Baptizing Future Leaders

Date: July 27, 2015
Week: 57 Otavalo, Ecuador
Companion: Elder Lomeli/ Cedar Hills Utah
Colton's Address:
Quito Ecuador North Mission
Francisco Robles E-4 151 Av Amazonas
Edificio Iglesia de Jesucristo
Quito, Ecuador
Email Address: ronald.kimball@myldsmail.net

Smores! This is what happens when two gringos are in charge.
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Dear Family and Friends,

I am fine, and my companion is fine so what else do you need to know?

Here's a look at my week:

Tuesday: So the ward does work with us alot but the Bishop just called two ward missionaries and I quickly got in contact with them and set up two days in which they could come with us for two hours. So now Lomeli and I had the chance to go on divisions and be in two places at once. It's awesome. So we worked like dogs and were really trying to find new people to teach! Oh and we taught Jorge!

Wednesday: There are days where we teach like 5 lessons and then there are days like these. We could only find Jorge and teach him. The party of Agato was this week and boy were there alot of drunks! People were sure willing to talk to the missionaries now....

Smores with the Vàsquez Family. We just rescued their Dad.
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Thursday: Again we only taught Jorge. Thank goodness he didn't take part in the parties cause that would have stunk! Jorge is probably the fastest progressing investigator that I have had.

Friday: I'm telling you the days are off and on and this day just happened to be on! We have been challenged to work more on family history with the recent converts. We were teaching Alexandra Chiza and we were able to help her find her Great Grandad and send his info to the temple. It was awesome. Made me want to do my family history. Oh and we taught Jorge...

Saturday: Is anyone starting to see a pattern here? We were doing daily contact for our investigator with a date so that he coul have his baptismal interview Saturday! Elder Hagemeyer interviewed Jorge and it lasted a while but he passed so that means Jorge will be baptized this Saturday! My first baptism by a contact! I'm stoked! I was hoping Lomeli could baptize him but I guess the Spirit was pretty strong in the interview because he chose Elder Hagemeyer to do it.

Sunday: We planned Jorge's baptism for 6 p.m. It'll be sweet. Jorge now wants to share the gospel with his wife but she travels all around Ecuador. We checked the church records and she isn't a member. He said he wants to be sealed to his wife for time and all eternity. I swear I´m coming back here one day and the guys going to be a stake patriarch or something! He is God given!

I forgot what this mountain is called but its cold
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

We met with Jorge everyday to help him for his interview. We planned his interview for 2:00 on Saturday and we show up at his house and guess what he wasn`t there! NO! We freaked. Hagemeyer was at the church waiting for us and he saw we looked pretty disappointed. We called Jorge using Hagemeyer's phone and it was turned OFF! The guy was supposed to be perfect. I starting doubting...

Hagemeyer shared an experience with us about what had happened at his baptism the night before. He told us they dad and his son were going to be baptized. He shpwed up at their house and the dad ended up being drunk and the mother wouldn't let her son be baptized. He was devastated. He had to call all the members to inform them that there would be no baptism. We felt bad for him.

We told Hagemeyer we would stop by Jorge's house later and see what was up. We went over to Wauki's to use his phone. By this point my companion had called Jorge at least 20 times. We were sitting ont he couch whinning. Then a little idea popped in my head! I had yet to call Jorge so I got up and went to call. When the phone started actually ringing I was screaming! My companion got up from crying (he wasn't crying but almost), and came running over. I planned his interview at 6:00 cause he had left to Ibarra and said he would be back later. We quickly said a prayer of gratitude and called Hagemeyer to tell him the news.

I know I was prompted by the Spirit to call again. I had received revelation and it was awesome! Jorge will now be baptized this coming week, and who knows one day he'll be the temple president of the Otavalo temple. You just never know! I love this work and I know that it is of Him! Keeping on keeping on everybody!

Elder Kimball

Lomeli sending his costly package!
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Bailey- You never write
Clay- Scouts?
Lexi- Is this short enough?
Leah-☺
Bella- What up? Keep being awesome!
Collins! You working out?
Mom- Stop worrying so much and have faith but remember faith without works is dead.
Dad- Love you and pray for you and the fam everyday! I'm glad to hear that the Jimmer will be a Spur!
Colton

Godly Power > Satan's Power

Date: July 20, 2015
Week: 56 Otavalo, Ecuador
Companion: Elder Lomeli/ Cedar Hills Utah
Colton's Address:
Quito Ecuador North Mission
Francisco Robles E-4 151 Av Amazonas
Edificio Iglesia de Jesucristo
Quito, Ecuador
Email Address: ronald.kimball@myldsmail.net

Familia Quinchuqui and I in a Noche de Hogar
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

¡Buenas Tardes!
I am doing great out here in Ecuador. Otavalo is treating me well. The members here just seem to grasp the gospel here a little stronger. To explain my week heres a recap:

Tuesday- We went to Quito! Really weird being in Quito. I had not been there in a long while. We went to Quito because someone has been in Ecuador for more than a year... ME!! I had to renew my visa. Half of my group I arrive with were there, so it was cool to see some of the guys from the beginning. I got my visa all renewed so that's a nice milestone down!

Wednesday- We visited our less active that we are trying to reactivate, Rafael Vásquez. He can´t hear very well so we have to speak pretty loud. We were teaching the principle of service and we asked if he would serve others and he responded saying he only had time in the mornings. We started laughing a little along with his family.

My companion, Elder Lomeli, eating his potatoes and fish!  Nothing better.
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Familia Quinchuqui
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Thursday- We taught one of our converts, Alexandra. President has asked to ask more references from recent converts and less actives so we can find more people to teach. Alexandra told us to meet her at her friend Jessica's house. There we met Jessica(17). She accepted to be baptized and we told her that Alexandra would bring her to church.

Friday- We met with Jorge! If you don´t remember who he is, he is our investigator we found contacting. He accepted a date to be baptized but was then unable to attend church. He came to church last week with his wife. We invited him to have a tour of the church. We went and he got to see what we do and we explained more of what he saw last Sunday. We had him pray in the chapel to know if the church is true. He said he felt a calm peaceful feeling.

Introduced them to making s'mores!
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

They loved it!
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

They said to make sure their picture makes it on Facebook!
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Saturday- We met with Rafael and finished teaching him the commandments. We are also trying to do a daily contact with Jorge so we met with him as well. We decided to take Wauki with us. We came to Jorge's house and there he was waiting with all the pamphlets and the Book of Mormon we had given him. He basically told us that he wasn´t going to visit with us anymore because it was becoming too hard for him to change from being Catholic. Thank goodness we really picked up our slack last week and brought members to lessons. Our lesson was filled with the Spirit but only because we had a brought a member.

Satan had worked hard to get Jorge and the greatest thing was is that Jorge knew it too. We left the lesson as if we had just peformed a hours worth of CPR. I won´t lie. I was scared. Jorge was supposed to be our guy. He was supposed to be a miracle. I realized that night that Satan has power. The opposition that Satan was telling Jorge was threatening his salvation, and I was thinking that we should just give up and let Satan have this one. But the Spirit guided Lomeli and I and we left the lesson full of the Spirit. Jorge ended up coming to church and the bishop invited him to a Noche de Hogar and there Jorge made more friends (His wife attended also). The Patriarch even told him that he had thought Jorge was at least a member with 20 years in the church.

Satan has power. That is something I learned this week, but I also learned that that power is temporary. Jorge felt the Spirit and is now more animated (excited) than ever for his baptism, and to think it all started from just one knock on a door. I love this work. I know at times I won´t always feel this blessed but I hope at those times I will remember what I have seen in the past and trust in my Father in Heaven.

As for other things, the parties here seem never ending. Elder Lomeli and I are super happy about Jorge. He still has a date for the 1st of August.

The cows need to know they need to get out of my way
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

We had a Zone activity in the chuch where we played dodgeball. That was alot of fun. I was able to let out almost 5 months of energy after having not alot of activities out in the jungle. President comes and trains us next week. I am back to being visited by President monthly, so yeah that's cool. I don´t think there is anything else going on. I´m having fun here and am trying to work hard in a sector that's a little more difficult.
Love you guys and hope all is well during summer!
Elder Kimball

Bailey- I´m sure you are having fun in Tonga. Feel like a missionary yet?
Clay- Way to dance like a boss at your first church dance! Remember no kissing till after the mission. Follow in my footsteps:)
Lexi! Keep working out. I know it's hard but Lomeli makes me do it too.
Leah. Dad told me Lexi is beating you in all the workouts....
Bella- I miss you goof! Can´t believe you are growing up!
Collins! Maybe you should join in on the workouts. I´ve seen pics of your bikini bod
Mom- Stop stressing so much! The Lord is with you. Just put your trust in Him and all will be well.
Dad! I love ya! I hope you can keep working hard! You have always been a great example of that. Love you!
Ciao,
Elder Kimball

Mouse Hunt

Date: July 13, 2015
Week: 55 Otavalo, Ecuador
Companion: Elder Lomeli/ Cedar Hills Utah
Colton's Address:
Quito Ecuador North Mission
Francisco Robles E-4 151 Av Amazonas
Edificio Iglesia de Jesucristo
Quito, Ecuador
Email Address: ronald.kimball@myldsmail.net

Volcanos for days...
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Okay Agato is doing good! Let me explain my week!
Tuesday: Taught a whole bunch of people. We are working with this one old guy who we are reactivating. Should be reactivated at the end of the month, Rafael Váquez.

Wednesday: So we are encouraged to always ask for references to find new people to teach because the most important part of mission work is finding. So the work was going slow so we went to visit some members who hadn´t come to church in three or so weeks. We asked if they knew anybody and they asked us to visit their neighbors. We visited the Familia Males and the dad is sick. So we ended up doing a service by cutting up some of their firewood. Good thing Lomeli and I are both Eagle Scouts!

Just doing service in our church clothes.
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Thursday: We had our meetings for the Zone and District. My Zone leaders are pretty awesome. Elder Henriquez is a convert so he knows how to get everyone pumped up to work!

Friday: We visited Jorge Mafla (A contact we did last week). We put him on date to be baptized for the 1st of August and he accepted! We told him we would come by Sunday before church.

Saturday: We visited the Familia Males and gave the dad a blessing because he was not doing so well.

The District!  I'm not sure what that flag is doing there!

Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Sunday: So we really needed and investigator in church on Sunday! We have an investigator progressing! Wahoo! Jorge Mafla and his wife Rosa who is less active. We contacted him at the end of week 1 and he was unable to come to church. We kept working with him and putting alot of our faith in the Lord and we decided to visit him Sunday morning to bring him to church with us because it seemed as though he wasn´t going to come again. We passed by his house at 8 in the morning and I have to admit I was afraid of what he might say for passing by so early in the morning. He came out and he said he would love to come but his wife won´t let him. We were saddened at first but we encouraged him to ask his wife again and invite her to come.

Elder Lomeli and I said a quick prayer right there in the street. He came back out with his wife and she looked pretty angry but I just put a smile on my face hopeing for the best. She said that she would permit him to go and she wanted to come also (in the lessons, she had always talked bad about the Church, I am sure that she had a change of heart). We said of course you can come and they went to church! Turns out she is a less active. Jorge is preparing for the first of August. I have firm faith that he will be baptized. It was an absolute miracle! I almost cried like no joke! I was so happy!

Elder Lomeli and I
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

The scripture cases that Wauki makes
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Well thats my week! I am sure that that prayer helped us more than we could have ever imagined.
We found a mouse in the house this week....He was eating some of Elder Lomelis pasta. FYI Elder Lomeli is a pretty good cook! Anyways, we searched all around the house trying to find it and then we found it and then it began to play hide and seek. It finally ran out side! But chasing around that mouse made me feel like a missionary chasing around people. This message is so important and if I have to be the cat in the situation, to get these people to listen, I will!  O and there is no irony in the fact that my sector is called "Agato"(Gato means Cat in English).

I love this work with all my heart. It's literally so much fun and then there are points where you want to just give up and go home, but in that very moment some miracle happens. When we think we can´t go on that's when the Lord steps in. And if he doesn´t step in that's because we can go farther. Only the Lord knows our true potential! Sometimes when Elder Lomeli and I are feeling down I remind him the success we have as missionaries usually isn´t seen in the two years we serve out here but in the years to come. That's when we know if we are successfull. For now we keep are heads up with a smile on our faces and trust in the Lord that All will be well.
I love you all!
Elder Kimball

Bailey- Hows HEFY?
Clay- Where are you in scouts?
Lexi- Is this short enough?
Leah- U da best
Bella or "The Fourth Youngest"- I love you and I want my loom kit back!!!!!
Collins- Well the fact mom actually wrote something bad about you surprises me. Maybe I still am the best baby their ever was....
Mom- Thanks for the package! But you sent it in a heels box so my whole zone thinks you sent me heels....
Dad- Go Spurs Go! I talk about you alot here and try to always think how you worked on your mission and try to do my best. Love you dad!
Hasta el Lunes, Elder Kimball

¡Quichua or Quichu-WHAT!

Date: July 6, 2015
Week: 54 Otavalo, Ecuador
Companion: Elder Lomeli/ Cedar Hills Utah
Colton's Address:
Quito Ecuador North Mission
Francisco Robles E-4 151 Av Amazonas
Edificio Iglesia de Jesucristo
Quito, Ecuador
Email Address: ronald.kimball@myldsmail.net

The heart of Imbabura is carved into the mountain behind me.
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

So since this is like the first time in like 3 weeks in which I get to write an email, I would just like to say Happy Birthday Collins! Happy Fathers Day! Happy Birthday Dad! and of course Happy Fourth of July! Haha I was a bit behind. It's been a crazy last few weeks.

As you know I got sent to Otavalo. Well its sort of Otavalo. We live in a little village area called Agato. They call Otavalo, Utahvalo because well there's tons of members and a lot of churches. Agato is a pretty hard sector, I have to admit. Elder Lomeli and I are the only missionaries in our ward. We walk in a bunch of dust so its pointless to shine our shoes. Oh and did I mention almost everyone speaks Quichua? Now before you say Quichu-what! Haha see what I did there? Anyways most people here speak more Quichua than Spanish and we have church in Quichua. Elder Lomeli has been teaching me some Quichua and I can almost contact in it.

Me posing
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

The city in the background
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

We don't have much to work with here. Don't get me wrong, the sector is huge! It's just most of it is farmland.... I came here and we had someone with a date for the 18th but she didn't come to church because her husband didn't let her. He was drunk. Elder Lomeli and I worked like dogs to get new investigators and we were able to find some but they weren't able to come to church.

We try to keep each other animated (excited) to just keep on keeping on. We work a lot with this one member named Luis Amaguaña but we just call him Wauki. It's just Quichua for brother. Wauki makes ties and scripture cases and all sorts of cool stuff. We get to call at his house everynight so we don't waste alot of time calling the district leader.

Wauki and Elder Lomeli and Me
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

We even put dogs to sleep when we teach.
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

My zone seems pretty cool. I feel pretty old now in the mission. There are a whole bunch of new missionaries here that I have never even seen. I guess I was in the jungle too long. We have a rule in the mission that if someone asks you how much time you have you either say less than a year or more than a year. You have no idea that I only have a  little ways to go now that I have more than a year. It's just weird! I also forgot to mention that in the sector we live pretty close to a lake and this one mountain that has a heart carved into it, and it actually looks like a heart. Lomeli wants to hike it but the members says it takes 4 hours to get to the top and I told Lomeli that I could barely make it to the Y.

Lomeli is pretty cool. He is from Cedar Hills, Utah and he has about 9 months, but he likes saying almost a year. He told me at the beginning that he is planning to play baseball (walk-on) for either Dixie State or BYU.  I told him by the end of this change he will have his mind made up on BYU. He told me yesterday that he will most definitly be playing for BYU. He likes the Lakers though. I was telling him how good the Spurs are and I showed him all three of the championship shirts. We get along well though. We just work hard and depend on the Lord.

We had one investigator at church last Sunday. She is married to a less active, we are reactivating and they are going to the temple tomorrow. They will pray outside the temple an read the Book of Mormon. I hope that she will finally decide to be baptized!

Always tired!
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

I love it out here and I especially love the huge heart that's carved into the mountain. There are so many reminders of the Lord's love here. First we have a huge heart we can just look too when ever the people won't accept us, or we are going through tough times. Another thing I have noticed is the dust. There is a scripture in Mosiah 2:25 in the Book of Mormon that reads:
"And now I ask, can ye say aught of yourselves? I answer you, Nay. Ye cannot say that ye are even as much as the dust of the earth; yet ye were created of the dust of the earth; but behold, it belongeth to him who created you."

I'm always trying to watch myself for being prideful and I feel as though this dust is really helping me out with that. I know that I have been called by a Prophet of God to serve this people here in Agato. I know the work can be tough but as soon as we get disanimated (discouraged) it kills the work. I am always trying to keep Elder Lomeli and I happy. He is a pretty happy dude by himself so it makes it easier.

House divided.  Though I am a Giants fan its his beanie that bothers me!
Otavalo, Ecuador July 2015

Well everyone here asks me if I am related to t(he prophet) President Kimball and I say yes. They love President Kimball here so I don't even have to use my Kimbolito line anymore. I just hope I can honor his last name but more importantly Christ's. I love you all, and wish y'all a happy summer!
Elder Kimball

Bailey- Have fun in Tonga
Clay- You going to get your Eagle before I get home?
Lexi- You got sunburnt! I wish I could!
Leah- Nice job sliding down that dam!
Bella- Getting cuter and cuter!
Collins- Sorry about forgeting your birthday but we had a baptism that day so that's what made me remember. Love you fatty!
Mom- Thanks for all the ties! I really needed them. The socks are nice too! Keep sending me packages. I hardly got any Cadbury eggs in my Easter package I just got :( Oh and did I mention I love you! Sorry for not writing!
Dad- That's great about the Spurs! I always liked Lamarcus! Native Texan. How old were you when you visited Otavalo? There are tons of gringos here. Especially in the Plaza de Los Panchos. If you want a tie with my mission logo on it let me know. Wauki does it pretty good! I love you dad and go cougars!
The one and only,
Elder Kimball