Dear Everyone,

 

This week was one of those `everyone run away from the missionaries´ weeks. It seems like we have a lot of friends in this area but few are actually interested in the Gospel and spiritual improvement. We´re working on it though. Yesterday we included courage and capacity to help this area improve in our fast. Things will come around. I have been studying `Our Heritage,´ a book summarizing Church History. I came to George Albert Smith and I wanted to learn more. In our house there happened to be one of those Sunday School manuals about him and his teachings, so I thought I would read that. Something really neat about George Albert smith is that he was only in his thirties when he was called as an apostle. In fact he had his third child two years into his ministry! Right after he was ordained, he said the following:

“I feel weak and lack judgment compared with men of maturer years, but my heart is right, and I desire sincerely the onward progress of the work of the Lord. … I have a living testimony of the divinity of this work; I know that the gospel has come to earth under the direction and guidance of the Lord himself, and that those chosen to preside were and are His servants in very deed. I desire and pray that I may live pure and humble, so that I may be entitled to the promptings and admonitions of the Spirit to guide me throughout my life.”¹⁹

 

I feel a lot like George Albert Smith. Most of the time I don´t really know what I am doing, and I feel like there are better missionaries that could do the work more effectively here. But they weren´t called to be in Miratejo A. I was. So I guess we´ll have to do with me! I know things will work out because the Lord´s gospel is true and He always does what He says He´ll do. He´s my best teammate!

 

Rita´s situation is very complicated. We have had way too many phone call conversations about her that I really have no desire to explain it again. But here it goes. This week Bruno was out of town, so it was just the girls on Friday afternoon. It was really good because Isabel felt a lot more willing to talk to us about what she´s been thinking. Isabel is worried that Rita won´t stick to her decision after baptism. We talked for awhile and then Tina (Bruno´s wife) commented that really the gospel is a family affair and that Isabel should consider baptism and living the laws of the Lord as well. We decided to read the first 8 verses of the book of Enos as an example of how she can receive answers to her personal prayers through the Holy Ghost. Then we all knelt down and Isabel prayed to know if the Book of Mormon and the things we had taught so far were true. It was a really positive experience! I hope that they can continue to get answers to prayers.

 

Well, I love you all. Thank you so much for your support.

 

Sister Derrick