Opportunities to Serve

Missionaries have lots of opportunities to serve. For instance, we held a baptismal service yesterday for a young man who we've been teaching this month. Another example of the week was when we pulled a drunk unconscious out of the street so he wouldn't get hit by a car. The possibilities are endless! As Christ taught, even as we do it unto one of the least of our brethren, we do it unto him. I think that has more significance than the simplest interpretation- that as Sons of God, He'll be happy as we strengthen our brothers and sisters. I think it has something to do with the Atonement. 

We know that Christ literally felt every pain and consequence of sin this world suffered. For instance, if someone had depression and resorted to drug abuse, Christ would have to feel the consequences. If a friend took the time to support that person and help him find other means of alleviation beforehand, Christ would not need to feel the consequences of the actions untaken. Therefore, by serving our fellow man, we can literally take off a minute portion of our Savior`s sufferings. However small that portion may be, I am thankful for the opportunity God gives us to help his Son in such a real way. 

The Church has done something cool for this Christmas on mormon.org called Light the World ( I think- it's Ilumina el Mundo in Spanish) where each day of December is offered a way to serve like the Savior, with three application ideas, a short message, and a video. I think it`s a neat way to make the season one of service. 

Until next week, I hope you enjoy the end of your November!

Why Do We Fall?

This week we set up two youth to be baptized by the end of November- one this next Saturday and one the following week, a couple days before my companion goes back home to Mexico. We're excited to get them completely ready with the time we have left. 

I've been thinking this week about our particular doctrine on the necessity of the Fall of Adam to kickstart God's Plan of Salvation. I think it's best summed up in a favorite Batman quote- "Why do we fall?  So we can learn to pick ourselves up!"  The entire purpose of being here is to learn and progress, and the only way to achieve such a goal is to fall. In the case of the Gospel, the manner in which we pick ourselves up is by being willing to lift up our hand and let Christ pull us up to our feet. We fell so we can learn by experience to have faith (lifting up our hand) and to repent (gripping His hand and struggling to get up). When Christ told us, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect," He was telling us that one day we would stand up like them, having attained perfection by struggling throughout this life. 

I'm grateful that He loved us enough to send us here, then save us. I'm thankful that as a missionary, I can share His message with those in my area.

The Work is Divine

This week we prepared for the baptism of one of our investigators. Everything was going well... until he called us two days before to tell us, on second thought, he was taking things far too quickly and he'd like to postpone it. I was fairly panicked the following night, mind racing with possible reasons he might have and possible answers we might provide. The following day, we had our make-it-or-break-it lesson with him. It was an intensely spiritual lesson where we tried not to tug him so much as explain why we thought he was ready. I felt the Spirit guide the process, telling me, point for point, the direction I ought to go. It worked, and he changed his mind. I felt utterly exhausted afterward, and could hardly think. I am very thankful the work is divine. I felt so incompetent as I realized no emotion or reason I could express was sufficient to 'convince' him. In the end, he was baptized the following day. He's an awesome kid with personality- I've seen the light in his eyes come a couple times to demonstrate his individuality. For instance, I saw it when he closed his sincere, peaceful baptismal testimony with a random Winston Churchill quote. Ah, it reminded me of something I would do. 

I know the church is true, and that in the end everything's going to be all right. Also, here are some pictures!

"This is of me and the young man I baptized.
My plaque is behind his shoulder, I promise!"

"This is our good friend in the area who helps us out with everything.
He's preparing for a mission, and he's the bomb."

Finding Truth

This week was wonderful. We had so many investigators miraculously want to be baptized. Of course, there are always more obstacles along the way, but we're off to a good start and what I feel will be my most successful month of the mission thus far. It's doubled in happiness because I really love this area and the people here. 

We have one boy who will be baptized this week. His progress was slow until...he looked up on the internet rumors on Joseph Smith. The anti-Mormon material is so strident. We braced ourselves up for our next lesson with him, and he was completely at peace. He said he'd read parts of the Book of Mormon and realized for himself rumors were usually just rumors, and there's a reason for most things. He said he felt more at peace in his life now, and began to progress dramatically. He downloaded all of our pamphlets before we got to him, and explained to us all the doctrine. 

I know when we search answers for ourselves and follow through on our feelings, we'll find the truth. God rewards the seeker.

Baptism / Achieving Our Potential

This week we were blessed to participate in another baptism. About three weeks ago, we placed the 29th of October as a goal for her, but she vehemently denied that she would be ready so quickly. While she pushed back frequently whenever we mentioned it, I felt that if we became quiet about it and worked with her in completing all of her commitments, she would one of these days tell us she was ready. Such a day came last Saturday, and miraculously she was baptized on the first date we set with her. It was, I believe, the most spiritual baptism I've seen on the mission. Her testimony was very obvious. I was also very proud of her best friend, who's preparing to go on a mission after being a member a year, for preparing a thoughtful testimony with interesting scriptures for her. 

Our area is full of amazing members, who are good and genuine friends. It's important to remember everyone here has eternal potential, and praying for charity permits us to see people as they are. As Paul said in Romans 8:19, ¨The earnest expectation of the creature (creation, in context) waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.¨ All of creation is waiting for us to achieve our potential...hopefully and anxiously. Until next week, my friends, happy Halloween!

The Message of the New Testament

This week was great. We have an investigator who finally accepted the challenge to be baptized. She has had a testimony since we first started meeting with her a couple weeks ago. She was having visits from missionaries beforehand for over a year, her twin having already been converted. Since the beginning, after we encouraged her toward baptism, I had a pretty good feeling that if we tried to press her again she'd shrink even further. At the same time, I figured if she still kept all of her commitments, kept feeling the Spirit so strongly, she would inevitably tell us one of these days, "Elders...I think I'm ready now."  And so it was.  This was quite miraculous. While we haven't been able to reach the full extent of our zone goals as far as baptisms go this month, we were still able to have a very successful month, and she told us just about the last day possible in which we could still set a date for October. I'm grateful for that. 

I've been thinking this week on the message of the New Testament. We have just a bit of information on who our Savior was and what He did in His life. Really, what we have is a detailed account of Him healing blind people, cripples, the diseased, and the deaf. Of course, this is a very heartwarming story, but still I wondered, why is that the central emphasis of the story of Christ? Why is that Christianity's story?  I realized it's because the whole point of the Gospel is that we can be healed. We're hammered with this doctrine that Christ can heal anything to make us remember that through His Atonement, He can fix us up too, be it physical, mental, or spiritual. Our belief system is one of becoming whole and shaking off the dust of a harsh life into purity and immortality. The Gospels are all one big metaphor for the Atonement. That helped me appreciate how central it is to my life -- the power that Christ has to take the hits and let us overcome our trials. I know that He has a plan for each of us, to make us whole. 

Until next week, my friends!

How We Treat Others

Hello, all! This will be a very short update, but I had a hard-working week with a baptism. 

I was thinking this week how important it is to treat others how they ought to become and not how they are, as President Eyring mentioned in conference. I think we have a firm power in the reality of the lives of others as we build others up.  I think as we treat all as equal children of God, we'll be lifted in our spirits as well. 

Wow, that really was short! Nevertheless, I hope you all have a wonderful upcoming week.