MISSION FIELD: Week 89 Gooood Week!!!

                                                             26 Jan 2015

Dear Família,

   This week was good!  Thank you for all the birthday wishes!  They were great! 

   This last week, we had some visits from the Zone Leaders.  It was nice, but they just came and went real fast!

   Maio it doing great, the Church is having a solid frequency of 32ish, so that's great and in better news the Stake of Praia was split and they created the District of Assomada!!  That means we are that much closer to getting a temple here in Cape Verde!!!!  We just need 5 stakes and we have 3 right now, so Assomada and splitting Praia, will make 5!!  That will be a great day!!!  Elder Moreira, of the 70, came to do the division and man, was it good.  He spoke with so much authority and said that Cape Verde is one of the fastest grown areas in the church!!  What a blessing!!!

   The church is true and this is the only way we can receive salvation!  I love the Gospel and I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer.  I love you all and knows that the Lord knows us perfectly and love us very much. 

Love you all and have a great week!!!

love Elder Stratton!!

Happy Birthday, Elder Stratton!!!!

Today is Elder Stratton's Birthday!!!!

Send him a birthday wish!!!

MISSION FIELD: Week 88 Getting Ready!!!

                                                             19 Jan 2015

Hello Everyone, I hope you are doing good!!!

  This last week was good.  We had a great meeting with the mission president!  It's cool, 'cause we are the only island that gets training from him.  The only other place is the Zone Leaders from all the islands.  Pretty cool stuff. 

   We got interviews from him and they were great.  Finding and teaching are great, but it's hard to find.  Members really make or break the work, with giving references, so be sure to help the Elders in your ward.  95% of all converts are because of references.  Don't lose out, 'cause God is preparing the hearts of the people and He uses us to do His work.  So help out, 'cause is going faster.  I love this work and all that I have learned and gained from it and gaining is not even the best part, but giving back is even more important!!  Always remember that we have so much to give, we just need to do it. 

  I love you all and have a great week!!!

love 

Elder Stratton

MISSION FIELD: Week 87 Sunny and 75 out!!

                                                                    12 Jan 2015

Hello and good day!!

  Well, all you guys freezing it the states, I hope you are all doing well, 'cause where I am it's sunny and 75ish out.  But, it was a nice week here and we had lots of new stuff happen.

  Sonh, who we are teaching is doing good, but she is pregnant and the baby had some problem. So we will talk to her tomorrow and we will see what is going on, and she still has tons of desire. It's just lots of trials right now.  

  This week was good, we saw a lot of people in Church, this last week, that haven't been for a while and we had 7 women in Relief Society!!! 

That was a miracle!!  It so cool to see the Church grow from nothing and just do super good, but it also means something else will happen for us, to pass through to become stronger.  The branch has problems, but it is helping people grow and do better, so it's all right.  But life here always has you on your feet and the Lord is always testing you!!!  If you really have your heart open, you can hear the spirit always talking.  The hard part is blocking out all the junk, so you can hear it. 

   One other thing, that I have been learning about it sin.  There are 2 types of sin, sins of commission, which is grave sins and big commandments, and then, sins of omission, which is choosing the best, instead of the better.  Once we pass the stage of committing sins of commission, we need to work on the sins that will keep us from being exalted, sins of omission.  So, working on using your time wisely. 

  I love this Church and the gospel of Jesus Christ!  It really is the only way we have happiness.  This is the truth, there is no doubt about it,  I know that Jesus Christ is our Savoir, He died for us.  The Greatest of All, died for the least of all.  What a marvelous gift.

 I love you all and I love what I do.  Have a great week!

love Elder Stratton

Elder Camargo and Me at Black Point Bridge

Elders Stone, Camargo, Stratton & Scholfield at Black Point Bridge

Black Point

Me and Elder Camargo

We were running up to this place called Black Point, cool!

A very nice day with Elder Camargo and

a cool place called Ponta Preta (Black Point)

MISSION FIELD: Week 86 New Year!! (picture)

                                                                      5 Jan 2015

   Well family, happy to know the world didn't end with 2014!

   This last week was a good one we had New Years and, by the way, in Cape Verde, the day after New Years is the big party day.  Like the night of nobody parties, just the day after...strange.  Oh, and the tradition here, is that the night of the 31st, all the kids go in the street and go house to house asking for some change haha  like Halloween!!  But money!!

   We had the normal happen for the rest of the week!  And we marked a date for Sonha.  She wants to be baptized and she is trying to find a new house, so that she can because she doesn't want to marry the guy she is with.  So that was the good thing from the week!!  But have a great week and I love you all!!

love 

Elder stratton

Christmas party for the branch