WEEK #14 CEIBA IS NIFTY

Greetings everybody. Its suuuper weird to think that its snowing in utah and that its almost thanksgiving! ha nothing feels different here..in fact its getting hotter. I'm in a strange world. Sometimes we'll be walking and we'll see a 30 foot christmas tree its mega random. haha Christmas is pretty big here. It's different though cuz they just party and eat tamales all month and set off firecrackers. Crazy catrachos...hahha. Sounds like Ty's wedding was pretty sweeet! That's so awesome that he is able to be sealed now. The Atonement is so great! Probably a pretty cool experience. I wish I could go to the Temple soooo bad. I feel like I have forgotten everything I learned and it really would give me a boost right now. 

Me and Elder Measles are working hard and we're seeing God's hand in the work. This area has been super dead for a long time and it's starting to get going again. We are finding a lot of new people to teach and they are all super accepting. We've got 4 people set for baptism in December! I am excited to do a baptism and experience that. There are a lot of people ready here to change their lives! Our area is seriously sooooo siiiiiiick! We went from being in like the most rich and safe part of honduras to super poor and a bit sketchy....We have like everything in our area though. And it is exploding right now! We had 6 people at church and the members are starting to work harder. We have 4 people ready for baptism in december too! A 15-year-old, a dude named Ange (reference from the other two missionaries taken out, and al y elia (also references from the other two)! I am excited to baptize and to experience that. I feel like I don't really know any of these investigators though ha. I just sit there and talk when it's my turn and ya. The work is progressing a ton though and that's all that matters. Jorge is still doing alright. We don't really know what to do with him though. And Karla is still just super unsure. She knows she has to but can't committ herself right now. She thinks it would be better to start off next year with the baptism but she is ready right now!!! ha. 

[Experience from Elder Measles] Last night we went into the hospital to give an investigator a blessing. We walked in and it was so disgusting it just looked like a jail. Bars on the windows, paint peeling from the walls, no lighting, and just really dirty. We walked into the back to where Jeny was and it was the saddest little room. She is like a big tough police lady and the only thing in her room was a nasty matress with a sheet falling off of it it was sad. Tiny bathroom. No medicine cuz the government won't give the hospitals money and it was just disgusting. Through all this disgust we were actually able to have a really spiritual experience in there last night. Really cool experience actually. 

As for spanish it's getting better but I still struggle big time. I can't wait for the day when I can understand these people here and just say what I wanna say haha. But it will come! The gift of tongues is real because I've seen it here on my mission already. I have never been a good learner but God is helping me A LOT. I am grateful for all of you and for all your love and support. Your prayers make a great difference in this work!! 

Things are going good though. I love you all so much. I show lots of people here our family pic and they all just freak out and say we are a perfect family haha:) All the little honderenos think you are super pretty too mom!! and ali and larissa. And I guess dad too. and....Tanner sure. heh heh:) I'm glad things are going great at home! Sounds like you are all busy and having fun! I saw the pic of my package. That's soooo awesome! I'm stoked out of my mind! Our zl's are strugglin with bringing the Ruta out here but it should come soon I hope. I am gonna be sending home a christmas package too so maybe that and my old package will come at the same time haha. Oh ya also I am eating soooo much food out here. It's unhealthy. I am always hungry!!! The people here think it's so funny and bring me out so much food. Imma get fat!! I love rice and beans and fried or boilded guineos and platanos! And I love oatmeal! I eat it everymorning with water and white sugar hahah. It's my favorite. And then I go to a pulperia and buy me a chocoleyde:) and semitas. It's just bread with this super good coat of sugar. Dad probably knows. Also dad I ate and drank my first coconut the other day! It was different than I thought but I like it:) Well I've written way more than I thought...lol...but I love you all soo much! Thanks for being the greatest family ever. I wouldn't be here without you guys. I pray for you everyday! Have a great week!:)

Elder Beeston

ps. I hope you all have a great thanksgiving!! I'll just keep eating rice and beans!

p.p.s. thats sweet that ellen was able to talk to that missionaries mom (was it his mom) last week about the inactive convert named Dino we found! I was gonna tell you too mom but I forgot haha. 

Pics from last week's p-day...

WEEK #13 PRESS FORWARD

Hey everyone we don't have much time to write today because we were at an activity yesterday and didn't get home in time to write. So we only got a little bit of time to write today. We went to one of the prettiest places in the mission all day and played soccer and stuff!! It is called Trujillo and it's like 4 hours away. We left at 4 in the morning and got back at night. It was super super sick tho. It's the most beautiful beach in Honduras besides roatan and we went and chilled there all day. I got a huge burger and french fries!!! hahahaha but I like tejadas better:) I got so burnt haha but it was awesome. I'm gonna send all those pics next week so don't worry there's a bunchy. I aint got no time today. 

Austin's First Year Celebration

This week was tough but we found a lot of new people to teach in our new area! We're working mega hard and are being led to a lot of new people! Especially in that new area Barrio Igles. [We found 11 new investigators and had two days straight where we taught 7 lessons each day. It was awesome. Really getting this area going.] Also we have a couple people on date for baptism this next month. I am excited for them and hope it goes through!! 

This week has really been a roller coaster though. I have never been so mentally and emotionally exhausted in my life! ha but it's not supposed to be easy. Everyone has weaknesses and the only thing you can do is admit you have them and rely on the Lord and our Heavenly Father for strength. Christ has already paid the price for every single one of us and all we have to do is literally so simple. Just come unto him. As a missionary you literally have to lose yourself and that's somethin I'm really trying to work on. Also humility and charity...and PATIENCE. ha Knowing what Christ has done for me...serving a mission and giving everything I have is nothing. It's the least I can do. So you gotta just keep pressing forward and trying to be better each day. I love singing the song I Stand All Amazed. It gets me through the day! Love you all and really appreciate your prayers and support. well....cya

Elder Beeston

P.S. Dad make sure to work on your spanish!! Read the spanish B of M every day cuz how cool would it be if me you and doofy Tanner could talk to eachother and make a trip to Guatemala, Honduras and Riverside!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know you're up for that. Also any day I have am having a rough time I wear your Guatemala tie and it gives me power!  

WEEK #12 THE ROLLER COASTER

Heyyyyyy everybody. This week was alright. Its been a roller coaster! haha. One second everything can be so great and you feel on top of the world, and the next you feel like you just got ran over by a herd of horses. That has literally been this week. So many ups and downs ha. One up is that we went out to the new part of our area and the sunset was suuuuuper pretty and out super far out into the sea there were tornadoes! I guess these tornadoes come like once a year I have no clue why and they LITERALLY suck up fish and there is a city named lloro where it rains fish every year. I know. I didn't believe it but it's true look it up! haha so awesome. Another really cool experience I had this week was the other night I was just having a super hard time and just wasn't feeling it and I went to bed really upset. I woke up in the morning on sunday and got down on my knees and prayed. I prayed as hard as I could for strength and help and that morning was one of the best mornings ever!! The Spirit was so strong and everything just went from being so bad and frustrating to soooo good! Sometimes it's hard to get on your knees and pray when satan is throwing everything at you and you feel worthless. But if you can just find the strength to pray to our Heavenly Father and tell him how your feeling and ask for forgiveness and pray for strength, I promise you will feel so much better. I have a strong testimony of prayer because of many times where I wanted to just give up and felt so low, but through prayer was able to feel like a new person. 

We are still working with Karla towards baptism, but she is having a tough time. We are working with her though. Pray for her! Also our other progressing investigator Jorge (crazy dude) is starting to be a bit flaky. We're gonna work with him a lot this week to try to help set a date for baptism. He is trying to get his book big here in Honduras and is just really stressed out. But we found a guy this week named Dino who fell away from the church a long time ago after being taught by two missionaries. We wrote the missionaries on facebook and told them we found Dino again! And he's coming back to church!! He knows it's true he was just a little lost. Cool experience though cuz we just walked past him and said buenas, and kept going. Then we felt like we should go back and so we did and he told us he knew God put us there. He knew we were gonna come back. He is a little embarrassed coming back to church but he said it was a great experience
coming back.

Well, that's all I got for this week. Spanish is tough and I really struggle with it but it's getting better. Just a little bit each day. Elder Measles is doing great. He is a great leader and is super smart in this Gospel and I learn a lot from him. Also something else super crazy...the other two elders in our area got taken out and so now Measles and I have to cover that area along with our area which just got expanded for a whole month. We walk like 20 miles everyday. I love it:) Well have a great week!

Elder Beeston

p.s. Dad I was at lunch the other day and saw on tv......Utah vs. Oregon on Espn. I freaked out hahah. It showed travis wilson it was nuts. I had to look away though and try not to think about it haha.

WEEK #11 MEGA WEEK

Well this week was siiiiiiiiiiick:) It was probably the coolest week so far. We started off the week in a trio with another white kid haha. His name is Elder Criddle from brighton. It was so crazy cuz president never puts gringos together (except for me and Elder Measles ha), and then were in a trio with 3! So awesome. He is our DL and is a great teacher so we just felt unstopable together. Literally everyone in the street stopped to look at us cuz it was just so random. Just 3 white dudes in white shirts and ties walking around. Probably was pretty dangerous ha. We only had two beds in the house two so we had to Super Bed. 3 nights in a row. And we only had two chairs in the house so one of us had to sit on a bucket to study. Mostly me cuz I love buckets.

So on Thursday it was just me and Elder Meas again. We were able to find a new family this week who is soooo catholic but they are awesome. Give it some time and there is no way they are not getting baptized. They made us some baleadas the other night that were the best ones ive had my whole mission so far and we eat them everyday pretty much. Another one of our investigators who we thought would be getting baptized this week told us she is having trouble with the law of chastity and that really punched us in the face. Were gonna keep working with her though she is so ready. So another guy we are teaching named Jorge...well I don't even know what to say about him. I found out that I literally know nothing about doctrine after teaching him. He probably is the most interesting man in the world and I have not met a smarter person on planet earth. He knows everything about the

doctrine. Everything. He knows how to just stump you and then he just smiles. He wants to be able to know the truth but he thinks he can only get it from our "wisdom." We bear testimony to him everytime and tell him we are not perfect and are only instruments in God's hands. We testify boldy of pure truth and he says he feels it. He tells us he only keeps us around cuz he feels something good about us. Well Jorge...Get Baptized!!! We tell him the only way to know is to ask God because we cant convince him. He can only know if he will read and get on his knees and ask God. That is the only way anyone can receive a real answer. Go to your Heavenly Father FIRST. 

On Saturday we were able to travel back to Elder Measles old area (where he thought he would be training me) in Progresso! Its about 4 hours from Ceiba.

We got there in 2 1/2. In a bus. Crazy hondurenos. lol. So president came out with a rule that missionaries are not aloud ever to go back to their old areas but made an exception for us because the family only wanted Elder Measles to do it. Or they werent gonna do the baptism haha. So we woke up at 3:30 in the morning and got on a bus at 4:30 to progresso! It is an aweosome place. We were able to go around and visit the people Elder Meas used to teach and had grown to love. Every one there loves him! haha it was so funny to see their reactions when they saw him. We went into Centro, which is crazy, and walked all around seeing his old area. super mega sweeeeeet:) The baptism was great. It was quick too. And after the baptism we were back on a bus to Ceiba. I slept the whole way home and all I remember is some little old lady at the bus stop for probably 20 min staight saying...quiere leechas??? leechas leechas quiere leeeeeechas??? (lichas are fruits here and they are wayyy good). I totally would have bought some from her too if we weren't fasting ha. I could not get her voice out of my head though I'm gonna have nightmares about it. 

Well so ya that was our week. It was quite the adventure. It's been raining errrrrrrr single day and we just give up and walk through the flooded streets cuz we aint babies. Its awful after though and we realize we should have just tried to stay dry..heh. Some rain boots would be a good investment. Well I hope you all have a great week and know that I am doing fine out here. Also Elder Measles and I found out we are staying together for another change at least! mega stoked. Also just got a new part added to our area, and we now have the beach! I´ll send some pics next week. We forgot the cameras today heh! Hasta proxima semana! 

con amor,

Elder Beeston

p.s. oh ya also...I SAW THE BIGGEST SPIDER I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY ENTIRE LIFE IN MY HOUSE. Almost had a heart attack. I about started crying no joke. Scariest looking spider I have ever seen. Measles took care of it though. Ahhhhhh.

p.p.s. (Joe asked Derik how he liked platanos and little yellow bananas) I love platanos!!! Ahhhh I want some right now. But ya they were weird at first. And the little guys are awesome! I have either boiled guineos, fried platanos, or fried tehadas which are also bananas...every single meal. And rice and beans. You were absolutely right, dad. I love it though. Sometimes. But there is always someone outside saying GUINEOS GUINEOS!! Haha it's so funny. But the best one are the sweet fried platanos. And ya we might be heading to buy some rain boots today! And we're gonna head over to our new area. Super dangerous. We're not allowed there at night. But it's good during the day. It's called Barrio Ingles right by the beach.

"SOMETIMES WE GO TO MEETINGS"

-Elder Measles