¡Hola!
This week, a lot of interesting things happened. I had to maintain a conversation in Portuguese, we unloaded 1,000 bricks from a truck, received news that we can’t watch the World Cup and it almost snowed.
I spent my first week with Elder Aguilar, my New Mexican friend and final companion. He’s from Puebla, Mexico and he’s been serving for about ten months. He has a ton of energy for the work and he’s made me excited to work through my last transfer.
We have a new member who moved into our ward and he is living with a group of young men who are students, like he is. Their house is basically like a dorm where they all share a kitchen but have their own bedrooms and bathrooms. It’s been so cool to watch this member bring all of his friends/roommates to church with him. This group of students is made up of the new ward member, his friend who is also a member, another friend who is less-active and about eight other young men who aren’t members. Literally, for the last three weeks, since he’s been attending our ward, he’s brought someone new to church with him. The other day we went to their house and had a big group lesson with everyone who was there. It was a little hard to gather everyone together and get started but it ended up being such a cool lesson. It was awesome to sit back and observe a bunch of college kids, from all different backgrounds, discussing God and religion. There was a variety of experiences and opinions shared and it was awesome to observe. Each of the kids are so smart and they have interest in the church so I’m excited to see what happens with them.
Our miracle girl, Agostina, is progressing very well. The ward members have helped support her as she progresses in the gospel and we’ve had some awesome lessons with her. On Friday, we had a lesson with her about baptism and we know she is more than ready to get baptized but she’ hesitant because it’s a huge commitment. So, in the middle of our lesson she stopped us and said that she feels like in order to know if she’s ready to get baptized, she has much more to learn. I had the feeling to tell her that the best thing she could do would be to ask God. So, we stopped the lesson, knelt together and Agostina prayed. She asked God what she needs to do and if baptism is the next step she needs to take in her life. It was such a sweet and humble prayer. After the prayer, Agostina had a big smile and a glow on her face. Then, she told us that while praying, she felt something that she’s never felt before and that she thought it was her answer. Like the scripture in Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask and it shall be given you; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you.” Agostina asked, searched and knocked and God fulfilled His promise and gave her the answer she was waiting for.
We are also teaching Estela and Nazarero, a single mom and her 15-year old son. For quite some time, they have been looking for a church to attend but they haven’t felt comfortable anywhere. They have been studying our doctrine, along with the Bible, and every time we go to their house, they tell us how our doctrine aligns with what they read in the Bible and with their beliefs. They told us that they are anxious and ready to take the step of being baptized by someone who holds the correct authority from God. Interestingly, Nazarero loves to study the Bible and he always shares his thoughts and asks questions during our lessons. I sure wish I was like him when I was 15-years old.
The other day we also found an awesome family who lived in Minnesota for eight years. First, we met the wife while she was outside sweeping her porch and when we approached, she spoke to us in English. This encounter really took us by surprise and it was actually quite hilarious. She told us that she and her family were devoted Catholics and had never spoken to any Mormon missionaries before. But, they were open to learning more. Hopefully, we will have some strong lessons with them. If it turns out that they’re not interested, maybe they can at least help me brush up on my English. Haha!
It’s getting cold down here and the mountains are dusted with snow. It’s so beautiful!
Have a great week!
Elder Roderick
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