Week 69 and 70 - November 21 and 28, 2022

 What's Up, everyone!  It's been a crazy past two weeks.  First off, thank you to everyone who reached out and wished me a happy birthday.  Appreciate you all a lot.  The leaders in the ward surprised me with a cake after one of our correlation meetings to discuss missionary work.  It was really cool.  The ward loves me haha.

But these past two weeks have been busy.  Our recent convert Allan, recently made a family history account and has started to find names to take to the temple with him when he goes this Saturday!  So cool that the work is moving forward through him to so many other people in the other world.  It's been so cool to see the progression in Allan and his desire to learn and grow.

This week we found a good number of new people to start teaching.  We had another Hermana on date for baptism for this week, but she doesn't quite feel ready.  And we also have like three different couples that want to be baptized now but aren't married and so they can't.  It's really hard to become divorced/ married again here and so that process is so long. But we're trying our best to help them.

Nothing too crazy to share, just same old missionary work every day.  But one thing I really liked this week, was as we were in Xela for a leadership council with all of the ZL's, our mission President was speaking to us on a couple of topics. But to close, he just told us how much he trusts us and how proud he was of us for how we have conducted ourselves, in the way we communicate, and hold ourselves to such high standards.  He was emotional, and it made me feel that Heavenly Father feels the same way.  In my patriarchal blessing it says something similar as well, which made me feel that he is super proud of me and my efforts in this work.  And that he has so much trust in me to continue sharing the gospel with those around me and being a disciple of Christ.  I felt the Spirit so strongly and to be in a setting with about 12 other experienced missionaries, hearing that our President trusts us so much to lead this mission, was a really cool feeling and experience that I'll never forget.

     

Love you all and enjoy the World Cup for me...

 - Elder Copeland

Week 68 - November 14, 2022

 What's up everyone!!  Super great week here!  Lots of people that are progressing and exciting things that are happening.

This past week we had the baptism for my man, Alan!  We've been teaching him for only about a month and could not have been more ready.  He has been progressing super-fast and has been taking every necessary step to be baptized.  So, on Saturday we had the service, and I was able to be the one that baptized him.  It was so cool.  I, also, gave him one of my ties so that now he has his very own, because he's never had one before.  He looked good in it--getting the Gift of the Holy Ghost on Sunday, yesterday haha.  But after the baptismal service on Saturday, the bishop asked if we had taught Alan enough about the priesthood and if we thought he could be ready to receive the Aaronic priesthood the same day as his confirmation.  And me and my comp thought that he could be ready, and so we asked him how he would feel about receiving it, and he was all in.  So, at the end of 2nd hour, my comp gave him the priesthood which was also super cool.  In two days, Alan had gone from a non-member investigator to a member priesthood holder with the gift of The Spirit.  

And the best part (and reason for him receiving the priesthood so fast) is that this Saturday, the ward will be going to Xela at 3 am here from HueHue, to do sessions in the temple, and now that Alan has the priesthood, he is able to go in for the first time and experience everything that we have taught him, for himself! When we asked him if he would want to go with the ward at 3 am to the temple, he said he would be willing to go without hesitation.  He's the type of person that every missionary searches for, someone that is so ready and willing to learn more.  Alan is a really smart kid and is studying medicine to be a doctor, and so he learned super-fast everything that we taught him, but his faith and actions that he has shown since we've met him, is what has led him to grow so fast to make these life-changing decisions.  I couldn't be happier to be here and see his growth and be able to be the one that helps him become the disciple that he has become and will grow to be over time.

 

Last night, as me and my comp were walking home from our last appointment, we noticed that throughout the week, we had used our priesthood so many times to help bless others.  We baptized someone, confirmed them, gave them the priesthood, gave about four blessings of health and two of comfort all in the same week.  It made me think how grateful I am to have the priesthood, to be worthy to use it, and to be here on a mission as a missionary, blessing people's lives with this gift that I have.  I have seen the power of the priesthood over and over again throughout my mission and know 100% that it is the same authority of Jesus Christ.  And that I have a responsibility to exercise my priesthood as much as I can to help other people's lives.  I'm so grateful to have the knowledge of this divine power and be trusted to use it for everyone that needs it around me.

 

Lots of work happening here right now.  Our renter/ member asked us if we could paint our whole house for her too, so we've been doing that when appointments fall through haha. We also had a ward "copa mundial" for the World Cup coming up, me and my comp were ballin' haha.  Also, I already have like five different bets with members about who's going to win mundial lol.

 

But love you all and miss you guys!  Email me on my birthday if you have a sec🙃   20 años puchica mano!

   

- Elder Copeland

Week 67 - November 7, 2022

 Another one down, starting to get to the last few transfers of my mission... so crazy.  But transfers were this week, my comp left to Xela to train, and I stayed here in HueHue.  I'm so happy to be staying here--I love it.  My new comp is Elder Romero from El Salvador, me and him are best friends already.  He started his mission in Momos and so we got to know each other a little before, but now it's so fun being with him.

For transfers, we don't have our usual transfer meeting in Xela like before anymore, so now all of the ZLs are in charge of planning and doing all of the transfers and travels for everyone in their zonas.  So, Wednesday was so crazy.  With my comp leaving too, it was all on me to make sure everyone got to their areas, with the right people, on time, it was crazy.  Some missionaries had to be transferred by themselves and without a phone because nobody else was going to their new zone with them.  So, making sure all of these missionaries were taken care of and safe was a lot of work.  But everyone made it on time, and it all turned out fine. 

This week we had two investigators that we have been teaching for a while, come to church!  They've never come before either.  We actually called them Sunday morning to invite them to church like all of our investigators (not really thinking they were going to come because they work on Sundays) and they said, "OK, we'll call you when we're outside" haha.  The members were great at making them feel welcomed and I felt like it went great. 

We also had another one of our investigators come that is going to be baptized on Saturday.  Please pray, everyone, that Alan will take the step.  I've never seen anyone more ready than him.  We, also, put another Hermana on date this week that is progressing well, too.  We have so many people that we are teaching right now that we have 0 time to contact or relax. We are always running to lessons with investigators.  But most people's problems here, is the Sabbath day.  Everyone works on Sundays and sells, and so everyone makes/ sells more money on Sundays.  So, once they can get over whatever they do on Sunday, they progress so much faster and learn the importance of that commandment. 

Also, this week in a family home evening, we got fed pig intestine... it tasted how it sounds.  It looked like a brownie more than meat.  If it even was meat idk lol.  I'll put a picture of it.

But, everything's going great here, loving my comp, area, people.  I'm super excited to be here another transfer and help people grow in their testimonies and help people grow closer to their Heavenly Father.

Also, hit 175 lbs.  That's 19 lbs down in 3 1/2 months.  I've been hungry for 3 months, but I also feel so accomplished for achieving that goal.  Now to the next goal...

Love you all so much!  Have a good week!

 - Elder Copeland

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