I´m writing a little late tonight
because we were in Managua again today for another choir
practice...that I´m actually singing in this time, haha. And so we don´t
have to work today so we can finish up our pday things that we couldn´t
do from traveling.
This week has been normal, more or less. Some exciting stories and unexpected adventures, but I´ll get to that in a moment ;)
We´ve
been working super hard this week to find more chosen people that are
ready to get baptized! We got an idea from our TLs (which I was hesitant
to do again, because it never worked for me in the past) to invite
EVERYONE to be baptized!
...Well, almost anyone.
When we contact, we mainly just invite them to attend church with us. Based on how they react, we teach principles and ask to come back and visit them and such.
When we contact, we mainly just invite them to attend church with us. Based on how they react, we teach principles and ask to come back and visit them and such.
Our TLs have been doing something where if someone
says they´ll come to church (and really seem like they mean it), they
invite them to be baptized! And we finished divisions with them and were
determined to give it a shot, because they´ve been baptizing a lot...so
they must be doing something right.
We started off the week
with 3 fechas (or 3 people committed to being baptized on a certain
day), and we now have 11! All for the month of January. Obviously, not
all are going to be baptized, but if we work hard, at least 2 or 3
should make it to the waters of baptism, and I´m really seeing the
fruits of just opening your mouth and not being afraid. Of course, this
isn´t something that´ll work in other parts of the world, but it really
generates a lot of success here in Nicaragua, because so many people are
so humble and looking for the truth.
So that´s what we´ve been
doing this week, is teaching a lot about the restoration and why it´s
important for these lovely Nicas, and baptism. Why it´s necessary and
why they need to be baptized in OUR church by the proper authority.
And
I´ve never been happier, but I know that I can still do more. That´s
the frustrating part. I´m doing my best every day I feel like. Even
though my best is different every day ;)
Okay, so some funny stories. We´ve had some traveling difficulties lately. This Wednesday,
we had a zone meeting and interview with President in Estelí in the
afternoon. And they ended up taking longer than we thought, so we missed
the last buses that would take us down to Sébaco from Esteli. We were
going to stay the night with the Hermanas in Rosario, but President gave
us money for a taxi. So on the way home, in the middle of nowhere, at 9
at night, the engine (or something) overheats. So we´re just stuck in
the middle of nowhere with this random taxi driver and no way to get
home. So that was exciting. Thankfully, we eventually got it figured
out, and we made it home before 9:30.
Then today, we were on the bus coming back from Managua, and about halfway
there, something pops a hole in the back right tire and it goes flat.
And there´s people on it and everything. So...we just had to wait for
them to fix the tire and we were rolling again. But it was pretty crazy.
We all heard the POP and the air gushing out of the tire as we rolled
down the freeway. It was pretty amusing. Lots of travel things this
week, haha. [Comment from Mom: Of course when I read this, I have horrific visions of the bus careening down the freeway completely out of control.]
And yesterday, we were standing at a members gate
talking to her, and then her pig named Peppa just strolls on by. She´s a
BIG pig, and we were just admiring her when she decides to step
outside, and she refused to go back in the member just ended up chasing
it around while the neighbors were helping corral it back to the house. I
wanted to go help, becasue it was partly our fault she got out, but I
didn´t know what to do. And that pig was angry. And it was dark. It
started chasing after us and we flipped out and both me and my comp ran
in different directions, haha. That giant pig got close enough to bite my
legs and I was NOT having any of that. Thankfully, like everything else,
it was all taken care of and it was put back in its pen.
Also
yesterday, we had a classic language barrier scripture mix up. We were
teaching this super pilas (golden) couple about the law of chastity. We hadn´t
brought it up before, but they´ve already agreed to be baptized, so they
need to start making plans sooner rather than later. So my comp shared 1
Corinthians 7:9 with them, because our DL gave it to us to use. And she
hadn´t read it before. I had, which was why I hadn´t brought it up. But
the girl read it out loud, and she got the message loud and clear.
Nuff
said. The JST was a little less strong, but I left it at that. They got
the message, and thankfully weren´t offended. I guess they needed that
reminder, haha. They all know it´s bad to live together before they get
married, but literally no one marries in Nicaragua. We´re always very
very surprised to meet people who are married. It´s mind-numbing at
times. But that´s the Nica life.
So, my
spiritual thought. My comp just read this out of Our Search for
Happiness, and I just wanted to share it with a final plea.
"Through
the years I have watched countless missionaries come and go, and I have
seen extraordinary things happen in their lives and in the lives of
their families as a result. The work they are called to do is hard and
sometimes discouraging. But because they have the assurance that they
are on God´s errand, they are able to valiantly serve Him. I often
suggest to those who want to know if the church is true that they spend a
few hours working with our missionaries. It doesn´t take long to learn
that no one can do all of the things a missionary does every day without
knowing beyond any question that what they are doing is right and true.
"The
Lord does bless His missionaries just as surely as they bless the lives
of those they teach and baptize. Difficult languages are learned with
astonishing speed and skill. Financially strapped families back home
find unforeseen means to support their missionaries. Weaknesses become strengths, challenges become opportunities, trials become triumphs, and
adversity becomes an adventure in the service of the Lord--another fruit
of gospel living"
- Elder M. Russell Ballard.
My
first plea is that you read this book. It´s so incredible. It´s an
invitation to understand us members of the church, and whether you´re a
long member, convert, or nonmember, please read this book. It will only
strengthen your testimony of the truthfulness of this church and how
there REALLY is no downside to living this gospel :) SO incredible.
My
second plea is to go on a mission. It hasn´t been easy physically, emotionally, or spiritually. But I know that this was one of the
best decisions of my life, and I know without a doubt that missionary
work is for EVERYONE who can. So if you can go, and are considering
going, aren´t really sure, or havent thought about it, please just go.
You will not regret it, I promise. Please just reread this quote if you
don´t believe me. You´ll see what I mean as soon as you get out here and
get to work :)
So that´s my invitation for you all. I love y´all tons and tons, and I hope you have a great week!
Love, Hermana Oliphant
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