Hola Family and Friends!!!
Wow!! Another week has flown by!! And it was a great week!
Yesterday Ao blessed the sacrament!!! :) He did awesome! It was so incredible to see him bless the sacrament for the first time. He is progressing so well! He really inspires us. He's preparing to receive the Melquisedec (I have no idea how to spell that) Priesthood in a couple of months. :) He also blessed the sacrament with the member that baptized him. It was really cool!
We met some really neat people this week! We've been striving to use each minute the best we can. Sometimes we finish a lesson a littler faster than planned, so we have ten minutes before the next appointment. We've been praying to find the people who are waiting for us in that time. Either we look for investigators who are progressing, less active members, or contact on the way.
One day we walked down a street and decided to take a turn up a callejon or alleyway. As we walked, we noticed a man smoking from the second floor of a house looking out into the street. We couldn't help ourselves. We said hi and introduced ourselves. We offered to leave a pamphlet on his doorstep and started to explain a little bit. He told us--hold on, I am going to go downstairs.
WOO!
He came downstairs, and we shared a little bit of our message. He told us, I have been looking for peace in my life. I'm trying to do the right thing! We asked him if we could return to share more about how to find that peace in his life. We also felt impressed to ask him to be baptized so that he could have the guidance of the Spirit in his life. He accepted without hesitation!
It was so neat!
We returned on Saturday with a fabulous young woman from our branch to teach him. He said he had read the pamphlet and so we explained a little more to him. The young woman we went with is beginning to reactivate in the church, but still comes inconsistently. We've wondered and prayed to know how to help her and her family. We especially wanted to make sure that she was sure of her testimony. In that lesson, it wasn't even a question! Her testimony is powerful! It brought the Spirit into the small apartment room, and it helped him [the new investigator] to recognize this message as something more. It was cool to see how member missionary work strengthens the three of us. The investigators, members, and us as missionaries.
Later in talking with her mom, she said that her daughter was so excited to come with us to teach! Then this member told us, please keep taking her. It's helping her! Another one of her sons was close to coming to church this past Sunday, but he felt nervous going by himself. The family is so special! When one starts to progress in the gospel, it pulls the tie with another family member, and the family begins to propel forward in progression together. They are just really awesome, we feel at home when we are with them.
We also went to see a stinking awesome new investigator this week. He lives on just about the most extreme end of our area we could go. We weren't even sure that his streets existed because we couldn't find it on any maps. We met him super lejos [far] from his house in the area that we live in. He was pacing on the sidewalk in the street listening to music, I think. We passed by him, and we felt like we should talk to him. It was a typical awkward, how do we start talking to this kid or get his attention without having to literally poke him or interrupt his pacing. Well, we got his attention somehow (I think we shouted at him a little and waved around a pamphlet just joking) and he invited us to come by to share more!
The day of the appointment comes. We have to block out a couple of hours when we go to that area during our day for transport and visit time, but it was worth it. We found his house after a little bit of searching. Basically in the middle of nothing!
We started off with a prayer and shared a little message about our purpose there to help him. We asked questions to try to listen for his needs. He recently had a family member pass away. He shared with us his anxiety of losing another family member unexpectedly and we told him about God's plan of happiness and eternal families. He looked so attentive and had a knowledge and recognition in his eyes. He also accepted the invitation to be baptized! And committed to come to church with us! He even said the last prayer when we invited him. It was great!
We were practically giddy coming back down the hill onto the highway, when Hermana C said...we should go look for Hermana so-and-so to see if she's home. We had never met this less active member and she was basically never home when we've been up there. So we decided to go by.
We stood out in her lot and shouted BUENAS TARDES for a what felt like a solid 10 minutes. Clearly someone was home, but no one was coming out...awkward. Well, this sister saw us from her balcony and decided to come out to talk to us. She welcomed us into her home. It turns out that she is very hard of hearing--basically deaf in one ear. She doesn't hear when we are outside shouting. It was a blessing she came out at all! As we sat and talked and got to know her a bit, she told us that she had stopped coming to church for a little bit and felt a need to return. "In fact," she said, "I had just made an inner commitment to go to church this Sunday. Because you two are here, it's a confirmation to me that I really do need to go."
We stood out in her lot and shouted BUENAS TARDES for a what felt like a solid 10 minutes. Clearly someone was home, but no one was coming out...awkward. Well, this sister saw us from her balcony and decided to come out to talk to us. She welcomed us into her home. It turns out that she is very hard of hearing--basically deaf in one ear. She doesn't hear when we are outside shouting. It was a blessing she came out at all! As we sat and talked and got to know her a bit, she told us that she had stopped coming to church for a little bit and felt a need to return. "In fact," she said, "I had just made an inner commitment to go to church this Sunday. Because you two are here, it's a confirmation to me that I really do need to go."
And she did! Yesterday she came to church on her own! She was beaming as she participated in the classes and made sure to say hi to us when she got there--just to be sure that she kept her word. :) I just love that. I am so grateful for the blessing of seeing people progress in the gospel and especially when they accept the Atonement of the Savior.
Something that I have witnessed is how crucial it is to be consistent and diligent with members who have separated themselves from church. Don't give up. Be confident in them and love them! Most of all, be diligent. It's so important. Retention and reactivation in church is just as important as finding, teaching, and baptizing. Yesterday, a less active family we have known for months now set up an appointment to have a family home evening.
WOO!
It's progress no matter how long it may take. LOVE IT.
WOO!
It's progress no matter how long it may take. LOVE IT.
We had a great week and are looking forward to another week of finding and teaching and serving. I love being a missionary!
If you would like to, here is a link to an awesome talk about the Atonement which is one of my FAVORITES. It's called "The Savior Wants to Forgive":
Hope you all have a beautiful week!
Con Amor,
Hermana Fernelius
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Last week we went to see the pyramids of Xochicalco!! And we went with some of our most favorite people, Hermana C and M :)
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