Somehow it turns out that each week just gets better and better and better. Life's cool like that.
To start this week we had a downpour like no other like mini hurricane style. vid attached. It was awesome.
The whole week went like that. Things just worked. It was so so cool. It was also a week full of service. We were able to help out several people with this or that but one of my favorites was the Ochoa family. They,re older members and have a large backyard (large for here) but it had become overgrown with weeds and what not. We went and cleaned it up and then they had us plant some trees and bushes back there. I just really like being able to get my hands a little dirty and make a space beautiful again. It reminded me a lot of working outside back home.
Then we were with Josué the other day and he told us about another friend of his he wanted to go teach with us. We have only taught a little but it's been awesome.
Another member gave us a reference of someone named Flor who actually works outside the city so we didn't get to talk to her but we talked to her sister and mom and brother and they seem to have a lot of interest. Then we talked to their neighbor. Who is incredible. He has only 15 years of age but after teaching about the restoration he was full of questions and interest. He wants to come to mutual and church and everything. It was awesome. We were talking about how when Christ established His church he did so with firm bases. A Prophet, Apostles, revelation, the priesthood, and the scriptures. When we explained about the apostasy and all the churches in the world he asked "and how can I know which church is most stable, which has the strongest bases?" It was a golden question that we had the pleasure of explaining and then with the less active members here we have seen amazing progress as well. Maria Fernanda is one such. It's been really hard to help her because she is often very depressed and has a hard family situation. for example we passed by the past Sunday to go with them to church but her husband came out and told us every one was sleeping. Later Maria told us she was about to get up but her husband told her "Don't you move." like bad vibes. But we decided later to stop by and see how they were and to talk to the husband a bit to see what the problem was. We stopped by and it was amazing. Someone definitely was helping us that day. We came by and the husband was out cleaning the front porch and we helped out a bit and chatted platonically. We then asked if we could share something with the family. He went and gathered the family which was an awesome start considering he'd never listened to us before. We shared a short message from Jacob chapter 4 and it was perfect. We had forgotten to plan the lessons that day so I opened up the scriptures at random and the perfect scripture came up. We finished talking and invited them to pray and read as a family and to prepare themselves to come to church Sunday. They all accepted. The husband with more excitement than the rest too! It was so so so cool. I really hope things keep going well with them.
Jacob 4:4-7
4 For, for this intent have we written these things, that they may know that we knew of Christ, and we had a hope of his glory many hundred years before his coming; and not only we ourselves had a hope of his glory, but also all the holy prophets which were before us.
5 Behold, they believed in Christ and worshiped the Father in his name, and also we worship the Father in his name. And for this intent we keep the law of Moses, it pointing our souls to him; and for this cause it is sanctified unto us for righteousness, even as it was accounted unto Abraham in the wilderness to be obedient unto the commands of God in offering up his son Isaac, which is a similitude of God and his Only Begotten Son.
6 Wherefore, we search the prophets, and we have many revelations and the spirit of prophecy; and having all these witnesses we obtain a hope, and our faith becometh unshaken, insomuch that we truly can command in the name of Jesus and the very trees obey us, or the mountains, or the waves of the sea.
7 Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things.
We have the potential and right to be participants in miracles. as we strengthen our faith, through scripture study and obedience. miracles come. we become empowered to see incredible things. perhaps today we dont have the need to move mountains or waves but we do experience waves of doubt, mountains of regret sorrow or pain. the amazing thing is that we are sons nd daughters of a King. eternal and all powerful. we are righted to the inheritance of said King. we are amazing and have an even more amazing potention. those waves and mountains cand and will be moved when we act on our faith, when we decide to be the children our Father in Heaven needs. we may be weak but that doesnt matter, we can be given strenght we are made strong and we become capable of anything.
Guys. Have the best week of your lives this week. Never forget how amazing you are and how much you are loved. Do something special every day and never stop being you!
Love Forever,
Elder Smith
