I love you all! You are fantastic and thanks for the emails and letters.
They always help out.
So first bit of news.... the weather. We have now officially skipped to
summer. The past few days it has been 100 degrees. When I walk outside I
feel like I'm in a sauna (sp?) because it is so humid. I'm sweating so much,
I've stopped worrying about it. Don't worry, I've been drinking lots of
water. And the good news is that the weather has helped us talk to a few
people about the gospel. They wonder why we would go out for so long talking
to people about religion. Like one lady said, "I'm a devout Catholic, but
you wouldn't find me out in this heat." So we told her why it was so
important.
To continue with weather. Last Sunday we also had a crazy storm with
lightning and thunder. It was raining so hard that I thought it was hailing.
All in all it only lasted for about 5-10 minutes, but I was glad to be
inside talking to the Moranchel family (Part-member, less-active family). It
was a good thing too because when we went to go to a dinner appointment tons
of roads were blocked because huge branches and trees had fallen on the
roads and blocked them. Some had even taken down power lines. After three
different routes, we ended up parking the car and walking to the house.
We have a baptism tonight for Jackie Fraioli. It's so excited, though the
last couple of days have been a bit stressful. On Monday we called up and
her mom was stressed and saying things like, "You pushed her into getting
baptized!" and her mom's a member! We ended up talking to Jackie to see if
she felt the same way, since she had told us that she wanted to be baptized
earlier (aka Wednesday instead of Sunday). After talking for nearly two
hours, she was still set for being baptized. She was having doubts because
her friends at school are not supportive (she's 15 years old) and tell her
things like, "You can be good without having to be baptized." or "You won't
be able to change." Her testimony has grown, but we are going to continue
working on stregthening it and especially her faith in Jesus Christ because
she feels like she has to be perfect, but won't ever be. She has been a
great example to me in overcoming opposition.
I've really been thinking about and working on charity. My companion and I
still go up and down in our relationship. We are just so very different from
the lives we grew up in. She is great though and has a lot of love. I'm
working to strengthen my love for her, but also for the people I teach. It
reminds me of when I was set apart and it said that I would be blessed with
charity and to seek to develop this gift so that I could accomplish all that
I desire. I was reminded of it again with a conversation I had with my
campanion. So I've really tried to pray for that love and understand the
people and their lives. Sometimes it's difficult. Will you pray for me to be
able to have this love also?
We met Jairo and Maria this week. We taught them the first lesson and
committed them to church. They said they would come, so we are hoping and
praying for the best. They are reading, but I'm not sure they are really
praying to know. We will know better when we meet with them again.
I also had another cool experience this week. After a long, hot day we
decided to get pizza at a sit-down restaurant. As we waited for the food
another lady sat down next to us who was eating there by herself. And we
ended up talking about God, families, and the need for it in our lives. We
told her about Joseph Smith, modern-day prophets, and more about the church.
We gave her a pass-along card and invited her to church. She said she might
make it one day and before we left, she said, "You know, I believe that
things happen for a reason. I don't think it was just coincidence that I sat
next to you today." That was a good reminder to me of how involved the Lord
is in our lives.
Now on to your news! Moving in July. That's not too far away. How exciting.
You will have to let me know more about it as it comes closer. I received
Daniel's graduation/Eagle scout card. That's so great!I love you all and all
the accomplishments you are making. Keep it up.
Love you lots,
Erin
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