A Broken Heart and a Contrite Spirit

I am jealous of you guys in St. George are just barely starting to feel the chill. It is so dang cold in the mornings that I can see my breath in the shower and while we are studying. Our house has no stove or heating system so we are kind of at the mercy of the weather. The afternoons are so nice though.

I’m trying to remember my dad’s advice about letting my mission mold me. This week was a little more frustrating and lots of investigators fell away. Though in the midst of a sea of rejection, we found some absolutely amazing and humble people. I learned a lot about patience and faith this week.

This time around my mission is different. It is like the difference in wrestling practice during freshman vs senior year. For freshman it is all learning how things work and how to properly do a squat etc, but senior year you run until you puke, and they add more weights to your squat until your knees buckle. The Lord is not messing around. I asked for it all and He didn't hold anything back. Sometimes the things I am prompted to do are very scary or hard, but I always find strength when I dig deep. I really admire the stories of Alma and Ammon, but the things I never noticed before was in those chapters where Mormon is basically summing up all of their success. He names all of the amazing things they did then says something along the lines, ¨..but all of that happened after the had suffered much both in body and spirit.¨ I for sure have not experienced anything near what they did, but I've learned what it means to come to God with a broken heart this week.
I love you so much.

Love,
Your missionary

These are some kids from the ward I am in and they love it when we come by to talk to their dad who is the ward mission leader. They are always climbing all over me.

We cut the grass of Hermano Orlando (who is blind) this week for service. It had not been cut all winter and all we had was a small plastic weed wacker. It was smoking and begging for rest by the end.

I think Elder Frausto and I spend all day climbing hills!

Humble meal of homemade bread and butter.

"They had given themselves to much prayer and fasting..."

This week was complete insanity on so many levels. We had a Zone Conference to start off the week which is where several zones get together and listen to President Obeso speak. It was such a spiritual experience and I learned so much. President Obeso is changing up the way that we work as a mission and it has already made us so much more efficient and effective as missionaries. The trio split up right after and Elder Arp left for another sector and Frausto and I returned to Ovejeria.

The next day we had Zone Council which is where our entire Zone gets together and sits around a big table and talks strategy. It was another spiritual feast and Elder Frausto and I left with ¨Cualquiere Animo Po!¨ (Lots of excitement!). We started a fast immediately and didn’t even go home for our hour break, but worked all through the day and night as well as the next day, and 48 hours later we have 4 people who have accepted the invitation to prepare and be baptized, and about 4 or 5 more ready to take that step. Just so you know, that is kind of a big deal. To have one person accept in a week is considered an accomplishment.

When we told the Bishop what we had done and who had accepted, he started laughing and then saw that we were serious. He started to cry and said that those people had talked to many missionaries but had never wanted anything to do with the church, and one of them is his grandma. Oh and side note, our Bishop served here in Osorno and was companions with my next door neighbor, Dennis Larkin. Small world or what?!

I love Ovejeria. I love the people. I love teaching the Gospel and watching people’s faces as they come to believe it. I even love the dogs that try to kill me and keep me quick on my feet.

I also love all of you. May God bless you all.

Elder Aidan Rich

Elder Rich's bishop in Osorno was companions with our next door neighbor and dear friend, Dennis Larkin, in Osorno Chile.

Broke my finger cooking of all things. I dislocated it Thursday night and snapped it back in place then wrapped it with a sock and masking tape. The enfermera felt it and told me I had broken it and gave me this metal brace thing. Elder Frausto says I cried a little but I don’t believe him.

Elder Rich learns the reality of culinary danger.

Ovejeria is so pretty in the evening

Elder Frausto and I climbed some old machinery. We were about 40 feet in the air and Frausto was freaking out because he had never been that high before.

Ovejeria at dusk.

Elder Rich loves him some kitty cat graffiti. 

Recreation of Samuel the Lamanite

We were hiding from some drunk gangsters and ended up exploring an old train yard.

Walking home along some old building ruins.

In case you forget they're still 19-year-olds.

The district, the district, the district is on fire!

Gosh dang this week was good. OUR DISTRICT IS PURE FIRE. I am in the same district as good old Elder Nielsen again, another native of St. Geezy. Everyone is so animated and ready to work. It is amazing. I have never experienced anything so exciting and fun.

The weather is starting to get so nice and the area is beautiful. Honestly nothing too exciting happened this week, just good old fashioned missionary work. I stood up and preached in a bus which was pretty scary, but once I got going and people started listening, it was pretty easy.

But how about that General Conference y´all?! (Shouts to my man, Calvin ¨corn-on-the¨ Cobb, and his Texan influence) It was almost too good. My mom hit it on the head when she said that there comes a point where you almost just stop trying to absorb it all, and just let the Spirit wash over you like a tidal wave. I especially loved all the advise about how to obtain and retain the company of the Spirit. Life just is not worth living without it.

I love you all so much. But I am disappointed in all of you! Nobody sent me pictures which you KNOW I love. Except for Claire, so 100 points for the Mod Squad.

Keeping you in my prayers,

Elder Aidan Rich

Hermano Orlando is a blind and loves walking around the city teaching with us. We went on splits and he taught in the streets with me.

The ghettos of Ovejeria.

Preaching in a bus (flattering picture, right?)

General Conference with the gringos.

Farewell Elder Arp! He was transferred to a different sector.