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We are halfway through the change. Not the mission. Not QUITE that far yet... but we're in the process :)
Sunday was the last fast and testimony meeting of the year! There hve been SO many things that have happened this year, and at the end of the year I plan on writing a HUGE journal entry about all of the craziness that has been this year and some of the things that have made a difference in my life this year. It's going to be good! Look forward to that one the week after Christmas!... probably the 7th of January... As you all know the Christmas Devotional was on Sunday night and we got to go to that! It was really weird to think back on the fact that 1 year ago I was there in person... 1 year has FLOWN by! I remember it like it was yesterday! I don't remember the messages very well though, I know, I should, but it's really hard to stay focused on the voice of a translator because I'm used to listening to the speaker with their voices and the changes in voices and everything. Translators don't do that. So, even though I understand it all, it's just not the same. But, I know they were good messages!
We went to see Carla again on Monday, which I always enjoy! This time the guard refused to let us pass. It was ridiculous! They let salesmen in with who knows WHAT that no one wants, but people preaching about Jesus Christ can't get in. We told him exactly which house we were going to, that we had an appointment, and everything and he still refused. So, I called Carla and she cinched the guard and he let us pass. (Cinched is the gringo past tense verb of cincho(noun) which means belt. Or, in this sentence, chastised...) it was sweet. We always have such great spiritual visits with them. Today we focused on faith and feeling the Holy Ghost. She says she is really focused on strengthening her faith in God and the basics, which is perfect! but that she has always had problems feeling the Spirit, so we tried to explain how the Spirit CAN feel, and to associate it to other spiritual experiences she has had in the past. I absolutely love that family!
Tuesday was ZL Council, but they didn't do it in the office which was sweet cause we got a little bit more work done... sort of. Oh, and we got the budget on Tuesday! I love the budget! But that's private. Sister Watts made a Thanksgiving dinner for concilio(council) which was absolutely AMAZING! I had turkey, potatoes, stuffing, salad, gravy, jello, and best of all, INCREDIBLE homemade rolls! Just delicious. Everything you could ask for in a Thanksgiving dinner! We didn't get out of the office until late though, and there was a lot of traffic. We visited a less active named Oscar Azurdia and gave him some reading glasses because Hna Watts has hundreds in her house, so we took him 3 pair because his broke. We talked about the Holy Ghost with him and helped him remember some of the great experiences he has had with the Spirit as well. He doesn't have a lack of a testimony, just a lot of things that have hurt him over the years, which is a really tough situation when you don't get the help and support you are looking for (not financial). He was even a branch president. I know that we are resparking those feelings he felt so strongly when he was a branch president and that he could return to the church and be such a strong member! Today he told us that really appreciates our visits. He hasn't had much communication for the last 10 years and it's just a perfect opportunity for him to communicate with us as human beings and servants of God at the same time. He told me that he really appreciates my patience with him and that he is grateful for me. It made me feel special. I know that sounds cheesy, but it was just one of those moments where you know that you are doing something good. That's the only way I could describe it.
I love days when I have a random thought to take up space in my journal. On Thursday I heard a line I really liked from a song "Mistakes of the past don't define you, they refine you". I thought that was a very uplifting and comforting thought. Sometimes as human beings we tend to think that our mistakes are what people look at or that they tell everyone what kind of an awful person we are. That is not true. It is true that our mistkaes make us who we are; but not because they define us, rather, they define us. They help us learn, grow, and progress, thus reshaping our lives to something even greater, like refined gold. It was a nice thought, that we can become something better, no matter what happened beforehand.
This has nothing to do with anything, but when I was writing in my Journal this morning I wrote "Time is honestly just running away from me. (Random, but that reminded me of the song "Time" by Hootie and the Blowfish). I just thought it was kind of funny. On Friday night we were able to teach Javier again, who has a fecha for next Saturday to be baptized! It was the first time we'd taught him in a while and we taught him the Plan of Salvation, really making sure he understood how it answered 3 questions of the soul Where did I come from? Why am I here? and Where do I go after I die? I just keep hoping and praying that he is getting a strong testimony to stay strong in the gospel no matter what happens. Unfortunatel he still prays to Jesus Christ, but he closed "In the name of Jesus Christ" as well... So he's getting better. It's hard growing up with the Catholic ritual of praying to Jesus to change completely. Although, I was surprised by how many catholics in Guatemala do NOT recite prayers. Incredible.
So that was my week pretty much! And now the change is halfway over! I have 9 more weeks in the office. Which is SO weird to think that I have the equivelant of my MTC/CCM experience to spend in the office again, but I like it. I love you all and am thinking about you all a lot in this Christmas season!
Love,
Elder Andrew A LaPray
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