A Palm Tree

Savannah,

You are the lucky one who gets my email this week. I don't have a full hour to write on the computer so I am emailing you!

I loved your question..."Tell me about someone you are teaching".

I want to share a little about Leo Arjona.

2 weeks ago Elder Brazell and I were walking back from a lesson that fell through and felt really disappointed that the family didn't want to listen to us...

We were walking in the street and a palm tree caught my eye (there aren't many in Argentina so it was out of ordinary to see it.) I felt that God planted the palm tree years before knowing that ME OF ALL PEOPLE would notice the palm tree and take it as a sign from God to talk with the family inside (I know... it's a stretch of a miracle but stay with me). Rang the door bell... no one home... next house.... no one.... determined...last house.... no one....waited. waited. waited. LEO ARJONA answers the door. He tells us to come back later. We come back. He lets us in and he just opens up right away.

"I have been really far from God and I feel like I need to come back. What do you two suggest?"

"I didn't have a good experience in my last church so I left, but I know that church is very important. So I felt like I should open the door to you."

Leo has a baby (his name is Nacho or Ignacio) and his girl friend Lourdes. He is golden!

A PALM TREE.... REALLY?!?!?!??!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!??!?!? Years and Years aand YEARS of working with palm tress and God uses one to help us be guided to Leo...

Sitting in the General Conference I felt very very impressed that we needed to share eternal maraige with him (this was in our 2nd lesson!) I could just see in his eyes and you could just see that the spirit was working with him. Some times when the spirit is so strong some investigators get scared and actually go in the opposite direction. We have another lesson with him tomorrow at 4:00pm Arg time keep him in your prayers and Elder Brazell too..

I love you so much Savannah!

I wrote you a note today.

It should get to the house before Halloween.

I love you all... pass the message along to the rest of the family.

Élder Hampton | Misión Argentina Salta

Fallen in Love

I am so great. I have fallen in love with Jujuy. I am in heaven here. My feet are lined with blisters and mud is all over my shoes and pants but I am actually learning how to work with the members. It is a talent and skill that I still have no idea how to use or obtain but the Lord is literally leading me and Elder Brazell by the hands and showing us how He wants us to help strengthen the Ward... please keep us in your prayers and pray specifically "That we may be able to find new families to teach who are prepared for the gospel through the members".

Ask dad to translate my conference experience so you can see how my weekend was.

Love you!

Jujuy Providence

Boom, I've been moved! Left this morning at 8:15, got here at 10:30...

I am so excited to be in an àrea again. The apartment is 1/3 the size of that where i was living in Salta, but I the bathroom is very clean. it feels like Grandma and Grandpa Gibbs house a little bit. I don't know why...

Keep our ward members in your prayers please. We are going to explode this area but we need a net to catch them all... especially our bishop. New as of 5 weeks. Maybe a prayer so that Elder Brazzell and I can find ways to serve him and his family.

Elder Brazzell is from Logan, Ut. I received him 2 transfers ago as a newbie. He's a stud. I really am stoked to be with him.

Being in the offices taught me a lot but i lost my patience i learned in Tucumàn and the humility i learned with Elder Vera. Keep me in your prayers from this too. I love you all. VERY VERY VERY MUCH!

Élder Hampton | Misión Argentina Salta

Socks & Tazers

Hello Parents!

I got both my birthday package and my socks package this week! It was awesome to feel like I was right at home reading your "I like --" from all the family. Thank you for making me feel at home :)

I also have to say the dog tazer works like a champ! We always have this HUGE dog at the house of one of our investgators and Elder Mann always gets suprised (I don't know how? It always tries to eat us through the fence...) Well, this last night we went by to test out the device.

We walked up, clapped our hands as usual, and Fausto the member who was teaching with us leaned against the fence. Not a good idea... The dog came bolting our of its house and I nonchalantly took out the tazer and just in time pushed the button and you would have thought the dog got shot. It hit a wall. Litterally stoped dead in it's tracks and bolted in the opposite direction. Fausto was so intregued by the device. He didn't understand how it worked and was so suprised. We then spent the rest of the night teaching and scaring sleeping dogs in the street. Thank you very much!

I will try to take a video and send it next week.

Also my socks are the best gift I have gotten since being on a mission. I really love them thank you.

Have a great week Mom and Dad.

Élder Hampton|Secretario

We receive references every day as a mission from all the missionaries passing them to me so I can pass them to the right mission or the right area.

This was a reference I got this last week.

Love casting out bad spirits!

Savannah

Savannah,

You make me so proud. I love reading your stories and hear of your experiences. I makes me happy to hear that you are so aware of the needs of others. You, I and every single one of us remember what it was like to be a 6th grader. It wasn't that much fun and if a 6th grader doesn't have many friends it makes it even worse. Savannah, the Lord is always trusting US as members of the church to help and watch over his children. You being a example to your new friend and being and being so nice to her is like saying to Heavenly Father "It's alright, I got this one, you don't need to worry about her. I'll take care of her! Don't You Worry, Heavenly Father. You can count on me to be her companion!" Savannah, people like her are nothing less than a child of God who has the potential to become a Heavenly Mother someday. Did you know that, Savannah? That exaltation means becoming like our Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother, even Heavenly Fathers and Heavenly Mothers like them? When I have a hard time teaching people (because I don't want to listen to them or they don't want to listen to me) I try to think of them as if they accepted the gospel, were faithful all throughout their life, and had made it to become like their Heavenly Father. It changes our patience level with people. It makes us stop and think just a little bit longer about WHO we are talking to.

I love to hear that you are helping her. That makes me so proud of you.

Maybe you should think about inviting her to one of the next Young Women activities... Can you imagine if she met all of the awesome young women and then felt like she really had a group that loved her and where she was welcome? Don't be afraid to invite her. If you don't know what to say, ask the missionaries to help you. The next time the missionaries are over, ask them if they can help you practice inviting her to an activity... It might help.

Savannah, I love you very much. I am so excited for your birthday in 2 days and hope that your enjoy not having your birthday on a Sunday! ;)

Happy Birthday Savannah!

Love you very much!

Élder Hampton|Secretario

A Big Bear

This week was tough... Elder Purser is leaving the offices to be a Zone Leader in San Pedro de Jujuy. He'll probably end his mission there.

Elder Mann from Murray Utah is the new financial secretary of the mission. He has 4 months in the mission. He's awesome. I'm really excited to work with him in the offices and teach alongside him in the área. He's 18 years old... I'm about to turn 21... Oh I remember the days of juventud and the mentality of a young one... Older and Wiser now I am excited to be taught by him.

I have fallen in love with our backyard. It has a huge grape vine. I moved a table outside and 6 chairs under the grape vine and we eat grapes and spit the seeds as we plan every night in the house.

I about had to hold Elder Purser down in a lesson yesterday. On a scale of 1 - 10 Elder Purser don't have much patience... and I don't blame him... We were teaching a guy named Mauro. Golden! He uses his head when we're teaching him, Listens and Responds to the questions we ask him, but one problem... He loves his Catholic Church... He loves it so much... We were teaching him about Joseph Smith and he just laid it all out for us.

"I am really glad you guys came over and shared this message with me. I know the Book of Mormon is true, but I'm never ever going to change my religion."

Receiving this question from Heaven, I asked him: "If God himself came down from the Heavens and said 'Mauro you need to change religions and change your life' Would you do it?"

He responded (this is not a lie) "...um.....well...no... I really love my church. No, I wouldn't change."

Oh goodness...

Elder Purser's eyes about shot out of his head. Elder Purser is like a big bear. Elder Purser then asked him in a very tense and elevated tone "You think you are bigger then God?!" Well in English he said "You think you are you better than God!" Geez... I couldn't really believe Mauro's answer... I don't get how BLIND people can be at times to the things of God.... Ugh...... my patience is really tried when people don't open their eyes. It's so hard to see people being lead by the hand of Satan... It breaks my heart and makes Elder Purser want to punch Satan in the face when the sons and daughters of God are so easily mislead....

Goodness Gracious...

Well. That's about all to report this week.

Traslados are this weekend. 13 leave and 12 are headed in. I love the nuevitos... I love love love it.

Elder Purser se va, voy extrañar ese oso.

Siguen adelante con su fe puesta firmemente en el futuro y no en el pasado.

Watch this video. It's a good one:
Look Not behind Thee

Love you all very much,

Élder Hampton|Secretario

Watermelons

Thank you for taking the time to take that video and send it to me. I loved it. Felt like I was sitting right next to Harley and Bowen.

Thank you for making me feel loved and apart of the family this Christmas. I loved hearing from the girls their "gifts" that they gave to other people this year.

I wanted to be a part of the giving this year too... Elder Purser and I bought water melons (they are kind of expensive so most people don't buy them) and gave them to some families in our ward. I loved setting it down in front of their house and then clapping and running around the corner.

Service is the best. I love it.

Enjoy Utah and send my love to the Williams Family and all the Gibbs whom I miss very much.

Love you.

Elder Devin G. Hampton