Iguanas, Lakes Y Puda Vida - November 21, 2016

Hola Todos!

Wow, first transfer.  I am now in Granada, area La Estacion 2! It is south of Masaya right next to the giant lake with sharks in it. 

A few words about Granada: I love it here! The members in the branch are my heroes and I really do just love this new area. However, it is hot. like way hot. And I thought Masaya was hot. Mostly it is a lot more humidity; but it is great! My area is a lot bigger than my old area, so that is nice too. 

My new companion is Elder Arevalo, he is from El Salvador, and he has 23 months in the mission. He is a really great guy and missionary and I already like him a lot. There are a lot of cool old churches here in Granada, so more pictures to come. 

My area has a nice touristy and rich part in it as well as some of the biggest poverty I have seen here. Overall I am really excited to work here, and already this area is super great. 

Fun experience for the week. I have eaten iguana. It really does taste like chicken. It doesn’t feel like chicken though. We were at the house we eat at for lunch and dinner (I get dinner now! I am grateful for dinner!) and they showed us like 4 giant iguanas in a bucket, and I was like cool pets, and they were like no, this is lunch tomorrow. It was actually pretty good. Let us just say that it looked like an iguana when I ate it. From what I have heard, my food experiences are going to get a lot more exciting. 

Overall I am glad to be here serving the Lord! I love this work! I am so happy to be here! Thank you all for everything! Hasta lunes! oh, and have a good thanksgiving!

Elder Erickson

A few more pics:

Sharing the gospel with his monkey friend. 

A good shoe shine can really make a difference. 

Done With Training! - November 14, 2016

Hola Todos!

I hope all of you had a good week! My week was super long, but at the same time it feels like it went by super fast. But here we go! This week we had a conference in Managua for the missionaries. We got to hear President Brown, and a member of the 70, Elder Alonzo, speak. They were super awesome. Our meetings are really awesome. They answered all the questions I had, and helped us teach better. And as a result we have seen immediate success in our area as we applied what they taught us! Mission Presidents are just the coolest. 

Wednesday was a super good day and we just had a ton of success. We got 5 people to commit to baptism, and our other investigators are doing super well too! 

Thursday was a good day too. It was Elder Martinez’s birthday, so at night some members had a little party for him. that was fun too because they got a piñata that looks like him. 

That was a good day. and that day I also gave the monkey a banana. 

Friday Elder Martinez had to go to another conference in Managua for the Zone leaders so I was in Monibo with Elder Chavez. We also had some good success that day too. 

Saturday was harder because basically all of our investigators bailed on our appointments, and we couldn’t get anyone to commit to come to church. Sunday was normal. and now today. Time flies. 

Today is probably my last pday here in Masaya, so I went around today and got some stuff to remember this place. Life here is awesome! Being a missionary is great! Hope you all have a good week, and thanks for everything!

Elder Erickson

The Work is Progressing!!! - November 7, 2016

Hola Everyone!

I hope things are going well for you all, because things are just great down here in wonderful Nicaragua! This week is the last week of my training and I will probably be off somewhere else in the country next week! 

That seems super weird! For 12 weeks Masaya, Nicaragua has been my home. That just seems so crazy! I know I have said it a thousand times but time really does fly! 

This week has been really great and we have got some good progressing investigators! They are all miracles, but I will tell you about one that is super cool! His name is Jose Francisco, and he is super great. One day we were waiting outside of the church to give another missionary something, and he pulls up on his motorcycle and asks if he can come to church with us! We were super excited and we said yes! And then Sunday rolls around, and we get a text from him that says he is ready at 7:00, and church doesnt start until 10:30. He is super awesome and is set to get get baptised on the 26th! He loves the church and just cannot get enough. He reads all the pamphlets we give him and takes notes. This work is the Lord's. This is made more and more clear everyday. 

Life is just awesome. This Sunday immediately after church we had to go back to our house for the rest of the day because of the elections. We did a lot of work this week and things are going well! Christmas! Apparently Christmas starts here the first of November. There are already lights up and people are already playing Christmas music! It is great! What a place! I just love it here! I love being a missionary! What a life! Thank you all for everything! Your thoughts and prayers help so much! Until next week!

Elder Erickson

I Fell in a Puddle - October 31, 2016

Hola Amigos!

I hope all of you have had a good week! This week was pretty good and interesting.

First off the story about how I fell in a puddle. We were walking back from dinner one night, and I was not paying attention to where I was walking because I am a goofball. And I stepped in some water, and it turns out that it was a lot of water because there was a big hole in the road. anyway, I face planted in the dirty street water. I am a bozo, but it is all good and we had a good laugh over it. 

This week was also Halloween here. Friday the 28. It was kind of wild because the way they celebrate here is everyone paints their face or wears a mask and there is a huge party in the streets. Needless to say we avoided those areas of Masaya that night. 

Cool story for the week. We were outside of the church waiting for some other elders to give them some clothes for a baptism they had the next day, and this guy pulled up on a motorcycle and asked if he could come to church with us. We were super excited because this never happens, and he actually came to church with us this Sunday! So we have another investigator. Life is great here and we continue to teach and find. Lots of walking lots of Spanish lots of fun!

Oh and because of the elections this Sunday we have to be in our house by 7:00, not the usual 9:00, for the next two weeks. Life is good! The mission is awesome! This is the Lord's work, and He does it all! I love Him and these people here! Thank you all for everything! Have a great week!

Elder Erickson