Día de acción de gracias- Thanksgiving doesn't exist here, but if it did, this is what they would call it.
I gave my third talk as a missionary. I had it all written out but didn't like it all, so spent the rest of my preparation time (and not much of that) tracking down the first talk I ever gave (my first 8 weeks in the mission) and gave that one instead. It was much better; not a call to repentance, but a focus on Christ and His example. When I didn't know how to say very much, I said only that which was most important. Something I should remember, simplicity is the ultimate sophistication (thanks Leonardo da Vinci).
On Saturday I remembered what diligence means. The activity we were planning to help with was not what we expected it to be and would be a waste of time so we left a little dejected and without backup plans. But before we'd gotten very far, I realized we needed a change and asked how many pass-along cards Hermana Ingram had. She told me, and all told, we had 20. We set the goal to pass them all out before going in for lunch. "Well then Hermana, I guess we'll need to talk to EVERYONE." And you know what? We did. And we saw miracles right from the start.
We are still working with our friend, Zian, and every time he amazes me a little bit more, this time because he was in JACOB 5 and still loves the Book of Mormon and because he shared a dream he'd had of Hermana Ingram and I holding light and coming towards him. So he knows the Book of Mormon is true. But he's Muslim, and that comes with some inherent difficulties on several hands. Everyone deserves this gospel, and it IS for everyone...but it definitely comes harder for some people to accept. Keep him in your prayers.
I went down to Barcelona for Concilo [leadership meeting] and received so much strength and energy there. Speaking with the hermanas who are serving in my past areas was very gratifying. Hermana Lameraoux (a good friend who replaced me in Bilbao) says that Manuela is the most prepared person she's even taught and that she's getting baptized this Saturday and inviting EVERYONE. She gave me a letter that was a little hard to read but said "I love you" a lot. Hermana O'Neill (from my MTC group and another good friend) had surprising news from Valencia that Carol (who had dropped off the map long ago) was coming back strong and doing everything she could to prepare for baptism... because a few months ago I sent her an email (that I didn't even know went through, since I never got a response) calling her back. I'm thankful that no efforts are wasted. Often in missionary service and in normal life, we aren't blessed to see the positive consequences of even our smallest, faithful actions. But that doesn't mean it doesn't matter. It matters so, SO very much.
I'm thankful for these little things.
Our mission put the inspired goal for EVERY companionship to have a baptism in December. What greater gift can we give the Savior than to work with faith, diligence, and obedience, and help someone understand the truth of a Savior?
We had a great American thanksgiving... As much as you can with just an hour and not a lot of access to the typical foods.
 |
| Last email she said there are tumbleweeds in Lleida . . . Voila, tumbleweed tree! |
No comments:
Post a Comment