Hey Family!
Hold on just a second...
HAPPY BRITHDAY MOM AND GRANDMA WELLING!!!!!!
I LOVE YOU AND WISH I COULD CELEBRATE WITH YOU, BUT I`M HOPING THIS WILL BE ENOUGH FOR NOW! =P Okay, just had to get that out of my system. I`m good now. =D
I know things are crazy at home, and that you won't be able to get much news to me about this week, but that`s just fine. I`m just very glad that you all got the letter and pictures that I sent a couple weeks ago. Everytime I send something in the mail (now that we don't have Pouch Service) I just hope and pray that it gets through and safely into your hands. I wanted to let you know that I`ve now begun to feel an increasing interest and importance about writing letters by hand to my family and friends. I feel like with just the emails and the blog, a few people kinda miss out on the experience of actualy ¨writing to their missionary¨. I still love it when I get a whole bunch of news, a couple attachments, and lots of love in the emails you send, but I`m also hoping that we can start writing each other with renewed purpose and intent. I really enjoyed the letter I received from Kim: it was full of personal thoughts, ideas, questions, and more than anything, intent and love. I loved it, and have read it over a few times again. I`ve written her back and I hope that that letter will get to her this week. Also, I wrote Dad a personal letter this week and got it sent yesterday. Dad, you can expect it to get to you in about two weeks from today. It only costs me a little to send each letter, and it doesn`t hurt my budget at all, so dont worry about that at all. Anyways, the point is that I love you all, and want to start communicating personally with you more often. I truly can't stop missing my family. In my opinion, I couldn`t live without you and I definately would not be the person that I am today, if it weren`t for growing up with and around you all. I do, however, need a couple home addresses that I don't already have. I need the addresses of all the aunts and uncles, then of Katie and Amanda in specific. Thank you for all you do for me, and I hope you`ll get to hear from me soon. =)
Okay, now for some news from the mission. This week has been an emotional and spiritual roller coaster ride. We finally had our Stake Level Baptismal Service this last Saturday. It was a great experience and everyone felt the Spirit extremely strong the whole night. Unfortunately, we only had one baptism from our ward. Finally, and through a lot of effort and prayer, the Hermana Carol Paz was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church. She has waited years for this opportunity, and now she will enjoy all the blessings of full membership in Christ`s Church. The Familia Lopez was not baptized this last week because the ¨blessing¨of Otto, the father of the family, receiving work finally turned out to be a curse in relation to their baptism. He now works in a factory for 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. His family cannot attend church because neither of their parents are able to accompany them. This is sad to the extreme, because recently many of the members of the Lopez family have expressed that they have testimonies that the Book of Mormon and the Church are true. We are going to try every avenue we can to get them baptized by the 14th of November. Please send us your support and prayers in this goal. They are six souls that are ready to come home, let's help them get there. =) Anyways, the service was plain and simple. President Peñeda, our stake president here in Amatitlan, and President Baldwin both spoke a little. We also heard a few other talks and had the opportunity as the missionaries of the stake to sing a special number. We sang the Prophet`s First Prayer and I directed. In all, every one of our new converts felt the Spirit and will, in my opinion, always remember their baptisms into the true Church of Christ.
I just got the notice that I`m out of time. Sorry to cut off so suddenly. I love you all and hope to hear more from you next week.
Love Always,
-Elder Preston William Tucker
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