Elder Vanderlinden - Uruguay Montevideo Mission

This little guy is a Carpincho!

These are my Zone Leaders and some of my best friends!
Elder  Mitchell (left) Elder Rapella (Right)

Changes! Tomorrow I am getting a new companion. His name is Elder Santa Cruz, and he is from Chile. That's pretty much all that I know about him. Haha. I am going to stay here in my area, which is good, because I really like it here, and I think it has a lot of potential for success. My companion Elder Leaño is leaving, because he got called to be zone leader in another area of the mission. It has been a few difficult weeks with Elder Leaño, but I have learned a lot, and he has helped me grow a lot.

So, this last week was Easter. The church came out with a video for Easter, and I loved sharing it with everyone. I enjoyed focusing my studying more on the life of Jesus Christ, and the grand sacrifice that he made for each and everyone of us. The Atonement is a perfect part of the plan of happiness, and it can change our lives if we choose to apply it. 

 This week we had a ward movie night, and we showed ¨The Life of Christ¨ and made popcorn for everyone. It turned out great, and a decent amount of people showed up. I don´t know why, but nobody else knew how to make popcorn in a pot except me, so I was the popcorn chef for the night. I have never made so much popcorn in my life.

Anyways, to sum up this week, it was super good, but man...was it busy. I am really enjoying the missionary work. Sometimes, it gets hard, really hard...but I like to think that every time it gets hard, the Lord is testing me, to see if I am ready, to find the people that he has prepared. He already knows where the people that want to get baptized live.... and he knows where the people that are going to slam the door in my face live. So sometimes I wonder...¨Why doesn´t he just tell me, why doesn´t he help me find where they live? But then I remember, that he is testing me, to see if I am worthy, to see if I am willing to go to extra mile, knock on an extra door. When it gets hard, I remember this quote from one of Elder Holland talks. He says, “It is never easy for us, because it was NEVER, easy for him.” 

I hope you all have a good week. I love you all, and thanks for your support! 

Happy Easter, 

-Elder Vanderlinden

Quote of the week- “A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him”--David Brinkley