Querida Familia!

Hey!! How are you! So.. we´ve got royalty in the family! :) Skyler with the studly face to win the crown! Haha sounds like you guys had such a great week. Thank you for sharing it with me!! This week was great. Life throws us things that I think we´re not always able to imagine or that we thought could have happened. I have been so thankful for this week and for the will of our Heavenly Father! Many times we are asked to do things or be okay with things that aren´t exactly what we had in mind!

Monday and Tuesday were normal days out in the mission field. We´ve been working with a couple families really closely to help them through some problems that they´ve had while also being able to teach family members and friends about the gospel. Right now in Villa Elvira we have been finding the most success with part member families! They have been saving us and helping us to help the members as well. One family in particular we´ve visited a lot this week. The Family Arroyo is a menos activo family that we´ve found 2 incredible people. Maria y Gonzalo! Maria is a 14 year old girl that has been through a little bit of everything in her life and was kicked out of her house by her mom.. she didn´t want to deal with anymore problems so one day she sent Maria a message that her things were on the steps and that she needed to come and get them and find a new place to live! Just a terrible situation for her, we were able to teach her a couple times. She was really sad to be neglected by her mom and came to be so sincere in her prayers. The first day we invited her to begin praying so that she´d be able to have that "friendship" that we are offered through prayer. After a couple visits she was asking to pray and I loved her prayers. I felt closer to God from just hearing her! Unfortunately her mom this weekend called her and wanted her to come back... we are just praying that her mom can take care of her this time (I guess this isn´t the first time she has been kicked out). Gonzalo is a cousin to these members and has been an active member of an Iglesia Evangélica. We were able to have a great conversation with him, he has talked to missionaries before but never wanting to really be engaged in the conversation so this time we were super grateful that he was willing to open up and to talk a little bit more. Something that I´ve been learning this week is about the purpose of this gospel and the purpose of the message that we share. A lot of the people that we talk to are found without hope and don´t have anything to really look forward to that is good and lasting. I loved Moroni 7 - this week I´ve been trying to help our investigators to have this greater hope in their lives, to be free from worry and free from guilt so that they can live in a better world!

40 And again, my beloved brethren, I would speak unto you concerning hope. How is it that ye can attain unto faith, save ye shall have hope?

41 And what is it that ye shall hope for? Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, to be raised unto life eternal, and this because of your faith in him according to the promise.

So Wednesday!! Big 20 :) We woke up headed off for a normal day working and it went really well. A couple fechas that we have invited us to visit each with them for a great Peruvian lunch. That morning I woke up pretty sick, or just had a pretty bad stomach ache. The food was super good and it was so nice to be able to spend time with them! The rest of the day went pretty normally. I don´t know if I´ve told you guys, but right now we are living in a 4-man apartment. That night the Elders had bought a cake and surprised me with a lot of singing and a faceful of cake!! It was a great surprise and made the Big day complete!

Thursday we went to district meeting and had to come right back cause my stomach was in shambles! After a couple hours my stomach had swelled up pretty good and with a good stomach pain I was taken to the hospital! After taking some tests and x-rays they found that my intestines had stopped working. President Stapley at that time had come down to La Plata to be with me and help me out! It turned into a very long night and in the end they kept me in the hospital for the night to do some treatments! All ended up fine and I left the next morning without problems, but it turned out being an intersting end to some great birthday festivities! No worries at all, everything went well and I´m doing good and am happy! :)

It was interesting to be in the hospital and to have a minute or two to think about the things that happen to us and how involved our Heavenly Father is in our lives. I don´t necessarily understand why things happen or what things are going to happen, but I learned and know without doubt that whatever happens, God is in it! He does not leave us alone, even for 1 minute of our lives. I know that was with me in the those moments and that each moment and each decision that we take has an Eternal Significance, helping us to grow in our ability to accept what comes and choose to put our faith in Christ. I was grateful to have you all there with me and to have you in my life, I know that it is for a reason! This life is a process of being optimistic and hopeful for the future. The way to progress is accept the Savior's role as our Redeemer and to trust that one day we will be perfected in Him. :)

I thank you all for your love and for being there for me as an example! I hope you have a great week :)

Elder Jolley