February 14, 2011

Sounds like another rough week there, holy cow! Give Colton a big hug from me please. Grandma too! and send Aunt Liz an extra big one.
Here it was a week full of miracles. Leonardo (26) stopped selling drugs a week ago, and said goodbye for good to his girlfriend on Saturday night and was baptised right after church on Sunday. A man named Miguel that we reactivated stopped drinking after Christmas and is now ready to baptise his daughter on Wednesday! On Saturday the bishops mom is getting baptised by him. I think that will be really special. The bishop is so incredible here. He's been my favorite bishop by far. He's going 10 years strong as bishop (since the ward was formed and the building got built), and I think he'll be bishop for a while longer. He's just the best. The following week, another inactive Melchizedek Priesthood holder gets to baptise a daughter. We are working hard in the rescue plan and seeing TONS of miracles because of it. On Sacrament meeting there were so many people they blessed and served 3 times! Lots of people that have been inactive for a long time are coming. The Rescue Plan is going super good here. How is the planning working up there? Is it the same plan?
Next week Josè Marìa and Elvira's mom will be baptised. She has changed EVERYTHING. She went from such deep depression and anger from the abuse of her husband and now is so profoundly happy. She is always smiling and laughing. Those changes are nice to see.
The man who baptised Leo was inactive for the last 6 years and we thought he was normal, but we quickly realized he is not all there. He repeated the baptismal prayer about 300 times in front of us and COULD NOT SAY IT RIGHT hahaha it was so frustrating. When he got in the pila to baptise we had lots of investigators there and all so we were super worried, but by some miracle he said it right the first time and when he went to baptise part of his chest and his entire arm were still above the water and I yelled ¡MAS, JHONNY! and he dunked him to the ground hahahahahahaha it turned out being kinda funny, but I think it was a good experience for him to use his Priesthood.
President went out to work with us last week and it was a lot of fun. We had some good lessons and gave out baptismal dates like no other. The President has a really humble and sincere way of speaking that touched our investigators very strongly. The only bad part was when we were talking with our neightboors in front of the house about 8 kids across the street started to throw rocks super hard at us. They flew past us in every direccion breaking on the fence and house wall, dozens of rocks, but the President just kept testifying and didn't even notice. We felt a little bit like Samuel the Lamanite. I had desires (how do you say ganas in english?) to curse those little demons, send some she-bears or something after them.
Elder Grau called me last night to say good bye. He goes home tomorrow morning. He's sending me a DVD player and a bunch of other stuff, including a mini Preach my Gospel in spanish thats only found in Paraguay. We are to write our name in the cover and pass it down to our oldest son forever. A good tradition haha :) Dang, he left a good legacy, I'm going to miss him a lot!
On the mission I've grown to love the scriptures so much. I always read the scriptures pretty good, but I prided myself in knowing who was the son of who and what year so and so died, now I realize how much more the scriptures are than a history book. The power that the Book of Mormon has to change someone's life in one night is surreal. All it takes is a sincere heart, real intention, and faith in Christ, and throught the spirit, God can manifest it truthfullness. I have learned that any doubt we ever have can just be thrown right back onto the Book of Mormon. If it's true, so is ANYTHING the prophet teaches us. I love that book so much and I hope you have maintained family reading! Its so important!!!!
I love you all, keep your chins up and be happy, work hard, and Choose the Right. Let the fire come, you will only that much more pure afterwards.
Elder Magnusson