“I’m floating”

Dearest family!

I hope your week has gone well. Happy Belated Birthday to Dad, Mom, Jesse, and Luke! oh, and Julie from last month :)  

We had a wonderful leadership training last Thursday! I took away so much and we are trying to put what we learned into practice. A Brother Watson and anther brother from the missionary department came to help out our mission in the areas that we needed it.  We focused on baptismal invitations, which included how to teach the Message of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ--it's not just a story about a boy who went into the woods to pray, it's about how the gospel of Jesus Christ which prophets have taught since the beggining is restored today. We also focused on planning and inviting people to pray and one or two other things. Oh, it was jam packed with awesomeness ;)

Eduardo was Confirmed yesterday! It was wonderful to see him complete that covenant. I asked him how he felt after sacrament meeting and he said, "floating, always floating" and we was. He used to be missing something now he's found it and he feels peace and calm. He's been awesome. Yesterday he even paid tithing for the first time! He wants so sincerely to follow the Lord. It's wonderful to see.

On Saturday we met and taught his brother, Martin. They room together, but Martin is seldom home because he has a girlfriend, etc. I hope that he will embrace the gospel as well. So far he hasn't expressed the same desire to know, so we'll see how it goes. He is willing to prepare himself to be baptized, though. And with the Lord, anything is possible :)

We're also working with a "dry mormon". His name is Hno. Cruz. He's the husband of a member and has been coming to church for at least seven years now consistantly. They have a set of twins who are almost 2 years old :) He's been taught many times but has just never entered those waters. We asked him why and he said that he doesn't really have any doubts right now, he's just not sure about it. So we focused on the Book of Mormon and getting answers and plan to continue to do so so that he can be sure. Thinking about it now I wonder if he has some doubts, but then I remember in Preach My Gospel where is says that all doubts really come down to whether Joseph Smith was a prophet and whether the Book of Mormon is true. I feel pretty confidant that this time he will enter those waters. We just have to depend on the spirit to guide us.

I read a talk the other day from conference by Elder Christofferson about repentance. I learned again how the call to repentance is an act of love. The Father calls us to repentance because He loves us and He wants us to be free of all the things that weigh us down. When we invite people to repent, we are also showing that same love because we know there's a better way to live--to live in Christ being free from the burden of sin. That makes me think of Oscar one of our recent converts. He had some trouble with the Word of Wisdom a long while back and met with the bishop back then and so he hasn't taken the sacrament in a very long time. He met with the bishop this week. He got to take the sacrament. And he's set to receive the melchezidek priesthood in July. He was so happy! The atonement works, it's real. The Gospel is real! and it has been restored to the earth once more in it's fulness. I love this work!

Have a wonderful week everyone!

Yours,

Hna. Cottam