June 26, 2017 Talent show and getting kicked out

We'll I'm currently in a barbershop watching some Uruguayan chop my
companions hair off and don't have much time. We also did a 10 Km hike
that took 4 hours, And I didn't write down the highlights so I forgot
everything that's happened except for a couple things so let's get it!

We've had a heat wave here do we've been dying lately.
Temperature-wise hasn't been terrible according to the thermometer.
But we're affected by the Sahara so when the sand comes, it traps
everything. It's been miserable, idk how to explain it. Wow.

Monday night Juan cut my hair, did a good job so I'm a happy camper.
Nothing better than a free haircut! That's a lie, because Elder priest
cut my hair once and that was a different story...

Tuesday we ate dinner with Juan and we were wrapping up when the owner
of his apartment came in and starting yelling at us and told us we
weren't welcome there and not to come back. Juan was super embarrassed
and apologized after he left, then the guy came up and tried speaking
to me in English and yelled at us again. It was real uncomfortable and
I just felt bad for the guy. Like we have something that could change
your life but he kicked us out... But Juan got a new place and it's
way better!

Monday night I felt we should walk instead of take the tranvía (trax)
so we did, and within 5 minutes I had this lady from Guatemala stopped
and a solid conversation going. My comp is from Salvador so their
neighbors and we were having a good time! Got her number and met with
her on Friday! It was SO solid! God's been preparing her for a long
long time and I just had this unexplainable feeling while teaching
her. I know she's getting baptized. I won't be here for it but she's
getting in that water! She had golden questions and just ate it up!
Some members were cleaning the Chapel during the lesson and one just
randomly sat in with us and turned out to share a strong testimony
that really got through to Yareni. It was amazing!

Saturday was the talent show we threw together and it was hilarious!
We had things from the saxophone to a Michael Jackson impersonator, to
a seaworld show (us missionaries) and the members loved it! Elder
Campbell (senior missionary) and I did something that brought the
house down haha. I was behind a screen and put my arms through his
shirt and we did his morning routine, it was hilarious I need to find
pictures.

As a mission we started the BoM again this past week and are going to
finish it before the end of the transfer (4 weeks) so we've been
reading pike crazy and I'm LOVING IT. I actually finished it again
personally this past week so the timing was perfect. I wish I had time
to wrote about my feelings for that book, but it's true!

Love you all! Next week we have an excursion with an investigator
planned so I don't think I'll have much time to write, just a heads
up!



G Preaching,
Elder Gearig

June 19, 2017 "How to die for dummies" ft. Swaganana

Little activity with our recent converts. #bananabreadandpancakes

Hey hey hey! Hope the weeks been good because ours sure has! Every
week on the mish is a good week, regardless of the "success" we've
had. Always a pleasure to represent Jesus Christ!

We'll first I'll explain my subject line. This past Thursday we had a
3 hour long meeting with a matrimony couple in Madrid and all the
missionaries who are going home this transfer. I'm sure the meeting
was great for those missionaries in Madrid...but I'm 1000 kilometers
away and we did it over Skype basically with other missionaries from
different parts of the mission, and it didn't work for us. On the
bright side, I have a lot of screens shots of Elder Smith haha. But I
called it the "how to die for dummies" meeting where they taught us
how to adjust to home life and whatnot. I think that's what they
addressed at least, like I said, the connection didn't work haha.

Second part, where we went today: Taganana. Dubbed Swaganana. It's beautiful.

We got a couple new missionaries to our district here, so I was
calling them this past week to get to know them to figure out how I
can better serve them and whatnot. The new Hermana asked me how many
baptisms I've had on my mission. I told her that that didn't matter
and she already knew that but she was just curious, so we got talking
about my areas and it was super cool to look back on the past 22
months and see fruits. See people I found that got baptized after I
left, see people I taught that got baptized months later, see less
actives who are now active. It just recomfirmed to me that we never
really know the fruits of our labors. And those fruits aren't the only
thing that defines us as people either. As long as we ourselves are
turning into who God needs us to be, we're being successful in life.

Yesterday we shared a video in a FHE called "my Kingdom is not of this
world" which is about 5 minutes about Christ and His ministry. The
only word I had to explain my feelings after was "amazement." It's
amazing what He did for us. There's no words in any language to
properly define what he really did for us. It's truly amazing the
amount of love he has for us to do what he did, to suffer what he
suffered, to ensure all that he endured, just so we have the
opportunity to become clean and become better people. Its the greatest
thing in the world to be able to testify of Him: that He lives.

Love you all!


Nana-Taga, Taganana,
Elder Gearig

June 12, 2017 By the numbers.

Hey everyone! Hope yall have had a good week! Things are doing swell
out here in paradise and I can't complain! We've had a good week and
I'll see if I can't remember some highlights for Ya! Let's get it by
the numbers.

4. BoMs given away. Tuesday and Wednesday I was on a different island
with my boy Elder Brock for exchanges! We had a blast! He's become one
of my best friends out here so it was awesome to get to destroy his
area with the gospel. We gave away some BoMs and took some cool
selfies with them which I'll attach. Played basketball against like 20
Filipinos and I felt like yao ming. It was a lot of fun! We talked to
3 17 year old girls for like 30 minutes about how we can Come to know
God and how He has blessed us, and it was cool being in the middle of
Babylon but teaching the gospel to these girls who could probably use
it. It was a really cool experience! We had a blast!

24: final count of mosquito bites after waking up Wednesday morning.

6: amount of times Raúl threw up WHILE DRIVING us to his little farm.
It was quite scary but looking back on it, still being alive, it's
pretty funny. Poor guy. Bless his heart.

1: number of corvettes I've seen on my mission and it was this past
week. The guy saw me taking a picture and stopped in the middle of the
road just so I could take a picture of his car haha.

1: transfer left. I'm super grateful for this opportunity to represent
Jesus Christ and am excited to give these last 6 weeks everything I
have and leave it all out on the field. There's no calling more
important than this one I currently have and these people of Santa
Cruz deserve the best.

17: number of weeks I've been trying to get in contact with this
recent concert less active and we finally got a lesson set up! It was
awesome! Her names Paula and she was confirmed,ed last June and never
came back. But she said it's a sign from God that we were sitting in
front of her and that she needs to put her priorities straight. She
failed on coming to church but she invited us back so we'll take what
we can get for now! Her husband did come to church for the first time
in awhile though!

Juan blessed he sacrament yesterday for the first time and I had a
front row view! It was super cool. He's made a ton of progress and
it's the best being able to see people progress in the gospel and make
changes!

Sorry for all the pictures I have to send, a lot has happened!

Do work,
Elder Gearig

June 5, 2017 Rainforests and 12000 feeeeet

Hey everyone! Got no time today, we went up to the highest point of
Spain today and just got back so I gotta make this quick!

We had a good week here in Santa Cruz and I'll share a couple highlights!

Juan didn't have to work Tuesday so he asked if he could work with us
for a little bit. He was with us all day! 11-10! Haha he loved it and
wants to serve a mission now! We had some cool experiences with him!
We were walking down the street and my head snapped to the left
randomly and I got a glimpse of a BYU hat. I chased the guy down and
he was here with the US Navy on tour and is from salt lake city! Haha
he hadn't talked to his family in awhile so I invited him to the
capilla to use our WiFi. He's been less active for awhile now and so
it was a good opportunity to let him know God is looking out for him.
It was such a cool experience and he has some crazy stories!

We started teaching juans mother as well! We taught her twice last
week and she CA,E to church again for all three hours and loved it!
She's super prepared and has been to a lot of different churches so
she understood the apostasy pretty easily haha. Juan and her started
watching the Joseph Smith movie together so hopefully that helps! She
had a really good spiritual experience yesterday at church do were
excited to do some follow up!

Also our friend David came again! He's 16 and colombian and such a
good kid! After young men's he looked at me and said "I just received
my first testimony" with tears in his eyes so I pulled him into a room
and we talked for a sec. God's giving him many opportunities to change
his friends lives and the lesson was on priesthood and how we can use
it to bless others and it hit home with him! We're gonna see if we can
get him a date here soon!

That's all I have time for today! Love you all! I have such a strong
testimony about fasting, if we do it with faith God will answer us!
Have a good week!


Coming up, coming down.
Elder Gearig

May 29, 2017 Palm Trees and Penguins

Doing language study Inn he shade 😎

Happy memorial day!
I'm also the worst and forgot to say happy birthday to Elder Osaka
Kendell and Bella housel #theworst.

Not a whole ton has happened this week but I feel like I say that
every week haha.

Last Monday after pday we had a lesson with this crazy Cuban who read
30 chapters of the old testament and picked. God. Apart. Like every
little detail she picked apart. She drew on a white board of how God
is an ego maniac and power hungry and all these things. It was quite
sad to see someone look at things from such a negative point of view.
But it helped me see how much patience I've grown on the mission
because 18 months ago I would have blown up on her, but I held it cool
and we ended up having a super good discussion about the plan of
salvation and whatnot, it was pretty insane though!😅

Yesterday was cool. Juan showed up to church and invited one of his
friends to come with him. I introduced myself to his friend and I knew
her! And she knew me! She was like "yeah you stopped me in the street
a couple months ago!" Although we had a good conversation, she didn't
give us her reference so we didn't have contact. But in this small
world of ours, she happens to be a friend of our recent convert who
invited her and she came and liked it! It was cool to see a little
seed planted months ago grow into something a little bigger and she's
got potential so it should be good!

Juan is doing great with his new calling! He's had presidency meetings
and is taking it into stride! He's inviting his friends to hear the
gospel and it reminds me of Lehi after taking the fruit and desiring
his family to partake of it as well! It's super fun seeing him grow
and he asked us last night if he could work with us tomorrow since he
has work off and go contacting with us and stuff! Haha this guy is
truly one of those "elect" people you hear about...

Well I hope everyone is healthy and doing well! Life is good out here
and we're wrapping things up on the transfer! Have a fab week!




Do work,
Elder Gearig