This week has been interesting for sure. Lots of emotional
challenges. I´ve learned that patience, what it truly means, and
humility are not my strong suits. I already kind of knew that but I got
to see it thrown in my face a little more. x3 But just like it says in
Ether 12:27,
we are shown our weaknesses so we can be humbled, come onto Christ, and
be made stronger through the atonement of Christ. And like it says,
also, in Hebrews 12:5-7, 11 we receive chastening (or knowledge of our
faults) because our Heavenly Father loves us and wants us to improve. So
I´m just working on studying these two things, and a few others; what
they really mean, and then prayerfully applying them to my life. I
definitely challenge each of you to take a look at the things that
you´re probably not that great at. We´re here on this earth to improve,
right? And what´s the best place to go for help to improve? Our father
in Heaven :) He can help us in ways that others can´t. And if we are
sufficiently humble to want to improve ourselves, he´ll help us out. We
don´t have to be embarrassed about being imperfect because, let´s be
honest. No one is. And if they seem to be perfect they´re just really
good at pretending :)
This week´s also been interesting
because of the build up to today, La 14 de Septiembre. Or, Nicaragua´s
independence day. People have celebrations for that ALL week long here.
And that means lots of drinking. And lots of drunk guys wandering
around. I had a couple interesting experiences with that, for sure.
Nothing bad, but they gave me a chuckle. We were in a lesson and this
one guy was begging for water and telling us how drunk he was. But he
was also speaking English. I got to hear some lovely words that I hadn´t
heard since I left the states. x3 Oh how I haven´t missed those swear
words.
And we also ended up having a lesson with a couple of guys who were probably high on something other than alcohol. We were teaching some recent converts outside near a spot where all the drunks like to hang out, and a couple saw us and decided to join us. They were relatively respectful, and as we prayed (most people here say their own prayers out loud during the main ones) one of them mentioned his daughter, and so Hna Miza and I asked him what he wants for his family. Of course he said happiness. So we gave them two of them a pamphlet on the word of wisdom and left them there to celebrate how they pleased. I´ll be surprised if they remember our lesson with them, but hey, the Lord moves in mysterious ways. If they´re ready to change their lives, I´m down to help them out. We´ll have to see where that goes :)
So
other than the massive amount of rain we´ve had, and discovering a new
part of our area that none of us new existed, this week´s been
relatively normal :) We´re struggling on finding people who are really
ready to commit to the gospel and be baptized. People are so ready to
accept baptism initially, but then they disappear off the face of the
planet, or they don´t feel like coming to church, and so we have to drop
them because they haven´t been progressing. That´s honestly one of the saddest things for me. Now that I understand the language better, my main
struggle is dealing with the sadness that comes from watching people
reject the gospel. Especially the members that I can see falling
inactive. I wish I could give them my testimony and the feelings I have.
I try, but if they´re not willing to do anything, there´s not much I
can do to change them. I can pray and share my testimony, and try not to
get discouraged. But it really does hurt my, almost physically, to
think that so many people won´t be able to experience the happiness and
peace that I and so many others have felt. But that´s the part of being a
missionary that comes naturally. You see lots of happy endings, but
lots of sad ones too. Just always remember how blessed we are as members
to have this happiness. I want to also challenge you all to go our of
your way to share the gospel this week. No one will ever be offended by
your testimony. And you really never know who´s struggling and needs the
hand of Christ in their life. And, you know, help out your local
missionaries. They work hard, and it´s harder than you think to actually
find people to teach. They love references, I promise:)
Alright, that´s all the time I have. I hope you all have an excellent week. Remember how lucky you are, share the gospel, be humble, and be safe, always. I love you all, and thank you for your prayers and support. It means the world.
- Hermana Oliphant
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