The Rosander Family minus Elder Rosander

Stanley's new sister was Baptized by her new father "Rosey" Rosander

 

I'm glad that the baptism and adoption went well. I'm glad Joey had a great time.  Where is dad going?   You asked me if I have to take two showers a day.  Yes I have to shower twice a day and I still feel gross all of the time!   When I got here they had 0 baptism dates and 2 investigators progressing.  I spent all last week searching and I will do the same this week. We had 0 in church this week :(  This area needs a lot of work so I will do what I can.   I get to go to the temple like every 3 months or so.  I liked the shirt you sent for my birthday thanks!

Dear Jude and Shaina: hola como estan? I hope everything is alright there in Hurricane. I love you and hope you enjoy your new family because you can not change! I am excited to have a brother and I hope I can teach you something!

 

I live in a city called Tres Rios its a lot like the states its really developed has a huge mall and everything but I work in a dangerous area for that we don't live there but where We work is called san Diego.. the county is called Los Voses and the state is called Cartago. Our mission president is very loving but very strict and direct the other day he chewed us out for being easy on our investigators and being more like visiting teachers! He said we need to repent and invite our investigators to do the same. He said we need to be more direct and strongly worded with our investigators and then give them the option to chose God or Satan. Because the people here are very religious but don't take time to study or anything they all believe in God and are God fearing people but don't do anything with their lives so he told us to be very direct and strict with love.

I got my stitches out and they said it's just some disease I can't remember what they said. I have a paper at home but its not cancerous so I wasn't really interested in the paper.
I can't remember what it's called. But it's not anything it's just something that grew black dots idk. It's not anything bad its kinda like a mole I think.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They broadcast conference here to every chapel and the ward watches all 5 sessions on a projector because they don't have it showing on T.V. The only ways to watch it are from internet. I would love to talk to the missionaries there in Utah.. they have no idea how easy they have it. They don't have Easter here. they have something called La Semana Santa the sacred week. It's actually a Catholic holiday but the Catholic influence is soo strong here that everybody celebrates it. They take a week and a half out of school and the Catholics' dress up every night in a white robe and walk down the street carying a cross.. and everybody has crosses in their front yards and they don't eat meat or something.. it's weird but yeah they don't really have Easter this is the closest thing they have. I don't know the results of the skin test yet I will have to go there tomorrow I think (They are checking for skin cancer). My new area is great we have about 10 baptisms set up for next month so we will see what happens!

  Just a little story that was sent to me from the mission president!

March 31st, 2015 (InsideCostaRica.com) An early morning earthquake that struck two kilometers north of Vara Blanca, Heredia, produced more than 70 aftershocks, according to the National Seismological and Volcanological Observatory (OVSICORI).

 The initial quake, measuring 4.6-magnitude on the Richter scale, struck at 3:09 a.m. Aftershocks continued until 5:17 a.m., according to OVSICORI.

 Significant shaking was reported in various sectors of Heredia, as well as in Naranjo, La Garita, El Coyal and Poas in Alajuela, and the western San Jose suburbs of Escazu and Santa Ana.
 There were no reports of injury or damage.

 

 Happy Easter from Costa Rica

 

2-24-15- Today my friend Commora from New Zealand is going home she is a member but is living with a family here. We went and had a little party at her house.

2-25-15- Today we went to san Jose another 4 hour bus ride.. to get my finger prints. I felt really cool though because I was the oldest missionary there. So I had to translate for the new missionaries.. I also met some Chinese people that only spoke English.. they weren't that amused when I tried to speak Chinese but I translated Spanish to English and helped them becuase they couldn't understand Spanish then we went to the church and my companion made me play soccer against these guys to get references I was supprised when I got here how terrible the players are here.. they have good footwork but they don't understand soccer..

2-26-15 Our investigator asked us if he could pay tithing with money that he stole.. haha the people here are weird!! We visited Eermano Cascantes house he has an aquarium with a perannah and a bunch of other fish. also he has like every single exhotic fruit in his back yard. There is this fruit that cures cancer and headaches but it tastes kinda nasty it is called Noni. He had coco like the stuff you make chocolate out of..in the picture that is the thing that my companion is holding if you suck on the seeds it tastes really good!! but if you eat them it's bitter. By mashing the seeds and letting them sit is how you make cocoa. He also had pineapple, mango and others..

2-27-15 Today was the birthday of Elder Pratt. they smash eggs on you when it is your birthday... great I can't wait until April haha. I have a ton of stories for this day but I don't have time to write them all but today was really interesting..

2-28-15 We worked hard!

3-1-15 I had a laser pointer while we were eating with a member and I was shining it arround and she was freaking out because she thought it was a sign from God or a messanger angel.. hah this day was really fun too but I don't have a ton of time to write..

3-2-15 We tought a family in the ward how to make pb an j and they were astonished and thought is was sooooo good haha the people here...

3-3-15 Today we woke up early and played soccer in the morning at the stadium... their professional players play there but for some reason anybody can play there.. weird but it was really cool!!
Also that picture of penut butter, the story is I asked Sonia when she left to go to Price Mart to get me chucky peanut butter and she came back with this... price mart is cheap though these two things together costs 10 dollars.

 

 

     we went to Florencia this week where their used to be missionaries but they were taken out.. there is a lot of potential there but it is pretty far from our area.  They had an activity at the church where they learned how to do the Rubik's cube.

Some family wanted us to bless their restaurant with success. I wasn't really sure if I could do that.. so we didn't we just said a normal prayer.  
I spoke a little bit of Japanese here and the kids go crazy.. it is pretty funny.  I will have like 30 kids surrounding me asking me to say stuff in Japanese or in English. 
 It rained really hard and we received a big lesson on planning!  We didn't plan and so we were out in the rain a lot trying to figure out where to go.  
We ate some pizza hut!  Oh man you don't know how much I want to eat pizza.  They have pizza here but it's different I just want one slice of Little Ceasers! 
 One of our investigators said he knows the church is true but he doesn't want to get baptized and he won't come to church... I don't understand why!!

The snow looks really fun! I wish I was there! We're opposites I can't wait to get back to the cold weather haha.

 

Also here are some pictures of what I eat everyday.
The peanut butter here is so expensive.. I never knew how much I loved peanut butter I never used to eat it remember? But now its a gift to have it, it costs 7 dollars for that little thing.. also those green things are oranges ha-ha lemons are green oranges are green everything is green and avocados.  That root looking think is called yucca when it is cooked it kind of tastes like a potato.
We went to a zoo for p day and it was really fun.  It's actually just a nature habitat they just let most of the animls run free.  It was really weird because in the states there are alot of precations,.. but  not here!

 

2-3-15  We talked to Joseph today, the guy from England and he told us he was Islamic. That's going to be different...

2-4-15  We visited Kleaver he is a member but his parents won't let him go to church.

2-5-15  Today Testigos de Jeovah... Jehovah's Witnesses slammed us with material... they gave us a new Bible and a bunch of studying material.. they tried to tell us that Jesus was a witness of Jehovah.. and I was like yeah and so are we and so is the Pope.. when in reality we know that Jesus was a Jew.  Then he created the church of Jesus Christ.  One thing I admire about Testigos is that they utelize thier members incredibly well.  Almost every member everyday walks with their Bible and teaches everyone they come across.

2-6-15  I learned to utelize a plan familial misional.  My companion thinks it's a waist of time but I am convinced that if we can utelize the families in our barrios to do missionary work we can have greater success.  We do spend a lot of time visiting members but it's like putting money in stocks..

2-7-15  We baptized Reina and Misiel today.  It was a really cool experience to have a wedding and a baptism at the same time.

2-8-15  I had the chance to confirm Reina and Misiel members of the church and help give them the gift of the Holy Ghost.

2-9-15  Today we played table tennis.. my first time in a long time!! I was so excited.. one kid in my district is pretty good... but pretty good just isn't good enough haha jk.  We had a sleepover with the elders de pital becuase tomorrow we have a zone conference and we have to leave at 3:00 in the morning.

2-10-15  Today we went to Tejar Alajuela Para reunion de zona.  Our president is having health issues so we have a substitute and he had interviews with our district for some reason.  He really chopped off the head of my trainer for not doing the things he is supposed to.. then he told me that I'm progressing realy well, I just need to get on my companion for not helping me and not showing me how to do things and he told him to be a better example to me.. haha hopefully he will listen to him.  In zone meeting they talked about a ton of stuff!!  I don't want to write it all down you can read it in 2 years but the biggest thing that I am really excited for well two things is that 1. Go take back every book of mormon from the investigators that are not progressing and also the old investigators.. oooshh I can't wait because it will hasten their desire and help them understand that these things have great meaning and we cannnot be slothful.  Then we will ask them if they will recieve the missionaries, will you read it every day, and will you live the teachings in it.  If they answer no to any of these questions take the book.. if it's yes let them keep it  2. Is when the mission splits I will probably be a trainer because we will get double the missionary so almost every missionary will have a leadership responsibility or be a trainer.  Anyway love you guys and take this as a commitment.   Think about what it would be like if the bishop took your book of mormon and bible because you are not reading it like the lord desires... sometimes you don't know what you have untill its gone!

It's Raining, It's pouring!!

This reminds me of Costa Rica!!

 

1-27-15  Today Jose had doubts about the testimony of the Book of Mormon.  So we taught him the power of prayer.
Somebody put the twightlight series books on tape on my usb.. and i cant get them off!! so I just have the whole series on my flashdrive and they won't erase..

1-28-15  We met a guy from England today well he is from Costa Rica but he got sent to England and then he got deported from England so he is back here.. he has had some problems with drugs but now he is a drug counseler and is in charge of a boys home but it only has like 6 people in it. It is fun because he is really receptive plus I get to speak in Spanish!

1-29-15  It's been raining 3 days strait I haven't seen the sun.. what a great thing the rain is. I don't know how it's even possible.

1-30-15  We met 2 gringo girls that speak English que dicha! They don't know Spanish... I remember those days!  We went shopping at a store that is owned by chinese people... I need karisa here to translate.

1-31-15  In the middle of a lesson a guy grabbed my chair and threw me over to the mirror and just started cutting my hair.. haha it looks pretty good though!
Also there is a creepy mentally ill girl that always yells I hate you really loud at us whenever we pass by.

2-1-15  Fast Sunday is weird here they have to set a limit of people that can bear their testimonies because last fast Sunday was 2 hours long.. this kid here got his mission call to Costa Rica.. how crazy!  He will be here about when it's my birthday.. he says he hopes I am his trainer!  We have changes today and Sister Cifuentus got changed and Elder Cordoba. We now have Hermana Velasquez and Elder Acuña.

2-2-15 we went shopping today and then had a fiesta for Sister Velasquez because it's her first day here.

 

1-21-15- Today we did splits I went with Elder Cordoba a missionary from Honduras we talked to Esbin in Mecco and he showed us his gun... it was weird because nobody has guns here... but it was just a little revolver.. and we talked to the investigators of the hermanas and they said their house rent was only 60 colones so 120 dollars a month but their house is kinda eh... but so are all the houses in Costa Rica we had to talk to them becuse they were going to get baptized but the mom abuses the kid so they don't want to get married again a long story...

1-22-15- We went to talk to Asuncion the guy with the acordian and he talked about tithing for an hour and a half he was really getting on my nerves because he was saying how he would never think of paying tithing but he wanted our church to buy him a car so he could work further from his house because he is a mariachi. But he doesn't understand... we taught Jose a guy I found with Elder Adams a young missionary. We taught him about the restoration and he asked us if he could switch religions from Catholic to us, so we planed a baptism date. so we will work with him.

1-23-15- Reina and Missiel can't get baptized this week because of their marrage and its hard becaue they are from Nicaragua. Their daughter was sick and threw up everywhere... their house was really nasty beacuse they don't have the stuff to really clean it here. It smelled so bad!

1-24-15 We went to Mecco again and one family we found had a rabbit as a pet... but it was like a cat they just let it run around their house and when we prayed in the middle of the prayer everybody decided to say their own prayer I guess it was a weird experience for me because I didn't know what was going on but I guess that's just their religion. After that we made tortillas and ate dinner with Gabby and Greiven... a really funny recent convert couple in our ward.

1-25-15- 2 Greengos came to our ward today. we went to Asuncion again and again he would not stop talking about titing and how the Lord would help him with a car and we have money in the states why don't we get our parents to help him out and everything.. and we have nice churches why don't we meet in houses and use the money to help him. Life's hard here being 2 greengos everybody just wants money from us! Reina and Misiel had a baby today! so they didn't come to church!! when you have a baby you have to take the bus for a half hour and then walk to the hospital beacuse there are not taxies in the middle of the night.. how hard!

1-26-15- We went to the waterfalls today they are on the side of a valcano my camera broke because I slipped while taking a picture and it fell... i'm trying to repair it but if I can't I don't know what I will do. We found some vines that we could swing from like Tarzan it was really fun!

It has been said that history turns on small hinges, and so do our lives. Decisions determine destiny. But we are not left unaided in our decisions. If you want to see the light of heaven, if you want to feel the inspiration of Almighty God, if you want to have that feeling within your bosom that your Heavenly Father is guiding you, then follow the prophets of God. When you follow the prophets, you will be in safe territory."-- President Monson

In this crazy world we live in I feel very strongly that our only safety is in following the prophets i try to focus on this when teaching investigators. It seems that outside the church and outside of their teachings, people just get lost and truth gets distorted and people lose their way. The things the world teaches and what it wants us to believe is almost almost oppositeto what the prophets tell us and teach us. We MUST follow the prophets or the world will lead us astray. anyways love you and have a safe week!

 Someone's house 

 Pictures from around town

 A flower by the river

 View of the town

 

1-13-15 we meet some amish greengos.. it was weird i thought they were polygamists.
1-14-15 we ate allot of pancakes
1-15-15 we found a golden family... they are really interested in our message but its hard to teach them because it is a family of girls and their dad works like all day.. and we cant enter the house without a male presence.
1-16-15 we had to wake up at 3 again for the 3rd time this week. because we had to go to tejar alajuela for a zone conference
1-17-15 we had a baptism of manuel today the guy we found in the bus!
1-18-15 we found a parrott and so we taught it to say stuff and blow kisses.
1-19-15 today was p day we did nothing but clean haha
Everybody in this life has their challenges and difficulties. That is part of our mortal test. The reason for some of these trials cannot be readily understood except on the basis of faith and hope because there is often a larger purpose which we do not always understand. Peace comes through hope. Know this week that through your trials there is a larger purpose that we may not always understand, but that the Lord, who is all knowing and who has an eternal vision, knows and understands! Trust him and have peace through his hope! ¡abrazo sus desafíos y problemas! podemos aprender mucho de nuestras problemas. es difícil aveces pero con Jesucristo todo es posible

Rely on Me

I can't really remember what I did this week because i didn't bring my journal but this week we had a check of the month where we got together with the president and the other new missionaries and trainers and uhmm....... we went to a tourist place called Fortuna and everybody there spoke English... I was having a hayday!!! also my companion went on divisions to a place called Pital to do an interview so i was in my area for like 2 days with a companion that new about the same amount of spanish as me and only has been here a month longer and didn't know anything about the area so it was really hard because i had to do everything and we didn't know verry much spanish but I think it was a little better because it was more focused on the spirit. beacuse we couldn't speak the language we had to rely on the spirit and thats what helped us. This week I learned to rely on the lord and not worry so much on the results. Noah didn't build an ark because the lord said build an ark... he didn't run around worrying about the floods. He did exactly like the lord said and everything worked out. alot of the times i think we worry about how we are supposed to regress to live with God again.. but we must remember that God didn't just give us a goal he gave us a path. all we have to do is follow it!

No se preocupen pensando si tendremos éxito; por supuesto que lo tendremos, sin duda alguna. El Señor nos ha enviado a la tierra en la época de la cosecha y Él no espera que fracasemos; Él no ha llamado a nadie a esta obra para fracasar. Lo que espera es que tengamos éxito”.
“Nuestra labor será ligera y fácil de sobrellevar si dependemos del Señor y ponemos esmero en ella.

It tells us that if we have a vision of what we are about and we know the "why" behind our work, then we will have the motivation to accomplish anything, regardless of how difficult. It is all about REAL INTENT! So know your purpose and always ask yourself what the "why" is behind all you do and you will always be doing the right work for the right reason.

Beautiful River for a Baptism!

New years is crazy here! everybody puts their super nice stereos outside and blasts music! They do a ton of fire works because there are no restrictions. woke up at like 3 and they were still going!! I gave my pillow case to a blind guy because I still don't have a pillow and his was really nasty! It was originally blue but it is black now. plus he is blind so he will never know its a cheetah polka dot. One of the sisters investigators got baptized in the river on Saturday and it was really cool. Here are a few pictures.

 

 

Christmas time

12-26-14 today we visited alexis, one of our investigators.. i never knew this but he was a reference from the hermanas... because they couldn't meet with him anymore.... because he killed a guy hahah. but he told us he didn't want to meet with us anymore because his pastor said that if he did he would be damned. and so we went to barrio la cruz and like 4 of our visits fell through so we prayed for the opportunity to teach and we got one! we walked up the street probably from our house to the movie theatres and we got 7 new investigators!! that's unheard of! but one of the investigators is a real character ahah he can play every instrument possible and when we first went to their shack he was just standing there in only a towel playing the accordion and i was videotaping and i was just hoping his towel wouldn't fall off. but this day was super funny because right after we went to visit reina and misiel who are going to get baptized on the 17th and i couldn't stop laughing because the whole lesson misiel the dad. was trying to get the infant to suck on his nipple.. also whenever we walk through the park its like a murder scene because there is blood everywhere. there are fight and a lot of them every night.

12-27-14 today we helped our cook paint their house but it was really scary becuase they had one of those painters platforms because their house in like 50 ft high but it didn't have good support because just everything here is dangerous and crappy but it was fun! then we went to mecco wich is a verry poor area even for costa rica and i played soccer with the kids to challenge them to come to church but i acted like i had never heard of the sport before. and so they were supprised when i beat them.

12-28-14 today we had 10 people in church! it was a great blessing
we have a lot of marc here wich are less actives and recent converts. and while i was planing for teaching them this is what i found:
that the first step is faith- you need to have faith in jesus christ, the atonement god, prophets, all that... and you need to hear the lessons for wich to base your faith upon
second is concrete faith or knowledge- this step is where you test your faith. for example we are the only church that i know of that if you put your time to learn about the teachings of Christ through the bible, book of mormon, other lituraters ect. and then ask god, the same god we all believe in if it is true.. you can reacieve a spiritual witness that it it the truth. this is when your faith becomes knowledge
third is repentance- this is a step of action where we if we want are able to repent of our sins
fourth- baptism- this is where you make a covenant that you will always remember and follow Jesus Christ
fifth enduring to the end- this is the most important step because a lot of people. in costa rica esspecially believe that believing is enough. that getting baptized is enough. but as we learn through the bible that we need to follow Jesus Christ. siempre (always). we are not entitled to glory. we are however entitled to the opportunity to recieve glory. this is what most people don't understand. faith without works is dead. blessings are promised to us but only after we do all we can do.

here are some pictures of tamales a super famous meal here in costa rica

heres a drunk guy.. they are everywhere here becuase that bottle costs like 2 bucks way cheap haha so we always steal their alcohol and go dump it out somewhere. they are always just passed out on the street

here is a speacial mcdonalds treat haha and here is me with an acordian the money and a volcano about 20 miles from our house

 

here were my christmas gifts... some from my companion some from our investigators or the familes in the ward but i got a ton of candies from geepers.. that is a word that means like super creeper loves greengos and only takes lessons becuase she is in love with you. but it was still nice to get a gift even from them haha