10-22-12

WHATS UP! Thanks for the letters. I am super excited to see the temple now! The temple trip that we were going to have with raul and rubi was postponed for this Saturday and the Wednesday. I get to go again! 
We experienced many miracles this last week. First off that one family that i had told you about that went to the conference moved back into our area and we found the mom in the street Friday! They are so getting baptized, the sad part is that they are living with a crazy old drunk who hates us and so i think their conversion is going to take longer then necessary. Also this last week i was asked by the bishop to be the ward pianist for the choir.... IU don’t know if you remember that funeral we went to in melba or something like that and those two people sang and some had to walk out so that they didn’t laugh... they sounded like josh groban and mariah cary compared to the men and women that sang in this choir!!!! It was a atrocious but luckily with the piano it was automatically on tune. It was so funny!
O something also cool that happened is yesterday we went to the house of one of our investigadores. Let me describe him for you. He has a saved head, wicked fast motorcycle, military dude that is atheist. The first thing he said to us when we met him was don’t you two Americas mess with me or I’ll make your life bad. I don’t do wrong to anybody unless they come after me and if they do they will find me. All of this was in English (he speaks English). We have taught him a couple times. When he found out we were good people he turned super nice and always gives us soda and he is awesome but absolutely has no faith or belief in a God. He did before but when his little daughter died with out any reason a couple years back he turned away. He listens very attentively but always goes back to it will be hard to change me. Yesterday we taught the atonement of Christ and wow!!!! it was incredible using alma 34. He was so interested. I don’t know how to describe the lesson to you but it was amazing and at the end i invited to him to read again. He always does but he wont pray, and then i invited him to pray to know if God is there. I was going to say later when you are alone but he cut me off and said OKAY and started his prayer with the words I don’t know what i am talking to but thanks for these two youngins who are trying to help. He then expressed his desire to know if there was someone that could redeem him of his sins. At the end he said amen and just sat there with out saying any words and looked at us waiting for us to do something. It was so powerful. He is a really good man. I hope he gets baptized someday. I really hope that in the normal life that one can see as many miracles as i have on my mission... I guess it all has to do with your faith. I bet alot of x missionaries think that just because they are not missionaries any more that they can do as much good or work miracles. The adjustment will be interesting... i feel like i did entering into the mission not having any idea or what to expect. I also messed up really really really bad with Guarani this last week that i am not going to write about it over the big email but ask me later haha.
I am pretty sure that i will be able to write next week cause my comp will have to but we’ll see next week.  love ya, elder shaw

10-15-2012

Whats up!!!"!!!!!!

I am super excited to hear about the BYU trip Braiden but not excited to get dominated by my little brother in basketball ha. But sounds like a good week. Caleb you sound crazy. I didn’t understand everything you were doing but it sounds cool! 

Well this last week was great!! I have some bad noticias and good ones. This last Thursday we had interviews with the president. He basically told me that he wasn’t going to interview me cause we would have another interview in 3 weeks but asked me if i had any questions. I got permission from him to go the temple with Raul and Rubi to do baptisms for the dead!! I am so excited this last Sunday raul got the priesthood and they are getting interviewed for the temple Wednesday night!! It is going to be so awesome. I love them so much Raul is very animated and doing very well on his progress and i don’t know why but out of all my converts here in Lucerito the members just attacked this one. Everyone is inviting them to their houses and to do stuff and church activities and is probably the best reception of converts that i have seen in Paraguay till now! It makes me very happy, There are a couple verses in alma 29:? (9-10,14 maybe) but it talks about how Alma finds his joy and it is through the success of his brethren and their personal growth! I really love that scripture because it is true. Yes it is really fun to achieve something and have alot of people admire or recognize you but the real joy comes from recognizing other people and seeing the joy that they have. Braiden know that! You will find more happiness on your mission then on the court. It will be a different happiness, it’s really hard to describe. We also went last night to nicolas house with the bishop to drop the cane and it went really well. nicolas was excited to see the bishop in his house and has been reading alot and promised to assist every Sunday from now on out! He is painting me a picture. 

The sad news is that family that we found that we took to the conference, they were so excited for their baptism but the moved this last week to the north mission! It was really sad cause they had a fecha for the 27 of October, but we must need to find another miracle before i leave.

There are some moments on the mission that are not appropriately described or as good over the email or writing.  Moments that one can’t tell very well. This last week i had an experience that very literally changed my outlook on the atonement, the personal significance that it can have for me. Talking with my companion this last companionship inventory (or whatever it is called) what was being said brought me to tears and to moments when i could not speak. I love the atonement and i more fully understand the importance and the power that it can and should have in the lives of every single one of Gods children. I also realize that one person can not come to a complete understanding of this perfect act. I see and listen to the testimony of elder holland and think, wow what has he experienced to have such a strong testimony, but just as elder bednards talk says a testimony is your person relationship with God given through revelation from the Holy Ghost. Its all so  personal and even though many people can be listening to the very same message and be in the same place your personal sensibility to the spirit is what will build your testimony because no man can force these truths upon you. Elder badnards talk was amazing!

I know that I’m a child of god and he loves and takes care of me and i know that only trough honoring my covenants will i become like him. THIS CHURCH IS TRUE!  Elder Shaw

10-8-12

Family members of the Shaw family!!!!, conference was stinkin amazing! We got to watch all the sessions of conference including priesthood which ended at 11 at night. I personally have never gotten so much out of conference like i did this last time! It was amazing and really changed me. I loved all of the talks and all of Saturday i was able to watch it in English also. I could go on forever about the talks that were given.(and mother i took fantastically detailed notes on every speaker, i expect my candy bar later on)! I truly learned alot and am super excited to try and apply the principles taught. Some of my favorites.... wow which one... i really really loved Andersons talk Saturday, with faith comes trial of faith which can one increase your faith or diminish your trust in the Lord. It makes no sense to step away from the kingdom of God when you most need his help. It would be like stepping outside the storm shelter right as the storm comes into view. Also moroni 9:? saying don’t condemn me for my errors but thank God for recognizing them so that you are more wise. It applies very well to Paraguay! I also LOVED elder Bednards talk about testimony and conversion!!! In alma 23:? when it talks about the people of Ammon and how, when they came to the knowledge of the truth by the preaching of Ammon ACCORDING to the spirit THEY WERE ALL CONVERTED TO THE LORD, and not one fell away! I loved that, his focus on how we need to be converted to the Lord and not to the missionaries or to the auxiliary organizations, or the leaders, or just straight up tradition, but to the Lord! 
So we met a family last Thursday, We were walking and it was very hot and we saw a man walking very fast along the road on the others side, i got the impression to cross the street and talk to him. As we talked he told us he had recently lost his job and wanted us to pass by his house. Thursday we had a lesson, Friday we went with the stake pres. to visit him, Saturday we taught them and Sunday they came to the conference with their whole family. They have 3 children... and man!! does Elder Holdand deliver or what! He always pulls through. Our investigators loved his talk and absolutely loved the conference! I am super excited for this new family they are great and are excited to prepare for a baptism and already have friends in the church and everything. But really Elder Holland is amazing. A minor points that i really like is at the beginning how he introduced the apostasy a little, explain the short amounts of time he had to change the bad customs and call very young leaders among these very new converts to the church and how it truly could not sustain itself. I am going to start using that as i teach! 
And the women that spoke in the Saturday morning session that talked about I’m Mormon, i know it, i love it, and i live it! i loved her talk!! It was awesome, i wanted to cry listening to it. Also i would love to get my hands on a copy of elder Uctdorfs talk during the priesthood session about the power of priesthood. There was too much doctrine i could not write it all down. I want to study that talk. ITS GOLD!
all in all i hope that you all loved the conference as much as i cause it is life changing. It is so easy to see that these men truly are inspired and called of god! Any denomination could listen to them and would agree and based on the doctrine taught, especially elder holland touching the apostolic keys being restored, obviously this is the true church of Christ. I have found that all denomination allow one to progress to a certain point but only one can literally give you all that the father hath. It was interesting how many times that was said in conference. That we can have all that the father hath! The church is really focusing on the service and characteristics of a Christianity.  I love the church! 
This week we have interviews with president and i am super excited for that! But everything is going very well! Nicolas, my convert here is struggling we are helping him. It isn’t that he has lost his testimony, its that he is putting his family over the church and not going to church that he can visit his family that lives in Asuncion but he promised this week that he was going to go!! raul and rubi are SUPER FIRM!
i love you all and enjoy the cold, cause it’s not cold here!
elder shaw

10-2-12

FAMILLLLLLLLLLEIAIJAEIAIA    FAMILY !"#$%&/()
They got baptized! Raul and Rubi are finally Mormons:) The baptism was so cool. First off the water heater broke in the chapel and the water was so cool. A lot of members went to the baptism. This last week was by far and none the most hectic week of my mission. I was dealing with all kind of stuff and I’ll explain in a little. But Monday he smoked because he has been trying to stop smoking for the last 4 months and he was down to only like 3 or 4 smokes a day. We had a very serious lesson and i basically commanded him to stop and then i looked at his 6 year old daughter and asked for her help to yell at him }if he ever starts to smoke. He sent us a text every night last week saying (in English) hello brother no smoke today success haha.. Then the interview was Friday and we went over there and while they were both being intervened i was talking with the little daughter and she told me that she threw away all is cigarette packets every time he bought them. i was so proud of her. Thanks to that little girl they were able to get baptized!! There is the 20 year old girl living with them who we are also trying to teach and she was very doubtful about the apostasy, and basically i started to explain again and raul cut me off and said let me take this and went on to explain what happened and that if she wanted to know if it was true she needs to knee down and ask God!!!! It was so cool! I wanna cry right now! I love that family so much. But in the baptism i baptized and confirmed Rubi and my comp Raul. I am so happy for them. I didn’t bring my camera but i will send a picture. I am also super excited for the general conference this next weekend. It is going to be great. I was thinking, all the members study the scriptures so closely, trying to find some hidden message but pass over the words of the modern day prophetas and only listen to the general topic. But we should study very closely their words as well. I found something really cool in the Elder Eyering last talk. Also on the 27th of October the mission north and south will get together to listen to Elder Bednard and Elder Arnold so i will be able to see Jordan before i go..... speaking of that i got my flight plans today... :( im scared. but ya dad please i really want to go to the dedication and go through with you guys. Please get me in on that too. This last week alot of things happened. I don’t really have time to write them all but basically, i slept very little having to do divisions so many times with everybody. There is an elder tah is mentally unstable in my district who is new this last change and he called me many times saying if i don’t come over and talk to him or if he can’t talk to president he wont leave the house and so we had to work with him a lot.  He is going home tomorrow and a new elder is coming. Many things like that but all is good here. I am happy and tired and working hard, as for an update on the next baptism.... well we are looking for it:) but next week i will give you their names! love you all elder shaw

9-24-2012

Whats up fam.
Wow that is awesome! Sounds like it was a fun week, and way to go Braiden for the studliness. What changes have they done to the temple? Can you see it from the highway? That is super cool that the coaches went and had dinner. What’s Braiden doing right now with basketball? This last pday we played soccer as a district and... wow i am horrible, I cant shoot worth beans and i cant keep up with myself. I want to do certain things but i am just out of practice but i am getting pretty good with dribbling with my feet and a soccer ball.  Well for the big news on the transfers, nothing happened. My comp and I are still together for the last change. I am super glad that i have the chance to stay and be apart of the baptism of raul and ruby! This week flew by!!! We had alot of activities and things to do. Friday i did changes with elder hatch (my good friend from the mtc and now is my zone leader) and we partied and worked hard. He is a very good elder. Then Saturday we went to Centro to do a massive service project of cleaning the trash from a river. It was very fun and President Agazzani was with us getting dirty. He is a good guy. I was looking for Jordan but he didn’t go. I did run into a couple elders from his district. GUESS WHAT i found out that the 27 of October Elder Bednard is coming to Paraguay to speak to the north and the south mission together so i will be able to see Jordan! I am so excited for that. Last night we had a lesson with raul and ruby and they are so excited and happy. They have had so many changes in their life and are being so blessed- I love them. They are super excited for their baptism and they have the baptismal date for this weekend!!!! I am so excited and they are ready. They started to tell us a story that a Jehova Witness came to their house and started to converse with them at their door and they told them no  ``no thanks we are from the church of Jesus Christ of latter day saints``! It was so cool. We are also working with another señora named Ilda who is also progressing. We had a lesson with her yesterday and her brother in law and sister where at the house visiting her and they came out of the house and said we want to know what ilda is learning about can we participate. Turns out the guy is die hard Baptist and his wife and they started to ask question and try and prove the Book of Mormon wrong with their reasoning. We answered a couple of his questions and the spirit slapped him the face and he said that he will read the whole Book of Mormon and ask god if it is true and if he tells him yes he will change his beliefs.... it was really cool and then ilda said she new that it was true. We have just got to get her to put in batteries and get going. Everything is going really well. I am kind of getting sick of write emails so sorry if they are not as good of quality any more. I love you all and i love this work. It’s a very rewarding work if you look closely. Not all the time does one baptize alot but there are so many more ways of feeling the blessings of this work. Just gotta find the silver lining! The church is true. Keep your eyes peeled as dad would say for the small and simple things in your life.
elder shaw

Sept 17, 2012

Wow talk about some good letters! Thanks for writing me everybody. Sounds like life is going so good back there and WOW CALEB, you have curly hair, blue eyes, zits, and a chin. Your grown up and handsome and stuff! Way to be. And i kid you not ,i don’t’ know if i have every gotten a picture with Braiden in it with out girls... way to be! 
Also next topic .... wow that is so cool that the basketball coaches are going to the house. So i got the game plan, be sure to have my high school highlight videos on play as he walks in the house and maybe that huge poster of me hanging from the ceiling and we will see what we can get.. (tell him I’ve got a little soccer in me) he can’t deny it... or better plan put us in the same package tell him it’s both or nothing... and i will give people water too when i am not playing! Just kidding,, but seriously I died laughing from the BOM story from tiffany too, that is very funny. Tiffany i don’t think there is any other place on this beautiful planet that is so dang hot.  As i type I’m dripping sweat and my arms are slipping of the desk while i type!. It got hot again. My comp is super unhappy. Oh ya and yes dad it is change week but i don’t get changes until tomorrow in the morning so we will see what happens i have a feeling that we are both staying… but we will see. This last week there was a little bit of progression in the work. Enough to keep me going! One of the cool things that happened is this last week we had a lesson with raul and ruby, and raul has had his answer for the last 2 weeks and knows that the church is true! So we have been working with ruby and this last Friday we had a great lesson on the difference between the Holy Ghost and the gift of the Holy Ghost and the blessings and she recognized her answer and said she knows that the church is true.  We invited them to be baptized together on the 29 of September and after i invited them, raul looked at his wife and said, YA lets get baptized together on the 29 and smiled really big! They both accepted and the best part is yesterday they both attended the stake conference that was via satellite and we all listened to the prophet and Elder Christoferson. I love them so much. They are my favorites. Also we have been teaching another family, named leila and fabiano for about 2 weeks and for so reason this last week that wouldn’t talk to us. Every time we came close to their house we would see them take off running and hide and they wouldn’t come out, and so i got a little peeved and made his brother came out and told him to tell them to face their problems instead of hiding and that the next time we pass by they need to either drop us or tell us what happened. So the next day we went by and they received us in their house and we had a 45 lesson on spiritual progression (just saw an update, 110 degrees right now in a building with out air conditioning and humid!!!!) but we basically took out their doubt and they want to continue learning so we will see what will happen with them. He didn’t want to stop smoking drinking and cofee but little by little we will get them. A funny story... last pday i snuck over to the other elders apartment and pulled the coolest prince of perisia move and scailed to their second story apartment be a cement balcony to jump in through their window and scared them to death.  The bad part is on my ascension i slipped trying to pull myself up to the next cement block and was falling backwards about 20 feet of the ground, but thankfully manage to catch my self on another cement block but got some nasty scabs on my arms that are going to be some good scars. Ha i couldn’t call Sister Agazzani cause i didn’t know what i was going to tell her about my arms. But i returned to climb it and the second time made it and scared them to death. Worth it!
Lifes great. I’m happy. I hope you are all happy and obedient to the commandments and gospel. Braiden and Caleb don’t get lost in the young life. Keep your eyes open for the spirit and learning experiences. I like learning now. With a handful of love,
lder shaw

9-10-12

What’s up!

Well i have so much i want to write and i don’t know how to put it in words so it’s probably going to be short. But i am doing good... very amazed at how the Lord works. I am put in different circumstances all the time and stretched at parts that need it. I had some interesting things happen this last week that i am probably not going to write on email but was a testimony builder and a good experience. As for the work this last week we found two very amazing families!!! They are both very receptive and young and they both claim to not have religions but believes in God... those are the best. One of the families, the wife has already read to 2 Nephi in one week and says she already has her answer and the best part is that her brother is member! But the husband is Brazilian and can’t stop drinking coffee and doesn’t know how to read well, but a very nice guy. We are working with them! They are yes or yes going to get baptized!! The other family we found has a very funny story behind it. We were walking on a street and there was a family outside a “love motel” we are going to call it. We stopped them and asked their names and got to know them and then asked to were they were going and they pointed to the love hotel and it was a very awkward moment. Then they read our thoughts and cut us off and said no no no we work and live there. So we accompanied them to there house inside the love motel and taught them lesson one and they loved it!!!! They said they want to go to church and love the Book of Mormon so we will see what happens with them. They don’t really live in the best environment and it is so awkward to enter into this place with my comp to get to their house... haha but we are going to baptize them!

Also this last week we had alot progress with Ruby. She more or less admitted that the church is true which is a huge step. But they told us before hand that they were not going to be able to go to church, but they are going to get baptized in a little. Right now we just need to throw members on them! I’m really excited. I really don’t know how much harder i can work. We are pushing ourselves so much and working very hard. I pray that God will bless us with a baptism. We are trying very hard. i have never worked so hard in my mission and had so much difficulty to get people to baptism! But i know that the Lord is going to bless us! PLEASE. My comp is getting a little disanimated, but my comp is leaving the area next week. I really hope he gets an obedient companion next change. I love this work. It is so painfully rewarding haha. Last night after getting home i laid down on the floor and had to elevate my ankles they hurt so bad. Yesterday not many people wanted to see our faces:)

I pray that all this work is paying off. I know that it is, it’s just putting the confidence in that we really will reap what we sow or however you say it in English. I love being a missionary. This last week i am having to heat metal up and burn the rubber on my shoes to try and keep the water out, the balls of my feet have broken through the bottom of my shoes, i just need to make it one more change in these shoes, but i can’t step in any water or i get soaked!.

I hope everything is going well back at home. If i have any experienced advise acquired lately it would be, do what’s asked of you even if you don’t understand or see why. The blessing will come. Magnify your calling and there will be no better joy. The true happiness will not come until your focus is not in yourself. Your ego must yield to the service of others. I’m trying so hard to learn the attributes of Christ so that i can apply them to real life later on but its amazing how much i fail even with the knowledge i have....

love

elder shaw