Monday, October 11, 2010

11 Oct 2010 email



Well I´m so happy the wedding was a success and beautiful and all those lovely things :) I´m glad I could make it too, ha ha! I love the photos and it´s just amazing! The whold dancing thing sounded like it would have been really fun and special to watch.... sweet!
I did get the package! And i wrote a letter the past week about it all! Thanks so much, it felt so good to put on new socks! It really makes you appreciate the small things, the mission..... ya! If it´s too late then some ideas for a future package down the road: Baby powder (or some sort of powder for my shoes), and recipes (easy simple ones I can make out here... some of the stuff from home)
Well this last week was quite the week.... one of the harder weeks, and one of the more spiritual. I think I had my first full on argument with my comp, and the other companionship in our house too. I don´t want to sound racist, but the two latin comps are just closer to the end of the mission and a little trunky, loosing their drive and respect for the rules.... I´m still trying to work on that charity..... it´s difficult sometimes, but with a lot of praying and spiritual help I´m learning to control myself more and my emotions and correct the problems as fast as I can, it´s definitely a challenge.
The other fun thing about this week: We started teaching an Evangelical couple, Ricardo and Diani, they´ve been asisting the pentacostal church, not sure what the name is exactly, there´s so many different churches. Anyhow, we basically got into a nice bible bash.... a lot about the trinity, they just believe in one God, all three as one person, and you know.... I don´t think they´re gonna change their mind about anything, they´re so set in their way, we hit them pretty hard using their own bible with scriptures about the baptism how there was Jesus, the dove, and a voice, and we used the one where Stephen sees Jesus standing on the right hand of God.... and many many others, but they would just change to another scripture and never could answer our questions... but that´s ok... It strengthened my testimony and taught me how to control myself and not argue.... and also that night as we returned home, I went into the bathroom and prayed, thanking God for the knowledge I have and asking him to confirm it.....the greatest feeling came over me, a warmth surrounded me pretty much like someone placed a blanket on me and I cried..... and I knew before and know even more now that we have a Heavenly Father, a Savior, and The Holy Ghost and they are three different God´s all one in purpose to help us. Anyhow, with this same family we sort of set up a deal.... they went to our chruch sunday, and (with permission of course) we went to their church afterward.................................uhhhhhh...............I would like to bare my testimony now that I know that I am in the right church, the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the only true church in the world! It was kind of fun to walk into that church in our suits and tags, they greeted us nicely... then we sang for the first hour with an electric piano and a drum-set and speakers on full blast, I could not hear myself think! Everyone was clapping and moving around and shouting Glory Halleluja! and all that stuff. Then a man got up to give us the word! We read a whold 2 versus from the bible, one of which wasn´t even the right verse and we learned nothing! absolutely nothing, it was like watching theater the man shouting and waving his hands all over the place.... not teaching any principles..... just talking. Then we sang even more and some people looked like they were having heart-attacks..... just to sum it up because I could probably go on and on...... It was actually a good experience to see the difference... the organization and order we have in our church, the reverence and the spirit, the ordenaces and the priesthood... all of it. I am so grateful to be in the correct church and know what I need to do, have this clarity and goal and purpose.... I did feel the spirit, I looked back at one point and there was a girl sitting on one of the benches looking at me, she was a girl with down syndrome and she was just staring at me intently and I thought to myself..... that´s a celestial being... in the midst of all that noise I still had that experience....
anyhow, that´s the gist of the excitement, there´s so much more, but time won´t allow it! Thanks so much for the package again, the pictures, and all the love and support, I love you too! And God does too! Chau!