Dec. 4, 2017

Hola every body! This week has been fantastic and full of miracles.

 We were able to baptize Naomi, Fernanda and Berenice on saturday and they were confirmed yesterday. We were pretty scared that the baptisms weren't going to go through because of certain circumstances but it all worked out. Berenice is 17 and I explained a little bit about her situation last week. Well, during the week we went to visit her and plan her baptism more. We also needed her mom's signature because she isn't 18 yet. When we asked her mom for permission to sign the baptismal record she said "I won't be singing anything" and was pretty upset that her daughter was going to be baptized. That alone was pretty frustrating because her mom was with us in every lesson and knew perfectly well that we were planning a baptism. She said that her daughter has no respect for her and is really rude and that she wouldn't be supporting her in this decision. (side note: we were in exchanges and I was with Elder Ceja) Well, Elder Ceja and I magically turned into family counselors and tried to work with them. The mom said she wanted her daughter to change and show her some respect. Berenice shared that she wanted to take this step because she wants to change and start over. She said she feels really good about what she is learning and wants to improve. She also said that whether she signed the form or not, she would continue going to church and trying to improve. That really impressed us and brought the spirit into the room. We testified with all of our hearts that baptism and following Jesus Christ is the only way to really make a definite lasting change in our lives. The appointment lasted about an hour and a half and was really intense, but the spirit was really strong. By the end of all of it, her mom signed the form and we could all breathe again. We always try to get her mom to pray but she always refuses, but this time we invited her to say the last prayer and she accepted. That alone was a shocker. We all knelt down and she said the prayer and by the end, she was crying. It was a really spiritual experience for all of us. A little intense, but spiritual.

Being a missionary has given me many opportunities to help people make changes in their lives. That night with Berenice I was able to strengthen my testimony even more about the power of Christ that can heal all problems. It is because of him that we can all leave behind our difficulties and challenges and be changed. All of us have many faults and shortcomings, but we have all been placed here to be redeemed. This is God's great plan of redemption and all we have to do is follow Jesus Christ. President Ezra Taft Benson said "When you choose to follow Jesus Christ, you choose to be changed."

Have a great week!

--
Elder May

Cool bottle someone gave me