I’m a Different Person Than When I Started My Mission

November 23, 2015

We had a conference this week for all of the missionaries who just recently started their mission and the trainers. So we went down to Montevideo and had the conference and it was really great. I was able to learn a lot.  They talked a lot about focusing on using the pamphlets that we have in our mission to help the investigators increase their testimonies of the gospel. At the end of the conference we talked about the experiences we have had being trainers. It was really great to be able to hear all of the experiences that everybody has had.

In Uruguay one of the bus stations had a strike the day of the conference, so we weren't able to go back to our area right after the conference ended. We just worked in the areas that are close to where we had the conference. So when I was in the offices, my area was close to where we had the conference. I was able to visit my old area and I talked to Nilda (whom we baptized about 4 months ago). She is doing really great it was a miracle that I was able to see her. So I am so glad that they had a strike here because I was able to visit her.  She told me that she is probably going to visit San Jose (my area right now) soon and if she does visit we could totally visit her.

Elder Lopez is doing really great, even though he has to get used to walking all day in church shoes. I kind of forgot all of the things that a missionary has to learn in their mission. It is really great I am able to see my personal progression that I have had in my mission and I know I am a different person now than when I started the mission.

Hope you all have a great week.  Love y’all.

Elder Rogers

 

Member References and a Dog Bite

 

November 16, 2015

This week was kind was pretty interesting.  We have decided that this next week we are going to focus on asking for references from the members. We are going to have as many lessons as we can and focus on the missionary work here in the ward. The ward here in San Jose has been starting to focus on the less-active members of the church and helping them come back. 

Well something crazy happened this week for the first time in my mission. I got bit by a dog. We were talking to some guy in front of his house. We set up another time to visit with him and as we were leaving his dog ran up and bit me on the arm. It is nothing serious; I just have some little teeth marks in my arm that`s all. So that was probably the most exciting thing that has happened to me this week.

These next coming weeks are going to be crazy because we have a lot of conferences coming up so I will write more the next time.

Love you all and hope you all have a great week,

Elder Rogers

Exchanges with Elder Poulson

Goals

November 9, 2015

Hello everybody!!!

This week was a really great week and it went by so fast, I can hardly believe it. Yesterday was really great.  We were able to talk to our branch president about goals for the ward and we set goals for baptisms for the month and also for attendance in church. 

In our stake we are going to have a stake conference at the end of this month. The stake wants as many people as possible to go to the conference. So we have decided what we are going to do is give an invitation to every member in the stake and we are going to go out with the members and give out the invitations. 

Friday I had exchanges and I worked with Elder Bess from Brigham City.  He is a really cool guy. He recently arrived in Uruguay; he has been here for about 3 weeks. We had a really great day. We talked to a lot of people and were able to get to know each other better.

Love you guys.  Hope you all have an amazing week,

Elder Rogers

 

The Best Mission

 

 

 

 

Monday, November 2, 2015

Hello everybody, 

This week was an amazing week, we started out the week with talking to everybody we could. Then later in the week we were able to see the fruits of our efforts.  As we passed by the people we talked to in the streets, we were able to find a couple of them and share the message of the gospel to them.

Elder Lopez has been working really hard lately.  We have been focusing on teaching about the restoration of the gospel. He is beginning to be able to teach the restoration really well. I love talking about the restoration of the gospel and explaining Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon and the role it has played in my life. 

Today we had a zone activity and everybody is supposed to bring food to the activity. So the elders that I live with and I decided to make pizza for the zone.  We made like 6 or 7 pizzas it was so crazy. 

Hope you all have an amazing week,

Elder Rogers

Not all Spanish is the Same

President Cook with Elder Lopez & Me

October 26, 2015

Hello everybody,

This week has been pretty crazy.  We had to travel a lot. But, this next week we don`t have to travel a lot, so that will be pretty nice. 

My new companion is Elder Lopez from Peru, and he just recently arrived in the mission. I never realized how many things there are to learn in the mission.  There is so many things. Elder Lopez is an amazing person and he wants to be the best missionary he can possible be.

So recently a lot of the investigators that we have have been really hard to find, so right now we are focusing on finding those investigators and also finding more new investigators. In Uruguay we do a lot of street contacts and also knocking doors, but the majority are from street contacts. 

So something that is pretty funny has been happening lately.  Well, my companion is from Peru.  In Peru they speak very differently than the Uruguayans and they have a lot of words that do not exist in Uruguay. So when we have conversations he says a bunch of words that I have never heard of. So I have to ask what does that mean and then I`m like, “Oh this is how you say this word in Uruguay. “

Love you guys,

Elder Rogers

Landscaping

October 19, 2015

So.... this week is changes, I am staying in my area in San Jose and I`m going to be training a new Elder! 

So the scripture that I have been ponderizing this week was  3 Nephi 18:24:

Therefore, hold up your light that it may shine unto the world. Behold I am the light which ye shall hold up—that which ye have seen me do. Behold ye see that I have prayed unto the Father, and ye all have witnessed.

I love this scriptures and how it talks about how we need to be representative of Jesus Christ and hold up our light to the world.

This week we did service for a sister Alguilar.  We did a bunch of landscaping in her garden. First we dug up all of the weeds and some dirt and put some nylon on the bottom so that the weeds won’t grow back and then we put rocks on top. My campanion Elder Leaño and I are quite the landscaping crew haha.

Love,

Elder Rogers

Ponderize Joshua 1:9

 

October 12, 2015

Hello everybody!

Well this week I do not have a ton of time to write because I sent a bunch of photos and that took up a lot of time. But, I do want to share something with you guys from General Conference. I don`t know if you guys remember, but in conference one of the members of the quorum of the seventy talked about how he ponders about a new scripture every week and he memorizes it and thinks about the scripture during the day. The scripture that I am going to ponderize is Joshua 1:9.

Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

 I have been pondering about this scripture a lot and thinking about how I should now be afraid  because God will be with me wherever I go.

Just wanted to share that scripture with you guys and I hope you all have a wonderful week,

Love,

Elder Rogers