Week 78

Flash back to the CCM. GO DUCKS! :D

I know I say this every week....but this week was AMAZING! :D First of all, it rained almost all week, but not much during the day so we didn't get too wet, although it was enough to cool the temperature for a while. I had missed the rain a lot! It's so weird that it`s been cool because we are still in the "canicula" (supposed 40 days of pure hot sun), which ends this Wednesday, but it was only super hot about a week or two this time out of the 6 or so weeks. What luck! I probably shouldn't say anymore because who knows what will happen in the coming months. Maybe it just came late this year. :O

Anyway, that isn't the main reason this week was so amazing, only a side note. My favorite part of the week was when President Maucotel came to our area to visit Fidel Martini!! Since Fidel had a past problem with one of the questions in the baptismal interview, President Maucotel had to give his approval before we could proceed. He agreed to come visit him on Friday and met us at the church to go see Fidel. Fidel was super happy to see the couple again, since he met both Pres. and Sis. Maucotel at the Stake Conference, and we all sat down first to chat. Fidel has the coolest personality and Pres. and Sis. Maucotel loved talking with him (even though Sis Maucotel is still learning Spanish, but she`s learning fast). Then President asked for a moment alone with Fidel so we left outside for a few minutes. Afterwards President told us that Fidel is "sooo ready, he`s just so ready for baptism" and upon taking us home he told us Fidel`s story of how his prayers were answered.

The story goes like this, Fidel had a surgery on his throat to take out an abscess. There ended up being some complications and water got in his right lung, forcing them to operate on his lung too in order to take out the water. He was conscious at first, but the pain of poking in his lung made him pass out and he was unconscious for 4 complete days. He soon woke up and recovered enough to go back home and rest. During the next few months of slow recovery, he began to meditate about his existence and converse with God more than he`d ever done before in his life. He plead with the Lord that he would help him make it back to him after this life and to have more time to live in order to do so. After a while he received an answer in a dream. He was instructed on what he needed to do in order to reach Paradise, some of which were to repent of his past sins, find the Lord`s true church, and be baptized by an authorized servant.

Three days following his prayers we arrived and knocked on his door. He was already familiar with the Mormon church and actually desired and prayed specifically that Mormon missionaries would visit him because he felt if any church was of God, it must be this one because of how much respect he has for it. I knocked on his door, looking for his wife, who`s a member, but to my surprise an older man slowly descended down the stairs with a wooden cane and bandaged throat and side. He told us something like "hey, you guys made it, where do we begin?" and we got to know him and invited him to be baptized which he accepted without a hesitation.

Now here we are, five weeks later with his baptism planned for this Wednesday! He asked me to perform the ordinance, despite our attempts to incite him to choose one of the members that had been visiting him. I will be honored to fulfill such a call and can`t describe how thankful I am to the Lord for using me as an instrument in his hands in blessing the lives of others. There is no place I`d rather be in the world right now than on my mission.

On top of all that, I found out today that my Mom had been praying for months that I`d have a baptism in the last part of my mission (I still have tons of time left Mom...:P) since I went several months without even one investigator attending church and she was afraid I would get discouraged. She really wanted me to once again experience the joy of seeing someone truly accept the gospel before I left my mission. Well Mom, your prayers have been answered, and in the most marvelous way imaginable! I too, like my Mom, know that our Heavenly Father hears and answers our prayers because he loves us:) Thanks Mom and all the rest of you for your fervent prayers and support. Love you all, have a wonderful week!!!

Dad sent me a picture of the Olympic final scores,
congrats USA!!! (Thanks Dad:)

Rice and bananas, you have to try it!!