Elder Jacob Stiles: Kumusto Kayo!

Elder Jacob Stiles
El Salvador San Salvador West/Belize Mission
P.O. Box 1123
Belize City, Belize, C.A.

jacob.stiles@myldsmail.net

Hey Everyone,

Well the first thing is that you are probably wondering what the phrase "Kumusta Kayo" means. We met a Hawaiian man whose parents are Philippians, and we learned a couple of words from him. The phrase is almost like Spanish. "Kumusta" is just like "Como Esta" - "How are You?" But the word "Kayo" is how they say "You" in Tagalog... Or as far as my knowledge goes. Just about all of his family are members of the church so he loves taking pictures with the missionaries and showing his family.

This week on our P-day we did not do anything. We ate and went with the zone to get ice cream. This week was full of finding those that are ready to repent of their sins and be baptized. In the month of February the mission had 40 baptisms which is the lowest it's been in forever. But President Hintze also said that he doesn't need us to work harder because in all his time he has never seen missionaries work so hard. So what we've been doing is using this time more wisely. We are working with members, getting references, and working with less active members.

Also this week, we got a surprise call from immigration telling us we had to go to Belmopan to fix the passport of Elder Tuchan while he was here training. While we were waiting we got a visit from a man that wanted to know about what the Mormons believed in. Turns out he just wanted to Bible Bash. We ended up telling him that he needed to humble himself and ask God if the things we shared were true. Then he stopped talking and we left.

We also had Zone Conference which is always the first week of the month. We heard from Elder Alico, the Senior Couple. One of my favorite things he said was, "do you want to be part of the problem or the solution." No matter the situation you can always be the solution. You can complain about what is happening, or you can get up and fix it. I also like the quote, "People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care." Which is definitely true here in Belize. If the people don't know you love them then they won't listen.

We worked with the Adams', which is another Senior Couple who are in charge of Seminary and Institute, so we visited all the students.

And to end, I ate raccoon this week... and I don't know how to explain it other than it taste like chicken. Just about the same, right...?

Love, Elder Stiles

(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

Ice Cream Shop