What a week! Missionary work is so awesome. I'm truly the happiest I've ever been in my life right now serving the Lord day in and day out, the salvation of souls always on my mind. It's the best thing ever to share the thing that gives me the most joy with someone who doesn't know that that much joy is an option in their life. We had a few first lessons this week with people who I think might be ready to be baptized in a few weeks.
One was with this lady named Arlet. We walked past her on our way to a lesson. Then we walked past her again on our way back. I don't know why we didn't talk to her either time because we both were feeling like we should. Sometimes we mess up and the Spirit has to kinda slap us in the face so we listen. We turned the corner, neither one of us talking because we were both thinking about her and how we walked by without talking to her. Then my comp stopped and said, "We need to go back." She was right, and Arlet was so ready for the Restoration. In the future I'm not gonna be the missionary who doesn't respond to the Spirit's promptings.
Also church was amazing this week!! Six people came to church! One of them was a thirteen year old named Franchesca who we actually found last transfer but she kinda got lost. But the Spirit reminded me of her and we visited her and invited her to come to church. And she did! And church was perfect for her too because all of Sacrament meeting was just the youth in our ward bearing their testimonies about EFY last week. It kinda made me and my comp tear up just a little, especially listening to all of these youth say confidently, "Voy para la misión." And it was really inspiring to our friend Franchesca too. She went to a youth devotional in the afternoon on Sunday too!
And we had another friend named Josés come to church too! We found him last Monday and taught him Tuesday and invited him. But he just happened to walk by the church on Saturday and a member was there for some reason and he decided to talk to our friend and invite him to church. I think he came because of Hermano Baez's invitation, not because of ours. Members are really the fire behind the missionary work and it's so cool when they get involved. I think others are able to feel the love behind the action a lot more when it comes from a member. I love the people we are teaching so much and I really want the best for them, but I'm also called of God to preach repentance and baptism to the nations. My tag gives me power, but there's a different kind of power the members have because they choose to share the gospel without wearing a tag that says it's their job to do so.
Also here's a story from my personal study this week. I was reading in 3 Nephi 19. First in verse 3 it talks about how the people worked all night to get to the place Jesus was. What if that was our attitude too? Working constantly to improve so that we are as close as possible to the people Jesus wants us to be. It's hard to have an attitude of constant improvement. This transfer I feel like I have improved so much as a missionary. So I was almost about to sit back and brush off my shoulder and be like, "whoa, look at all that improvement. Wow, I really came along way." Then this verse reminded me that one of these days Jesus is gonna come, and I want to be one of those people who was working all night to be ready to see Him.
Then it talks about how the apostles taught the people. I started thinking about myself being in their shoes. I was thinking, what would I say? Just me, standing in front of a lot of people, teaching... what? How would I fill up all the time? I thought to myself, I guess I would just teach the gospel? You know, faith, repentance, baptism, Holy Ghost, endure to the end? The classic stuff? Then a couple verses later it says exactly what the apostles teach: "They ministered those same words which Jesus had spoken—nothing varying from the words which Jesus had spoken." That was a cool moment for me. To recognize that I don't actually need to stress about filling up time, running out of things to say, having a boring message... Because it's not my message. It's Jesus's. My job is just to repeat the words Jesus has already said. I never should worry about what I'm gonna say or how people are gonna respond. I'm just here to relay the message. When people reject it, they are not rejecting me. When people accept it, they are not accepting me. All I have to do is teach Jesus's gospel, nothing varying from what He said when He taught it.
Anyway. That was a longer one. Have an awesome week cuz you guys all deserve it!
Hermana Cazier
pics!
1. my compa and I
2. my comp and I are a little obsessed with this cereal called Vitialisimo... here is the evidence. They have a ton of different flavors and we've tried like half at this point. For future reference when all of you go to the DR and buy cereal, the hazelnut dark chocolate one is the best.
3. I tried this thing called sancocho and I don't actually know what's in it... my comp and I rated the food we got with our facial expressions.
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