October 27, 2008

Howdiness oh family of mine!

So we finished this month completing our goal of 11 baptisms and the zone is kind of doing bad but whatever. We have lowered our percentage of retention, which is bad because last month we had the best retention in all of Nicaragua. The President is gonna cut our heads off...

But that's ok. We are doing what we can and can only get better!
Yesterday Luis, the golden investigator that came to church saying he wanted to get baptized, didn't come and get baptized. My comp said he thought that Luis just wanted to get baptized to be a bishop cause he thought the bishop earned money. But then we told him that they don't and neither does anyone! So he left and never came back. How sad that there are people like that, right? Chupa.

Ready for something random?...

I saw a bum naked guy today.

Yeah, weird but true. It was an experience that reminded me that I was in Nicaragua. I was in a taxi driving to the church to go to district meeting and suddenly I saw him walking down the street and the first words that came to my mouth was... eergh? Which means I had no explanation for what I had seen. Yeah. Weird.

No, Alyssa has not written me. Not a bit. Send my love to all my friends and tell them merry Christmas for me.

Speaking of Christmas, I'm working on a great package for you peoples.
I've already written the letters and am working on buying the gifts. The only thing I lack is to voice record myself blabbing to ye all. Shall be snazzi.

Neal is taller than me? Blast it all giant! Don't be big. Big is for big people. That's big.

Fried artichoke hearts.... ha. Please family.... I've seen fried iguanas, bananas, soup, cereal... everything is fried. Yesterday I ate something good. It was a potato stuffed with meat dipped in some type of bread overcoat and... fried. Twas yummy. mmmmm....

Carrie got engaged? Then she broke it off? You should of seen my reaction. Elder Haddock laughed at me. It was like, WHAT!? then... Oh.
Send my regards to Carrie.

I don't have time to write Greg this week but the next time I do, I will hug him through the internet.

Elder Shamu is getting married!? Sweet. Everyone from Nauvoo that already came back from the mission is married. How trunky. hehe!

Tell Chandler to try out for Nauvoo and forget Hawaii. I love Light and Hawaii and what not but Nauvoo is worth the sacrifice.

Here's a pic I'm gonna send you. Enjoy it and I will write you next week. I love you lots!!!!

Elder Johnson

October 20, 2008

What!?

Just so Nick knows, I’m sorry. Hehe! I have had the GREATEST intention of writing him. It’s just that my friends are in dire need of help and I already know Nick is perfect, he doesn’t need my advice. Haha! Kidding. But seriously, I had written a LOOONG letter on real paper that I am planning on sending, but I will be sending it with the Christmas package I am putting together and hoping it will get to you before November ends. I just need next p-day to buy the stuff.

I will write him after this, cause I love him! THE BUFF!

I saw another miracle this week, actually a series of amazing miracles. Familia Cano got baptized. That means this month we have already 8 baptisms and they are all amazingly strong and firm in the church. Next week we have between 2 and 5 if everything works right. Twill be the first time I’m gonna meet my baptism goal, IM SO EXCITED!!!!!!! I’m finally with a comp that knows how to baptize and is teaching me!

My boots are still crapped out. And oh! I forgot to tell ya! We lived through a hurricane this week! I didn’t see the sun for four DAYS! The streets were rivers and I wore dirty wet clothes for four days straight cause the lady that cleans our clothes couldn’t come get them in the rain! It was fun.

I MISS NAUVOO!!!
Nicks bloody rich!

Mom wants to work again? Poochika mom! Make up your mind! Hehe! First you wanna work then ya don’t then ya do then your shoe! Yikers. Hehe! Kiddin!

I’m gonna send the songs next time cause I forgot to bring the lyrics. I love those songs too. I hope to write more. Hehe!

Well... I gotta end this early to write to Nick! YAY! Hehe! Love you all and I will write you next week. Just know I am really happy here and everything is working out. The second year is so much better than the first.

Love you all!

E. Nate Johnson

Elder Johnson

Nicaragua, Managua Mission

October 13, 2008

WHAT!!!!
What the crubdonker? Nolan hit his head? Was he bleeding a lot? kewl.
Man! He isnt going to remember when I get back!!!! NOOOOOOO!
Well. Thats ok. I guess I will just be that wierd guy that takes over his room when I get back. hehe!
Hey, GREAT NEWS! I surely feel humbled. Fam. Ochoa has been through hell, literally, to get to where they are now. The morning of the baptism I had a dream that they kept putting exuses cause they didnt want to get baptized and I was trying to talk them into it. It made me very worried. But yesterday morning at 7 am they got married and her husband, the drunk, stayed to watch them get baptized. They look so much happier now. We also baptized two other girls who werent really planned to be baptized this week. YAY!
So I am feeling really good. E. Martinez is teaching me things that I hadnt known before. I baptized 5 this week, almost more than I had for the last six months. I feel like I saw a miracle.
Yes, my boots are worn out. Yes, for kicking chickens, kicking pastors from apostate churches, the rain, walking, running, skipping, trotting, prancing, bad streets full of rocks that belong on the moon, kicking my zone in the face, and for pumpkins. That last one was donated by Elder Haddock who is helpíng me write this email and is attempting to maintain my insanity.
No I dont have a rain jacket nor a poncho. I knew a guy named poncho.
YOU WENT TO MEXICO WITHOUT ME!!!!! Tears of wisdom flood my purple face. What does purple smell like?
Ah yes, Christmas package. Do send me one, with things for me and maybe for my comps. But no, not for kids in the area. They dont appreciate me. hehe!
List of things I need-
Twix, Cream soda (You promised you would send me a little bit for christmas, dont make me cry. Its been a year without), EFY music, green ties, black socks and normal white socks, more blister moleskin bandaid stuff, cream soda, green things, more photos of people in the world and my family and my friends and my house, cream soda, and other stuff that I cant think of right now but if it comes to me I will tell you. If you can send Aaron in a box, do it. hehe! Kidding, slightly.
Well, Im good and swell. I will write you next week! Tell nolan to get better and remember me!!!!
Love you all!

October 6, 2008

HEY!
Yes, I watched conference. All the sessions but the second one on Saturday. I loved them. By the way, I dont look at the ZL thing as a promotion either, more like a demotion. Hehe! Just joking around. Im loving it. I feel like its a great chance to change some things and learn a lot. Its a chance to progress. My comp is amazing and teaching me everything! I have learned so stinkin much!

I loved Utchdorfs talk too. But I loved more the talk by James J. Hamula. He sounds like he knows Nicaragua...
The shower works every now and then. I am back to bucket bathing most of the time. We live in a house owned by Catholics. They are nice though. I dont have a cell, my comp does and I have to use it sometimes, which aint too thrilling to me. hehe!

Our batallion is reactivating and converting new members. They are doing everything. Its helping a lot. We have an amazing family we are teaching right now who has every type of problem that exists. They are the family Ochoa. We told them the first day we met them that Satan is going to attack them hard. And oh did he!!! He has been kicking them around since the first day. The day after we found them we set a baptism date with them and that same day the mom, Anita, got attacked by a snake, choked on a fishbone, and someone robbed their house. Then someone came lying about Joseph Smith saying we worship and pray to him... ha! Then just yesterday someone said that if she went to the mormon church she was condemned. Shes smart though and doesnt listen. She knows its true. Her husband drinks a lot and she doesnt want to get married to him. We are working REAL hard with them. They are going to be a powerful happy family, I just know it!!!!

I did sing in the missionary choir, although we didnt get the kewl chance to sing in conference. I didnt see anyone I knew this last time.

I have some grand story to tell you. This last week it rained a lot. We got wet. We were teaching family Ochoa and suddenly we left and everywhere was filled to the brim with water!!! It was like walking in a lake!!!! Craziness! We made it pretty far when suddenly there was a muddy river too large to cross. My comp was smart and threw a rock in the middle to jump across. He made it. I went, but my weight difference is greater, so it moved and I went in. I was soaked up to my neck with water and mud. It was great...
hehe!

By the way, those kewl boots you sent me have holes in the bottom. Im looking to get them re-soled. Crazy, eh?

I love you all tons and am feeling great! Learning a lot and walking a lot and working REALLY hard!!!

Love and kisses,
Elder Johnson
Nicaragua, Managua Mission

September 29, 2008

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Changes...

As usual, good news and horrible news...

Good news, I had changes. That’s right, I have finally left Lezcano...

BAD news........ I’ve been promoted....

IM ZONE LEADER!

I know, I don’t know why either. Ha-ha! I freaked. That’s a huge boulder just placed on my weak shoulders. But hey, its a chance to grow, learn, change, sweat and bleed more, cry, love, hate, and see the letters in the zone before everyone else. I get to talk with the president like three times a week... that scares the crap out of me. Ha! I have more respect and fear for that man than any other person living on the earth.

Im good though. I feel like its a challenge and its opened my eyes. I feel renewed and full of energy. I’m in Leon, supposed to be the hottest area in all of Nicaragua.

My comp is Elder Martinez from Honduras. He’s really cool and he is a great master teacher. But he doesn’t let me teach much. He is so focused sometimes he forgets I’m there. That’s good though. I’m learning a lot from him.

The house is kewl. I’m bucket bathing again. The shower doesn’t work. But the best news I got is Elder Haddock that came with me from the MTC is here!!!! I’m his ZL! Yea! I love that kid.

No one else that came with me has bumped up. Haddock and Bean are still DLs and Barnes is only senior comp. I feel humbled and confused, but I guess the Lord knows what he’s doing... I don’t, but that’s ok.

The foods good. I love the members and its only been a few days. We have organized a sweet battalion of like forty members to help us bring people to church. It’s awesome and working! I expect to be here in this position a long time....

Its changed everything about the mission. Suddenly things are more realistic and I feel better. I hate the idea of being a leader and I always have, but I’m here to serve and I will serve well.

I received the grandma and grandpa package a long time ago. Didn’t I ask you like a month ago to thank them for me? If not, thank them. I loved it and so did my comp. It was gone within the hour! I LOVE YOU GM AND GP!

I love you all. Know that I am doing better and getting in line. I feel so much better here....
And I only have a year left. Hehe! LOVE YOU ALL!!!

Elder Johnson
Nicaragua, Managua Mission

HEY!
WHAT! NICK GOT HIS CALL! HES GOING WHERE! WHAT!?
Uhhhhhhhhhh... freak! Man! What!? My revelation was fake! You aint gonna go to Spain!? Washington it is... AWESOME!!!! You are gonna go to the kewlest temple in the world! ( Other than California ) Man... what news. I dunno how to handle it! I feel great! I got great news from my family, twice (I received your letter from that lost week in dearelder), letters from all my friends, and changes are tomorrow! YAYAYAAY! IM sure to go this time. YAYAYAY!
New bishopric? Wow! Things are gonna be wierd when I get back.
Tell Aaron I will gladly put in 100 dollars for a good 100 cream sodas for our cream soda bladder exploding wearing green and blue NA party when I get back.... but he has to bring the music. hehe!
Nononono... I was with Elder Guillen, a missionary from Nicaragua. He left for Peru last Tuesday. So I got stuck with Elder Lascarez from Costa Rica who is working in the area next to mine cause he had a nica comp that left too. So we are working together in two areas. Its hard. But fun!
I got the letter from Thomas. Thanks!
Hmmmm... news? Not really. I have been running area from area like always doing interviews and not having time to get anything done! Ive learned so much here.
Nick, you are gonna do SO great! Im working hard on buying stuff to send it in a package. Ill do it before you head out so you can get the letter I wrote you!
Tell Chandler and Thomas to get working so they can be the next to get their calls.
MAN! Im so excited! Im gonna be freaking out the rest of the week!
Love you all!
Elder Johnson
Elder Johnson
Nicaragua, Managua Mission

Hey Family!

Dont you worry... Im good. I still havent received the letters from last week but maybe I will in DEARELDER in the weeks to come. That wonderful site seems more sure than myldsmail. Thank you Nicaragua.Thank you for writing this week. Now, lemme do a quick ketchup on whats goin on... thats right, I said ketchup. I miss ketchup.

So this week went as follows...
Monday- we had PDAY, I wrote you all, I cut my hair, took a shower, slept a little, ordered pizza, and then our bishop and Hermano Falabella invited us to play ping pong in church, so we did. It was fun.
Tuesday- we worked hard.
Wednesday- we had interviews with the President from 6 am to 5 pm. ALL DAY LONG! There were a lot of elders talking to the president for like an hour. Me and my comp got ours done in three minutes. It was fun. Then that night we had a meeting with our bishop.
Thursday- we started the morning with weekly planning and then in the evening we went to work when suddenly the mission office called saying that my comp, Elder Guillen, is ready to leave for Peru this wednesday if we can find certain papers he needs. So all night long we were working with that.
Friday- we continued working with that. All morning we ran ALL OVER Managua to find his papers. It was an adventure which included us talking our way into touching the heart of a police captain so he could give us a police record of my comp the same day. It was quite intersesting. In the evening we ran everywhere with the ZL´s doing interviews.
Saturday- we tried saving our baptisms but it didnt work. Then we went to the baptisms of my district. (I will explain what happened shortly)
Sunday- church and we had a snazzi meeting with the stake about missionary work. AND.... Augusto got called as our Ward Mission Leader! SWEET!!!!
So that was my week. And here I am again, starting a new one! We had to baptisms set up this week. We went searching for one but she hid for like four hours and there was nothing we could do. Maybe this week. I just gotta talk to her and I know she will do it. I have truly seen the power Satan here in Nicaragua. If there is one thing I have learned here, its how he works and how to beat him. Hes a tricky and overly DANGEROUS fellow.
Our other nearly baptized friend was Ricardo. This kid is smart. He knows everything but he goes to another church. We watched the Restoration dvd with him and I bore my testimony and he was crying. He knows its true. So we had the zl´s try to get him to get baptized but he wants to stay in his apostate church. Its sad. He could have been a great missionary and leader of the church. Now he is going to be a pastor of the evangelical church. Satan works hard.
Missionaries are LITERALLY soldiers fighting everyday to save people from eternal darkness. I have sweated, bled, cried, and worked to save these people. But man, sometimes I feel like I am facing something so big and strong, I need to work a lot on my faith. Thats what I have been lacking. I used to think I had a lot of faith, I misunderstood the meaning of faith.
Send me the info on Nicks call as fast as you get it!
Im still voting for Spain or Nicaragua.
I wanna vote! Send me info on everything. I dunno whats going on with that stinkin country.
Well familyface, I love you and enjoy hearing from you. Tell my deadbeat silent friends to write me on DEARELDER at least. That goes for my bros too.
I promise I will send a package soon. Im looking for more snazzi stuff to put in it!
Next tuesday are changes, how quick, right? Im heading out of Lezcano! PLEASE DONT CALL ME AS ZL!!!!
haha!
Love and crackers!
Elder Johnson
PS- These are some fotos. The one with the three of us is the future First Presidency. You will see that pic in the next conference Liahona. Hehe! Good ole Falabella
Elder Johnson
Nicaragua, Managua Mission

Letter from Nicaragua on September 8, 2008

I think I'm gonna freak! This is the first week no one, not even my family, has written me...
I wrote you last week, you received it right? Im hoping you didn't not write me as punishment for a letter you didnt receive that I sent?

Maybe you are all just busy...

Anywho, whatever. Im forgiving. And patient. And a little bit hungry at the moment. So... lemme give you a grand detailed newsclip of the junk that has been going on here.

I'm with my new Nica son, Elder Guillen. He is very excited to be a missionary. I love the wide variety of strange comps the Lord sends me. It sure makes me handle people well. Im really hating this computer. It is doing some weird things on me.

I baptized Saturday. His name is Eddy. He is super poor and super humble and has a bunch of sicknesses. Man, I have learned so much here. Hey, brothers... dont follow my bad example. Be a better missionary than I am being. I had that meeting with Elder Clarke from the 70 last week and I made a choice to make my second year in the mission kick trash. Too bad I hadn't made that decision the first year. I would blame it on my horrible trainer, Sauceda, but I'm not gonna. I had excuses. The people here give me enough of them as it is. I aint gonna make the same mistake!

So I am sorta dissapointed that no one has written me. Seriously, I'm gonna be depressed the rest of the day. I heard that the family and friends stop writing you once you reach the midpoint of your mission, but i told the others that that would be impossible with my family. They love me! Prove me honest.

So we were fasting yesterday and had a great temptation. Suddenly a ton of memories of mom´s homemade cooking jumped in my head. Lasagna, Spaghetti, cinnamon rolls, cookies.... pizza! I went nuts.

We found some great people this week that are all ready for the water. One is Benjamin. He is some guy that was walking down his sidewalk and found the book of mormon in the gutter, missing the front pages and cover. It was opened to the picture of Christ visiting the Americas and caught his interest. In two days he finished second Nephi and saw us walking down the street. He called us over and we started teaching him. Now he is finishing Alma. He would be baptized this Saturday, but he has two problems... he isnt married and he smokes. So we are working on that.

Well, Im heading out. I hope you write me back soon! I dont wanna freak out again next week.

Love you,

Elder Johnson