La Brujula

Well folks,

This week I left my home in Popayan. This was super hard for me, I miss my white city. Popayan was incredible, the people amazing. I felt as if I was leaving my family yet again. 

I had a VERY long bus ride, 10 hours by myself to the south to the town of Ipiales, good thing the scenery was incredible. Ipiales is high in the Andes, with some huge mountains, gorges and rivers. (9,700ft) It’s incredible, very different from the hilly landscape of Popayan.

Because I live up in the Andes it is super cold. I’m not lying I’m like dying from cold here, so, so, so, so, so, cold. But it’s really beautiful here. I feel like I’m in Scotland, it’s really neat. 

Tuesday I met my new companion, Elder Tedei (Tea-day), he is from Argentina and is awesome. We are having a blast together. His Spanish is pretty cool, although at first it was a bit difficult to understand, but I’m getting accustomed to it. He was the secretary to President Prince for 6 months in Cali and then stayed in Cali for 6 months more. He has only been here for a month and a half and we are both dying of the cold. 

Our area is huge, it covers about 200 km. We have really no transportation so we walk a lot... A LOT in the cold. Although I think it’s actually pretty awesome. 

Our house is HUGE, I have no idea why. I’m talking 8 rooms and two baths. It’s just the two of us. That part is pretty cool, however when it rains, it floods our second story where we keep all our stuff. It rains a lot. The other day we came back to our house to find about 3 inches of standing water in the upper story. It soaked all of our clothes, books and everything. We now have all our stuff located on high ground as it rains here every day. 

The people here are very interesting. It is so different from the culture of Popayan. The people here are not very open. They don’t really answer questions and are kind of cold people. Not very exciting to be truthfully honest. So it looks like Elder Tidei and I just have to change the culture here in Ipiales, no big deal, ha-ha. We are ready to change the culture and the hearts of the people here.

The people here like to drink...and they drink a lot...We split up to bring people to church on Sunday and when I reached the little town where the majority of our investigators are I counted 8 people passed out on the sidewalk. Well, its not really a sidewalk its grass, but yeah... People party hard here. Things are very interesting in Ipiales, but I’m excited to see what the city holds for us. 

This week I want to talk about La Brújula.

The compass.

What function has a compass?

Maybe you immediately received the picture of an arrow in your mind, like the compass Jack Sparrow had or something similar. A circle with an arrow showing where you should go. That is exactly what a compass does. It guides us to where we need to go. 

Now the big question. If we have a compass, and we see exactly what direction we need to take and then stand still, what exactly is the purpose of the compass? It doesn’t have a purpose then. 

In the bible dictionary when you look up guidance, the first thing it says is:

See Scriptures.

We have a great compass in our lives to give us guidance to tell us what direction we need to take. 

Do we sit in our house with the scriptures lying nearby? Do we sit looking at the scriptures and say but I’m too tired to read? 

Do we sit and stare at our compass and do nothing?

Proverbs 3:6

In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

If we but acknowledge him he shall direct our paths. However direct is a very interesting word. Direct does not mean that God will take us to where we need to go. It means he will give us guidance, he will give us direction. 

James 2:7

Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

We have to do our part; we have to walk in the direction that we are given.

We have all been given the compass we need. 

We all have the scriptures. 

 SO... 

This brings me to the challenge of the week.

CHALLENGE:

Read 1 chapter of the Book of Mormon or the Bible everyday this week. Seven chapters and tell me how you fell at the end of your week.

If you are going to read the Book of Mormon start with the Book of Mosiah.

If you are going to read the Bible start with the book of Mathew

I promise you, if you are able to make time for one chapter a day and no more, you will feel a difference in your life, you will feel yourself progressing. Making steps in the direction you need to take.

I love you all

Elder Lyle