Heckya for William C!!!!

Ahh heckya for William C!!!! I showed my comp (who is from Chile) and he was soo stoked. He started showing me picks and telling me all about it. Then he just kept repeating every once in a while the word trunky – one of the two English words he knows.

Well "suprisingly Biron" another week is done. We had a bunch of solid progress this week. We spend most of our time with less-actives and have focused on two families in particular. In both cases, the parents are members and at some point fell away from the church. They really just got caught up in daily life and the church became less important. That is the way of things; if we are not constantly fueling the flame, it will eventually go out. Their children are not baptized and have not been taught the truths that their parents were given. This is sad that they have been ignorant of the peace and guidance that is so available. When we first met with these families they both were in somewhat of a stressed state. They took some offense that we were at their doorstep and that we thought they needed our attention.  They could have simply had a stressful day and we were seeing them at a dip in their mood, but I think it was the absence of the spirit in their home. What I have seen in the last couple of weeks has bolstered my testimony and given me an excitement for the work. The change has been a stark contrast. They have become more open to our presence and are even now delighted to see us. Their children started to come to listen to our message, first by force, then by willingness, and now are even starting to participate. Their stressed dispositions are gone and have been replaced by tranquility. The parents become especially excited when we talk to their children and commit them to homework, and now even baptism and receiving the priesthood. The parents can draw on their stored knowledge to help and encourage the kids during the lesson. During one lesson, the mother of one of the families couldn’t hold back the tears and then said it doesn’t matter if she was the only one in the family who goes to church this week; she was going.  She was not alone and all of the members of both families attended.

   We have a number of families and individuals with the same results; as I am sure many missionaries around the world do. I have never directly participated like this in someone changing their life and I have seen a corresponding influence in myself. My Spanish is remarkably better at these two families houses, which is probably why I focus on them.  The gospel is not just a part of our lives; it is the backbone and reason. It should guide every thought and decision. Dad talked about it in a letter of the concept of making sure the outline and important parts of the structure are secure and correct and then the result will be that the small things will fall into place. The gospel and church is that structure. If we diligently try to align our lives with the example and words of Christ then we will be filled with a desire to work toward hope and charity. Success can then follow; maybe not success as viewed by the world, but a deeper and more meaningful version. Before my mission, I did not try to diligent seek to understand the word.  Sure, I did most of the right stuff, but it was more of a routine. I was hardly reading my scriptures and service was not really on my mind. And the result was I felt lost at times.  Diligently trying to grow in all the basics of Christ’s teachings leads to such a better perspective .

I am asked all the time how much time I have left. When they find out the response is always the same: "Oh man, I’m sorry."    haha  que pues?  Sure, it will be a lot better in a few months when I can do more than stumble through the language. But I am privileged to have 22 more months of growth and service and I feel nothing but gratitude.

President Monson read this poem in one of his talks:

 

 Through the winds of change

 Encircled by the clouds of pain

 I guard it with my life

 I need the warmth, I need the light

 Though the storms will rage

 I stand against the pounding rain

 I remain a keeper of the flame

 

I am stoked about the garden.  The folks here love their fried meats and I have found myself craving veggies. I had watched some documentaries a couple months before I left and much to the delight of Meg, I started to drift towards a more vegetarian taste.  haha I guess that will be on hold for 2 years.

I gotta go - talk to yas later - loves ya’ll