August 29 and another transfer!

Well this week has been WILD to say the least!

Let’s just say now, I have a new comp and I am in a totally different and new area and it all happened in 30 min!

So Tuesday afternoon we had an exchange with the Zone Leaders. So I went to their area and one of them came to mine with elder Cordoba. It was tons of fun and I learned a lot! Then the next day at lunch, we switched back! Elder Cordoba and I went back to the house so we could eat and I could drop off my extra clothes and then the other elders in our house wanted to do an exchange too! So we said ok! So I went with one of them to their area! We had some amazing lessons and then that night we had one lesson with some of the little muchachos that come to our English class! They love me cuz I’m the big greengo that teaches them English haha but we had a great lesson about the Gospel and being baptized and now they are going to get baptized here in a couple weeks! So then Thursday morning hits and that is when we have our district meetings! Well we left the house and it was raining just a little then when we got about a quarter of the way there, it started to pour..... So we stopped and called the zone leaders to ask them if we should keep coming or not and they said yes, that they were already in the Chapel waiting for us! So we just kept going!! I’ve never been so wet in my life! We were all literally soaked from head to toe! But we made it!! Then we entered the chapel and they actually turned on the AC!! And for the FIRST time in my mission, I was actually cold! It was a MIRACLE!

So then after our meeting, we returned to our house to eat. As we were getting ready to leave our house to proselyte, we got a call... a call I will never forget...

All I heard at first was, ( ok ok, so where is he going? am I staying here?) and my heart sank.... My comp gets off the phone and says, pack your stuff, you are being transferred.... I didn’t believe him! I said no way and I called the Assistant to clarify and he said (yep you are being transferred, come to the mission home NOW, with all your stuff, you are TRAINING) So all 4 of us in my house starting throwing my stuff into my bags! 15 min later my bags were packed and my comp and I were in a taxi to the office!

Now I’m in an area called Los Mina! It is close to the big river here in the city and there are about a million people in this little area! There are some very poor parts near the river and a bunch of gangsters too! I have a new comp, which has only has 3 weeks in the mission... He is from Panama! His name is Elder Cruz he is a stud!

So this week has been great and crazy! I’m totally ready to take on the challenge of training! My Spanish amazes me every day and all the credit is to the Lord, I am just his tool here in the DR. I love you all and I know this church is true!!

 

ELDER DURRANT

Week 21

Well first off, I want to give a big shout out to the boys back home, continuing on with the winning tradition! 31-6 is a butt whooping! Keep taking care of business on and off the field. Now you guys have fans all over the world rooting for ya! So don’t disappoint haha. I hear that several brothers are wearing their brothers’ old numbers this year that is so cool to hear that those guys are wearing those numbers. I can’t tell you how much I miss football.... I would do anything to go back and play with those guys again and nothing will ever be better.... Tell Daws to cherish it and ALWAYS work hard. He out of anyone should know that the season could be done in one play.... Please continue to send pics of everything. I love seeing them and the scores and how they are all doing! Riley is a stud and I know he is going to kill it the rest of the year with all the other boys right there by him.

Second, Shout out to HERMANA FALSLEV in Osorno, Chile! Thursday the 25 is her birthday!! And she is finally the big 21! WOAH

As for me here in the Republica, things are HOT and HUMID. Like always haha. The other day we were walking in the street and I thought wow, I need to try to explain hot hot it really is here, so here what I came up with. This heat is like as if I was in the middle of a turf field, all my football gear on, 95 degrees with no breeze. PLUS 90 percent HUMIDITY.... Well now you know! I guess I’m kind of getting used to it..  It doesn’t change hardly ever haha so now if I’m air conditioning I get cold and I don’t want to be in it because I know how bad I’m going to sweat when I get back outside haha. But you know, its 2 years and I’ll be back in normal ville haha.  The animals here are the trash chickens and the dogs that roam the streets haha. The dogs don’t bug us here. They are just super lazy and lay on the side of the road!

So this week we had some great lessons with our investigator named Noelia. She was supposed to get baptized Saturday but she isn’t quite ready yet. Like i have explained before, she is super smart and wants to be 100 percent sure of her decisions. So we have been super patient with her and trying to explain everything the best we can but now the plan is just to explain that really, she needs to just take the step with FAITH, because really she is already a member, she attends activities and all the meetings, she just hasn’t been baptized! So this Saturday is the DAY!

My Spanish is getting better. Today some couple missionaries came to check our house and they are from Pleasant Grove and it was super hard to think of words to use in English! I love it and I really don’t want to speak English anymore, but I did get out that I was born in Utah County and lived in American Fork prior to moving to Richmond.

This week we have been doing service for a lady in the ward. We spent a couple hours 2 days this week cleaning up her yard and making it all pretty again! Her nephew with us and he was using the machete and he was pretty much trying to spit rocks with it and so after, it was super dinged up and ugly and she was MAD. So I told her that I could fix it and she didn’t believe me. But agreed that I could take it and try.... So on our way home we stopped by a little machine shop near our house and I explained to the guy that I needed the machete sharpened.... Well he said ok and so the next day I went to pass by to pick it up and asked him how much it was... He told me nothing and that it was on him and it was his pleasure.... Wow. People are amazing and this country may be freaking hot and dirty but the people here are amazing. Also for some reason I am the go to guy when people here need their cars fixed. THIS WHITE BOY DOES IT ALL!!

Time in the mission field for me has flown! I will be out 5 months next week!  I can’t believe that Bri will be home in less than a year and Diddy comes home next week. TIME FLIES!

I am truly blessed to be able to serve the people here in the Republica! And this word is all for the Lord! I have been reading in John this week and chapter 7 talks all about how Christ gave all the glory to god and so should we. I love you all so much! PEACE OUT FROM THE DR

ELDER DURRANT

P.S.   I love hearing from all the missionaries in the field, so please send me your letters home!

August 20th pictures

AUGUST 15

Hello to all!!

Well this week was great! Monday we really just hung out in the house and cleaned up! It was chill.

So we are in the rain season right now so its starting to rain like every day! But, it still hot as heck. Double whamy.... So Tuesday it rained Cats and Dogs and we were half way in-between lessons and the storm came out of nowhere! So we began to run for cover and within 5 seconds we were both soaked head to toe.... It was just like someone had dumped a huge bucket on our heads! So that ended our time out in the street cuz we went back to the house and it continued to rain all day!

Wednesday we had another lesson with Angel! It was an amazing lesson and he picked up everything that we said. This kid is freakin smart and then in the afternoon, we had a lesson with his friend that he invited to church! So we were in this lesson and we began teaching and all of a sudden I had the impression to just ask him to explain it, well he said ok, and he explained the whole plan of salvation, absolutely perfect! After the lesson I asked him if he wanted to be a missionary, and he said he didn’t know... But I believe he will be!

Thursday we stopped by a little restaurant in our area and so we began to talk with the Employee and his name is Moises. Well we hit it off and now I’m teaching him English and the gospel at the same time and my comp is trying to learn how to teach the lessons in English too! It is truly amazing to be able to speak two languages and be able to share the lords message and help others in the process.

Friday was Elder Cordobas birthday and so we had a noche de hogar (family home evening) at a members house and after the lesson, she surprised him with a cake and all sorts of cool treats and food! Of course I was happy too cuz there was a ton of food and he shared haha.

Sunday hit and we had a great lesson at church on Missionary Work! It was fun to share scriptures and testimonies about the lord’s work! Then at 5 that night, we had Angels baptism! I had the privilege of baptizing him and after he was so extremely happy! I asked him the question again; do you want to serve a mission? He replied back that yes, he wants to share this feeling with everyone. What an amazing day it was, not only for him but for me. My testimony grew so much!

I am so grateful for my mission and the opportunity I have to serve here in the DR. I love you all so much but I think now I love these people more haha. Sorry mom..... Just kidding!

LOVE

ELDER DURRANT

David and Goliath aka Elder Durrant and Elder Cordova

August 8th

Well, I just finished up another week in Paradise! Nah just kidding it’s all work here! But things are going great and things in our area are picking up a ton! So all my buddies have been writing some bomb letters and I’ve been getting lazy so I’m sorry I’ll try to get better!

So after I wrote on Monday, Elder Walker and I did an exchange and passed by a few families so he could say goodbye to them because he was in this area for about 6 months! Well after that we went to the Ward Mission leader’s home and watched Cokeville Miracle! It was even better to watch it as a missionary!

Tuesday morning, Elders Chandler and Walker, packed up and left for their new areas and Elder Moreira and I hung out at the house waiting for our new comps to arrive! Well first, his comp got there! Then about 2 hrs later, my comp arrived! He is awesome! His name is Elder Cordoba. He is from Nicaragua and he is a little dude haha. It’s like David and Goliath with him and I. But he has an amazing knowledge of the scriptures! He quotes scriptures constant and its awesome!

So this week we have been teaching Noeli, Angel, Fransico, and Fransiscos son, Christopher! And all four of them want to be baptized on the 20th!

Noeli is 17 and is extremely smart! She loves the gospel and has friends that are members and she has had so many questions about everything because before her baptism, she wants to know, for a fact that this church is true, so in our lesson last night, after my comp had shared a few scriptures with her, I just bore my heart out in testimony. It was amazing and after the lesson, my comp said that when I was doing that he said my accent was absolutely perfect and so was my grammar. I said, well, honestly, it was the spirit talking, not me!   Because it was! The spirit was so strong and I have faith she will receive her answer soon!!

Then there is Fransisco and his son, Christopher!! They have been prepared by the lord and are ready to be baptized.. Both have so many questions and have so much desire to learn! We are going to have another lesson soon with them and we will be trying to get the mom to join us so we can share how important it is that they do this as a family!!

Well honestly, this has been one of the greatest weeks of my mission. My new companion is awesome and is ready to work! I know the lord lives, I know he hears our prayers and i know this is his Church! 

I love you all!! Please let me know about football haha! HABLAMOS

I will send pictures tomorrow.

ELDER DURRANT

Aug 1st

 Just another great week here in Los Trinitarios, Republica Dominicana! I love hearing from everyone back home and heading out on their missions!! You will all never know how proud I am to be able to know you guys!!

So this week we had an amazing lesson with a kid named Angel! He is legit and used to play baseball but now he just wants to become an artist and he is super good! The lord really has prepared him and I think he is going to get baptized here in the next couple weeks!

 Also Saturday it was a regular day and then at lunch, one of the investigators of the other missionaries in our area, called them and said that he was ready to be baptized! They said OK! So he had his interview and passed and he was baptized that night! I gave a quick little talk and it really was an amazing experience! It was truly a miracle!

TRANSFERS

So transfers are this week!! I will be staying in this area! And i will be getting a new Comp from Honduras! And Elder Walker will be leaving also and another Brazilian will be coming! So that means no English haha and i love it! 

I know that Mason Cook is heading into the Dominican MTC so I am going to try and get to the MTC to visit him. I am not sure what day Sam Chadwick arrives but I will try and see him soon also! I live about an hour from the MTC by bus. 

 Miss you all back home! Feel free to write me a letter! The church is true and I know my savior lives!! Talk to you soon!!

 ELDER DURRANT