We have a fecha (baptism date)! And a marriage! It is set for May 21st, so I am really excited about that! We could potentially have like a triple or quadruple wedding and that many baptisms. That is not looking too likely, but we will keep praying! We had about twenty appointments this week, maybe a little more, so that isn't too bad. The baptism on the 21st is this guy named Edgar. His mukuy is already a member so we won't need to baptize her. We will help them by taking them to the place where they have to take out all of the papers to be married, and maybe help them pay. This is a picture of the night that we committed Edgar to baptism and marriage:
During teaching we try to emphasize that the goal isn't baptism, but temple marriage and being sealed together as a family for eternity. As for members endowed (those who have been to the temple) there aren't too many. It is like a 10 hour journey to the temple, and the people are really poor.
Things are going okay with my new companion. He has been a lot better the last few days, he was just really serious before, but we have been joking around a lot more so it is going better. I think just his parents and one or two siblings are members of the Church. He worked a lot and lived alone from the time he was 14 to now, so he didn't have a chance to do a lot of studies. I think he is planning on studying after the mission.
The thing about Canlun, it is really hot, and really flat.
When I am studying and I have my fan on, I am still sweating buckets. Other than that everything is pretty good! There is really good member here, he jokes around with us and stuff. They eat a whole lot of qem ha´, which is water with a lump of dough in it. I don't enjoy it much, but we can buy food every p-day. Everyone is nice enough here, there are so many drunk people in our area though. Everyone wants money. I just talk to them and walk circles around them until they get too dizzy to talk to me. Elder Ellis taught it to me, it works so far! They leave us alone for the most part, it just is annoying when they don't.
My spiritual thought this week comes from my reading in Alma, when Captain Moroni was leading the Nephites. It is about their faith; they knew that the Lord would deliver them, and that really is amazing! I mean they were facing down an army, but they KNEW the Lord would deliver them! Alma 58:10-12 "Therefore we did pour out our souls in prayer to God, that he would strengthen us and deliver us out of the hands of our enemies, yea, and also give us strength that we might retain our cities, and our lands, and our possessions, for the support of our people. Yea, and it came to pass that the Lord our God did visit us with assurances that he would deliver us; yea, insomuch that he did speak peace to our souls, and did grant unto us great faith, and did cause us that we should hope for our deliverance in him. And we did take courage with our small force which we had received, and were fixed with a determination to conquer our enemies, and to maintain our lands, and our possessions, and our wives, and our children, and the cause of our liberty." I wish I had that kind of faith.
I think I will be able to make my Mother's Day call Saturday like at 5:00 our time? I am super hyped for that! I love all of you!
Love, Elder Toolson
Dear Joe, Continued prayers for you to get and remain healthy and well rested. I so enjoy your updates. You do have enormous faith, Joe. I see it in you, and how you handle challenges. Take care and God
ReplyDeletebless. - Diane Conom