Week #12 ........Walking mock 90 and listening to the spirit!

         So this week was super good. We just worked hard all week and time flew by. I finished my first change in the field super quick huh. I am staying in El Tejar 6 more weeks with Elder Ballesteros, which is awesome because I am learning a lot and we are having success. So I am way excited to get back at it. To be honest nothing crazy happened this week, we have 6 progressing investigators and hopefully we will start seeing baptisms in the coming weeks. So here in Guatemala when it hits like 70 degrees, everybody acts like we are going to freeze to death and go into an ice age. I’m in a short sleeve shirt and sweating like nobody’s business. Everybody has winter coats on haha super funny. We are teaching this family and there are canche (white) and it makes me feel good about myself haha. I seriously look in the mirror and I’m shocked how white I am. But not this week because during P-day we played soccer all day and I now have a gnarly sunburn, so now I fit in a little better. But really during P-day we played soccer all day and as you see below I’m way good at the futbol. haha no but legit I scored a goal. So that was a highlight. I’m doing really good and loving life. I sent you some live action shots of me dunking sick huh. Anyway the church is true. I feel the truthfulness everyday and it’s awesome.

Spiritual thought - We were walking at mock 90 like always and I had this feeling super strong, my heart was beating out of my chest and I just had to turn around and knock on this door. (Aluminum sheet) So I told my companion to come with me and I knocked on this door.  A guy comes to the door, and tells us he had been to church before in Honduras but had to move before his missionary lessons were over. His name is R and he is way cool. So from this experience I learned the importance of following the spirit. If i wouldn’t have, who knows if this guy would of found the church in this life. But its not only important in missionary work its important in everything, listen to the spirit. If you are having trouble recognizing the spirit ask yourself one question - is this feeling a good feeling does it lead to a good action. If yes its the spirit because all good things come from God.

Also we eat soup everyday, which is weird because it’s so hot! I asked why we eat hot food on hot days and the answer was, if your insides are hot your outside wont feel as hot hahahahah - what on earth logic is this. Its so false it just makes me want to die of sweat. haha Anyway that’s all I got.

Love you guys, have a good week, and thanks for the emails I love hearing from you.

Love Elder Peacock

AKA Ronaldo

Futbol Life

Jake and his district

Elder Peacock and Elder Ballesteros

Week #11.........I was in the right place at the right time!

Family and friends,

Missionary life gets better and better haha. Every day is super busy teaching a ton of lessons so I’m getting pretty good at that. This week was really good. We were able to baptize another new member into the church, which was cool. Another cool story, yesterday was P-day and we played basketball and soccer and then at 5 we need to continue missionary stuff. My companion asks me where I think we should go and I pointed left.  So that is where we went. We come into contact with a little boy crying hysterically and his grandma was crying as well. SO…. we asked if we could help in anyway and we found out that this little boys sister had passed away 8 days earlier and this morning that little boys dad was in a car accident and passed away. We then proceeded to teach the plan of salvation. I shared my story of dad and they were really appreciated the message and it was way spiritual. (Mom it was cool because remember when dad passed away those missionaries that visited us. I felt like that and it was awesome) Anyway 5 minutes after the lesson I knocked on a random door and this girl answers looks at me and starts balling. (I know I’m ugly but come on) She later tells us, she is a less active and prayed last night for the first time in forever. And she asked God for an answer and that night we showed up at her door. Anyway pretty cool day huh.

 

Okay time for some funny stuff. People love giving us food. It usually gross, like I would rather starve than eat the items presented or way delicious, with no in between. Anyway after a lesson, a member family come out with a drink (all drinks in Guatemala are hot, sooooo weird.) Anyway I looked at it and I was like oh hot chocolate I can deal with that. I was kind of right. Hot chocolate but with RICE..... RICE... who in their right mind puts rice in hot chocolate. It’s called arroz con leche and its soooo nasty. …But you have to eat the stuff they give you or they won’t feed you again so I pounded this textures slimy hot chocolate in 4 seconds and I wanted to die. hahahahah so funny. Well I’m not sure what else to write about but I’m doing great and loving the mission 

 

Dios le bendiga (God Bless you!)

Elder Peacock

Jake's First Baptism

Elder Ballesteros - Elder Peacock

Week #10........My first Baptism

Hola family and friends from el Tejar Guatemala,

I was transferred this week to the Zone Chimaltenango, its in the mountains and its really pretty. My new companion and trainer/2nd dad, your dad is your trainer, is Elder Ballesteros. He is almost 20 from Honduras. He is super cool, and he speaks pretty good English. We get a long great. This week was the best week yet, and it flew by. I had my First BAPTISM… so cool. I baptized this 70 year old man name Carlos E. He is a sweet little old man who rocks the beanie and full sweat suit each and everyday. …haha he’s so cool. So when you baptize somebody you say there full name..... Well here in Central America people have a minimum of 4 or 5 names. This guy has 6 names, but I was able to get through the baptism without problems. I already love this place a ton. We are in a ward and have a church building, which is a cool change of pace. My companion and I were bored on p-day so we took a bunch of dumb pictures for you mom! I have found myself being a lot more like me lately. At the beginning of my mission I took everything seriously, which is good, but I wasn’t having fun. I have since learned you need to show your investigators that this gospel is a fun gospel that brings happiness. That’s exactly our message; this gospel is the only true way to be happy. I saw a lot of great things this weeks, had a baptism, my Spanish is getting better and we work hard everyday. This mission and life for that matter is what we make of it so I going to make it as spiritual as I can while having fun. Funny story, here in Guatemala, they have fruits called leaches, (I don’t know how to spell that in Spanish or English sorry), its pretty much a grape with a pokey peel. Well this lady told me it was her favorite, so I took a bite, with the peel, and I sat there and dry heaved for 5 minutes… haha I didn’t know it had a peel but its good unpeeled. BTW saw a dude with a vintage Steve Young jersey and I asked him if he liked BYU and he said no but he just found the thing, lucky dude. Here in Guatemala, people take this scripture to heart - 2 Corinthians 13:12 read it; it will make you laugh…. every one does it.

Spiritual thought Matthew 6:24 - No man can serve two masters. This is so true put God ahead of everything including phones and friends. Have a good week!

Love you all,

VA Pues  

Elder Peacock

Dude I think that I messed up that picture 

Jake and Elder Ballesteros

Jump Elders Jump

El Tejar, Guatemala

Jakes Missionary tag

Jake and Elder Ballesteros

Another Tag Picture

Elder tags

Families are Forever - Hand written note from Jake!!

Week #9 ..........Be Ambitious and get out there!

Family and Friends,

First of all THANKS for all the emails of support this week.  I have well over 100 emails this week and I’m sorry if you do not receive a reply from me, but I will get through all of them as soon as possible. This is so awesome!!! Now that I’m crying in an attic in Guatemala I can tell you the crazy events of this week.  First off our baptism backed out because she back on the booze, that was a stab through the heart but hopefully we get her back on track soon. Speaking of stab, my companion thought it would be funny to stab my shoulder with a knife while in Antigua. It was dull but it hurt, I was ready to throw him through a wall. I’m fine though it only bled for like 5 minutes and its super small and I cleaned it out good. So we went to Antigua, Guatemala this week for p-day, it is pretty cool cobble stone roads and a bunch of white people so that was fun. Mom, I met people from Eagle River, Alaska. We went to a museum and it was a rock museum soooo boring but whatever. ha-ha I took some cool pictures though.

So mom sent me sheets and I have never been happier to get sheets in my life. I get eaten alive by bugs here and it’s the worst.

So my companion has been driving me up a wall lately he preaches out of the wrong bible. Like is only the New Testament and it’s not the King James Version so I tried to show him a bunch of faults in that bible but he insists it has the same message. But it’s not true our bible is complete so why not use it... and he refuses to shower. And he says swear words in English. And I’m so glad this change is almost over. And he hates the way I teach, I use different ways and joke with the little kids and he hates it. I’m trying to kill the kid with kindness.

Spiritual thought - I really loved conference and the talk I liked best was by Kazujiko Yamashita. He told us to be ambitious in Christ, what a good reminder as missionaries and just people in general, don’t just worship, don’t just believe, be ambitious and get out there and make a difference. So funny story we were knocking doors and I yelled Buenos, that’s how you knock on a house with no door. And a lady came out told me she hated me because I was white and that Mormons are devils, but I learned that my job as a missionary is just to teach to the best of my ability to those that will listen to my message and the rest is up to them and the Lord.

Anyway I know this week is going to be tough for my family and me..... but we are strong and with Christ nothing is impossible to overcome, We Got This!!! 

Love you all. Thanks for everything and have a great week.

Elder Peacock

Jake and one of his BFF's from the CCM Elder 

Jake

Jake and his BFF's from the CCM Elder Miles and Elder Marler

Jake and His Trainer

Jake does not look good with long hair...LOL

Jake and Elder Marler