Week 21 : ANOTHER Beer into the street! (Hermana Perry be CAREFUL!!!) (Sept 8)

Hola Hola!!

This was overall was great!! I have been exhausted since the hike last monday, but we had some great progress!!  On tuesday we went to the Temple and it was a much needed spiritual recharge :)

We had a major setback this week :P  Our best progressing investigator, Carlos, has a drinking problem and is trying soo hard to quit so we decided that we would fast with him so he could stop.  On saturday we stopped by in the morning and he was really excited to fast.  In the afternoon when we stopped by, he was nowhere to be found.  Not wanting to waste time, we went to another cita.  After that cita, we called him and the neighbor and he was still missing.  We went to another cita and then passed by his house again and he wasn't there, but his super Catholic brother was.  He said. "your little friend that you are trying to convert is drinking." So, without even discussing our plans, we started to walk to the bar.  When we got there, sure enough there he was.  When he saw us, his face dropped.  What happened next is kind of crazy and I still don't believe half of it myself.  I walked up to him and attempted to take the drink from his hand, but he hid it before I could.  I began to, not so calmly, to ask him what in the heck he was doing.  The big bottle of beer was sitting on the counter between him and his friend, so I grabbed it and began to pour in the street.  He wasn't so happy about it.  I kind of just let him have it after that... As my comp would say, I "released the crackin"... He got on his pasola and was trying to drive off when we left.  The next day we went back to talk to him and he told us that he crashed his pasola and ended up in the hospital and his pasola was gone.  He didn't remember that we had even been at the bar.  He was a mess.  What is worse is that he told us he is moving to the capital, so we won't get to teach him anymore :(  I don't know what God has planned for him, but I just hope and pray that he will find his stength to kick this bad habit. 

So this week we had two young men just explode.  One of the them, Angel, we have been working with for a while.  He didn't make a whole lot of progress in the beginning, but he has looked like a priesthood holder from the first day I met him.  We had a lesson with him about how he can get answers from his prayers and it was so powerful.  At the end of the lesson, we had a kneeling prayer and he asked if the church was true and it was awesome! He just shines.  And, HE CAME TO CHURCH!!  It was fast and testimony meeting, which is all the better.  After church we visited with him and he told us that he wanted to get up and bare his testimony, but he was scared.  AHH WHAT???? Soo Cool!!! We gave him a book of Mormon and his face was like a kid on Christmas.  He was sooo  excited to read it!! Ah this kid is steller!

The other young man is Carlos.  He has sat in a few lesson with one of our investigators, Karubi, but  we have never taught him, but last week he came to church with her so we thought, hey why not teach him.  So we started teaching him and he is awesome too!!! He goes to an Evangelico church because they give him a scholarship, but he said he would stop going to and lose his scholarship to come to church!!  He came this week again and was so awesome!! He participated more in class that anyone else and is sooo excited to learn.  We also gave him a book of Mormon and I thought he was going to cry he was so happy!  Ah he and Angel are going to be apostles one day.

I really learned this week that God has a plan for everyting, even if I don't see that plan right now.  I've witnessed how powerful Satan is, but yet how much more powerful God is.  I won't lie, the mission is hard, but it's WORTH IT.  I KNOW this is the true church of Jesus Christ.  I couldn't deny it even if I wanted to.  I love you all so much and thank you for your love and prayers.

Love, Hermana Perry