#9 1st BAPTISM

Ismael got baptized!

For those of you who are tuning in for the first time to the Elder Bailey email, we have a beginning paragraph so you can pick your favorite stories. Wow! Where do I start? Vale.. I got it! "Muslim leader" story, followed by BAPTISM! and finished with musical genius! 

I went to Segovia for exchanges again. Elder Brewer and I played a contacting game. We would have to talk to whoever we picked. I picked a group of 4 Muslim women. He said no, so I went anyway! We started talking to then like good ole' friends. I used the 5 Arabic words that I knew, and then we talked. They sure a heck didn't give us their numbers, but they did accept a card. Their children came and one of them smacked my bum.. that was weird. Well then we were leaving, but one of them told us to go talk to his dad who was on the other side of the park. We went over and the first thing he asked was why we were talking to the group of women..... I thought that we were dead for sure. We told him, and then talked to him for about 30 minutes. We showed respect as he did. He's the leader of the Muslim mosque there, so it was a big deal. We got his number and address! I'm so happy that we put aside the perceived thoughts we had and just talked and learned. It was awesome! 

Well now the baptism! We baptised Ismael! I'll send a picture, but it was so cool! It was great to see how God had been preparing him! He had 80 people there in a ward of 140! The support in this ward is truly incredible! The Spirit was really strong, and his testimony was powerful. Something crazy about it is that he was born in Guayaquil Ecuador. One of my good friends Toff is serving there! His mum always said we were connected because we had a lot in common... well there's one more! 

The last item on today's show was the music program we had at our stake center in Madrid! It's incredible the Spirit that music brings into the world. I had ideas that I knew were not my own! I know the church is true! It blesses families, and transforms lives. Jesus loves us more than we can comprehend! 

Elder Terry Bailey

"Ismael was born in Guayaquil Ecuador. One of my good friends Toff is serving there! "

#8 Drug Dealers--3rd Nephites--AND Much More

At the Fair...

Outline.. I know you guys just want something you can make fun of me for later, so I'll let you know where those points are. 1. Story time! 2. Ghosts, 3. Prepared. I like to finish with the best. 

STORY TIME!! 

This was always my favorite when I was in second grade... Things haven't changed much since then. Well the story starts when me and our DL were contacting here in the promise land we call Villalba. We had just gotten yelled at, but this French guy when we get stopped by this kinda drunk guy. He asked if we were Mormons? We Told him that some people called us that... He said that he knew Mormons and he liked them.. then it happened... well nothing realy happened. I just though this would be a good place to insert drama. Well he'd get really close to our faces. He told us that he was in Columbia selling drugs. He had $300,000 worth of cocaine... " I had 20 kilos of that stuff... I was going to be set for life... but then those !"!"$%& locked me up! I did 9 years of hard time. That boys, is my story" Haha the funniest thing was his face! He started shouting right in Elder Weixler's face. Haha but he had just finished drinking so that was solid. 

3rd nephite.  PS We found this guy by a garbage pulling out bread from a big bag

The next story came when I was walking back from a lesson... I'll write out the conversation. 

Me, "Hola!" 

3rd Nephite. " Hi," (Handing Elder Weeks bread)

Elder Weeks, "Amigo, where are you from?" 

3rd, "Heaven" 

Elder weeks, "Where were you born?" 

3rd, "The heavens" 

Elder Weeks, "Where do you live" 

3rd, "Here" I reside in the world now. 

Elder Weeks, "What's your name?" 

3rd, "Child of God"

Me, "Great! Us too! 

3rd, "you should take your bread... I will take mine... I must depart now"

Haha This guy looked like a hun! He had that Asian looking beard that you see in Mulan! It was too funny! So we assumed he was a thirdNephite or something. 

Crazy stuff

Well on Saturday we left to go work. We hard locked our flat. When we came back be saw glass everywhere. I thought we had been robbed, but the lock was still there? So what happened? All of our items were still there, and there wasn't anything that someone threw through our window. It was odd. We cleaned it up for an hour... Well we still don't know how it broke... Yeah... it's still a mystery. 

The Best for Last!

Our investigator Ismael is finally getting baptised this Saturday! I'm crazy excited! He bore his testimony the other day, and the Spirit was quite obvious! I'm so pumped for him. I've learned that God has people prepared for us, and we just have to demonstrate that we are willing to do what it takes to find them and they will appear. We found two people who went to church in South America, but stopped when they got here. We are planning on meeting with them this week! I'm ecstatic for what we have planned! The Gospel is so great, and I'm grateful that I can be out here sharing it!! The Church is true! 

Elder Terry Bailey

PS This is the pic of what we saw when we got into the flat.

The Bota family and I drinking our mate! They're a great Less active family that just needs a little direction! 

Other pic is of me in my Gypsy pants! They're the bomb!! It's like a skirt with legs.

#7 Next Thing I know...it was gone

Well this week was great! I don't really remember what I did, but wow I feel awesome. I have gained a lot of confidence in what I do. There are hard times and chill time, but we can decide to make it the best 2 years, or the longest 2 years. I choose best! 

Quick outline: Soccer Dreams, People, Uruguay! 

Soccer dreams?  What the heck does that mean? Well Sit tight, and I'll tell you! So we had a great last District meeting where the Spirit was there. The Zone leaders were there, so I knew trouble was coming... Right before they left, they annouced that we could only play soccer on Pdays now. I was heart broken.. but seriously. We played every Saturday at 10-12. I thought it was a great way to obtain a better realtionship with members, bring investiagtors to meet members, and a way to show them that we were normal humans too. Back to the story. They dropped the news and then speedily left. I was kind of upset as were the other elders in my area. I was down for most of the day, but then I was comforted by words I remember from Tarzan. "Come stop your crying it will be alright" Jaja I realized that I didn't agree with that decision, but I knew that President Jackson was called of God, so it was the right choice. I was here to serve the people of Spain, so soccer isn't that important. 

People!  Always one of my favorite subjects! I made my list! In 6 weeks of being in Spain O have met people from 28 different counties! I'll send the list next week because I forgot my agenda. But it's awesome! On Thursday we taught Mimon and Saaid. They are the Arabic guys I talked about! They brought 2 friends, and one of them really likes what we have to say, but he's affraid his dad will kill him if he comes to church. The guys are 22-25, but it's crazy to see how passionate some people can be about their religion. It's good and bad. It's bad because it's harder for us, but it's great that people can have a strong conviction! So We're progressing! 

Uruguay!  We are teaching those Uruguayans who drink a lot of mate. They are great! I could sit and chat with them for hours! They are members, but they have some problems with Joseph Smith and the BOM. In theory it sounds really easy, but they used to be Jehova Witnesses, so they know the bible like nobody's business. They also stuggle with the hymn Praise to the Man. They feel like we should only be praising God. Haha so it's some hard stuff, but they motivate me to work hard! You can find good in everything! 

Well the church is true and love you all! Thanks to all those who wrote and sorry if I didn't get to write you back! I love you all and wish you the best! 

Elder Terry Bailey

#6 BOOM

Here's what I'm going to talk about, so you can skip to what you want to read, and so I can stay focused... I swear I have ADD. First, Some culture, second some stories, and third will be the reason why I'm here. 

Spain is too great! I can't think of a better place for me! Sister Clegg was telling me to start counting how my people from different countries that I meet. I have quite a list that I'll share next time. Today we got some Gyspy pants! They are like dresses kinda.. I'll send a pic if I can. We played soccer today, and I came back from Madrid in them, and I got my fair share of stares.. It makes me feel like leper, but I love them! Soccer is way too fresh here! We use it to show investigators, and members that we're not just weird guys who wear ties. 

There is a disadvantage to people liking us... just wait to here. There is a recent convert Giovanni, and he's too funny! He always teases this Elder who is kinda mean to him... He asked him how he was, and the Elder said, "Well" Giovanni patted the Elder's tummy, and said, "I can tell"! Haha maybe you had to be there, but it was funny. We also got to eat... wait... before I say it, I was a vegetarian before the mission. I absolutely hate meat! Well we got soup.. with pig skin! Imagine eating 20 big pieces of gummy sharks, but it's pig skin. Well I ate it quick with help from water! I'm pretty sure 2 of my pieces had hair, but hey, I made for a decent story! 

Last and Most! We had a lesson with the Ordoñas family last Monday. The 16, and 15 year old kids have been investigating the church for a year!! There parents love us, and like the church, but they feel like their kids should be 100% sure. I can understand where they are coming from. Well the last few missionaries would just go and hang out with them with not a lot of focus. My comp told me right when I got here that the Father was the main thing holding them back, so right off the bat he was my main focus. After a few visits, and some Mexican food lunch that we had with them I felt like everything was good. 

Last Monday we met with them, and talked about baptism. Something that they've heard at least a dozen times. The last 15 minutes of the lesson were golden! Ismael (the 16 year old) bore his testimony, and then I bore mine. I literally never cry, and I started choking up.. I told them that I was here because I knew God loved them, and I went in a little deeper. I finished and we had a silence that felt like an eternity, but was more like 5 minutes. I then challenged them to pray, and ask the Lord if their son should be baptized. .... Fast Forward to Friday.. We received a call from Ismael and HE'S GETTING BAPTIZED in 3 weeks! I'm so full of joy, and I know that all of this is because of the Lord's power and love. The church is so true! I love you all an wish you the best! 

Elder Terry Bailey

#5 WELCOME TO SPAIN!!!

I love God, and his children, and that's why I left what I love for 2 years. The Book of Mormon is the word of God that helps us to draw close to God

My goal for this letter is to share some culture, my mish families, and some good ole' truth. 

First things first I'm the realist! jaja jk... uh well Spain is a unique place because of the diversity. Because it is Spanish speaking there are a lot of Latins here. I've met Dominicans who are impossible to understand, and are obsessed with baseball! Tons of Bolivians and Ecuadorians! There are Arabs, Chinese people, British people, and again tons of Latins! I'm going to come back speaking a mix of all kinds of Spanish! The Latins are way fresh and a lot more open! The Arab women won't talk to us... They say it's for religious reasons, but I feel like it's because I've let myself go. (Seriously though...some of my pants don't fit anymore) There are Chinese people, and they own a lot of little shops. I practice the little amount of Chinese that I learned in school. It's a great time! 

Now some work items! I learned how to effectively hit the streets, so I talk to EVERYONE!! I don't care what they look like or even smell like. Quick story 

                                  CRAZY HIGH/DRUNK GUY

We were walking back from lunch and this crazy guy stops us. I need you imagine a guy with long hair who probably hasn't showered since the 60's when that was something socially acceptable. He told us that we were geniuses!! But idiots. He Yelled "God is COMING!!" he then said, "You are crazy to think that the Spanish people will listen. They are ripe for destruction!" Haha the other Elders were there too, and this smelled like alcohol! I pretended to tie my shoe, gave my comp the ear nose thing, and we barely escaped leaving the other elders there to get him as a future investigator! #goodtimes

Well back to what I was saying before I went add. Well I talked to these Arabic guys, and they didn't want to talk to us until I talked about soccer. We invited them to soccer Saturday. They came and we became buddies! We are going to meet with them on Tuesday! They are going to teach me more Arabic, how to make falafel, and we're going to teach them a lesson! I'm way pumped because the church could always use better soccer players. jk it's because they are sons of God and deserve to know the truth. This stuff is so exciting! We are also teaching this inactive family from Uruguay! They introduced me to "mate". It's an herb drink that's really bitter. They need some help, but we have a good relationship, so it's getting good! We have some other good stuff in the works, but I don't want to jinx it, so watch out for my next letter! 

Last and most important! The church is true!! God lives and loves all of His children. I love God, and his children, and that's why I left what I love for 2 years. The Book of Mormon is the word of God that helps us to draw close to God. I love you, and wish you the best! 

-Elder Bailey

PS The pics are from Elder Sanchez that I was telling you about and a typical Spanish road. More pics on their way! 

These are from Segovia!! One is a cathedral and the other is the aqueduct.