Semana 103 (I'm Touring Panama!)

Buenas!!

Last week of the transfer flew by! It was a good end of the transfer tho!

We had exchanges on Monday which was super fun! I went with Elder Mendez. He is super awesome!

I aided a criminal... I helped a blind lady onto the metro train, and then helped her sit down. But 2 minutes later a police officer walked on and escorted her off. I'm curious what she did.

We had our interviews and Consejo de Distrito on Tuesday which was good!

We did a really fun service project as a district! Pancakes included! But I'm sure every service project that has Pancakes involved is a good service project!

We had another good exchange with some other Elders. While waiting to end the exchange Elder Parkinson and I kept going up and down the escalators to contact people. It was so funny!

SOLINKA GOT BAPTIZED!! FINALLY!! I'm super happy for her :)) And she just had the biggest smile on her face all day! It was super special! We went to her house later to eat cake with her family, so big success for sure.

Kelly also came to church! She's gonna get baptized next week! But the cool part was that her aunt, who is a member, but hasn't gone to church in 20 years, came to church on Sunday!! It was a huge miracle! Ministering works people!

Today we went to a Brazilian steak house! It was SO STINKIN GOOD. I haven't had good meat like that in 2 years. I just about cried.

Well here it is, my last transfer is coming up. Time just goes by too quickly. But I'm excited for my last transfer! It's going to be quite different.

I'm leaving Mañanitas which is sad, I'll definitely miss all my friends here. But, I've been given a new assignment that I'm excited for!

I'm going to be a traveling AP! Basically for my last transfer I'm going to be traveling around all of Panamá! Each day my companion and I will be with a new companionship, in a new area, doing exchanges! So basically I'm homeless. Six weeks of traveling, exchanges, and giving it my all. It's gonna be really exhausting, but I don't think there is any better way to end my mission than giving everything I have to a country and people I love! One last adventure!

As for my thought, I can't quite compare myself to Alma. But, I will say that I feel a little bit how he felt.

9 I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, and I glory in it. I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my joy. 

10 And behold, when I see many of my brethren truly penitent, and coming to the Lord their God, then is my soul filled with joy; then do I remember what the Lord has done for me, yea, even that he hath heard my prayer; yea, then do I remember his merciful arm which he extended towards me.

I'm so grateful to God for His love and mercy that he has shown me, and continues to show me. And I'm so grateful for the chance He has given me to be an instrument in His hands to bring people to Christ. This is true joy.

I love you all lots! Please pray lots for me, my people, and my mission!

Until Next Week!

- E. Lutze

Solinka's Baptism

Brazilian Steakhouse! I almost cried!

District service with pancakes

Sharing His gospel, His love, and His word ~ The Book of Mormon!

Semana 102 (Green Tea Cake)

This week was really good! We started off by doing a CPEC. It was super far away. But it was super fun! In the morning we all played basketball, and it was a really good time!

We had exchanges this week too. I went with Elder Bowen! We started our missions together, so it was super fun! We also had 2 dinners...we were really full and sick after 

Tender Mercy moment! We kinda had a rough day on Thursday. And to make it worse, our light bill wasn't paid, so we were about to run out of electricity! The big issue there is that Panamá is super hot! Without a fan or something it's just impossible to sleep. We were trying to pay the bill, but everything was either broken or closed...

We decided to just turn the fan on and let the power go out. But by a tender mercy, the fan made it through the entire night! It was literally impossible. But it happened!

We ate some weird fruit called Mamon Chino. It was pretty good tho!

A member gave us a strange looking cake. My companion started eating it, then la hermana said, "This is a cake made with green tea."

Bruh. My companion then proceeded to eat the rest of it. I asked her if I could take it to go, then I punted it into the trash. And my companion then made himself throw it up. Bottom line, don't be scared to say no and live the commandments!

Something pretty cool that happened is that we saw some of our friends on their way to school. They were super excited to see us and were waving from the bus. Then we saw that in their hands they had the Book of Mormon we gave them! It was awesome!! It made me really happy :)

Today was super fun! We went as a zone to play paddle ball! I wasn't super great at it, but it was for sure a fun time!

Anyways. Love you all lots! Keep praying for my zone and my people! Until Next Week!

- E. Lutze 

A Little Friendly Basketball

Lunch

Mamon Chino

Share the Book of Mormon

CPECs or Splits

Zone Paddle Ball

Semana 101 (La Tarde Blanca)

Buenas!!

This week was super good! Very crazy. But very good!

The entire week we were rushing around trying to prepare our friends for baptism! Everyday was just crazy. And I'm pretty sure Satan didn't want us to do anything cause I went from getting better and healthier to sick again and feeling like crap.

We had a good Noche de Hogar with a member! She gave us some good references, and it was a fun time.

We did a CPEC which was fun.

Had an exchange. I went with Elder Dorman! He is a new missionary. It was a really fun time! That night there was lightning and thunder that was literally shaking the house and our beds. It was insane! But the highlight was a guy we taught named Dario! He is a super old guy, but he is so awesome! We had a super good lesson with him, and he absolutely loved it all! Then I had him read a scripture, and his reaction was so cute. He was like, "Ayyyy que liiiiindoooo!!! Que diviiiinooooo!"

He was so happy :). He marked the scripture right then and there. He was just so excited. He treated the scripture as if it was the greatest treasure he had ever found. I wish everyone treated the scriptures like that! Such a cute old man.

In the exchange we also made pancakes :)

We had a stake correlation that lasted waaaay too long. And our mission leader lied saying that we do the correlation... Long story short, Elder Smith and I have been trying to do the correlation for 4 weeks now, but our mission leader doesn't want to do it. Then he lied about it. I wasn't very happy. But that's ok! We will have it at some point I'm sure.

Well, the most exciting thing that happened was......... LA TARDE BLANCA!!! LETS GOOOO!

Man was it crazy to plan this thing. In total 9 people got baptized! That's pretty awesome! We were hoping for more people, but 9 souls is 9 souls :)

It was super fun and spiritual tho! All the people that got baptized were super happy! Of our friends in Las Mañanitas, Javier, Yasmeth, Gabriela, Keysi, and Johan got baptized! They are all so special. I'm so happy for them!

Our ward made things especially difficult. They didn't want to travel to the stake center for the baptisms, meaning they planned other activities the same day to try and move the baptisms. They also refused to help us get a bus to get people over to the baptisms. But the Lord provides! We had the impression to talk to this one guy who has a bus. He told us that he rents his bus for special travels. Miracle moment! So Elder Smith and I were able to rent a small bus, get our friends over to the stake center, have a great baptismal service, and get them all back.

Anyways. Love you all lots! Keep praying for my zone and my people! Until Next Week!

- E. Lutze

Dario - If everyone would treasure the scriptures like he does!

E. Smith & E. Lutze

E. Lutze & E. Smith with Javier, Yasmeth, Gabriela, Keysi, and Johan 

Nine Souls!

Missionaries ~ La Tarde Blanca

Waiting for the Baptisms to Start

Our Zone

Pancakes on Split with E. Dorman

Semana 100 (Maliantes in Training)

Buenas!!

Another splendid week! I don't really remember much if I'm being honest, but I'll share some of the highlights and funny things!

We went by Angel's a few times this week. He is very very old. But we have all become friends! We invited him to be baptized. And he agreed! But on one condition... that there would be a party! He kept asking us what kind of party it would be. Knowing that he is obsessed with Pollo de Patio because it "tastes better," I jokingly said, "A party with Pollo de Patio." I've never seen an old person laugh so hard! I thought he was about to die right in front of us! Now we die any time we say "pollo de patio."

We did 2 CPECs this week. My comp and I describe the feeling of CPECs as being hit by a flash grenade in Call of Duty. Everything is just blurry, fuzzy, you're stumbling around, and you can't hear anything.

We saw something really interesting this week. We were walking down the street and saw a small bus of kids drive by. It was a school bus, but a different type of car. All the kids were waving and smiling at the two white guys. But then we realized that the driver was a maliante. A gangster guy. And he was blasting heavy rap music by Bad Bunny. We started laughing pretty hard! They sure be training these kids while they're young to be maliantes. But hey, that's Panama for ya.

We also showed up to a big family we are teaching. Lots of them are going to be baptized! We saw they had some weird cookies. They were actually a gift from some company for the national child day of Panamá. But then we realized that they were Galleta de Café!! Coffee cookies! We then told them to throw them out and repent, which they did. So we bought them Oreos :). It honestly was kind of a funny moment.

Anyways I don't have much time, so no thought today. I love you all!! Keep praying for me and my people! Until Next Week!!

- E. Lutze

E. Smith & E. Lutze ~ Lunch

Just say 'no' to Las Galletas de Café

Now that's a Panamanian missionary!

So cool in our shades!

Semana 99 (We'll Make Something Work!)

Buenas!!!

This week we had our leadership conference! It was super fun and super spiritual! And the best part... we ate tacos! That's a win in my book!

Wednesday we did a CPEC which was fun! And after, we did an invasion as a district. We just went to the Hermanas area to contact and find people. It was cool tho! Elder Smith and I found an inactive member, and we were definitely supposed to be there. Very cool.

Elder Arias left for Brazil on Thursday! I'm super happy for him! It was fun to be with him for a little bit!

Thursday we went to another area called 'La Cabima.' A member there wanted Elder Smith to baptize her 8 year old son. It was a good time! Elder Smith slipped in the baptismal font and everyone started laughing. It was so funny! He was laughing too. I guess he really wanted to go swimming!

We had our Zone Conference this week too! I enjoyed it a lot. It was weird because a lot of my friends gave their final testimonies. But it was also really cool, because we took a big picture of all of us that started in the same zone together! Time flies.

After the conference, we were trying to help a new Elder contact. He did a really good job! He can't speak much Spanish, but he was giving it his best! It was awesome! And it led to a few funny situations - at one point he said to a woman around our age, "We can text you and plan a dinner."

He meant to say plan a day to go by and teach. Elder Bowen and I were trying so hard not to laugh. But we couldn't keep it in. We both just burst out laughing super hard! It was hilarious! But hey, she said yes to having the missionaries over.

It was Elder Smith's birthday on Saturday! Happy Birthday to Elder Smith! (Mom note - and Elder Lutze's birthday was on Sunday... so if you're still reading, wish him a belated Happy Birthday! at jakob.lutze@missionary.org)

I got locked in the subway bathroom.

Big miracle at church! All our friends that are going to get baptized on the 27th came to church! It was awesome! But there was also a really special miracle that happened. About 3 weeks ago we started teaching the Elder Quorum President's dad. He has always rejected missionaries, and has NEVER come to church. Well, this Sunday he came!!! We invited him, he came, and it was a really special moment for Angel and his son! It was almost enough to make a grown man cry. So special.

Overall the week was super good! Lots of miracles always!

My spiritual thought for the day has to do with my shoes. They were getting a little too beat up, so I took them to a shoe repair shop. The lady kind of stared at the shoes like "What is this?" She was very confused. She then took them to the back saying, "Let me go see if there is anything we can do!"

About 5 minutes later she came back and said, "I don't know how, but we'll make something work!"

I left the shop just laughing at that comment because I don't know how she's gonna do it either! But, I trust that she'll make it work somehow. And in the end there's a valuable lesson to be learned from this. Sometimes we are like old beat up shoes that probably don't smell the best. But God looks at our lives and says, "Let's see what we can do."

He examines our lives. He knows exactly what we need to be made better. And then He says, "We'll make something work." 

And the beauty of it is that if we trust in God, He not only will fix us, but He will make us better than we could ever imagine! All our scrapes, bruises, scars, pains, and experiences will be used for our benefit. So, when we can't seem to get a break, or can't quite get anything right, or life is just down right hard, let's have a little faith that God will look at us 'old shoes' and say, "Don't worry, I'll make something work."

Anyways. Love you all lots! Keep praying for my people and my zone! Until Next Week!

- E. Lutze

Cute Puppy?!

Zone Elders

E. Lutze, E. Ence, E. Rojas

Elders ~ Started with E. Lutze in his first area

Happy Birthday to E. Smith & E. Lutze!

Our Zone!

We love the Book of Mormon!

Zone Conference

Semana 98 (GOD BLESS AMERICA! 🇺🇲🎆🦅)

Buenas!!!

This week was super good! Tuesday I went to pick up my two new companions, Elder Arias and Elder Smith! They are super cool!!

Not gonna lie, it's kind of a weird dynamic being in a trio. But it's good! And it's been really fun to be with the two of them! We saw so many miracles this week!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!!!! Man was I happy! I LOVE AMERICA!!!! We didn't do too much, but it was more of the patriotic feeling I had all day that made it so great!

We did, however, have someone make us an American Flag cake to celebrate! And we ate at KFC. The only thing we didn't think about was a knife... so I kind of awkwardly asked the KFC workers for a knife, and it turned out to be a really hilarious experience. I basically had a 5 minute conversation with 6 of the workers, and they were asking me for cake.

I discovered, what may be, one of the greatest discoveries ever. In other words from the movie Hercules, "There hasn't been this much love in a room since Narcissus discovered himself," YOGURT AND PEANUT BUTTER TOGETHER IS SO STINKING GOOD! I may or may not be addicted at this point... it's just so, so good.

We are planning a Tarde Blanca for the 27th of July! It should be good! These things are super stressful to plan. Praying for a miracle on this one. So please pray for it to be successful, and for lots of people to come unto Christ that day!

Miracle Moment! At church we had a ton of our friends come! Not just that friends came, but the friends that we needed to come! It was so awesome! We have a lot of friends who are progressing really well, and have a lot of potential!

Panama is full of interesting people, especially the barbers. They are all kind of gangsters. It's lit!! But they don't always say good things. Or listen to good music. But I convinced one of the barbers to turn on music from the church! It's so awesome! They all love it 

This week I heard someone say something, but then I had a completely different thought come to mind and heart. So my spiritual thought will be that. Hopefully it makes sense. We'll see.

My thought has to do with the Iron Rod. We know that the Iron Rod is the Word of God. It guides people to Jesus Christ, His Atonement, and His love. We also learn that one must hold fast to the Iron Rod, so they don't fall away. 

Something very important about the Word of God is that it has to be found in our hearts. We must give place to it inside us.

To keep this shorter, the Iron Rod is the Word of God. But, when we have the Word of God in us, we ourselves become Iron Rods - in the sense that we are firm. But also, in the sense that, like the iron rod, we can be people that others can cling to. People that can help lead others to Christ and His love. Just like Jesus and the scriptures are for us, we can be that firm rod others need in their life.

So my invitation is this - Give place in your heart for the Word of God and be an Iron Rod for others.

I love you all lots! Keep praying for my people and my zone! And for the 27th of July!! Until Next Week!

- E. Lutze

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

American Flag Cake & KFC

Sharing the Word

Thank you for the meal! E. Lutze, E. Arias, E. Smith

We love the gospel!

We are Iron Rods!

Semana 97 (Mining for Gold! And Baptisms...)

Buenas!!

This week went by super quick! Last week of the transfer...kinda crazy.

It started off with a super fun service project! We went up to Cerro Azul to do a bunch of manual labor. I had a big ol' pick and was going at it against the dirt. One would have thought I was mining for gold by the amount of rocks I hit/took out. It was a lot of hard work, but super fun!

We had a big miracle happen this week! We went to visit our recent convert Deogracia, and her uncle came up to us and said, pointing to two girls, "Those are my granddaughters, they aren't members. I want you to baptize them."

So we started teaching them, and they all came to church! God always provides!

We had an activity on Saturday that was pretty fun! We played sports and board games. Some members brought some cool friends too!!

We helped teach mission prep which was really fun! We are trying to help a lot of members here go on missions. And lots of them are getting really excited! It's awesome!!

Transfers have arrived! Time is going by too quickly. But I'm staying in Las Mañanitas! Elder Smith and Elder Arias are coming here. We will be a trio for a few weeks until Elder Arias leaves for Brazil.  I'm excited! It should be a good time!

I had an... interesting experience this week. I woke up on Thursday extremely sick. Just all the bad things. I felt horrible. The only problem was that we had to be at district council and then do a baptismal interview. I decided that if God needed us to be there, He would give me the strength to go. So I prayed. Got a blessing. Didn't feel better. But hey, why not give a good effort right? So, I slowly got ready for the day, and we left.

Well, God definitely gave me the strength I needed! We had a good district council, encouraged the zone a bunch, and then did the baptismal interview! We got home around 3, and I just passed out on my bed. But, it was a good feeling knowing we did the Lord's errand!

The next day I felt super weak. I wasn't super nauseous anymore tho! That was a big win. I may not have felt 100%, but we had people to teach, so we left. And we saw lots of miracles!

Anyways, I learned 2 things from this experience. Probably more.

1) Faith truly requires action. I knew God wanted/needed us to go to the council. I knew God could give me strength. But I didn't receive strength until I acted. Until I actually started putting forth effort. Prayers are really important and essential. But if we just sit there and expect God to do everything, it ain't gonna happen!

2) 1 Nephi 3:7. "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."

If God wants something done, He will provide a way for it to get done. But only if we have faith :)

Anyways. Long tangent, sorry. Love y'all lots!! Keep praying for my zone and my people! Until Next Week!!

- E. Lutze

We love service involving a pick axe and rocks!

The Service Area

We love the people of Panama!