Miracles, Cambios, Eye Disease!

Dear Family and Friends,
 

This week flew by so fast and so much has happened, I don't even know where to start.

What a blessing to be alive at this time when the gospel is spreading over all the earth and the Lord is moving forward his great work! How blessed we are to have a Prophet and 12 Apostles. I sure am grateful for President Monson and happy that he is with his wife and Savior, Jesus Christ. Truly he is a prophet of God.
 

This week in Santa Cruz it rained so hard that many houses flooded, and here there are so many canals that floods aren't very common. In one part of our ward, the people had water in their front yards and in their house up to their knees. In Gaupilo, a part in our zone, there were houses that had water all the way up to people’s chest. The members who followed the counsel of the prophet to have a bag for emergencies were greatly blessed. We had a fun time bailing out water. For about 2 hours Tuesday night we bailed water out of a house in our neighborhood. It felt good to serve these people just like the Savior would.

Now for the part about the eye disease. So in Santa Cruz, everyone is getting a sickness called cojuntabities, or it is like pink eye where the eye swells up and yellow fluid comes up. Now for the adventure. My companion got it! He woke up Thursday morning, and his eye was shut.

To protect his eyes he wore some awesome sunglasses we found in the house.  Thankfully I haven't got it yet.

Also, Alan is doing great. He didn't get baptized this week because his friend is returning from the mission and she wanted to be there to see it so it is going to happen this week for sure! He attended church again and loved it. It has been amazing to see the process of repentance in his life and how each commandment he learns about he keeps. With each commandment he keeps, the spirit illuminates his countenance! Truly the gospel makes us happy. As Alma taught his son, “wickedness never was happiness.” But flipping the phrase, righteousness always brings happiness!

Alan and Elder Harris - Alan got this crazy eye disease and didn't want anyone to get it so he wore his sunglasses

 This week we had cambios, and my companion and I got to announce them to the zone. That was super fun, but what we didn't expect is my companion is going to Yacuiba. I sure am going to miss him. He has been a great leader, teacher, companion, and friend. And he has helped me progress so much.   Since my companion was transferred,  I am in charge of the musical number for the conference with Elder Falabella. Can you pray for me?

Elder Lamont, an Elder in our zone has been sick for the past two weeks and has been in the hospital. This week, my companion taught me the importance of service, and we were able to visit him and bring them food and help them in their baptismal service. Elder Lamont got permission to leave the hospital and he and his companion baptized 1 brother and 3 sisters. It felt so good to go to their baptismal service and help them with the musical numbers and filling up the font. Please pray for Elder Lamont that he can be healed.

Anyway, being a missionary is the best and your companions build you, help you, and change you.

Our great district! Elder Ward, the tall American, is our district leader and is a fantastic missionary!

Saying goodbye to the Gonzales family with Dulce y Fernanda and the Soliz family!

 

 

 

 

My new companion is Elder Iparraguirre. He is from Peru and entered the mission one transfer after me. We are excited to work together!

This gospel is true, the Book of Mormon is the word of God as well as the Bible, and Jesus Christ lives.  Through faith and his name, repentance of our sins, baptism by water and by the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end or enjoying to the end of this brief mortal experience, we can become like our Heavenly Father and live with Him again!

I hope you have a great week!

Love Elder Matheson!

Tim Tam Slams Together...Thank you so much for the cookies.  They were delicious!