Well I'm writing you all pretty early today.
I'm in Saltillo in the offices of the mission because I had to come to get my
visa stuff signed. And they told me this is the hour that I could write so this
is when I'm writing. A few of you may have noticed that I've been writing this
over a span of a few hours. I'm not just stuck on the computer. I'm writing you
all between things that they have me doing here.
This week was pretty great as well. I've
just really loved this transfer and I'm scared to see what changes are coming
this next week.
Maribel FINALLY came to church again.
HOLY COW she was getting us worried. But now she's decided to wait five times
in church to kind of prove to herself her own diligence. So that's cool. We
never even mentioned to her that that is a normal rule. Which will be cool,
because that puts her baptismal date squarely on her birthday. She's still
determined to be baptized, finish her schooling (one year and a half left) and
go on a mission. She even asked us to fast with her this week so it can happen.
She's just so COOL!
In church someone handed her a tablet to
read the scriptures and manual of Gospel Principles from. Bad idea. Turns out
she's just as bad as I am with technology and somehow ended up in the app to be
taking pictures. I recognized that look of panic on her face, that deer in the
headlights look of a new missionary who doesn't speak the language or of a new
drum major asked to touch the ipod for the first time. Que terror. But it was
fine, we just asked the hermana to help us and we got it all fixed up.
Mayela and her twins didn't come this
week! But it was because her husband came in town and apparently didn't feel
like going to church with her. So they decided to stay home. This week we were
teaching them lesson 3, El Evangelio de Jesucristo and we got to the point of
baptism. The only questions they had: "So, I'm guessing we should probably
bring extra clothes to change into afterward, right? And maybe sandals? And
Angela (the little girl) can't be baptized right? We'll have to program that
one a little later on. Like in 4 more years. And can the clothes be whatever
white clothes we have?" That sort of thing. They are so excited for their
baptism. Let's just hope the President gives us permission! I don't think he
won't, he always gets excited when we baptize families.
Maricela also said she was going to come
and was going to talk to her neighbor so that she would pass by for her, but
her neighbor showed up to church without her and told us that she never talked
to her about it. I get the feeling Maricela tends to forget things, so I hope
that's what's going on.
We saw Antonio this week as well, and he
is SUPER STOKED about this whole mormon thing. But he had to work on Sunday again! So we'll see what happens.
We've got an appointment with him tonight.
We also started teaching a woman without
legs this week that lives right by the church, and right from the start she
said that she felt different with us and that she wanted for us to keep coming.
We couldn't invite her to be baptized (one point of opposition in this area,
nobody can ever just say "to make a long story short" and everybody
talks a TON) because she told us the story of how she lost her legs with every
single little detail and then we had to get to our next appointment, but she
seems to be feeling it. The good thing is she lives about a block and a half
away from the church, so it won't be any problem and all for us to just stop on
by.
And we started teaching Ericka, who was
a contact my companion made while I was in divisiones in San Buena (a GORGEOUS
little mexican town outside of Monclova). On Saturday we
just passed by right before going home and started talking with her. Turns out
she's looking for a church to raise her kids in and that she thinks our church
is the one for her. Who told her that, who knows. She doesn't know any mormons,
she'd never met with missionaries before. We told her about baptism, basically
just that it's a covenant we make with God that means that we'll be clean of
our sins and will be able to live with him again as long as we keep the
commandments. We didn't even have to invite her, she just said "Si, me
hace falta." Which roughly translated means, "Yeah, I should do
that." Easiest baptismal invitation I've ever made. Or not made. So then
we invited her to church, but she said she works on Sundays, but that for a
while she's felt like she shouldn't and should be looking for a new job so she
can rest on Sundays. So we'll see what happens. She's also just a really cool
person.
I DON'T WANNA LEAVE THIS AREA! But i'll
accept the Lord's will in this. I read Elder Christofferson's talk "Yo
reprendo a todos los que amo" (quien sabe como se llamará en inglés) which
is the one where he talks about the other apostle that as a young man was
denied a generalship in the army because he was mormon, the one that says
basically "I'm the gardener here and I know what I want you to be" or
something like that. Anyway, it's about accepting God's will in unexpected or
even disappointing changes in our life. When I read that, I felt a peace come
over me that I felt telling me that whether I go or stay, I'll be where the
Lord needs me to help others and to become what He expects of me.
So that was my week. Also, struggling
with some struggling missionaries. Anyone remember Elder Kinnegar from God's
Army? (Why do I remember his name?!) Yeah...we've got a missionary that's been
downloading anti-LDS videos and publications and reading them and has convinced
himself, even to the point of saying he's received an answer from God, that
says that the Book of Mormon is true, just not completely. Good grief.
Well, That's all I have to say this week. Nos estamos viendo, ¿está bueno?
(that last bit is technically bad
spanish, but that's how they talk here. my companion has been making fun of me
because it's his first time in Monclova and so his spanish is a nice, pretty
Saltillo spanish. Mine is not.)
Elder Taylor
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