Conference Sunday

October 5, 2010

What an amazing week we have just had. This was the last week of the change, so as you might have guessed, I’m now out of Florida. But before I tell you where I am headed off to, I just wanted to talk a little bit about our experiences last week. Last Monday, we had a fun zone activity. We went and played football or soccer, in the church. It was a whole lot of fun, but we were a little sore and tired. Church basketball has nothing on soccer in South America. We had hamburgers for lunch, and we had a nice time bonding and spending time together. After pday, we started getting to work inviting people to General Conference. As I told you last week, we have been focusing on finding and teaching whole families, with miraculous results. It really motivated us to keep working hard. The members in the branch were more willing to help us work, and we had many spiritual experiences teaching by the power of the spirit. The more time I have in the mission, the more I realize that we really are just instruments in the hands of the Lord. I feel so happy and blessed and thankful to have this opportunity the more that time passes. That investigator named Robert is doing amazing! He has been finding lots of answers to his questions and has felt his testimony grow. We visited his family, his wife Veronica, and his two children Matias and Estefanie. We visited them with The Rodriguez family, who is our ward mission leader, and his wife, the Relief Society President. IT was a miracle. Robert had accepted a baptismal date for the 16th of October, but his wife was still unsure. We had a very spiritual lesson with them and she revealed her doubt. We talked about it, and the spirit testified. The whole family came to General Conference, which just blew them away. Afterward, she accepted a date for the 16th as well with her husband. She felt something during the conference. The whole family will be baptized on the 16th. We had a Family home evening with them in the Branch President’s home last night. They are REALLY good friends with them, and there was a very nice spirit. We had tacos and guacamole (thanks to a care package sent to Elder Vargas). It was one of the most special experiences I’ve had. Seeing two families coming together and sharing the gospel. That is the great blessing. How much do we have to be grateful for? The fullness of the gospel has been restored, to bless and guard our families forever. It was one of those moments where I felt... well... just happy. Really happy. Anyways, General Conference was very special, and I really feel spiritually fed, as you must all feel too. I really enjoyed each message, and felt the spirit in every carefully prepared message. I felt their humility and love for us, and the love of the Lord that was conveyed through them. Conference is really special, especially as a missionary.

Well, you are probably wondering where I’m headed off to. Well, back to the city. I’m going back to Montevideo. I’m in a division called Colon (Columbus in Spanish) in the northern tip of the city. I’m going with Elder Carlock who came with me to the mission. I’m super excited and from what I hear, they are having loads of success as well. As always, I’m sad to leave, but as you said Mom, change is good. It helps us grow. I love you all. I’m happy you are all safe and that the Lord continues to bless you.