July 14, 2014- Casi ganamos...casi..pero no

What is up!! So this week has been great other than the fact that Argntina lost:( The country goes on straight shutdown during the game.  Not a person even thinking about being outside.  Well, we made it to the final and lost to Alemania again!!! Legit the first time in the mission I've been scared... haha people were sooo mad!! President said we couldn't leave our pensions all day Sunday except for church which I being a big white red head was definitely a supporter. 

Our pension is in the backyard of the coolest old couple in the world so they invited us over to watch the game.  Other missionaries in our area found out we were watching the game and a couple minutes later 6 missionaries were outside the door. It was a good time.

Saturday we did the coolest thing.  We had a Capilla Abierta!!  It's just like open house for the temple but for our church.  I definitely had my doubts about doing it thinking nobody was going to come and if they did come inside what they were going to do and see but it turned out so much better than we planned.  The ward was amazing and all the organizations in the church had their rooms set up with their leaders.  We had the baptismal font open and missionaries there to explain to people about baptism.  de diez enserio. We had the help of 10 missionaries and all the youth of the ward.  We did the open house from 3 in the afternoon till 7:30 at night.  We went on divisions with the youth and I was so impressed.  We talked to everyone and we had over 60 people come into the church to check it out.  I learned something amazing by doing this as well.  The spirit of the sacrament room is unreal.  We would lead people on a tour of all the classes and all the different things we do and then we'd go to the sacrament room and talk about the sacrament.  The spirit was so incredibly strong every time and we were able to see that these people wanted to be a part of this church!!

Torres family.  The family that is going to be baptized that told us last week that they wanted to be baptized the day after they get married because the original plan was a week after they got married but they said themselves that they knew Satan was going to work hard on them that week after they are married.  We went over to their house today and they just keep becoming more amazing.  Now they want to get married in the morning and be baptized later that same day!! Then the dad bore his testimony of the temple and said no matter what it takes even if they have to sell everything he's traveling to the temple.
 

Oh ya, all the youth here started their travel to the temple yesterday and arrived recently.  They are going to be doing baptisms for all their family members that have passed and of those in the ward for 5 days.  Brother Casper, that we live behind, told us tonight that he had to sell his car to be able to take his family to the temple for the first time as well as this man in our ward who had been married 22 years but had yet to be sealed to his wife and children until last year.  Sooo yesss i do hope you feel guilty we have it so easy back in the states and GO TO THE TEMPLE!!!! no but seriously I'm being humbled down here and I'm loving it:)

I love this gospel so much.

We found two puppies last week that need a home so if you know anyone in Patagonia give us a call. Thanks:)

Elder Lamb

July 7, 2014- COMODORO!!!

USA USA USA!! I love America so much it's insane!!! There's a WalMart here!!! No doubt we celebrated the 4th in WalMart!! :)

Yes i am now in Comodoro Rivadavia!  My comp is Elder Garcia from Colombia.  Way sick guy!  Loves to work!  I am as far south as you can go in this city so it's nice but super ghetto in areas. 

The people here have more money than my last area and it's weird getting used to that. On the boat ride here we saw dolphins and sea lions and I had to travel by myself because I am so illegal right now.  I had to wait an extra day in Rio Grande so i left Tuesday.  While traveling I met a guy that was born in Argentina but moved to Florida when he was 15.  He still lives there and he is 30 now but he wanted to backpack all of Argentina.  It was so weird to share with him the gospel in english!!! I haven't done that yet!! 

So the member's here are unreal!!  We always get someone in the ward to come and help us teach!  A big chapel and everything...it's the real deal!!!  We did family home evening last night at a member's house and we had about 15 youth and kids.  I was so stunned!!!

Oh ya last night we got robbed at knife point... naw jk.  Well he tried to rob us but there's no way I'm giving up my camera and stuff.  My companion had been robbed already before I got here and the other missionaries in our ward were robbed of everything last week walking in the street in the middle of the day.  I saw it coming though and my first thought was that i thought it was a joke.  It was a skinny 16 or 17 year old who had this big old knife and told us to give us our stuff.  My comp just took off running and he started walking to me so I started walking to him then he tried to scare me off pointing the knife at me then picked up a rock - so I did the same and just chucked it as hard as I could.  After that he ran away. It was honestly hilarious!

We live in the nicest pension!! It's a little house behind a member's home and it is super nice!! The member's are about 60 and are the most amazing people ever!! Their name is Brother and Sister Castro.  Brother Castro was so glad I didn't give the kid that tried to rob us anything.  They always give us food and the ward has assigned days throughout the month!

Well I have to buy a new memory card because mine has a stupid virus so no pictures this week.

Con amor,

Elder Lamb

June 30- hasta luego Rio Grande:(

June 30, 2014

This has been such a bittersweet week!  It's official...my first area has come and gone:(  Rio Grande has treated me too well!!  It was so hard to say goodbye to all these people I absolutely love!!! All the families in the branch weren't even the hardest..it was the investigator's and random people we found that kills me to leave!

I got my new assignment and I'm headed to Comodoro Rivadavia!  I'm excited but it's like a completely different mission.  I'm so accustomed to the mud and the poverty and the people here and now I'm going to a ward...yes an actual ward! I'm super excited for that! I leave tomorrow and it will be a two day trip.

So on Friday we did a talent show with our branch and it was sooo funny.  It was a pretty good turnout and us missionaries did a skit and danced with our mission leader.  haha we all dressed up in random stuff and no doubt I scored some sweet boxing shorts.

Another amazing thing happened... Milagros was blessed with the gift of the Holy Ghost yesterday and the primary teacher didn't show up so I taught their class.  She is so cute and quiet and is honestly a little angel.  She asked if she could share something and I was like uhhh ya!!!!  She opened up her Book of Mormon and shared scriptures about baptism and the holy ghost that she had marked throughout the week!  I was so stunned!  Then we did a practice missionary lesson and we asked her and this other girl in the ward to be the missionaries and Elder Hervey and I were going to be investigators.  Ya well after they taught about Joseph Smith Elder Hervey and I just looked at each other and agreed that they should be teaching us haha so impressive how much wisdom she has already!!

Well if the states and Argentina both win their next game they play each other so that's awesome!! President Rogers sent every missionary an Argentina jersey with the mission logo on the back!! Soooo sick!!

Mom and dad..you guys have been talked about a lot this week and everyone is so thankful that you raised me the way you did.. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!

The mission is all about goodbyes in every aspect but we're helping them to have eternal hellos.

Thanks for all the support:)

Con amor,

Elder Lamb

Me and Elder Tarwater -  in our Argentina Jerseys

Last day in Rio Grande

It's sooooo cold!

I love this area.  So poor but so wonderful.

June 25, 2014- Quiero vivir en Ushuaia:)

This past week has been AMAZING!!  Milagros was finally baptized!!  It's going to be hard to leave! I love that family so much! Her parents are so supportive! They don't have very much money but Milagro's dad did whatever he could to have a suit for her baptism!  We had their close friend and our amazing mission leader Hermano Alvarado baptize her which was awesome!!

So yesterday in celebration of this mission being 1 year's old we went to Ushuaia! I am obsessed! The most southern city in the world.. super super cold but AMAZING!! We went on this huge boat to visit some sites that were unreal! I took more pictures that I'll send:)  Tres and I are having a ton of fun and it's the best having him here to have all these memories with!!

Oh and Argentina is CRAZY about the world cup.  While they're playing everything is shut down and it's impossible to visit anyone haha and when they win the streets are filled with cars and marching fans honking their horns and freaking out! I just hope they keep winning! The states are playing good as well. Too bad they can't play defense for just a minute longer! 

Love,
Elder Lamb

************************
Sea Lions!! So many sea lions it's insane!!!! They weren't scared at all either. They would swim right up to the boat and play in the wake from behind. Look up lobos marinos on google images.  My picture doesn't do justice. They are a South American sea lion and we saw hundreds!

These are the missionaries in the zone of Rio Grande! Last week before transfers. I don't want to leave this zone! So many good memories and people! 

Milagro's Baptism

Gotta take some advantage of an outdoor big screen;)  Argentina is CRAZY about soccer!! They are doin work too! They're not huge Messi fans which is surprising but it's kinda like Lebron to them.  Gotta respect him but not everyone likes him. 

Snow!

Me and Elder Tarwater.  Apparently this light house is super super famous but it was super old and hyped up too much haha but it was still sweet.  Crazy cool history about this place that's very interesting.

Tres and Hermana Heath from Utah! Whenever we get together we talk about the food back home and how convenient everything was haha I love it.

The mud life:) June 16, 2014

I LOVE ZACH HAWS!!!! Bro that is easily the second best mish in the
game right now!!! Legit you are going to LOVE it!!!!

I love hearing about the softball reegs! Keep doin work!

So this week has been awesome!  We talked to Milagro yesterday and
asked her if she's still excited to be baptized even though it got
pushed back a little bit and she's literally counting the days till
her new date which is this coming week!

I just wrote in my weekly letter to President that I would not be mad
at all if he wanted to keep me in Rio Grande for another transfer haha
I don't want to leave these people here!! So many Christ-like people
it's insane!

I have to share this experience we has with Ramón.  His house is made
out of ply-wood.  He has no money to feed his little animals and birds
as well as himself.  He is going through some struggles and addictions
that we're helping him with and have made a game plan with him for him
to overcome.  Anyways we were at his house Saturday night and we
didn't have lunch and probably weren't going to have dinner.  Ramón
had someone come over while we were there who was going to buy 3 of
his birds.  Ramón had 4 pesos which is like 50 cents and after he sold
his birds he had 300 pesos which is like 40 dollars.  He went right
then and there and bought onions, tomatoes, garlic, hamburgers, bread,
fruit, snickers bars (i didn't even know they sold those here!) and
sunflower seeds. I was practically begging him to keep it all for
himself and eat it throughout the week but he wouldn't let us.  He
told us we can't not eat or just eat noodles and fed us there and sent
us home with food... I just started crying saying the prayer leaving
his house.  I couldn't believe there are people this giving!  Any time
he has a tiny bit of money he calls us over to have lunch or dinner!
It's easy to see now how half the priesthood in our ward is because of
Ramón.

Georgina is my grandma out here and she ALWAYS hooks us up with so
much food as soon as we walk through her door! I am SO BLESSED to know
these people and they have forever changed my life.

I think i saw a picture of Eli actually doing work... the mission has
changed him;)

Elder Lamb


2 colorados estan caminando todo lado en el fin del mundo... extraño.... haha
Me and Elder Hervey


Love IT!!!

June 9, 2014- Penguinos!!!!!!!!!

WE SAW 5 PENGUINS WALKING TODAY!!  EVERYTHING IS ICE!!  It's amazing!
So glad we went ice skating so much before I left...really getting the
form down.  haha

This week has been amazing!! We committed to do something at the
beginning of the week..we said we were going to talk to everyone we
saw about the gospel and ask if we could help them in any way with it
being so cold here!  We ended up talking to 151 different people this
week about the goepel and asked if we could help them.  Most of them
said no thanks their good but a few invited us in their homes to hear
a message about Jesus Christ.  We were able to meet so many AMAZING
people!

We had Milagro's baptism all ready to go for last Saturday at 5 but at
3 that same day the father of our mission leader died.  He is like
Milagro's idol and she only wanted him to baptize her and he took the
first plane to Buenos Aires so we are going to wait till we get back.
Poor guy.. his father had been sick for some time now and he needed to
be with his mom.  She will be baptized soon so that's awesome. She's
still the greatest.

Mom don't send me a package with stuff for here.  I will be switching
areas at the end of this month and I don't think it will get here in
time!

We honestly come home dead exhausted every night because we just love
working and trying to talk to everyone.  We were blessed with food
this week as well.  Twice we had Milanesa and they were monsters.
This food is so good it's killing me!

This truly is the Lord's work and I am so grateful to be a part of it.


*********************

Yes yes we did see penguins while we were walking today by the
ocean...and yup I want one as a pet here!!

Everything is FROZEN!!



The food is AMAZING!

Brockton was asked to write an email to him home ward, Highland 38th
Ward, as a spotlight this month.  This is what he wrote:

*****************
Whaddup Ward!

Elder Lamb here reporting from the bottom of the world.  This mission
is the most southern mission and yes.... it is very cold.  Nothing a
couple layers can't fix!  I am currently in Rio Grande..an island that
faces the ocean.

I have been out for over 4 months but I have already learned so much!
The first thing I have learned is how we need to be so grateful for
everything we have back home.

I am in a poorer area and it is a good day if these people have water
they can use.  During the night everything freezes and all the pipes
are frozen so water is simply not an option at times.
These amazing member's here have to save up money for years to be able
to go to the temple just one time.  It is about a two week or more
journey by bus or an extremely expensive plane ticket to travel to the
temple in Buenos Aires.

I have also learned the true importance of the Priesthood and the
blessings of a worthy priesthood holder can have in the home.  There
are so many blessing that come from being a worthy Priesthood holder!

I have learned to LOVE SERVICE!  I thought I liked it before the
mission but now I love it so much.  Always look for ways to serve
others.  Anything!  The times when I feel like I am really trying to
be like Christ is not when I ask somebody to hear the gospel and then
when they say no to walk away but when I am sincerely asking them if I
can help them with their yard work and to help them grow their
testimony in our Savior.

In Elder Uchtdorf talk he talks about the man that slept through the
revolution of America and then Elder Uchtdorf asked us if we are
sleeping through the Restoration.  We need to be doing everything we
can to help this work progress.  Living back home we have the blessing
of being close to so many temples!  We need to take advantage.  There
are members down here that are amazing and after 10 years still have
not had the opportunity to attend the temple because the island we are
on is so expensive to leave.

Take advantage of what we have at home and be careful not to take it
for granted.  The Priesthood is the power to act in the name of
Christ.  This is what separates us from everyone else!!

I am so grateful for everyone back home!  I miss going to church in a
chapel.  I wouldn't trade this experience for anything!  I love the
people here and I love being an instrument in the hands of my Savior.
D&C 18:10 the worth of EVERY soul is great in the eyes of the Lord.
(idk the exact translation from spanish)

Thank you for all the support!!!!  Feel free to write me!!
Elder Lamb

June 2, 2014- BARRO!!!!!!

Barro is mud and there is sooooooo much of it here... I LOVE IT!!!

So this was the first full week with my new red headed comp Elder
Hervey from Missouri.  We are already like brothers!!! He's like a
true hipster long board and into art kind of guy but so funny and we
go to work!! We crushed the whole mission in contacts this week
because we literally talked with everyone we saw about this gospel!
ha 115 different people we talked to in 6 days! It makes the days fly
by when you can have so much fun sharing this gospel.

Milagro's is AMAZING!! She's 11 and is truly deciding to be baptized
because she knows she needs to be to live with Heavenly Father and
Jesus again.  SHE KEEPS NOTES BY HER BED SO WHEN SHE PRAYS SHE CAN
WRITE DOWN HER FEELINGS AND THE ANSWERS TO HER QUESTIONS!!!!! She
truly is the best example to her family.  They told her that if she is
going to get baptized then she needs to go to church every week,  she
needs to marry someone in the temple, and she needs to teach her kids
everything about thie church and always be strong in the gospel.  Her
parent's will be baptized and married in the temple some day!  It
would be a lot easier if there were a temple within a week long bus
ride! But thats why we're here!  Our goal is to have a temple in the
Patagonia and little by little it's starting to progress.  That's why
the news that my area might become a stake is such a big deal! That's
all the member's are talking about! Gosh it makes me sick thinking
about all the temples that are in a days trip up there in the states.

It has rained all week and I literally have mud up to my knee's.
We're on an island so the ground is super soft and you just sink in
top the mud and at night we can't see anything so we're basically
swimming in mud haha.  I really don't want to leave this area!  I only
have four more weeks here and I'm gone and that is just terrible!

I LOVE sharing my testimony!  My spanish is improving so much because
my comps spanish is lacking a little bit haha so I now have to
translate for him sometimes when two weeks ago it was Elder Salas
helping me! It really does prove though the importance of the Holy
Ghost because without that we wouldn't have any success!  We are going
to be having some wedding's coming up and I talked with President and
he said we could have them in the church!

Ramón shared his testimony yesterday at church so that was unreal! and
he said I could take home a puppy of his best dog when I go home so
that's awesome just coming back to the states with a dog!!:)

That's so awesome to hear about Reegan and the softball team! Bummer
to hear that AF lost.  Bart!! I've told everyone that I have a homie
coming here in the summer!! haha bring some ear muffs and a nice
coat!! maybe throw in some ear muffs for ya boy too haha.  Ya it is
all sorts of cold down here but it's all good!! After the mission I'm
bringin the family back here for sure!! I'm praying for all of
you:)))))))) LIFE IS GOOD:):)

Elder Lamb


Psyche this is definitely a cross that we found at the very highest
point of our area:) some burial thing as well.

The rains are coming.

SO MUCH BREAD OUT OF A AN EASY BAKE OVEN!!