A year and a half of practice is finally paying off ...

4/11 We had a good week this week. We found a few people with a lot of potential this week, one of which is named David. He is a super nice Peruvian who invited us in to teach him while he was hanging up laundry. He is very open and receptive. We hope to be able to continue teaching him and seeing him progress in the gospel. Unfortunately, for reasons unknown to us, Jose sent us a text this week saying that he doesn't want to continue with the discussions. We suspect it might be the family that doesn't approve, but he did say he would continue reading and call us in the near future. He'll get baptized some day, that's for sure. We also had a good visit with Ana in which we invited her to pray and ask for a specific date that she could be baptized. We are excited this week to see what her answer was.

Elder Cullimore and I are working well together and we both continue to grow more every day, both spiritually and physically (lots of eating visits...). Our finding and teaching skills have really been fine tuned, and we work very efficiently now. We are teaching a ton of lessons in the streets, and when we manage to get into a visit, we teach and testify with power. I feel like the year and a half of practice is finally paying off, and now is when I need to thrust in my sickle with my might. I have seen a lot of miracles and blessings in the work here in Tarragona, and have seen many people's lives changed due to the gospel. It is so marvelous being a missionary here!

This week my studies seemed to have a similar theme: repentance. I really learned a ton about the miracle of repentance and forgiveness. There truly is nothing in the world that brings more sadness and guilt than does breaking the commandments and sinning against our Heavenly Father. When we do so, the spirit departs from us, and we are left feeling empty and alone. The miracle is that there is a way, and only one way, that we can get rid of that empty feeling and regain the presence of the Holy Ghost. That way is through true and honest repentance. Mosiah 26: 30 teaches us the mercy our Heavenly Father has for us: "Yea, and as often as my people repent will I forgive them their trespasses against me". I came to realize this week that there truly is no other way that we can get rid of the sadness that comes with sin other that repentance. I am so grateful that we have the opportunity to become clean and correct every mistake we have made in our lives. It isn't always easy, but because of our Savior it is possible. That is the miracle of forgiveness.