Luke's Letter July 27, 2009

Hey family,

Thank you all for the emails this week I was grateful for them. It sounds like everyone is doing good at home. I’m glad your first week with the new job went well dad, hopefully that continues. Is it something new for you that you are doing? Or stuff that you’ve done before?
I like your tidbits about harry potter mom. Everyone here gets pirated dvds of all the new movies. A member has the new harry potter, terminator 4, and transformers 2 at their house. They’re really crappy though because its just a recorded version from the movie theatre. But, they get to watch it way earlier too. Its funny.

So Emily frecker can’t use email in her mission? I know steve can in California so maybe its just in her mission. That’s got to be a little of a bummer, but I guess they can get mail in less then a week when you’re in the US so its about the same as email in other countries.

Everything here is going… well… its going haha. I´m doing good, but we´re not having very many investigators progressing worth anything. If any. Its frustrating, same with our less active people as well. Its hard because we can only do so much, but people have to do it for themselves, no matter how much we want to help them and do it for them, they have to make the decision to read and pray and all that stuff. We have one lady that has been inactive for a few years and has now been to church 3 straight weeks and has really regained her testimony, now we´re just trying to work with the rest of her family. As far as investigators go, we found a ¨Golden¨one I guess you could say. I dunno if I wrote about her in last weeks email, Jiordana, from Brazil. We´re not sure whose sector she is in but she met with the sister missionaries last week then came to our church yesterday and has read all the way up to 1st nephi 10, plus all the introduction stuff, and she´s just eating it up. Right now I don´t really care if she´s in our sector or not, it just so nice to teach somebody that has a desire for the gospel. She´s 20, but her family isn´t tolerant of other religions, so she won´t let us know where she lives cause she doesn´t want us to pass by her house, but I think she´s just nervous about it all but hopefully we can change that.

Oh I had a question I need help with. Here in the mission, we aren´t allowed to drink coke, because for some reason lots of people here think mormons don´t drink coke so if people see us drinking it they´ll get a bad idea of mormons. At least I think that is the reason behind it. Anyway, there are lots of members though that truly believe we cannot drink caffeinated drinks, that it is hands down against the word of wisdom. I know we were taught that its advised not to and stuff like that, but I want to know exactly what has been said by general authorities. My companion told me he saw an apostle drink coke in front of people at the mtc just to show people that we can. Anyway, if you get bored and want to look up stuff at lds.org for me that would be cool. I can visit there on the internet I just don´t have time.

Today we went on a tour of Arica, to the beach and some caves by there and also to this place called the Morro, which was pretty cool. I got a few pictures but my camera ended up dying cause I forgot to charge it the night before. Bummer! I´ll try to get some pictures sent to ya when I can, if not they´re on my camera so no worries. Thanks for the picture of the house, it looked beautiful with all the green. Are you ready to get a tree for Sofie? I think its funny that starlas having a girl again, a little frustrating but good. Poor ryan haha. The thing is that probably a lot more women decided to come down to the earth than men, so we´ll probably always be outnumbered.

Thank you for the email starla, I love all your stories about Emma and Sofie. I can´t believe she´s almost walking now! Wow. The changes will be huge in another year. Congrats on another girl haha, hopefully Emma will be able to be ok with it all. Also congrats with your house, that is super exciting and I´m sure it will all work out perfectly for you.

This week I had the chance to weigh myself, and I came in at about 165 lbs, or about 75 kilos. Which is 5 more pounds then when I left home and about the same as when I left the MTC, so I think that’s really good. This was after my week of being a little sick as well, so all is good. I had a little cold for about the last 2 weeks but never bad enough we couldn´t go and work thank goodness. For now we´ve avoided the swine flu haha.

Well, next week is a new cambio, and next Tuesday I could be on my way to a whole new sector or city. I hope not, I´m hoping for at least more here, so I can have my birthday here in this sector with some members I´ve grown close to haha, but if not I´m sure all will be well. I doubt its going to be that exciting of a birthday anyway haha. An elder here was waiting for his package from his birthday for about a whole month, and he finally got it today, it was funny. He was excited that it finally came.

Well, to end this email I just want to kind of express my feelings right now, well, I´m not sure what I´m expressing but anyway, I just want to let everyone know that I did not take 2 extra years to decide to come on a mission to be out here now and not focus on the work. Yes, I have weaknesses, and yes its hard out here and I know I can to better, but I am doing everything I can to be the instrument the Lord would have me be. I have a fear that there are going to be people I come in contact with that will reject the gospel because of one of my weaknesses, whether its in the language or teaching or any other thing. This idea about kills me. I plead with Lord every night to bless me with the things I will need to help people come unto Him. I did not come out here for any other reason but to do the work of the Lord. So that is what I am doing. Of course I make mistakes and don´t do one thing even close to perfect out here, but I´m doing the best I know how.

I love you all and love hearing from everybody. Hopefully the weather is all treating you well. Right now I´m in the city with the nickname, eternal spring, so the weather has been super haha. A little cold a couple nights but nothing horrible. I´m pretty sure the summers are going to kill me. Anyway, I´ve got to run, love you all!!!> Elder Skene