I just love the ministry here!

I miss seeing my family regularly, no doubt about it, but man, I just love it down here!! It's so good to be getting back into the swing of things. 

We helped finish up the campaign as you all did worldwide this past month. The first week back we were host congregation, which was wonderful. Our new District Overseer and his wife are from El Salvador. They've been in the travelling work for years, but this is the first time they've served outside of El Salvador. We had a really good time with them. And I had some really good calls with the tract that week too. I did the return visits the very next day, and have started a new study which hopefully as of tomorrow I'll be able to start counting!

So, here are some pictures from the circuit assembly first, then some experiences.

That's our dear Jennifer (dark hair) making her dedication public

And up she comes!

Jennifer and her mam. It was an emotional moment. 

My girls - Laynori & Noelia. They're both publishers now, and Laynori (the little one) has her first part on the school tomorrow night, so we'll be stopping by for that!

Yasuara, Rut, Marbel, Jocelyn & Bicri - all lovely girls in our current congregation, Pancasan Masaya

And the boys - Yader, Yisak & Ismael and their friend!

Escarlet, Brenda & Javiera - three different congregations, but all really close and favorites of mine!

The Mercado family from our previous congregation

Montenegro Family, Pancasan Masaya congregation. They call me Barbie!

Adali, Priscila, Rosaneli & Cecilia - Pancasan

Real Monimbo & Magdalena kids! I think just the two little ones aren't publishers yet.

Charley helped out on the sound Sunday morning.

Jael & Reyner - our newest pioneers in the congregation

Maritza and her beautiful daughters

Our new sister Jennifer, with a progressive study, Rosa Elena

Paola & Claudia - after working hard on our cleaning assignment

Sunday dinner at our favorite hamburger joint!

Our District Overseer and his wife were interviewed on the program on Saturday. She started regular pioneering at 14, and at 16 she was appointed a special pioneer!!! Things were different back then! He started pioneering January 1978, 2 months later he was appointed a special pioneer! And then the following year, he was appointed as a circuit overseer!!! Back then there were only 6 circuits in all of El Salvador, and now there are two districts. They are a wonderful example of zeal and love.

Charley had an interesting conversation this week with three young kids, all around 9 or 10 years old. They asked him if we should pray to Mary, and was it really Adam & Eve's fault that they sinned if the Devil deceived them! Deep thinkers for such little kids!!

So, the next day I went back with Charley and only one of them was there, Bianel. She was very excited to see us, and couldn't stay on one page in the Listen To God brochure because she liked the pages further ahead about Adam & Eve. She seemed to already know a lot of the story. Then she said she doesn't have a bible, and with a big sigh and bowed head she said, I wish I could have a Bible of my own so that I could read it every day! She said if we happen to come across an extra Bible she'd like to have it.

And then we ended up talking about the meeting, and she was pretty excited about the thought of going! So we're going to talk to her mam Sunday morning to see if she'll let her come with us on Sunday! She was the funniest little thing, all grown up but in a tiny body!

I also had a really nice call with a girl called Sujey this week - took me a while to figure out her name!! I left her the tract we were using last month, and then asked her the question on the back, Why do we grow old and die? I went back the next day and we read the scriptures that answer the question, and a couple of others. I was about to ask her to explain to me what she'd learned when she said, "So, I have a doubt though from the other day. I don't have a Bible so I couldn't look up the answer, but tell me, why do we grow old and die?" Well, that was what we had just spent 5 minutes talking about!! So I said, well, the scriptures you couldn't look up are the ones we just read now. So, from what we just read in the Bible, why do we grow old and die? She proceeded to explain very well the answer, and then realized that she had answered her own question!!

Wednesday we did a paragraph from the Good News brochure that she chose, and tomorrow hopefully we'll do a couple more. She's a young girl, about 18 maybe, and seems very keen to know more.

Today we started the campaign for the District convention - from one campaign to the next! We should have started it sooner but with the circuit assembly and everything we just got it kicked off today. I'm having a hard time remembering to count my tracts and invitations!

We had a good group out today and got about three blocks done with the invitations. We left one at a place they were making sweets, and when I asked what something was, she asked if I wanted to try it. And she gave me a little bag full of sugared, dried papaya. YUM!!!! We took care of that as a service group in about five minutes!! I think I might have to make some return visits there!!

Today and yesterday we just went out in the morning bc we had errands to take care of in the afternoon. So, we decided we'd take the bus. We have a lot more options of which bus to take to Masaya now that we are in a different territory. We're near two major bus stops, so we can hop on quite a number of buses to get to the group. So, we started witnessing as soon as we walked out of the house, and all the way there, and then all morning, and then all the way home. Worked out really well - just going out until 12:30 got us almost 5 hours in (which we really need now that we spent the beginning of the service year away!) and we got some good exercise in too!

And although I'm not sure how much gas it costs us to drive to and from our territory, I'm pretty sure it's WAY cheaper to get the bus. Today we spent a whopping $1.44 to get both of us to and from our territory - and that's despite the fact that it's 10 miles from our bus stop, to our territory. It cost me $1.50 one way to travel 3.5 miles on the bus from my mam and dad's house to work while I was back in Indianapolis. More than we spent round trip for two of us! It's hard to resist taking the truck, since it's easier! But we're going to try and do the bus trips as often as we can.

Well, I'm going to try and get some studying done now. Charley went back to Masaya this afternoon (in the truck - not good idea to come home on the bus late at night). He's going through baptism questions with two of our young sisters, and then he has a meeting at 6pm. So I'm home alone, which I don't mind now and then. I was going to be productive and do laundry and wash dishes, but the water still hasn't come back on yet - so, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

Hasta luego friends.