Week 40

 Hey its been a little bit since I've gotten an email out. I'm still in Lexington Kentucky teaching people in spanish.

We moved into a new apartment that's actually in the area that we are assigned to and it's a lot nicer than the old one and now we don't have to bike across the city.  We also live in the same apartment complex as some other missionaries that cover the same area as us but they speak english. So, we have been doing things with them on our Prep day like laundry and stuff like that. 

So recently we have been focusing a lot more on facebook so we have been making post for both an english and spanish page and they want us to comment and try to start conversations and see if people are interested in learning about our message. 

Something funny that happened this week is that we were riding our bikes when we saw someone who we usually stop and talk to named uday. When we stopped we said hi and asked if he needed any help with anything and he said YEA SOMEONE GRAB THAT CHICKEN (pointing to a chicken running around his yard. So I grabbed the chicken and we put him in a cardboard box with another chicken and Uday told us that he was gonna make some chicken so good that it would put KFC outa business lol. The cool thing is that we were able to share a part from the bible and have a good conversation with him about what his beliefs are and what we believe. 

Pictures !

1) The bobadillas brought us tortas asn they were really good so I figured I would include this picture for the memories

3)GRAB THAT CKICKEN 

4)our new apartment 

2)me and my companions (Cluff ME Robinson)

5) We helped this family move and their dog was really territorial and would not stop barking at so my goal by the end of the day was to be able to hold her without her freaking out.

Week 33

 We have biked a lot in the last couple days. 

Things here in Lexington are going great. We have been able to teach a lot of our friends and we have been able to enjoy the nice weather with a lot less humidity the last week. 

This is the last week of our 6 week period and we find out whether or not we are moving areas on Saturday so if you have anything to send me wait until my next email just in case I'm not at the same apartment.

 As I've mentioned before, we share a car with the sister missionaries so for half the week we get the car. The strange thing is that we don't actually live in the area that we are in charge of so we have to cross the city to be able to get to our assigned area for missionary work.

 Also, because there is only one Spanish congregation we have members who live in the satellite cities who like to feed us. On Friday we had a family who wanted to feed us who lived in a town called Midway that is 18 miles away from our apartment. Luckily, there are some missionaries who live in a small city called Versailles that is only 7 miles from Midway. These missionaries took us and and our bikes to Versailles and we proceeded to Midway. After a great meal and a really good talk with the family we rode the 18 miles home over the rolling hills of Kentucky that were frustrating to to say the least. I will include a picture of a map and how far we rode our bikes. 

I want to share a scripture this week from the Bible that says 

"And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt." (Mark 14:36)

When I read this in Mark it made me think a speech that was given about how Jesus suffered and died for us. One thing that really stood out to me was that Jesus was the only perfect person to ever have lived yet even he asked the Father to take away his trials.

 The reason that I want to focus on this scripture is because a lot of the time I think that we are really hard on ourselves especially when we are already going through hard times. The times when we feel like we could be handling our circumstances better or we feel like we just can't be christlike because we aren't perfect. What I gain from this is that someone a lot better and who had a lot more communication with God still had a hard time. I Also think that it shows that even if we do everything we need to be doing like going to church and following the things God has asked us to do, that life isn't meant to be easy.

 We are put on the earth to learn and grow and the only way we can learn is to do hard things. Being happy doesn't mean that we will always be able to feel good, it means that we choose to look for the good even when we feel sad, lonely, frustrated, upset, and to the point of breaking.

I hope that everyone has a great week.

Elder Amata

1) A cool printing that we found that was a little strange 

2) The other set of spanish elders in the city and Hermano Bobadilla 

3)A sunset picture from the 18 mile bike ride home 

4) we didn't have enough clips for the bikes so I used my belt to add some extra security to the bike rack lol 

Week 32

 This week has been awesome. We were able to go and help an older lady sand some doorways. When we showed up some of the other members of our congregation were there and the lady who we were helping was on the ground because she apparently had lost the feeling in her legs. They called an ambulance but while they were waiting she wanted us to give her a blessing that she would be ok. 

After that while she was still on the ground she began telling us what needed to be done with the fence and a few things in the garden and I was sitting there thinking wow this lady is handling this really well lol. After she was picked up by the ambulance we sanded and picked green beans out of her garden and it was super cool because I thought it was a great example of how God knows that she really needed some help and we were there at the right time at the right place to be able to give her a blessing.

The other cool thing that happened this week is that I was able to cook a Filipino dish called adobo for a bunch of missionaries and some of the members of our congregation. 

I'm so glad that my dad always took the time to let me taste the adobo as he was making it and he would ask me "what do you think it needs" or "what do you think I haven't put in it yet"

And slowly but surely I learned exactly how to make it myself.

I think that when it comes to learning what God wants us to do it's a lot like cooking something that doesn't have a set recipe. When I first started my dad was the one who would make it and I would watch and taste as he made adjustments.

 Once I started making it myself I would have to ask "hey dad what do I need more of to make this taste right" because there was a lot I could do on my own but without his help it wouldn't be quite right. 

Now I can make it for others so that they can enjoy one of my favorite foods even though it might not be exactly the same as when my dad makes it.

When we read the scriptures like the Bible and the book of Mormon we can see the way God works with people. We can see the impact it has had on THEIR lives. 

Then we are asked to try to do the same things that the people in the scriptures did, to follow God and keep his commandments. But, we aren't perfect so we have to ask "How can I do better at doing what you would have me do" and when we sincerely ask he will tell us what we are lacking.

Once we understand how to recognize the blessings that we have been given and how God speaks to us we can help others to enjoy the same happiness and to receive the same help from God that we have received. 

So the same way that when we want to share our favorite meal with someone because we know how much we love it. We can help others feel the same joy we have felt by talking about God and how he speaks to each of us and how we can receive help even when we feel like no one's there and no one understands.

 That's the reason I'm out her on a mission, because I can't even count how many times that God has blessed me with amazing people in my life. How many times that things have happened that only could have been God's hand in my life and just how I love to cook this meal for people because it means more than just food to me, I share our message with people because its more than just a nice message about God. It's something that changes people's lives in a way that every person who applies it feels and I can promise that if you ever talk with missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and you even just try doing the things that they suggest, that you will see a change in your relationship with God. 

Elder Amata

Week 30

Hey so the end of the transfer (6 week period) is here and I will be staying in my area! I will also be training a new missionary. This week has been great. We have been teaching a lot of our friends that we have made here and we've been able to have them come to church! Other than that I've been learning to play the guitar. I really want to learn some latin music on guitar so if anyone wants to recommend some latin music I'm all ears. 

We had a lesson with one of our friends and he was talking about how there are things that the world considers as "good" and what God thinks are good. He shared how he wants to change and he knows that God has a plan for him. 

It's pretty easy to get lost in what the world thinks is supposed to be good because that is constantly changing, the way we dress the way, we treat people and the way that we raise our families. However, the things that are good in the sight of the lord are consistent and they are things that bring lasting happiness. For example, things like family, helping and serving others, and coming closer to God so that we can have a relationship that allows us to better understand his plan for us.  

That's all I got for this week. Have a great week!

please water my plant mom 

Elder  Ethan Amata 

1) I love Kentucky 

2) One of the only pictures I took this week.

Week 28

Things are going well here in Lexington. With the numbers of people who have tested positive going up we've had to be a little bit more careful with who we come in contact with. 

Other than that things are going good. We can still be fed by members and do dinner appointments and have lessons with people at their houses. 

I crashed on my bike this week and I honestly should have been hurt worse than I actually was. Even though I messed up my foot, I know that it could have been a lot worse.

It made me think about how a lot of the time we ask for protection or for specific blessings. I ask for protection while we are on the bikes everyday and I honestly think that I was blessed because I'm still able to go out and talk to people. I can still walk and bike. I also think I learned a lot more about the blessing I have than if I wouldn't have crashed. 

Anyways I know this letter is short but hope everyone has a good week

Please water my plant mom 

Elder Amata 

Sorry no pictures this week I'll take more  some this week. 

Week 27

 I never know how to start these emails lol.

 Things are going good here in Lexington. Now I cover the west side of the city but we are in a "car share" area with the Spanish sister missionaries which means we get the car for half the week. We also got a new mission president and we had Interviews this week and he seems pretty cool. We live a little outside of the area that we are assigned and its a 40 min bike ride to get to the neighborhood where most of the people we are teaching so you know that I've been in great shape lol . 

My Spanish is getting a lot better but now I just need to learn a lot of vocabulary and some more specific grammar stuff. 

 On the 4th of July we got to watch the fireworks from our apartment and because it's on a hill we could see 4 different firework shows. 

One thing I have been thinking about this week is that if we are looking for the blessings and the hand of God in our lives then we will find that we are very blessed. To me faith is an action word that means we don't know what is going to happen in our lives but we do the things that Heavenly Father has asked us to do because we know that he will bless us if we do them. However, sometimes we come across decisions and forks in the road where it would be so much easier if we were told which path to take and when we pray about it and we make a choice and it doesn't turn out the way we expect or the outcome is disappointing it can be confusing and frustrating. 

I've learned that for me Heavenly Father allows me to trip and fall and stumble and make a fool out of myself sometimes. I think that he knows that I'm stubborn and that sometimes the only way that I learn is by being humbled. I know that everything happens for a reason, even if I can't fully understand what those reasons are until later down the road. I know that God has a plan for each and every one of us but we have to be constantly asking ourselves how can we learn from our mistakes and from our trials. 

Please water my plant mom 

Elder Amata, 

1) We always offer to take out the trash of the members that feed us and the only dumpster in this apartment complex is on the other side we put the bags on the bike rack. 

2) we were talking to some teenagers and I tried to do a kickflip and my shoes got scuffed but that's what shoe polish is for lol

3) i was cutting the hair of some of the members kids. 

Transfers

Hey so I know it's been a while since I've sent anything but I just wanted to let everyone know what's going on. So I've mover areas within out city so we have a new apartment so everything has been a little crazy. My address is

 100 lakeshore drive apt 54

Lexington Kentucky 40502

if anyone wants to send me anything.

We are now able to go around and talk to people outside in the streets but we still can't knock on people's doors that we don't know. Things seem like they are ever so slowly going back to normal.

The one thing I keep trying to remember is that my purpose as a missionary is to help people develop a stronger relationship with God. Sometimes it's hard to see the results of our efforts but I know that even if I can make someone's day better that is a win for me because that's what Jesus Christ would be doing if he were here. He would be serving the people and showing them the way that they can be happy. I know that there are things that when we follow God we will be blessed for it. 

I know that this isn't the most in depth email but I hope that everyone has a good week. 

Please water my plant mom 

Elder Amata 

1)me and "red ruby" the race horse 

2)us with the other elders making the car a low rider lol 

3)another race horse 

4)find me in the boxes (we helped someone move)