Salú

Hey Y'all,
Greetings from El Salvador, This week has flown by, we almost haven't worked with all the meetings we've had this week. Monday of course I was in the office, Then we came back, and made baliaras with a less active family( the tortillas were excellent and I made them thank you) tuesday we had fundamentals of preach my gospel which is training to help us be better teachers, to work more effectively, and to see where we need to be better. I love the capacitaciones, because I learn so much, and we practice too so you put in practice how to teach people. In the begining(my first few) I felt a little weird, but now I love them because I always learn so much from the other missionaries, they might use different scriptures to address a problem, or they might teach a principle with a different object lesson, or just the way they teach that helps me learn so much, not to mention then I get to practice applying what we are learning and I become a better missionary for it. After Fundamentals we came back to the area, and made baliaras again, with a different family from the ward, we were supposed to have FHE and recieve references, butthe last moment the references couldn't make it, so we made baliaras with the family and taught the family about how they can prepare other people to hear the gospel. Wednesday we had our district and zone meetings. President changed the schedule a little so now we'll have training with our zone and district every week in addition to the normal meetings and anouncements. So we finished our meetings went back to the house, ate made the dough for baliaras (again) and went to work. Then in the night we had another FHE with a less active family and had baliaras again. Thursday we had Fundamentos de predicad mi evangelio again, and when we came back to the area, we didn't eat or make baliaras, we just taught investigators and less active families that we are working with. And now it is friday. We came to the Stake center early to practice because next friday we have a multizona navideña and all of the zones are going to sing a hymn, also on sunday after that is the fireside for the stake, and the missionaries are singing for that as well. I have been asigned to sing soprano because no one else can reach the notes (and sound marginally pretty) for Joy to the World.
Next friday, because it will be the multizona navideña we'll probably write on thursday.
I hope you got the package that I sent with Hna Woods, and I hope as well that it makes sense.
I got the christmas package. Thankyou for the christmas music. I guessed that I shouldn't open the other things because they are wrapped in christmas paper. If I guessed wrong please correct me. My companions are very very curious to see what is inside these packages. They are the only presents under our little tree. and I think that adds the the curiosity. I think one of them is a rewrapper(opens the presents to see what is inside and then rewraps them to put them under the tree) if I had my guess with her 'just open them what is inside?'
This week in one of the capacitactiones president showed us a video on LDS.org of the dedication of the Temple in El Salvador. It is a great glimps of the culture and way of life of those who live in the city. Not so much for those del campo.
Hey mom, Do you work the 24th or the 25th? When would be the time/day that I could find the most people in the house Christmas day is sunday I get out of church at 12, andI could call after that, or I can call in the night on the 24th after 830 here.
My time is about up but Just real fast This week I have learned about how to work better with the members. President put the example that now is the time of the harvest, and we as missionaries if we aren't working with the members we are just cutting by hand, which isn't as effective, he said the members are like combines, and sometimes we work with them but not in the way that is most effective, like we are feeding the grain to the machine to thresh, but we aren't using the combine to cut. Then he said, if we work more effectively with the members we can triple our results. He said we need to help them, teach them, train them like we've been trained and help them work with us. When we do this it is like now we let the combine do its job to cut the grain. The harvest is mucho mucho mas eficaz. Family, work with the missionaries.
Here is a game we've been playing with our members to help them see that they have friends and family that the lord has prepared for the gospel. Make a list of names of people you know.
Members, non members family friends etc the more names on the list the better and the one who has the most names on their list wins. (for us when we ask for the list we just write the names down ourselves becaus many people can't read or write) Then we sing a hymn, pray, read some scriptures about missionary work, and then invite the head of the family to pray to know which of the people who's names are written on this list to kneel and pray to know who the lord has prepared to hear the gospel. We say the prayer, and they mark the names then we put a plan for how we will invite them to hear the message(invite them to FHE one night Dinner with the missionaries etc) and practice with the member what they will say, how they will invite these friends, and help them feel more confident to invite their friends to their house, to learn about the gospel.
We're working for a white christmas ;D
Love ya
Hna Allen