Dear Family,
Realization of the week. It's important to be patient to wait until other people are ready to talk. Props to you mom because you are a pro at that and never forced me to talk....but I think I have improved a lot since I was little about opening up to people. Thank you so much for waiting so long for me to come around:)
Jose is doing super well and just wants to absorb everything! He is already in Mosiah! I'm sure tonight he will tell us he's in Alma, and he's memorized the order of the books and always has all these funny little questions:) He was suppose to get the priesthood this week and get his recommendation to go to the temple with the ward this week, but he got sick and wasn't able to come to church. A little frustrating, but patience is my best friend:)
At zone training meeting we talked more about a few things that Elder Ballard talked about making spiritual connections and committing to our investigators as we give them commitments. Pretty much my go to phrase that we all got from it was "teach from the heart and by the spirit". As I have pondered and really let that phrase sink into me it has made all the difference. I have let the truths of the gospel sink deeper down into my heart and I have felt the power of it as I teach people about the restoration of the gospel. I have felt the spirit work on my and the people around me and my love for everything has increased even more. I have no doubt that trainings and visits from apostles and the things they say give me the direction that I need and that moment. It would not have had the same impact if it had come earlier or later. Our Heavenly Father knows us all too perfectly:)
Crazy experience for the week:
We were kicked off of someone's property....oops. I promise we weren't doing anything wrong, and got as far as way as we could...Don't mess with angry catholics. We had slowly moved to the sidewalk with the guy(the husband and friend) because we could tell they were getting super angry, but they just stood there and yelled, "get off! 45 feet away!!!" I felt super bad, but sad that they were so upset with us.
I don't know if I've ever explained this but at the end of every transfer there is what is called a Departing Missionary Fireside where all the missionaries who are leaving have the opportunity to invite everyone from past areas to come and see them one last time and they get to bear their testimonies, and then us remaining missionaries can go if we take an investigator. Well, Sister Howell is leaving so I obviously had to go! One of the best blessings about that little event is I get to see some of the members! I saw Hno. and Hna. Flores(4th ward who came back when SIster Howell and I were there) and it was soooooo great seeing them! Hna. started to cry and when she hugged me one of the first things she said was "me salvo". No obviously, I know we did absolutely nothing. The Lord put us in their lives at the right time, and the spirit softened her hear, but I love the fact that I will always be a special part in someone's life. Then I saw Cynthia and Elvis!(also from 4th ward) Cynthia's baby(she had her when I was there) is so big! She can stand and laughs, oh my goodness it is so adorable!!!! And Cyrhtnia told me they were engaged and are planning to get married in September and then in a year get married in the temple!!!!(I taught Elvis a few times and then was transferred). OH my goodness I just filled with so much joy last night. Other than you(my family) I have never felt like I have really belonged as much as I do in the mission with my companions, with the members, and even the streets:) At the end of this transfer pretty much all my companions will be leaving, so it will be another joyous reunion:)
Hard experience of the week:
Saturday morning we ran to the library to print off our lessons for English class that afternoon and this guy in a wheelchair approached us. He told us he had been seeing missionaries everywhere lately and it was such a miracle that we were there at the same time! First thoughts were obviously, "cool, he's a non-member and has had a change of heart and is ready to get baptized!". Well, turned out he was a member and is money had run out and needed money for his hotel that night because his sister wasn't going to be able to come and help him out till the next day and he needed help paying for the motel that night, and asked us if we could call our bishop and help him out. First of all he was American so it wasn't in our boundaries and second I had no clue what is allowed and not allowed with financial stuff, and because my comp really had no idea what was going on I had to figure out what I could do. I asked our district leader but he said it was up to us if we wanted to involve ourselves or not. I tried a few times to say " oh we can't really involve ourselves with financial stuff or whatever" but the look on his face was so hopeful and every time I tried to say no or something the apostles words just kept popping up in my head "if you need help with......ASK THE MISSIONARIES!" and if I let him go no one else would help and missionaries really are the last chance and hope in some people's eyes. So I kept making calls to our bishop then the English wards bishop and he was out of town and couldn't really do anything that quick, but he would be more than happy for him to show up to church and help him out.(something I had offered earlier but he was so desperate and I'm just like you dad and hate to tell people no). We were already running super late, and I felt like we had done what we could do and so I made the decision that we had to go and didn't no what else we could do and the bishop just said he could come to church tomorrow. Seriously, if you had seen the poor man's face. Pure loss of hope in the missionaries, church, and God. I honestly don't think he went to church:( We asked if we could say a prayer with him or read a scripture with him because he had his bible on him, but he put his head down, full of tears, and wheeled away ready to knock doors. Honestly, I felt so awful like there was something more I could do like give him the cash I had but I hadn't thought about that earlier, so I looked in the white handbook because I recalled a rule that we couldn't lend money so I looked it up just I could feel at peace that I had done what I could. Tender mercy: the next morning in ward correlation Obispo Flores talked about "caring for the poor and needy". I know it wasn't just because of our experience, but it was such a tender mercy to me that he would give that training the day after. Sometimes the best thing we can do is say no....
As for the work. It's going well. Lots of work to be done, and there is lots of hope for a baptism or 2 in the next few months.
These past few weeks have been super cool because I have come to understand a few more things from my patriarchal blessing. I don't think I have received as much revelation as I have on my mission from it.
I hope you are all doing well and enjoy your last week of school! Woohoo!:) Nat, congratulations!!!:)
I love you all, and pray for you often.
Love,
Hermana Ford
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