One year Already?!

Well it's official... Elder Chase Coy Stewart has been out 1 whole year this Thursday, January 19th 2012.

WOW, big week last week, and a big week this next week CRAZY.

So just to give you a little low down of evrything that happened. we will
start with last monday

MONDAY 9th- Pday today. We were going to play golf this day, but other
elders talked us out of it so we can play this next week(today). So instead
we played a little basketball, and then we were going to go play tennis,
andthey told me it opened at 3, but we ran there and they dont open until 5
or 6 every night, so we cant play o well. Then we just had some great
family home evenings that night

TUESDAY 10th- Well we were going to district meeting on a bus, an we missed
a call from a member lady in the ward, ususally she calls us with news, or
stuff like that. But we didnt think much of that. Then the zone leaders get
on the bus, and tell us the news that our ward mission leader Obispo
Gonzalez had died. That sucked to hear. But after a few phone calls,
we found out it wasnt Obispo Gonzalez that died, it was actually an
OLD member. But it was still sad because it was Brother Gonzalez, and
me and my comp were the only people that visisted them, and we did
every week. They were just like my grandparents here in Paraguay. He
helped me out alot, he will be missed. I just feel bad for his wife...

Photo's January 2012!!!

O what a week

Well, I am officially very tired, but what can you do right. The mission drains you physically, but fills you mentally!!!! I love it

Long but good week today, i might as well just explain everything that happened right. I will just start with today.

Today (pday) we woke up and got ready at 5 o clock. Then at 545 we left the house to go meet with other elders at a grocery store. My companion went with elder lund and clark, and I went with the zone leaders and the other district leader from our zone. We went to office, and had capacitacion for leaders until 2, and finally got back with my comp at 330. Man i was pretty tired from sitting all day, but we went and did groceried, and now are emailing. It has been the shortesxt and craziest pday of my mission. But also it was the best meeting I have ever been to. We learned so much, and I am so excited to better myself as a missionary and a district leader.

Yesterday we had the confirmations of Guadalupe and Sabrina!!!!

Saturday we had alot of lessons, and dinner with some members to celebrate New years eve, and then we were woken up at 12 with fireworks going off everywhere

friday we had the baptisms of guadalupe and sabrina. We were planning to have them start at 7 o clock. we get there at 615, and go and turn on the font to fill it up the rest of the way. (/it was already half way full). Then we start playing a little piano. Then at 645 or so, sabrina and her dad show up. We then go and check the font and there is no water coming out of the tap. We check the rest of the church and there is no water at the church whatsoever. Finally everyone shows uyp at 7 or so, and we have to start bucketing in water. But then the pastore dad starts saying that we need to do the baptism of his daughter now, because he has to go to the hospital (dyalisis). So to make the story short, we had to do 2 baptism, first guadalupe, which my comp got his 1st baptism yayyyy. But while we were doing her service, there was men bringing in buckets of water. And then finally her service was done, and we started the next one because there was finally enough water to baptize the older bigger girl. It was a stressful day, but we did it. satan tried as hard as he could to stop the work, but it didnt happen, we won!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tuesday, I had a great birthday with district meeting, then a great lunch with hermana betty. Then we worked our tails off, and finished with cake and soda with Familia franco

Last monday, i had the best pday of my life with talking to my family, and having a district activity, and climbing cerro lambare

Great, and busy week, but we are ready to make this next week even better

I love this work, and I love all of you guys

Love Elder Chase Coy Stewart

I Love Christmas!

Hola familia

This week was a little hard, with a little rain, and some big soccer games going on. But, we did alot of work like we usually do. Man my comp likes to work alot, so that always makes me happy. Hahaha, want to hear something funny, the more i am with my companion, the more and more that he reminds me of Scott Schwab. Ya, imagine being with someone the same as scott schwab for 24/7, ya it is pretty much the best life ever. Haha, me and my companion get along so great!!!

We had a setback this week when we thought we were going to have a baptism of one of our best investigators, but he started hiding from us, and his family started to lie to us, so it was just a big headache, and looking back, i am just kind of sad that we wasted so much time on him, when we could of spent that time on those people that were honestly waiting for us......... o well what can you do.

But we have some more incredible investigators like Luis Hara(a man that is about 60, with a sweet mustache, and lions(well they are dogs that look like lions) and we call him luis the lion tamer hahaha. But he started from just wanting to visit with us, to saying that our church is good, to starting to defend our church and rag on the catholic church, to wanting to be baptized in January......ya he is a stud, especially because he always gives us mangos and popcorn and water when we arethere.

Then we have sabrina sosa, a 15 year old girl. Her dad is a member and was the sunday school president, but then he and his wife started going through a nasty seperation after being sealed in the temple. But he stpped coming to church because his wife would come and he didnt want it to be awkward. But anyway, his wife just moved, so he started coming to church again, and his daughter too, so now we are going to baptize her.

Yay, i am so excited for christmas. I just think that we will be eating quite a bit this year yummmmm....... for christmas atleast. We already have atleast 2 dinner apointments on christmas eve and christmas hahaha. And plus i am sure that everyone will feed us those days. aya

But, I absolutley love being a missionary!!!!!! And what better way to celebrate christmas than serving the lord as a missionary..... There is no place i would rather be (in this time of my life atleast). But i wish you all a marry marry christmas and a happy new year

Love you all

Love Elder CHase Coy Stewart

Pictures!!!

pictrs of me and my comp, and me and an investigators parrott, and us petting a cow, the cow was like eating me, or just licking all the salt off my arm

me on a super unsafe sweet bridge, a couple pics of how it looks when we teach lessons, always outside on some ghetto chairs, with clothes hanging all around, and me and our neighbors parrott

picture of a horse and wagon, you see that alot here, usually they are selling fruits, or meat, or bread. This one was selling fruit, it just goes through the street just yelling what it is selling so pèople can come out and buy it another picture of me, me making some empanadas with the salinas family, and me and my comp, and me waling through alittle jungle

Ya, I officially miss the snow

Wow, we have had a couple good 100+ degree days here lately, including today. I aint the biggest fan of the heat at all. But what can you do, I am getting used to it. And it is especially nice coming home to air condition and fans. Hahaha.

Man, everything is coming great as far as the missionary work. Me and my comp are working harder and longer than I ever have, and yet have a blast at the same time. It feels great to come home, and plan, and then just fall right asleep. It just feels right. But right now, we just arent seeing the fruits of our labors. Alot of work, alot of news, alot of investigators, but the baptisms just arent coming.....YET. We are working pretty darn hard towards them, so lets see if they come soon, I know they will

We had stake conference yesterday. It was pretty good. Presidente Callan and his wife spoke, and also the new temple president herem and his wife. We had one of our investigators there. Half way through he said he had to go to the bathroom, but he just left. He just had a bad accident at work, and destroyed his hand pretty bad. So i think he went home because his hand was hurting pretty bad. I just felt bad, because it is like an hour or more walk from the chapel where we were at to his house. But hopefully we will be baptizing him in the next 2 weeks. He might be going to argentina to his moms house so he can heal a little better, but if not, he is prepared for his baptism..... :)

December is a busy month here. Specially because it is the start of summer. They have christmas, new year, and every catholic country has a virgin. The virgin here is called virgin of Caaucupe. So here on the 8th of December, tons and tons of catholics go to some place, and then they start walking a ton of distance to Caaucupe, to go worship this Idol, and ask her for blessings. It is wonderful to see how mych they do for their beliefs, and they have so much faith, but it is sad to see that their faith and beliefs are in the wrong thing. It is so hard to teach a hard core catholic here, because their parents were catholics, and their parents....etc. etc... So whenever we talk to them they always say, ya we are the pretty much the same as you guys, expect you guys dont believe in the virgen, and we say, well we believe in her, and we know she was a wonderful person(mother of Jesus) but, we just believe in the bible, and the bible tells us not to worship her. And then they just say, well .............. Ya it never goes well. But my least favorite thing is when they say, ya we believe in the virgen, but atleast we believe in the correct God. You guys worship another God, and you guys also worship Jose Smith.

It is pretty sad to see all of the false rumors here in Paraguay, but there is a part in the introduction oif the book of mormon, or maybe in D and c. I dont remember. But it says that Joseph smith (and the church) will be heard for good and bad throughout the whole world. And we see both here. But everytime i hear somebody rag on our church, it just builds my testimony more and more. It gives me more and more motivation to work harder than ever, and help alot of these lost sheeps.

But just like I say, I love this work. Its hard at times, but if it wasnt hard, it wouldnt be worth it. There has to be an opposition in all things. I know this work is true, I know thatthis chuch is true. And i know that I will be with all of you guys forever, especially with grandpa durfee :)

Christmas must be something more

Wow, can u believe how fast this year has gone. I cant. It is almost Christmas already, how crazy is that. I am so ready for christmas, I gotthe best companion ever, and I cant wait to talk tothegood old fam.
O ya, by the way, for changes, my comp went to a far away area in Ciudad del Este. His new area is called Hernandarius. He is actually with my daddy Elder Faas, so he is with his grandpa right now, how funnyis that.
But i stayed herein Ybate, and i am staying as District Leader, andI am actually training again. My sons name is Elder Allphin from Atlanta Georgia. he is the best. We are going to get along so well. We work so great together, this last week, we worked our tails off, with the highest success, spirit felt, and numbers than ever before in my mission, we got 13 progressing investigators with 8with a baptismal date. Ourmain problem right now is getting the investigators to church, it is always hard but we will do it.We will be having alot of success together, i can feel it.
I recieved a couple of christmas presents early. I recieved some convert letters. One from the family Martinez in tres bocas, and they said they are all super active, and they are trying to get their dad to be baptized. He is coming to church every week withthem, so i dont knowwhat is stopping him from getting baptized. But, if he gets baptized, that means I will be here in one year when they get sealed as a family for always and for ever. I love that, so please pray and fast for Sebastian Martinez so thathe gets baptized, and then they will get sealed as a family forever and for alwayts.
Also today i recieved a letter from Patricia Goiburu, who was one of our baptisms in Barcequillo. She said she is super active and she went and did baptism for the dead for her first time. I am so proud oif her.
Although times are tough, whenever i have something like that happen, i just knoiw why i am here, and it makesme feel good to be able to of brought the gospel into these peop`le lives.
Love you guys
Love Elder Chase Coy Stewart