Well this week a lot happened so you won't be bored. First of all they captured EL CHAPO!!!! El Chapo is the leader of the drug cartel here in Sinaloa and is one of the most wanted criminals in the world. He has escaped from prison like 6 times because he has a lot of control over people. But it is just so crazy because they captured him in Los Mochis!! In our area, Libertad!!!! But on friday in the morning, we were excercising and we could hear a helicopter. Now this is very weird because I have not seen or heard a helicopter my whole time in the mission. But we were like, "What the heck! Why does this helicopter keep flying over our house." Then we went outside and saw that it was a helicopter from the marines. There were like 6 guys sitting in the helicopter... all with huge guns. Then we recieved a message from the hermana that lives below us and she told us that there had been some sort of shoot out in a colonia that is very ghetto and poor. So we didnt really think twice after she told us that. But then we later heard on the radio that they had captured El Chapo and that was when we put two and two together. But now that is all the people are talking about here, "El Chapo was here, in los Mochis!!!!"
Also this week we had intercambios!!!! Which are always super fun. And this time it was my turn to leave, so I got to spend a day in Ahome. Ahome is gigantic. It may possibly be one of the biggest areas in all of the mission. It has about 18 different pueblos and they are all so far apart. But I learned that the way the missionaries travel in this area is by hitchhiking. When we need to go to a different pueblo for the comida it is like an hour and a half walk, and buses only pass by once every hour or so. So the only option really is to hitchhike. So, we walk to where the road only leads to the next pueblo, then you stick your thumb up and wait until someone with a pick up truck stops. Then when they pull over you have to go and hop in the bed of their truck. It is kind of funny because all the people are so used to doing that. You always see people getting rides in the back of trucks. But yeah it turns an hour walk into a 10 minute ride. But I can only imagine in the summer, walking would be miserable and impossible.
Also we went to a colony in where the people are members of the church of Jesus Christ (Not of the latter-day saints). It was super weird. One of the investigatores that the missionaries in Ahome are going to baptize this week was attending at that church. They have a Book of Mormon but it is black. And from what I read, it seams that they believe that Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon, but they don't believe he was a prophet. They believe that revelation ceased with the death of Jesus Christ. But this experience really showed me the importance of a living prophet. Their church is almost the same as ours, but they are missing a huge part, which is the modern revelation that the prophets give us.
But that intercambio, I learned alot from elder Gonzales. He taught me so much about the type of attitude that I need to have. He told me that I need to be happy when I am contacting because if I am not happy then the people I am talking to just want me to finish what I am saying and leave. Or if I feel uncomfortable when I am contacting, then the people I am talking to feel uncomfortable also. He also taught me that there is no such thing as a "dead area". He told me the areas that he has been in on his mission, and he baptized in all of them and right now these areas people either say they are dead or the president has closed them because there were no baptisms. But he taught me that you just need to make the best of everything. Laugh at your companion when he gets rejected in a funny way and have your companion laugh at you when you get rejected. And that if you are really doing all you can... talking with EVERYONE and when there is no one in the street knocking on doors, then there will always be someone that you can find. But all this has helped me alot. I am alot more excited and grateful for the area that I have been given and I know that we can find more people to teach. But it is all true. We have recieved alot more references this week and we have also had alot more lessons this week. All we need are people to progress. haha. We also visited Flor yesterday, and we set her baptismal date for this Saturday. So hopefully it stays…because the cambio ends this Sunday and I know that elder Salomon wants to baptize her because he has been teaching her his entire mission.
Thank you so much for everything. Everyday I see little things that confirm that this is the true church. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the true church. It has a living prophet through which God continues to show his love for his children by speaking to them through the mouth of the prophet. The Book of Mormon only strengthens the testimony that the Bible gives of Jesus Christ, and shows that he came to the Earth so that we can have the opportunity to be cleansed from sin and live with our Heavenly Father once again. I know that this is the Lords work and I am so happy to be a part of it.
I love you all so much and I hope that everything goes well this week.
Con Amor
Elder Snyder
