Elder Payton Thorpe : Loving the people of El Salvador!

Hola familia!

Haha, what a week. First, I started the week with a interview with Presidente Cordon on Tuesday. I was pretty stressed and he gave me some incredible advice that has helped me so much this past week. The next day, we went to the temple! It was so awesome, the San Salvador temple is beautiful! And we got to see the new endowment video. :] All of us missionaries were pumped for that! I went into the temple with the question of how I can love the people more. I was expecting an answer in the temple, but it never came. I felt good during the whole session and loved it, but I never really got an answer to my questions. However, later in the day I believe it came. We knocked on this little old lady's door and she let us in and we started teaching her. I could barely understand what she was saying and I still don't know if she is all with it... but man, I felt so much love for the little old lady! I put all of my energy on her and tried to figure out how I could help her. We finished teaching and I really don't think she understood much of what we said, but the feeling I had in that room was very comforting. I realized that hey, I really had love for her! I loved the people that I was teaching! Hah, I guess it was kind of "Had to be there" moment.

Later that night, is when I had such a good talk with a great friend. He gave me so many things to think about and to do to help me. It was awesome. We talked for awhile. He said to just take it day by day. Wake up in the morning and set my attitude that I'm going to work my hardest today. Then go out and give it your all, come back home and collapse on your bed because you are so tired. Then wake up and do it all over again.

I am so grateful for all of the advice I have gotten this past week and also the past 4 months from all of the amazing people I have in my family. I have been given sooo many things in my life. I have it made! I have been receiving all of my life and not really giving anything. Now is the time for me to give. President said that people that are given a lot are also expected to give a lot. But the incredible promise that we have from the Lord is that when we give back to Him, He will bless us even more. Like it says in Malachi 10 about tithing, if we pay our tithing, the lord will bless us so much that we won't even have room to recieve it! That is so amazing! And these 2 years are just tithing for my whole life. So yeah, thanks to all of the awesome support I have back home!

Okay, so my investigadora, B., is the one that is just like all of my aunts! She is so much fun and always has a happy attitude! We put a baptismal date with her this past week and she accepted it! When we asked her, she just started crying and crying. The spirit was so strong and she just knew that it was what she needed to do. However, she wasn't able to go to church yesterday so now we have to push the date back a little bit, not sure what day yet. But, man she is going to be baptized before the next transfers! Cuz I will probably leave. :[

We also have a new family that we are teaching that is way positive and love the lessons. The parents aren't married, which is the situation with almost every family in the country, but the dad says he was baptized when he was 11 or 12 but doesn't remember if he was confirmed or not. The mom is so receptive to the lessons and so I hope we get everything all figured out with them this next week.

Ah the people here are soo humble, but a lot of them think they don't need our message because they have the catholic church, or the evangelist chruch, or the testigos de jehova [jehovas witnesses] It can be frustrating and sometimes I wish that the people didnt have their agency haha. But, they do and we have to honor that.

alrighty this is pretty long, I gotta go. But thank you all again for your support and love!

Mom, Hermana Nancy showed me your facebook message! Haha that was really cool. She is an awesome lady and takes great care of us!

Hey, how was the South Dakota trip??? Let me know!

Love ya all, talk to ya soon!

Elder Thorpe

P.s, the picture of the missionaries is SWEET!!!

Mom, I need you to find me a picture off the internet. It is of the strippling warriors and missionaris mixed in. I think it was on my phone? Hope you can find it! And please send it to me? Gracias!