Worn out shoes (lots of tracting)

Hey mom and dad and everybody else...

This week was a full week. I had a work visit in my old area. It went surprisingly well. The last week they had way too many lessons and contacts. This week it was a little more realistic of numbers. We had 5 baptismal dates as of Saturday, Sunday only one came to church and kept her baptismal date.
Manuel drank again, we are going to give him some time to think through things.
Dante; it’s complicated, he just isn’t ready to make the decision to be baptized.
The other two did not come to church

Dula Meihuai will be baptized this Saturday. We are going to baptize her in warm water because she suffers from some health problems. She is in a wheel chair, paralyzed, but she is very smart and really wants to get baptized. I am very excited. We will baptize her in her chair. This is the second that we have had in a chair.

The lessons that we are having are going good and also the contacts. The people are just a LITTLE bit hard hearted. I know that the Lord can open their hearts and that we will have success, if we continue working hard.

I love you mom and hope that everything is going great.

(This is left in for any future missionaries. We got the Eccos at Mr. Mac and they do have a guarantee. The boots we got from Liahona and they also have a guarantee but have lasted very well).
I HAVE A QUESTION, ¿WHAT KIND OF A GUARANTEE DO MY ECCOS HAVE? I WILL BE HONEST, THEY HAVE A HUGE HOLE IN THE HEEL AND ARE FALLING APART. The bright side is, is that I wear my boots everyday. They are very durable I think I can use them for like 5 yrs, after the mission. I just wanted to know in what we can do with them. I CAN GET A NEW SOLE PUT ON FOR ABOUT 15 SOLES, or about 6 dollars.

I LOVE YOU AND HOPE THAT YOU GUYS ARE ENJOYING YOUR LIVES.

(This is in response to the trials of mission life. Many times they have investigators fall to temptations and then miss their baptismal dates).
It’s all good. It is a little hard sometimes, but Christ never said that it would be easy to bring others unto him. I have heard to be part of the work of saving peoples lives we need to walk a little bit in the garden of Gethsemane. I have definitely felt that a little in the mission. BUT if everything is all great and perfect we wouldn’t be able to progress, and I know that as a leader and a missionary I need to become better and if that is the only way then I accept it, cool.

I LOVE YOU and my companion says hi.

I can go anywhere in the district if it IS NECESSARY. We have a medium sized district if you look on GOOGLE EARTH it is SUPE, BARRANCA, and PARAMONGA.

I HAVE GOT TO GO, and check up that everybody is only writing their family and not going on any other sites.

I LOVE YOU TONS AND AM VERY Grateful for the support that you are always giving.

-ELDER GRIFFIN

Humility brings about change

Hey Family,

This week was really interesting and busy. I had a work visit in Supe and also my first interview. It went well she got baptized Saturday. The District is doing well, there are always things that could be better but it is all good.

Our area is good. We are having success but it is sometimes a little slow, we have 2 baptismal dates. One drank and we need to help him out. I am glad because we are finding some new people and are working hard.

Today we are going to play some futból....QUE CHEVERE.

It all depends in the way you look at it, ELDER NEMELKA (ex assistant) that lives like two minutes away from your house said and I quote, "The people of Barranca have the hardness like the people of LIMA and have the sins/iniquity of the people of IQUITOS." I thought that you would like that. The people are great. They do definitely have their taste of fiestas depending on the person. I would guess about 60 percent of the men drink EVERY SATURDAY and are having their, I don’t know what you call it, Hangovers Sunday. Sometimes they are still drinking, then they wonder why they don’t have money, and say that they don’t have time to listen to us because they have to work to feed there families. All I can say is that the people that are living the gospel are blessed in everything. The Lord blesses the members here just like those in the UNITED STATES. They have enough to live and to be happy. There are so many great-hearted members. I am so glad that I able to serve here and I can really say that I love the people here in Barranca.

A LITTLE ABOUT PARAMONGA. PARAMONGA is a city of cane. There is a huge sugar cane factory here and everybody works there. The original factory was built about 30 yrs ago by a North American. The guy built a part of the town for the workers and gave them a lot of benefits of everything, school, hospital, and everything. I was informed that years ago that the president got mad and kicked him out of Paramonga. All the citizens are mad and blame anything that goes wrong or that went wrong on the president that kicked out the gringo. I think that it is very funny.

I LOVE YOU GUYS VERY MUCH....CHAU.

-ELDER GRIFFIN

Sugar Cane in the air

I am really good but always a little more busy. I was just finishing a few papers that I’ve got to have.

This week was really good. I entered in the area and not A lot was done before me...the two past missionaries were finishing up and a little bit Trunky. {: ) We entered in the area and began our work. I feel that we worked really hard and got a lot done.

I immediately got the responsibilities. The zl’s gave me their cell phone because they had to go to Lima to receive the missionaries that are now in Barranca. They needed to call me to tell me when we had to pick them up. THAT WAS EXCITING. Also I got to call and see how things are going in the areas. Or even better, I got to receive their information. That was also interesting. As a District leader here it is a little different. There is only one District. That means that I’ve got responsibility over a larger group (I think).

I am very excited for this opportunity to be the District Leader here. I have a good district I THINK, and I am excited to see how things go this next week.

A LITTLE BIT ABOUT PARAMONGA....

Paramonga is about 30 minutes from Barranca. In our area we have a SUGAR CANE factor. It is always piping off its sweet smelling contamination in the air. A lot of the people that live here are working in this plant, and the hours of work are horrible. They work very long shifts.

A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MY COMPANION....

Elder Santillan is from Ecuador. He has a different accent than Bolivians and Peruvians It’s sometimes harder to understand, but it’s all good. This change will be his 3rd change. So he hasn’t been out very long. He teaches well, helps me out a lot, contacts good and has a good personality. We get along good.

The investigators are good. I am trying to find out who is Prepared for right now and who is Prepared for a little bit further in time. My responsibilities are every Tuesday I get to run the District meeting. I get to give capacitacions (teachings). I organize activities as a Zone, and I get to Interview the investigators that are ready for baptism...Exciting..!!!

The Lord is blessing us so much, and I hope to hear that you guys are also receiving the Lord’s blessings as well. I love you so much.

New responsibilities and new area

Hey, Mom and Dad and Everybody. Dad that was really exciting that you got to talk to Elder Lynch. I knew him a little bit if I am right he was the zone leader in Iquitos in the other zone, but he was really cool and really energetic.

We had the interviews and I really learned a lot with the capacitaciónes (training) of the assistants and the President. I was also informed by President Perez that I will now be serving in Paramonga in the same zone but as District Leader....!!!!!!!!

I am a LITTLE bit nervous and really feel insufficient, but I know that the Lord will help me in this calling. My companion is Elder Santillan. He has 2 changes in the area, and has killed (sent them home.) his last two companions. President said that he wants Barranca to really grow and he told me that he trusts that I can do it. He also said that ELDER NEMELKA (Assistant) also served in the same place. It made me a little more nervous, but It’s all good I am REALLY EXCITED for this change, and for the confidence that the Lord has in me. I don’t know what I have done to have this confidence but I am excited.

Ya I know that I am way blessed. Also, Nathaly Arevalo wrote me (convert of Elder me and McGary). She said that her family is excellent and that her dad is the President of the Elders Quorum and that the Branch that we were serving in split into One Ward and two branches. I was very excited to hear that.

The changes are Wednesday, and I did not get a new keyboard but I will be playing on a keyboard or a piano in PARAMONGA, that’s cool huh?

I love you guys so much and hope that everything is great.

We had two baptisms this week on Friday; Luz Julia Mogollon Leon (34 años), and her son Erick Anderson Jara Mogollon (16 años). It was a really cool experience. They were both really excited and went to the activities Saturday and went to church on Sunday.

I think that my writing is a little bit of SPANGLISH. I really can’t speak great English, and writing is WAY WORSE. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH AND AM SO THANKFULL FOR THE SUPPORT AND EXAMPLE THAT YOU GUYS HAVE GIVEN ME......I LOVE YOU.
-ELDER GRIFFIN-