1/29/2007Well, let's see what has happened in my week this week, not a whole bunch, busy but lotsssssssssssssssssssss of walking.
Yeah dad, thank you for your comment about the weather, how we have the same weather here as you guys do there, let{s just remember that we are in summmmmmmmerrrrrrrr here. But their summer here is just like our winter. So that is fun, just like home, right. It was warm one day this week, I walked around withouttttttttt my jacket!!! It was a miracle!
So like I told you last week we had our conference. They told us that 80 percent of the baptisms in the World are in the American continents, from Alaska to por venir, or pretty much punta arenas. And the other baptisms in the rest of the World are latinos that moved to other countries, no that part was a joke, but not far fetched. Elder Pratt, the president of the area of Chile is coming this week to give a training, maybe I will finally meet the man that has my name and evveryoneeeeeeeeee asks if we are related. We will see.
So we had a few interesting experiences this week. Let me fill you in on a couple of them. First of all. Alejandra y patricio. They are good people but a little show. They are a little hesitant to accept their goal for baptism. We had some Herat to hearts. It CAME down to it and I asked them if they relieve that the book of Mormon is true or not. They both said that they believe that it is true. Alejandra says that if she doesn’t{t read the bom in a day she feels empty, she feels like she is missing something, she needs that little bit of time to read her book to feel good, relaxed, happy, and peaceful. They both say that it is true but they don’t know if Joseph smith is a prophet or not. We talked about how if one is true the other one has to be true as well, and then the church has to be true and all that. It was an awesome lesson, the spirit was so incredibly strong. We had an fhe with them and another family in the ward that is preparing to go to the temple in two weeks, it was really good because they were Catholics too and so their testimonies were really strong. Everybody thinks that this brethren is going to be the next bishop because we still don’t have a bishop. It was awesome, they CAME to church on Sunday as well, which was such a relief!!!!!! They are progressing, slowly and surely. We are putting everything into them. They are coming along.
Oh yeah, and here, odd tid bit. The people here don’t have lawn mowers, they cut the grass by hand with clippers, granted they don{t have much grass but still.
So now, the real miracle miracle of the week. This week I have walked and walked and walked. Nobody Would let us in, rain and all. We were walking yesterday with Javier, the guy that is going to the temple with is family and everyone thinks Hill be the next bishop. We had been walking all afternoon and nobody wanted to let us in. We had like four appointments and they all fell through. I greeted this woman and started talking to her as normal, a normal contact. Javier is such a good guy and he asks her if she feels okay and she starts crying, not a lot but the tears flooded her eyes. And so I asked her if we could help her with something, if she needed help. She invited us to her house right then. So we were like, yeah let’s go. So come to find our her daughter is addicted to drugs and the mom, patricia has raised her grandkids their entire lives, like 8 9 years old and she doesn’t have anything, only the addiction to drugs and the drive to find them wherever she can. Patricia’s husband is sailing and doesn’t come back until March. She was a wreck. We shared some scriptures with her to help her. During the opening prayer I was pleading with the lord to guide me to the scripture that Would help her, I had no clue which. In my mind CAME 2 Nephi 9, I didn’t know what verses and I can’t scan in Spanish like I can in English. So I was like, heavenly father, just let me open to the page that has the scripture that she needs. So I opened my bom and it opens to 2n9 and I had marked three verses, I don’t know which ones they are but they talk about how Christ knows our sufferings, pains, and feelings. He suffered them all and how much love he has for us and we are never alone. We didn’t teach anything about the restoration of the book or Mormon. We have her a bom and just told her to read alma 34 and just said that it will bring the spirit in her life, the love of god, and comfort. She said that she will read it, she didn’t question what the book is, nothing about it. She is going to read it and she asked us if she could go to church with us on Sunday and she gave us her number and we are going back to visit her tonight. She said she is going to read the chapter as soon as we left and we have to ask her what we read when we come. Above all, we had given a man in the street a photo of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane and come to find out that this man had given it to her and she had it in her house. God Works in interesting ways. We told her that god put her in our path for a reason. She was a wreck and needed comfort. We prayed with her, sang with her, and shared our testimonies and the spirit of the lord with her. If our appts wouldn’t have fallen through, we wouldn’t have found her in her time of need. She had been walking around for hours not knowing what to do and crying because she doesn’t have anyone now in town. She is so worried about her grandkids and what her daughter might do for drugs. I guess there are not that many drugs here in punta areans, they are harder to find. The lord truly guides us. And if it wasn’t for Javier’s question of if she feels okay, he was with us for a reason, we were in that area for a reason, only god knows and we just have to obey with great faith that it really all does work out for the best. God loves us and takes care of us in every single minute.
The faith that this lady has that she is going to read the bom and has no clue what it is but she felt the spirit with us, she saw that it was a miracle of the lord and she felt so much better alter we left. We didn’t resolve any of her problems, we only shared the love of god with her.
So that is pretty much me. I am trying to increase my love, faith, and trust in the lord so that I can be receptive to the spirit when the lord needs my, like in moments like these. I saw one of the greatest miracles with the lord in this moment, as we were being used as his instruments when he needed us. As Javier was receptive to her pain in her FACE and how these people aren’t just contacts, they are children of god that need the gospel just like I do. They need the lord just like I do. It doesn’t matter what they appear to be or if they appear to care or not, they need their chance to hear and change their lives because it really will change their lives. I am learning so much everyday. I have so much to learn. I learn so much from Javier and romina, they are great examples and have only been members for a year but they have great faith. Everyday I am trying to do better, I know I don’t always do what I should but I am trying to give it my all and find those people that the lord sent me to find and do what he sent me to do. It is a great work. Mom and dad, help the missionaries, they need your help. Ask them if you can go and visit people with them, it will help you more than it will them and the investigators, bring a family into the gospel, there are people in Oroville that only you guys can help as well. Take the initiative. You don’t have time, you are right, but the lord Hill give you time if you do his will, just do it. Have faith that the lord will work miracles in your life as you do his will. It s all the faith, I am learning the faith as I go, it is hard, we are of little faith but god will help us. This is not just for mom and dad but for anyone that reads it, nana and papa, erica, jake, leaane, chan, everyone, look for the people who need the gospel, imagine your life without it and think of their lives without it and what they can have with it.
I hope you all are doing great. I will write next week. Take care all, remember your prayers daily and take the time to read the bom, and let me know where you all are. God bless. Love, hna Jaime Pratt
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