Week 105

Dear Family,


Well first off, here is my flight information. The reason why you havent got it yet is because we have an elder who is very special (dumb) as the migration secretary.
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There now you have it

Anyways this was one of the best weekends of my mission. We were able to baptise all of the people who had baptismal dates. Everything went smoothly. The confirmations were very spiritual. I am happy. I am really happy and satisfied. But I am tired. I wont lie :P

I'm thankful that I was able to serve a mission, and I hope everything comes out well when I get home. teresa keep up the good work, and get those people to water!

thanks for getting me a job!!!!!! that makes me real happy.

Love you all,

Elder DeVictoria

Week 104

Dear Family,

Well it has been a long week, but I fear that this coming week will go by far too fast. We basically ran around in circles all week trying to get the baptism of the Palomeque family lined up. There was a slight problem with the interview, but president Galzier helped us out, and we were able to get all of the interviews done. They are very ready for baptism. They had their wedding this past friday. It was great. A lot of people showed up, and I am oh so happy for them. God has made everything up to me, all the bad weeks, all the fallen investigators....hes fixing it all up at the end. Bishop Farnsworth sent me a letter asking for my homecoming talk.....woah thats nuts. I really only have 9 days left and I'm gonna be on my way back home. I had my final interview with president Glazier this week. He gave me some good advice, and I hope that I can put it in practice when I get home.

I don't really plan on bringing anything home other than pictures, a little maturity and a lot of great experiences.

This isnt my last email, but that next one is probably gonna be shorter.

I ask you guys to just make some calls if you can so that I can find something to do when I get home. I am sending you guys some pictures, and with the help of god then next ones should be a lot "whiter" :) We had a ton of challenges witht he interviews, Blanca got stung by a 5 inch scorpion and had to be hospitalized...but in the end we got everything done.

Love Elder DeVictoria

Week 103

Dear Family,

We are going to baptise a family this week!!! We got everything prepared for their marriage and their baptism, and they are super excited to get baptised. We had a long road with them, but now they have gone to church as a family 4 times and they are ready. It is exciting. This area is so amazing. The Lord has brought 14 people or more to church for 3 weeks now. We had 184 members in Sacrament meting :) It is very exciting. My goal is to baptise 6 people before I go home, because they are ready :) Thanks for supporting me on my mission, it has been great. Well worth it. Hey I really need help to see if you guys can find me a job with someone in the stake or at rix, even if they arent going to pay me much. I was thinking maybe they would let me do like a little internship at Rix or something. I don't know. I just dont want to be sitting around, and I dont want to go through the scramble to find a local job only to work for a month and a half. If you guys can make some calls and ask it would be nice, it would help a lot. Tell them I speak spanish :P

Anyways good luck in all the stuff thats going on. Come to church please sam. Keep going.
Love Elder DeVictoria

Week 102

Dear Family,
Guess what? we got to go to the beach today with president, and he let us play in the water on the shore haha. We didnt get to go swimming though. It was cool we just got back from playing soccer on the sand.
This week was a little frustrating for me, because we had to make a long trip all the way to san salvador from La Union, and we lost and important day of work, but the lord made it up to us, because we were able to bring 16 people to church on sunday including 4 families!! It was amazing. This area doesnt cease to amaze me. God is really helping us out here to be able to serve and work with maximum effects. He is softening the hearts of the people to recieve the commitments that we give them.
I just kinda hit me though that I only have 3 weeks left till I get home. Wow.
You guys might want to get my bed ready haha.
Well I dont have a whole lot to say, so I guess I'll verbally introduce you guys to some of our investigators:
Familia Palomeque - They have gone to church 3 times now as a family, and have accepted to be baptised, so this week is show time tog et them to commit to marriage, find a lawyer and hopefully get the baptism lined up for this saturday. The Zoneleaders are like tripping out to get us to baptise this family lol. But they are really great. They have changed a lot, and I know that they will get baptised. We are going to have a family home evening tonight with them and some members so that should really be good.
Familia Hernandez - They almost got baptised a few years ago, but it turned out that they could never get her birth certificates taken out, so they never got married, and therefor never got baptised. They all went to church on sunday, even the rebelious youngster. We will see where it goes with them, because they have a lot of financial diffuculties ( they basically live off clams and churria (I'm not sure how to say that in English, but they are like little long clam things as well) and dont really have any stable employment.)
Familia Avrigo (Isidrio) - He has now gone to church 2 weeks with his wife, and he really likes it. He knows a lot of members in the church, and his wife and granddaughter are allready members. We are planning his baptism for the 4th of February, and I think everything will come out well, because graciously they are allready married.
Agustine - He is the grandfather of a less-active member in the branch, and he came to church this sunday. He is elderly and has some health issues, but he allready expressed to his granddaughter that he wanted to be baptised. We will work with him for the 11th of February.

So yes the work is strong here, and president let me come here to that I would finish the mission happy and satisfied.

Love you all, and see you soon.
Elder DeVictoria

Week 101

Dear Family,

This week passed by really fast, we have been working really hard. This area is pure gold. Its a shame that I only get to come here the last change of my mission, but hey thats the way it goes sometimes. There are a lot of prepared people that they had found before I got here, but who werent progressing, but now they are. We had another great week, because we had baptisms. We baptised three youth named Oswaldo, Jasmin and Hisel, who are children of one of the sisters in the ward. They were way prepared. Good stuff. We also were able to bring 9 people to church, even though 2 or 3 that we brought last week didnt want to go. I'm really happy. We are planing to baptise a family the 27th of January, and complete another one that we found this week the 4th of February. God is going to help us meet these goals, because we are working hard, and trying ot be really obedient. It is a lot easier to be obedient and diligent when you arent a zone leader. A lot less pressure. I have found that I work a lot better when nobody is out pressuring me, and I am out on my own.

Thats the good news.
The bad news is that every time I get done reading the letters that were sent to me I have like no ideas about things to write nor desire to think of them lol.

I got my flight plans; I will be coming home the 16th of february. My plane will leave at 2:35 pm on the 16th, go to florida, and leave from florida to SFO at 6:45 so I should get home somewhere around 10pm I think. I'll forward them to you to make sure you get them.

Love Elder DeVictoria,

Week 100

Dear Family,

Wow, I only have 5 weeks left!!!!!!!! what?? That is crazy. It has been a good time here in El Salvador....I have seen some pretty crazy stuff in two years.

I have a great new companion. His name is Elder Cerrud and he is from Panama. He only has 6 weeks in the mission, so he is pretty new. It is really fun to be with a new missionary, because they are still unspotted for the world, and undamaged by the apostasy. He is really powerful, his dad is a bishop in panama. We should have a great change together.

I think my new area was prepared just for me. In three days we were able to round up 14 people commited to go to church...and then the miracle, they came!!!!! wow. It was crazy. Thats the most that I have ever been able to bring to church in one sunday. I am happy. Now we have to hard task of getting them to go next week, teaching them the gospel during the week, and getting them baptised before the 16 of February :P

We brought 2 full investigator families, and 1 part member family. It is exciting. God is really helping us out.

The area I'm at is a lot like Gotera, but it is right next to the beach, and it has a port and everything. There are a lot of great members here. Almost all of them tell me ¨Elder this is going to be your favorite area¨ it is so exciting.

Anyways I don't really know who you were talking to on the phone, it might have been one of my friends or converts that thinks I'm home already haha. If she calls again ask her ¨¿Cómo se llama usted? and then write down her name (If you don't understand say ¨¿Puede repetirlo otra vez por favor? ) Then tell her, ¨Se le voy a comunicar, pero a Elder DeVictoria todavía le queda cinco semanas para terminar la misión, pero siempre le puede mandar un correo electronico o dejar un mensaje un su facebook y el le contestará pronto.¨

These pictures are a couple from Usulutan, me with a bunch of boeing stuff that Elder Antonios dad sent us, and the snake that almost bit my companion last night....haha

Love Elder DeVictoria

Week 99

Dear Family,

This was an entertaining week. We are working hard and we had a great occurance this week are church. The whole family of Ronaldo (The kid we baptised last week) came to church after over a month of working witht them. It made me so happy to see them there. Also I am getting changed out of this area. I know where I am going too seeing as my companion has like all information haha. I'm going to the hottest area of the mission. The beach front. Its called La Union. I'm super excited to go. It is one of the most powerful branches in the mission, and It always baptises. And I get to be a stepdad again. even though I'm not going to be training, I feel that this is a great opportunity. Happy new years, I second what Sister Wei said at the end of her letter.

Love Elder DeVictoria

1-A visitor in our house (yeah it really hurts when they sting you)
2-What happens after you burn like 1000000 fireworks in the street?