Daniel Cut Out

Hey so this week was super cool!!  No I did not have changes, still chilling here in Sabana Grande.  This week our district did an activity to celebrate mothers day.  As a district we had 51 investigators, all moms.  So I guess in a sense we are just snaking, but hey behind every mom is a fam fam.

If Jacob is getting married he needs to put aside like 80 bucks to get a life size card board cut out of me.  Because lets just be honest that would be so cool and awesome!!! It's actually cooler to have a life size card board cut out then the real person usually hahaha.   I think so, I think that would be ligit.!!! I think its about 80 bucks. but its worth it trust me!!!

Speaking of marriage. I have  great idea.  Mom you need to find a family with two sisters that are not twins but are like a year apart so that Martin and I can be brothers when we get back!! hehe that would be cool too because we got to be bros.

 

Hey i just want to give my thanks for all my family and all they do for me  i love you all!!!  Elder McKenna

Mother's Day Phone Call

Yup we got to see Daniel's big smile through Skype over Mother's Day weekend.

 

He said the area he is in is super small, I think he said around 5,000. Plus he has to be home by 6 PM because it's not safe for the missionaries to be out any later. We walks 30 minutes to his every day up a little mountain.

He spoke to our brother Jacob for a little bit. I think Daniel was in shock about Jacob getting engaged to Melissa. He doesn't want anyone's life to move on while he is gone.

Kadan, Daniel's nephew was so excited to talk to him. We even brought a pineapple just to have there with us for the call. Pineapple makes everything that much better, is what Daniel and I use to say.
 He roasts lots of marshmallow's and makes smore's a lot too. He loves his companion currently but is still hoping for a gringo companion.

He didn't have much to write the following P-day because we was going to the temple that day. Here is what he said though.

Hey fam fam wadd ups!!!?? Loved talking to you guys on sat sat!! super chill!! Jenn loved the Pine pine!! I promise i'll start taking more fotos and sending more fotos. Thanks mom because your a mom!!

New Baptism

Hey thanks mom yeah I can't live in my area (that I work in)  because its super poor and they just use plastic and metal sheets for houses.  So I live in the pueblo and hike up the mountain every morning and down every night like 30 min each way about 1 hour in total.  Yeah my comp is super cool we are working good and having a fun time   

 

I got a letter from my good friend Elder Ashcroft (my comp from the MTC) which was great.  I miss the guy!  What's funny is I only knew him for like 3 weeks but I feel like we have known each other for life.  What's even weirder is it's almost been a year since I met him. crazy huh??

 

I really don't want to come back the same person that I was before I left home. I know I have changed a lot for the better but I was thinking this week, and figured out one way I could become better.  I felt like I needed to tell the president about when I watched the new Batman movie when I first got in the mission.  So I wrote him a letter today telling him.  I guess we will just see what happens.  I'll probably have to change areas :( and be moved down to jr comp. for some time.  But that's fine with me; serving the lord is serving the lord no matter what position your in and I really want to be someone the president can trust and the Lord can trust.  I want to come back honorable, knowing I did my best and tried to change for the best and become the person that my father in heaven wants me to be.

 

So we confirmed one family last sunday and baptized Amilcar, yesterday which was super spiritual.  He already wants to go on a mission and I feel bad telling him he still has to wait.  So Tomas went to the church Sunday and he has a strong testimony of the church and everything.  It's just his wife Guatalupe, she goes to church because it's tradition and won't marry the guy.   Super funny though; she was like I want to get married in my church and before I could say anything Tomas is like I don't want to get married in a church I dont think is true.   hahaha bam machete!!!! hehehe   But I am trying to help them get married; a civil marriage, no churches attached.   But yup that's all that's going on this week.  I'll keep you guys posted, love you all!!  Having the best time of my life!!!

New Companion

So this week was super cool my new comp is from Guatemala. I love that I have only had Latin comps but at the same time I really want to train a gringo or get a cool gringo comp eventually. But with pure latin comps I can feel like my spanish is getting super better. I think my new comp is my favorite comp so far, his name is Elder Juracan (yup hurricane) he is super cool and a little crazy. He is my first comp that actually helps me with my spanish and helps me work. We found like 6 families to teach this last week he has really good ideas and loves to help serve people. He is by far my favorite comp we get a long really well! ! love working and everything is going good. I think we have the possibility to baptize 9 this change together!!

We're working super hard and having lots of fun!! Elder McKenna

Eventful Week

So this week was super eventful.   While walking on the  way to our area a tree had fallen; so to get to our area we had to climb a tree.  A giant one dude. I felt like a ninja, it was awesome!!!   So this week was super adventures with the comp.  So I tried to have a comp inventory and I just started off with everything that I have been learning from him.   How he help me learn to compromise and helps me invite people to listen to the gospel better and stuff like that, like be more direct.  Oh boy, that just made things worst.  He just was like yup, that's why I am here so I can teach you to have success and said just a bunch of prideful things.   That he is here because it's all about him and every one here who is progressing it's because of him. 

So this bloke really wants to go to Belize.  So I decided a different tactic to have unity; just suck up.  I just told him that he was the best darn elder in the world and that he is definitely going to Belize and everything. (Cause only the best elders go to Belize)   This worked for about today but I can only suck up for so long. The truth is I really hope this guy goes to Belize, because he does like to work hard and all.  It's been his desire his whole time in the mission.  So I have been praying for him to go to Belize and really just praying for the things that the Lord wants for him this is making me love the guy a lot. (love doesn't mean we get along it just means i love the guy) but I really have been doing all I can and I really feel great about our companionship and everything. Because I am doing all I can to make it work I listen to him and everything.

I won't lie I do from time to time laugh at his compulsive pride-fullness and desire for power.  About 15 times a day he tells me is going to call the zone leaders on me and the president.  I just say va pue. (go for it)   I'm not doing anything wrong, he just has anger issues.  I kinda want him to!  I think it would be so funny!!!  The next time he says that he is going to call the zone leaders I think I'll just call them and say hey my comp wants to talk to you.  That will just tease him good. hehehe

But yup all is good!!!  Having a lot of fun working hard. I really like my new area and the people here they have a lot of faith and love!!  I really believe this April we're going to baptize this family of 5 and 2 other people.  I am super excited!!!  Please pray for these families:  Soariano, Romirrez, and Gutirerez.

Thanks guys love you!!!

Rocky Mountains

Hey guys,

 

So it turns out I'm not training this change I've got a regular comp!  But I am senior comp. and still opening a new area in Wilsalcul called Sabana Grande.  It's a pretty cool area the people are pretty chill and loving a ton of mango and everything.   This area is just a bunch of hills, I walk up and down all day long!!  I feel like it's the rocky mountains just hiking and doing the 50 miler merit badge over and over again, every day all day.

I live in a house of 4 elders which is really nice because my companion is making me miserable because  he doesn't like jokes or anything and doesn't like my ideas.  My comp is super boring and super super prideful. Since I want unity I just let him make all the decisions  and everything.

So this week has been super good in the way of the work for the lord.  We're going to be baptizing a family this 31st.   I really feel like if your doing what you should be doing you should baptize every month.  So I really put all my faith in the lord for this month because this is a new area where there was no elders before and no attendance, no nothing.   My comp and I have to work super hard.

 

So I read a talk from an apostle from like the 90s and it talked about the power of god and the atonement.   It talks about his power comes from honoring is Father and now I understand the importance of honoring my mother and father so I can have blessings and power too.

So I get a smoothie when ever I can, just so I can feel some Martin time out here. miss the bloke.

 

Elder Daniel McKenna

New Area

Hey guys!!

I don't really have much to talk about this week!!  Mom I am sorry about the money, I had to get a new suitcase and it is a long story but I don't have one anymore, so I had to buy a new one and it was super expensive for the cheapest one.

 

Hey so I don't know if you guys heard they are opening a new mission here.  So they are cutting this mission in half and the other east San Salvador mission in half and making a new mission.  This mission is not going to have Belize any more.  The new mission is going to have Belize in it.  No one knows really what mission were going to be in anymore,  we will all know by the first of July.  I really need all of your prayers for the Lord to put me in the correct area where I can relate to the people and help them to the best of my abilities.  So please pray for me a lot to be put in the mission that I can do the most good for the children of god.  I have been praying a lot about this. and I have been studying a lot and preparing.  I really just want to be the very best missionary I can be.  If I can't help all the people here in the mission how am I going to help the world when I get back.

So this week was super hard, a lot of our dates fell through and we had only one kid at church.  I was super bummed this sunday!!  I feel like I have been working super hard.  I have not had good results this week.  I believe it all comes down to sacrifice.  The other day I was thinking about our mission calls and everything. and all the sacrifices we made to come out here.  It  comes down to what I promised the Lord when I received my call and signed it and sent it to the prophet.  I signed my soul to the Lord for 2 years to work hard and obey every one of the rules.  I really  think the little rules actually are the most important and I feel like that's why my hard work is not paying off fully.  Like the rule, clean your shoes every day, I don't do that, I don't make my bed everyday, and I am not organized.  These are all rules here in the mission, so I decided I was going to try to keep all the little rules of the mission because some times I listen to music from disney but in this mission your only suppose to listen to hymns. So I believe if I start keeping the little rules, I'll start to have a lot of success again.

 

So I have some exciting news for you guys that I am both nervous and excited for the adventure.  I am going to be training a new missionary again and opening a new area. I am really nervous because it's going to be really hard to have to find all the members and everything and just start from scratch   and with another new missionary, so I am going to have to do pretty much everything. The new missionaries that already know Spanish, only go to the MTC for 2 weeks now.  My new companion will only be in the mission 2 weeks, how crazy is that.  So I am super excited for the adventure and the opportunity to strengthen my faith in the Lord. I know if I put my faith in him I can open this new area. But very nervous too!  I want to be the best I can. So please pray for the new area that I am going to, that the people will be ready to receive me, that I will be ready to receive them. and same with my new comp I am going to have and that I can learn a lot from him and that I will teach him the right way to be in the mission and be a good missionary.

One bummer about the mission is a lot of people here think fun is of the devil.  If your having fun, the leaders just assume your not being obedient. It's like "come on man lighten up" your in the mission.  Have some fun!!!   Today is my last pday with Elder's Hansen and Gottschalk, we're going to make the mango rice recipe (thanks for send it mom) together we will be the baker bros.

 

Just please pray for me to go to area that I am needed most and have the desire to always be progressing and preparing so I can be more of a servant to the Lord.

 

Elder Daniel McKenna