On His Errand

Yo! Fam,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Another week has come to a close here in Mendoza. We are now in the fall season so it gets a bit chilly in the mornings and at night but in the afternoon, it’s nice and warm. It’s perfect weather to wear a nice warm sweater.  The leaves are starting to drop as well, so it’s beautiful outside.  The weather in Mendoza is basically the same as in Utah except the seasons are just mixed up.  LOL! Unfortunately, we didn’t spend any nights on the roof this week.

            Well, on Saturday, we had a sweet little baptism.  Our young homie, Benjamin, who is the son of a recent convert family, was baptized. We’ve been helping him get prepared for this weekend and it was certainly one of the most memorable baptisms I’ve experienced.  Seeing his anxious face, full of excitement and wonder, was a happy sight for everyone. As soon as he arrived at the chapel, Benjamin ran into the chapel, with his cousin in tow, to check out the baptismal font. It was such a spiritual experience because many in his family are not members of the Church so by attending Benjamin’s baptism they were able to get more familiar with the Church. The best part was his confirmation.  The bishop gave the blessing and Elder Fernandez and I assisted.  As soon as the bishop said, “Amen”, Benjamin jumped out of his chair to give his mom a hug. As he hugged her he shouted, “Mama, I felt it!” We looked him, a little confused and then he declared (while pointing at his heart), “The Holy Ghost! I felt it right in here.”  Everyone started to chuckle but it was such a powerful experience because he was able to feel and recognize the gift of the Holy Ghost immediately. Children really are such great examples because they are humble and they’re able to simplify everything.

           
          The rest of the week was pretty normal.  Nothing crazy happened but we received an announcement that Elder Jeffrey R. Holland will be visiting the Argentina Mendoza Mission during the first weekend in June.  So, we are getting excited for that big event! Maybe Elder Holland will mention my boy, Elder Leone, out there in London, who he met during his worldwide tour. LOL! The stake choir coordinator asked us to be in the choir because she knew someone “big” from the Church was coming to the area but she had no idea who. So, when we told her it was going to be Elder Holland, her jaw nearly fell to the floor.  She just stood there, silent, and did not say a word.  I thought we were going to have to start giving her CPR or something because she was so shocked.  Haha!  Elder Holland’s visit certainly gives us a lot to look forward to. 

            Florencia and Banti are getting very close to being baptized. They need a little more preparation and a few more friends in the ward and then, they’ll be good to go! Florencia, especially, has made a ton of small changes in her life and it’s so cool to see her progress. The other day, one of their neighbors stopped us in the street and told us that Florencia has completely changed since we’ve been visiting the family. It was very interesting because we pass by this neighbor every time we are headed to teach Florencia and Banti.  She hasn’t said anything to us before so we were surprised that she approached us.  We shared a sweet little conversation and it made us feel really appreciated.  So, that experience was a blessing.

            Throughout the week, we spent a lot of time looking for more people to teach.  Sometimes it can be really tough to work for hours without hearing the word, “Yes.”  Even so, our work paid off and we were able to find some awesome new people to teach. On Tuesday, we had a long morning of knocking doors and it was kind of tough; not gonna lie. But, during our work the thought came to me that I truly am so fortunate to be a missionary.  It is such a privilege to be a representative of Jesus Christ. People see us in our white shirts and ties and some of them think that we just want to convert them. Of course, we do want everyone to come unto Him, but I just feel so blessed to be a servant of the Lord, even if I don’t convert the people behind every door.  We are truly on His errand and that’s what our message is all about. I just don’t know how I got so lucky to have this opportunity right now in my life. 

I love you!  #GOJAZZ

Elder Roderick III