Picture with Elder Andersen
This week has been pretty neat. Last pday my comp had to go
to the mission office because he left his debit card in an ATM, and had to get
a replacement. He coordinated with one of his old mission friends to send him a
violin he had in his last area, because the friend had to go to the office as
well that day. So, now my comp has a violin and he lets me try it out. So, now
I'm learnig a little of violin. Mind you, I sounds absolutely horrible, but
it's fun to play and actually simpler than what I thought it was. I only play
it on the p-days, which means I'll probably have 6 more times to try it out
before one of us leaves, but it'll be fun while it lasts.
This week we found our one person with a date again, she is
sometimes a little hard to get into contact with. She was REALLY sick last
sunday, all of her family, so it makes sense why they didn't come. She has plenty of support from the
ward, so that's good at the very least. Her brother wants to reactivate himself
to be able to baptize her when she gets ready for baptism, so it oculd turn
into a convert-reactivate double deal. Or a triple deal, since the mom wants to
come back as well.
We had interviews this week, and I think I'm staying for one
more change (so at least until the end of July) before I change sectors. After
that, I have no idea. He said some faint hints of "filling in the next
generations of leaders,"but I don't think it really has any significance.
I'll just keep working and see if something comes out of it this next change or
not.
I've been reading in the book of Acts a lot this week. I
think my 2 favortie chapters are 6 & 7, being the martyrdom of Stephen. I
still kind of don't understnad why they got angry with him (they being the
Scribes and Pharisees) before he saw Jesus on the right hand of God, since
beforehand he was literally just retelling Jewish history, then how all the prophets
were killed, and how Jesus fufilled this prophecy. I don't know. Maybe the fact
he was condemming their unrighteous actions and they didn't like that.
In ful truth, I think I like the Bible more as the
Reina-Valera (the spanish approved bible) than the KJV. I don't know why, since
they bascially say the same thing, but something about it I like more.
I got to have an interchange this week with another Elder,
this one from Brasil, in the south. It was fun finding out how exactly
Portuguese and Spanish differ, because they are real similar languages (like
German and Dutch).
Also got a nice life story out of the day, and I found an
old missionary who served in the Chile Santiago North Mission in 1983-1985. So
close to dad's 1986-1988. But, he did have similar souvenirs to what dad had.
He showed us the small face shots in black and white that dad told us about
this last video chat. It's like a school ID photo (you know the style, with the
head tilt and the facing to the right but looking at the camera). He had a good
30 of them, if I remember correctly. He said he was an active member of the
church after his mission, for a good 20 years, getting married and sealed,
working with missionaries, being a friend to converts, the whole 9 yards. Then,
after some marital problems, they got divorced. Then he lost his job. then he
left his house. In all of that, not 1 member came to him to give him support,
to help him, to give a friendly word, nothing. Now, he's inactive. He told us
that the church is true and he knows it, reads the Book of Mormon, everything,
but "[He] will never cast a shadow through the Branch's meetinghouse for
the rest of his life."That bit's not so neat of a life story. Hopefully he
eventually decides to return. I think not a single person he knows still lives
int he branch. It constantly cycles members because no one has permanent
housing in the boundaries of the branch, so no one can fill a gap of Bishop or
Counselor for more than 3-4 years.
It's funny though, because I mentioned that dad served near
the same time in the same mission and
One to happier stuff. We found a lot of good people this
week as well. Some of them near golden, some of them not as much. We are trying
now to get to the point where they actually come to church. Even the family
with a date of reactivation and baptism is having difficulty going, and they
live 5 minutes walking from the church!
To invite some people to the church, this week we held an
pen house at the church. We all invited at least 3 people, and 1 inactive
member. Some came, most didn't. But, we got a few good commitments to come the
Sunday afterwords, there were free sopaipillas, and 2 other companionships were
there to help Olaiz and I in the work, so in the end it all kind of worked out.
I do feel like I could get a 2nd baptism in this area, but
it's difficult getting peopleto progress. Just come to church, people!
This Sunday (the one after the 0 church arrivals, this blog
update covers 2), we had to do divisions with the ward. Why? Becuase between 3
o clock and 7:30 we had 14 appointments, close to 2 every half hour. 1
every half hour a companionship cna keep if they run and keep lessons short. 2
is just stright up impossible unless 3/4ths cancel or just aren't there.
ELder Olaiz has helped me get better at a
lot of things. He can go real effective contacts, he can give a lesson quick
and easy (something I sometimes struggle with is letting the lesson drag on and
on). There are other things he's helping me with too, I'll make a list next
update.
This is the last email before changes. Considering what
president told me, I think we'll stay together for at least 1 more change.
Hopefully I get at least 1 more baptism before I leave. I do have time, I
believe
As for the 2nd sunday, 6 people came. So, things are looking
WAY up. Spirits are high, and the gruntwork we did this last week finally came
to fruition. Hopefully we keep the momentum. In fact, of the 6 who attended,
none were expected to come, and the 2 expected to come investigators didn't
show. How odd.
After the better sunday, we found an odd family. It{s a
mother and daughter, with teh roles switched. The mother wants to find truth
and light, but the younger daughter is the more reserved "well, I'm a
catholic"one. Usually the roles are reversed, so it makes teaching a
little differen't. That 1st lesson lasted over 70 minutes, becasue we were with
there witha member and the lesson kept getting off track with odd questions.
Like, "What is the church's view on Mary?"and "Have there been
any feamle prophets?"(The answers are she was special and chosen among
women, but we don't pray to here and she wasn't a virgen after Jesus'brothers
and sisters were born; the other is women can prophecy like Ana in the New
Testament, but don't get the priesthood and be a prophet in the calling sense).
A challenge for me, and I think for most missionaries is to keep a lesson in
line while using a member. Something I'm getting better at little by little.
Aside from that, there is just always more people to find
and teach, and I've seen miracles in the changes possible for peoples lives,
and cried when some have stopped progressing towards baptism. I have the luck
to be in this area for 6 more weeks, at the least.
That's about all for the week and a half, see you next time!
Elder MacGregor
