May 6, 2013
One more week with my trainer!!!!!!!!! Can’t believe my mission mother is going to leave me really soon...I loved learning and growing from her! Hermana Portillo is a very smart and loving missionary. She knows every scripture by heart and knows every word that every apostle ever said. She is a recent convert of about 3 yrs and was actually a dedicated Catholic the years prior from her baptism. She was going to be a nun but I believe that missionaries caught her right in time. They taught her for 6 months, as she had many question and was a little hard in the heart. But when she bears her testimony of when she received a confirmation that this is the true church, it is powerful! She is still the only member in her family. Bless her heart, I believe in the beginning she was rejected by all of her friends and by her family for being baptized. She has sacrificed a lot to be here on a mission and only has7 months left! The Lord has a plan for this awesome missionary and she is going to lead many people to the truth...even after her mission. Well I think one of my favorite things this week was digging mud in the pouring rain while wearing a skirt. We are teaching a family right now who do not have very much for a house. Their floor is the dirt, which can be a disadvantage here in Costa Rica when the huge rain storms come in. Well while teaching a lesson to this family, the rain started pouring down on the tin roof of their house. A few minutes later, water was starting to run inside of the house. The mom and the grandpa grabbed a shovel and ran to the back of the house where the water was coming in. Dad, you would be so proud of me because there was one shovel left and I instantly grabbed the shovel and ran out to meet the mom and Grandpa, but then I realized I left my companions. So I went back inside to convince my companions to go out with me. When they turned and looked at me, they both laughed a little bit, I’m sure cuz I looked a little funny holding a shovel while in my dress, but then they realized I was serious and followed me outside in the down pour of rain. We were able to dig a little gutter for the water to drain away from the house. Wish I could have taken a picture of all the mud that was clumped onto my shoes and legs.
However, just for the record, we did end up finishing our lesson! They are a humble family and have a baptismal date. However they are super traditional Catholics and they are having a hard time recognizing their answer and having the desire to leave the Catholic Church. When we showed her a picture of Joseph Smith´s first vision, she told us that she had a dream and that in her dream she saw an angel and a pillar of light descending down, just like in the picture of the first vision. I kinda wanted to say, “ Hello !! That is an answer from God! He is answering your prayers telling you that all we are teaching you is true!” But Hermana Portillo was good to try to help her understand in a more loving way. However for some reasons she doesn't see the answers so clearly still. So we continue to pray for them!
Saturday we decided to knock on a door. We ended up having a lesson with this family ( mom, dad, and two daughters) and they committed to go to church the next day. When my companion and I went to pick them up, they were ready in their Sunday best. The Dad had told us that they were looking for a church to go to; I think that’s when we gave them the invitation to go to church with us! The mom and their girls are super sweet. After church they said that they really liked it! It was testimony meeting and Hermana Portillo and Hermana Garcia both gave beautiful testimonies and mentioned this family in their testimony and how grateful they were that they came to church. The spirit was so strong as they mentioned the beautiful doctrine of eternal families.
How grateful I am for the joy the gospel has brought me in my immediate family and extended family. It is a wonderful privilege to help other families find the joy and peace that I have through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Well my testimony is growing everyday as the spirit bears witness to me in every lesson that we have. It’s those moments that make all the trials of a mission worth it! I found a sweet quote from Elder Nelson that says, ¨ With faith comes trial of faith, bringing greater faith.¨ We will never gain faith without trials and as we endure through the trial, the Lord promises us more light, more faith, and more blessing! We have a perfect God and He has a perfect plan for us! I love you all family! The Gospel is true!! Love Hermana Pease!!
No comments:
Post a Comment