Power of RM's

Hello friends and family!!

I hope you all had a great week!! This week was pretty normal, but definitely a great week here in the service of the Lord.

This past week, we have had the blessing of the company of some of the returned missionaries here in the branch. One of which being Juan Miguel Ichuro, who actually served in Elder Pántano's home ward in Columbia about 2 years ago, which has been good for Elder Pántano! They get to talk a little about his family and ward, and a lot about the food from Columbia. He also is a powerful teacher, and has an incredible testimony.

But the real miracle came from Kevin Abasto, a returned missionary of about 2 weeks. He told us of a referral that he had for us, and invited us to come to his home for a family home evening. He presented us to a Partial member family, with Alex Polanco as the center. Alex is 9 years old, and his parents are members. His dad is inactive, but his mom is still active, but due to the inactivity of his dad, Alex hasn’t been baptized yet. Alex told us that he wanted to be baptized during the Family home evening! We set goals with him, and Kevin is going to help us out with the lessons. Alex will be getting baptized on April 13th. It was a big miracle that I know we received because of our diligence.

Well, kind of a funny story from this past week. A member here asked me to help him with a promotion on a TV interview for his english institute. We had just finished our English class in the chapel, and he kind of asked me out of nowhere, and I had no idea if it was allowed or not haha. I asked my district leader who was right next to me if I could do it, and he looked at me and shrugged, and said, "call President, I don’t know either." So, I called President, asked for permission, and he said that I couldn’t go on TV dressed as a missionary with a tag to promote the business. He told me that as a representative of the church, I couldn’t go and promote a business... and then... He said, "but if you go and change and take off your nametag, you can go. Just look like a gringo tourist and you can go."

Honestly, I was floored, mostly because my Mission President gave me permission to go on TV dressed as a totally normal person. But then I arrived to the news station, and saw a camera that looked like it was from the 80's, and a news station that probably has less followers than my Twitter after nearly 2 years of silence, so I guess President was inspired to know that nobody was going to see one of his missionaries on TV anyways.

Well, I’d like to share something I really like from my personal study. It’s found in Moses 6:31-34. Enoch, upon his call to be a prophet, felt extremely, extremely underqualified for his call. I think we all have moments in which we feel so lost and so incapable to complete what the Lord calls us to do. The Lord's words to Enoch are so so comforting and so uplifting for us all. The words, "walk with me" just inspire me so much.

I hope you all have the best week!!

Love, Elder Newman

Dad, that focus on temple and family history work is awesome! Missionary work is happening on both sides of the veil. That’s so cool that you got to see the Taeoalii's! Love you Dad!!

Mom, finally done with the Glow play!!! Congrats Mom, you did it, only had to do it 5 times, but you made it. I keep telling people to shut it when they try to tell me about Captain Marvel, but I’m staying strong, sounds like its super good though!!! Way to be an example on going to the temple! Love you Mom!!

Jackson, dude thats crazy that Oliver's friends are going to Uruguay and Bolivia! Nicely done on the workouts too! Get some sleep my friend. Love you Jackson!!

Emma, you broke the streak, man. Come on. Oh well. I liked your prom answer, well played! Atta girl staying on the down low at dixie rock. Love you sis!

Sarah, Nicely done on the scrimmage! Good luck in your games this week! I will be sure to pray for you. Love you bear!!

 Callie, looks like you had a great time in your Glow play! I love your costume!! My favorite food here in a plate called Pique Macho. I am having lots of fun, and I miss you lots too. Love you Callie!

Mom’s Questions:

1. How are your investigators progressing?

They are doing well, some have some problems with some issues, but they’ll get there.

2. Is the weather starting to cool down at all?

Yes, the rainy season hit.

3. How do you decide what to teach your investigators each time you meet with them? Do you take the lead or is Elder Pantano starting to lead out?

Elder Pantano is starting to direct the lessons :)

4. Since Elder Pantano is so musical, do you ever use his talents in missionary work?

Not yet, but we are planning on doing so :)

The Power of the First Vision

Hello Friends and Family!

We had a great first full week of work together here with Elder Pantano. It's been super fun to see his progress in this short time that we have had together! It makes companionship studies super fun. We have lots of time to study doctrine and practice different teaching techniques with him. He has lots of good insights and great questions, and it's super fun to open up the scriptures and see his reaction each time we find the answers. He is transforming into a truly fantastic missionary with a powerful testimony of the truth, and is gaining more and more experience in teaching and testifying clearly of what we believe as members of the church.

We had an interesting experience this past Thursday with Fermin Lara. He invited us to visit him on Thursday. We arrived, and he quickly briefed us that he had invited the "Anciano" (basically the pastor) of the Jehovah's Witnesses to come and explain a topic that Fermin was NOT in agreement with, and had invited us to come at the same hour to discredit the anciano's argument. We told him that it was ok for this once, but that we normally don't Bible bash. Well, the anciano arrived, we listened to the scriptures that he had to present for the case of that blood transfusions were not Biblical. We analyzed the scriptures that he presented, and took them in context, and concluded with Fermin there present that there was nothing in the Bible that stated the impurity of blood transfusions, seeing that the scriptures he had shared spoke only of sacrifices and old testament practices. To press that point further, we shared John 6:63, which says, "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." 

After sharing that scripture, the anciano could only try to defend his standpoint with personal interpretations and opinions, which we quickly identified as not Biblical, and we politely excused ourselves. We truly saw the completion of the promise read in Doctrine and Covenants section 71:7 "Wherefore, confound your enemies; call upon them to meet you both in public and in private; and inasmuch as ye are faithful their shame shall be made manifest. 8 Wherefore, let them bring forth their strong reasons against the Lord. 9 Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you—there is no weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; 10 And if any man lift his voice against you he shall be confounded in mine own due time. 11 Wherefore, keep my commandments; they are true and faithful. Even so. Amen."

The Lord makes manifest of truth! I felt the reality of this divine truth as we testified of the Restoration again and again this week. Each time we relate the words of Joseph Smith describing his first vision, I have felt the confirming witness of the Holy Spirit testify that it is true. Everything that we believe as members of the Church of Jesus Christ depends on the reality of the First Vision. I know that it is true, not because I was there, not because somebody has shown me physical evidences of the reality of this world shaping event, but because I have received an answer from Heavenly Father through His Holy Spirit that it is true.

Here are a couple of scriptures that really called my attention during my studies this week.

Doctrine and Covenants 42:6 The pattern established by the Lord to preach his word.

Doctrine and Covenants 61:36 Be of good cheer, I am with you..

Well, I hope you all have a great week! Put the Lord first and keep the faith, and you will be blessed!

Love, Elder Newman

Dad, sounds like a great week, spending some time with Steve and Jeremy. Thank you for your words of encouragement, and counsel dad. I love you so much, hope you have a great week!!

Mom, wow, looks like you and Emma had quite the week! What a great trip, and those are some great pictures! Love you so much Mom!

Jackson, juggling all sorts of responsibilities this week! Well done filling in a bit for mom and staying on top of classes and work too! Sounds like things are going well! Love you bro!!

Emma, I was looking at the pictures and it looks like you guys had quite the week! Nicely done talking in Spanish out there! That's super cool! Te amo hermanita!

Sarah, that's so cool that you had a good time out in Vegas in your Basketball camp! Well done!! Way to ball out with all the high schoolers! Love you Bear!!

Callie, sounds like you had a great time at Grandma's with the scavenger hunt! I would have gotten pinched yesterday if they celebrated St. Patrick's Day here because I forgot to put on green!! Can't wait to see your glow costume! Love you Callie!!

Mom's Questions:
1. Tell me three things about your new comp.

Elder Pantano is from Bogota Columbia, He is the second of three brothers, is extremely talented as a musician, and understands English pretty well when I don't talk fast.

2. What is the best thing about training a new missionary? What is the hardest thing? 

Best thing about a new missionary is their pureness in every thing that they do. Their testimonies are so heartfelt and sincere. The hard thing is that sometimes I have to take more of the load in some of the administrative stuff like the area book and working with the branch, But Elder Pantano is learning really fast.

3. Who are your current investigators and how are they doing? 

Rosa and Jimena Sanchez are super awesome, they have come to church three times, and the Familia Sanchez Renaga is a solid family that we recently found that is very receptive and yesterday accepted a baptismal date.

Carnaval and Training

Hello friends and family!!

Well, with the transfer call came some pleasant surprises, one of which was that my Carnaval prison time was not going to be as boring as I thought! Saturday night, I received the news that I would be training a new missionary!

The whole Carnaval weekend we were calling the members of the branch to take us to the bus station to pick up Elder Varona's new companion, Elder Miller, to take me to the bus station on Tuesday night to get on a bus to head to Santa Cruz to pick up my new companion. It was a pretty long trip in a not very comfortable bus, but the important thing was that I arrived safe and sound.

My new companion is Elder Pantano. He is from Bogota Columbia, and he is super cool! He is an extremely talented musician. He taught himself how to play the piano and the guitar, and can play by ear! Hermana Rodriguez told us that she would be calling us soon to do a musical number in the multizone conference! It’s also very easy to see that Elder Pantano took advantage of his time in the MTC, he already has a great ability to express gospel concepts and share testimony. We are just working on refining his teaching ability, but I can tell that VERY soon he will be a great leader in our mission. He is very humble and is constantly looking for opportunities to improve, I can tell we are going to have lots of success together!

One of the cool experiences Elder Pantano and I had together was a great bonding experience. We were called by a member to go and give a priesthood blessing to a family member that was sick in the hospital. We went, and Elder Pantano told me he had never given a blessing before. I explained to him how to do a blessing, and we gave a spiritual blessing. On the bus ride back to our house to do our companionship study, I felt prompted to teach him about blessings a little more. After explaining the blessing, I told him he would be performing his first priesthood blessing that day. He asked me who it would be for, and I passed him a contact card with my full name on it, and told him that it would be for me. He nervously laughed and then said alright! He put his hands on my head, and gave me a divinely inspired blessing of what the Lord needed to say to me.

Before I finish up, I wanted to share a scripture I like from my studies this week. D&C 11:13. It talks about how the Spirit brings joy to our hearts and minds. I love that thought. I was writing back and forth with Sister Cassidy Cutler this Monday, and she said, "The Gospel is truly the good life. Everything we teach only makes us better people." How true that is! The Gospel and the Spirit truly bring joy to our souls!

I hope you all have a great week! Love you all!

Elder Newman

Dad, well, I hope you can meet up with Mom and Emma at the end of the trip! But I hope you have a great conference there in Madrid! Love you tons Dad!

Mom, sounds like you and Emma are having quite the trip! Must be nice to have some one on one time with Emma out there in Amsterdam and London! Love you Mom, enjoy the trip!

Jackson, well done on the lifts, and sounds like you got to have some good times watching Inception and going bowling! Love you dude!!

Emma, wow, those pics from your trip look amazing, looks like you are having a blast!! Love you Emma, have a great trip!

Sarah, have a great time in Vegas in the basketball camp! I bet that was fun to eat at Grandma's house. Love you Bear, have a great week!

Callie, how fun that you got to have a sleepover with Grandma! I bet the cinnamon roll was very yummy. Love you tons, Callie!!

Mom’s Questions:
1. Any news on transfers? Do you have a new comp? 

I do, Elder Pantano.

2. How did Carnival end up going? Were you stir crazy? 

Not too bad due to the fact that we got to go out and pick up companions, so it wasn’t too bad.

3. What is the most effective contacting method is working in Camiri? 

Mostly knocking doors and talking about the Family. We also have our English class

4. What are the members doing to help move the missionary work forward?

We have been visiting members to help Elder Pantano get to know them and asking for referrals, and we've gotten a few!

You can never smile too much :)

Hello Friends and Family!

Well, I hope you all had a great week! What an exciting time to be here as a servant of the Lord! It was amazing to be able to talk to my beloved sister Sarah yesterday for her 13th birthday, it absolutely amazes me how much she has grown up during my time here in Bolivia. One of the things that impressed me most during my call with her was the fact that on her birthday, she chose to get up early and go to the temple with her friends. What a stellar example she is of putting the Lord first and doing His work first, even on her birthday :).

Not a lot to talk about this week! It was a pretty run of the mill week, lots of contacting and looking for new people to teach. One of the most effective ways that we have had to look for new people to teach is our English Class that we have been putting on. Last night we had almost 20 people in the class, and lots of people who passed by the chapel right afterwards and said, "Dang, I missed it! Next week I’ll be here!". There are lots of ways to find people to teach, and we are trying to find a good balance of all of the ways there are to find, and use the talents that the Lord has given us to help His children here in Camiri.

One of the things that we try to do in those first moments with a person in a contact is just show the happiness that the gospel can bring. In Missionary Handbook, it talks about that our appearance is one of the first messages that a person receives about us and His message. We try to make sure that the first thing that the people see when they talk to us is a smile. A smile and a bright countenance say so much about what the Gospel has to offer. On Thursday, after almost 2 hours of straight contacting, my face was pretty sore from smiling so much, but I’m pretty sure that’s one of the best problems you can have in life.

Well, starting tonight, until Wednesday morning, we will be in Carnival, or in other words, imprisoned in our house while all of Bolivia is out partying it up. It’s going to be a good opportunity to study the Scriptures lots, clean the house, and rest up for this coming transfer. Tonight we receive the transfer calls, so we will see if one of us is going to have a change, or if we stay together for another transfer. It’s truly been a blessing to work with Elder Amasifuèn here in Camiri. This transfer has gone by SO fast. I hope we have the opportunity to stay together for another transfer, we have had lots of success together, and I have learned a lot from him.

Well, I hope you all have a great week! Love you all, and remember that the Lord is with us, in good times and in times of difficulty, he will always be there to lift us up and sustain us.

Isaiah 41:10

Love, Elder Newman

Dad, that’s so cool that you got a new motorized tower. I’m sure that it will be super cool for HD sports. Love you tons Dad! Have a great week!!

Mom, lots of lasts, I think that’s the definition of Senior year! That’s awesome that Emma had a great showcase! Love you Mom!

Jackson, it was great to talk to you yesterday! Love you man, hope you have a great week!

Emma, WELL DONE IN YOUR SHOWCASE!!!!! Way to hit both of your aerials, the Lord answered your prayers and mine. Love you Sis!!!

Bear, I hope you had a great Birthday. It was so good to talk to you yesterday. Nice job this Basketball season! Love you tons Sarah!!

Callie, that’s so funny that Reese barked at the dog on TV! I hope you teeth don’t hurt too bad with the new spacers! Love you Callie!!

Mom’s Questions:
1. How is Carnival going? What will you being doing while you are stuck in your apartment until Tuesday? 

Studying, cleaning, resting up :)

2. Have you heard about transfers yet? Will you and your comp be staying in Camiri?

We haven’t heard yet, tonight we receive the call.

3. What is Elder Amasifuen’s family like back home? 

Elder Amasifuen has an older sister, a sister that just began her mission in Colombia, and 2 little siblings that are 13 and 11. He lived in a city called Iquitos until he was about 16, then moved to Lima (the Capital) and has lived there ever since.

4. What is the best or worst thing you ate this week? How much do you cook for yourself in this area? 

The best thing I ate this week was a dish called Guiso de Fideo. It’s pretty much pasta with lots of cheese and a piece of chicken in the middle, but its super filling and super yummy! I don’t cook a lot for myself here haha, I mostly just buy fruit for breakfast, and occasionally make myself smoothies.