Hello all,

 

This past week was great! We were able to really start working with our new investigators! First off, Mario, Nancy, and Carol (our family) they are amazing! At family home evening we went over how families can be together forever and it was super cute, and their family was so touched at how much importance we put on families. Nancy and Carol came to Church on Sunday, and we have another meeting with them tonight. We're hoping we can get the husband to Church, he seems the most interested, but also a little bit reserved at the same time.

 

We taught Shahid 3 times this past week, and we actually ended up dropping him. We found out that he's one of those people that gets baptized "just in case". He's been baptized 5 times because he isn't really sure what religion is true and he wants to make sure he's good after he dies. We talked with him about faith, and shared alma 32: 21 "faith‍ is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope‍ for things which are not‍ seen, which are true". And we discussed how faith requires action, but being baptized a bunch of times to make sure you're in the clear does not actually demonstrtate faith. Sister B even pulled out the baptismal interview questions and showed him that even though we extend baptism to everyone we meet, they have to be converted before they actually go through with it. Then we politely told him that unless he is willing to make that change, we can't continue to teach him. He understood, and told us he just wasn't ready right now.

 

We taught Eric the restoration! It went really well. We are focusing on getting him to gain his own testimony, and so we have made a goal to let our investigators talk and testify 70% of the time, and we do the talking the other 30%. We've witnessed that as they do this, their faith builds, and their testimony grows. Eric is still genuinely seeking. He currently goes to an Evangelical Church but he says he doesn't believe it's true, he just likes playing the drums in the band there. 

 

We taught a new investigator names Esmir who is awesome! He has so many questions, and said he believes the plan of salvation to be perfect. Only problem is he is 21 and doesn't speak any Spanish so we have to pass him off to the Young Single Adult elders. Sad, but still happy.

 

We had trainer's meeting which was really great! It is so weird to no longer be the little greenie that is going through my own training. President and his sons all shared some really great mission stories to basically motivate us and let us know that sometimes we have to work really hard for 2 years (or 18 months) in order to have 1 really amazing miracle, but it will always be Worth it! One of the sons served in Mozambique and told us how impossible it is to get documentation to do anything over there. No one has birth certificates and the couples need a birth certificate to be married, and they need to be married to be baptized, and they need to be baptized to get sealed in the temple. So pretty complicated process! Well one day, they had a stake activity where they found a way to get everyone's documents. And you know how they did it? They rented the government for $40! Haha if only all of our missions were that way.

 

One thing I super loved that was shared at the meeting was "we unite families for eternity". What a beautiful message we have the privelege of sharing with the world. I am so grateful for my wonderful family, I know I would not be here if it weren't for them!

 

Love,

 

Hermana G

 

Scripture of the week:

 

4 Nephi 1:8 I love this because it talks about rebuilding Zarahemla! That's why I'm here

 

Quote of the week:

 

"I'm not good at social things and even I know that's not how you ask a girl out"

1st Temple trip for Hermana B

Add captiSister J and I were reunited (":

Hermana B's first poutine!

La Banquise, a.k.a. THE poutinerie