Wow. What a week full of miracles and incredible
experiences. It was seriously one of the most incredible weekends of my
mission. First off, It's been good being companions with Elder Doyel.
I'm training him as a zone leader which is surprisingly not easy. You
have a lot of the weight of the entire zone on your shoulders.
Presidente Lanius has been putting more and more weight on the shoulders
of the Zone Leaders, especially when it comes to baptisms. I'm teaching
him everything I know about being a leader....it's exhausting, but it's
fun to take a step back and see how much I've learned over the past 18
months. Elder Doyel was sick on Wednesday, so we got stuck in our
apartment for the day (you can bet it was spotless after the day was
through!).
First
miracle is Marcos. Last week, while walking to an appointment, a rather
large hefty man flagged us down. We stopped and turned around to speak
with him to find that he wanted to give us 10 reais to go and treat
ourselves to a snack. I tried explaining to him that he didn't need to
give us money and that we already have funds to buy food and whatnot. He
insisted, saying that he felt prompted to help us out as he saw us
walking by. I told him that if he really wanted to help us, he would let
us teach him. He didn't have it. I then asked if he knew someone else
we could teaching. He told us that we could visit his brother. We wrote
down his address and paid him a visit. That was when we found Marcos. He
told us that he was baptized 20 years ago, but had since fallen away
from the church because of word of wisdom problems. He told us that he
learned the hard way that the Gospel really is true. He said that in the
end of 2012, he told God that he wanted 2013 to be a different year. He
wanted to change his life. 2 weeks later, his brother felt inspired to
give two young men 10 reais to buy a salgadinho, but ended up instead
sending us to his brother in need....coincidence? Not a chance. He
showed up sunday morning at church and loved church. He sat down with
the bishop and made goals with him. Wow. What a miracle. I wonder what
it's like for you guys on the other side to read a story like this
without knowing or meeting these people....I feel bad for you guys at
times. Words on a screen don't do it justice. It's soo good to see these
things first hand. There isn't a better feeling, like President Monson
once said, than knowing that you served as a tool in the hands of the
Lord to answer someone's prayers.
The
other miracle is Ana! She was finally baptized! Boy, what a special
baptism this was for me. It's been about 3 months since I started
teaching her. I passed through 3 companions during that time....it looks
like the Lord wanted me to see this baptism through. Her story truly
was a conversion story. She overcame so many obstacles and challenges,
many of which came from within her own family. I saw the light of the
Gospel turn on inside of her and increase in brightness with time. It
was a very special experience for me. We had her wedding friday night.
We had a chaotic week working out her wedding process (marriage is super
complicated legal process here in Pernambuco....it's a no wonder there
are so many people that don't even bother with it). There were several
miracles that came through that made her wedding possible (in a few
months, you can get the deets....just know that the Lord set up the
stage so that every little detail worked right to open the door for her
marriage). There were a ton of her friends at the wedding. Nothing
better than a chapel full of people that aren't baptized (yet!). Many
commented at how good they felt during the baptismal service. It was a
very special experience for sure. I said to Elder Doyel "Elder,
everything went right this week....this never happens!" Seriously, I
almost had to pinch myself.
I'm
very grateful for every single experience that the Lord permits me to
have as a missionary. I cherish my mission. I cherish the things I've
learned. My journals are like gold to me. The records and thoughts and
feelings that I've had here are priceless to me. I'm so grateful for
everything the Lord has given to me. When everything goes right, we have
the opportunity to be thankful and humble. That is our task and duty.
It really is a great day to represent Jesus Christ!
Until next time,
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