If at first you don't succeed ...

2/8  This week we saw an incredible miracle. Elder Cullimore and I were spending a lot of time one day in the streets trying to contact people. After hours of no success, Elder Cullimore had the idea of trying to knock a building just to switch things up a bit. We got into a building nearby, and went all the way to the top floor. We walked out of the elevator and I pointed to the door to our right. We knocked, then heard a few shuffles towards the door. A woman answered the door, and at first mentioned that she had never really believed in anything. As the conversation went on, she mentioned that she had read the bible before. We took out a Book of Mormon, and asked if she had ever seen it before, and before we could ask the question she reached out and snatched it out of our hands and asked, what is this? We then began to explain a little about it, and she let us in for a few minutes. We had a wonderful lesson on the Book of Mormon with Milady, and she accepted the challenge to read and pray about the introduction before our next visit. It couldn't have been a coincidence that the very first door we decided to knock after hours of contacting just happened to be a golden new. That was a humbling experience.

Elder Cullimore and I seem to work very well together. He is a magnificent missionary. He is very focused on his purpose, and teaches with power and simplicity. Every day his skills in the Spanish language blow me away. For only having 5 months in the mission, he has an incredible potential to grow and improve. I am very excited for the opportunity that we have to work together, and the chance I have to learn from him. I have no doubt we will see miracles here!

This week I really got to understand better the phrase 'if at first you don't succeed, try and try again'. Truly, this week followed that model perfectly. It's like I said last week, diligence is key. We had to give it everything we had to meet our goals this week, and just when it seemed like nothing was going to work, that is when God blessed us with miracles. I know that if we continue to push on, and try and try again, we will eventually find success. It's like the sons of Mosiah in the Book of Mormon. Alma 26:31 outlines the success they had after pressing on, even through the most difficult of times: "Now behold, we can look forth and see the fruits of our labors; and are they few? I say unto you, Nay, they are many; yea, and we can witness of their sincerity, because of their love towards their brethren and also towards us." If the sons of Mosiah would have quit the first time they were thrown into jail, none of those miracles would have happened. I hope that someday I can have the courage they had to endure even the hardest of trials.

A trip to Tortosa on Preparation day to see a castle (but no picture of the castle)

Blessings always follow diligence

2/2  We had a good week this week. On Saturday, we had a few plans that had fallen through, so we were contacting for about an hour or so. After a while of contacting and many rejections, we were feeling a bit less than animated about the night. I was a little frustrated and kept asking myself why we couldn't find anyone who would listen to us. As the night was coming to a close I felt the clearest impression to stop a man. At first when I did, he said he wasn't interested and immediately I thought it was just another failed contact, but somehow or another, he stayed to talk with us a little. When he found out we were Mormons, he said he had heard of us before. I asked him what he had heard just to clear up false doctrines and stuff, but he mentioned he had heard of our beliefs about marriage and that families can be eternal. He told us that he really liked that, and he shared that belief. We taught him a bit more and gave him a Book of Mormon, and although he didn't agree to a return visit, he promised to read and pray about it and said he would call us when he gets an answer. It was such a needed blessing to talk to him and a rather humbling experience too.

Elder Cook and I have had such a great time in Tarragona together. It's a shame our time together is over. We get along very well, and work well together too. I will definitely miss him here, and so will many members and investigators. In our short time as companions, I have been able to see so much growth and change in him. He really does have the desire to improve and become a better missionary every day. I'm sure he will see many miracles in Mancor. I'm excited to get to know and work with my new companion, Elder Cullimore! I'm sure we will have a great time together as well.

The principle I learned this week is diligence. Diligence is absolutely essential in missionary work. As missionaries, we are called to share the gospel with all the world. This can be a difficult and stressful task, and more often than not, we will face challenges as we go about sharing the gospel. It's part of the work. The one thing we can never do is give up. As soon as we give up, Satan has won. Missionaries (and members) are the only hope our lost brothers and sisters have in learning the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We can never give up no matter how hard it gets. The thing I learned from our experience on Saturday is that blessings always follow diligence. Always. If we push through the difficulties we face in life, whether they be physical, emotional, spiritual, or mental, God will always bless us with just what we need. Although sometimes it feels like we are alone, He is always taking care of us and watching over us.

Adrian & Jorge Giron with Elder Male & Elder Cook

The blessing of repentance

1/25  We had a wonderful lesson with Julio Cesar last Monday. Unfortunately, he can only meet right in the middle of preparation day, but we are willing to sacrifice a little time to teach him. Last week we taught a wonderful first lesson on the restoration. He participated and was very interested the whole time. Near the end of the lesson, I testified of the Book of Mormon and told him that he could receive an answer too. I looked to Elder Cook, and he invited him to be baptized. I wasn't even thinking about the baptismal invitation yet, but he tied it in perfectly to receiving a testimony of the Book of Mormon. Julio then looked at each of us quietly, looked at his wife, smiled and said that that was something he would want. We set the date for this Saturday, the 30th of January. It will be really hard to get him prepared, because he doesn't have much of any time to visit with us during the week, but we will get him ready some way or another.

I was able to work with Elder Barton on another intercambio this week. We spent more time with Jordi, and did a lot of street contacting. We also had several good visits. From the short time we had to work together, I can tell that Elder Barton is an excellent missionary. He speaks Spanish incredibly well for the amount of time he has in the mission. He teaches very clearly, and seems to teach just what is needed. He has a sincere desire to be obedient and constantly looks for ways to improve. He has so much potential. The work in Tortosa is still progressing very quickly. They have a very large pool of investigators, many of which are very close to accepting baptismal dates. I'm excited to see what Tortosa can accomplish in the coming months.

Elder Cook and I are still working hard to find new investigators. We do have a few people with baptismal dates. Ferran finally has one, and will be baptized on the 6th. He is the son of a previously less active family. I can tell Elder Cook has improved a lot since I got here. His Spanish is better, and he is more excited about missionary work now. It's such a cool experience to see how the mission molds and changes new missionaries. It makes me think back to when I was new, and how much the mission has changed me in so little time. Incredible to think about!

Well, thanks to the world wide mission conference we had on Wednesday, what I learned this week has a lot to do with repentance. We learn from the 4th article of faith that repentance is one of the first principles of the gospel. We read from countless scriptures the call to repentance. We know that repentance is a necessary step to receive forgiveness of sins, and as such, is of utmost importance in our lives. As missionaries we often don't put the emphasis that repentance deserves in our lessons, and as members, we can often take for granted what a blessing repentance truly is. Preach My Gospel outlines the importance to repent daily and gives a promise that if we do, we will receive much more joy as we enjoy the full blessings the Atonement of Christ brings to us. I know that Christ suffered for our sins, and He wants to forgive us of our trespasses. Our responsibility is to repent every day, even the days we don't feel we have sinned, and He will bless us with peace and joy in our day to day lives.

¡Un abrazo querido amigo!

Every member is a missionary too!

1/18  This week I was able to do an intercambio with Elder Streadbeck down in Tortosa. We had a very busy and successful day. Our ward mission leader, Jordi, goes down to Tortosa once a week to spend a day with the elders and help them with visits. I had heard the legends and stories of Jordi before, but I had never seen him in action. I lucked out to be there when he came down! We spent the whole day with him. The first thing he wanted to do is contact. So we hit the streets hard contacting literally every person we saw. Jordi would contact in very creative ways that I had never even thought about, and most of the time they would work! We saw a ton of miracles out there in the streets with him. One such miracle was when we decided to sit down for just a few minutes while waiting for a visit across the street. A woman approached us and asked if we could answer some questions her friend had. We followed her to a bar, and sat down with them both. It turns out the woman who invited us had investigated the church in her country, but was never baptized because she moved away. Her friend was very interested as well, and both were crying when elder Streadbeck quoted the first vision. Both of them now have a baptismal date. It was such a great miracle to take part in!

The work here in Tarragona is progressing little by little. Every week we recognize small miracles that the Lord has given us. This week we had another walk-in investigator in sacrament meeting. We talked with him for a while afterwards and taught about the Book of Mormon and set a return visit. We also had a visit with Ferran, the nonmember son of a previously less active family. We taught about baptism and confirmation and we just need to talk to his dad to get a baptismal date set for the 30th of January. We are still really excited about Julio Cesar. He came to church again with his wife, and stayed all 3 hours. He has a rough work schedule so it's hard to visit with him, but we have another visit set, and we are excited for it.

The main thing I learned this week through my experiences with Jordi is the difference members make in missionary work. Too many times we think that missionary work is, by definition, work for missionaries. I myself am guilty of having such thoughts. While it is true that us as missionaries have been called, set apart, and given authority to preach the gospel 24/7 for 2 years, members too share the sacred responsibility of sharing the gospel. More than a responsibility, the missionary work needs members. Take Jordi for example, he was able to stop and have a connection with people on the streets that us as missionaries would never be able to have. I don't want this to sound like a call to repentance or anything, but missionaries need the help of members. I'd dare to go even further and say that the Lord needs members to help in His work. I know that everyone is blessed when we try to share the gospel, and I know that we can bless so many more lives when the members and missionaries work together.

Whatsoever shall be given you in that hour

1/11  We saw a huge miracle this week with the baptism of Patrick. He is an investigator of the Hermanas. Seeing as though the Hermanas were unable to leave piso this week, we were asked to teach him the last few things he was missing before his baptism, so we did. In our lesson on Wednesday, he expressed some doubts about not feeling ready. We could tell though that he was more than ready to be baptized and understood everything perfectly, so we urged him to continue preparing for Saturday. We had another visit on Friday and did our best to prepare him. He still expressed doubts of how prepared he felt. We were, however, able to convince him to come to the interview. I was super nervous to give the interview, because I didn't know what I could say to help him see that he was prepared and ready. When he got to the interview, he expressed that he still wasn't sure. The nerves didn't go away until I sat down with him and started with a prayer. After the prayer, everything was calm. Somehow, even though I had no clue what to do and what to say, I began to share personal experiences and scriptures, and we finished the interview. It was by far one of the most humbling experiences I have had my whole mission as I was clearly being guided as a tool in the Lord's hands to say and share exactly what Patrick needed to hear. By no fault of my own, after the interview he felt ready for baptism.

Although he left the interview seeming a little nervous still and a little unsure of what had just happened, the next day when he showed up to the service, he had a little smile on his face. I could tell something had changed. However, the real change happened after the baptism. When he came up out of the water, he just stood there for a few seconds with his head down. When he looked up, his face was beaming. I could tell he had found the peace he was looking for. He was so happy and excited the next day for his confirmation as well. It was such a wonderful experience, and I am so thankful to have had the privilege to take part in it.

We continue to do well here in Tarragona. We met a new investigator who just came to church for the first time yesterday. His wife is a member but he isn't. He stayed for all three hours and loved it! We set a visit up with them this week and are really excited to start teaching him. We are really trying to focus our efforts on finding new investigators and are trying everything we know to do to find them. We were given a lot of member referrals last week and will work hard to come in contact them this week. All in all, I see the work has a lot of potential here.

If there is one thing I have learned from my experiences this week, it would be that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the best fix for everything. It really doesn't matter what problems people are facing, accepting and living the gospel will help them overcome their trials. Mathew 11: 28 states; "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." The atonement makes it possible for us to rest from our burdens and difficulties. It frees us from the guilt that comes from sin. It gives us an opportunity to start over, and the pathway to all these blessings is accepting and living the gospel of Jesus Christ. No matter what our doubts, no matter what our sickness or afflictions, the Savior and His gospel can and will help us if we let them.

Manuel, the member who took them on their adventure

Everyday miracles

1/4  We had an incredible day last Monday! We decided to go work with a few investigators and members we had in a pueblo called Torredembarra for the afternoon after preparation day. We went to pass by a less active family that we have never met before, but they weren't home. On our way back from their house, we decided to go back a different way than we came and as we were walking down that road, the family we had just passed by walked around the corner! We stopped and talked to them for a few minutes and set an appointment with them. A few minutes later, we were looking at a map to figure out where to go, and we decided to go straight down the street instead of turning right. It didn't make a whole lot of sense because the person we wanted to pass by lived a little more to the right of where we were going, but we went straight anyways. Mostly because there was a really cool looking old street in front of us, and we felt like walking down it. A few hundred meters down the street we hear someone behind us say "Hola Elderes!". From my experience, when someone calls you Elders, it's usually a good thing. We turned around to talk to him, and it turns out that he was a member from Colombia. He told us he had been less active for a while but that he was just thinking a few days ago that he really wanted to go to church. He has lived here for 3 years, but didn't know where to find the chapel. We gave him the address, exchanged numbers and set a visit with him as well. Those were such cool miracles all within such a small period of time!

Elder Cook and I are doing well. We still get along well and almost never disagree on anything. Our investigators are doing well. We were finally able to get ahold of Ferran and set a visit with his family. We are happy about that. We are really trying to increase our finding efforts to have a larger pool, and we hope that will help us see more baptisms.

The one thing my experiences this week have strengthened is my testimony that this is God's work, and He is at the head of it. I have seen that as long as we (missionaries or members) are being obedient and doing what we are suppose to, He will send us blessings and miracles. He knows His sheep and knows those who are prepared, and He will guide us as tools in His hands to those who are ready to hear the gospel. We just have to be ready to open our mouths and share it with them. It is such a wonderful experience to be a part of His work here in Spain, and see how quickly it has progressed and continues to grow.

¡Un abrazo querido amigo!

Roman coliseum ruins right next to the beach in Tarragona

 

Same area in the daylight

Serving the Lord during the holidays

12/28  This was a wonderful week because we got to celebrate Christmas!! I love Christmas in the mission. Although it is different, there is something sweet about being able to serve the Lord during the holiday season. We found a new family of 7 this week with 5 of them that could be baptized. We just passed by their house one day, and the mother told us she was just leaving, but then invited us back for dinner later. We came back later, and we ate together with their whole family. We then were able to share the new Christmas video, "A Savior Is Born". They are a wonderful family, and so kind to the missionaries. Unfortunately, they are very, very Catholic, and it will take a lot of work get them to the point of baptism, but we are excited to get started with them.

Elder Cook and I continue to work well together. We have discovered that we help one another out really well. When I get stressed out about things not going as we planned, he always helps me calm down, and when he gets distracted, I help him stay focused. We work as a great team. We did have some unfortunate things happen this week. Alejandra, the investigator that we had who was going to get baptized for sure has left Tarragona. Her parents made her move up North. It's been a little hard to recover from that, but I know she will get baptized wherever she goes, and that's all that matters. It doesn't matter if we do it or someone else.

This week I really got a feel for the importance of our Savior Jesus Christ. As I said before, celebrating Christmas in the mission really gives you a chance to focus on the why of Christmas. It allows you to focus on the Savior more. So why is it that we still celebrate the birth of a man after over 2,000 years? We celebrate Christ's birth because He is the one who gave us everything. He literally gave His life for us so that we would not have to suffer for our sins, so long as we accept Him and His gospel. He died for us and rose again from the tomb so that death would have no hold on us. We celebrate His birth because He redeemed us from the fall and saved us from death. I hope we can all focus on the savior not only during the holiday season, but throughout our whole lives.

Gingerbread (cardboard) house making activity with the district 

 

Los Rocha (family Justin spent Christmas with)