October 6, 2014 - Another miracle family and conference

We have another miracle family now. We are still working with the other family, the only problem is that it is difficult to find them to be able to teach them. But we are still working with them. But this week we were  handed a new family as a present with a bow on top! :)

We went to visit a member family this week, a mom and her daughter, and on the way there, this couple was leaving their house in their car and stopped and told us that they wanted us to visit them! And they told us they were just going to take their car to house and then come back. So they went and came back. And it turns out they are the son and daughter in law of this women, and brother and sister in law of the daughter. So we taught them (on friday) and invited them to conference, and they came! And then we visited them last night, and the wife tolds us that she wanted to be baptized. We didn´t even ask her! She just told us, I want to be baptized. She also has had dreams that she needed to change. They were having marital problems before. But she told us that and I just wanted to sing and laugh haha. It was awesome!  The brother still wants to know a little bit more and maybe still has some doubts, but I am positive that they are going to be baptized. They really have a desire to change. 

This week was a good week. We had  a  ward family home evening night this week and it was way good. It was the first ward activity in a long time that the ward had had. The problem is that there is not a lot of support from the members here. But we are working on that and we are hoping that we can keep having these ward activities to help unite the ward. 

We are going to have a baptism this weekend! Almost 100% sure. Anabel wants to be baptized, and we are planning for this weekend! We just have to plan a baptism for her this weekend. She wasn´t able to be interviewed this weekend. So that is a little bit stressful if we will be able to get in an interview. But I am optimistic! It has been raining fairly frequently now.  But not too much. 

And conference. Wow. 

"I may not be my brother´s keeper, but I am my brother´s brother" - Jeffrey R. Holland

"Far more important than walking WHERE Jesus walked is walking AS Jesus walked" - Thomas S. Monson

"We should, from time to time, consider if there is something better for us" - Carlos A. Godoy

I have a lot more, but they would take up too much space. But I am so grateful that we were able to listen to the prophet and the apostles this weekend. They are men called of God and have a special testimony and purpose here on the Earth, just as we all do.   

Don´t ever forget that you are a child of God and that He loves you and will be there for you. Each of you have a purpose that can only be truly fulfilled with Jesus Christ´s help. Seek his help and He will make you more than you can be. 

I love you all. Thank you for your prayers and support.

Love,

Elder Dallin Parker

1. Our zone during general conference (We basically just hung out in the stake center all day)

2. The big guys in my zone with one of our zone leaders. 

September 29, 2014 - On the Mend...

I am healthy now! Just a little bit of runny nose and cough left, but it is going away! And the language is going well. I can talk and everything. I don´t understand everything, but just about. And I can say what I am thinking now. Haha training has helped me tons with my language, because I have been talking much more, but little by little, my companion is talking more and is doing more and really improving, which makes me happy :) It makes me feel like I am actually doing something. haha

It has been a good week. We were able to do a lot. The only problem is that we have not been able to find some of our investigators and menos activos. So that is going to be our focus this week so that we can get them going again and keep them going. 

We did have a cool experience this week. We went to visit a member family that has like a day care/ preschool kind of thing, and while we were there, there was a mom there that is  a friend of this family that has a daughter in the school. We went to just teach them something from preach my gospel, but she was there so we just started and taught lesson 1. We invited her to be baptised but she wasnt´ sure about that. But what she did say is that she had been having a lot of doubts or inqueitudes about many things that her church taught. And she had been praying for help. Then just apparently by chance (Although I know it was not by chance) we decided to go visit this family on this one night when she just happened to be there. She usually just picks up her daughter and goes, but that night, she stayed! So that was a way good moment for us this week! 

Today for P-day we went to the middle of the world. Not to the big statue, but to a musem, museo del sol that is right next to the monument. But it was way cool because we learned about the indiginous people that live in the amazon. They still live exactly how they did, naked, with no technology, still fighting between tribes and everything. It was way cool. And we learned how they make the shrunken heads from the heads of real people. And took fotos and did some cool things there. We didn´t go to the monument because there is nothing to do there. Only take fotos and it costs to get in, and we are all broke. But money comes tomorrow! :) 

I started reading the Bible this week and it is way cool. Way interesting. I read about the promise that God made us with the rainbows. And I am still reading the BOM too! 

I know that this is true and that this work is real. I wish the best to everyone!

I love and miss you all! Thank you for everything!!

Love,

Elder Parker

1. This is our district at one of our district meetings.

2. These are the missionaries in our ward! There are 7 of us, in 3 different sectors. 

3. This is me at the museo del sol at the mitad del mundo. That is were we went today. This is me with a little statue man. haha 

4. A bunch of totems from different parts of the world at the museo.

5. Our district on the middle of the world! ;)

6. Me with a statue of an indiginous man. 

7. I am focusing very hard to try to balance an egg on the head of a nail.

8. ¡Hecho!

9. Our district again with a flag of ecuador. 

10. Me with a mexican totem with a flag of ecuador.

11. That is the big monument of the middle of the world. 

September 22, 2014 - Sick week

I was sick all this week. I have had a nasty cold. One day I almost lost my voice, one day my nose was like a waterfall, then I developed a nice cough and chest pain. And now we are here, I still have a cough and a little bit of a runny nose, but all good. The only problem now is that it is winter here. And that means that it rains everyday. And it is colder. So that is the only part that I will be careful for. All good other than that.

We are going to have a baptism on the 11 of October for a girl called Anabel. She is 13 years old and super excited. When we talked to her last week about her baptism date, she was like this week! But we couldn´t because she was still missing a couple things, and she didn´t come to church this week so she can´t get baptised this week either. But the 11 for sure!! Her mom will have to wait another week, but with time, she will be blessed even more by this gospel! 

This week, not much happened because I was sick and couldn´t leave to do much, but now all better I hope. Ummm, yeah. Not much happened. Things have pretty much been the same because we weren´t able to do much.  Haha nothing new. 

Today for P-day, we just played games together and made hot dogs. It was fun, but that was all we were able to do. 

Things are going well. We as a companionship have been developing well. It has been going well. We just have to keep progressing. 

This week I finished the Book of Mormon. This book is so true. I am able to learn something different every time that I read it. And every time that I read it, I feel the Spirit. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to share this treasure with so many people. I invite everyone to read this book! It will bless your lives. I promise!

I love you all and thank you for everything!

Elder Parker

Fotos de Misioneros Nuevos- Grupo de Septiembre:

the first one is just all of the new missionaries, the second one is with all of them.   in the first one, my companion is in the upper left corner next to the tall guy. 

September 15, 2014 - It´s a boy!

Haha I have a son!! His name is Elder Larsen and he is from Meridian, Idaho! This group of missionaries was huge, like their stature. Like there is one that is 6 foot 5 and another that is 6 foot 10. haha and most of them were like my size and a little smaller. That is it. haha and there were 19 gringos and 1 latino. His spanish is still like he is just out of the CCM, and he is. So that makes sense! It´s just different from having a companionship where we were sharing the lesson. It is hard. But I know that this is a calling from God. But really he is a good companion and will learn quickly. He is a little bit quiet, but I think he is still just adjusting to everything.

And I am sick again. I just have a little cold. Like my throat hurts and my nose is runny and stuffy. That makes it hard when I am talking a loto more, but it will go soon. So there is that. but other than that I am good. It has been getting colder and been raining more. Like yesterday and today we woke up to rain. Not hard, but we would get wet, easy. And we are almost in winter now here. so that is why. And yes the evenings are cooler now. 

My speaker will handle it however. It doesn´t matter. If it is in folders it plays folder by folder. However is fine. 

When I write, I am just in a cyber. I don´t know if you want a different answer. haha My clothes and shoes and everything are still doing fine, no problem. And there are a lot of different types of bread here, that is for sure, and they are almost all good! 

This week has been a little slow because we had a lot of stuff to do with changes and everything like that. And I have just had a lot of meetings this week. But we have 2 new investigators with baptismal dates! Daniela and Anabel. Daniela is the mom adn just needs help reading and attending the church. Anabel is doing really well. We are still working with the family that we have, it is just hard to get them all together in order to teach them. But with time, they will progress! 

Something that I thought of this week and shared with my companion is the example of the sons of Helaman.  When we have hard times (especially as missionaries or when we have to leave our families, always we can think of the Sons of Helaman. They left their families just like we have. But they were not sure if they were going to come back. In fact, I bet they were thinking they wouldn´t return. But they had faith in the things that their parents had taught them, especially their mothers. And this verse in Alma chapter 56:47 really stands out to me. 

Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.

What faith. This is just such an example to me and I hope that one day my faith can be like theirs.  

I love you all and am so grateful for your examples! 

Love, 

Elder Parker

1. With the family that feeds us on sundays and does our laundry. 

2. with my companion on my left, and my grandpa of the mission on my right. 

September 8, 2014 - 4 Months!

Well, first of all, we had changes today. We actually found out last night at like 11. And my companion left to Quito as a lider of district.  And I do not have  a companion yet, so I am with the Liders of zone until thursday. I just finished being trained an now I am going to be training a new missionary. So I will get my companion on thursday morning. Crazy.

It was a good week, but I was sick, so we couldn't do much. I couldn't sleep Tuesday night because I just hurt, all of my body. So we couldn't leave on wednesday, and only left to go to our fixed citas. The same with thursday and friday because I just did not feel good. then saturday we went and worked like normal, but sunday I felt not good, but we still went and worked. And I am feeling better today. I think also that I have been a little bit dehydrated. And that is no fun.

My knee is doing a lot better now. And my arm is almost healed too haha. After 3 1/2 months. Umm, I don't really have much else to say right now. We weren't able to do a lot this week. The work is going pretty much the same, which is kind of slow right now. The people here progress in waves. Sometimes they progress tons, and other times, not at all. Sometimes it is awesome and sometimes it is frustrating. We have been doing a lot of edifying? Correcting? I don't know what it would be in english. But we have been a little bit more frank with people lately because honestly, that is what they need. But we do it with love. Because we really want the best for these people, and sometimes we have to be frank.

Yeah!! Let me know how the bishopric is!  Haha I don't have much else to say right now.

Oh! How can I wash a tie? I have a tie that has the worst luck. haha And it is not a dry clean only tie.

And elder Haight was my great-great uncle? Or just great uncle? I saw a picture of him and was trying to remember.

I love this area right now. We have a lot of people that are amazing to us. We visited our recent converts Blanca and Karen this week, and when we told them that one of us would be leaving, they started to cry. And then when we pulled out our gifts for them (A bible, the movie finding faith in Christ, a picture BOM for the little ones, and a photo of the baptism) they started to cry even more. I almost cried. It was super touching. I love the people here so much and the experiences that I have had here have been amazing. I love this gospel so much. There are so many times when I just feel so blessed. And it is hard because we can't do anything but handshakes with the women, but we just want to be able to hug them. I care about these people so much. Honestly, there are a few families that I actually feel a part of. I feel like part of their family. And they themselves say they have 2 more sons than they actually do, for us.

Think about your families and how much you love them and what you would do for them. Then think of our Heavenly Father, whose love for us is perfect. There is nothing that can replace His love and His spirit in our lives. Always remember who you are. Each and every one of you and us has an identity and a purpose special and unique. Heavenly Father wants the best for you. I know that with all of my heart. Thank you to everyone. I love you all.
2 Nephi 1:15

Love,

Elder Dallin Parker

September 1, 2014 - 9/1/2014

This week has been good!  We are now teaching the sister and her family of Blanca! They are super ready to hear and be blessed by this message! They and 2 other friends of Blanca have baptismal dates for the 20th of september! We really focused on them a lot this week, so I don't really have much else to say! haha

The pics that I sent are of the Botanical Gardens here in Quito. Way cool. And there are other photos of Cayumbe and Cotopaxi, and our house, and us on top of our house :)

In order to find people, we try to ask for references. That is the most effective, but then we also contact every day. We usually knock doors or talk to people in the streets. We can do whatever we want to contact basically.    

Ummm, in order to approach the less actives, we just go and call them or knock on their door, or go with members. They know who we are. Umm, yeah, I don't know if that answered your question. ;) 

We pay zero to have our laundry done. :) We just pay for detergent, but there is a family in the ward that does it for us. We just drop it off and go back one or two days later to pick it up! Easy.

Haha our dinners are usually just bread. There are tons of bakerys here and they are super good. But no. We only really prepare breakfast. Members feed us lunch, and dinner really is not anything special. We usually will just stop at a bakery in some moment or on the way home and buy some bread to eat. 

My arm is much better. And my health is good.  The weather here is usually sunny but really not too hot. But sometimes the sun feels super strong haha  But it is really comfortable. And almost always I wear short sleeves just because we walk a lot and sometimes it gets a little hot, but I could be wearing long sleeves no problem too. 

This week also my companion recieved his patriarchal blessing. And we were taught a lot buy the patriarch. In 2 nephi 4:7 there is something super interesting. It is the promise of Lehi to his son Laman. The promise is that the people of Laman will never be destroyed. So when we read about all of the wars between the Nephites and Lamanites, the nephites never really had a chance. Haha. the lamanites had the Lord's blessing that they would not be destroyed.  Just an interesting thought.  ;)

I have to go now, but I know that this church is true. I know that we can receive so much from God if we are obedient to His commandments. Many people tell us that they are happy, but they can be much happier, and feel so much more with this gospel. I have seen the blessings in the lives of the people here that we teach.  Families really can be eternal and live together forever. I know that this is true. This message offers so much hope and peace and comfort and everything else good.   I love my Heavenly Father and all that He has done for me.  This life is not perfect and we are going to have challenges, but Heavenly Father will be with us in every moment if we love Him and follow Him.  

Thank you all for your examples. I love and miss you! Sorry if these are too long ;) 

Love,

Elder Parker

So I have tons of pics today, and these are of the botanical garden that we went to!! :) It was sweet.

 

 

 

In this bunch there is a little bit of NM!!! :)  They had chili!! :) aha

 

 

 

These pics are of Cayambe and Cotopaxi. Cayambe is more pointed than cotopaxi. This is like the first day we were able to see them both clearly because there is always clouds surrounding them. And me and my companion eating breakfast one morning. 

 

 

I have a new injury! I just slipped when we were walking down a steep hill because there were tons of pebbles haha