This week: 5 investigators at church, 6 progressing! It's so nice to see progress with our new investigators and a couple older ones. I just love all of these people so much, and I'm so excited to see them change their lives as they embrace the gospel!
Bella and Marilu - We found them a couple weeks ago. They are sisters - one of them lives upstairs and the other lives downstairs - but we knocked on their doors separately and had our first lessons with them separately. We saw them twice last week - they're Catholic but totally looking for more! Bella's husband is in jail right now for immigration reasons so she wasn't able to come to church, but Marilu came! She brought her husband (new investigator!) and her two little girls and one of her sons, Wilbur. They only made it for sacrament meeting, but it was so great to have a family there! The main speaker was the second counselor in the mission presidency, so he noticed when they walked in and totally pointed the family out in front of everyone. I wanted to die in my seat for them, but they didn't seem too uncomfortable with it. I think that's a culture thing. But their little girl with leukemia, Gisel, was singing along even though she doesn't even know how to read. It was the cutest thing I've ever seen.
Juan - Miracle at the VC! He's not our investigator - he's not even in our ward - but he just came to the temple to pray and they sent him to the Visitors' Center. He doesn't agree with anything in the Catholic church so he's been out of church for a long time. But he feels like he needs it again. We talked to him about the Restoration and then he watched the Joseph Smith movie. He already knows that Joseph Smith was a prophet and is so ready! It was amazing! I'm excited to hear more from the missionaries that are going to start teaching him!
Anabela - I love this woman so much. She is just so sweet. We met her through English classes, and she introduced us to all the people she lives with so they could hear the word of God. She still doesn't understand why we're different or why there's so many churches in the world, but she says that any good person that teaches and testifies of God is sent by God and given His power. So....that's been hard to work with. She's going back to Guatemala next month and she has a friend there who is a member, so we'll see if she gets it now or maybe later. Because I work in the VC, I can keep in touch with her after she leaves! She'll get it someday. I know it.
Marilu - We were about to drop Marilu and her 9-year-old daughter Atzidi, but then the elders ran into her as they were tracting in her area and so we went back Wednesday night. She prayed and she was just crying and crying. She still has a lot of doubts about religion, but she's looking. And she came to church! And Atzidi is pretty much ready to accept a baptism date. This week! We'll see what happens!
Luis - Hna Preciado is the best ward missionary ever. We're teaching four of her friends, including Marilu, and her nephew is staying with her until December so we added him as a new investigator after stopping by her house randomly one day. He's young and interested in learning - and he said he'll be baptized when he knows when it's true! He's seen the difference it has made in his aunt's life and he wants that! Members are SO important in this work!
Noemi - We stopped by and after talking to her for awhile, we found out that she was learning from the missionaries for THREE YEARS before without getting baptized! She knows Joseph Smith was a prophet, she knows that the Book of Mormon is true - it's crazy! So we're not sure why she stopped and what held her back. We'll work on that. She wanted to meet with missionaries again so she's definitely looking for something.
VC - We got 7 referrals on Wednesday and another 7 on Thursday. Miracles. Members are SO important! And Visitors' Centers are really inspired. I mean, really. Especially this one - everyone can see it and the Spirit prompts people to come here. They know that there's something here that they need. And even if they're not ready for it right then, it's the best seed planter in the world. Every fourth Sunday, there's a fireside called Porque Yo Creo where Spanish recent converts come and bear their testimonies for people learning about the gospel. A lot of the recent converts from our ward spoke and came over afterwards. I also saw a lot of people I've worked with on exchanges that are still investigating and just so many members that bring their friends to the VC to share the gospel. I am so grateful for their hard work, and I just felt so grateful this past Sunday for the opportunity to work with these wonderful people. They have such huge hearts. So many of them are converts to the church, and they have such strong testimonies. I am so inspired and strengthened by them.
The Lord is hastening His work, and EVERYONE needs to be a part of it. Everyone can share their testimonies. Every single person is a child of God, and every single person has trials. Every single person needs the peace of the gospel. One of the recent converts in our ward, Grisel, said that her husband left her shortly after she met the missionaries. Without the gospel and how everything happened, she wouldn't have the hope and the joy that she has right now. As missionaries, we don't know the needs of these people right off hand, but as their friends, you all do. They NEED you to share this message with them. Just do it - the Spirit will help you and your faith in Christ will grow.
Have a great week, full of missionary moments! I love you all!!!
Hermana Hunsaker
