Another golden investigator!

8/23  This week we found a wonderful family from Equatorial Guinea. Their names are Felix, Magdalena, and Rosario. They are relatives of a member who just recently passed away, and now they are interested in hearing more about the gospel. Our first visit with them was incredible! Even before we started teaching we could tell that this family has been prepared. They are so open and kind to us, and repeated many times that we are always welcome to come over whenever we want. Also, before we even started teaching, Felix began sharing some of his beliefs. He said he has always listened to people who preach the word of God because he knows that there should only be one church, seeing as though there is one bible and one God. His comments all throughout the first lesson were golden! We came to the end and invited them to read the Book of Mormon and ask God if it is true, and Felix said he didn't need to because he already knew it was true. We told him to ask anyways. They were a bit hesitant at accepting a baptismal date before they prayed together as a family, but they did accept the invitation to pray about baptism as a family and told us we would talk about it next time. Unfortunately they are on vacation this week, but we are excited for when they come back!

We had another really good visit with Manuel and Ima this week. We read with them in 3 Nefi 11, and you could tell they could feel the spirit. Manuel was really attentive and spiritual as usual, but the interesting part was that Ima was way calmer than she usually is. Usually, if we are trying to teach a point, she comes up with some sort of question to ask us, and comes up with a bunch of "what if" situations. This time, she was calm and quiet, and listened the whole time. She had a few questions, but when we answered them, she accepted the answers and we moved on. It was great to see that she is progressing little by little.

Eva is doing well. Unfortunately, her father was very ill this week and she had to take care of him all week. We were unable to visit with her, and she was unable to come to church. She still calls us every other day to see how we are doing. She is still reading and progressing, but we really need to teach her the commandments so that she can start to live them before her baptism. I'm a little worried about that, but I'm sure the Lord will prepare a way.

What I learned this week in the visit with Manuel is that there is no replacement for reading in the Book of Mormon. Every time we read the Book of Mormon with them, it invites the spirit and questions are answered. It's incredible how powerful a seemingly simple book can be! Throughout my mission I have seen how the Book of Mormon can change people. If an investigator who seems to have trouble understanding the doctrines of the lessons starts to read the Book of Mormon with real intent, it's incredible how that simple act opens their mind and understanding. Every time I see something like that happen, it strengthens my own testimony of the Book of Mormon. It truly is the most true book on the face of the planet.

¡Un abrazo querido amigo!

A miracle with a plot twist

8/16  This week we saw another incredible miracle with a bit of a plot twist. We were walking down the street contacting with a member when we heard a woman calling us over to the other side of the street. We crossed to go talk to her. Her name is Delia and she told us that she has been here in Spain for 8 months, but just before she came she and her family were visiting with the missionaries in Honduras and she was just about to get baptized when she left for Spain. She told us that all her family members have been baptized in Honduras, and she is the only one missing. We set a visit with her a few days later, taught a wonderful first lesson, and set a baptismal goal for the 27th of August. She is so prepared! Then she threw us a curve ball and told us where she lives. She lives just crossing the line into the other elders' area. Though I don't understand why things like this keep happening, I know that if I don't do what I'm suppose to, I'll loose blessings. So, as hard as it was, I again passed her to the other elders. As I said when we did the same with Liliana, the most important thing is that she gets baptized. It doesn't matter which pair of missionaries does it.

Our other investigators are doing well. Manuel this week mentioned that this church is the church for him. He straight up told us that he has no objections, and that he has everything very clear. Ima on the other hand is full of doubts. Manuel says he will only get baptized if his whole family can be baptized together, but the issue is, the only way I can see his family progressing is if Manuel gives the example to follow by being baptized. We will continue to work with him on that.

Every visit we have with Eva Maria, she says that she can't wait to be baptized. She is absorbing everything we teach like a sponge. She came to all three hours of church this week and loved it. She also came to the family home evening again with the Mambo family. She is loving every part of the church. We are excited to help her with the word of wisdom this week, and help her get that much closer to baptism.

The lesson I have learned from my experiences this week is that the Lord uses us as tools in His hands to bring about His work. Delia was praying to find the missionaries. She needed to get baptized, so the Lord used us in order to find her. Although we won't be able to teach her, I am content knowing that we were able to be tools in the Lord's hands that were able to find her and answer her prayers. It is such a privilege as missionaries to be constantly blessed with the opportunity to follow spiritual promptings and answer people's prayers. The Lord knows those who are prepared, just as I said last week, and He uses us in order to find them.

My sheep hear my voice

8/8  This week while we were teaching Eva, we had a really cool experience. We were teaching her the plan of salvation and got to the part of our life here on earth. I was explaining the things we need to do here on earth: have faith in Jesus Christ, repent, be baptized, etc. When I got to baptism, she commented that she had already been baptized. I began to explain how it is necessary to be baptized by someone with authority from God. She realized that the baptism she had had wasn't done with the authority, and asked right then and there if she could get baptized again. I was a little thrown off, because I was planning on setting a baptismal date at the end of the lesson, and her question kind of threw off the whole lesson plan, haha. We invited her right then to be baptized the first week of September, and she accepted. We had a wonderful lesson with her. She also came to church again this week and loved it. She really likes singing the hymns.

We had a really good lesson with Manuel and his wife this week as well. As I said before, Ima, his wife was holding him back a bit. We had a lesson to help her overcome her doubts that she had. She told us that she doesn't believe it's necessary to go to a church to worship. We talked about that for a while but it didn't seem like we could get anywhere. Finally I asked her if she really had the desire to know if the church of Jesus Christ was the church of God here on the earth. She said yes. We then read Alma 32:27 that says if you have no more than a desire to believe, let that desire grow within you. Then the whole attitude changed. We began explaining what she needed to do in order to let it grow, read the Book of Mormon, pray, and go to church. She admitted that she had never offered a personal prayer. That is exactly what we were looking for. We told her to start praying every day, and told Manuel to help her. Manuel kept saying "I'm going to convince her this week!". We have high hopes for this family. Manuel is definitely the one who will carry his family to the font! He is so ready!

This week I found a whole new meaning to the scripture in John 10. Verse 14 says: "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine." It brings us back to the principle that the Lord is preparing people, His sheep, in every area of the world. He knows who they are, but we don't. That outlines the great need for diligent missionaries who are dedicated to finding those of His fold. Later in verse 27 it says: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." This scripture was outlined by my experiences this week with Eva and Manuel. It is very clear that they recognize the message we bring to them. They are clearly prepared people who know and hear the voice of the  spirit testify of what we teach. I feel so blessed for the opportunity I have had to get to know them, and the opportunity that I continue to have in teaching them the restored gospel!

Zone conference

A golden investigator

8/1 This week we had a couple of good experiences. For starters, Liliana came to an activity in the chapel on Wednesday, and while we were sitting there she turned to me and asked "if I wanted to get baptized, how long would it take?" That is the one question that every missionary in the world wants to hear!! I let her know that it all depends on her. I told her that she needs to come to church at least twice, and that we have to teach her all of the lessons first, and as soon as we teach them, she could get baptized. She commented that she had been talking with Emilio, the member who gave us the reference, and that she wanted to prepare herself for baptism. I was so excited! We later came to find out that she has temporarily moved from her piso in our area to stay with a member the other elders' area. As hard as it was to pass such a miracle as Liliana to the other elders, we did it. The most important thing is that she gets baptized.

While we were on the rebound from losing Liliana, we managed to get ahold of a former investigator named Marisol, and we set a visit with her. We rang for her to let us in 3 times, and finally the door opened. We had a wonderful visit with her! She told us that she and her son Jose were visiting with the missionaries for a while, but then they suddenly stopped coming and she didn't understand why. She was working weekends at that time and couldn't go to church on Sundays, so she lost contact with the church. We taught a wonderful lesson on the restoration, and at the end, she offered to say the prayer! In her prayer she gave thanks for sending the missionaries to her home, and asked that we continue to pass by. She was super nice, and we believe she has a lot of potential. She is still working weekends, but that's nothing we can't fix.

About our other investigators, well, little has changed. We are still trying to figure out when Alexia can get baptized. Manuel is doing well, and every time he answers the phone he sounds excited, but his wife was startled by the baptismal goal for August and has taken a few steps back. We are afraid she is holding Manuel back a little, but we will keep working with them.

In my studies a few days ago, I studied chapter 3 in Mosiah. This chapter had never really stuck out to me before, and I can't seem to figure out why. Verses 5-11 are one of the most detailed prophesy of the atonement of Christ that I have yet found in the scriptures. Verse 8 says; "And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning." This is one of the first times the name Jesus Christ is used in the Book of Mormon. Reading this chapter strengthened my testimony so much of our Savior Jesus Christ! My testimony of the Book of Mormon was strengthened too. As it says on the cover, the Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ. Chapter 3 of Mosiah is a perfect example of that. Every time I read the Book of Mormon my testimony grows in all aspects of the gospel. There is a reason it is called the keystone of our religion!

 The main plaza in Valencia

Blessings from Heaven

7/26  We had a wonderful week this week! We found two people that seem to have appeared out of nowhere with no apparent correlation to the work we have been doing. I call those miracles. On Tuesday, we got on a bus, and no sooner had we sat down, than a lady sitting in front of us asked us if we were Mormons. We responded hesitantly because usually one of two situations occurs after that question. She got really excited when we said yes and asked for the address of the chapel in Valencia. She told us that she had met with missionaries before, but lost contact with them and wanted to come to a service. Her name is Eva. We exchanged information and she said she would for sure come on Sunday. On Saturday, I called her just to confirm. She was in a meeting and didn't answer but 30 minutes later she called back and told us not to worry, that we would see each other on Sunday. Sunday came and it was time to catch the bus to the chapel. We got on, and Eva was right there to greet us. She really enjoyed sacrament meeting. Unfortunately she couldn't stay for the next hours, but she said that next week she probably could. We are pumped to start up with her!

The other miracle is a woman named Liliana. She was a reference from Emilio Mambo, a strong member. He was in Zaragoza for a few weeks working in an orchard, and it's there where he met Liliana. There were 4 other members working there, so every Sunday Liliana would go to church with them. She even started considering herself a member. Emilio told us he had planned to take her to an activity in the chapel, and so we went there to wait for them. After 30 minutes, they still hadn't come, so we were planing on going to our next visit. As we were leaving the chapel, I had a super strong impression that we needed to reschedule the other visit and wait longer. So we did. They came 10 minutes later and we were able to get to know her and teach her. She came to church on Sunday with Emilio. We are pumped for her too!

One thing that I was reminded of this week is the importance of hard work and obedience. Throughout my mission I have noticed a pattern: when we work as hard as we can and do what we are suppose to, it's like filling a celestial bank account of blessings. As long as we keep doing what we are suppose to, the Lord will pour out blessings upon us when the moment is right. The two people we found this week had nothing to do with our efforts. They seem to have fallen from heaven. Definitely miracles from our Father in Heaven! It's like it says in Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord is bound when we do what he says, but when we don't we can't expect any promises.

City of Arts and Sciences building in Valencia

The gift of agency

7/18  This week was a bit trying. Although we were planning on a baptism with Alexia, in the end, it didn't happen. To make a long story a little bit shorter, she left for girls camp on Tuesday expecting to get back Saturday and get baptized. When she got home her mom decided to change her mind, and told her she couldn't get baptized. We called her to tell her that everything was all set up and ready to go, and that's when she told us that her mom wanted to talk with us. We planned to go there with Hermano Buffoni, but later he called us and told us that it would be best if we put it off for a few days. I don't understand why it happened the way it did, but what I do know is that Alexia was devastated. We talked with Alexia on Sunday and she said that she was hoping we might be able to do it this week. So we are going to do all we can to make sure that happens.

My new companion Hermano Mora is super fun! He is from Costa Rica, and has been living in Santander for a few months. He's 19 and already working on his mission papers (he's serving for 6 weeks as a mini missionary). He told me that he use to go out with the missionaries almost every day in Costa Rica, and he knows a lot about missionary work. He's very spiritual in lessons and in the streets, and he always knows exactly who we need to talk to. I'm excited for the next 5 weeks with him. I'm sure I'm going to learn a lot with him.

This week I learned just how important our free agency is in the Plan of Salvation. Our agency is the one of the greatest gifts God has given us, and it is one thing that he will never take away. Our agency is a key part to our purpose in this mortal life. Our purpose is to be tested to see if we will use our agency to follow Christ. Unfortunately, some people chose not to follow Christ, and sometimes those decisions affect other people. But I know that God will always bless us for choosing to do the right thing. He always blesses us for following His commandments, and although other people's decisions can sometimes affect our lives in a negative way, if we chose to follow God, we will be blessed.

¡Un abrazo querido amigo!

4 mini missionaries with their companions in Valencia -- 28 missionaries returned home last transfer, so 16 mini missionaries are serving for 6 weeks to help fill in for full time missionaries until new missionaries arrive next transfer

Personal testimony is the strongest tool

7/12   Another great week to be here in Valencia! Unfortunately, Manuel and his family were busy yet again all week long, and we were unable to visit them. We keep contact with them though, and they are anxious for us to come visit this next week. On the more positive side, we found another golden investigator!! Her name is Virginia. We actually found her and her son David on the streets a few weeks back, but this week we finally had our first visit with them. She is so prepared! In our visit she said that she felt like God had sent us to visit her at the perfect time in her life. We agreed!  She mentioned that she had been baptized in an evangelical church about a year ago, but she didn't fully agree with all the things the church did. She also admitted to being very confused over the doctrine of the trinity. She didn't understand how God, Jesus Christ, and the Spirit were all the same person. I was more than happy to explain to her that that's not how it really is. At the end of the lesson she accepted a baptismal date for the 30th of July, and we are going to work with her to make sure that baptism happens!

Alexia's baptism is happening for sure this weekend. We had to do the interview on Monday because she is going to girl's camp this week and won't get back till Saturday. She passed the interview with flying colors. We have already been working to prepare the program and the service so that it is something very special for her. She has been waiting a very long time, and everyone in the ward is very excited for her!

Elder Lightfoot and I have had a wonderful time together here in Valencia. We've found a lot of people with a lot of potential and had many fun experiences. It's a shame that our time together has come to an end, but it was bound to end some day. I am really thankful for all the things I have learned from him and hope I can apply them with my new companion.

One thing I learned this week is the power of personal experiences and testimony in lessons. I was doing an intercambio with Elder Gonzalez, and we had a really powerful lesson with a very less active member. Elder Gonzalez first shared a personal experience and his testimony of the Book of Mormon, then I shared how I received my testimony of the Book of Mormon. By the time we had finished testifying the spirit was so strong!  And then, just as we have been counseled, we ended with a prayer and got out of there while the spirit was still strong. I know that this member felt it, and I know he'll note the difference when it's not there. As missionaries and members, our testimonies are literally the strongest tool we have, and the interesting thing is that it grows stronger and stronger every time we use it. There's a reason missionaries return with undeniable testimonies, and it's because we are constantly strengthening them by sharing them with other people. If there is one thing that has changed most about me over these last 20 months, it's my testimony. It is such a blessing to serve the Lord and in return, He grows our testimonies.

My burden is light

7/4  Yet another marvelous week here in Valencia! Manuel and his family are doing better that ever! We had a wonderful lesson this week about reading, praying, and coming to church. Manuel really took it to heart. He is definitely the strength of the family. Unfortunately his wife seems a little standoffish at the moment. She is opening up little by little, especially when she sees how important it is for Manuel. Manuel has gone through a lot of bad things in his life, so I can tell he recognizes the difference learning about the gospel is making in his life. His progression is slow, but he has come a long way since we first met him.

In church yesterday we were given a huge surprise!  We have been teaching a woman named Mary ever since I got here. She is pretty interested, but she works taking care of elderly people every Saturday and Sunday and can't leave the house the whole weekend. As such she has never been able to come to church. But yesterday, just as the sacrament was finishing, she walked in and sat next to us. It was totally unexpected, and it was so good to see her there!  She really enjoyed it and said she would do what she could to come more often. That was a huge blessing to have her in church. We honestly think that that was the one thing impeding her progression, and now we are excited to continue teaching her and bringing her to church!

Elder Lightfoot and I are having a great time here in Valencia. We have seen a lot of miracles together, and have worked and made progress with a lot of people. Alexia is one of those people. We have worked so hard with her, and we finally got her mom to say yes to baptism. She is still super happy about the 16 of July. We are already getting the program all worked out. This is going to be a very special baptismal service for Valencia. Alexia has been waiting for years for this moment, and we want to make sure it is as special as we can make it for her.

Yesterday in elders quorum, Carlos gave a really good lesson about our hearts. He started out giving a lot of scientific facts about our hearts and how they can receive information (or feelings) and transmit it to the brain. He taught that in order to find God, we have to have a prepared heart. He then explained how we can prepare our heart. He taught that we need to be meek and humble just as little children. We need to forgive others and throw out all the things of the world. We need to study the scriptures and pray. We need to come unto the Savior. One scripture that he used is one of my favorites: Mathew 11:28-30 which reads: 28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. I love this scripture because it teaches us that if we humble our hearts and center them on Christ, He will make our burdens light. I know that that is true. He has certainly made my burdens light, and I know He will do the same to all those that come unto Him. I love having the opportunity to help those with heavy burdens find rest in the Lord. It is one of the greatest blessings to see the relief in people's eyes when they receive divine help.

¡Un abrazo querido amigo!

Christ-like charity

6/27  This week we had a very spiritual experience with Sandra. We had a visit planned with Manuel and his family, but as soon as we got to the pueblo, they told us they weren't at home. We decided to pass by Sandra because she lives in the same pueblo. We went and sat on a bench outside, and she opened up to us. She told us about all of the trials she is going through with sickness, economical stress and feeling alone. She told us that she doesn't have work, and there is no income for food or for rent. As she started to cry she said "but I know that we aren't alone, and that the Savior is helping us. I know that everything will be alright". When I heard the faith of this recent convert of only 1 month, I could hardly hold back tears. Even when she is going through a near impossible situation, she still holds firmly to her faith in the Savior.

Later this week, when we had commented about her situation to our ward mission leader, he called us and told us he had a large bag of food for Sandra and her family, and asked us when we could take it to her. It amazed me how quickly and selflessly he prepared that bag. That may have been one of the most Christ like demonstrations of charity I have seen my whole mission. Our ward mission leader isn't in the best economic situation either, yet he was so willing to buy all of that food for a family who was in need. My testimony of charity was increased by that experience.

Manuel and his family are doing good. They were busy this week and didn't have time to visit, but we will be visiting them tomorrow. Also, a little update on Jorge, he and his family ended up moving to Logroño, which is really far away. I'm sure the missionaries up there will do a great job teaching them. We visited with Dario and his family in the doorway, and have another visit with them this week. They seem promising. Alexia is as good as ever. She is really excited for her baptism on the 16th of July, and the whole ward is excited too.

This week, my testimony about the importance of having the spirit with us as we teach was reinforced. Every time we try to teach a lesson in an environment without the spirit, it reminds me of how insignificant we are as teachers. In the worldwide mission conference a few months back I remember Elder Bednar commenting that our role as missionaries is to give way for the spirit to enter into the hearts of the people we teach, and that is how they will learn. In D&C 42:14 it says; "And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith; and if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach." That really emphasizes the importance of having the spirit in our lessons. If we don't have it, we shouldn't teach. The spirit is the true teacher. Even if we can teach with all logic and clarity, without the spirit, our investigators will never gain a testimony.

After all we can do

6/20  We had another great week here in Valencia!  Manuel and his family are progressing so well. We had a few good visits with them where they asked a ton of questions. I love it when investigators ask lots of questions because it means they are interested.  We were able to arrange things for them to make it to church yesterday as well. It was so good to see the whole family sitting in a row in sacrament meeting!  They really enjoyed it. They had to leave after the first hour, but said that they would love to keep coming back. We are really hoping to set a baptismal date with them this week and help them with the Word of Wisdom. They are a wonderful and humble family, and the gospel is just what they need in their life right now.

Unfortunately, Jorge and his family are still out of town. We got ahold of them on the phone and they said that there is a possibility Jorge may get a job in another city, and if he does, they will be moving there. We are hoping to continue teaching them when they get back, but if they do end up moving, I'm sure the missionaries there will baptize them. Also, we saw Dario and his daughter in the street the other day. We hadn't been able to get ahold of him since we contacted them and, as it turns out, we wrote down his number wrong. He was happy to see us and wondered why we hadn't called. We have a visit set with him this week and are also really excited for his family!

One thing I learned this week is the importance of our works in our own salvation. Many Christian faiths teach that it is only by the grace of God and our Savior that we are saved. Some say that it doesn't matter what we do, as long as we say we believe in Christ, he will save us. There's a scripture in 2 Nephi 25:23 that explains this subject very clearly. It says; "For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do." While it is true that we would have absolutely no way of reaching the heavens without grace, our own works play a big part in our personal salvation. There is a reason God gave us commandments and guides us through living prophets. It's because He knows that in order to return to His presence, we have to exercise our personal agency to follow Him. We have to show by our works that we accept the atonement of Jesus Christ and that we want to follow him. As missionaries, it's our responsibility to help people understand this principle.  I love teaching the plan of salvation because it helps people understand how important it is that we submit ourselves to the will of the Father in this life.

Following spiritual promptings

6/14  This week we had an amazing experience. We were contacting for a while one day, and then I had the thought to try and reenact the situation in which we found Jorge and his family last week. So we went to the same street at the same time of day, and walked the same direction. What I at first thought to be a childish desire for an experience similar to the one we had last week turned out to be revelation from the spirit. When we reached the same block that we had found Jorge and his family on, we found Dario and his family. They are a wonderful family from Ecuador. Unfortunately we were unable to visit them again this week, but we are really excited for them.
I think the biggest miracle that happened this week happened on Thursday and Friday. On Thursday, we showed up to choir practice and a member had brought someone she had met on the train that day. They were going to some classes they had in the chapel. The man later asked us if we could visit with him and his uncle's family the next day. The next day, we went out to the pueblo where we had set up to meet, and unfortunately Hector, the man we were suppose to meet there didn't show up, but the member who was with us, Maria Concepcion, knew where his uncle's family lived because she had visited with them the day before. So we went to their house and found the mom and the daughters outside the door cleaning the lobby of their building. We all went up together to meet the father Manuel, and taught a good lesson on the Book of Mormon. This family has a lot of potential. They are a very humble family, and likely don't have means of transport, but I think they have a desire to know the truth. We are really excited for these three new families we have found over the last few weeks! I love teaching families!

The one thing I learned this week is the importance of following spiritual promptings. The scriptures teach us that the spirit will show us "all things that we] shall do". Especially as missionaries, seeing as though missionary work is literally done by the spirit, it is absolutely necessary that we follow spiritual promptings that come to us during the day. Sometimes we worry ourselves questioning whether what we are feeling is just our own thoughts or if it is a prompting coming from the spirit. Elder Bednar gave a wonderful talk on that He said; "be a good boy, and stop worrying about it". In essence, if we are living the commandments and doing what we are suppose to do, we can be certain that the good ideas that come to our mind about what we should do is the spirit. Imagine if I had blown off the idea to try and reenact the situation in which we found Jorge. Although it seemed unrealistic, had we not done it, we wouldn't have found Dario and his family. I am a firm believer that the spirit is always guiding us. If we follow his promptings, we will receive them more often, and we will see miracles.

Teach the word of God with all diligence

6/6  We found an amazing family this week. Many of our visits had been falling through, so we were spending a lot of time in the streets. On Thursday, we were on our way back to piso for lunch, and decided to do one more contact. It was a family from Bolivia. They stopped and talked to us, and were really receptive to our message. When we asked when we could pass by to teach them more, they invited us back the next day! We went the next day with a member, and taught a wonderful first lesson. The spirit was strong, and they could feel it as well. At the end of the lesson we invited them to be baptized, and after thinking about it for a few seconds, they accepted! The three of them, Jorge, Liliana, and Mateo are now preparing to be baptized for the end of this month. We are super excited for them!

Elder Lightfoot and I are teaching much more in unity now. We are both participating equally in lessons and contacts. Even with the recently divided area, instead of having less work, it seems like we are getting more. Elder Gonzalez and Elder Miller are tearing it up, and we have found more people with potential this week than any week before. Valencia 1 is growing so fast! It will be incredible to see what we can achieve between the 4 of us these next few months!

This week, there was one scripture that really stood out to me in Jacob 1:19. "And we did magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence; wherefore, by laboring with our might their blood might not come upon our garments; otherwise their blood would come upon our garments, and we would not be found spotless at the last day." I think many times I have taken for granted the importance and seriousness of my calling as a missionary. My companion and I are literally the only two people in our assigned area that know the truth and are charged with the responsibility of spreading it. If we don't fulfill that calling to the best of our ability, who will? The Lord has put us in charge of this part of His fold, and we need to do everything in our power to share His truth with everyone, because if we don't, we will be held responsible. The call we receive as missionaries can't be taken lightly. That really spoke to me this week.

Eating Paella at the ward barbeque

At a local park with other missionaries from his district