a lot. We had ZERO people with baptismal date when I got here. We visited almost all of our investigators, and handed out 11 baptismal invitations last week. We dropped a lot of investigators that we had been visiting, who weren´t progressing at all. So, en fin, we have 2 people with baptismal dates for this month now, and we´re going to be working our tails off this week to find some people ready to hear and accept the gospel. We actually might go head out right after this and meet with a pretty solid contact that we found yesterday, just for a quick p day visit!

Dad, your RTH joke is NOT funny. ;_). Digo no mas, chistoso es. Hay que seguir con tus chistes. ¿Necesitamos mas de la felicidad en nuestras vidas, no? ¿Cómo andas? ¿Trabajo? ¿Todo tranquilo? Que Dios le bendigas. Salud, dinero, y amor. Haha, siempre dicen así. Y yo resopondo, “El dinero, no tengo, y el amor, lejos es.” Ellos se rien. ;_)

Haha, mom, I was thinking about my shoes this week actually, and I was thinking about how grateful I was for you being so sensible about it! I always thought of a mission as super shined, fancy dress shoes, a spotless, dry cleaned shirt, you know, the whole nine yards. And yes, we try to present ourselves the very nicest possible. But the fact of Paraguayan life is that we walk on empedrado (look it up sometime. Funny.), which is just broken chunks of rock. I wanted really nice looking shoes, you wanted ones that would last. THANK YOU!!!! Haha, I´m using all three pairs of eccos, just switching them off every day. When it rains, it takes a good two days to really dry out, so it works out great. They´re all working good for me. I´m trying to take good care of mine, all of the older elders´ shoes are ripped to shreds. It´ll be a good feeling when I get to that point I think. Then you know you´ve done a lot of walking for the Lord!

Ybaté is still city. It´s an area inside the city of Lambaré, which is right next to asuncion. I´m only like 20 minutes, by auto, away from Centro. I´m just right next to Asuncion. It´s nice though, because it´s not downtown, like centro. There´s no skyscrapers here. Less city and business, more homes that have families living in them. I like it a lot.

I know school´s already started back up and everything, but I wanted to send my 5 favorite talks from Conference. If you have some down time, they´re good! At least, the two that I´ve read… haha. I like to read them really slowly (partly because I read my Spanish copy…), and mark them to death with my pen. I´m really glad to have the conference magazine. I had to wait a while to get the Spanish edition I wanted. I get excited when I pull it out in personal study. The words in there really are inspired. Ok, here they are:

1. Pg. 19. The things that matter most, Pres. Uchtdorf.

2. Pg 87. The divine gift of Gratitude, Pres. Monson

3. Pg 16. Reflections of a consecrated life, Elder Christofferson

4. Pg 55. Pride and the Priesthood, Pres. Uchtdorf

5. Pg 74. Cleaning the interior vessel, Pres. Packer

I´ve read the top two. The other three were just the ones that I had marked as really good while I was reading them. For sure, if you have time, read the top two. KILLER. SOOO GOOD!!! Love you all.

Elder Stewart