#53 I submit to you...

This week was fantastic! We I've been focusing on assuring that I don't become complacent with and that I constantly improve. I've experienced a lot of personal growth along with progress in my area. 

On exchanges with my buddy Elder Barlow we were contacting in the streets. For the last 9-10 months I've pushed myself to talk to everyone, but recently I've wanted to talk to EVERYONE! Whether it be that they are on the bench, with their girlfriend, on a bike, or even parked in a car. We have the greatest message in the world, so we should be running to let everyone know about it! 

We had been stopping a lot of people, and then we saw this young couple. So you understand the culture people in Spain do EVERYTHING on benches. So they were on the bench mingled together (kinda awkward) then we started talking to these two Spaniards. They both started laughing at us.... Ha I was chuckled a little and then somehow the situation changed. We started talking to them about God, and His love for us. We ended up talked to them, and sharing the restoration with them. Their countenance changed. They now had a respectable distance between them, and they were listening and sharing experiences. In the background you could hear some arguments and loud music, but we really felt the Spirit. It was strong and testifying of truth. 

The last experience I'd like to share was when we stopped Ruben. I approached him and he shook his head and finger as if to signal me to leave him alone. I did what I always do when I see that.... Contact them anyway! He told me that he didn't believe in God and wanted nothing to do with us. Using inspired questions we were able to find an experience in which he had prayed, asked God to help him with cancer, and now he has no signs of cancer. We got in deeper and talked for about 30 minutes. At the end of the conversation the Spirit was very powerful and up lifting. It was hands down the most powerful lesson I've had on my mission. We're meeting him this coming week, and he seems very anxious to meet and better understand our Lord's love.

I learned that we never know who someone truly is until we take the time to know them. The Spirit can can people over time, and instantly. God loves us. The church is true. 

#52 Too Much But Too Little

I have so much to say, but with so little time. Last week I have
traveling like 10-12 hours to get to my area. It was sad to say good
bye to my saints in Ourense. They did a small farewell with our small
branch, but I love them sooo much! They did a ton for me, and I don't
know if I can ever repay them.

Now I'm in Azuqueca and its my fourth area! I'm actually in a big
ward... I think the Lord likes to take me to dead areas, but there
wasn't a lot of work going here, but just this last week we've gotten
straight to work, and I feel like I've had one of the most productive
weeks of my mission! We've been blessed with a lot of miracles, and we
have plans to see many more! The ward is excited for some movement,
and we're going give them that and get into a momentum having the
Spirit guide us and open the windows of Heaven!

Above all we got the rest of the Fuentes family sealed!! It's too cool
and I wish I had more time to dedicate to telling you guys about it!
But here are some pics! The church is true!

#51 Land Before Time #76

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This week was awesome! I've still been working on writing my miracle for every day and I've been more happy and excited! I think some people believe I'm borderline insane, but I get so pumped when we go and talk to people about wonderful truths! 

Just briefly for my email I want to share how great it is to see how God can transform people's lives and allow us to shift our mindset. I would like to share two examples one is my recent converts' father from Talavera. His name is Daniel, he was part of the Romanian police force and was one of the most hard headed people I've ever met. (I was one of, but I mean definitely) Our branch mission leader said that he's seen people Change and has seen God do miracles, but that he didn't think Daniel would go anywhere. 6 months after that discussion I had the opportunity to hear him tell me that Daniel, his wife and 2 kids have been going to church for the last few months! Haha My old branch mission leader was happy to inform me that he was wrong about Daniel and God really can change anyone. It was a good moment to see Miguel being a good example for his family and to see seeds you planted start to grow. 

The next example is Consuelo! She's a Columbian investigator that we have. I met her about 4 months ago. I had previously met her daughters, but they told me that their mom didn't want anything to do with us. I then saw her crossing a bridge, and went to talk to her. She said she was in a hurry, quite rudely, and kept walking. I told her that it wasn't a problem because missionaries walk fast! She still gave me a cold shoulder and I was very persistent and finally hot permission to stop by her house. This week she called me because we hadn't seen her for 5 days and got after me for not visiting her! She's also been to church about 5 times and is now bringing her daughter! GOD IS GREAT! 

Well those were just 2 examples and God's still working on making me the third, but I've still got to humble myself and let The Lord mold me. The church is true! I hope you all have a great week! 

Pics from Santiago, Pontevedra and my buddy elder Bartholomew... Come to find out I punched his cousin in the face in 7th grade... Small world. 🇲🇽

#50 Because I'm Batman

This week consisted of tender mercies and peace. I've been in Ourense for almost 6 months now. I came in with my old comp, Elder Peterson, and opened the area. We worked tirelessly for the success of the area, and after almost 3 years without baptisms we were blessed to be a part of 2 people's eternal salvation. I've now been with Elder Galvan for 3 months and I saw a lot of the things we built up fall in spite of our efforts. With a branch that's about as big as my old priest quorum it hurts when we don't see progress. But it's not even me it hurts, but it hurts because this is their reality. After another year I'll go home to my monster size ward. 

After having a couple of down weeks where it seemed like our efforts were going to waste I decided that I needed to shift my mindset, follow what President Hinkley said and have an attitude of gratitude! I started seeing little miracles occurring more frequently. Just small things like running into a less active member that had been dodging my calls. We saw her, chatted a bit about life, and without saying anything about church she said that tomorrow she'd come and she did. An old investigator started reading the Book of Mormon. It also seemed like a lot of problems just fixed themselves! The biggest one though is Consuelo's daughter vamp to church. Her mom is our investigator, and when we went to pick her mom up she got in the elevator too. I know her mom didn't pressure her at all and neither did we, but I feel like the Lord touched her heart and she listened to the prompting! 

I'm grateful for the tender mercies God gives all of us everyday! Look for the and you'll find them! 

PS for those of you RMs I have a question. When was the last time you talked to one of the people you taught on your mission? As missionaries we played a big role in their lives and surely told them we loved them. Let us not just be speakers of the word, but also doers. I put myself in this category too. I need to be better at writing my converts, but I also invite you rms who read this to join me in doing better at showing that love we told our people we had for them. The church is true!