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| Zona Merida |
This past Tuesday we gave a zone conference! My 5th one already... super crazy how fast time is going. Feels like just yesterday I gave my first Zone Conference back in May. I really love giving zone conferences, if i am being honest. I know i say that every time, but one of the things I love is being able to find the way to inspire the missionaries with all my heart. When I give them all I have, i really do see the difference. We talked about how sometimes in the mission we invite someone to keep a commandment and they tell us they don't want to and we just kinda blow it off and move on... but us as missionaries we are also here to teach the CONSEQUENCES of not following the commandments. We talked about a ton of stuff. Putting our fears on the altar of sacrifice. Talking to literally everyone we can find. We have figured out that for every 18 investigators we find, 1 gets baptized. So we gotta get finding!!!!
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| Planning Meeting Notes |
So a little fact about this area of mine. It hasn't had a baptism for 6 months... and that was when there were 4 missionaries here. Right now there are only us 2. I am so determined to change this area. One of the hardest things as a missionary is whenever we find a great investigator that then tells us after a couple visits they don't want anything to do with us. They have fear of changing their lives, which is understandable, but it is still hard as a missionary. We found an investigator named Luis that told us he was reading the Book of Mormon then one day and just realized if he doesn't even read the Bible, why would he read the Book of Mormon? It was heartbreaking.
So one of the greatest things about this ward I have seen so far is we have a Ward Mission Leader that really supports us. In every other place I have been in, there either hasn't been a ward mission leader, or the ward mission leader doesn't support us at all. But here, Hermano Quiroz is always here to help us. He goes and visits people with us a couple times a week and we always have a meeting and he is super excited to do the missionary work, which makes life a little easier. He is the guy on the motorcycle in the picture below! Also, Pepe is the guy in the other picture below where it looks super windy. He supports us a ton too. He is a ward missionary and has always waanted to go on a mission but hasnt been able to because he is a little sociallly awkward and has some mental problems i believe, but his testimony is SO strong.
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| Hermano Quiroz Ward Mission Leader |
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| Pepe |
So let me tell you more about Junior, an investigator of ours. Literally 1 week ago when we found him, he told us he adores The Grim Reaper and he doesnt believe in God. When we invited him to read a pamphlet he told us he doesn't like to read pamphlets that have anything to do with God. We kept working with him this week to the point where he has prayed, believes in God, and received his answer that God exists. We then taught him The Restoration and he accepted a baptismal date!! He prayed about Joseph Smith and said he received his answer and felt so much peace. He is such a miracle!! The only sad part is whenever we woke him up Sunday to go to church, he said he would go and then didn't show up. :( It is so heartbreaking every time.
Also, Jesus, the investigator, is super great! He has just been working for Uber lately and we havent been able to see him very much. He is a very logical man which has made things a little weird to teach him because he isn't super spiritual but if we can see him more he will totally progress! Wilbert is an investigator of ours I told you about that is addicted to alcohol. 14 years ago he worked in a beer factory and drank every hour of his life to the point where the doctor told him if he doesn't drink pure alcohol every hour he will die. He has been working against it for about 2 years now and this past weekend he went 2 days without drinking alcohol. It is so sad to see how trapped he is in his body. If he doesn't drink, his body lilterally freaks out and he can't sleep or do anything. We are working with him. Little by little he is improving :)The atheist mom family I told you about last week. She is improviing but just so stubborn. She believes what we teach her and she feels the spirit and then decides it isnt true, but with faith and patience :)
My companion Elder Luna is super great! He has a TON of desires to learn English, so every day we talk in English a ton and I am teaching him. He actually speaks super great and has a great way of understanding everything I say ,which makes every day a little more fun to get to help him with English! This past week he hit 1 year in the mission so we partied!! He is a great teacher and truly a great companion!
Something about my area is that the Mexican Military Base is literally right in my area which is super cool. We have some converts that live in the military base so our goal is to enter... we just have to get to know them first because they haven't gone to church. Also, we live close to the airport so everyday we see and hear planes that are super close. It is always funny to see a plane and think one day I will be on the plane again... but not too soon!
But like my subject title of this letter says, this week was the Mexican Independence day! We didn't celebrate too much. Just ate more with the members pretty much haha. But I am convinced that we walk way more in this area than my other areas because we are in an area where there were like 4-6 missionaries always. But it being Independence Day and everything made Thursday and Friday a little harder because literally NO ONE was in their house. We walked and walked and walked and searched for more people and no one was home. But we made it a good day :)
We have a little pueblo that is called San Pedro Chimay where we went this week. We have to take a small bus to get there. When we showed up we saw a guy struggling to carry some equipment so we decided to help him. We then taught him and the whole time I felt like I had seen him before, but that actually happens a lot so I didn't put much attention to it. But then the guy says he felt like he saw me before. Turns out about 11 months ago whenever I was in divisions with Elder Archibald in Calkini, I went to a pueblo in Nunkini and taught the same guy!! It was super crazy to find him again. The Lord truly prepares the way for us to find those who are ready to recieve the gospel.
On Friday night, it was about 9pm and we were walking back to the house when it just started pouring down rain. We started sprinting to the house, and as I sprinted I just felt so much happiness and realized once again how much i love the mission. It is super crazy that I would love walking in the heat all day and love running in the rain. But the sacrifice is all worth it. I promise you.
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| Oh, just a highway to cross everyday |
Elder Plowman
4 Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God.
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