I´ll start out with a couple of big fail stories, just so you know that I´m still your slightly clumsy son. On Monday, we decided we wanted to make completos--like hot dogs but with tomato and avocado as well. We prepared 6 delicious looking completos, 3 each... which were completely ruined because I put way too much salt in the avocado. Don´t ask me how it happened, but it was pretty intense.
Second story--the mission nurse gave me some antibiotics for a sore throat at the beginning of the week, with the instructions to eat them with food and at the same time each day. Of course I thought, "I can take one every day after lunch, which is when we eat the most, and I´ll always remember it!" I took the first pill, and promptly fell asleep in our next lesson--I guess I missed the drowsiness warning :P. Luckily I´m feeling better now!
This week we had the great privilege to hear Elder Dallin H. Oaks. He came on Saturday morning to speak to the entire mission. He talked about dedication, about giving ourselves completely and totally over to the work, and about how to listen to the spirit--he told several stories about times when he has noticed the spirit, and how it has affected his life. One of the things that most impacted me was his smile. I had never noticed this before about Elder Oaks--he always struck me as being a bit more serious--but he always has a huge, happy smile on. And President Arnold, the area president of South America South (Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay), reminds me a lot of my Uncle Larry. Just a fun note.
Because of some really unfortunate national planning, I can´t get baptized this next weekend--this Sunday is voting day, and we can´t do any other meetings apart from Sacrament meeting. But he is still doing great, we had a Family Home Evening last night with him and the Smiths (J´s family). I looked a lot more excited to share the gospel with his family after learning that J´s mom didn´t want anything to do with the missionaries to start with, but that J ended up baptizing her.
Ja still doesn´t want to get baptized, but, she is doing a great job to help other members become stronger in the gospel. One of her friends, Aa, said that she might have gone inactive for loneliness if it hadn´t been for her friend Ja. Then, this weekend, she invited two friends--An and Vr--to come to one of her lessons. They are both members and have been for quite a long time, but they haven´t gone to church in quite a while. We taught about what it means that we are sons and daughters of God, everybody felt the spirit strongly, and the next day An and Vr showed up to church with Ja.
We had a great moment with Ya talking about the Resurrection. I don´t know if we hadn´t covered it very thoroughly, or if she just didn´t understand, but when we talked about the fact that the resurrection means a restoration of our body to our spirit, in a perfect, flawless way, it really hit her. I could see the spirit working in her to teach her and bring this truth home to her heart. It was pretty fantastic.
Remember En? I met him my first week here in the ward, he is the son-in-law of the second counselor. We started teaching him again, and this week we went by and read the Book of Mormon with him, from the introduction. When we got the the invitation--to read, meditate, and then pray to know if it is the truth--we all took turns sharing our testimonies of how we learned that the Book of Mormon was true. The spirit was strong, En seemed pretty touched.
Viviendo el sueño,
Elder Jason Ray
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