Service with a Smile

Santiago is Beautiful

I am healthy

I am alive

I am in an Area VERY rich and VERY VERY poor. Its crazy the differences in houses and people even in the same neighborhood. 

My Companion is the best. 

Santiago is the most beautiful of the 4 providences I've been in... I LOVE IT!

Love you bye

Élder Hampton | Misión Argentina Salta

Soft Hearts, Smiles and Searching for Truth

1) So this last week, Elder Raffagnini and I talked to a family that hasn't seen the missionaries in over a year. Elder Blake (one of the current Assistants to Presudente Chaparro) served in this area over a year ago and sent us a message to go visit a family in a neighbor hood very far away from our apartment.....an area unexplored. We left early in the morning to set off our exploration. We walked around the area for 2 hours looking for this family. Talked with any person in the streets asking them if they knew where the family lived. Two teenagers were hoping on to a horse and we asked them what they were going to go do. They responded "We are going to catch more horses"... Keep up the good work guys! Goodness..... We finally found the family, the Mom, Hydee didn't recognize us at first, and them one of the kids came RUNNING to the fence to shake our hands. Huge smile on his face. Hydee said to us that she had been wondering when we were going to pass by again. We didn't have time to meet with them for much time so we set another time to pass by and share a few scriptures with them. The following day we arrived at their house, sat out side on cinder-blocks and invited them to be baptized. They all accepted. The daughters had been preparing in the past but Elder Blake said they "blew it" with one of their lessons. After the lesson, Elder Blake said they didn't want to hear them again... The missionaries never went back... Goes to show that a good example and a smile lasts longer than one bad experience. Please Keep them (the Orellana Family) in your prayers that they progress and prepare for their baptism the 27th of June.

2) The Flores Family... Omar the dad has 4 daughters 11 years and younger and 1 Son 4 years old with Leukemia. He and his wife are really struggling as they take turns sleeping in the hospital and taking care of their kids. Rocío their oldest is the typical older sister who takes control of the situation when her parents break down... We were singing a himno with them yesterday night and I couldn't help but to just stare at them as we sang. You could just see the love they had for one another and the family support they have for each other. Their extended family doesn't recognize them as family members so they are literally on their own. I think the son will die... please keep them in your prayers as well.

3) Alcidis. A 23 year old police sergeant is looking for the truth in his life. His girl friend just got baptized in another ward. We invited him to be baptized. He accepted - The 27th as well. He asked us "How can I receive an answer from the spirit if I don't have the gift of the Holy ghost?" He really pays attention and is LOOKING for what we have to give him.

I love you Trevor and Dad.

Have a great birthday month.

The Hill of 7 Colors

We woke up this morning at 5am to take a bus to "Purmamarca" and see the Cerro de Siete Colores" Hill of 7 colors. It was awesome. We explored a cemetery and hiked around for an hour, then missed our bus back home so hiked around for another 3 hours and bought ice cream from an old purmamarcanian lady.

My new companion - Elder Raffagnini (raw-faw-ni-ni) is awesome. He is from Rosario, Santa Fe Argentina. He is really funny and very patient. We work very well together. He was in the MTC for only 2 weeks and now in the field. He's killing it.

We didn't have plans one night, so we said a prayer asking god to show us who needed to be taught a message. We said amen, walked about 100 feet, passed a guy, turned around to go back to the guy, he let us in and we taught his whole family. Dude, prayer is crazy how fast God answers our questions and our cries for help. He loves us so much and is so quick to forgive, and to bless. Don't ever forget it.

I know and understand that this life has been given to us with a grand responsibility to help others. God has trusted us with the scared responsibility to help everyone as we are all on our way back to a celestial home.

Look for opportunities to serve this week.

I love you!

Élder Hampton | Misión Argentina Salta

Cordoba Temple Dedication

We taught a Family Home Evening in the home of a single mom this last week, they have a mean goat, and when we were walking back to her house the goat rammed her little daughter. I was so surprised! I like ran over to the little girl and she was fine and I grabbed the goat by the horns so the rest of the family could pass by... I felt like I was at Zenda all over again.

 I will be receiving a new missionary this week! I will be training him for 12 weeks just like Elder Vera trained me in Tucuman. I don't know who he is or where he is from, but next week I'll send some pictures and info about him. I hope he's a Mexican. I would love someone from up north, but already speaks Spanish... we'll see what the Lord has planned for me. Keep me and him in your prayers please. I wanted to kill my trainer my first week... I want my trainee to have a little different experience than I did my first transfer.

High: The Dedication of the Temple in Cordoba! Went to 2 sessions of the transmission in the Stake Center in Jujuy! Listening to President Uchdoft speak without a talk and speak by the spirit was a very powerful experience. And Elder D. Todd Christoferson (who served his mission in our mission) speaking fluent Spanish was surreal. I loved it!

High #2 - The baptism of Soledad!

Low: Elder Brazell has been transferred to Salta (jealous and will miss him) but High #3 I will be training a new Elder! Super Excited!

Élder Hampton | Misión Argentina Salta

I Love It Here!

So much, that Devin requested to have his Mission extended an additional 6 weeks and his request was granted! Not much of a surprise to those of us who feel the passion and focus he has for serving The Lord and the people of Argentina.

Crossing the River 

Household Pets

Papayas

Nap Time

My Pantry

He Loves Us!

I love to hear your success as a family in the scriptures. I HAVE FOUND AND CONTINUE TO FIND so much comport from the scriptures. Being a missionary is hard, and if you want to be a successful one it's even harder. Like the garden, we are naturally prown to a weed ridden world. By our very human nature we are subject to the worst this world has to offer and sometimes feel like we ourselves are the worst the world has to offer. We have a conference with Elder Viñas this upcoming Friday and the topic of the conference is "how has the atonement of Jesus Christ influenced your success as a missionary". It brings me back to an interview I had with President Johnson, from Huntington Beach. It was in that interview that i realized I was already a missionary - if I chose to be - and that is was thanks to the Atonement that made it possible. 

I can't wrap my head around how loving God really is to have given us his only son in the flesh as a "way out." The Atonement is the key to a successful life, family, and for me, MISSION. I am district leader right now, 4 elders and 4 hermanas. I asked one of the Hermanas from Paraguay during a "verification" (that's whats its called in Spanish but the translation is different... I don't know what its called- I call them every day in the night To see how their day went and the check up on progress of investigators), if she had ever had a powerful experience with the atonement. She got really quite and said yes. I didn't ask her to explain but I asked her to remember and to never forget. We so quickly turn into robots and loose sight of where we are going, but (at certain times) even forget were we've been. I told her that the experiences in our lives open our eyes, and that we need to stay Humans... not robots... and help others experience the same things we once experienced when we were in their shoes. I am humbled as i look back in my own life and reflect upon the steps Christ helped me take. I remember the 2 hardest conversations I had to have with You and Dad were 1) I have to wait to be a missionary, and 2) - In Big Bear (Trevor was playing Velociraptor in the window) were I had to tell you guys again that I had to wait... I feel like an Evangelist, sometimes and just want to shout HALLELUJAH! MY LORD JESUS THE SON OF BLESSED MARY HAS SAVED MY DAMNED SOUL! I HAVE BEEN BORN AGAIN! PRAISE THE LORD JESUS!.. but in all seriousness the Atonement has THIS effect in our lives. As Alma tells his Son, in his 36th chapter, "And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!  Yea, I say unto you, my son, that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my joy."

I love you, and just though I'd express a small portion of my testimony. 

I look forward to talking on Sunday. 20:00hrs My time, CALIFORNIA 16:00hrs.

I love you very very very much,

Élder Hampton | Misión Argentina Salta