Appointments Failing, Miracles Happen, Progress Continues

4/3/2017

Well our last week went pretty ok. We did have a rough time with appointments as a lot of appointments fell and I believe many people didn't make it to conference as they had to go to another place. Here the thing with their elections I that when they have an election they have to go to their birthplace to vote unless they have placed their residence here. So there were many people that left. 

Despite that difficulty there were some miracles as well. Today we were heading to eat lunch at a place and we ran into an investigator that we had lost some contact with as he has been busy. So we talked about how he was an incidentally he did see some of conference and for the last month has been going to a book of Mormon institute class. That is really great and one of his friends invite him to go. So that was really cool to see. I was a little sick yesterday and this morning but I am better now. This is the last week of this change and then ther is one more change for me. We are hoping we can have some success in finding news and helping people progress. If we can pass by one family we can schedule a baptismal date.

Nancy is doing well but she didn't accept a baptismal date and feels she needs more time. We are hoping that she can come to church here. She is great it just might take a bit of work. There is a married couple that we are trying to work with called Byron and Graziela. We didn't see them in conference so their baptismal date fell. We hope to reinvite them and see them progressing for the 29th. There is also Edgar Tapia who is the young man that is going to institute. We are hoping to find and teach him to help him out more as he seems really golden now. When we started with him he didn't seem so well prepared but apparently according to his friend that gave him as a referral we were able to answer all of his questions and help him out a lot. So the spirit has been guiding in that. There is another referral that we are hoping to contact this next week. It was someone that came to church once but was a little busy. Hopefully we can see some success in that. 

Have a great time!,

Elder Throop

Baptism!, Raining again!, Working hard

3/27/2017

Well this last week went rather great for us. We did have some great success. We were able to have that baptism on Saturday which was awesome. He was super great and seemed eager to keep going. He got confirmed yesterday and that was really awesome for us. This week we had a lot of success finding new investigators it just some were a little hesitant on accepting some commitments (either attending church or with baptism) so we hope to help those people out in this next week. There was a family we found that we called and the husband said that he wasn't really interested which was not fun but we hope we can try doing something there. The biggest success was having the baptism and we were super happy about that. Elder Powell got to perform the ordinance. He did have a baptism in his first change but it was like right when he hit the mission. This one person he got to help a lot more. So we were super happy about it. 

That evening on Saturday it rained super hard. It has been raining pretty consistently with some day nicer then others. My problem is that there are holes in my shoes so I get wet feet. The hush puppies fell apart pretty badly. I am trying to get a new set of shoes as fast as possible so that I can have less worries. Quite honestly the shoes don't hold up very well here. But there is someone here that designs shoes for missionaries.

They still haven´t sent me my flight plan so that is why i asked. That is weird to hear. The one companion I had that went to Arizona had a flight and layover in Houston I think. So he got home a little later. That is weird to think about. I won´t think too much about it hopefully. 

We are working here and we are trying to help out the people here. The other elders in the district had a harder week so I hope to encourage them and help them out. Last week I talked about commitments and I think I might focus on using scriptures this week to help them with their teaching skills. They seem ok but I hope to help them out more.

Stay safe and love you all. 

Elder Throop

Almost Ready for Baptism, Cold and Snow?, Amazing Race

3/20/2017

Well this last week went pretty well. One of the investigators  that we have been teaching had his baptism interview and passed so he is ready for baptism on the 25th. We are really happy about that and I hope he gets there fine. His name is Tomas so please pray for him as well if you can so he can progress to baptism and keep going afterwards. So that was really cool. 

This last week it has been rather cold and rainy and it has snowed on some nearby mountains which almost never happens. That was cool to see here and we are happy. The last Sunday we saw the snow and it was weird as it almost never snows on one particular mountain. We did have some success finding news this week. one person that came to church last week with her ¨husband¨(they aren't married) showed up as well. She isn't a member but he is. She actually seems pretty animated about getting married to have an eternal family. He seems a little hesitant so we hope to help them out as she could have great progress. That was also great for us. We had another great experience were there were two elders that came to our sector because they had to wait for a visa. Thanks to that visit we could have a great day and we found some new investigators that Elder Powell contacted with the other Elder that we might not have found any other way. So that was really cool and that was a great experience. Sometimes there are great trials here but as we rely on the Lord and Christs atonement we can overcome all things and when we overcome that can make us happier and have more peace in our lives and we can feel the spirit more abundantly in our lives.

Today we had a rather fun activity. The zone leaders called it the amazing race were we went around Quito (mainly just parts in La Colon the stake that we are in) visiting different cites and taking photos there which was pretty cool. We went pretty fast and I was hurting a bit from all the running but it was a fun experience. We went by the presidencial palace, basilica, ejido. We took a photo with president in a food place and a few other places. That was pretty cool. The objective was to learn how to plan well in your day and to diligently study the scriptures. I haven't received my itinerary yet but they were talking about that to me. What time do I arrive? It just feels very weird for me to end my mission. Sometimes I have had hard times but there have also been very great times being here and experiencing life and helping and serving people here so it is a great experience. I hope you have a great week.  I do look forward to conference as well and I hope it is great. 

Stay safe!

Elder Throop

Pics from the Amazing Race Competition

Looking at the Panacillo (one of the requirements)

Presidential Palace

Ecuadorian Presidential Palace

metal ball structure

Arch in the Ejido

With President Christensen

Ecuadorial flea market

popular eating spot for missionaries

With Zone Leaders

Catching his breath in the "Q"

End of challenge!

Rain Again, Possible Baptism, Bowling!

3/13/2017

Well I am not sure if you remembered but I am still in the same zone that I was in when I was in El Dorado Vargas and Santa Ana. Those are all part of the stake La Colon. The sector is new and has a hill that just goes from the bottom all the way up. It isn't flat in any part so another big hill. The sector is pretty ginormous and we still haven't gotten to know all the sector. Still we have found one new in this week which was rather cool. They were a contact and they seemed pretty interested.

This last week it rained very hard which wasn't fun. Since Friday it has been really hard on Friday it got so hard that it caused that there was like a river in the streets for awhile.We had divisions that day so we managed to avoid it and I got to go with another Elder. They are doing pretty well and need help with teaching skills and finding new people. We know the sector  a lot better now which is great.

Our problem is that a lot of the families that were left behind can't progress very well for one reason or another. There is one person progressing really well right now who is called Tomas. He has a baptismal date for the 25th. The zone leaders want us to help him with Sabbath day observance that he can understand it clearly. Other then him no one quite yet. The people we visited last week went to church in another part which was a little ironic as they went to church just in another city. WE will teach them today so hopeful we can help them out there.

Today we went to go bowling. Our big goal right now is to find new investigators and to help people progress.

Have a great week,
Elder Throop

It's all lined up

There they go!

Strike!

Hanging at the bowling alley

Rain!

Area Book Not Too Good, The Lord's Timing

3/6/2017

Wow that sounds like a great week for you guys. Glad to hear everything went well in rugby. This last week was rather interesting for us. We were trying to find new investigators and also find out were everyone lived. We received our area book on Thursday but it resembled the last area book we had which isn't too much fun. 

Fortunately we could find some of the investigators that they had left behind but it was a process. We did have a big miracle last week though. when we were going through a street looking for former investigators we ran into a bishop from Ambato which is also in our mission. He talked with us and told us that his niece was very interested in wanting to get baptized and also his sister. We taught them that day and they indeed did seem very interested. His sister had a lot of questions for us but she also understood very well and accepted the teaching. 

That was a very spiritual experience as I try to stay encouraged and not be discouraged from some of the struggles of the zone sometimes. Still I have learnt a lot it just can be hard waiting on the Lords timing and waiting for his blessings to come. We had a service where we dug a canal for a tube that he wanted to place. That was a lot of fun. We also have an appointment set up with our bishop to gain his confidence so we are hoping to help the ward out. so we are hoping to see some success there. We have had some success and we hope that we start to see some investigators start to progress here.

I hope you have a great week,

Elder Throop

Transferred but Not Far, Same Comp, Carnival Mess, Birthday

2/27/2017

Well as you can see from the subject headline I did receive transfers. So to tell you a bit about that we got transfers on Thursday instead of the usual Sunday that we normally receive it. That was due to carnival. I have gotten transferred to a ward called La Gasca which is also in the stake La Colon I am staying with Elder Powell which was a little interesting. The zone leaders were here beforehand and they went to El Dorado which was rather interesting. 

On Friday we had to do the transfer but it was a little complicated as they had to be in the terminal for awhile and then we could transfer. So we had our stuff ready but we tried contacting and working a bit without knowing when we would transfer. To explain a bit about carnival it is a big water fight essentially in which they use cans of stuff to spray foam at each other throw powder eggs flour etc, throw people in bodies of water sometimes throwing mud and water balloons. They started to play that in our sector on Friday and it was a big huge high school that was throwing people in the man made lake they had over there. So that was really interesting and basically killed our day. 

One of our zone leaders had finished and the other showed us a bit of the sector on Saturday. His companion had been a bit trunky so didn't do very well in the area book so his companion took our area book to revise it. They didn't have much program so we will see how that goes. 

We have been trying to get to know the sector a lot here and so far it seems like there is a good potential and we will have to work hard. So those changes were a little interesting as I am  staying with Elder Powell but in a new sector. In our district are two other elders one who is gringo and one latino. It is a little interesting taking nightly reports as there is absolutely no signal in our house so we have to go to the roof to take a report and give a report.

The last week in El Dorado went fairly well although little success. We will see how it goes in this new sector.

For my birthday I bought a chocolate bar to eat but nothing much more. I will see about doing something. Due to carnival we have to stay inside today and tomorrow unless we have a set appointment. It was like that last year. Last year when carnival happened I was in Santo Domingo with Elder Paul which was my second area Today was pretty calm which I found surprising considering all the playing going on. I believe due to the rain and cold some didn't want to play here and might be playing in other parts. Just a precaution. We will see how the ward goes. It seems like they have good members. We have some services planned for this next week and hopefully we can gain the bishops confidence here. As for when I leave is May 23rd I believe. I do have some photos to send form the camera that my companion got. We took a lot of photos I will just send a few. 

Have a great week,

Elder Throop

Elections and Missed Appointments, Carnival Craziness

2/20/2017

Well that sounds great about your week. I am glad that the rugby practice went well for the kids. I hope they keep having a good time. This last week was a little hard for us as we had another week with appointments that fall and people that don't want to listen. The elections messed us up on Sunday as no investigators showed up (they had their elections here in Ecuador yesterday it wasn't too bad just everyone has to travel to were they were born usually so a lot were gone) so that was a little hard. Still we had some good experiences with investigators. One who is named Kevin is very great and seems to be progressing rather well. He has felt the Spirit greatly in the appointments and incidentally after someone attacked the Book of Mormon he realized it indeed is the word of God as he saw that it talks of Christ and not the devil. So hopefully he can progress well.

I am trying to stay animated and I am trying to work hard. My companion can be funny but sometimes that can be hard if we are trying to do something important and so I try insisting to focus just a bit more and work a bit harder. he has improved a lot in different aspects and that has been a great sign. I just hope to help him with taking more initiative.

This next week we get changes however we will get changes on Thursday as this Monday and Tuesday coming up is an event called carnival which is a big water fight. Just judging from our sector they will go crazy as there have already been people that are throwing others in pools of water and also there have been people that throw water balloons(including at my companion one time) and using something called karaoke or a sort of foam that comes from a canister to spray at people. So because of that our mission president will give us changes Thursday and we will have to travel (if changed) on Friday so we will see how that goes. We are hoping to work hard and end this week well. It can be hard and sad sometimes but it can be a great experience here as well.

I do hope to celebrate my birthday in one manner or another.

Elder Throop

Right before rain storm

panorama of city 

Studying

B&W with comp's new camera

Partial zone

resting?

hanging out

rain

Minion that comp wanted to take a picture of on Tyler's head

Appointments bad, New Investigator Good, Black Market Shopping

2/13/2017

Well this last week was pretty great for us. We had a tough time for awhile with just a lot of things. Still we tried our hardest and now we did some success. We had a lot of appointments fall which was rather unfortunate for us. Still we did find one new investigator this week which was pretty good for us.

This Sunday three people attended and one person of those three could possibly progress very well. His name is Kevin and he is 18 and he is doing pretty well. We were happy to see him come and we are hoping to help out other families. One families situation is a little sad as the husband well the man living with her as they were never married, moved to the coast to not come back.We haven't been able to teach them yet. So hopefully we can see what happened and help them out. We do have a lot of animate members here which is helping us out. We did receive a lot of referrals in church and received a referral from someone in Vargas  my last ward. So we did a lot of great things on Sunday which made the week a lot better after how hard it was.

Today we didn't too much. We went to this place that is basically a black market here. My companion bought a nice camera for 220 and it seems very good. They had a lot of items that are possibly stolen. They really can't control too much there. We went to a restaurant to eat some big burritos and went to a nearby art museum as my companion wanted to check it out. That was mainly today. We are trying to work hard and we are seeing some great results which helped a lot.

Well have a great week,
Elder Throop

Working to Be Obedient, Spiritual Boosts, Elder Montoya, Not Quite a 10

2/6/2017

Well this last week has been pretty good for us. We were able to find some new people although unfortunately on Sunday no one showed up to church which was rather disappointing. We are trying to see what we can do to help people progress and attend church. We are hoping we can be more diligent and more obedient. My companion sometimes has troubles taking the initiative in contacting and has a little trouble with the schedule although he has gotten a lot better in that point so that was great to see his progress. It just has been a hard thing to be a good example always and it can be tiring but I try my best and I try loving and serving him in the ways we can.

Thank you for sending the blessing (I sent him a copy of his patriarchal blessing last week.) I did see it was on the church site as I was looking a few weeks ago and it really did help. I realized a lot more things then I had seen before. I either did not remember parts or I wasn't ready for it at the time but I was able to more clearly understand and comprehend the blessings promised and so that indeed was a spiritual boost.

Another spiritual boost was the visit we had of Elder Montoya. He gave some great insights and a great testimony about missionary work. It helped me really comprehend that even if we might not see many attend or many news if we put forth the effort and we are diligent and obedient then we will receive great blessings of the Lord so that was a great explanation. Something else that really struck me was when one missionary asked a question about if people that violate seriously temple covenants can they receive forgiveness. He told a story that he was on the committee for the restoration of blessings and taking annulling sealings. He said that a difficult case came in and the seventies felt that it wasn't time for the restoration with the case and they sent it to the first presidency. The next week they received a letter from the First Presidency with that persons name saying it is time signed by President Monson. He said yes but we really need to repent and that was a powerful testimony of the atonement. We really enjoyed that. Then they chose two houses I believe to be inspected by the seventies wife and ours was one of those houses. Sister Christensen said it wasn't a ten but it wasn't an embarrassment and the wife said we were better prepared then others which was good. So that was interesting.

We have been working hard and hopefully with the adjustments with the schedule we can have more success in finding new people.

Today for our activity we went to a place called mr joy where there are slides etc. Maybe it sounds a little silly but it was fun. There was one thing that was a metal ball of sorts that they spun people in and then turned it upside down and all around while spinning quickly. I went in it and it did give me a little nausea the second time around so i Left to do other activities. That wasn't the main attraction but it was a fun thing to do.

Wish Daniel a happy birthday. I hope you enjoy that day. Have a nice week.
Elder Throop

Pic taken of Tyler and Elder Montoya

Missionary Broadcast, Changes to Schedule, Hard Appointments

1/30/2017

Well this last week was pretty interesting. We had a missionary broadcast that talked about some things that we had heard about before. They also announced some changes to the missionary schedule. The changes have to deal with studies, pday and training and also allowing more flexibility to missions. So that was an interesting change. We will see what changes specifically they make to our mission. I know our mission president will be planning to change some things and make sure everything adapts to us. So we will see what things happen exactly.

Our last week was a little hard with appointments. My companion was sick a few days so that slowed us down. Then when we got out to work we weren't able to teach that many people. That wasn't so much fun. Still we are working hard. We did find a new who was a referral of a member and that person seemed very interested. He didn't attend but was very open. His uncle is a member of the church so we are hoping to help him out. No one attended church which was sad. Still we are working on it. We are hoping that one family can get married so that the wife can get baptized. She should have left to he coast by now and should get an important document for her marriage. Still we have to wait to see.W e do have a big hope for her.

I am getting along well with my companion. I am just trying to help that he can be a bit more obedient with the schedule and more diligent. It has been a little hard but I am working on it. I am hoping we can be diligent with contacts and helping people out. My companion is funny and we are trying to help everyone.he is very animated and encouraged to do the work. I think he just struggles to be completely obedient just do to previous companions. It isn't too bad it is just small things. We had interviews with our mission president last week as well and that was cool. Nothing too much. We are just trying to work so we can find news and get people to attend.

The changes that they announced also changed the key indicators that we focus on now. So that was a new change. We focus now on baptisms confirmations with a baptismal date that attended those that attended and new investigators.We will have to see how that works. That is everything form this week,
Stay safe love you all,
Elder Throop

Shoes are Destroyed, Powerful Testimony, Enjoying My Time

1/23/2017

This week is pretty fun. Elder Powell is from Ellensburgh Washington but moved to Oregon (his family did) he has just over  a year in the mission and he is pretty funny. We have gotten together pretty well so far. I do see he has just a slight issue with obedience but I am helping him. It isn't too major but I am trying to help out nonetheless so that he can get even better.

This last week went pretty amazing for us. It rained hard a few of the days and my shoes are already very destroyed so it can be fun. I can walk for awhile with dry feet and then the water enters bit by bit until I get soaked feet then I don't care. Yesterday and today were actually very beautiful days.

We had some great success finding new investigators We contacted a referral and taught them that led us to finding a family of three. That was really cool.The ward is doing very great and we still have received referrals and we have found new investigators. Unfortunately the people that attended are from two different families and both are unmarried, however there is good news there as one family called familia de la cruz are really close to marriage. They should be able to get married this change and hopefully baptized.

I am trying to stay focused and keep working hard. It just is sad to think how close the end has come as there are lots of great experiences that I have. One example from last week is when we went to the new family we went with the member that gave us the referral and he shared a powerful testimony. when he shared it the spirit filed the room powerfully as he shared his own conversion story. It affected the family greatly as they felt the power of the Holy Ghost and mentioned "Oh wow brother why did you never share us that experience before?" He said he had never felt to share before until we asked him if there was anyone he knew that could receive the gospel. He mentioned them and so we went. That was an amazing experience. There are many miracles here. Today we went to buy items etc so nothing too big. I will send pictures. I hadn't gotten to it as I didn't have my card reader with me.

The ward here is one of the better ones the bishop has helped us so frequently that it surprises greatly my companion. It is one of the best wards that I have had and has a great potential. They called a new ward mission leader as the last one left for over a month and showed no sign of returning.

Hopefully things move forward with the Lord's help.

I really am enjoying it here. Just keep encouraging the other family members and helping them. I love you all and hope you have a good week

Love you all,
Elder Throop

Elder Powell

Found New Investigators, New Companion, Still Not Trying to Think of Home, The Countdown Has Begun!

1/16/2017


Well this last week went pretty well for us. We were able to find some new investigators. One of them is a young man who speaks English and founded his own church He does seem rather interested. The other is a family of two that are unmarried and very Catholic. They might not progress but we did have some success there and we did find some more potential investigators.

Elder Wilson was doing extremely well and seemed a lot more encouraged. My companion got changed. I don't know why he left but I know it is part of the Lord´s plan. He went to Guranda and he is receiving another gringo. I have a new companion right now His name is Elder Powell He lived in the center of Washington for awhile. He has just over a year in the mission. That was a pretty interesting change. I hope to help him out and then I am not sure what will happen still but we are working hard. He seem pretty cool for now.

We are hoping to find new investigators this week and we hope that we can get some people to progress. We did have two people attend but they are unmarried. I do feel we will have more success but it has been a little rough these last weeks for us. I am hoping the member help will enable us to be able to have success.

That sounds great with everything at house. I am doing well enough and I just try not to think too much about home instead I try to focus on the work. I had a fun time with my last companion. Today we mainly were in the terminal and then we talked a bit but nothing else. There were a lot of people changed around which was interesting but yeah everything is more calm. I hope you guys have a great week, love you all,

Elder Throop

*Mom's Note
After this last change and looking at the new year calendar, I can calculate when Tyler should be getting home.  The outgoing missionaries always have their farewell dinner at the Mission Home on Monday nights.  This last one was on the 16th.  They have rotations every six weeks, so the next ones will be on 2/27, 4/10, and then 5/22 which should be Tyler's farewell.  He should be getting on a plane the next morning and be home on the 23rd of May.  It's hard to believe he only has two more changes after this one and he'll be on his way home.  The Countdown Has Begun!

Sick Companion, Raining A Lot is Hard on Shoes, Learning A Lot (But I think He's sounding Trunky Already)

1/9/2017


Well that sounds like fun at home. I did realize one phone call left. I think the last one happens about 9 days before I go home which is crazy to think about. (*Mom's Note.  This was in response to my note to him that he has one more Skype Call with us on Mother's Day)  This week was interesting for us. my companion has been rather sick so the nurses had us go to the hospital to find out what was wrong and had him do a poop test. They found out that he has a bad bacteria which incidentally is the worse one you can get as it can cause many other problems. They have given him some medication so he is doing better. He has been having a hard time recently spiritually and with the work. He had some talks with our mission president and a few other people but now he has his focus and knows his purpose better. Yeah things are a lot calmer now. It has been raining pretty hard these last few days and my shoes really aren't helping anymore. Still I keep working and I am enjoying it. This last week went pretty great for us. We found some new investigators that actually seemed interested in hearing us. We still haven't had anyone attend yet which is disappointing. The hard part is finding news and getting people to attend. I am not sure what is causing that. Still we are working hard with that. This Sunday we receive changes and I expect that I will stay here but you never know. We don't know if anyone will get baptised soon but we are working hard. We have had more success and the ward does seem excited to help us out

My companion has progressed a lot in teaching and spanish which is great to see. He has learnt a lot and I am happy to see that progress. This week for pday we didn't really get to do anything too interesting as it is the last pday this change. I am just hoping we have a great week and that we can have success. I have learnt greatly here and it has been a great experience. I am not trying to think about home and I have enjoyed a lot here despite how hard it can be. I hope you have a great week and everything goes well.
Elder Throop

New Year's Festivals Makes It Hard to Contact People, Giving Talks Since No One Showed Up At Church, Getting a Little Frustrated Here

1/2/2017


Well I hope you guys had a great week and a happy new year. Our week was pretty cool. We had splits with the zone leaders which was cool. We also had splits with the district leader. I think it is to help out with Elder Wilson and it was a great experience. It certainly helped his Spanish a bit so he is improving with that. This last week was a little hard as a lot of people weren't interested due to the festivals that they were having. Still we were able to help some people and we found a new investigator that seems interested. I am just surprised how hard it has been to find people here and how few investigators were left behind for us. Still we are trying to work on it it just has been pretty stressful sometimes. The members are willing to help we just have to wait for everyone to come back as everyone left for Christmas and New Years. This just is not a great time for us.

New years Eve we passed fine. We couldn't leave except for set appointments. We still had fun as we played soccer as a zone. That was fun. We hung out with the district leader a bit then we came back to our house to avoid everything. There were very few people in church. Us the missionaries got to bless and pass the sacrament to the few people there. I got to give another talk on faith as no one was left to give talks apparently. That was fun.

I am doing very well with Elder Wilson. I just have to try to be patient a lot. It has been extremely hard here, and sometimes I can be a little frustrated. Still I have been able to see a great progress in him and that he is doing better. That has been good to see. e is very funny and likes to learn a lot. He has progressed a lot and has a great potential. This Monday we went to the teleferico and we made it to the top. Although my shoes are definitely not meant for hiking(I don´t have hiking boots) I have some pictures of that., That was awesome just we went really fast so I was a little tired. Still it was a lot of fun. I hope you guys do well and can't wait to hear how you are doing.

Elder Throop

Pics from trip to Panecillo and Pichincha at the top

selfie

On the way up

On the way up

District (missing 2 Elders)

Tyler and Elder Wilson

Feeling pretty cold!

Tyler's Arizona style pose (Coat but shorts)

Windy and cold

Sign at the top

Made it