Spencer's thoughts on Sunday, August 9th

Sunday evening, August 9, 2009 (In Spanish that is written 09/08/09)
Dear Family,
We arrived on the bus from Esquipulas this afternoon and we are resting, writing and reading the rest of the evening. I thought I’d write a few lines and see if I can make sense of what I’ve been thinking.
Yesterday we took a taxi-moto to one neighborhood and greeted five families. Then back to the hotel for lunch and a little “siesta.” We have to be true to the land we are assigned to—don’t you agree? We made a few telephone calls to set up appointments, rather than just wandering around. Some of our plans fizzled, but we had a plan for a full evening from 5:30 on. However, the long awaited rain (after a month of drought) came in with a vengeance. That wiped out the rest of our Saturday visits. There were two or three at church this morning that could be a result of our early and mid day visits on Saturday.
Five minutes before sacrament meeting was to start, one of the brothers came by and said they were missing a speaker. I was asked to fill the slot. I grabbed an August Liahona and reviewed the article about Mixto, Guatemala. It is an interesting article about the people there who had a fortress and survived about 800 years of attacks. The Spaniards found an entrance through a cave that no one had suspected and they were able to destroy them from the inside. That led to an analogy of being destroyed from within. Now, if you can bear with me I’ll try to touch on scattered themes that are on my mind and seem apparent to me since we have been here in Guatemala. It makes me think about the Last Days and the Second Coming—and whatever lies ahead of us.
 The church of the devil and rampant apostasy: Almost everyone here professes faith in God, but in reality they are in such deep spiritual darkness. Their professed belief in Christ is not seen in their lives. Their lives portray, “Everything goes--whatever you want to do, just do it. We all believe in the same God, don’t we?”
Immorality and its ugly consequences: There are no dress standards or behavior restraints. Marriage is often out of the question, but babies aren’t. Lots of little children being raised in poverty.
Political unrest: Chavez in Venezuela is making moves to become a dictator. He has been closing down radio stations, confiscating the oil resources and coffee plantations, and changing the constitution. Several other presidents in this part of the world are following his pattern and trying to change their constitutions. That is why the president of Honduras was kidnapped and taken out of the country. He had tendencies like Chavez. In Guatemala, there is lots of infighting within the government. The president arranged an assignation, the congress recently started shouting and throwing water and things at each other during a session, and the police are often corrupt.
The Justice System in Guatemala is a mess: There are about 20 murders a day in Guatemala. 98% are never brought to justice. Children are kidnapped all the time and the judges often know that the circumstances are questionable when they make them available for adoption in the US.
Organized crime and Extortion: Here is an example of what goes on all the time: “OK we know where you live and where your kids go to school. We need “x” amount of money or you will never see them again.” Bus lines in Guatemala City are having drivers killed on almost a weekly basis. There are demands for money to drive the buses in certain areas—and the money has to be paid on a monthly basis or they will kill the bus driver—and they do! It appears that the police are not about to mess with Organized Crime.
People in apostasy never get along—there are wars and rumors of wars, bickering, poverty and suffering.
 The spreading of the gospel: The communities like Esquipulas are struggling; however the church is growing in strength. There are wonderful leaders and strong families everywhere. The sons and daughters are remaining faithful and going on missions. They are being educated in the gospel and being trained to make good livings and make contributions in their country.
This country is providing more young missionaries than they receive from the US (export more than they import). They are quality missionaries and serve all over Latin America. One limitation is the dependency on the general missionary fund. Dentists and doctors come to provide dental and medical care. There were about 1700 who participated in the pre-mission exams and work earlier this year.
There should be dentists coming here again next month to do dental work for prospective missionaries and provide clinics in the aldeas.
The war that started in the pre mortal existence is still raging. Satan has unleashed his darkness and the race is on. We will win!!! Peace will be restored. Every knee will bow. This is a wonderful work.
We love all of you and hope that all is well with each one of you.
Dad/Spencer