Hey!!
Sounds like a pretty awesome rodeo break weekend! And
everyone needs to stop getting sick! I hope you're all feeling better.
Sorry....this letter is way too long....
This week was pretty good. It was a little disappointing
because, like I said last week, we had found a bunch of new people, but this
week we didn't manage to get a single lesson with any of the new people we had
found. Lots of appointments have been falling through on us. Haha its
especially awkward when there is a member there with us...but...oh well. Haha I
feel bad for this guy in our ward named Fede, this week he came with us for the
4th or 5th time since I've been here...and we still haven't had an appointment
actually work while he's been with me. Haha he was making fun of me a little
bit for that but...he leaves on his mission this month to Brazil, so he'll
figure out how it is soon enough :)
We did find 1 new investigator this week though, who was way
cool. His name is Jesús. He was a reference from someone in our ward. We went
there, and he grabbed some chairs and we sat outside with him. Before we even
said anything, he pulled out a mormon.org card that had a question on the front
that said, "Does it matter to God what I do with my life?". He showed
us the card, pointed at the question, and said "I want to know about
this." So...we told him. We talked about Heavenly Father's plan for His
children and about how our time on earth is a time to prepare to come before
God, which we can do by following the teachings of Christ. And then Elder Cook
set his very first baptismal date with someone! He promised to come to church,
but when we got there he wasn't there...so we walked to his house to find him.
He opened his door, and without us saying a word, he said "Just a
second". He went inside, got dressed, and then came to church with us. The
only downside was that he left right after church, and when we finally got out
of the church building about half an hour later, we found him half a block
away, drinking with some guys. A little awkward. But we're way excited to work
with him.
As a verse of the week (this ones a two-part one), I was
thinking of something that I read in Luke 17:1. Christ says that offences are
bound to come, but then goes on to explain the importance of forgiveness. It
made me think of the countless people I've met on my mission that have
distanced themselves from the church because they were offended about things
that half of them don't even remember anymore. Then I thought of the example
that Christ gave us in Matthew 26:36-44. In these verses, Christ is suffering
for the sins of the world in the garden. If there is only 1 person or event
that deserves our undying respect and gratitude, that night comes to mind. But
in those same verses, we read that some of His closest followers and friends,
repeatedly fell asleep during that important time, despite what He had told
them to do. Surely, if anyone could be offended for anything, it would have
been easy for Him to be offended, that in the very act of paying for the sins
of the world, including those of these 3 men, some of His closest friends
couldn't even stay awake for it. But He didn't get offended or quit because He
thought He deserved more respect or gratitude for what He was doing. He just
kept doing what He had to do. Surely we, if we think we deserve any sort of
gratitude or respect for what we do, could be a little more patient and
forgiving as well, especially since so many of the things that might
"offend" us aren't done with that intent. Just a thought..
Anyway, hope you all have a great week! Keep being awesome!
Elder Webster
My comp, Elder Cook, sitting on a throne of Books of Mormon
What it looks like to walk in Dorrego
My book of mormon in quechua...cuz its cool...but no, I
don't think I'll be learning that anytime soon
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