Elder Smiley's Homecoming talk will be August 23rd at 9:00 am

Our church is in Spanish Fork, just off the corner of 1100 East and 1240 South

All are invited to the conclusion of Smile's adventure  --  and the start of a new one!

Last e-mail!!!

This is my last time writing to y´all unless there is some strange occurrence so I fell a bit sad but also a bit glad. I really have loved my mission and I love serving the Lord. What a blessing it is to serve the Lord everyday. Who knew that two years could go by so fast but they have and now I feel just as nervous as I was two years ago but now about the opposing things.

We had our last zone conference of my mission and it was very relaxing. I liked it and am glad I won´t have to go to as many meetings as i do here.

It really was a good conference and in it they gave a bit of time to Elder Ponce to talk about language study. He taught us about how we can better our language skills. Towards the end he asked if there was anything we wanted him to tell us. I asked him if there was anything that we say or in a certain way that is very gringo. He responded, ¨Let me think about my first 12 weeks in the mission.¨ Everyone that knew that I trained him was busting up laughing. Good man, good missionary.

The other Elders had a baptism and it was very calm and spiritual and well done. Allison and Gerard came and loved it. Allison still is not sure about being baptized. On our way home Gerard was telling us about his two girl friends. I asked him when he was going to invite them to church and he said ¨Are you kidding?! I don´t want them to catch me!¨ Funniest 8 year old ever!

He was actually running around at church also giving everyone the program and welcoming them. Good member.

We forgot the keys on Sunday morning and the other elders were on the other side of the ward and we had no way to eat or get our suit coats for the meetings until the other elders came back. We ran back into our area and my boy Carlos Marcos gave us chicken burgers and then we ran back up  and met with the other elders in Sabadell center to get the keys then run back to our piso just in time to get picked up by Orlando to make it to church on time. Miracles.

In Priesthood they always ask us if there are any visits they can come with us. When they said that Joanjo said ¨Elder smiley has a visit with an airplane.¨ and everyone busted up laughing and the rest in shock not knowing I was leaving. They then gave me a talk for next week and then some pictures.

In the evening we passed by Doris for her birthday and gave her brownies and she loved it. That is a great family and I wish the best for them!

I really have loved my mission and my areas. I especially love the people I have brought the gospel to. What a blessing it has been and what a burden it would be if I hadn´t come.

I thank all of you for your support on my mission and all the love you have given me. I wish you all the best of luck and look forward to communicating to y´all in a way other than an electric box and keyboard.

I love y´all and I love being a missionary!

Élder Smiley

Isaac

Happy Birthday Elder Smiley

Birthday Cake!!

Missionary work in the Digital Age

Familia Oscariz. (Joanjo and Yun and Eric)

I like the part about "I've already talked to you", pointing a Dave. Good job, talk to everyone you see Elder Smiley!!

Kind of a rough week looking at the end but during the week we had plenty of miracles and surprises.

This week was a fired visit gave us about an hour to go find someone. I told the member that we were going to go find someone to baptize. We talked with an old feller and he didn´t want anything but he said that someone on the 4th floor probably believes in God. We went and touched the first door. A lady opened up, let us in and loved it.

I was on an intercambio with Elder Johnston and we passed by someone I had contacted the week prior. We rang the timbre and she stated that she wasn´t very interested and hung up. As I was scratching off her name she asked if we were still there. We said yes and told us to come up. She then asked when we got up if we could teach her children about God because she didn´t know much and wants them to have a good foundation. I felt like a primary teacher. The kids running around, not paying attention, crying, and laughing. It was a mess but she liked it and wants us to return.

The things that were kind of rough were that María Jesus´ son is having family problems in France and now she left to go help him and she will be there through August. Frustrating. Ninosca and her family got a call from a friend who invited them to Switzerland for a couple weeks. In Spain people tend to go on vacations in August and it is a major pain in the rear. Also they are very lazy in August because they turn off their brains and go into a relaxation mode. ha

I´m really out of things to say. We talked with a schmack ton of people and they told us ¨I´ve talked with you (pointing at me) but not him, but it doesn´t matter still no.¨ We have talked with almost everyone in our area. It´s actually quite entertaining watching their reactions when we walk towards them and they don´t want to talk with us.  But then there is always that one that has been praying all day for someone to give them direction in their life and how our Father in Heaven puts us right in their path.

This week I also shared ¨What the Lord taught me on my mission¨. It´s like a testimony but we know that a testimony is what the spirit has taught us, and this is more like what we realized as we have been out here working. They asked me to go last and it was pretty rough because I have loved my mission so much and I guess it´s just a bit rough for it to come to an end. I´ll send an email next week more about this stuff, but in the mean time we need to go baptize the entire world!

If you would please pray for Allison, Yunis, Lilia and for our miracle contact that wants to be baptized before I go home.

Good work.

Thank y´all for your prayers in my behalf. It really is nice knowing you have a bunch of people behind you cheering you on.

Love y´all!

Élder Smiley

Man the last weeks just fly by too fast

Another packed week with teaching, and finding, and miracles.

Also this week I hit my two year mark. That was a weird realization for me.

We met this kid that is incredible. His name is Guillem. He is a stud who is from San Quirze (next door) who did an exchange program in St. George. He got back in June and contacted the missionaries last week. They told me and I met with him and we talked. He went to Utah not believing in God and came back knowing that this is the true church. Good man!

Last Sunday I contacted a woman on a bus in Sabadell. Turns out she lives in Montcada (far out but in my area). She accepted a return visit. We came and taught. She loved it. Also her too kids. When we came back later in the week she had read and had great questions. She came to church. Ninosca, Fernando and Ahmed. Those were three individual miracles right there.

We are to the point of having tons and tons of people to teach and so we are super busy all day every day and not much time to find. The difficulty is finding people in the little time we have and help those be baptized who we have pendant. Let me just give you a recap of our pool of friends.

Asunción. Crazy but doesn´t feel the need to be baptized. She just thinks that all churches are true and she´s already been baptized. She treis my patience quite a bit!

Allison. A member (better said less active) told her the last time she came to church that she shouldn’t be baptized. Without much of an explanation you could tell that Elder Smiley was livid. Now we are trying to help her listen more to Jesus than to psycho members.

Ninosca. A little bit more time and she is going to be a great member of the church.

Joy. Not feeling well and super down. I don´t know whatever happened to her. Mari Carmen says that she is super down though. It´s a bit sad to see someone who was doing so well then to see them drop so low.

Not much new this eek We are working hard and seeing tons and tons of miracles. I will keep y´all updated on everything that is happening.

I also wanted to give, more or less, a shout out to Jim Dunn and his family. I fell like I have always had his support for my two years and that I owe him a lot for all the miracles I have participated in because of his prayers.

I don´t know if I already explained this but I thought it might put Utah church life into perspective. In Barberá we have to grab a bus or train at 2:30 to get to Sabadell to grab a bus at 3:00 to get to the church by at least 4:00 when it starts (Dave stop complaining about 2:30 church that one year). We have our meetings until 7:00 then grab the bus when it comes at 7.40 and then switch to the train, which drops us off in Barberá at 8:30, then we walk to our homes. Double your normal time. Blessings.

I love all of you and ask that you pray for my wonderful friends and that they can come to know Christ and receive his blessings.

I love all of you and thank all of you!

Élder Smiley

Back to Back Weeks of Baptisms. Way to go Elder Smiley

BAPTISM!!!!!!!!!!!

Back to back weeks! The ward and everyone is super excited!

The baptismal service was incredible. They did show up a bit late

but we got in and had a spiritual musical number, a good talk and a 

great prayer. Elder Johnson did a great baptism even though she

forgot to plug her nose and it was kind of awkwardly up in the air 

even though she still went all the way under. After the baptism she

gave a testimony that almost put me to tears. She thanked us

specifically for having helped her realize that she did need to be

baptized and this was the true church. She also talked about when

she has to go back to her country she will take Books of Mormon 

so that her family can have the  blessings of the gospel. In this

baptismal service I realized that I love my family and my home

but this is where I need to be right now and that this is real 

happiness. I was truly happy as I listened to that powerful testimony.

It was a very interesting week.

I´m usually focused on just baptizing baptizing baptizing. But this

week I did a little better job on stepping back and trying to help 

people in piso, less actives, recent converts, and active members

who were struggling.

We actually had a great conversation with a member who has been

a member for 30+ years. (The church started in Madrid 40 years ago,

in Barcelona I don´t even know when). His whole family was baptized

but now he is the only one active and it is a bit rough sometimes. Props

to this great man! Carlos Marcos, I will always remember him.

Also this week there were some old classmates of Mari Carmen that

were making fun of her after our visit. They were being what Charles

Barkley would call ¨knuckleheads¨. As we walked one way and she left

the other they started mocking and laughing and making fun of until

the point came when I couldn´t take it any more. I turned around and I

went up to him and got up in his face and said ¨We are friends of Mari

Carmen and you better cut that out.¨ He looked a lot like Uncle Mike.

I think I caught him by surprise and then he said, ¨take a walk!¨ I didn´t

move an inch and I told him I wouldn´t leave till he cut it out. I don´t

think anyone had ever stood up to him before especially not a squirt

in a white shirt and tie. It felt good to help our friend out because I 

really do love Mari Carmen.

Like I said an interesting week.

I love all of you and thank you all for your support and love even though

I´m still out here. ha

Would you please join me in prayer to help: Asunción, Allison, Guillem,

and Dani.

I thank you also for your many prayers in my behalf. Love y´all!

Anyone that will listen to his message!!!!

Typical Spanish street

Baptism this week.  The lady that said it would have to be a year before she was ready, Dave challenged her last week and she got baptized this week!