Is there a Doctor in the house???

This round of zone conferences we were accompanied by

the Area Medical Advisor, Doctor Henderson, and his sweet wife. 

He visited clinics, talked to the missionaries about the job they have

to take care of their health while they are on the Lord's errand, and helped

us get current on Typhoid vaccinations.

It is always good when they leave smiling after their vaccination!!

Elders Alzamora y Almendares

The health of our missionaries is always a priority of our stewardship.

We have missionaries with ingrown toenails, sore backs, migraines, viruses,

common colds, sore knees, insomnia, fatigue, etc.

They continue to get up in the morning with great faith to share the gospel.

We are grateful to have had a doctor in the house, but the greatest

of all healings comes when souls repent and lives change.

"...come unto me with full purpose of heart, and I shall heal them"

3 Nephi 18:32

The Ins and Outs...

Like the waves in the ocean

Missionaries go out and missionaries come in

Some come in with a great splash

Others leave me in a puddle of tears as they leave

Elders Venegas, Flores, Cabezas, Martinez, Chipunavi, and Alfaro

These great missionaries are leaving us after having helped the mission to achieve

the highest monthly mark of baptisms in the last 10 years.

In April we had 160 baptisms in the mission. 

These dedicated Elders are now ready to help their home wards progress and grow.

I can't wait to hear about the futures of some of these great Elders...

they are sure to be leaders.                

On May 1st the plane rolled in to Cali with 14 new missionaries.

Included in this group of great young men are

8 North Americans who are our first group to have attended the MTC in Bogota.

We could tell the difference in how they have adapted to the language, culture, and food.

We had a welcome lunch and visited Cristo Rey.

and then that evening we all attended a baptism together...that is what we do in this mission!!

The following day was full of training and meeting their new trainers

(although 3 elders had to wait until the following day as they had 10 hour bus rides to their areas!)


In with the new
out with the experienced...

      

Elders Garcia, Barón, and Gimenez

have all served as zone leaders, helped with new missionaries,

and stayed a few extra days to help us through this transfer cycle.

We welcome missionaries IN to the mission with warm handshakes

and

send them OUT to their homes with strong hugs.

They have come into our lives forever.

Weather or not...

Last week we had the strongest rain we have seen since arriving.

It literally came down sideways...the wind blew, lightening filled the sky, thunder boomed close by and hail bounced off the balcony.

We live on the 15th floor and the water filled our balcony, poured through the sliding doors, and entered the study windows. 

We bailed out and went next door to bail out the neighbors.

The storm knocked out power in half of the city of Cali

The streets looked like rivers

The traffic came to a grinding halt

But even with the power out and the San Fernando Chapel flooded,

Paola was not to be denied her baptism

It was the first baptism by candlelight and cell phones (to read the hymnbook) that I have attended

and

this is one happy couple!

And these wonderful youth were so glad to have their father get wet

in the waters of baptism!

If it is true that their is rain before the rainbow

or

trials before the blessings

then the rain today proved to bring a special evening

With reports of flooding in Colombia from all this rain

we are still flooding the earth with baptisms

for

"the truth of God will go forth boldly...until it has visited every clime,

swept every country, and sounded in every ear..."

Weather or not....nothing can stop the work from progressing!

In our Calima Zone we had 16 baptisms!

It was a wonderful evening and the chapel was filled with members & families.

Our zone leaders, Elders Stutz and Patino, organized the perfect Noche Blanca!!

Special Delivery

Elder Moran

Thursday, April 12, 2012

7:35pm

Arrived from El Salvador

having spent 4 weeks serving there while waiting for his visa.

Tired, Eager to learn, Anxious to Serve, Glad to finally be where the Lord called him to be

All missionary arrivals are special...some just get delivered one at a time!

This past week

This past week...

one of our great Elders finished his mission

and headed back to Bolivia

Elder Baldiviezo is a great missionary!!

We will miss him here in the mission...best of luck in all your adventures!

This past week...

President Prince set apart a missionary from our Manizales District

who is heading to Ecuador to serve the Lord for 2 years

Elder Osorio will be an incredible missionary....see you in 2 years!

This Past Week...

The Colombia Cali Mission Presidency

spent a day of planning together.

Presidents Rincon, Trochez, Prince, and Lotero

And all that happened this Past week happened to fall on the one day we were home! 

The mission is becoming a lot of Past Weeks!!

It's a Jungle Out There!

There are 2 branches of the church in the jungle that pertain to our mission

Quibdo and Istmina

This weekend we traveled to the jungle to be with the members there.

The first night in Istmina we celebrated Elder Haycock's birthday

The following day we had a great activity for the Istmina members and investigators.
We enjoyed our day with these faithful people.

more pictures can be seen in the slide show on the right of the blog!
and
do not miss the cuteness of this little girl....

this was an armful of happiness!

We headed to Quibdo for an annual branch conference

We had a dinner with the Elders there--Elders Jara and Holden

and also the Branch President--President Garcia

We love the people in Choco.

They are humble

They are hard working

Heavenly Father loves them and is mindful of them.

for

it is REALLY a jungle out there.

 

a little bit of this and that

It rains A LOT here in Colombia

but the rainbows come after the rain

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There is always time in the office to celebrate

Happy Birthday Sister Oliver!  One year wiser!

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sometimes missionaries arrive by themselves

after much Visa delay, Elder Rogche joined us here in Colombia!

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Every 6 weeks it is time to counsel with our Zone Leader Council

Our newest zone leaders

Elders Peek, Hansen, Wilde, Sierra, Condori, Ramirez, and Martinez

training

 zone leaders and assistants

Our office crew

The Olivers, Elders Novoa, Vera, Belnap, Almendares, Rázuri, and The Torgersons

_________________________________________________________

A little bit of this and a little bit of that add up to

another week full of missionary work in Colombia.