It all started Monday night. As we left our apartment, I felt the spirit SUPER strong. Something told me that something big was going to happen. We headed off to a few appointments we had, but no one was there! I think that God really was setting us up for what happened.
We had been teaching a less active and his wife for quite a while, but they just hadn´t shown interest in attending church, so we dropped him two weeks ago. However, when everything fell through, Elder Vargas suggested that we pass by. Something told me that it was a good idea, so we went. We knocked the door and yet again, no one was home! I wondered to myself why I felt the spirit so strong, and began praying to know what it was the God wanted us to do. That was when Marcos came up to the door!
We entered in and began talking. He asked why we hadn´t come in a while, and we just said we were busy. Then he said that he´d been reading a book called ´The Secret.´ He talked a bit about it, but I had already heard about that book from before the mission. It makes a lot of people doubt about the existance of God, trying to call him some kind of force instead of someone that has a body of flesh and bone.
I don´t know why, but I was SUPER direct with Marcos. Basically I told him that the world can say what they want. They can say that God is just some sort of force that is within all of us, but that doesn´t change the truth. God is REAL. He has a body of flesh and bone and He is our creator. He loves each and every one of us and has a plan, that has been revealed again through a prophet, the prophet Joseph Smith. The Book of Mormon is God´s word, and one can come to know the truthfulness of all things if they will simply read, ponder, and pray.
I know that we answered Marcos´s prayer. Elder Vargas pulled out some great scriptures that really reached his heart, and he even told us that he had been super confused and was praying to know what the truth was. That was just when we got there!
Tuesday we had a Council meeting with the leaders in the mission! It was AWESOME because this last month there was a miracle! Before, we were baptising about 65 or 70 people a month, but last month we baptised 93!! It felt really good, and we talked a lot about that. We then talked about working with our ward leaders, especially our Ward Mission Leader. Elder Vargas and I have an INCREDIBLE ward mission leader! He´s really consecrated to his calling, and I am happy to be here.
The next few days were SUPER busy. We had a lot of things to do, and a lot of lessons to teach! Our ward has been very supportive of us and I have said many prayers thanking God for that support. This week, admist all of our to do´s and things, we were able to have 13 lessons with a member present! It was AWESOME! We feel great about that!
I also had the opportunity to go on a work visit with Elder Henriquez, which really opened up my eyes, a LOT. There have been quite a few missionaries in this area that have not been super obedient. The members have become great friends with the elders...going out to eat...to play football...etc. They have also entered into the elders apartment on a number of occasions and are just WAY too accustumed to it. Elder Henriquez told me that he has had to be the bad guy on more than one occasion in order to tell the members that they weren´t going to be able to do things.
I want to bear my testimony that I KNOW that we as missionaries are representatives of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. I take this calling very seriously, and am doing my absolute best to live up to those expectations. We´re not here to have fun, we are here to help God´s children be saved! This is a war, and God requires the best from us. At times, some elders decide that these two years are to be enjoyed, and they decide that they can take the badge off for a while. That´s not what God expects of us, and we should do better than that. The members can help us with that. They can treat us with the respect that we deserve and show us that they really do expect us to be obedient, and that they are going to HELP US BE OBEDIENT.
After that work visit, it felt really nice to be with Elder Vargas again, where the members really are helping us.
Last experience! Not enough time!!
Today we got a phonecall from a district leader about Elder Martinez that is struggling...we had to go to his room and talk with him again. I had the opportunity to talk with him, and really felt the spirit guiding me to help uncover the problem and help encourage him again.
Elder Martinez is a GREAT missionary. However, he is very self councious. He feels that God is not proud of him. He feels that everyone makes fun of him and doesn´t appreciate him for who he is. I felt honored to be able to talk to him and tell him that God IS proud of him. Because of that, God has called him to be His missinary. This calling is INCREDIBLE. No one is REALLY worthy of it. No one can REALLY take Christ´s place. However, God has confidence in us. He could use His spirit to do all the work, without sending us out. He could do it all! However, He has confidence in us.
God trusts us with His children. Every parent in the world has felt that. God trusts us as Home and Visiting teachers. As Quorum advisors. As young Women´s president, or whatever calling we may have! He places His trust in that we will do our part in spreading this gospel.
Do your part. Share this message. Feel His love for you.
I love you all!!!
Elder Schofield
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