Week #69: Todos somos enviados por Dios para ayudar y bendecir

Howdy howdy! This week was super awesome and filled with some mini miracles. Saturday morning, Elder Johnson and I were just contacting a little bit and knocking some doors. I think it was the first door we knocked actually, a woman came out and began to talk to us. She was super nice and quickly told us that she had actually been baptized in this church but she was a little girl and doesn't remember much about the church. She then invited us to pass by her front gate and sit down outside to chat a little. She had tons of questions about why there are a lot of churches, and how she could ever possibly know which one she should go to. Obviously this is the greatest question you could ask two missionaries...we helped her know that through praying and reading we can know. 

She also told us that she and her husband suffer from tough depression and have both been suicidal. They have three little kids together and it was clear that they have been effected by their parents health problems. Mary (the woman) ended up telling us that she felt as if God himself had sent Elder Johnson and I to help her be happy and find God's true path. 

She and one of her daughters went to church the next day and loved it. Mary shared with a few of the members what she had shared with us about her problems and that two missionaries had shown up to her door to talk about God with her. The members were so amazing and just immediately became friends with her and invited her to an activity this week and Mary just had a smile on her face and seemed to be so happy in that moment. It was a special moment for me as a missionary to have helped this woman begin to find a path of a greater happiness. 

She knew that God had sent us, and we knew it as well. There are people all around us everyday that God has prepared that we can help in our own special ways, we just have to look and be ready to serve and love anyone at a moments notice.

Week #68: El Amor!

Hola!! This week was super hot and super great! Nothing too crazy happened, so I don't have a specific story for you guys...but I just thought I'd share something this week from the scriptures! 

I was reading in Luke 7, the story at the end of the chapter is what I really loved! I believe it begins in verse 37. A sinful woman, began to wash Christ's feet with some ointments and her tears, and wiping his feet with her hair. The Pharises began to question Christ about why He would let a woman such as her, wash his feet. Christ's response is something that just left me thinking for a while. He said that she had rendered Him an act so full of love, and her sins were forgiven because of the love that she had in her heart. Although she was a very sinful woman, Christ had forgiven her in that moment. Christ then said that those who love great, receive great forgiveness. Those who love little, receive little forgiveness. 

There is no need to try to become a "more patient/humble/forgiving/etc type of person". Because at the end of the day, all we need to do is love more, and have pure charity in our hearts for others. As we love at a new level, we become more humble, patient, happy, and obedient disciples of Christ. 

Our greatest example of love was our Savior Jesus Christ. He descended from His heavenly throne, to come among us, only to be tortured, crucified, and hated by those around Him. He loved those that hated Him, and He served those who did Him wrong. The world will tell us to treat others the way they treat us, but if we are to be more like our Savior, we have to love those who despise us, who hate us, who mistreat us, and dont love us at all. I promise we will never regret loving someone to the full extent we can!! 

Week #67: ¿A quien miramos para la salvacion?

Hola hola todos! Como andais mis consiervos? Hope everyone is doing just dandy. This week had it's ups and downs. I'm getting destroyed health wise, between an ingrown toenail, a fever, allergies, and a migraine since Saturday, my patience and endurance has been tried at a whole new level. But...were hoping for a better week here than the last. 

Other news, transfers came...and I'll be staying here in Salto for another transfer!! Elder Johnson and I will be companions for another change. I'm super excited because I'll get to be here to help some of my converts continue to progress and help the work go forward with finding new people! It will be a great change. Although one of my housemates, Elder Ross, will be heading to a new area. Im sad to see him go, for all that I've learned from him. 

Elder Ross started his mission here in Salto just 3 months ago, and it hasn't been easy for him. He's reminded me so much of starting my mission and when I was getting trained. It really isn't easy for anyone to start a whole new life as a missionary. But while you're in those months of trials, you find out what you really treasure in life and whats important to you. I've seen that in Elder Ross a lot more than I ever saw it in myself. Many times, when we have a little spare time in our house at night or spare time after lunch, we end up just chatting or joking around about random things, or we break out a quick card game, or we just hang out and rest. Elder Ross never really joined us in those activities, instead, he reads the scriptures. When he was struggling, he knew the only thing that gave him hope and comfort was reading the scriptures. Maybe he never even recognized it for himself, but it was a natural instinct to open up the scriptures and just read. The joking around, the resting, the games, all of that, didn't matter to him, because it never game him that comfort and joy he needed that the gospel gave to him. 

I think we can all learn from Elder Ross. When we find ourselves without friends, family, our home, or anything else that actually matters to us, the only thing we can do is to turn to the words of Christ to be lifted up and receive hope. John 6:66-68 says something along the lines of, "and Jesus said unto them, Will ye also turn and go away? And Peters replies, Lord, where would we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life." 

If we ever feel there is a time where we cant hold out, Christ will always be there with His arms opened wide waiting for us. There isn't a soul in the universe who is too far away from the Love of Christ. Lo conocemos a Cristo por medio de la lectura, la potente oracion, y nuestras obras diariamente. Esta es la senda, y no hay otro camino ni nombre dado debajo del cielo por el cual el hombre pueda salvarse en el reino de Dios. Los amo a todos! Tengan una buena semana! 

Week #66: La jornada espiritual

Yoo! How is everyone doing! Hope everyone had a spooky Halloween!! Halloween isn't super big here in Uruguay, but there's a decent amount of kids who go out, get dressed up, and ask for little pieces of candy. Elder Johnson and I decided to dress up as two missionaries and go door-to-door as well:) ha!  

This week was great honestly! Vicente Sosa, who was baptized last week, received the Aaronic Priesthood and got interviewed for his first calling in the church yesterday! He was ecstatic and just super content with everything. Maria (Vicentes wife) is also doing awesome. She called us on Saturday telling us that she was going to try and fast for her first time in her life. She was honestly so excited to fast (she taught me a good lesson there). We talked to her at church and she said she was tired and a little dizzy, but that she was hanging in there! Vicente and Maria have honestly changed my life and raised the bar on how all members of the church need to be. 

But I want to tell you guys about Maicol. He's 19 and we started teaching him about 3 weeks ago. He seems to have had a hard up-bringing, having a dad who is a big time alcoholic and very against the fact that God exists. Maicol recently found a desire to start believing in God for the first time in his life just about a month ago from his girlfriend, who is a member of the church. She gave him a Book of Mormon and he's been reading it ever since. He understands that book better than most of the people who actually go to church every Sunday. He had been praying and studying and going to church for 2-3 weeks and said he still hadn't felt anything that indicated that God existed. He said part of him just wanted to give up and throw in the towel and just go back to how he was before. But about a week ago, he said he read 1st Nephi, and prayed after. He said it was the most sincere prayer he had offered yet, and sure enough, he felt something. He said for the first time in his life, he felt as if God existed, and that was the happiest I had seen him since knowing him. 

Maicol has come to church a few times now, and we meet with him a few times a week. He rejected our invitation to be baptized, because he said he's still working out some of the doubts he's had, but I'm confident that very soon, Maicol will feel the pure desire and need to get baptized. Ive learned a whole lot from him in these weeks. Many times, we dont get that immediate answer that weve been searching for, and we really dont understand why. We know our desires are aligned with Christ and His gospel, but for whatever reason, God just doesn't bless us with that answer at first. Many times we have to work harder than ever before just to know that God exists, as in the case of Maicol. Each one of us are in this spiritual journey full of ups and downs and a lot of hard, but gratifying experiences. I think Maicol would be able to tell everyone that we dont always understand why we have those spiritual trials, but looking back we always realize how God was with us every step of the way and we learned something that we could have never learned if we just recieved the answer easily. 

This video was sent to us by one of the Elders living in the same house with Braxton.  His message attached to the video said "Elder Shoemaker is a best and the people all love him here." 

A picture of some of the Elders in Braxton's zone on a recent P-Day paintball activity!