Coming Home!

 

Just One Week More

Dear Family, 

I can't believe that in one short week I will be with you again. My mind is yet to fully comprehend that my time in Buenos Aires will come to an end. I love the people here and I love the calling that I've been given to serve them. I pray that God will continue to send the gospel to all of them.

Update on Jose Leon Suarez

This Saturday, Joaquin, Nicolas, and Elizabeth were baptized! Their father and a few of their siblings came to the service along with a good number of members. Despite flooding the baptismal font (whoops), the service was a great spiritual experience. I always feel so happy in baptismal services! Joaquin, Nicolas, and Elizabeth were super nervous but enjoyed being dressed all in white. 

The Gonzalez family came to church for the first time this week (Cristian, Mariana, Marcela, and Valentina)! We've been teaching them for the last month and they were finally able to come! Pedro attended as well and is excited to get baptized! He's unsure when because he wants his Dad to be there, so we'll see if that's this weekend or further in the future. 

Joaquin, Elizabeth and Nicolas Gauna

The Gauna Family (well, at least some of them. There's 16 kids in the family but not all of them came

What I've Learned

The power of agency and responsibility have been strongly impressed on my mind over the course of the last two year. I've learned that faith and desires and repentance are all things that depend on my decisions. 

Faith: Every day as a missionary, I need to believe in what we're doing in order to keep moving forward. I choose to have faith in things that I've never seen, trusting on my past experiences and the experiences of others. 

Desires: Good desires come from God. Bad desires come from Satan. Both exist. The desires that grow inside of me are the ones I choose to act upon. I become what I choose, good or bad.

Repentance: Repentance is the acceptance of my imperfections and the choice to change (very hand in hand with desires). When I repent, I choose to trust in Christ's promise that He has the power to cleanse me of sin and make me a better man. 

Elder Silva, Elder Mitchell, Elder Smith, Elder Chapman

Conclusion

Serving a mission is easily the best thing I have ever done with my life. I have felt immense joy as others have received the gospel. I have realized how much I love my family. Greatest of all, I have recognized how much I need Jesus Christ. He is at the head of this great work.

I know that God loves us and that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is His kingdom here on earth!

With much love,

Elder Cameron J Smith

Two short weeks left

Mon, Jan 7, 6:14 AM

Dear Mom,

I liked the 2-hour church meeting. Having everyone together in Gospel Principles class will take a little adjusting to (people that come to the church for the first time understand a little less than people who have gone to church for the last 40 years in a row), but I think it will be good. That way the new people can learn from those with experience. About fasting, we actually forgot it was fast Sunday, whoops. I'll be fasting during the week. 

The Gauna family came again! Carlos didn't stay but 4 of his kids did. Nicolas, Elizabeth, and Joaquin are getting baptized this Saturday! Our biggest challenge with them has been helping them make friends. They are all really really shy and don't like talking to new people. With us, they never stop talking but if someone they don't know isn't there, they don't say anything. 

We had a good week working with the members. We've been inviting them to go on splits with us more and they've responded well. 

I've been working on having more meaningful prayers and truly listening for answers. As a result, I've felt spiritually refreshed. I always think about that children's book "You Are Special" with the carpenter and all the wooden dolls. Spending alone time with God is important. 

It's crazy that in two short weeks, I'll be on a plane ride home. It seems like it's coming so fast! I'm going to make the most of every day I have left. 

Thanks for all your love and support!

Love,

Elder Smith