Yr 2 - Week 17: Sunday, a Day of Miracles

Dear Family and friends, 

What a week! It was a really sweet week and lots of cool stuff happened so I'm just gonna jump in right away!!!

So this week I went on divisions with Elder Deal, another elder in the zone. He was the missionary I replaced in La Florida 3. He trained Elder Muzante and I went to be Elder Muzante's companion right after Elder Deal. Anyways, so it was pretty fun and interesting being on divisions with Elder Deal. One of the coolest things from divisions was a sweet experience we had with a less-active youth in the ward. He is the only member in his family and it was pretty neat to talk to him. He asked us some questions about the WofW and we taught him a bit and then invited him to obey it. He accepted the invitation immediately and for some reason I thought to ask him if he had the priesthood. He asked us, "what's the priesthood." We explained it to him, provided a few examples, and then showed him a mormon message about priesthood blessings and being prepared and worthy to give them. At the end we asked him what he thought of the priesthood and he said that it is a really beautiful and sacred way to serve. We invited him to talk to the bishop the very next Sunday and to ask for an interview so that he could get the priesthood. He was really stoked and he said he would instantly. I thought to myself, this kid is 16. In two years he can be ready for missionary service. He needs the priesthood to begin to prepare. I wasn't sure why I asked that random question at the time but now I'm so glad I did because I guarantee it was guided by the spirit :)

So a few days before I came to this sector, Elder Thomas and his old companion Elder Hill contacted a guy on the street named J. He invited them to eat lunch in his house and to talk for a while. They couldn't find him again so when I got here we passed by a few times without finding him. We finally caught him at home once and we talked for about a half an hour. He is REALLY AWESOME. He loves the United States and loves speaking and learning English. He is really religious though doesn't belong to any specific religion. We explained our purpose, what we are expecting in our visits with him, and what he can do himself. He loved it and was absolutely ecstatic to have us in his house. We left him with the pamphlet on the Restoration and we set up a new visit. Elder Thomas and I are pretty sure he will be baptized fairly soon, he seems really prepared :)

Our pension is absolutely SWEET. I cannot believe the amount of luck I've had during the mission. I've had just awesome pensions!!! It's an actual house, it's two stories, and the second story was just built about 2 years ago. It was the house of a member who just moved out of the ward. Elder Thomas and I sleep and study in a big room upstairs with just a fabulous bathroom, really it's spectacular. There's a really big kitchen and living area downstairs. It's about 4 times as big as my last pension and maybe twice as big as my first. Easily the best pension of the three that I've had!!! :) I took lots of photos of the house :D We live with Elder Nelson and Elder Canedo! Elder Nelson is from Idaho and he was actually in the group I came down with to Chile. He was Elder McGary's companion in the MTC. Elder Canedo is Chilean from Osorno, in the south part. He is a convert of almost three years. He finishes the mission at the same time as Elder Thomas. They're sweet!!! :D Geographically, my sector now is maybe 1/3 of the size as my last one and about 2/3 the size as my first sector. We work in pure condos. There are about 5 big condo areas where we work and have a lot of investigators. As far as the ward, there's no ward secretary so Elder Thomas and I fill that role. There are a lot of good members, lots of good youth, and I was received with a very warm welcome. Also, there are many people to teach and we're going to have lots of success. Geographically, La Reina is the northmost zone of the three. If you go down south two comunas (communities) you reach La Florida. La Florida and Puente Alto touch, but both are really big comunas. Our ward is in Puente Alto but I would say that the distance between La Reina and La Florida is smaller than La Florida and Gabriela. 

Sunday was a day of a few miracles. The first miracle was a family we are teaching, JC and his wife I. and their three kids. We taught them about how the gospel blesses families and we invited them to church. They said they would go but at church, even a half an hour into sacrament meeting, they still weren't there. Finally, they walked in and we were soooooooo stoked. They went to the classes and though it was really hectic I think they liked it. We went to the elders quorum and we started talking about priesthood keys. Kinda a tough subject for an investigator in his first time in the chapel. However, with the help of some members and the missionaries we had an entire elders quorum class on ordinances, the organization of the church, and other things related to these subjects, ALL guided by what he was interested in and what questions he had. It was really a great class!!! The second miracle was L, the husband of a member who is not a member himself. Elder Thomas had been teaching him a lot but he seemed really disinterested and uncommitted. This Sunday at church and in our lesson with him yesterday, he showed some real humility and a lot of desire to change and be a new person. He might actually be ready for his baptism date on the third of August. 

That's everything for today, take care guys, love YA'LL!!! :D

 

"No man or woman can teach the gospel if he doesn't live it. The first act to qualify yourself to be a missionary is to live the principles which you teach." - Harold B. Lee