Well... Another week
of studying, praying, planning, working, teaching, helping and serving. Another
week to cherish. Another week as a missionary
This week was better,
but still tough! I can't even describe to you how hard we work everyday! A quote I saw on the back of some guy's shirt I saw said, "Let your life speak
louder than your words ever could," and us missionaries definitely take
this quote into action. Also, last Tuesday was the first day of my mission
where I didn't sweat!! It felt so good, and also to not sweat was amazing.
We
are so truly beyond blessed to have this gospel in our lives. It is soooo
clearly true in our eyes. All the other churches are sooo lost, and it's sad to
see what Satan has done and how well he can deceive people. With our baptism
this Saturday, the girl is 9 (Naomi) and her family is less active members. The
dad smokes all day and "can't" stop, but he's a good guy. I like him a
lot. And Naomi is having a hard time giving up coffee, so after a long discussion with them, we came to the conclusion that the best thing to do was buy
milk and pinolillo for them. (Note: Pinolillo is a sweet cornmeal and
cacao-based traditional drink in Nicaragua. It is made of ground toasted
corn and a small amount of cacao.) They haven't drank coffee since. Everyone here
drinks coffee because it is so cheap, so hopefully she hangs in there for a few
more days so she is able to be baptized.
This past week, I saw the moon, the biggest I have ever seen it before. It was orange and was so sweet! Oh, WOW! I'll never forget what I ate for lunch on Thursday. A fish that has probably been dead since the ice age! Absolutley horrendous!! Elder Regalizo threw it up that night haha!
This past week, I saw the moon, the biggest I have ever seen it before. It was orange and was so sweet! Oh, WOW! I'll never forget what I ate for lunch on Thursday. A fish that has probably been dead since the ice age! Absolutley horrendous!! Elder Regalizo threw it up that night haha!
And about the Frederick kid. He's progressing a ton and came to church again yesterday, also
looking like a missionary! And he told me that his aunt lives in Bountiful!!!
and is a member, and she wanted our address and #. What are the chances??? So, I'll give him that info tonight.
So much of life depends on our attitude. The way we choose to see things and respond to others makes all the difference--to do the best we can and then to choose to be happy about our circumstances, whatever they might be. I love the quote: "Attitude, to me, is more important than the past,... than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important that appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day."
I think of it as my Junior and Senior year at the state
golf tournament. Courage is called for when one stumbles and must make a second
effort to achieve. Those 2 years on the first days, I struggled, but I would tell
myself over and over again before day 2 of the State Tournament something like,
"I don't care what it takes. I am going to have the best round out of everyone
tomorrow." And with that attitude I had, I was the low score out of everyone on
the second day both years. That only happened because I refused to give up.
That's how I am out here. I get denied, stuff thrown at us, doors slammed in my face, rejected everyday, but I refuse to give up! No matter what they say or do, I won't give up. And if it weren't for golf, I doubt I would have this attitude. I have learned many life lessons from golf that I apply to my life everyday!
Well, time to get to work. Hope everyone is
doing well, and I hope "Dumb and Dumber To" is hilarious. I can't wait to see it! Thanks for all the support. I couldn't do this without you guys.
Love you,
Love you,
Elder Copeland
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