Dear All,
Happy 4th of July! Elder Gasik and I put on the Mormon Tabernacle's version of "The Star-Spangled Banner", and we sang along this morning. It was great. I love my country.
We had another great week. I mean a GREAT week full of a lot of miracles. It all started on Wednesday when we were working in the rain. We had to climb to the top of a mountain (or a big hill, I guess) to teach a reference that we had received from a family that lives on the top. The roads aren't paved; they are all dirt roads. And so basically the only way to get up is in a car. Because without a car, it's just one big mudslide.
But of course we were determined to make it to the top, and so we started to walk up, sliding all over the place. And then the miracle happened! To our left, there was a truck. The man inside rolled down his window and called us over. He said, "There's a Mormon at the top that told me to give you two a lift." I was confused. I got a little closer, and he repeated what he said again, but this time he mentioned something about money; I didn't fully understand because of all the rain and comotion. My first thought, "Oh. He's only trying to get us to pay him." But to understand him better, I asked him to repeat himself. He said, "There's a Mormon that told me to give you two a lift. He's going to pay me up there. Hop in!" We hopped in. We made it to the lesson on time, and we taught a great lesson to this reference. And the man even gave us a ride home after the lesson. It was a miracle! I know the Lord put that man in our path so that we could teach that lesson.
And that reference (Johan is his name) was at church! And not only was he at church, but he stayed for all three hours. And so did four more investigators. Yes! For the first time in my whole mission, we had five investigators in church. A miracle.
And did I mention that we set two baptismal dates this week? Another miracle. Nicolás and his sister Natalia accepted dates to be baptized, and they will be baptized on July 23. :) We're really excited to have investigators with baptismal dates again. It's an exciting time to be a missionary.
We helped rebuild a fence a few days ago for the Parada family. It fell over after a big storm we had a few weeks ago. It was a fun service project. At first, it was a little overwhelming, and I thought, "How in the world are we going to do this? I don't even know where to start." But we went to work, and we rebuilt it one piece at a time. And after taking that first step, the steps that followed were much easier. But that's how life works, doesn't it? For example: The hardest part about the mission is getting started with the unfamiliar language and surrondings. You don't even know where to start! But you get to work and everything comes with time. And by the end you feel REALLY good. That's what happened with the fence project. And that's how I've felt here in my mission. :)
I've had the song "My Heavenly Father Loves Me" stuck in my head these last few weeks. I love that song. A few weeks ago, I thought back on my childhood (I do that a lot), and I remembered my Dad and how he often got up to bear his testimony in sacrament meeting. He almost always spoke of how he knew that God loved him and all His children. As I grew up, I often wondered, "How is my Dad so sure of that?" But I gained my own personal testimony of that as I prepared to serve my mission and as I've served my mission. As I've studied the scriptures, as I've prayed, and as I've attended church, I've felt His love, and I KNOW He loves me and all His children. There is no doubt in my mind. I know that each and every one of us can feel of His love as we keep His commandments.
I love you all. ¡Que tengan una buena semana! :)
Con Mucho Amor,
Elder Nelson IV
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