Week 87: "As Zion's Youth in Latter-Days..." (and Mother's day call report)

Note from Jessica: We got a chance to chat with Elder Lewis via skype for the last time in his mission on Sunday. He is looking great, happy, and dedicated to the work in Cucuta. We had a great time talking and listening as he bore a powerful testimony of the work in Colombia and Venezuela. He is, as always, true to the faith and sends his love to everyone. -The Lewis family

Hey!

So this week has been a little bit more of the same, like I told you yesterday…By the way, it was really fun to talk to you guys yesterday. It’s good to know that you are doing well, and the whole family looks different! The craziest was Michael! Crazy alto! He’s really tall! Bekah as well. I dunno, you all just looked really good. I hope you are all feeling good. Mike, you’re about done with your Junior year, moving into being a Senior…. And time is moving right on!

This week on my end, not a whole lot has happened. We fasted two weeks ago, and we fasted this week as well to try and help our investigators to progress. We have seen a couple of miracles from that I think. Isabella, who is reading the Book of Mormon like you wouldn’t believe, she’s 17 years old and she is pregnant. We are teaching her and her family but up till right now it’s been her that has been most interested. Her boyfriend or her husband isn’t really that interested. He is more interested in going out to drink and party. So they separated, for family problems, and looks like she will be able to progress now. It’s hard when you are 17, and you’re going to be a mother, and…. I don’t know. I feel like they still want to do teenager things. But we are going to try and help her as much as we can. That’s how it is. People make mistakes. Pretty bad mistakes. But they will get worse if they don’t start living the commandments NOW. That’s our mission with her and her family. Her family is not really that interested. We are going to keep trying. We have been trying to work with the members more lately, the young men have actually really stepped up and have been giving us good references. Sure is cool to go out with young men, teacher, priest age and they give us good references. It’s just the people that they have talked to. They aren’t even good friends of theirs, just like “it’s my friend’s mom that found out that I was Mormon and she asked me about it so I want you guys to come over with me and visit her.” That’s really cool! We are going to try to start working more with the young people. They’ve been encouraging us to stop using as much… like if a young man has a problem or a young man needs fellowshipping, then we should go to the President of the Teacher’s Quorum, not the President of the Young Men. The President of the Teacher’s Quorum has Priesthood Keys, so what are we doing going to the Young Men’s President when he is just an advisor? So, they told us that from the Stake. So its’ really cool when you go up to a young man and say: “Hey, President, I need your help with a young man” how they really step up and they help. The youth of the church are amazing! It’s funny because here in Cucuta, this is like, they are starting up the second generation of the church. The first generation is getting older and they are about ready to pass the torch to the next generation. So they are telling us, “hey, we are not good leaders. We didn’t have the gospel when we were young. But these kids have the gospel while they are young, so help them become good leaders.” So we win because we get references and GREAT fellowshipping, and they win because they get to learn how to lead and how to really care about someone else. So it’s a really good situation.

Let’s see… we have really just been learning the value of references, or referrals. We are also teaching an English class, and I want to start a piano class because I think I could bring some people in for that. But ya… that’s about it for this week. Ilvanis, we have been able to talk to her husband, Richard, a little bit more this week. We are hoping to continue. There’s not a whole lot else. This week we have a good bunch of stuff planned, so we’re looking good. Well, what else can I tell ya? I think that’s my recording for today. Today for P-day we went up into the remote parts of our area up past La Conquista to go and see what the countryside is like. The countryside is actually pretty desert-y. Where inside the city is green you would think it would be like a jungle outside, but there’s patches the size of your house out there. It’s a green desert. It’s really weird. Maybe I will show you pictures. Before, that’s what all of Cucuta was like. Frank was telling us that when he was a kid, you had to go from one place to another with a machete. Not because of thick forest, but because of thick, thick brush. Not brush, it’s like foliage. It’s not like jungle-y it’s just thick. Thick green desert. I’ll have to send you pictures. But I cant even imagine trying to get through that.

Well, I think that’s all for today. We went to the house of Frank and ate arepas reginas, you take arepas like normal, and like a BLT with arepas. I will have to make it for you when I get home. But ya, I have learned how to make Venezuelan arepas. Really good.

Well family, I will let you go then. I love you all and it was good to see you yesterday. Have a great week. Chao!

-Elder Lewis

Elder Lewis and the zones of Cúcuta at Multi-Zone conference. 

Elder Lewis showed us (his family) this photo on our video call yesterday. The mountains that you see in the background are the city of Ureña, Venezuela. the distance from where Elder Lewis stands at the top of this hill to those mountains is only about 15 minutes by car.