{I wAS on FiRE!}

what up fam?!

Sounds like all is well in the henrie house. Well...this week we´ve got changes...what a fast change! We have had problems this week...and lots of sweet experiences as well. We found a great family last night at about 8. They kept asking the perfect questions! How can we know if a prophet really is called of god? Shouldn´t there be one ture church? Is there any more scripture inspired by God? haha wow! Nope sorry...couldn´t tell ya. We are hoping to see progression in them.

A family came yesterday to district conference! La familia soto góngora. Really cool family! Its a guy that crashed his car by the church about a month ago and we helped him out. They showed up late but i was sooooo excited to see them. I know it was because we fasted for them...i really feel the blessings of hard work now. And a couple other people showed up too...sweet sunday.

We also found this kid this week named Luis...he read the book of mormon, thought about it, and prayed, and he got his answer! He couldn`t come to church because he went on vacation with his mom but he is really animated! He´s a great kid and i think we´ll see progress there too.

Alberto is kinda progressing but not really....he didn´t come to church yesterday. We are having a family home evening with him tonight so we´ll see what happens.

Dad...good work losin weight! I´ll look forward to a gnarley six pack when i see you next time!

Mucho amor,

Elder henrie

¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡FELIZZZZZ CUMPLEAÑOS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mom! Happy birthday! I love you mom! I hope you have a killer birthday this year. It´s been so good having you and the family encouraging me so much here in the mission. I will be having a busy day on your birthday...we´re going into the city to have changes. Will be fun to see who my new comp is.

Seeing as how it´s your birthday...you need to know that i´ll be thinking about you and praying for you. The day we were born has to be the most important day of our lives (i think elder falabella said that so it´s doctrine haha). You have been such a good example to me. I have been able to use a ton of what you have taught me here in the mission! I don´t know what the missionaries do that don´t have that support. Thank you for everything...i LOVE you a ton!

con mucho amor,

Elder henrie

ps the camera is sweet i´ll take some sweet fotos soon. pps i scored four goals playing soccer last week on p day! I was on fire!!!

ha ha good manners

{I'M sweATIN HardCorE EverY DaY Here}

Hey fam!

That`s crazy that it`s so cold there. I`m sweatin hardcore every day here. It´s been an interesting week haha new years is kinda crazy here. Some sweet panama traditions...burning a ´muñeco´, its a big doll stuffed with newspaper...don`t know why but it´s really funny. And youre supposed to throw twelve cents over your shoulder at midnight to throw away whatever bad happened last year and start off good. And then of course...lots of fireworks and beer.

There was a really cool baptism in one of the areas in our zone yesterday morning and we got to go to it to sing. This kid, a returned missionary, baptized his father, José Aizpurua. It was honestly one of the greatest moments i`ve seen on my mission. After he was baptized he started crying and his son started crying in the water with him while they hugged each other. It had been such a long time that they were trying to get him baptized...he was the last in all his family to be baptized. Pretty much everyone there was crying. It was incredible!

This week we started teaching a 17 kid named alberto. He is a reference of our neighbors who are members and he`s really positive. Yesterday he came to church with a shirt and tie! It was cool...we´re going to put a baptismal date with him tonight at family home evening! Hope it all goes well.

ps my leg is fine...basically healed...i took some anti biotic pills and they took out that infection. good stuff.

sad story this week. One of the missionaries got sent home 3 weeks early because he just couldn´t control himself. After two years of serving...he went home three weeks early without honors. It was a pretty sad story. The mission is doing good though. Presidente Ward came to Alcalde Diaz yesterday to have a meeting with all of the leaders..and i think things are going to go well next change here. Elder Poli is probably out of here the 12 of january...haha happy birthday mom :)

this week has been a little tough but things are picking up here. We´re hoping that Alberto will progress and read the book of mormon.

J Dub i hope you´re feelin better bro. Sounds like it´s pretty rough. And i felt bad about mom´s food poisoning story...:( bummer.

i think i´m going to buy a new camera today because the old one is long gone by now.

i love you all the church is true. Had some sweet experiences this week...just need to work harder on recognizing god´s hand every day. Sometimes it´s tough when you´re tired haha. The book of mormon has helped me out a lot in the tough times in the mission. I always feel better when i read it. And i KNOW it´s true. I´m not sure if i was positive before the mission. But i´ve seen how much it changes the lives of people who really live what it teaches us.

I love you all A TON!

Con mucho amor,

Elder Henrie

{ChRisTMas WaS InCreDiBle!}

Familia!

Well...Christmas was incredible! Joshua got baptized! And his father, Tomàs, baptized him. We talked to Tomàs after and he was describing his feelings to us about it. He said that when he was in the water he felt like he was in heaven and bringing his son out of the water was the most incredible thing he`d ever felt! It was so special to see him. And his wife (that he is separated from) came to the baptism and then to church the next day for the confirmation. It was sweet! Oh...and yesterday at church, the people that we had planned to pick up all told us they couldn`t go...so we started inviting people on the street. We met a guy named Maximino on the street who said he had to go paint a house and then would go to church. We thought it was just a lie...but sure enough...after sacrament meeting he showed up!! It was a cool experience. And another guy that we hadn`t planned on picking up came with us. So it turned out to be a good sunday. Juan Carlos, a recent convert, showed up with a shirt and tie...looked super guapo. His wife couldn`t come because his baby had an `accident` on the way to church...haha oops.

I was thinking about the questions that you all asked on Christmas...and i think i realized that the hardest thing for me on the mission is worrying that i`m not doing everything right. But i talked to president about that and he talked to me about how there isn`t one missionary that will go home perfect. But i do want to go home with no regrets!

Well..sorry it`s short this week. I went to the doctor and they said it`s really serious. No just kidding i`m going later on today..hermana ward called this morning just to make sure i was going to go.

Love you all! Feliz año nuevo!!!

Con mucho amor,

Elder Henrie

ps it was AWESOME to see you all! [on SKYPE] And i STILL can`t BELIEVE that j dub and jess are gonna have a baby!!! That`s NUTS!!

Reply to Grammy:

Hola abuelita!

Hi grammy! I hope your christmas was great and that you are ready for a new year! I love christmas...but it always passes by to fast. Since february we`ve been saying...christmas is comin´. And now it passed! I love you and pray for your health.

Cuìdese!

Elder Henrie

{We'Ve FouND sOMe GooD FamiLiES}

Henries!

Soooo...christmas? This week has been kinda nuts...we had a missionary with some health problems that got sent back to Costa Rica. So his comp has been with us and we`ve been in and out of his area and ours. Yesterday two of the people in that were going to get baptized in our zone didn`t pass the interviews. Two young teenagers, boyfriend and girlfriend...they didn`t really show the desire to keep the law of chastity after their baptism. The young kid, jonathan, kept saying how hard it would be. and i kept thinking in my head...But it`s sooooo important!! Don`t you get it?! You cannot be happy without keeping this commandment! Sometimes it takes a lot of patience when you just want people to understand...

It`s been a good week though...we`ve found some good families...and i can`t wait for christmas! The Christmas party is going to be sweet! Oh and the mission gave us permission to use Skype for christmas to talk to you all haha gnarley! It will probably be in the morning when we use it...we just need to find out where we`re going to go to use it. That will be awesome though...

I feel bad for J Dub....that`s going to be really tough. If it makes you feel any better j dub...i think my leg is infected but it`s getting better. And i have a weird rash going on haha life in panama.

Well not much else to write...and i`ll be talking to you really soon haha

Love you all!!

Elder Henrie

Marsh!

Dude hymns are great during christmas! It makes it so much easier to get into homes. And we`ve had some cool experiences singing to people! Find people to serve this week!

Talk to you soon!

Love you bro!

Elder Henrie

Hey mom!

Well...thanks for all the bad news hahaha no just kidding. That`s tough about j dub...dealing with that problem.

I`m glad you told me about that though. Not gonna lie i`ve been thinking about [that] this month for some reason and i really feel like i need to refocus 100 percent on the Lord`s work. So it`s kind of a relief actually!

I know God put me here in Panama...and the time is going by fast.. I don`t have time to waste thinking about what`s going to happen after the mission. Christ has promised 100 times more than what we leave behind and i know that that is a true blessing.

I love you mom. really. The mission has changed how i look at my family!

Cuìdate!

Elder Henrie

{I'lL Do whaT I CaN tO Not LeT yoU DoWN!}

Ok family!

Hope all is well! This week was great. Kind of hard because it`s been raining a ton! Haha it`s supposed to be summer here but i think the weather is confused...Christmas is sweet! It`s a great time to have good experiences with the people here. Especially the families. We learned yesterday that Fernando has been living in his car to avoid living in the same house as his girlfriend haha wow he`s awesome. He`s moving back with his parents in Colón in a couple weeks. And he says he`s wanting to serve a mission!! He´s going to leave with us tonight to go teach! Sweet!

Cool experience last night. It was about 8 15...we were right by the house, hadn`t eaten breakfast, lunch, or dinner haha oops, it was raining, and to say the least we were tired. But we decided to go out and push for another 45 minutes. Went to a new neighborhood that we hadn`t contacted and it wasn`t looking to promising. We had a couple rejections until finally this guy named Victor opens the door. He looked a little surprised to see us at that hour but he let us in. His wife, Milena also listened to us. Turns out they have two kids and are soon planning on marriage! Sweet! They had lots of questions about the Book of Mormon and we left them with a chapter to read! The only problem will be finding time to go back and teach them because Victor works a lot...i`m thinking it would have been better to just go home and go to sleep haha NOT. Really a testimony builder for me. I always look forward to the last minutes of the day because we see miracles a lot in the last moments of the day...when you feel to tired to keep going haha

Well i love you all! I`ll keep praying for you! I can imagine how awesome the house smells right now but i`d say a christmas in panama is going to be AWESOME!

I`m not sure what time we`ll call...i might just call real quick in the morning to let you know what time to call us...we might be at a members house but i dont know yet. Christmas is going to be kinda busy!

Dad that was a good talk on faith...i think i read about that the other day....how faith is a choice. Really good stuff. I have a goal to finish Jesus the Christ this week! It`s such an amazing book and it really helps me understand the bible a lot. James E Talmage knows his stuff.

Mucho amor,

Elder Henrie

Mom!

This week was sweet! Got pretty wet haha but i`m alive. My umbrella broke a few months ago and i`m not paying five bucks for the ones they sell by our house! Not worth it! I prefer getting wet...

Lots of good experiences in the mission. The other day we were on divisions...i was with this elder named Elder Reber. We were on the bus going back to his area at night (the bus was pretty full) and we told the driver to turn off the music. We sang silent night to everyone in the bus and got some applause haha elder Reber sings really well. When we got off there was this kid that called us and came up to us. He asked us where the church was and gave us his address! It was cool...i like the little experiences of the mission more than anything.

Lib..

Love ya sis...thanks for the email. I hope Santa hooks you up on Christmas...i hope you will sing me a song when we talk on Christmas...i`m excited to hear your voice. I remember last time we talked you told me to ´be a good missionary´. I`ll do what i can to not let you down! Haha i love you lib! Merry Christmas! ps i`d send you a picture but the assistants have my camera haha sorry i`ll tell them to mail it to me

well i love you mom. Tell the family that i love them. Wish j dub good luck on his finals and tell Matt to take advantage of the MTC...because they have hot showers and comfy beds!

Merry Navidad!!!!

Love,

Elder Henrie

{ObeDiEnCe iS HaPPiNeSs}

Hey dad!

It was a great week. I wish i could have heard Bishop Brewster`s testimony. I hope him and Brother Gasik are doing alright. And hows ryan brewster in the field? Have you heard anything?

I wasn`t able to watch the devotional last night. I payed 1.50 for the taxi to go out to the chapel in Alcalde Diaz and there was no one there so we had to pay 1 50 to come back. 3 bucks! haha it was a bummer. So we got back to our area at about 8 30 and knew there was a reason why we couldn`t watch it. We went to work and found a reference...a really positive family! It was really cool and a testimony builder that every minute has to be used well.

Tell the family that i love them! I`m thinking about you all!

Much love,

Elder Henrie

Mom!

I love you mom! Your emails always get me stoked for the week. Sounds like things have been a little tough on grammy and grandpa this past week. Thats too bad...it`s good to hear that things are going well in your calling with the young women`s..i`m sure it`s a lot of work! I really have found, like you said, that obedience is happiness. I always look at the missionaries that are finishing their missions and heading home...and i ask myself `which of those would i like to be?` the sad part is it`s a slim minority that i really admire for what they`ve done in the mission. They are all great people and good guys, but sometimes there are so many that come and play for two years and they never can see the miracles i gods wrk like that.

I`ve also learned that obedience doesn`t keep us from having temptations. The temptations in the mission are definitely different from those at home...but they are real. And one small thing leads to another.

Ok i need to tell you about one of our investigators. Joshua Chavez...his dad, Tomàs, has had lots of problems and went inactive and we found him one night knocking doors...so he made a promise to go to church and he`s going super strong right now. His son is getting ready for baptism (Joshua) and he always reminds his dad that they need to read the book of mormon! haha he`s awesome and i`m really stoked for his baptism on CHRISTMAS day!

Well mom i love you! As we say down herein panama, ¡Dios te bendiga!

Te amo,

Elder Henrie

grammy!

that scares me that you had a kidney infection! I really don`t like thinking about you suffering with that. I hope and pray that you can be healed and get back into christmas mode soon! I love you a lot and think about you...in a lesson we were in yesterday i told them that the best memories that i have in my whole life are the memories that i have with my family. And i thought about all the great reunions that we would have together. i don`t know if one always realizes the importance of being with your family as much as possible...but those are the memories that you will always cherish. And i feel like that will just carry on in the next life...i remember reading that the celestial kingdom is a continuation of an ideal home. I know that`s true without a doubt.

Love you grammy! Take care of yourself!

Elder Henrie

{GoiNG tO HaVE to WorK ReaLLy HarD}

Hey henrie's!!

Wow...this week was a bit nuts. Sorry for not writing you guys until today...yesterday was p day but we didn't even have time to write. We had p day because changes were yesterday. We went to this place called bella vista in panama city and they did the changes a little differently this time around. It was really fun. And then we got back to Alcalde Diaz around five so the other missionaries had time to write their families and go to their areas...kinda hectic.

Sounds like thanksgiving was fun! We had rice and chicken here haha but it was EXTRA good that day. Just so you know dad i`ll be beating you in racquetball when you hit 58 haha especially if you're ripping off toenails every time you play. Things are good here in Alcalde Diaz. It just started snowing and we`re wearing our winter coats down here. Haha no! The weather is good...we're getting into summer in about two weeks...the rain should stop and we'll be back to hot days! I went running this morning with an elder from mexico...elder monroy...and it was a nice temperature. it`s really beautiful here in the mornings because there`s a lot of fog covering the hills until the sun starts coming up.

Big news of the week is that i`m staying with Elder Poli another change! that`ll make six months with him in panama...let`s just say we`re getting pretty close. Haha didn`t see that coming but we`re going to get right to work with the new members of the zone. It's been good to be with Elder Poli...he's taught me to correct people with a little more seriousness. I don`t really like telling the missionaries they need to change when they mess up...but Elder Poli told me i was too nice about it and it`s really important to take it seriously, and i`ve had plenty of opportunties to help teach the missionaries when we have problems with obedience.

The zone should be good this month. We`re going to do some cool things as a mission for Christmas...not really sure about the details...i just know that it`s going to be awesome.

We had a cool finding experience last night. We tried to get out as early as we could to start looking for people...we ended up getting out on the street at about 7 30 at night because of the changes. So we started looking for a family. We contacted this young kid from the Dominican Republic and he let us into his house. He`s 17...has been here for five months...and is living with his aunt and uncle. His uncle came in right as we started the lesson and then his aunt got home...really a great family! They have a baby that is only five months old and they had lots of questions. It really is a testimony builder that making small sacrifices to find people really helps us find families.

We don`t have any baptismal dates in our area for the moment...going to have to work really hard to baptize this month but we`ll see what happens. I love you all! I know the church is true and i know that people really need it! Time is passing to fast...i feel like november didnt even happen! Man. I love you guys so much. I always wonder how you are doing when i talk with members and investigators about my fam. But i`m not really worried about you. I know god will take care of everything. I love you all a ton!!!

Con mucho love,

Elder Henrie

Hey Mom!!

Just wanted to share an experience with you from this week. One of the areas in our zone had a baptismal date set with a young girl, 15 years old, and told us that her mom was active so it was ok to baptize her. Turns out her mom isn`t active haha oops. And the rule we have is that kids 8 to 14 cant get baptized without their parents because they just go inactive almost 100 percent of the time. The mission is also against baptizing teenage girls without their parents...for obvious reasons. So we told the area that they couldn`t baptize her and called the assistants and everything...but these elders insisted that she was ready and would remain active.

So we went to visit her and her family. Before going in i asked for the spirit to be able to know if she was ready. We talked about the commandments, and enduring to the end...and asked her to bear her testimony. That was a really special experience for me. When we received an answer that fernando couldn`t be baptized without changing...it was very clear. and this answer came just as clear. I felt peaceful, really peaceful...i felt like she was ready. The assitants said if we felt like she was ok...she could get baptized. We both felt good and left their house being really greatful for the spirit and the way that god gives us guidance.

Well mom, my times up :) but i love you and i hope this experience can help you to remembr to seek the spirit in decisions this week. It really gives us a lot more clarity on things. I know the spirit guides us and i need to work harder on always having it with me...because missionary work is ugly without it.

Love you mom!

Elder Henrie

{I`m ReaLLy GraTEfuL foR aLL of YoU}

hEY!

So....sorry i didnt write monday...but i figured i would just be disobedient and write today!! Sweet huh?! haha no just kidding we changed pday to wednesday this week so we could go to the temple as a zone! It was so incredible. I loved it! so this week was awesome...the baptism of the familia estrada went really smooth and they are really excited about it. Our district president sang a song with his wife and fernando bore his testimony about his baptism! it was so awesome! The other day i looked at the calender to see what day it was and i thought thanksgiving had passed haha i forgot it was this week. time flies man. I feel like we`re still in october.

Funny story...the `mascot` of the mission is named `superstrong`. so he`s been going around visiting different zones in the mission and so the assistants came to our house and we woke up at 5 am to go do visits with superstrong. Elder Poli was superstrong. hahaha it was the funniest thing ever. He dressed up with a sweet costume and cape. We had a great time visiting the missionaries to see what they are doing in the mornings haha seriously the pictures and videos are hilarious and presidente ward is way into it!

I just wanted to share something a little different than an experience this week. We went on divisions with the assistants and Elder Rodriguez..one of the assitants...asked me how my mission has changed me. It is amazing when you step back for a minute and look. You realize that your whole perspective has changed...the way you see people and yourself. The importance you feel for being obedient so you can be happy, the neccessity to share the gospel with EVERYONE, and the blessings that you have received. I also realized the importance of being animated always on the mission. J Dub, you talked about the book mere christianity by cs lewis, this past week i thought of a quote from him about love. He said if you dont feel like you love someone, you have to treat them like you love them, and you will grow to love them. Those actions will turn into feelings. I feel like it`s the same with always being animated on the mission. When you act animated..you feel like you have more energy.

I`m really grateful for all of you. and for the mission. i`m grateful for the atonement. wow it`s so cool to see people receive the atonement. Today in the temple i felt such a comforting peace that is always in the temple. There were five people there from jamaica for the first time. And so they asked me to accompany one of them to help him out during the endowment. It was such an incredible experience. It was so great to see people making such a sacrifice to come here and make promises with god.

I loved it!

Mom...haven`t got the package. Lib, i loved the story about how you drew on your face in permanent marker! Classic! jessi...FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS!!! J dub...haha go to sleep. marsh man i hope high school is as awesome for you as it was for me. Enjoy it...don`t do anything that you`ll regret or that could slow down your preparation for a mission...cuz it comes fast. I love you bro you`re awesome. Hey dad...after j dub wrote me this week i could picture you in your `gasoline marinated` orange jacket hahaha blowin slow. feliz thanksgivingano a todos! Con mucho love,

Elder Henrie

ps we sang to everyone on the bus on the way to the temple! awesome!

{OnE oF The HarDeST MoMentS}

Fam!

I had one of the hardest moments on my mission this week. As we were teaching Fernando in the house of his girlfriend´s family...we found out that he had moved in there. We were worried about that situation as people can`t get baptized if they are leaving together...but the mission president told us that in this case it was ok. Anyway...we kept teaching him...had the interview, the district leader felt weird about it but he said he was alright to be baptized. And then me and Elder Poli couldn`t stop thinking about it the week of his baptism. So, two nights before his baptism, we went home and prayed...and we got an answer. He couldn`t be baptized. We both felt the same thing. It was super hard and i almost didn`t want to believe it but we kept asking and everytime i got the same answer...that he couldn`t be baptized. So the next night...the night before his baptism, we went over to his house. We started to explain to him that he needed to wait and he needed to move out to be baptized. We asked him how he felt and he just started sobbing. He felt horrible. And that made us feel horrible because we should have prayed about it earlier! Anyway he kept crying and we asked him why he wanted to be baptized...he told us that he wanted to be clean and be with the Lord. He has so much faith!

So a little while into the discussion he told stopped and stood up and went inside. We weren`t sure what he was doing but Elder Poli looked and me and asked if he moved out...if he could be baptized...well yeah... All of a sudden he comes out with a box full of stuff and sets it on the floor! He said he would move out that very night! So we called the assistants to ask permission to stay out later and help him move and then we went to look for a room in a members house...it was really stressful but he ended up calling us to tell us that he had found a place to stay. Sweet! I felt like he REALLY showed a desire to follow Chirst that night. We felt sooooooo much better and ready for his baptism. The next day a ton of people showed up! Elder Poli, Elder Stoddard and I sang Nearer My God to Thee...with some sweet harmony. The spirit was sooooo strong! And then i went to baptize him. He was kinda nervous so we went into the bathroom and said a prayer. As we walked into the water i felt really peaceful. I baptized him and right went he came out of the water he was sooo happy! He gave me a huge hug and would not let go! It was really the best baptism i`ve participated in in my whole mission! It was amazing!

And yesterday the familia Estrada had the interview and they are totally ready for this saturday! At 7 00 pm they`ll be baptized! I`m doing really good this week. This change has gone by really fast. We`re hoping to meet a really high goal in december but it`s not going to be possible without the members. I`m really excited for this month that`s comin up. President Ward said he would leave us together another change unless he received revelation that told him otherwise! Sweet!

I love you all the church is awesome!

Cuìdense!

Elder Henrie

{ I lOvE The peoPLe HeRe}

Hola!

Utes lost?! man what a bummer. But it doesn`t matter because i`m in Panama! hahaha Ok one of the best experiences in my mission happened this week. We went to visit the familia Estrada to set a baptismal date with them. We had already tried the day before but they felt like they needed to prepare more. So the next day we took Elder Stoddard (from CA) and Elder Monroy (from Mexico) to sing a hymn in their house and bear our testimonies. It was super powerful! Elder Stoddard shared about how he gained a testimony about the Book of Mormon and the spirit was incredibly strong! Then we committed them to be baptized the 20th of november and they still had some doubts. Elder Stoddard asked them if they had received an answer about that day, they said yes, and so he promised them the lord would help them in their family if they would be baptized. They ACCEPTED! Ohhh baby! We left the house and started running up the hill singing at the top of our lungs..haha really an awesome moment that i`ll never forget! I love that family! They are so amazing!

And Fernando is doing well...his parents are still against his baptism but his testimony of the book of mormon is super strong. I hope his parents come in from Colòn to see his baptism. this thursday at 7 00 he`ll be baptized. Pray that it will be a success!

We also had a cool kid at church today. His name is William..and his wife is Gissel. They are a really young couple and they have a little baby...William Junior. Gissel also had another child, but she died really young. I think they are both 20 or 21. We need to talk with them about marriage...but they are really receptive. William has changed a lot from his old life...he was in jail and he`s had lots of problems. Really cool family!

Even with all the success...i felt like it was a little tough this week. But every time i have an experience like we did with the familia estrada...i realize that it`s all worth it.

Oh...funny experience...i was on the stand waiting to give my testimony yesterday and one of the members (kinda less active) bore his testimony. He talked about how greatful he was for the `apostles` on the stand behind him...ooops. I looked at Elder Poli and i almost started cracking up. He`s a really good member though. haha just kind of a funny moment in church

i love you all! Panama is sweet! My area is beautiful and we are teaching really great people. I love the people here. I don`t know what i`d do without them :)

Mucho amor,

Elder Henrie

Mom!

That`s so awesome about your talk! I guess you learned to always be prepared. haha i remember my first day in Chorrera the speakers didn`t show up so the bishop asked me to talk...haha kinda winged it. Thanks for sending a package! I hope all is going well up there in Utah.. and i hope your cold! Last night it was slightly chilly because it was raining and i thought the panamanians were going to die of hypothermia hahaha

I`ll be looking forward to your talk! Love you mom!

Elder Henrie

{tHe miSsIOn is hARd. ReaLLy harD}

Well...

Interesting week. Kind of a frustrating sunday haha but things are going good. Saturday night was hilarious! We were at an activity in church when one of them members came in and said ´Elders come here!´ So we ran outside and saw a car chillin in the rain gutter (The rain gutters are huge here ps) and he was kinda drunk. So we were trying to pull him out for a while but we couldn`t get it. Finally, someone brought their truck and towed him out...Elder Poli was pushing and the wheels caught on the mud and he got nailed with mud! It was so funny. So we went back to the house real quick so he could change (it was about 8 pm) and went to an appointment that we had...they weren`t there so we went by the house to contact. As we were walking to the house around 9 15, elder poli asked me if i had the keys...uhhhhhhh. no. Turns out he left them in the taxi! haha luckily we had contacted the taxi driver and had found out that he was an inactive member that lived kind of by our house. We tracked down where he lived and found his friends drinking outside his house...they called him and he said he was on his way. Haha by on his way he meant ´I`ll be there in an hour or so´ haha anyway he showed up around 11 and we finally went home and went to bed. Interesting night for sure!

It was pretty sad talking to that guy who was drunk. You really realize that sin doesn`t make you happy. we`ve talked to a lot of people who are drunk and they always come up to us asking for help in that moment...telling us all their problems and how much they want to stop drinking and be close to God. And then we go by when they`re sober and they don`t want to listen. they really say how they truly feel in the hard moments

Fernando is doing awesome! His baptism is planned for the 11 of November at 7 30! We taught him again on sunday and he is solid! He`s going to invite his parents but they don`t really understand spanish...we`ll see what happens i really want to meet them. Fernando said he doesn`t speak mandarin, i can`t remember what type of chinese it is but i don`t think it was cantonese either. Are there a bunch of different dialects dad? i would assume so...

Those were some sweet photos of biking haha that trail got dominated eh?! And thanks for the sweet poster! How awesome! I`ll send you guys a good one of Elder Poli with his mud shirt haha that was a hilarious night!

Things are good here! The mission is hard. Really hard. haha but it`s such a good experience! I love seeing people really change. And i love how we don`t really do anything. We just tell them what we know....and if they ask God if it`s true they start to change themselves. I love the people that i have taught on my mission. I miss a lot of them. But i hear that they are doing well. The familia Salinas from Santiago is preparing to go to the temple this month to do baptisms! Sweet! Arnulfo Flores is struggling a bit with his testimony so i need to write him today. The family that we are teaching here...la familia Estrada...is doing well, but they didn`t come to church on Sunday. We`re going to try to set a baptismal date this week to see what happens!

I love you all the church is true!

Love,

Elder Henrie

{i'M TryinG to fiGuRe tHinGs out hEre}

Ok Familia!

What`s up?! This week has been rad. Thanks for all the emails...oh guess what we killed some more mice this week. Me and Elder Poli were both going at it with brooms and i finally nailed it! It kinda exploded haha

I have a sweet experience to tell you all...we were contacting near the church at night and this lady named Carmen came to the door. We didn`t present ourselves right off...but we just asked her if she new a family around there...people seem more receptive after they have helped you find someone haha. Anyway we started talking about the church and she said she already was in a church and really didn`t seem receptive...but instead of moving on we started asking her questions and found out that her brother had committed suicide about a month earlier. So we sang her a hymn on her front porch and started talking about the plan of salvation. It`s amazing how she changed from being so unreceptive at the beginning to so interested at the end. We left a good spirit there.

Oh and yesterday on the bus we were with the two elders from Caimitillo and i told the bus driver to turn off the music so we could share a message. We shared some of what we believe and sang a hymn for them...really awesome day

Also...we`ve been working super hard to find families. And we managed to bring one to church on sunday. la familia estrada! Sweet familiy. We`re going to try to set a baptismal date for november. They are such an awesome family. Yesterday we were talking to the husband...Juan Carlos...and he said he really likes the church and he has prayed about it and felt like he received his answer that it is true. His family has changed a lot and he has really been prepared by God for this moment. And his wife, Vielci, works the night shift. She got home sunday morning and then went to church with us. ANd their daughter, Genesis, is way awesome and she understands really well. Genesis is 10 and they also have a 1 year old boy named john marco. AWESOME family!

Alcalde Diaz has been struggling a lot these last couple months. There were no baptisms in september and one in october...but we are doing our best. I still feel like i`m trying to figure things out here. It`s an awesome area though. We have a lot of new missionaries in our zone...so we have three trainers. They are really good missionaries. I love it here. It`s really different from my other areas...

hey so i`m really excited to wear the new shirts this week now that i`m at a year...super glad that i saved them! This year has gone by really fast. I need to improve a lot of things this year. I feel like the mission has changed me a lot but there are still a lot of things i need to do. I read a talk about the difference between sacrifice and consecration...about how a lot of missionaries think of it as a sacrifice to come here when really the blessings that are received out weigh the sacrifice a million to one. It has definitely been a good year and i`ve got twelve more awesome months ahead!

The church is true...i`m about to finish the book of mormon this week...really a good book.

Love you all!

Elder Henrie

Mom!

Hello there! My teeth are good i think...my gums around the one that i had surgery are receeding a bit but....what can ya do? I`m eating as healthy as possible in panama. And i did lose some weight in Santiago...and there are SOOOOOO many gnarley hills in Alcalde Diaz....i don`t really have a solid six pack anymore but i`m not really that fat. Elder Poli tells me i`m fat all the time but he doesn`t even know.

That`s sweet that you`re going on a field trip! Can you believe it`s halloween already?! Too bad it`s not really celebrated here in Panama haha i guess while we`re contacting people we`ll ask them for candy haha

The gospel is changing lives here and it`s sweet! Love you mom take care!

Elder Henrie

[PrAy for PaNaMa!]

Oh family,

Hello! So Devan`s going to Taiwan?! That`s nuts! Tell him congratulations for me! Yeah it is sweet to be with Elder Poli again. This week went pretty well. We had a rough day saturday haha only all of our appointments fell haha. Dad...i`m jealous you got some good biking in...but i`ve got a lot of good walking in in our area...there are so many hills. My legs are super solid now! Fernando is doing good. His parents live in Colon. And they`re kind of opposed to his baptism. But he`s doing good...reading the book of mormon and praying and getting ready. The temple excursion sounded sweet! What an awesome surprise for your birthday j dub!

this week we had an interesting experience with some dogs. we were walking back to the house one night and there were about six or seven dogs hanging out in the street by our house...no biggie...they weren`t doing anything. So we passed through them without problems. And then, all of a sudden they started barking hard core at us. Luckily Elder Poli was in front of me and i was the one who was going to get eaten. So they all started coming in on me and I kicked one of them in the face! haha seriously i wasn`t about to get bit by a dog again. Did i tell you I got bit in Santiago? haha well i did! They really didn`t like it that i kicked there buddy...but i didn`t again because they wouldn`t leave me alone. Man i nailed that dog! Haha i felt kinda bad but i didn`t want to die. And then the owner came out and called them and we managed to get out of there...haha really intense experience! And then we got home and heard something moving around in the garbage bag...just a couple mice. So i got out the broom and started chasing them and smacking them. I managed to get one with the broom and i stepped on the other one! Hahaha it was kinda gross.

this week Elder Falabela from the seventy came to machete us and tell us to look for families! It was soooo awesome! He gave such a powerful message in zone conference and i think the mission is going to be able to reach the goal of 1000 baptisms in one year for the first time ever! Sweet! Our zone is struggling a bit. There were no baptisms last month and not a lot of baptismal dates this month. But we`re working hard and trying to get things moving! Pray for us so we can find a family to baptize! Pray for Panama!

well fam i love you! Keep on keepin` on!

Elder Henrie

i don`t know who took the other picture...kinda blurry but its Elder Falabela and his wife with our zone! Ofi!

elder Chevez and Elder Poli! Elder Chevez had a rough time with his comp after i left and they ended up having emergency changes...but hes doing good now! Two awesome comps right here!

Can`t even tell you how much fun this dart board is!

Uhhhhh...

I dont know what to tell you all about this week. Me and Elder Poli are companions! hahaha yes! Again! The assistant went off to the islands in San Blas to open a new area...Elder Poli`s comp, elder Cook, went up to assistant, and I took his place with Elder Poli haha really nuts. I had emergency changes on wednesday night and i`m now in Alcalde Diaz...in the area of La Cabima! Really a crazy week. I feel really inadequate to be a zone leader but i`ll do my best haha. I still feel like i wasn`t even ready to be a district leader.

Not gonna lie i kinda just skimmed through the letters and i printed them off to read later because i have a lot to write. I`m elder Poli`s comp...hahaha!!! I feel like i`m back with my brother after six months of not being with him! Dang it`s sweet....we`ve already seen lots of miracles.

Here`s a few..

My first day we gave a blessing to a member who fed us lunch. She`s having liver problems and she`s pretty sick. I annointed her and when elder poli said `we seal this annointing` i honestly felt the power of the priesthood in that moment. I felt like God was working through us to seal what we had done. It was an incredible experience.

Later we went to a young girl`s house with her boyfriend. The boyfriend, Dario, and the young girl Angie, are both members and they`re living together. they`re both 18 and having problems. We talked about repentance and the atonement and talked a little strong with them. Angie felt really bad and was crying and said she wanted to fix things. Afterwards we went and talked to her mom about the whole situation. It has been hard on her. But we left her mom`s house and there was angie outside the house waiting to talk to her mom. we really felt the power of the atonement. We still have some work to do with them. Moral of the story...be good in high school. What was taught in conference about how sin is always followed by tears is true.

Ok...and we found this kid named Fernando...his parents are from china and he`s the best investigator i`ve ever met! He`s already reading the book of mormon and has been to church a few times. He`s 19 and we taught him for the first time on Saturday. We put a baptismal date right then for the 30 of October and he accepted it! He started crying and gave us both a hug! Hahaha he`s such a stud. when he talks about how he feels when he reads the book of mormon...it makes me feel incredible! The gospel is true eh?

It`s been a sweet week full of miracles and lots of changes in the mission. I feel really weird. Kinda bummed that i wont see the baptisms in La Chorrera but that`s all good. Oh and we found a family yesterday! I think Elder Poli and I make a good team haha God`s blessing us a ton already!

I love you all have an incredible week! I think about you and pray for you every day!!

Con mucho amor

elder Henrie

Mom!!

Hey! Thanks for writing me...Tell mikelle and her mom hello for me! Christmas huh? i don`t know how it`s Christmas already. If you could maybe send me some new pants that would be sweet i think i`m a size 33 or 34 waist...and length i don`t know but my pants look stupid because they`re really faded.

Maybe for my comp...i really dont know...some ties??? haha no sè.

I love you mom thanks for everything!

Elder son

{I feeL LiKe I JusT StaRTed}

Hey fam!

I love you all! Thanks for all the sweet letters! Im looking forward to changes this week because i think ill be going to get my package in David haha sweet!

Heres the news...

1. Presidente Madrigal is awesome. He came to dedicate a chapel here in Changuinola. Wow the priesthood is real. And hermana Madrigal is incredible too.

2. Our baptism with Erick fell through because there wasnt water to fill the font. Haha. So were doing it next week in the new chapel that was dedicated yesterday.

3. People think dads a grandpa hahaha.

4. I love Panama. But the food...ay ay ay. A veces es dificil. No worries i think im losing weight because i work out so hardcore in the mornings...some solid pushups.

5. The Book of Mormon is true. But thats old news

Im pretty sure i told you all about Francisco Vega...the guy with lots of addictions. We met with him last night and hes doing so well! The gospel changes peoples lives and its sweet to see! I love loving these people. Francisco is so hilarious! I feel like hes my best friend. Ill miss him if I have changes this week. But well see what happens. I think ive been out six months now...which is weird because i feel like i just started.

dad i liked what you said about humility...one of the bigtime important attributes of Christ. The people here are super humble. It makes me feel so greatful to have food and shelter and clothes.

I finished the Book of Mormon this morning and its definitely a sweet book. Everything in this gospel hangs on the B of M . If its true...we are set. and its sooooooooo true!

Sorry so short...but i gotta go. I love you all. A lot. President Hinckley said that missionaries should return home with a greater love for their families. Thats really true. Every day i love you all even more for everything youve given me. The church is true!

Mucho amor,

Elder T

{ObeDience PaYs oFF}

Hey!

Wow, sounds like things are going really well at the house...spring getting started, Marsh dominating the basement, J-Dub and Jessi moving through college, and Libby...starting kindergarten??! That´s weird, pretty sure I was just starting kindergarten. Things are flying here. Elder Poli and I have been so incredibly blessed in this area. At first I wasn´t sure if trying to obey all the rules with exactness really was helping...sometimes it seemed to make things worse. But we´ve seen the fruits of our labor here with Ceferino´s baptism...another baptism this weekend (Erick Sera...he´s way rad), and hopefully the familia Abrego the week after that.

Obedience pays off.

This week was really great. The baptism of Ceferino went really smoothly and according to plan, which really is a miracle in this area haha. Presidente Madrigal was here for the baptism and he and his wife really loved it. Me, Elder Poli, and our district leader Elder Cook sang I Need the Every Hour, a little English and a little Spanish. It was sweet. Music brings the Spirit faster than anything in my opinion. And when Ceferino bore his testimony about the change he has made it made me soooo happy. As Hermana Madrigal said in our last zone conference...´vale la pena´...it´s worth it.

I´m really excited about this investigator we have named Franciso Vega...he´s a middle aged solo guy and he´s got lots of problems. He´s coming toi church and we´re working with him on his drug addiction. All I can say about Franciso is that I love him. Really. I love him. He´s an incredible man and it´s awesome to see the change that is happening in his life because he is coming to know the gospel. I hope with time he can overcome his addiction and receive baptism.

We were hoping this week that the familia Abrego would be baptized but when they came to church we felt like they weren´t ready. That was a bummer but we´re going to continue working with them.

I still am having trouble believing that Libby is going to kindergarten!! That´s so nuts! I´m excited to hear about it. And Lib...you read?! That´s so ridiculous! Haha I love ya sis.

So I´m pretty sure it´s already April...and I think we get to call home in May. Even though I just barely called you from the airport...jeez. ya viene navidad.

The church is true. The gospel is so incredibly powerful. The blessings that come from missionary work are too many to count. I love being a missionary. I can´t even think about what it will be like some day to have to take this plaque off. I love being a missionary and talking about the gospel all day every day! I love you all. I always remember you in my prayers! Make sure you have family home evening and pray...

I´ll talk to you next week!

Mucho amor,

Elder Tanner

ps dad thanks for the update...i wish i had time to study the old testament...i´m going to need to take a class when i get home haha

{He WaS ReaLLy a GolDeN inVestiGatoR}

Hey fam!

Sorry i think i only have time to write one letter this week. I´ve got a lot to say. So this week was a good one. Well...yeah it was. I was pretty sick thursday night...woke up at two with a fever and couldn´t fall back asleep. So the next day we took it easy. But we still went to a lunch appointment and on the way there I contacted this Danish guy. Haha bad idea with a fever of 100. Let´s just say he wasn´t all that receptive. It made me think of Grandpa Hansen because I´m reading his journal. Wow.

But guess what? Ceferino is getting baptized on Saturday!! I can´t wait. He´s definitely ready. He´s 21 years old and he´s been coming to church and all the activities and stuff. he was really a golden investigator. He had no problems really with any of the commandments and was really willing to change.

Also, with respect to the hermana Seferina and her children...let´s just say Satan tries so hard to keep these people from baptism. Someone broke into their house and broke their door...so now she can´t leave the house alone to come to church. I don´t know what we´re going to do but she HAS to come to church to prepare for baptism. Her kids are awesome. they learn the gospel so fast. I love teaching the gospel to kids. There´s this little girl named Kenya at one of the houses we are teaching in...and ever since the first lesson she says ´profeta´ like ninety times every lesson...haha it´s way cute.

And we are teaching this kid named Erick Sera...17 years old. He lives with our branch president right now (he doesn´t really have a family and he´s here studying). But we´re going to set a baptismal date with him soon.

Dad..fecha=farm. There are sooooooooooooooooo many bananas here you wouldn´t even believe it. We climb up this big hill every now and then and you can just see fincas for miles and miles it´s nuts!

Really funny stuff happens all the time here. I love messin around with the little kids. They´re soooo cute. I always think of Lib whenever I see the little girls.Me and Elder Poli have a great time with the people. The members are great. We´re having trouble getting them really animated about missionary work but we´re doing what we can.

Bueno...I love you all a lot. the church is true. There was a kid who bore his testimony in church yesterday about how he was sealed to his family...he´s 12. It was such a powerful testimony. I thought when Libby was sealed to us. never will I forget that experience. I love you all. Marsh keep reading the scriptures. Mom I talk about you and the fam a lot to the people here. Dad keep telling me about your lessons in gospel doctrine i get good pointers and advice. J dub and Jess I love you both a lot! I´m gonna write you a letter today because there´s never time :) Lib...you have no idea how much I love you.

I´m bummed that I may only have three more weeks here in Empalme...but it´s all good.

Con mucho amor,

Elder Henrie

ps the package got here but it´s in David hahaha I´ll go pick it up in May though no worries :) oh and no we don´t have a chapel in El Empalme, but our little building is sweet! Chao!

{I LoveD CoNfErenCe!}

Hey fam!

Wow...Elder Holland delivered once again eh? Third time in a row. I loved conference! we actually stayed in Bocas to watch it because the new chapel that they are building their managed to get it through satelite. It was sweet! They focused so much on the family. I was amazed when at the very end Elder Andersen said that nobody receives assigned topics. Talk about revelation.

I loved hearing the prophets voice again! It was so nice to listen to them give their messages...and it was amazing listening to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir again (you know youre a missionary when youre excited for mo-tab). I thought Elder Packers talk about blessings was probably my favorite...after Elder Holland.

Marsh did you hear the prophet talk about dating? Its good advice...stick to it. And get ready to go on a mission because you will be on your way to the MTC pronto. I thought about all of you during this conference. I feel blessed to have the family that I have. I was so glad when Elder Holland was talking about what happened to those three ladies that he met in the airport that our family is not like that.

Ok so this week...we set a baptismal date with a kid named Ceferino. Hes 20 years old and really solid. But we can see that Satan does NOT want people to make this covenant with God. Immediately after he accepted to be baptized...his mom started joking about how we dont eat meat or drink coffee. Ay ay ay. But hes doing great.

We also set a date with an Hermana named Seferina (no relation to Ceferino) and her four kids. We are really hoping that she can progress. Shes having some difficulties with these two men that want to move into her house but we taught her the law of chastity and we are praying that all goes well.

This change is still going quick. There is never enough time. Its really hard work too. That makes it go even faster. I dont know how we already are in April!

Well family...the church is true. Really. Its true. Thomas S. Monson is Gods chosen prophet on the earth today. I have no doubt that we are going to be together forever. Everything that we go through in this life makes us stronger. The strength I have received from making it through the loss of a brother has helped me a lot...but we havent lost him have we? Hes waiting for us on the other side. Mom did you love that story about how that kid opened his mission call a week before his brother died. -called to serve on both sides of the veil- i thought it was great. I know God lives. Jesus Christ is our Savior. Joseph Smith saw Him and the Father in the sacred grove. The Book of Mormon is true. And its awesome. I love you all more than youll ever know. I am so glad i am on a mission right now! It is the best decision i have ever made in my life! I love you all!

Love,
Elder Tanner

ps yeah dad i got the picture and i could NOT find waldo!

Hey Grammy and Grandpa!

I absolutely loved conference. Before it started we were all watching the timer like it was new years haha. It was amazing. Thats great that Matt headed off to Brazil! I cant believe hes on his mission already. Yikes. Everything is great in El Empalme. The people, the food (yes i am getting a gut), and the faith. I love the people. It is crazy to think that i have over three months here. It feels like i got here yesterday!

The church is great. We had 73 people come last sunday (a step up from the 28 that showed up the first sunday of my second change). i am still trying to figure out how to be a better missionary. Gotta do it quick because the mission flies by. But one thing that my MTC teacher told us is that you never -make it- as a missionary. You can always improve.

Thanks for the email i love you a lot! The church is true God loves us!

Mucho amor,
Elder Tanner