Date
August 25, 2015
Area
Leones, Argentina
Companion
Hermana Garriga
43 wks(9Mo's+3wks)... Bienvenido a LEONES!!
First of all, right now i am in LEONES! We had transfers :( I was SO sad to leave Oncativo. I grew to love that little pueblito so much and the people there will always have a place in my heart, but I know that wherever I’m called
ok so basically had the BEST WEEK OF MY MISSION. This last week. After a lot of time planting seeds and working so hard, WE HAD A BAPTISM ON FRIDAY! Carlos Alberto Garay. And it was such a miracle.
These last 2 weeks we have been preparing him for his baptism, but it was up it the air for a while, because he had some changes to make in his lifestyle. I won’t go into too many details, but basically problems with drinking coffee, tea, alcohol. And problems with the law of chastity. I was a bit nervous going into these lessons because it could go one of 2 ways... He accepts the commandment and follows it, or not and chau baptism. But the reality is, when someone has a testimony that the Book of Mormon is true, when they are able to feel and recognize the spirit, they will understand that what we teach comes from God, that it is for their own benefit, and that with Christ, it’s possible to make any changes in our lives.
And that’s how it was with Carlos. I've never had such a powerful lesson teaching the law of chastity. When the lesson started, Carlos told us that he wasn’t sure if he wanted to get baptized anymore, because he wasn’t living all the commandments of God, and he wasn’t sure that he wanted to change what he was doing either.
Man, I've never felt the spirit help me so strongly, literally giving me the words to say. The words to testify. The same with my companion. And it is turned out being such a beautiful lesson. We testified of the promised blessings we receive from obeying this commandment, And how even if we don’t have the DESIRES to change, we do it anyways, asking God for help to "put off the natural man" (Mosiah 3:19) A scripture I love to share along with this is Alma 38:12, where it talks about how if we "bridle all our passions" our "days will be filled with love". This means that whatever weakness we have, as humans, could be problems with our love life, substance abuse, etc., are part of this natural man that we have inside of us. "Passions" that drive us away from God and His spirit. And where does that leave us. In a place more and more easily tempted by Satan. And i don’t know about you guys, but i don’t wanna be there. "Wickedness never was happiness" even though it may seem like short time happiness.
So what do we have to do? Bridle our passions. Think before we act. Follow the commandments of God. And DONT push your limits. The closer to the edge you get, the easier you can slip and fall. So don’t push it. Even if that desire inside you, or peer pressure, or whatever is telling you to do it,.... DONT. Cause guess what, the Lord has promised us a blessing... that our days will be filled with love. That we will be SO much happier following the commandments. And have so much more FREEDOM. And we will feel a higher self-worth and self-esteem. I also love the promise found in Alma 13:28 (Look it uppp) But anyways, back to Carlos, basically he walked out of that lesson with desires to changes. With an attitude of, it’s not gonna be easy, but I’m gonna try, and it’s gonna be worth it.
And he did it! He changed! It was such a testimony builder to me. It was so amazing to see Him use the Atonement of Jesus Christ, to rely on the Lord, and do everything to be ready for his baptism. He told us that he likes the way it feels to be in good terms with God.
So Friday night he was baptized! 4 of his 5 kids were able to come... and another investigator as well! We are now teaching his kids, they said that now they want their dad to baptize them! <3 Saturday Carlos invited us to have an ASADO at his house (seriously I think I’ve eaten enough meat in these past 9 months to last me for the rest of my life. Gonna go vegan after the mish. Madi and Eliza help me outtttttt! haha)
Sunday was incredible. The church was FULL. The highest attendance we've had in a long time. 39. Carlos bore his testimony. And it was so powerful. Afterwards, a member from the stake that was visiting came up to me and said, "It’s been about 15 years since I’ve heard a testimony from a convert that was THAT powerful. I see a future leader in him someday" wow. Just wow. Plus, Eugenia came to church!! FINALLY! She loved it. Wants to get baptized, and is already planning on going to institute and everything.
Man... it feels good to see the fruits of the labor sometimes. Helps me to keep going when things get rough. Yesterday was part of my 2% joy in the mission. And even though it was sad to leave, i felt like I completed what the Lord wanted me to do in Oncativo. And that’s all that matters. Leaving Oncativo better than we found it (:
Ok fam bam and friends! Love you all! Thank you for all the support and prayers!!
Love,
Hermana Mikolajcik
Oh ps, i was finally bit by a dog this week. Bout time.