"Wherefore We Labored Diligently Among Our People"

Buenas tardes everyone, it was another really productive week out here in Waller. Here's some of the highlights from this past week:

On Sunday night as we were out contacting, we stumbled across a group of five Hispanic men who were all very open to the message of the Gospel and English class. So we stayed and talked with them and they were really cool. They were good family men who work hard to provide for their families and they fed us carne asada which is where they throw tons of fajita, chicken, and salchicha(sausage) on the grill and serve it with a plethora of tortillas and salsa. After we ate we shared the message of the Restoration with them and they all liked it, so we are going to return whenever we're hungry. 

On Thursday Francisco had his baptismal interview and didn't pass. He explained to Elder Tidwell that he was paying a certain amount of money each month in order to pay off a debt to the bank. He said he would be able to pay his tithing when he finishes paying off the debt. So we explained the situation to the ward council and a couple members decided that they would help him budget his finances and help him with his light bill if he paid his tithing first. So we presented the plan to him yesterday and he accepted it without problem and is now good to go for his baptism on this upcoming Sunday! 

As well we started teaching Carlos, Yadira, and Carlos and it's gone really well. They are all really engaged in the lessons and have strong desires to receive answers to their questions. We are going to set a date with all three of them this week. 

We taught Deseret and Enrique this week a couple times and they still want to be baptized, which is a good thing. The only obstacle we can see is that their mom is trying to get papers so she can be here for the baptism. If she's not able to do that, then we will have to postpone the baptism until she arrives, which might end up being a good thing because she's not a member herself. 

On Thursday we stopped by a potential family named the Reyes and shared the why of the Book of Mormon with them and promised tons of blessings and they felt the Spirit and told us they would read. When we came back, they hadn't read, and didn't seem all that interested in learning more because they were celebrating the day of the Virgen Maria a little early, because that day is the 12th of December. 

But either way we are still on the lookout for even more people to teach and guide to the safety of the waters of baptism. In an area like this it is crucial that we receive member referrals and teach people in the homes of members. So we have been doing all we can to gain the trust of these fine members so that they can trust us with their friends. 

Something I've come to realize while I've been on my mission is how important it is to be persistent in persuading people to come unto Christ. Obviously I don't want to be overbearing when inviting others to learn about Christ, but at the same time, when someone opens their door, looks at us and says "No" without even hearing what we have to say, they need to be asked why. This is the most important message that anyone could ever hear, so it's our responsibility to make sure that they understand at least a little bit what they are rejecting and how we are only trying to help, not Bible-bash. I also came across a scripture in the Book of Jacob that drives this point home

7 Wherefore we labored diligently among our people, that we might persuade them to come unto Christ, and partake of the goodness of God, that they might enter into his rest, lest by any means he should swear in his wrath they should not enter in, as in the provocation in the days of temptation while the children of Israel were in the wilderness.

That's about it for this week. God bless you all. 

Elder Barrus